The National Register. — London, England, 1812-05-17 00:00:00

MAX' I 7._ The ever-to-be-lamented person, whose mortal career had been suddenly ended by the barbarous assassin now at the bar, was one of his earliest personal friends. He was a man whose whol e life was each as would have guarded him against the arm of. any other assassin titan the person now at the bar. He was a man whose arm was never lifted in hostility against any human being ; and, had the deadly blow which put an end to his existence given him time to breathe, his last breath would have been expended in a prayer to Heaven for the forgive ness of his murderer. As it was nut vengeance nor resentment for any injury received from the ever-to-be-lamented individual, which guided the arai of the assassin, he did not ask that the verdict of the Jury should be given in a spite of vengeance or resentment—he only asked, that they should take care, by their verdict, that the Public shall not be left open in future to such detested murders and assassination. [During this part of the Attorney-General's speech (which was deli vered with great pathos) the prisoner seemed to he greatly agitated—a momentary flush came into his countenance, which before was pallid and composed.] The Attorney-General then adverted to the prisoner's life and habits, and on the soundness of his mind in every transaction of his life, being selected by others to transact their business, as well as manifesting and exercising a complete knowledge of his own. He went some years ago into Russia, from a house in Liverpool, and there, whether by his con duct, or misconduct, lie could not say, he was imprisoned, on which occasion he applied for redress to Lord G. L. Gower and Nit.. Shairpe ; but they could not interfere with the Government there, and he after wards returned here, and went into business, and found persons to join him, and employ him at Liverpool, as well to manage kis own, as to con duct their atiairs. Then he took it into his head that he was entitled to remuneration, and sought it from Government here. But no f.a n da Con being established that could warrant their consideration of him, his claim was rejected.—He then endeavoured to appeal to Parliame:d, but no person could be found who would undertake the task, conceiving that he had not the least claim or right to any relief from Parlament.— He then applied to Air. Perceval himself, who found that he had not just ground of complaint, and of course resisted his suit. From that moment the desire of revenge arose in his mind, and murder was the crime he re,oived on. He has been resi:lent in this city for four months, and the whole of that Only ha , 1> yen occupied it: hitelf for the horrid act. Ile informed himself of the time when Mr. Perceval was in the habit of going to the House of Qommons, he provided him self with pistols, balls, and ammunition, and even had an alteratieu made in his dress, by the addition of a pocket extraordinary to contain one of the pistols so provided. He placed himself in such a situation as was best calculated not only to commit the crime that he had in view, but also to elude the probability of prevention ; for he took his• situa tion immediately within the outer door of the. lobby of the House of Commons, a spot precisely situated to meet every Member as he came in, and perpetrate the deed without interruption. You will hear from the witnesses. the, ar-_-Junt of this tragical event. --=they will detail the of this murder. Is he, or is hr no:, guilty of the bore id assassirration, is the ~imple question for the Jury, ' a:;d on that you will decide ? In adverting here to the bloody deed, the Attorney-General noticed the manner in which the' prisoner con ducted himself to show that he was always ciimpos irientis, and com pletely so at the time lie canoe fitted the foul murder. From these topics the Learned Gantlemau adverted to the wicked machinations in courriv ing and planning the crime. He then appealed to the good sense of the Jury to say whether, because the whole tenor of a man's life was per fectly rational; that it could only be irrational when the atrociousne,s of the act was such as to indictee men to think that nothing but a mad man would or could commit it ? This he maintained should not he con cluded. Suppose that it had pleased God, fur the sake of the large fa mily which Mr. Perceval had ;eft, and for the sake of the country, to snatch off the man in the very moment of lifting his hand to commit the Murder—let one suppose that on the same morning he had made his will, that his reprezentatives had tried to set aside the will on the plea ot insanity, and adduced the attempt and contrivances he had made, as the proof of it—would it be said, having in every other respect strewn himself a rational man, that this being the only irrational act, it should therefore be esteemed sufficient evidence of his having no mind ? Be cause he had done this one act, which was an act of madness, was it to be inferred that he was deranged, merely because he had committed so atrocious a deed, that no one else would have committed it. If so, then the consequence would be, that the magnitude of crime would be an apology for it. The Learned Gentleman then stated the law of the case, as it applied to sane and insane persons, clearly demonstrating that the cognizance of right and wrong was that alone which the law re garded as the criterion by which it considered persons responsible to the law tor their acts, distinguishing between criminal and civil incapacity: and this reasoning he applied to the prisoner; adding, that a man may be incapable of managing his own affairs—that it may even be deemed !xpadint to deprive h;rn of the power of managing them—yet that man 1$ not tht ruby discharged from his criminal acts. He said this on the _ , author'zy of the first sages who had written on criminal law, and who laid it down, that a man, though incapable of conducting Isis civil aflairs, is criminally resgonsible, if he has a mind capable of distinguishing between right anti wrong. The re had been cases, two Of which, as the most prominent, he should notice. The first was that of Mr. Arnold, for the attempt to murder Lord On- 31i slow, in 1729. The defence set up was, that Arnold *as out of his mind, and several witnesses proved that he was to a cettain extent Incapable even from his childhood, every act of his life sho*hig a de& ciency of understanding, and that he was not capable of managing either other people's affairs or his own. But It was proved that he had taken up a causeless resentment against Lord Onslow, had made preparations for the deed, and it was held -by the Judge, that notwithstanding his deficient understanding, if he was capable of distinguishing between right and wrong, he was clearly answerable. The Jury found !tint guilty, and he was executed. The other case was that of Lord F,rrars, tor the murder of his Steward. He had taken up an unfounded suspi cion against him , and had resolved upon putting the unfortunate man to instant death. - le made preparations, sent for him to his liouse, put every other person out of the way, took him into a private room, and shot him. It was proved that he was frequently insane, that many of his relations had died insane, that his Solicitor was so convinced of his insanity, that he refused to act for him. Medical men swore be r: as insane, his relations declared that they would have taken out a commis sion of lunacy, but were afraid of their motives being misrepresented. His Peers—all the Peers of the kingdom—declared, with one consistent voice, that he was guilty, and he was executed. These cases the Attor ney-General applied to the present, maintaining, that if even insanity in all his other acts had been manifest, yet the systematic correctness with which the prisoher contrived the murder of Mr. Perceval, showed a mind, at the time, capable of distinguishing between right and wrong. Here there was no deficiency, as in the cases he had cited, and, there fore, he must insist, that if the Jury thought with him, they must find a verdict of Guilty. He concluded, by expressing his satisfaction that this was an act not connected with any other person, but confined s,.;it:iy to the prisoner at the bar. THE NATIONAL REGISTER. EVIDENCE. Mr. William Smith examined by Mr. GARROW, said, he Was a Mem.. her of Parliament, and on Monday last, the 11th of May, he attended his duty at shat place, about five o'clock in the evening ; whilst passing along the lobby of the House he stopped to converse with a Oentlemad of his acquaintance. While in conversation with him be heard the re port of a pistol, which appeared to him to have been fired from the door which to the lobby; at that door by which Members must pass to untcr the irecrier Douse of Commons. Or. hearing the report he turned his face towards the place whence the sound issued, and observed a tumult, occasioned by aboueten or twelve persons assembled at the door. Almost at the same instant he perceived a person rushing beefily Irons among the crowd, and several persons called out " Shut the deor, he no one escape." The person who issued from the crowd came towards him, looking first one way, and then another, as though lit war a nian why sought shelter, rather than as one who had received a wound. But upon his taking a few steps more towards the witness he reeled, and ft ;t with his face downwards, but before he fell he uttered an indistinct cry, in which was the word" Murder !" or something like it. Wiwi: he lirst fell, the WittICES thought he might be only slightly wounded, and expect ed to see him make an effort to rise, but gazing a few moment, o i him Sc observed that he did not stir, and he immediately stooped down ante raised him from the gepund. He requested the aid of a geetierrete beside him for that purpose; so soon as they turned his face upwards he per ceived, and not till then, that the person was Mr. Spencer PercevaL l'hey took him in their arms, one on the right side and the other on the left, and carried him into the Office which belongs to the Speaker of the House of Commons's Secretary. They seated him on the table, and seipported him on each side in a reclining posture. By this time his face was completely pale, and blood was issuing in a small quemity from each side of his mouth ; though, as he then thought, not more thau five minutes had elapsed from the time the pistol was fired, yet nu signs of life were remaining. His eyes were open, but he did not appear to know the witness, nor take notice of any person around hint, nor had he uttered an articulate sound from the moment he fell. A few conv Alive sobs, with scarcely any perceptible pulse, were the only si,nie Of life re. maining, and these continued only a few minutes. The wiLless Felt his pulse for the last time, a few moments before the arrival of Alt-. Lynn, the surgeon, when it appeared to bird to have totally ceased. lie re mained in the same situation with the body until it was carried into the Speaker's hoive—was incapable of giving any account of what liappent d in the lobby respecting the conduct of the prisoner at the Bar. Mr. Perceval still remained in his arms whilst Mr. Lynn examined the wound, at which time the body had not been moved at all. He saw the wound from which the hood issued in a very small quantity. The wound was a little above the left nipple, and the orifice appeared to be large, and to have been made by a pistol-ball When the surgeon probed the wound, the ball appeared to have slanted downwards; the ball had penetrated the cavity of the breast, fur the probe touched not the bone. Nir. Perceval was of rather a low stature. Freni various circumstaeces upon his mind, that fatal event must have hapteend soinewistre between five o'clock and a quarter past it, at the customary hour when a person in Mr. Perceval's situation would he expected at the House. He un derstood that the Gentleman's name wko assistc:d hint to carry Mr. Pereeval into the house was Phillips. Mr. Lynn was next called, and examined by Mr. KNAPP. He said, he was a surgeon, and resided in Great George-street, \Vest %Mee ster. On last Monday evening, a few minutes aster fiv«i'eleck, was called to the House of Commons, where, on pa,siog thre sett lobby, he entered the Secre•ei y's route, atid there found Alr 1 tee - •