The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1818-01-28 00:00:00

part of individu a l s , or ma k e a e'evinees on the ..oruplaint on behalf of our constituents generally, siltout intending to inure a resolution or nintijui so form upon the subject of such grievance or ..oleiplaint. Such has been heretofore the prate upon the reading of his Majesty's Speech at the commencemeist of the Session, and I shall avail myself of it to make a f e w o b serva ti ons upon the late prosecut ions instituted against u person io.imeof [lone, for libels. Let no ne suppose t h at i n o the atteidiun of the House to the subject, I do not feel the extreme, impropriety and danger of suc h linhl.cationt..—( I lear.)—(4 the party prose cuted I know swilling, but us the editor of those • reprehensible parodies on the forms of Lie Esta blished Church, and as th e very able and success ful defender of what iii themselves I cannot help thinkiug highly culpable productions.— f Heur.)— By that defence him, certainly prevailed upon th e Jury to acquit h im, and with their conviction of his culpability or innocence I have nothing to do; but much may be urged as to the police or pro. priety of the motives which actuated the Rt. Hon. the Attorney-General in bringing the publisher be fore the public by three several prosecutionsexo))icio. Peiliaps had the matter been subjected to a Grand Jur), hills would have been fi iiiii al which would equally well have answered his purpow% But as custom has sanctioned this mode of prosecution, I shall not attribute any blame to him for filing his informations in the accustomed nay. But what ap pears highly nbjectionable upon the part of the Bight Honourable Gentleman iii, that after the ac quittal of Mr. Hone upon the first trial he proceed ed to try him upon a similar libel, as though he was desirous of amwaling from the verdict of one Jury too *Hot lier.—/ Hear, bear./ —Thus endeavouring to bring that which is the only competent authority to decide upon the subject, a verdict of a Jury, into discredit rod odium.— (Hear, hear, front built sides .!" the House.)—The Jury, nut witlistandisig that dubious cheer, I must always consider the judges of the law as well as the fact of publication in all cases of libel—l Heur, hear. )—I will not impeach the capacity of the Right. Honourable the At iorney-Gesorral, yet 1 cannot help seeking some explanation fur the tines which induced him to pre*, the question in this case—and heed the accused, idler an acquittal, over to another Jury. The result proved its inipo hey. He was again acquitted. A third attempt to galls as verdict was then tried with equal ill sue. Tess, and the sanction of three verdicts was thus given to a practice coolie 1111 l able by all well-disposed person.. all through the injudicious zeal of the Right Hon. Gvistleinait—l Heur.)—Had the case been otherwise, and the Defetiolant been convicted noun the thirst trial, there can be little doubt his punishment would have steady equalled those re miltiisr from a conviction upon the three several iii horonations. Chi, mode of proceeding cannot be considered candid or liberal. Als unfair advantage appears to have been taken of the accused, by sub jectin4 him to reiterated trials, and reiterated and painlul exertions. —(//tar. )—Tiri, although dim. posed to concede the magnitude of the evil likely to result front permitting the dissemination of such reprehensible publications, I commit but think the Bight Hon. Gentleman's indiscretion has exported the country to the cliatice of an evil of a much more alarini•og nature, had, during those trials, any circumstance occurred through his pertiisacity which might have tended to lower and depreciate in the public wind and est - Mistime, the opinion hitherto entertained of the Trial by Jury. --(Hear, Lear.)—Although I have felt it tuy duty thus early to express my sentiments ui this tree section, in conformity with the practice of the House, and the indulgence attending the ope ll i ll of the Session of Parliament, by reading; the Speech delivered loy th e Royal Coinutission, I have been toduced to do so oiserele old) a view to perform a paransionist duty, without feeling the least disposed to find fault with the sobstoioce of that Speech or the Address now moved fur. in both these I hearti ly c cur, and hope there will be hut one una nimous sentiment respecting their propriety."— ( I fear.) Tise ATTORKEY-CENERAI.—" From what 1 hive lweis able to collect )ruin the speech of the Ruble Lord, I am at is loss rather to interpret the. pireise poilits he Ille:1116 to Insist Ulan 101 valid grounds of objection to the conduct I have pursu ed, dials for u justification (I hope satisfactor3) of I the measures themselves, which have heels resorted to. Ann l to uuderstand that he objects to the pro. action% of any one oh these due.: libels, or to the isroseentien of a w n s all ? Those who think those pothiseatiotia not dangerous or libellous in the %%lost lot simr• will, 110 doubt, slisapprose of all or any of the prosecutions; but if the publications are admitted, as the Noble Lord admits they are, to he twliotta a n d totschie%on., w:,s I snit 'snood in duty to prosecute the Defeliotailt far sill those publications, each of which smugly, in my judg meld, appeared to lw a fit subject of prosscution ? If auy of them had been published singly, I should have. felt it iny duty to prosecute its publials.r. Is it theselsore meant to lie contended, thist be cause three were three separate libels contained in three parodic., published by the saute person, their existed loot a stoneger iiiolucemeht to prutecute that party, as well with a view in puilish as to prevent a rill-idiot, of a similar offetwe in future ?—(Hear.) —lf pnauiii. 01i0llier course, one Duly for instance, tl:e first, ste.ossol, or third, haul been selected l i ar Froseentison, emslol out the 1011/reStlloll have 11.1.0 that tie rest v.. rto nut illegal or injurious to publie morals? The distinction would have bee.' productive of the Cold effect/I.—Mom I—lf the distiloction hail been v.slial as against the sec I 'prosecution, the objec tion would be equally forcible mgailiat the filing ars iooformatims against any subsequent liiwl of a slim lir nature. The prowl* might have been inure clear, the 4.11413 more aisneomis ; and yet as lie wus ac .llllllles. oil the first for want of prout, or want of lualigoatit waive, ills perwil in iny situation woods' lye allowed to follow the outsider up to a coniviction hewn a second or third offence. This is, of all p••sitsous, the insist absurd and destitute of fininde non ui.un priuesple, as applicable in good govern ment, I should he sorry to allude, without respect, to a verdict given its any Court ; but I must say Pas not consvoisced that I lone wits toot guilty on any of die toolormation, because in. was hot einovicteol "Poo the tirsi. Tile subjects of all the l'arothes *ire differ, ail ; the btlence,, though similar, disliact. The. Jury hail a 11;:lit to tit bcrr their verdict ac cording to the Statutes then existing, but I also had a right to exercise, my discretion when, in my judgment, the itsteirsts of the country and society were at I:take—Meat j—iinue particularly so, if untbiug el4illt Out n,l the previous trial which might explain away the objectionable features of the pub lication, or lead me to suppose l was in error, or mistaken iii my apprehoision of its tendency." Sir S. ROMILLY-..." Mr. Speaker, I feel parti cularly gratified in giving my ass:mt to the pro posed Address, and should consider it a circitiu sta.tce deeply to be regretted, that any complaint which might bt made as to events which have hap pened between the late and the present meeting of Parliament, should be construed as interrupting the uhuniinity which so properly prevails as to the expediemy of that Address.—( //ear.)— If ever there was a time that unanimity became a duty-- if ever there was a public event that deserved to be considered a private and individual calamity, it is that upon which the Commons (louse were now colletl oil, in company with the whole station, to condole with his Royal Iligliness.—( Hear.)— 'Elie unanimity or sincerity of our sorrow cannot be impeached by the allusion which the Noble Lord has just made to the subject of the late trials— far front it. It is the privilege, as well as duty, of Members solicitous for the well-being of society at large, upon the opening of Parliament by the Speech from the Throne, to proceed to the exa mination of such acts as appear to have emanated from his Majesty's Ministers in the interval between the Sessions, and produced private grivance or public inconvenience —( Hear, hear) — snore particularly so when these appear not at isolated acts, but as part of a system openly adopted by his 111ajesty's Ministers for curtailing the rights, privileges, and liberties of the people of England, insomuch so, that the once-boasted Constitution of this country no longer can be said to exist, and this /louse is called again together to transact the public business, during a period of the deepest national calamity, the suspension of that Constitution, to obtain which our ancestors made such vigorous struggles and glorious sacrifices. While proceeding in that act of unparalleled teme rity, it will be recollected the House, in conse quence of the suggestion of the Ministers, that a disclosure of facts, tnnes, places, and dates, would prevent the delinquents being brought to justice, consented to take the greater part of the Report of the Secret Committee. as proved without the means of accurate investigation. So far the House pro ceeded to pass the Act for suspending the Consti tution in die dark.—(Hear.f—Siiice our last meeting, the transactions which have taken place upou the trial of the offenders at Nlancliester, Glas gow, and Derby, have thrown a new light upon the real foundation of that daring act of legislation. 1 am perfectly prepared, by the subsequent disclo sures, to call your attention to the manner in which the insurrectional meetings at Manchester were de- scribed in that Report. and the actual nature of those meetings, as appeared by the subsequent proceed. logs at the f• ssiies. In the Reports of this House and the Lords, it was stated that treasonable con spiracies of the most atrocious nature had been detected to exist to Manchester and the country round about; that the associated had conspired to destroy the barracks, and to burn the 1111111 U.. factories, with the diabolical intention of in. creasing the mass of the disaffected by the de struction of those very sources of employment ; that they had sworn to render Manchester another Moscow, a signal monument of their vengeance. The reports added, that sonic of these conspirators were then actually in custody. Many mouths have since elapsed, various persona have been examined, and some held to bail ; but no such treasonable plots or horrid machinations have been discovered, nor one loan been convicted of any such attempts, or even desicris.—( Hcar.)— If there are sissy, why have they nut been brought to trial ? why have nut the Reports been endeavoured to be authenticated ? No ! The Attorney-General, to prevent a disclosure of circumstances prejudicial to the interests of the Slate, removed the cases by certiorari into the King's Bench. The next Sessions he allows them all to escape, because he possesses no evidence whirehy he could procure their conviction, and then Gover iiiii eta make a merit of what they call their clemelicy. but which merit they in fact could never have had any pretensions to were it not for the a rung they themselves committed in the first in stance by the apprehension of these poor people.— near tau! !oust clieering.)-11 they had possessed evidence- to convict them, would they have escaped so ? or if they were justly charged with offences of this enormous magnitude, were they lit objects for the clemelicy of the Croats ?—( Hear, hcar.)—ln September we find these people, so strongly charged with rebellious conspiracies and overt acts of rebellion, let loose, because, it is said, the trams quillity of the country Is so far restored, that mercy may be extended to them. But the House will find, that Ministers did nut think tranquillity so far restored as to permit those to go at large concerning whom wily slight suspicions bad been entertained. Do they call this the strength or the weakness of their case ? Whether is such conduct a specific ground for Merit or reprobation on the part of the Howe and the country at large ? filear.)—Upois the cases of those persons eon lined or held to bail upon similar charges in Scot !mid, I shall nut touch, us I find it is resolved upon that these are to be the subject of a separate tion—although it will lie fresh iii the recollec tion of the House, what a lively impression was made out that memorable ut4hr, when the learned Lord Advocate of Scotland, now sitting opposite, came Tutu the !teals from the dreadful accuse of sedition which lie so alarmingly described, and read the dreadful oath said to have been admi nistered and saliiiiiiistering throughout that district. let afier all the parade of criminality, these vouch er- of rebellion and treason, that Learned Lnrd uud I his Colleogiitak bad only selected wie person for pro secution, who, after three attempts to draw up an indictment again.' him, was acquitted, to their utter contusion and refulation.—( Hear, hear.)—Do not these thsclusiirta arid discostifitures of the legal ad visers of the Crown throw light %xi the minds of our Constituents, and develope the true situation of the country for months back ? Are they nut aware of the de;itision which has been in: heed upon Chess, and that thi• country lots beets, %%alma cause. rubbed ul It,. ColiblltoilUll so 10111:4 —Much is due to the ingeinous and meritorious stand made at the late trials at Derby by the Counsel hr Ilse pissunera, ag-isust the tioicl and dingerous attempt at construing the law o f t reason by the Crown Lawyers, although the parties who suffered there, I h ave n o doubt, *offered justly the piiiiislitneiit of crimes halite to tiie priiiiity of death, whether guilty of the ireaboti or out. Through these different sources of itiformation upon the n 'tore of our situation for WOW mouths buck, who is there now who perceives tint that the very measures of Gayer:it:lent have been the cause of that insurrection which they affected here to be anxious to prevent, by measures of precool ? %Vim has not been easily able thereby to detect the anxiety of Government to conceal the cause of those revolutionary acts in that part of the country ? Upon the trial of Brandretli and others. the Attor tory-General continually repeated, during the exa mination of evidence, that he wished to routine hint self to the period of the atli of June, when these de luded people appeared in arms, and consummated the offeme for which they suffered, although in his opening speech lie hail assured the Court lie should he able to give the most corisiiiciiig ',masa anterior inetnigs to that date, and a regulaely preconcerted mud organized coil.piracy. Notwithstanding the wel known activity of the missionary of revolution sent down there to foment the public dissatisfaction, and occasion that much-to-be-lamented explosion which ended finally in the sacrifice of the lives of several individuals, still the Law Officers of the Crown dared not to draw aside the veil which covered the doubtful proceedings anterior to the Bth of June, and to which the Attorney-Getiend had in a for mer stage alluded with so much confidence. These anterior proceediargs, notwithstanding the examin aim' of evidence upon the first, second, and third trial, remain, and are likely for ever to remain in profound obscurity. It Is remarkable, that when it was objected here, on the passing of the Act for the Suspension of the Habeas Corpus, some objected in this House to keeping the names secret as answering no good pnrpose. The Ministers ob served, it would be eligible for the preventiou of insurrection, because they could keep their eyes fixed in secret upon such as they knew to be leaders, and seize them at the moment their treasonable projects were about to be executed. Now Brandreth, 'tis said, had long been known to be the most determined of their leaders, yet lie was suffered to go at large until he completed the trea sonable outrages it was their duty to have antici pated. To advert to the subject of the parodies alluded to, I recollect the late Attorney-General, in mentioning them, refused to read publications of so flagitious a nature in a British House of Com mons, and flung them in a sealed cover upon the table. The present A ttorney-Genend now adopted a different plan, and by his triple prosecution and tri ple defeat, gave these, very improperly, a publicity to thousands, who never otherwise would have heard of them. Whilst some curious persons would have given a guinea for one parody, the At torney-General determined to print au immense and new edition of all the parodies at less than their original price ; and yet he bad this evening stated, that his motive fur prosecution was the pre veotion of the circulation of such works.—(Near and laughing.)—Thus, in the case of the atrocious delinquents at Manchester, he sought credit for advistog an act of clemency, where it was his duty to have prosecuted the offenders to conviction ; but in Hone* case, where clemency might, with so much credit to his politic foresight, have been ex tended, lie pertinaciously sought a conviction, and brought down nothing but disgrace and defeat on his head. After having revived by the trials what bad been suppressed some mouths before through Hone ' s apprehensions, it was not surprising, that, after two defeats, he should have prosecuted Hone upon the parody upon the Aikanasiura Creed, which, in the Court of King's Bench, had been already decided, in the case of another party tried for publishing these parodies, to be of a less objectionable nature. Would it have been weakness or neglect of duty in this case to have let this apocryphal parody passed unnoticed ?--or is it every Attorney- General's business to prosecute every libel or parody that is published ? No, certainly.— But the object of these prosecutions is too plain ; Governineot felt sore at having their conduct amid character exposed to public diew, as impolitic Statesmen and improvident treasurers of the public money, in a language fathiTiar te all ears and cape. cities. Yet this was not the only object in the view of either his Majesty's Ministers, or their defender, the Right Honourable Gentleman. There was another motive for this pertinacious zeal, which prompted these three distinct and separate trials. It was intended to throw discredit WI Juries, had the latter prosecutions been successful; but hap pily for us and the country at large, the turn has been in favour of Juries. Is it possible then that this has been part of a design meditated, and al most matured by Miiiisterw, to take froiu us, piece by piece, our valuable Constitution? May not these acts be coupled with similar ones of the same Adininibtration, who have condescended to tamper anti the Magistracy throughout the country, and prescribed their line of conduct by circular* of an unconstitutional and unwarrantable nature— who have suspended the. Constitution of tills country upon frivolous and unfounded representations—who have told the Commons of England that they sue nut tit to be intrusted with the authentication of the existence of an alleged conspiracy against the Government of this country—who have dared to commit men to prison without crime, and after dis charging them for want of evidence, taken srcu titles from them to render theiuselrets at any time they may be called upon ? And shall an Administration like this expect to receive at our hands an inde 1111 l ity for conduct like this—for such repeated and causeless Invasion of our best lit.erties ? %o—perish the thought ! and with it perish the hope that they ever will be enabled to erect that projected new constitution amongst us, AO opposite to all which is valuable iri that bequeath ed to u$ by our ancestors !—a species of coirbiltu tion which would persuade us that an Act of Pars fitment expressly passed tor the regulation of pri- Sons, could not affect the King's prerogative, or mitigate the sufferings (Attie persons so confined ! Brit, fortunately fir thus country, the public has recovered Irons its falre alarms; all attempts to sus. tuin the delusion have failed ; the leelings of the public arc hostile to the attempt* of Admini stration to remodel their happy hum of Govetti meta ; and Parliament, I trust, will alioitly show its init. listligitiltloll In the deception which h a s then pra‘tiaed upon it, wlieu (lit y shall appear at the bar of this House mill apply for an Act of lit ileinnity to cover the olliaices of whieli they have been 2udty durin g do last few loortentous months." —1 Ilear, hew., Lear.) The So flat rait-( ; ERA T.—" 1 have to lament the House has been so far taken by surprise, by the observsttoos which hove fallen from the Noble Lord and the Hail. Baronet this evening. lu the course of the observations which have fallen from the latter, lie appears complete ly to have confounded the c.►ses of persons charged with treason with the cases of those persons called Blaisketteers. As to the trials at Delhi., I never expected to have heard any obj"cttu,► made on the port of my Ho nourable Friend to proceedings which 1 had flat tered myself had been conducted so fairly, end ter initiated so satisfactorily to all parties present.—/ A laugh. —lf the parties accused could hive shown tha t in th e mee t ings previous to the Pith or mune they had been cently made the victims of art ful and insidious persons, why d►d not their Counsel prove it upon the trial, and avail them ' selves of the advantages resulting from such evi dence ? ll'ere we b dto adduce all that had happened anterior to the filth of June, merely to please the worthy Bironet ? That which has given rise to this debate, his surprised me wore than all the rest — I wean the prosecution of Hone for libel. Do the Noble Lord and the Hon. Baronet conteud, that because there were three libels, one exceeding the others in atrocity and per nicious tendency, that fie should be prosecuted, because the prosecution had the Mille tendency as a publiestion de mono? Ifs'', then the laws respecting libels are all a farce, and it 3333 it come to this, that no libel, however atrocious or blasphemous, should ever he proceeded against, lest it have the effect of dia re►ninatiug its baneful influence once inure thro►gh out society. If, on the first case failing, his Bight Hon. Friend (the Attorney-General) tried the second, he is now furnished with a fresh argument for doing so from the mouth of the lion. Baronet (Sir Samuel ltoosilly!, who thinks the second the worst and most culpable in a moral sense.— (ilear.)—Although the third parody was the weak est case coulesseilly, still the Court of King's Bench I►ad condemned the printer of it to !Our mouths imprisonment ; whilst, for another, it had sentenced hint to eight mouths confinement.— It is absurd to say that Hone's having suppressed this publication, after a good rile of many days, the evil ceased ; for after this, and before it, Car lisle and others had inundated the kingdom with editions on editions of the same at the lowest prier; and who so justly deserved punishment as the foun tain from whence all the mischief had sprung, the wholesale dealer iu seditious blasphemy ? Tl►e House must therefore see that the juster in ference in cases of this nature is, that those in trusted with the guardianship of society, cannot, without a culpable neglect of duty,su fir the offence of libel to go unpunished, although the remedy it self may inevitably be productive of the very evil which it was intended to correct. The LORD ADVOCATE of SCOTLAND—" I beg leave, on the present occasion, to snake a few obser vations, having been particularly alluded to by oily Hon. and Learned Frieud opposite. Ido not now media to go lion a review of the circumstances con erected with the subject which he has introduced to the House—bnt, when the motion of the Noble Lord (A. Hamilton) is brought forward, I shall be prepared to shew, front the proceedings in the Court, and the issue of the trial, that the charges insinuated by my Hon. and Learned Friend are wholly unfounded. I will 'hew, that the imputa tion of ignorance, in drawing up the indictment, is completely fallacious ;—and, from the issue of the trial—from the address of the Judge to the prisoner, on his being dismissed from the bar-- when the Jury had returned a verdict, well known in the law of Scotland, as distinguished from a ver dict of Not mean a verdict of nut proven —I will substantiate the fact, that the oath to which I referred was taken by certain persons engaged in a traitorous conspiracy at Glasgow. With respect to another allegation, of far more importance, namely, that I acted corruptly, or that I suffered corrupt practices to be resorted to, for the purpose of influ encing evidence, instead of the statement of my Hon. and Learned Friend being correct, I shall be able to prove, to the satisfaction of the House, that, so far from any thing corrupt having been done by me, or any other servant of the Crown, on the occasion adverted to, we had, in fact, done 'nothing, but what we could not have omitted doling, without being guilty of a great dereliction of our public duty." Lord A. lIAMILTON- 4, I am desirous of making one or two observations, to consequence of what has fallen from the limo. and ',meted Lord. I have no ititeutioni tit present of entering into the subject which l oud called forth his statement—but I beg leave to try, that I not only dissent f what lie has advanced, hut, when the proper time arrives, I will positiately contradict what he has now asserted. The Hou. and Learned Lord says, lie is prepared to sinew, that all the charges and statements promo I gated in the last Session, with regard too conspiracy or insurrection in Scutlaiul, were welt founded. Now, I really wish every individual to recollect what was the statement of the Hon. and Learned Lord on that occasion. Ile stated to this House that there were hundreds of thousand* of ',emus involved no those c rillsiiii,l 'proceedings. If that be the case, how is it that the Hon. amid Learned Lord, and all his colleagues, had introduced but one trial ? Why did they nut *Ora many individuals ? The trial in question did indeed involve two persons, but it was substantially Instituted against one, I shall not now go into a history of that transaction, al though I have my decided opinion as to the Imo of the Law Officers of the Crown in Scotland, whirl, I will state and maintain at the proper period. But I will tell the Hon. and Learned Lord this, that he is very materially counto.tetl %kith that individual against whom 3 11106011 of croionation ought to be proposed. I don't think I sin called on to ray more on this occasion. I may he allowed, however, to observe, that if Ministers, in their proceedings, have not been actuated by their desire of pursuing to Py4ent of unjust accusations, and sevrrr oppression, their con- . duct has clearly evinced the existence of feeling» o f sharpness and overfly. Illeoll%ltitelil with the declare turns which they last Ses.iton Made to this House. I will nut trespass lowlier On the attention of the house—but I protest against appearing to ac opimice in one single 'mita .ts&crted by the Hollow- ~~ al)le twd Lt:arnecl Lord with rLicict.ce to the trial tit questioo" • Lard Foia(s . ro E—" I7nviiiiit , g as I all), at alb tine,, to oiler myself' to the alotice of the I louse. and kooliti t •; that univillmentss, its R peculiar degree, at prebuilt, yarn symptoms a v. , emmt.ss beglit to be uleitifested at the prirractimi of the ile t aate—yet I think it is in‘: duty, reprobatiog, as 1 do, the conduct'of h:, Majesty's .Ministers durilia, the re sew, not to be perfectly silent on this occitsiaiti. With respect to the tri..ls, mowed by those who preceded me, I shall say yen- littl e . Of those which took place iii Scotland I shall say notiiiir‘ whatever. But, with reference to other trials. I. shall merely say, that if any mason w!io beard this statement el my flutiourahle :141(1 Learned Fiiend, awl the answer attempted to be giveit to it, did not fee . l cotavite:rd that the facts adduced by Ilion stood uncontradicted, I think he must either not have at iciule'U lit statemeta, or his mind must lie wit fully opposed to conviction. The Honouroble and La:Jilted Gentleman opposite met Ole st.itemelit of my I.earned Friend, with respect to the trials at Manchester, by saying, that the persons net at liberty were not those who had lice:: taken up on the charge of conspirilig to limo that toa 4l. My Hon. and Learned Friend believes, and I also believe, that they were the ideutical persons. Ott what authority have we come to that conclusion ? On the authority of the Report of the Select Coin. tattler, which was laid on the table of House which Report stated, that some of the priSolls Inl. plicated in the plot there adverted to, had been ap preliendiol—and these. I believe, were the persons Ills:illy liberated. With respect to toe trials at Derby. I deny the justice of the doctrine laid dowit by the Hon. and Learned Gentleman. Ile says • We conceive we did enough, when we brought evidence forward to convict those conspirators—ive lead no night to do more—we were not called on to adduce any thing that might lay open the real system, which, on that occasion, had been acted on—with reference to that, the public ought to be left in the dank.' Now, Sir, I verily believe, that the clime fur which those un fortunate melt sit &led was as much the produc tion of 11r. Oliver—n us as touch the effect of the Measures taken by his Majesty's Ministerae—as any other transaction in Which Mr. Oliver bed taken a part.--( Hear, hear.)---1 believe it was the wan k of Mr. Oliver—the agent of Lord Sidinotith—the in strument of Iklinisters—( Hear, hear);--and, if it were so, I do not envy them the triumph seems to till them with so much pride, of having convicted and executed those three miserable nob animals. —(Heier, hear.)—With respect to the trials of Mr. Hone, iiia luau could read them with t clearly seeing, that either the Government were ill uenced by that spirit of persecution, the existence of which his Majesty's Attorney-General denied, or eke that they were unite incapable of propel Iv cat rying of proceedings of that nature. But what I most object to in these trials is, the degradation to which they tended to bring our Courts of Jostler, and those to whom the administration of our laws is confided.—.( Hear, hear.) --Could sits- matt. who wished to uphold the dignity of our Courts of Justice—who was desirous of supporting the Ito nom and respectability of the expou tillers of the law—read those trials, and not feel, that the whole proceeding was calculated infinitely more to lower and degrade the dignity of mir Courts, and to hold up to contempt those who presided, and those who practised in them, than the obnoxious publications were suited to throw ridicule on religion, or to produce impiety ?—(Hear, Gear.)—l believe Mini sters, in following the business up, had two distinct objects in view —first, the persecution of Mr. Hone, whose conviction tvould, its sonic degree, bear out the assertion made in the lest Session, that the country teemed with blasphemous publications— and next, to ground some measure on tile proceed ings, for the purpose of impairing tile Trial Ly Jury. This is my conscientious opinion —rod I ani sure lam not !ha/gill/1r its maintaining it. But this was not the only step taken by Ministers, dur ing the recess, that went to lower, il. the eyes of the people, that which should always be viewed with respect, and vesteration, and confidence—the administration of the law. The scene which la curred in the. Court of Ring's Bench, two or dna,: days ago, sufficiently skews this. But of that I shall say nothing—beeause it will, perhaps, coolie re gularly under the consideration of the 114.18. e. I shall now allude to another transaction s its aloe!' I 11111 inure immediately concerned. 1 mean the casts of the persons confined under the law fur the suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act—persons placed in solitary conlinetnent, by the orders of hot Alajesty's Government, in direct n 1 , 1 , 0 ,4 1 . '11 t o the °pillion of a 'Court Of Joistr....e. Alinisters may say, that that Court of Justice is mistaken. But still it is a Court of Law, and ought to be held up to the re spect, not to the contempt, of the people. I speak of the Court of Quarter Sessions.—(!tear, hear.) —Now, Sir, to come to the A 0 ..4.i.ress. I cantiot et:- tirely agree to the sentiment•rooraitied in it. There is one part of it, which COW:1111 , i eii expressions or the approbation of the House towards his Majesty' s Government—and attributes the present improved state of public feelitee to tiarir cooduct.—(C'ries ti • Nu ! no ")—lt so struck toe, abets it was read —and, most indubitably, I du Hot agree in such it sentiment.—(Cries if • No ! nu .")—I understand there is no such thing in the Address—and, therefor, I shall pursue that subject *to farther. There is. however, a promise in the Address, to agree In all that has been done with respect to Spain and I'ma sago—which I am by no moans prepared to do. But, at a future day, I probably a ill hate au op portunity of stating my opinion on that subject. and I shall How say nothing respecting tr. 11,ii. Sir, abut I decidedly find fault with iii this .adatiesa is, the absence of is suitable expression of feeling— of smell feeling as best becalms an Eliglish House of Commons—at a tune when all our liberties err. liing prostrate at the fret or Ministers—when our freedom may be assailed, by a Secretary of State. Its a manner unprecedented at ally former period of our history !--( Hear, hear, heir. /--Ass. other thing which I object taa:iii the Address is its flatness—its staid of point—us not bearing on specific objects, but dealing entirely on iienerali ties ! Th e Hots. Getatleasen who seconded it sat s, • there is nothing ni the Address that can lie ob. jeCirti to, and therefore I lecommenal it its the Moose.' This is not the way tit which Ad:lresses were formerly voted. The Speech 11011. the Thrums. ought to be a watt of exposition of the state. of the 1 ! t• 1 4 N4il ~. , , 4 , V , • 3 [~ 1 illummi