The Statesman. — London, England, 1809-12-06 00:00:00

, . • - • - rt . public., mad that it was the undoubted right of that Court t 4• demand it. Stitt it was duly to weigh the.discreet exercise of that right. In his opinion that discretion !Arnold iodate them to stopend their interference, until they meertained the can dui t of their Parliamentary Representatives upon that area ....le Upon that v iew be should give his vote for the previous qaeaion. Mr. Alderman COMBS deprecated the idea of declining to adopt the proposed Itemlotion of Ids Worthy lerieud epos the floor, from any idea that Parliament would hike up the biliiriess alluded to, and institute the iiivestigation required. Fur himself he would say, that he could not trust Parliament upon the subject. Ile reenliected too many iistances of a similar nature, where Pariiament neglected, or rather re fined to do its duty—to justify him in exposing that Übst. Toe afairs of Dunkirk, of the Helder, of Canna, and Constantinople (observed Mr. S. I)ixon). True, 'said the Worthy Alderman, - and of Copenhagen also, bat stilt more of Spain, beet fresh in the memory of the public,and in each • of these Parliament declined doing its duty—stifled sae sup-I premed investigation. Wby then should confidence in such'a Parliament impede the proceedings of that Caen ? Parliament . might inquire hi ronsespoence of the Ressiution of that Court, and without that Resolution it might not—Nay. he thought tie* the rejection of the proposed Resolution would serve to encoarage hlinisters, who were always will -to screen their partisans, to re•ist inquiry upon the wanda lons transaction alluded to, and therefore he would sup port the original motion. It was observed, that thi4 was uot the proper time fur the motion—certainly that obeervation was in a great degree just, for some weeks back *sold have been a much more proper time. Indeed this Resolution ought to have hems liromzlit forward on the :141 or 4th of Sep tember last—the moment af..r the first intelligence -was re ceived of the failure of the unfortunate Expedition to which It referred. But even saw it was not tiro late to spew to the Parliament how the people felt up et 'eel' an low, tam sub ject, and that feeling could mot be too strongly expressed. If it wore not so expressed, it was not likely to he unavailing. Far be was happy to witite-s Cie arrival of the day which he had so often wished, when the feeliag of the people hail Viet due weight which it was always entitled to claim. The petiole of Eng mid were no Imager to be trifled with. Mr. W Atilt \ replied to the several ohjortilios merle so his Motion in a train of forcible arguasem. He cuutended that all the ribsetivatiom which the Coon had heard from the advocates far the previous question, bore in favour of his :nodose The Rill of Rights which Gentlenwo ought to read every day, woe, in his opinion, a dad letter, if his sanely. were to be witisstifod upon the grouts& stated. For what was tbe rij;it of itilingt, if the roil!, to whom !hat .right belonged, were not at liberty to inform his Majesty as to the actual sifitition of the ennntry ; if they were pre cluded frame stating to him that be was surrounded by im proper persona , that be win acting under injutlician coup telort ? But, trending to the fastidious delicacy of some ficatienies, his Majesty ought ant to be iuforated that he wai connected ietth (*bailers arid prize-fighters. lie s•abinitted to the common tense of the Onset and the Public, whether 'deb a doctrine nay to b• endared—obither the **nag of the Kitm one of the People, could maintain -Itch a doctrine, and he fruited that it would never be adinnt 11 by •*:te country. As to the time at•Whielt this propositiou was tirnueht forward, be was ready to admit that a better time tight bate berm chosen: but thik was in hr itectionted for of on the ground. be ,had vented inlifsohjectionsio the Julii• Its. He sleicribeil ;hat risekotre m a foul trick ou the pail 'of Millimerson dense's-the comemplatioo.ufnbeir faiM:oodot, aid they bn a ti secret-3rd in part a that secetea, linirescr, Was and short-linsi. Ile had pledged himself to britukthis buiiness under considelatiun, and hr toed redilleused teb pledre, —but what 163111 the coodp e ct of ether men isteo pledger? stmt malty oitasigmw he had ssbmitted to. tit! Couhipropositinos sinsilat to I 1 pewees, and be remembered I grorapd of nepumiiim hasrug heeistaltep similar to that hew &fleapit& lie recollected particularly lathe case of the Ls ped taunt a the Ileldrr,t,he, hepeoposed tmaddretCtas pftydiliCe all inqUif : y mi that aGeliticiaan Os /Ail the Court pledg ed hi mse lf, that if Pat liaiiient did not inatilitte an inquiry, A be "mid tau l seff propose such an nii,Jrc,st but Cron tijnt boor , to Ibis the 'pledge semaiard 'rind emi.d. This insture 'he thought it proper to quote, in or ter to thew the d' roe' of reliance wbtch was due it such pledges.' tisstet l the Cant would not sorer to be 'deluded by any es 'Willits of this mature. 'nit consulting its own dignity, anal the respect Ii owed to it.. (onstittseuts, would leterniine to do what was right, without %ailing upon the discretion or looking for a preteirst from any assembly whateber. If any Member of ' Parliament was willing to take op titiSspiett inn, and propose Inquiry, such a )lesolser would of course be enosioraged by 'this Resolution of that Court, while neck eßisolusioh %veld serve to discourage the opponents of se!h a Resolution. With that view al..ce, if an ether, he would support this Revela tion; and be teemed tit Coact would not allow itself to be withdraa ai from the performance of in dlttY Ilty any of the Clusive promises or pledges which bad been offered In the marten of the diseassitrat. Some olservations, which were not distinctly beard, in coe • leeway. of a comitlerable noise blew the bar, having been inotie,•hat Mr. Jocks bad acted ;woo the Johlilee m a tool of Adosiuistratioo ; Mr. JACK rose to vindicate himself, mad sliohe to the &IMO% effect At no period of my life have I had a correvoadesee with anyMensber &Administra tion, nor have I ester had a political conversation with Any person whom I know or saspected so be la the inussediate servioe of thin, the last, or sap termer Admialsti adroit. 1 can cooniemiossly declare, that I am as independent of the Ad miuistratioo a Worthy !Wernher (Kr. Waittlecan), and that MY only motive b reeking to preserve the rights and prerogative of the Crewe, was the same as at a %Omer pe riod, when I deemed it right le advemsse the l/6011101411•11111. Pen . w . The qaestims was hem goodly egged for, and the Cops... glided. The meabors mew as follms • Fmk Abe r' Qnssmom...• • , . r Aldermen 4.1.66 'Meet ....um • 2 Casmsonsse. • • • *- 63 . •-•14 Agahot•tho proviso Quertisso— Lord Mayer. . . I ANlemsso 4 Commoners .77 • !I Major A divisiao than 04 rlii 011.01 jK favour of 4 Loa Mayor. J 5..,.........• 1 Ahern r IP' cessiseeers '6141P Against il— Aldermen . 3 * Cot poptsrs ...._ Uniatii i 3 1 ' It ifeirjieledeqi p? spptit * comisitte, ci i i 4,4 f ig a t a n ;be .I,kieraten proem, and' Copeasetielird tr:Vli ..irltrd, L., to prepares* Addrest to his returnee, presented 1114 y. Who, accordingly , retired ; and hei r* a Draft of on Address, which wnsoesd ss4 weed to, and a:dercd to be predated to his Stkiesty. COrEN7' 9.411 DEN. CLIFFORD, Esia. r. BRANDON. COURT OF comatos PLEAs, Tuesday, December 11. The interest excited, by the expectation of this tri.tl, so important to the Liberty of the Sabjecl, 1 attracted a great Concourse of people in West.. minster Halt s at an early hour yesterday morning. About a quarter past ten o'clock Sir JisiEs NIAmertELD, the Chief Justice, appeared on the Bench, when the names of thu peciol Jury were called over ;lint, of the numbei summoned only live appearing, the places of the absentees were Opfilied from the Common Jury. p6R.v. !STEPHEN rflT, Church-sirret, Remingto.t, Esq. EIDWARO JENNINGS, Young-street, ditto, Esq. WILLIAM DAY, Week (irree, Eq. (ILORGE SCOTT, tipper Ma, Hammersmith. Esq. THOMAS ROGIaItS • York Building% Esq. me abase were the oily fire of the Special Jury. THOMAS GREENWAY,! .RICHARD NORTIN, GEOROE READER, JOHN SEYMOUR, THOMAS RYAN. WILLIAM BESt, MARK COOK, Taks Men from the Cutn nano P.uutei. Mr. Rummtwarow opened the pleadings. The declaration stated, that thi Plaintiff had been assaulted at the public Theatre by the Dc. fendanty.sioanes Braittlos; had been seized by his directions, and afterwards imprisoned ; but, on going before the Magistrate, was subsequently berated. To this the Defendant had pleaded, first, the general issue, not guilty—and next, seven pleas of justification. The substance of these pleas was, that the Defendaut was a servant at Covent Garden Theatre, the Proprietors of nkich had a licence to perform Tragedies, Operas, 'Plays, and Farces—and to take, and receive, reasonable sums of money, for atfutissioti, fur the same. That the Plaintiff had made a great noise, and tumult, in the 'Theatre, to compel the Pro prietors to lower their prices of admission, which ? e si es bad i before been compelled to advance, in • uence of the burning of the Theatre, &e. I—wherefore, the Defendant directed Sangre[ raunton, to take the Plaintiff into custody ; and Oast he look him heroic Mr. Read,uuc of the Ma rtrates sitting at Boss-street. The second plea jitstification wits similar to the - first, except, that ,it charged the Di fendant with having instighteti the riot. The third and fourth pleas wese he, with the addition of stating it to be the Mt:n itwits, not only to oppose the prices, - but generally lb oppose the Managers and Proprietors. The ruh, sixth, and seventh, were nearly) alsoilanr. these picas, there was the usual rep 'eationa Mr.Serjeatit ILIEss said', his Learlicii Friedil:flati avowl the pleadings so judiciously, that he should. imnsediatcly' procted to state the facts of his Stain case, 6f the issue of nhieli lie bad no devilst. The only question fur the Jury would be, asprelien.:ed, the Traub: m of the damage •• • . stotaine by the Plaintiff. It ars, perhaps, to imilltilykoown, as to render it almost tomeees. Ofirie him to state, that the Plaintiff was' sit Wastlemati of •tho law, Mid although of a verj epiktent and noble family, he was more distils. vilified. by the urbanity of his manners, !he vivo. dour of his talents. and the veal vitent of sib ' kisoWledge, titan even by the splend , ur and re fi_peet-thility of ,descent, connexions, and fortune. The Defendant held sums sort of situation, which If was not very easy, or perbvs possibie, to de ,cribe,unier the Proprietors and Managers of Cu mil-Garden Theatre, who, it perhaps, ivied be proper, in the course of the cause, to consider as the real Defendants, for such in point of fact they were. The Plaintiff complained, and with great reason, of having suffered a most outrageous as. sank on s ets person, and, of bavijg suffered great indignity and insult, in being carried before a Magistrate at Bow-street, by whom he was, how. ever, discharged, on hearing what the Jury could not hare the satisfaction of hearing, Mr. Bran don's charge. The answer to this serious charge .aganist the Defendant was, by one still more se rious; and such as certainly he should shew, by undisputable evidence, was utterly destitute of truth. There had been, as was asserted, a riot in the Thritre s.. in which riot the Plaintiff was must falsely accused of being concerned ; and that was the reason assigned by the Defendant for the as. sail!, and itnprisonment of the Plaintiff, trr to use their own language, of bringing hist to jai). ties. Here the Learned Scrjeant observed, that before he entered iniutitaly into the merits of the case, he felt it incumbent on himself to state, that he should feel it to be degrading to his rank and situation in society, were hu to contend, that the illegal conduct of the Proprietors and Mapagen of the Theatre, could justify an endeavour to ob. lain redress by rioting, that is, by force and vie. 'mace. The Proprietors might be guilty of ezttp. tioa, but that he certainly admitted would isnaify riot. The pleas which had been put.ias :were - very comprehenslro in their juvotificittioit r ithi . if in all their part', they should bc supportetrtia the satisfaction of the Jury, they would be an:4Bw ewer to this action. But it would be a lamentabli restilt t if, instead of proving those pleas, it should -turn out, that the riot, if any there was, could by. no possibility be imputed to any cause Des! to the Managers ; who, by their conduct had larovnked the indignation of the Public. If they should enter minutely into the circumstances, on which they had pretended to ground their jumilication,be should be a:W.6n allow, to the satisfaction of the Jury, thitt the-riot, if any such there were, originated with the stage, and nut with the audieece ; who were acting inure, much more, within the pale of the taw, than the Managers.—" What, Gentlemen," said the Learned Serjcsnt, 44 I here undertake, and unequivocally pledge Myst-if to shew you." In considering the quantum of damages, it was highly important, to consider, the conduct of the Managers, for, if it should turn out that there was no riot—or, that there being such, the Plain. till had not the smallest participation in the tn. mult, the conduct of the Managers, mast appear, under circumstances of great aggravation; sot( nu damages could be too great. But, he was sorry to say ) that the moderation of kis Learned Friend STATlM;Aiev.iic ADDRESS. • 9'4 1 ' ' •-_ - • _ • • (I he Ptiiintilf), had Win talbst‘lllifit-orillrisipsiii .k ie to `Me treat dalattwl 144-u ladllosiodeilt - '-•kees *sin inind.,%zradit *as .1101-daikicy by which he had regulated kielebitsl*tielietitig to avoid, even the possibility of"ies~ii 'Oat Ise 'came into that Court seteet the aisiwidf Makinkiel profit of the -Defendettetw-he had .unty:feld hie .da. maps at 1001. -which. - Welj conbegirently,,•thilill extent of what he cont.! recover• of tit ifiloaftess which the Jury, by their verdict, might give iska; nut one farthing would ever find its way .idtd.hile pocket. Whatever his Learned Frioud the Plaim. tiff, might recover, the whole of it, avut.ld be ap. plied to the roserlion of the iojtYred rizhts of the public..." that," said the Learned Serjeant, ") I have his authority for saying." The Address of the Proprietors, which appeared in the Public Print., previous to the opening of the Theatre, he apprehended, the Jury had read as, however, it was an important document, he should read it to them, as perhaps it might not be entirely in their recollection. The Learned Serjemit then read the Address, commenting on the several passages as he pro ceeded " Oa the late calansitors destruction of their property, the " Proprietors, encouraged by the renurnbrunce of former pt. •" tronage," You will Brion see ► Gentlemen, what return the Proprietors made for this acknowledged patronage of the public-- •• instantly and cheerfully applied themselves to the erection " of a new Theatre, solicitous only that, without enlarging " the =idlest* part of the edifice, it might afford the Pebtie " insproved occommodestion and security, and at the %tate " time present an additional ornament to the Metropolis of " the British Empire." With respect to the accommodation of the public, if any of you Gentlemen have been at this accom modating Theatre, you are perhaps - able !o judge, of the correctness of this assertion. What the Proprietors might mean, by the public, it is nut ciisy to (Urine. By the public, I, du out under stand, those only who from profuseness, ostenta tion, fastidiousness, or profligacy, think it worth while to spend 4001. per annum, on a Private Box. By the public, l Mean, the great body of the people. Gentlemen, I may, I trust, be here permitted, to speak in my own person. 1 have been in the Two Shillings Gallery of this splendid and accommoda ting Theatre, in which, the publie,", are so well accommodated, that iii the back toe stage can scarcely be seen, without the asiistance of a telescope. This,- Gentlemen, is accommodation ! I have also two present, at one of these alleged riote;.l; Gentlemen, am of a nervous habit, and :therefore, cannot be supposed to be less liable to apprehension thou others ; but I declare; that I never felt the least- personal fear of danger from what was passing. That there was noise, .1 can testify ; and my Learned Friends on the other slide may, if they cliquse, call sue as allarridettee, but from what 1 saws., the people appeared amidst their etpressions -of disapprobation to be perfectly harmless. • " Tbis, their now anzior wish, they Utter themselves, A' they have solidly effected, not truly within the short bare 4 : of Motmoottri from the. lay in of the foundat iota, bid usvltr. ." tae etiormoaily expensive iti,:utvaatao of ciresallswes " singularly unfavourable to hailding." The solidity of the building, I am not disposed to question ; and indeed, if the massive pillars in &ow-street be admitted as the criterion of general solidity, the structure is, in that respect, most un exceptionable. " When It Fs known that no less a sum than one hundred awl fifty thousand pounds has hems expended in order to render this Theatre worth) of British Spectators, and of Viz Genf us of their Native Poets; when, in this uudertak lag, the inevitable accumulation of, at least. a sixfold ten tage Is positively stated to be incurred; and when, in midi tioo to these pressing inessibrances, the increased and ra pidly Increasing prices ofevery article indispensable to dra matic representations come to be consiiered, the Proprie tors perauade th-nmelves, that in their proposed regulation they shall be honoured with the concurrence of an enlight ened and liberal Public.—Sept. 11, 1809." Such was the appeal that had bean made by the Proprietors to the Public. lie called it appeal, for in what other sense, could that paper be under stood ? It was literally an appeal to the Public, fur their Apprtrlntiou ; and it must be taken for gnawed, that lie, to whom the power of approving is conceded, has unquestionably, by inference, the power of disapproving. If the Proprietors did not mean that, what, in the name of God, did they mean ? Did they mean to insult the Public with the mockery of submitting their pretensions to the tribunal of public opinion, which opinion, when publicly expressed, they affected to term a riot ! ? They were, indeed, insulting the Public, and that, on more than one point. They had said, that they had expended 100,0001. more that% had beet received, is a remuneration for their kiss. This, they had stsigited as one' reason for the ad. 'lmey of she'priees ; while, at the ,'ory same mu. mutt, they knew that they acre deriving a certain net rerelive or 12;0ool. • per atuttfm Hum the Pri raielidata;-. This, if they could but carry their scheme into eiectition, would be more .then tight per cent.. 46 *Wit refute expenditure ! Thus, by the pissfitsur the Private timacs alone , • confuJing, every argument which could he oulduCed in favour 4 ur advancing the prices. On the appeal Which -had been made by tile address to the Public, the, ylerioat who ilskwn6led, on the opening of the The. etre, had -exPresseJ their disapprobation, and that on two points—the increase of prices, and the private biters. 'Now, if the present Proprietors ever had a patent, he would assert that such patent had become forfeited by these acts. A patent, which secured a monopoly, and expressly with a view to the advantage of the Pubtl, necessarily implied that reasonable prices only Shonid be acted from the Public; and• it. indispn tably, incumbent on such Patentees to . thew• that their prim' ere reasonable. In making this eb. servation, he was perfectly aware of the refe rence that had been made to (Alain Gentlemen of high honour and respectability. He had the happiness to know some of them, and sorry he Wig that they had been' induced to make 'that re port ; " fur when I find," said the Learned ! 1 :r. jesot, " that an investigation, and decision, of •-•norv. t ~ .. ~. -a •: 44 Tottoninouvotsconoto i ,or twenty yeti , * standing, 64 are-made in two or thrOVdnys, I ant- soweiticed 14 that those honourable diameters must save beea " iv:pelted uptiscft- He colds' not,lherrfors but deeply lament, that they should here seat such a tpaper into eheirotid, under - IRO cireemstanees. But he hoped ibiliP trusted, that he should be able to go through - me in,efestigatioei, and that .more fully ; and a s hen 'revers . "' -'• tried over again, k.would , l*seett; whethet i effeliecounts that hail been lnitb. fished, *ere not in6ilid. On the subject eft the Private - Box is,. it 'lea not a litde digit/aft I to speak - with tempeK The conduct •of the Manageri:'• in that respect, was certainly Most reprehenelble. Was it even decent, that • BritisteTheatre, delegated to the Proprietors for thel'lne Jed accommodation of the Public, should contain Private Boxes? Was there to be found 1 1 any man who could defend them ? It had ever heen admitted as the established, and recognised 9 custom. in English Theatres, that every man who goes eith money, in his pocket, has a right of general admission : and he who goes first, to a place of public entertainaient, had an unquestion able right to the best place. What right had the Managers to say, " ibis Box is constantly re. ic served fur a particular individual, for somebody e. connected with my Lord A. or my Lord B. ?" When the Patent was granted, it was not so granted, for the particular, and privileged accom modation, of either rank, or wealth. The mo storey was granted, fur the benefit of the public at large, and, because, it was judged that the !granting of such monopoly would enable the Pa. tentees, to provide accommodation for the public at large, superior to what could at tr at day, be possibly effected, were general competition ad mitted. The Learned Serjea . nt, was far from wishing, that persons of high rank, might not have some places, in which they could enjoy, par ticular, and exclusive accommodation ; for he should ever look up, without jealousy and with out envy, to those who, in consequence of their rank, were so properly distinguished, by the 'ma ture of our Constitution. But there were surely other places, iii %leech these privileges might be exercised, than in an English Theatre. But, in &a l it was not a privilege exclusively conferred on oar Nobility. The Private Boxes would not long bc reserved for them. In the present state at society but a few or the Nobillty, comparatively speaking, could consistently afford suit an expeoce. The Private Boxes, woullnot long be reserved for those 'Ladies who had a VIA interest in their Lord:— they would be reserved', fur those only, who have their Lords but fur a season. But was it fitting, that any degree of rank, or respectability, should i . e.laim a right, to that privilege, which is not as. taunted even by the M o narch o f this p ower f u l E m . pire. Were there a plat, : •• se t a p ar t, on w hi c h, I no foot but that of Royalty, should ever tread, he should he amongst the hist, to accede to the !propriety of such a tribut e o f r es p ec t, t o th e 'Sovereign of thane Realms. Bat, even the Box of the King of England, has ever been open to the pnblic, in the absence of their Majesties— and any individual rind his family, might occupy I.the Royal Bi,ii, a t suc h seasons , as freely, as any other Bea in the Theatre. It was Impossible, that any man could, letall4, be deprive(' of his right of admittance, to any part of a building, exclusively devoted as a National Theatre, to 'the use of the public—that any man could have an exclusive privilege to any part of the . House, from which the public could be exeluded, was ut terly inconsistent with the natnre, and spirit, of the principle, on which the monopoly had been granted. The Patent—if indeed the Proprietors hod one—must of necessity, expressly declare it to have been granted for the benefit of the public at large. 11'hen the Managers made their appeal to the publie, they manifestly submitted - them selves to the approbation or disapprobation of that public in whose decisiun, be it what it might, it was their duty to hue acquieiced—and after making,that appeal, it ea, positively incumbent on them to give the public full satisfaction. The Learned Serjeant, aietv disclaimed any intention, of attempting to jut y, a riot. We mast, how ever, he said, take Englishmen as we find them— and thee much, lie would venture to say, that when Englishmen cease to express their opinions strongly, when they believe they have just cause fur so doing, they cease to have that spirit of free dom, which has, hitherto, preserved'''s a free nation at home—and fro v the pressure of hostile insult from abroad f. —For, if men lost their spirit of freedom, and resistance of imposition, on one occasion, there would be little hope thut they would retain it on others. " And with great truth can I say," exelaimad the Learned Serjeant, 4 ‘ that I pity not those who are the objects of the alleged riot; bat I do sincerely commiserate •those whim are unjustly termed rioters." That great noises had %een made, he had already stated himself to be eapable of bearing witness, but he should contend, that'noire alone deer not constitute riot.- As well behind, as be fere the seems, had there been frequent insranees of noises ; but It was impossible to construe such noises into riots. To constitute a riot, the di.- turbance and agitation, must be such as to maks a firm man tremble fur his safety ;•letnust he it_ tender) with force and violence, or threaten, - forise, alit' violence, for, Without these ooncomieuits, no noise, however greet, could, eccording to his Ideas of lair, constitute a riot. What was the damage produced, by the great number of successive nights, on which riot was alleged ? Could the Manager* display the aggravating fragments .of a singlet chandelier? Could they chew, six. penny.vrorth of =Ott damage? He had himself seen '• the proceedings' of these ac. cused' of tinting, and • certainly, as to any acts of violence or damage, he had never 'ler a more harmless set of teen, thin were these Risks'''. The alleged, tnmelt, ou the ,pert of•the Public, had been greatly overstated, nut of doors, and lie was wigged, that a strict attention to she Evi. i dome; which he'shonid peleduce, week! convince : the Jury, as he was sure it would his Lordship, I that'thereliall been io riot, at kart artlis Pub tic, amid whiltever riot there might have been, or ' by whoever it might have been created, certain '• he was, that bit Client could nut, byfiedisibi. a . • -:.• _ _ ~'~ ' 1 •