The National Register. — London, England, 1809-07-09 00:00:00

442 There certainly are periods in which the sober remon strances of truth and reason are overpowered by the inis guilled impetuosity of party and prejudice. But it for tunately happens that intemperance of this nature is short in proportion to its violence, aad as' this abates, the public . ;Mud is again susceptible of argument and open to con- Niction.—lndeed it is but very rarely that it continues for auy lengthened period erroneous in its decisions, or false in itrjudgments, particularly when founded upon accurate in- . formation ; but removed as the greater part of that Public necessarily is from the source of real intelligence, we can not wonder at, however we may lament, -the facility with which the public feelings may be misled by the artful, and the hypocrital, or deceived by the more practiced. and bold imposter—lmpelled by operations of this nature, how often is it hurried into determinations opposite to . truth and candour, and carried away by delusions which time only can remove. • But. there is a generosity as well as justice belonging to the nation at large, which is not al ways to he found in individuals. When either by fair and temperate argument, or by a statement of facts, which were misconceived or misapprehended, they are pervaded they have been guilty of an injustice, or that their opinions have been without foundation, they are prompt to renounce them, to get rid of their misapprehensions, and finally, to turn their resentment against those who Piave been either the means or instruments of their delusion. We are led into this train of 'reflation by the extraordi nary circumstances which have developed the conduct of the principal parties concerned in the conspiracy against the DUKE of YORK. Modern times have seldom witnessed a stranger delusion than that which possessed the public mind with respect to the conduct of his Royal highness, who certainly paid a proper and respectful deference to the misapprehensions of the people, and very properly gave way to the voice of even popular clamour, and resigned his situation as Commander in Chief. The instigators and the instruments of this popular feeling have themselves ap peared at the awful bar of the public, not as the friendly associates in a conspiracy to destroy the reputation of another, but with a suicidal frenzy which has urged them to the entire destruction of their own. The conduct of public men is a sort of public property, into which we have a real not an imaginary right to inquire. Mr. WARDLE, almost a new character, without political con • nections, appeared in the House of Commons the public accuser of the Commander in Chief, the beloved son of a beloved Monarch. His charges were improba • Me, but the magnitude of his object and the bold ness of his pretensions would have saved him from contempt, although they might have involved him in infamy. The high situation, and certainly we may add the elevated character of the accused, gave a solemnity to the investigation, which it would not perhaps have acquired in any other place than the great Council of the Nation, assembled in its judicial capacity. To support these charges Mrs. CLARKE, a discarded mistress of the Duke, is produced as the principal, and indeed almost, (we say dimwit) the only witness—fur respecting Miss TAYLOR'S evidence there certainly cannot be two opinions. In the course of this enquiry, Mr. WARDLE rests all his pretensions upon the degree of credit due to Mrs. CLARKE, and assumes most distinctly the high merit of bringing it forward upon grounds purely patriotic and independent. It is now proved, distinctly proved, that in order to tring forward the evi dence of Mrs. Clarke, Mr. WARDLE descended to the em ployment of the most improper and unworthy means, ap hearing in the awful character of a public accuser, and, iii is judicial capacity, sitting in judgment upon his own ac cusation, supported by himsejt as an advocate. It now turns out that he fed and maintained this very witness, upon whose testimony the whole fabric of his accusation rested. The circumstance is too recent for us not to remember with $ t iedia•n•tion he repelled the accusation of an improper THE NkTIONAL REGISTER. intimacy with Mrs. CLARKE, in th.e House of Commons-- nor wilt the warmth be easily forgoiten with which he deli berately and ultroniously resisted the same imputation in his speech at the Crown and Anchor. Nov.: what turns gut to be the fact ?---that previous to the invesligatiou being brougllt forward, he was at the expence of parties of pleasure w, , fh this witness, whore he supported and maintained. That the object of these parties was to remove her from town,_ and to detach her from friends who might "persuade her not to give the evidence he tocnted against the Duke of York." It will not be out of our recollection, that when ques tioned in the House as to his visits to Mrs. CLARKE during. the period of the Investigation, he could not. remember whether he had seen her once, twice, or three times, a day or two preceding. We have now the evidence of Mrs. CLARKE " thathe was there daily and hourly, without invitation or notice, in every room of the house, from the kitchen to the garret." , It is now solemnly determined by a Jury, that he ex pended in one instance near two thousand pounds upon this witness just bcfori this enquiry ; and we have the evidence of Mrs. CLARKE that she was in return to assist him all she could in this business. What is the natural conclusion--the irresistible effect of this state of things ? This money, so expended upon Mrs. CLARKE b.y Mr. WARDLE was either given as a bribe for her evidenc;., or paid for her company. For no man will credit the mon strous absurdity that a person whose pockets do not ap pear to be panning over, paid, or promised these large. sums for nothing. It appears equally evident, from the manner in which these transactions were managed, that Mr. WARDLE was conscious of the impropriety of what he was about. In the House of Commons he denies his t con nexion ; at the tavern he deliberately contradicts it in these negotiations he studiously avoids appearing— nay more, he manages them in a circuitous manner, in order that if Mrs. CLaaar, is asked a particular question, she may be able to evade the truth, by an answer that in fact amounted to every thing but a palpable falsehood. Mr. Waantu haying obtained every thing upon which he calculated from the assistance of Mrs. CLARKE, and in deed a great deal , more than the fondest dreams of his. own ambition could st u is desirous of emancipating himself from the power or expence of her charms, and of again becoming " a good family mun." He therefore sets. about doing what has been often done by others who have climbed " young ambition's ladder ;" he would now kick down the means by which he rose. If we may judge from his letter to the " People of the United Kingdom," Mr. Wan- OLE is anxious to preserve the ephemeral popularity which he had acquired—hoiv inconsistent has been his conduct ! If his popularity was worth preserving, why suffer this atrocious business to be brought before a Jury ? We can readily believe that a man who has ways and means enough for his money, would be very glad to s et rid of a responsibility that was becoming serious. But what nuin of honour would attempt it in the way Mr. I‘. ..A RULE has done ? However he may dislike and disapprove of the conduct of the Duke of YORK, he seems, by an unaccount ab!e fatality, to make him the model of imitation. Is not this the very rock upon which the Duke was shipwrecked? VVhat man of prudence does not join in blaming the Duke, for mit paying even the unprincipled demaPds of Mrs. CLARK ? and will any man capable of estimating the va lue of that popularity which Mr. WARDLE has acquired by Mrs. CLARKE ' s assistance, say that it is not dog cheap at the price she,set upon it, even if the damninn• proofs of Mr. Wartimes liability had not appeared. But what unpre judiced man in his senses, will remain unconvinced by the internal evidence which this case affords. Mrs. CLARKE owed Wairovr 600/. She hires about 2001. of furniture to carry on her business ; and - thus cir cumstanced, without a guinea in her pocket, she becomes acquainted with the COLONEL. Is it to be believed that in such a stuation a respectable tradesman would risk any farther credit to 7ars. ( :LAII K ? Was Mr. WA RV r.r ii:•nortrit COLONEL WARDLE. 9. _ - _ _ .