1827. Posterity will view in very different light the public acts of
this remarkable townsman, when we consider that all the points of the
Great Charter, which he so strenuously advocated, and never failed to
bring to the front when occasion presented itself, have now, save one
or two divisions, been passed by succeeding Parliaments, and entered
upon the Statute Book of this country, as just and lawful measures to
be exercised by voters in sending "fit and proper men" to make laws
and administer the gigantic affairs and policy of this great country.
Mr. Samuel Cook's great sin was, "that he lived before his time;" his
great heart, and undying love of justice and fair play, made him a
leader amongst the people and a friend of the oppressed and friendless.
His Republican principles were based upon a well-informed insight
into the motives and actions of the governed and governing, and where
he overstepped the bounds of _what was considered proper decorum, and
enunciated political and social doctrines_, which were far in advance
of the times in which he lived, he followed the dictates of an honest
and earnest mind, burning to regenerate what he believed to be an
unnatural and vicious state of both political and social growth. Mr.
Cook was at times decidedly fanatical, headstrong, and ungovernable,
but he _held a reason for the faith_ which led him on at periods to
denounce, in unmeasured language, the perpetration of wrongs under
which society then laboured and groaned, and the oppression, and the
grinding down of the half-starved wretches who craved his protection
and claimed his care. It has often been urged that the unwise riots at
the Lye-Waste amongst the Nailers in 1827 led to the arrest and trial
of Mr. Cook at Worcester Assizes, on August 1st, 1827, "for falsely,
seditiously and maliciously writing and publishing in his shop window
at Dudley certain false, seditious, and scandalous libels, tending
to inflame the minds and alienate the affections of the people from
his majesty the King, and to excite them to traitorous insurrections
against the Government."
The fact of Mr. Cook being then an active advocate of the rights
of labour, and "a fair wage for a fair day's work," added to his
invincible courage in rooting out the oppression and injustice which
then tainted the nail trade under the manipulations of that detestable
"go-between" the Nail Fogger, made him an object of fear and dread to
the Nail Masters, whilst he became the idol of the Nailers, and a very
desirable person and agitator to be denounced, "shut up," and removed
from his chosen sphere of action; hence the persecution for the first
time of this remarkable and courageous townsman. Mr. Cook _was no paid
agent_, and what he did for upwards of thirty years was done from a
sure belief that it was his mission thus to oppose all oppression, and
assert the undeniable rights of man. He became a serious pecuniary
loser by these lengthened social and political proceedings, and died,
December 8th, 1861, at the ripe old age of 75 years.
Mr. Cook had a large host of genuine friends and admirers who had
viewed his arduous long-life labours with admiration and profound
regard. I need hardly say that Mr. Cook received no personal harm or
imprisonment for his supposed misdeeds, but was found "legally guilty"
and bound over to come and receive judgment _when required_, which
never occurred. He was ably defended by Mr. John Campbell, who was a
very rising man at the Bar, and eventually became the first M.P. for
Dudley. The public reception which awaited Mr. Cook on his return
from Worcester Assizes was of a most characteristic and demonstrative
description, for he was met near Stourbridge by a deputation with a
carriage and four grey horses, and from thence driven to old Dudley
amid a perfect ovation of men, women, and children of all classes.
A brass band discoursed sweet and patriotic music at the head of a
procession, said to number 40,000 people, who, ever and anon, continued
their welcome acclamations in honour of their triumphant friend,
patriot, and advocate. It will be a long time before we shall meet with
such another self-sacrificing life in Dudley.
* * * * *
October 3rd, 1861. The Dudley Rifle Corps up to this date had, under the
energetic management of our highly respected and talented townsman,
Captain Wainwright, acquired great proficiency; so the Mayor (Mr. C.
F. G. Clark) offered a handsome silver cup, value £8, to be shot for,
as an absolute prize, which was won by Corporal Devall, the successful
winner of the Beauchamp Cup a short time before, who made 18 points on
this occasion at the three ranges, securing three more points than in
his former shooting.