"The authorities dare not see this case come before a jury," she continued, "because they knew perfectly well that if it were heard before a jury of our countrymen we should be acquitted, just as John Burns was acquitted years ago for taking action far more serious, far more dangerous to the public peace than anything we have done. Yes, I say they are afraid of sending us before a jury, and I am quite sure that this will be obvious to the public, and that the Government will suffer from the underhand, the unworthy and the disgraceful subterfuge by which they have removed this case to what we can only call a Star Chamber of the twentieth century. Yes, this is a Star Chamber.... We are deprived of trial by jury. We are also deprived of the right of appeal against the magistrate's decision. Very, very carefully has this procedure been thought out; very, very cunningly has it been thought to hedge us in on every side, and to deprive us of our rights in the matter! Though we are rendered liable to six months' imprisonment, we are yet denied the privileges in making our defence that people liable to three months' imprisonment enjoy. We shall be told in the House of Commons no doubt--we have been told the same thing before now--that we are only bound over, we need not go to prison, if we go to prison we have only ourselves to thank.... If the case is decided against us, if we are called upon to be bound over, it must be remembered that that amounts to imprisoning us, and that therefore the authorities cannot possibly escape their responsibility in sending us to prison by saying that we could be at liberty if we liked. Magna Charta has been practically torn up by the present Government.... We consider that it is not we who ought to be in the dock to-day, but the people who are responsible for such a monstrous state of affairs." Then she went on to deal with the reasons for issuing the bill: "We do not deny at all that we issued this bill; none of us three have wished to deny responsibility. We did issue the bill; we did cause it to be circulated; we did put upon it the words 'Come and help the Suffragettes to rush the House of Commons.' For these words we do not apologise.... It is very well known that we took this action in order to press forward a claim, which, according to the British Constitution, we are well entitled to make. After all, we are seeking only to enforce the observance of the law of the land that taxation and representation must go together, and that one who obeys the laws must have a share in making them. Therefore, when we claim the Parliamentary vote, we are asking the Government to abandon the illegal practice of denying representation to those who have a perfect right to it."