The Sun. — London, England, 1841-10-30 00:00:00

Ir o P i d ro be D PIM 'EVENING SUN Question raised last night, to which he supposed the counsel would except that he might carry it up to another tribunal. The killing of persons on the Ca nada shore, therefore, was not adinissabls in proof on this triel. Mr. Spencer—W e propose to show that three per sons were killed on the Canada shore. Judge Gridl. l —l overrule it. Examination resumed—l resided in St. Catherine's ten years. I was a political writer for a nevvspacer. I Was a Reformer, and was out in opposition to the Go vernment ; but circumstances have changed. The militia with which I was connected was raised by en listment, and they were stationed like a regular army. The perm s I enlisted were coloured men. I suppose t hey were natives of the United States. I had this company at Chippewa. The recruiting officers were bat coloured men. No coloured men were allowed to he offieers. I was commissioned by Sir F. B. Head in person. There were Indians in the service. The Court now took a recess for dinner. On tile re- assembling o f the Court, the cross-examination was resumed and continued at great length. „ Tr. Spenc er —W e now propose to pu t b e f o re the La a:the f o ll ow i ng papers : t lr-- sl-The action o f our Mi n i s t er in England. , t'reOnd—A communication from the British Go• ernment to - Mr. Fox. Thif d - -lastiuctions from Mr. Forsyth to Mr. Ste ver!, hen shotti v a f ter t h e a ff a i r of the Caroline. ~aortal -Letter of Mr. Stevenson to the British Go verthis, , L , s“ , -, uemasiaina• satisfaction in this matter. t 4!iith--Answer of Lord Palmerston, who was Secre -41.0f State for Foreign Affairs, to Mr. Stevenson. Seventh —Letter letter of Mr. Forsyth to Mr. Fox. neventh—Letter from Mr. Fox to Mr. Forsyth, with I rpanying d ocuments . ,"ghtils--Letter f rom M r . F o x, 12th March, to Mr. Ninth —L etter Secr e t ary o f S tate . A i nth—Lett er o f M r . W e b s t er t o Mr. Fox, dated pril 24 1841 ( • ell th !a- m Ss. rlpencer) did not know but these would be h ad !night be necessary. There were others which ha I :PP to 'introduce. 'These had all now been pub eas-ei%)l9 were public property, which was not the C o w uen the argument was had before the Supreme Attorney -General asked with what intent ? thought the gentleman could scarcely e, e rci l:! . ehend him if ho recalled his (Mr• •!)Pening. It is with a view to present the t in such a s t a t e b e f or e this Court upon the f r , :ers e • this issue, that having established the G s e the t‘ t this was the exercise of the public force of th' o e. ! 2.l - 3 "ltain, 'and being acknowledged as an act of yid Pate toren on the part of Great Britain, the inch- . 1 4 4 4 1 1 , i s 'who acted in obedience to their orders are not eii ) l respousible. Substantially upon the prin t, econtained in Mr. Fox's letter to Mr. Webster in i n ii t r h eh last, and the acknowledgment of Mr. Webster h od * i t matter —.both Governments insisting that there to'• a rC adY L. an invasion of their respective terri nes. t ttorn ey-General—Th at is, a state of war ? p er n ,SPeacer—S uc h a s t a t e o f things that when they oto.Snere the w h o l e o f th e patty were acting in Pre • le ,nee to the o r d ers o f the Government, and are k o cal individu a ll y respons ibl e . Alth o ugh the Su heie Court could not look into the whole case, yet de ea ti llon the traverse of the indictment we are en tleace— I? so, and by means of this documentary ev -4444 snow the extent of the state of the war. We to eelarge very considerably, to show that a very • 4.erall!e•aaiourit of arms and munitions of war were l e r • i e rtrated upon Navy Island ; to show that the ar weft° along the frontier had been plundered, and e i r 'unitary stares taken to Navy Island ; that the e e i y •L 9:rns which were taken and returned in the s Were, with th e k now l e dge and consent of' the .sYr o f 1.1 nw as eeri -n i saurian), aoeu to be taken out of the ;LIY the patriots, and taken to Navy Island ad . ii ;;n short, if your H onour pl e ase, there was such ti e 991 things on t h e f ron tier, that the whole fron °UN f wilt • act ing in subserviency to the attacking party h no or r i Y Island. Not that there were not many o- Isi e : •ie exceptions there, but the authorities of ache 'HI, as a Sovereign State, were utterly pa- United; end with respect to the authorities of the that 1 . states, they had no officers or troops ; but te eth 'was a state of war. Now, Ido not say a teedi war , but, as between the belligerents con e-wing, there was a state of war emphatically— th'e all intents and purposes. It needed not einelelaration of war by Great Britain ; it was elnie lt that the dependencies of Great Britain, gello 'with the duty of defence, had an assail ar that .. their territory had been invaded that 4 1 6` ec i t amp was an iatreached enemy, who pro -It4io„to establi s h a p rov i s ional Government, which . Qrc effect'the dismemberment of the kingdom of i s 4ritain, and lead to the formation of an te!-P e is.o6nt G o ve rn ment in one of her provinces. toiA l u.o'v'ert .110 British Government was this armed aiet Yrnploy e d.' We propose to go farther still, Ni.` 6. show that it was a necessary act of the sle; o 141 authorities in self defence. We prop ose to reitY, lt by establishing the proposition , and in confer hoei the well settled rules of war, that this steam. in !tail in the h an d s of the assailants, or the attack -1 4 0 1* , r tY ;:that it was an engine of destruction and thi n Yunce mite' potent and effectual than any other . i„ _t in th e i r employ. We are to look at the surround teareuntatanees. What was Schlosser ? Suppose 0 1 : 4i egara liver were no w id er th an f rom Navy Island 0 4 C anada abort. this whole army instead of being la g o ? is l would h av e b een a t Schlosser, and receiv ing e'l!1 and Munition's of war from the whole surround - Id ou T•ntq s and they were there accordingly, as at Navy ties, - a nd opening a war upon the British dependen- Pr o ,-, mt . threatening to invade the Provinces, these lliaCC, lB would have as much right to defend io442l4tv,,,eis.ll:BY‘thweuyrking the destruction of the assail if would Lave had et Navy Island ; so, :tbis bo a t, passing • back and forth , was V t et ,to destruetion, as a course of necessary se lf e e , / • OW what are the rules of war in relation to nutWailike movement that the party assailed t heih ▪ e 7 , l ▪ t 9: w 4 s till - the attacking party have reached 41 mi l s_ - 7 4 '''''ktied'tliei r batteries on them? Not at all. 1 10 ').`'are e ; . e i i „,arilettaty is approaChing with a view to an assn+fedparty has just as much right to ,rittlitesestrtiction of that army, as after they have 4 ,o:iie ready to'open their batteries. If the viral'l"nnwn' that she (the Caroline) was coining ea toin Use tivet —if the Canadians knew that she was 8 119)114,!Wti with munitions of war, to annoy them, %e as good a ri g ht to work her d e st r uction on e!: C. 'are as at a n y ti me a l ter ar riving in the Province ' , re It is a great mistake to suppose that we t 4 t W n PPly the p r i nc i p l es o f an assault and battery Plyn kn arl ooverneut. It is a fundamental error to ap -41. ro t a uekt doctrine. You cannot apply the doctrine t r i l e t t r i ng ii _to the ;all to get rid of en assailant, it il t le t s hove commenced doctrine that, when . open hostili eir4Y other means , need, they have a right by stratagem, , cans, to get advantage and . make a de- Neey."4,tlefore they have an opportunity of doing an r ho Canadian party wer e assailed, and had 414 s ' 41441 right t o d e f e nd themselves as at Navy tepe e h.. .r the Canada shore. Does it make any diffe tirevy.."/41:_e,en Navy Island and Schlosser, or between „Te ti l i i ss a _un and Chippewa ? Suppose a lodgment . had ' , An il) r l at r , Chippewa, and this steamboat hid been Schlosser and that point to give aid, and 7t,e,e' r i f ,% n d succour, I would ask whether as between the a:'''',PCople and Gr ea t Britain, that persons on the St ti tirliair:sore would no t h av e a right to work the de tYli4:11;01 that boat wherever they could find her, lik their own wales or ourz. Would it not Nick l lVer Matter of self-defence ? Where was this ' i t(' e i i s s t , b • ° ‘'ement ? W e ar e to look to the surround -4'4'4 !urnstances. They were divided by a rapid but little above the mighty cataract over Yuer e is o !i4 'huma n being ever went alive. It was, pity tr, extremely perilous to navigate that stream tliti( se "... boats at any titre, and particularly at tis t r, i3 it or the year. They had no steam-boats `'t ha st ;u' vessel A sham-boat came down, say Plarposes. How was it to be guarded ass'i In the day time, when the steam '.'boa W what would be the use for a few 4 1 1 ! co yl y to make an attack ; with her stream ki. - `ft tun away from them, or she could run setieiinf'Nn over any boats which might lie brought ', Whe n th:e* T hey could not come out in the daytime, unat was in active employment, with steam to' ,ny prospect of success. How were they 007.;lq !;her her ? I ask whether they were bound t e f, r : running continually to strengthen t he Agl~Ft „at' they might make a descent upon Canada ? .‘ 4 tei l f - :„. tuna have been assailed with any hope of ,the daytime, in the vicinity of Navy Island • 'I trust not. 'Where, then, is that boat I , e , e l c o fi cW i ltnied, if at all? Here ' in Canada were IS'At' 7 "'" 3 .3 officers—were they bound to lie kbi ° he • .se • Y era destroyed through the instrumen neill.silnthoat 2—let her goon, and do nothing ? secan t ., a riglit to work her destruction for their own Y s nself-defence, to prevent a descent, for Lf ^ they intended to work a revolt in Canada. !etue,s!'new"tliat they would have many of the discon t;4o" salliie g e or 0 teeir standard. it was not whether en 2,00 0 were LIDOR the island. 'They bad • ,ir,ioFt th e stan d ard upon a spot where t h ey cou ld t i ;PSI, 'e rn was a gath er i ng — a nucleus or rallying ( ; i tiaig n ',which a descent was to be made upon the Mbi Canada. They had es ected the standard, v itl.h oe _ the dis contented were ready to fly ; a revolt jw„ already attempted at Toronto, and put down mg t !''' It was intended again to enter ?~c refit °W was it to be done ? By collecting gx i t .material s at N avy Island, an d t h roug h th e , 1 4 1 entili t „ 0 1 a steam-boat, to make a descent ).:4441 1 . 1 -P es" .4 "d,.tan main. N oes I would submit to out et :rut' whether the had not a right to put it w tt hi,i s t tiiii : . p?wer of this party to destroy an instrument , calculat e d to p romote an d f urt h er th e views of te g $e n citin try? Party. Let us see how it is in our own h tlnish 'ew was it with respect to one of the si ii ., tl o l . lB l ,:a tit u h dli in Florida, only a few years ago, per- . tWr t „ . .vn annoyance was expected to the Untted ; ti u grey ants ? They had not opened their batteries upon the United States. Not at all. It was a province belonging to Spain ; and what did our peace-loving President (Mr. Monroe) do?— He sent the public force of the country against them, for no ether reason than that it was a medium of communication by which slaves were introduced into the United States. A force was sent with instructicns to destroy the Island. The Spanish Authorities were so feeble, as not_to be able, or they did not exert their power, to dislodge those persons who had taken possession of the 'land ; it was tar from being a case I.lse the one before us. There was not the slightest pretence of personal danger ; no other rea sons were assigned than frauds upon the revenue and the introducing of slaves. Suppose the possessors of the island hail not voluntarily surrendered, and our ba►- teries had been opened,aed they slaughtered,now let me ask, if it would have been tolerated had they taken the commander, or a sailor who obeyed orders, and hung him ? I ask the Attorney-General to say if he knows, from the authority of the Supreme Court, or of any other authority, in which way they would he murderers. This was a case in our own ccuntry, and the President put it upcn the acknowledged law of na tions. I allude to the occupation of Ame!ia Island. It was earlier than that of St. Marks. We have the or ders here. It was not for the suppression of piracy, but to prevent the introduction of slaves, and frauds upon the commerce. Had the United States declared war against Spain, or Spain against the United States ? Was it the exertion of the force of the United States against Spain, which constituted war, and which worked the individual irresponsibility ? Never was a more heterodox doctrine put forth than that there should be a declara tion of war, to work individual irresponsibility. When General Jackson had commaaded,he bad express orders not to enter any of the fortifications of Spain in Florida. The orders were given expressly, but what did he do? He deemed that the United States required it, and that the Spanish authorities were too feeble to con trol the Indians. Ile marched int') Florida and took the forts of Florida. Was it ever dreamed of, or thought of, that General Jackson and his army were murderers—they killed men there. They took Am brista and Arbuthnot and tried them and executed them. It cannot be that an army acting by order of the Go vernment, whether right or wrong, are murderers. It is not so. It is revolting to every man. Compare this case with the one in question. It is evident that the United States and England are both desirous of maintaining peace. It was not intended to interrupt the friendly relations of the countries. It was intended for nothing more nor less than to work the destruction of an instrument of annoyance, which was threatening immediate destruction to themselves. Because they could not reach it in the day time, they must seek an opportunity when they could reach it, and at such point as they could find most practicable in such extremities, and with such means as they were able to employ, and in the employment of such means she was destroyed. I will go further, and say that it is not a question at all whether this power and authority were discreetly and properly exercised—that is not the question. The British Government may have been in the wrong throughout, and our Government may demand repara tion or satisfaction, or find just cause of war on our part. It does not at all involve M`Leod, or any other ono charged with being of that party. There is a wide distinction between a Government being wrong and the soldier l eing wrong, arid is it not intolerable and revolting that individuals should be thus held responsi ble ? Let us change tables, and see what would be thought by our Government and country if the Cana dians bad seized upon Grand Island, whilst we were at peace with Great Britain, and fortified it. Why, there is no war—Gre it Britain has not declared war— Canada has no authority to declare war. Would it not be justifiable for the American Government, if they had it in their power, to send an armed force to drive them away ? I ask if the Attorney-General would deny that authority ? And could they not do it without waiting to have the British Government de clare war against the United States ? Would not they have a perfect right to do so? I apprehend they would have. And if a company, or re giment, were sent there to dislodge the invaders, should they be taken and treated as murderers? If our Government had ordered a regiment of men to take possession without declaring war; and they had opened their batteries, they would have been held to be murderers, notwithstanding they acted under the authority of the Government, and in obedience to the commands of their officers, It is a strange doctrine that you have got to work up a war in all its forms before individual irresponsibility can be re cognised. Thus far I have presented this case as one when the proceedings, so far as respects M'Leod, would be entirely justifiable, because of the defence of the inhabitants. But I have yet another view to sub mit ; it is that the public documents to which I allude show that this matter is already taken possession of by the Government of the United States as an entire transaction ; that they have taken cognizance of it, and have a right to take cognizance of it ; and having taken cognizance of the matter,which is within the jurisdiction of the United States, it is not in common with any in ferior jurisdiction. What is the duty of the Execu tive when an outrage of this kind has been com mitted ? It is to ascertain the facts, and when they are ascertained, to decide upon the matter, and this decision is decisive and conclu.ive. That must he the law, or the Government of the United States is a rope of sand. They have this subject nit this moment in a state of treaty—in a state of negotiation between the two Governments, anti will it be denied that the United States have as much right to demand satisfaction for the killing of Durfee as for the desi ruc tion of the steam-boat Caroline. Have they not a right to demand satisfaction for the invasion ? Let us witness the case where the Leopard made an unjusti fiable attack upon the Chesapeake. There was no declaration of war between Great Britain and the United States. They were making inroads and com mitting depredations. At that time the Commander of the Leopard insisted on taking and carrying measures so far as to take hands from on board the Chesapeake, claiming them as British subjects. No war had been declared, but was the commander held as a murderer ? So far from it, that you have only to look at the facts, to see that the British Govern ment made provision for the support of the fami lies of those 'individuals who had been destroyed. It is in conformity to the usage of nations. When such public force is exerted, it becomes a subject of public concern, and is a subject of treaty and as such is within the jurisdiction of the executive department of the Government. They had a right to take cognizance of it, and having so done, they have ex clusive jurisdiction, and others cannot interfere. It is in this double respect that we offer this evidence—it will entitle the defendant to a verdict of not guilty, be. cause we are now traversing the indictment ; and if it cannot properly be taken cognizance of there, he will be acquitted for that reason. The Attorney-General rose to reply, but Judge Gridley said—Mr. Attorney-General, I think I can relieve you. I have considered this question so far as I have any right to d. chic it. This indictment has been brought ihto the Supreme Court, and it has been sent down here to be tried by the Circuit Judge, like any other issue. While pending there a mo tion was made for the discharge of the pri soner ; in the first place, on the ground that the Court had powers to look behind the indictment. The Court considered that question, and came to the con clusion that they had no such right on habeas corpus, and the motion was denied. But if they had the right, they decided that this was nbt such a crew as woule induce them to exercise it, and that the motion should be denied for wart of right, and on account of the absence of any thing like war, and for the reason that there wes nothing in the pending negotiations between our Government and Great Britain which took away the jurisdiction of New York for an cffence against its laws. This opinion has been arrived at by the Judges of the Supreme Court, on all these questions being deliberately argued before them, and which, although written mainly by one, was the united expres sion of the views of the whole Court—after the most solemn and deliberate consideration—on such an opinion. I de - not feel authorised to entertain, or express, if I entertained, a different opinion. Their opinion in th's matter is law with me, and briefly stated, is this :—A band of men—Canadian refugees and citizens volunteering with them, took posses sion of Navy Island—it was a hostile force for the in vading of Canada. Navy Island was a portion of Ca nada, and I have no doubt that the Canadian authori ties had a right to repel the invasion, suppress the in surrection, and use all means which nations may use for the suppression of 'that invasion and insurrection. But while that was true, our citizens had the right, so far as regards their obligations to their own Government, to expatriate themselves, and join the insurgents, being subject to the same punishment ; so, too, any citi zens of our Government had a right to carry ammuni tion and provisions to either of the two belligerent parties, and to Navy Island, subject, however, to the penalty of forfeiture in the event that they were cap tured. If this boat was a portion of the armament of Navy Island► at Navy Island, or on the high seas, it would be subject to capture on the part of Great Britain. But with regard to the United States, Great Britain was at peace, and Great Britain, or any subject of her's, had no right to molest it ; and I can conceive no more right in the British Government sending an armed band to make an attack on that boat and destroy it, for the fear that site :might become great nuisance to them, than that they have a right to send armed men to Buffalo to destroy the arsenal that contained the munitions of war, and kill the Mayor for fear he would send the arms there to. be used against them. These are the doctrines of the Supreme Court, not an Opinion, but an authoritative decision which is binding on me ; and I have no discretion to set it aside. 1 am administering law in the Circuit Court, subject to the decision of that very tribunal which has settled all these questions, and after a more full argument than we have had here. I therefore feel bound to reject the proposition to offer these matters in evidence, on the brief grounds I. have stated. • The Attorney-General reminded the Court of the de cision of Chief Justice Spencer, in a we 18th Johnson, to show that this decision of the Court would be found on examination not to be a novelty. Mr. Bradley said t 1 ere we s one point ;n this case which had not been p-esensed to the Supr. Me Count. There was a class of cases in which even neutral terri tory may be entered for a hostile purpose —nominally neutral, not really so. Teat class of cases is referred to in the celebrated letter of Mr. Webster to Mr. Fox, in the last paragraph but one, which states what will be necessary for the British Government to show, in order to justify the attack on the Caroline. Now, we suppose that if the defendant can comply, and show such facts as would exonerate his country from the act that be would be discharged. It can be shown that _it was a nscessary act of war. Judge Gridley—Equivalent to lawful war. Mr. Bradley—Not equivalent to lawful war, but a ease where even private individuals may undertake, and, as necessary to repel impending danger, mty act of their own mind and will ; under the necessity of seV defence, instant and overwhelming, leaving no choice of means ; then he would be exonerated. We offer to comply with this case. That point was not raised in ' the Supreme Court. Judge Gridley did not think it appeared a case of that description. On an indictment for murder, who ever heard that it might be shown that in self-defence a man may cross tile Niagara and destroy his adversary for fear he might destroy Lim. I think it would not approach a case of sell-defence. That will not justify the murder of Murree. Mr. Bradley said the point which they proposed to establish was, that the Navy Islanders were the striking party, and were within striking reach. Judge Gridley—Suppose the Navy Islanders, if they could get a forty-two pounder, could do immense injury to those on the opposite shore, and an individual has possession of that ; and the Canadians for fear that the Navy Islanders will obtain that forty-two pounder, go and find a body of men who make this instrument and kill its owner, that would be justified by this doctrine. The illustration shows that the doctrine is unsound. The defence is on the other ground. Mr. Spencer—And in an application to the Court of last resort I hope no obstacle will be thrown in the way. Judge Gridley—You shall have every faciky from me. The interrogatories and answers were then read and contested severally by the Attorney-General. At six o'clock the Court took a recess for an hour. The Court re-assembled at seven o'clock, and the answers of Cal. M'Nab to the cross-interrogatories were proceeded with. We have given his testimony in a more intelligible shape, and in a less verbose form, but with all neces sary fullness and accuracy. During the reading, the Attorney-General objected to various portions, so as to bring the testimony within the rule laid down, and to make it applicable solely to the indictment for the mur der of Durfee. .The various points were warmly con tested by Counsel on both sides. FIFTH DAY, goner as a crime, to'have been an act of duty—to a na tion which stands ready to vindicate the faith plighted by all Governments to their subjects for their protec tion—to this nation it is closed ; and, I confess to you, that when I sat down to the trial of this cause, I did it with a sinking heart—knowing the clamour which has pervaded the country—knowing the anticipated triumph which has been. been pealed through the land on the part of the prosecution. I did it with a sinking heart, lest there should be an adverse verdict ; but, I confess to you, that that hour has some time since passed, and those feelings have altogether subsided. It has already been said in your presence, by the Counsel on the part of the prosecution, and of the Court, that the simple question for you to try is the fact of the presence of the prisoner at Schlos ser, on the night of the burning of the Caroline, aiding and abetting in that enterprise. This is the only testimony that you are to regard— all other must be considered as only collateral to this main point—no further to be considered than so far as it tends to throw light upon this main and princi pal question. Now, it is a principle of law with which you are doubtless ad familiar, that in criminal cases—even in the slightest and most unimpor tant, when the punishment following conviction would be a trifling confinement in the county gail, every doubt as to the guilt of the accused should be taken into the account for his benefit. It is not enough that there be a preponderance against the prisoner. It must be full—it must be conclusive—it must ex clude all doubt—it must annihilate every doubt of guilt. Now let us look at the circumstances of this case ; let us sec how near the prosecution has come to this clearness of proof. In the first place the prisoner is guarded by the principle of law, that every man is presumed to be innocent until he is proved to be guilty. In the next place, the testimony of those men who were engaged in the expedition—testimony taken in the only way in which evidence from a foreign country can be obtained, by commission, this testimony goes to show that ha was not present. Gentlemen, it is well known to you, indeed it has been stated in almost every sentence of the testimony in the progress of this case, tnat it had its origin in a natiortal question. Throughout both the Canada=, discontent, deep-seated, had prevailed. Whether that is right or wrong, it is not for us to determine. Resort was had to arms, and with no success to the insurgents ; after the failure of the movement on Toronto, peace was restored throughout both provinces ; no hostile force continued there; the insurgents—a few—fled to the United States; and after about a fortnight, again returned to Navy Island. The object of this movement was to create hos tile war ; the dangers and the horrors of war can be imagined by you from some portion of the testimony which has been given ; how furious and bloody war must always be you can imagine from the transaction at Schlosser, and but faintly imagine ; for in the accu mulated atrocities of a whole campaign, to what part would this little transaction, horrid as it seems in the detail, have been equal ? One man was killed ; several wounded slightly, and one severely. But what would have been a whole campaign in Canada, amid the snows and frosts of a Canadian Winter ; a brutal soldiery around, and a peasantry likely to become more brutal still. Two hundred and fifty thousand soldiers—giving the insurgents half of the province ; what could they do against the other half, and all Britain beside ? At the first relenting of spring, if indeed they had been able to have resisted through the winter, it would all have vanished, as the tempest vanishes, leaving the sky clear, but desolation all around. Now, gentlemen, evidently to kindle sect.' a war—so mad in its origin— so hopeless in its result, Navy Island was seized by American citizens, headed by one American chief. A strange spectacle this for a land of law, bound by treaties itself had made! Why this effort to create a war, which all had alike an interest to share ? 'like answer, while it shows the interests which have fomented in this case against the prisoner, will carry us another step in its progress. It was said by the Court, before you were empannelled that you had nothing to do with consequences. In one point of view, it is true, and in another erroneous. If the prisoner be proved guilty by testimony which ex cludes doubt, which loaves no chance of innocence, coming from witnesses who have had fair opportunity to see, and clear and unclouded memories to retain the facts they depose ; and of unimpeached veracity ; it' his guilt be proved by such testimony, then it is ti ue that you have nothing to do with the consequences of conviction ; it is your duty, whatever the con sequence is, to find a verdict of " guilty ;" and though from it war should come—though our com merce should be swept from the ocean, and our land invaded—your duty is a plain one. If you should suffer yourselves to falter you would commit a crime for which li', whose justice you are now administering, would at a future day call you to account. But there is another view, in which you cannot, without the same responsi bility. overlook the consequences. If .war is to come from your verdict, then it is your duty to look and see wbether the witnesses who came one after another, on the stand, did not come forward by the desire to pro dues this consequence ; it is your duty to look abroad and see whether there are not influences existing through the land which May prompt witnesses to stand and tes tify to that which they do not only not know to be true, but do Isticaor to be false. These same men, by whom Navy Island was occupied, are still in our midst ; if war was then the object to be attained, is it not so still ? If Van Rensselaer was then a valuable acquisi tion to lead their forces, would not the Commander in-Chief of a main army he still more valuable ? The motive exists still strange; now than then. It is now reduced ahnost to a certainty that the conviction and txecueee of .be prisoner would lead to a war ; aud if witnesses who have ascended the stand have had in tercourse with those who have violated our neutrality, then it becomes a serious question to you, whether the credit of these witnesses is not impeached—whether they did not testily under the influence of a motive which causes them to swerve from the truth. I leave the cause-1 merely designed to run over the prominent features, and then leave the cause to my associate. I told you at the opening, that I had no anxiety as to the result. There is no longer a doubt as to the issue of this trial ; deep anxiety and alarm have been felt ; there is now no danger of war, or that our foreign relations will be disturbed. 1 anticipate a reso lute acquittal, which shall satisfy not only the crowds assembled around, not only public justice, but your own conse'ences, in that hour to which the AttorneyoGene ral alluded in his opening, that shall be not only for a pleasure through life, but gratification in the last hour of terrible account. Mr. Spencer spoke as follows :—May it please your Honours, Gentlemen of the Jury—lt is the first time in my life that I have ever risen, having in my charge an important trial or defence, when I felt that the remain ing duty of Counsel, after the evidence was disclosed, was entirely a work of supererogation ; and the consci ousness that it is so, really oppresses me. It seems to enervate the whole system that circumstances should thus attend me, and that I should be obliged to det Ain a jury whose patience has been largely tried, by comment ing on evidence, when my judgment satisfies me that that evidence has already been carefully con sidered by the jury, and that their judgment is now ripe to be pronounced. But in all this I relay be mistaken ; it is very possible that my convictions of the evidence of 11‘Leod are stronger than are yours, or those of any other person who has not been so inti• mately acquainted with the whole interests of this case as I have been. It is because I have no right to remit any exertion which shall lead to the development of truth and the innocence of IlPLeod, and the securing of your: verdict of acquittal, that I will even now at tempt to draw further on your patience, and submit such considerations as deserve to be reflected on by you ; such as the prisoner has a right to demand, and such as the State and our common country have reason to ex pect. As I took occasion, Gentlemen, to remark in the opening of the defence, this case is one, as the evidence has now disclosed it to be, of greater importance than almost any other ever brought before an American bar for trial. Cases involving the life of an individual have an all-sufficient interest to awaken the deepest emotions of the human heart ; but when we consider that this is a case involving other interests far beyond the life and death of iNPLeod, no man with an American heart beating in his bosom can fail to be alive to every con sideration that shall lead him to a right conclusion ; and equally as jurors and as citizens I invoke your attention to such considerations as I shall address to you. Gentlemen of the Jury, I hope you will be spared all your lives from such cxeitement as has been manifested here. You may have observed, in the progress of this trial, in the examination of witnesses, that there was a want of kindness and charity, and you may think there may have been a rigour and a rigidity to which, perhaps, witnesses should not be subjected who ap pear here in obedience to the mandate of the law. I believe that the case of the prosecution is untrue ; and I am sorry to say that I firmly believe a large portion of it is not only untrue , which implies mistake and misapprehension, but I hope I shall not be suspected of a want of charity when I say that a large portion of it is evidently false, and desire that word to be understood in its legiti mate acceptation. I believe it is sought to be up held by the rankest perjury tha t was ever brought into a Court of Justice since the sun shone en Christendom. This case, Gentler ten, involves not only the life of a fellow-being, but the highest interests of two great na tions, in the two hemispheres, which hold the first rank in all Christendom, speak one common language, one common people, one kith and kin ; and the object of this prosecution is to involve these two nations in a bloody war. Believing this—and I doubt the power of may learned adversaries, able as they are, to convinces me that such is not the character of the prosecution, and that such are not the reasons and the motives for its being brought, I confess frankly, I felt little charity for those who sought to take the life of l‘l'Leod. Such must be my apology for the man ner in which I nay . have conducted this de fence. I took occasion, Gentlemen of the Jury, in opening this defence, to state to you that it would be twofold—the one founded entirely o n th e b roa d ground that the killing of Durfee was not murder in any one—that by the law of nations the exertion of the public force of a country—those acting in obedience to the command of a superior in the d;scharge of a duty which the circumstances of the case seem to devolve upan them—were not sub. jrct to arraignment and trial for murder, though it was hostile in its nature and calculated to destroy the life of a fellow-being. That defence, Gentlemen of the Jury, has, by the direction of the Learned Judge who presides over our deliberations, been excluded from our view. Of that judgment it becomes not me to complain ; I feel no desire to complain in the progress of this trial. What, then, Gentlemen of the Jury, remaias? Are we without defence? As far as our Supreme Court has decided, though the Canadian territory had been in vaded by an hostile army which had established a Provisional Government, and issued a proclamation in viting our subjects and citizens to come to their stan dard, and (though they were bound as American citi zens by their obligations to the law of that country and of our own, to respect the peace of a neutral nation) to rally and come to their aid aid comfort—though our arsenals were .rifled, and armies were collected, and bat teries were estebli had, and cannonading had com menced on the Canada main land, yet if the subjects of Canada thought fit to exert their power to over throw this enemy, and should in the excicise of that power put their feet on American soil, they Were tree passing, and if they dared to take the life of an Ame rican citizen, they were murderers. Although, I say, the Supreme Court of the -State of New York have thus decided, have they swept from our posses. sion every defence which can be relied upon for the safe deliverance of 111‘Leod from the bonds which he now endures ? No, Gentlemen, there is yet another remain ing. I have no belief—l have no confidence in the doctrine which the Supreme Court has promulgated in this case. I shall repeat it—l shall abide by it— and I shall abide by the decision of his Honour here ; but, if needs be, have taken the precaution to pro vide, to review the decision of his Honour here, and to secure the right which will enable me to review the de cision of the Supreme Court elsewhere, so that in the event of M‘Leod's conviction, if that decision should not be in accordance with the law of the land, it may be reversed, and that established which 1 believe to be the law of the land—namely, that where there was such a war carrying on, the British Government m:glit properly exert its power to put down that war, and that those who acted in obedience to that Government, in the discharge of their duty as faithful subjects and citizens, are not murderers. I desire it to be under stood here, in this Court-house, and before this au dience, as well as to this nation, that I protest against that doctrine being promulgated as the law of the land. It is not the doctrine of the law of nations, and I, for one, will never submit to it as long as it is necessary to contend against it, for the safety of Al'lseod. On this trial I submit it—l will abide by it—l will submit, so far as this trial is concerned, without murmuring, and I only now refer to that doctrine of the Supreme Court of the State, to express my regret that that doctrine should be sent forth as the doctrine of the law of nations, in their movements as belligerents in affairs of war. The remaining ground of defence is that to which I secondly alluded on opening our defence to you. It is one of common occurrence, and may as well arise in a case of murder as in any other. The true question for your determination is, where was the orisoner at the bar on the night of the ?9th of December, 1837. lf, as it has been proved on the part of the prosecution, he was at Chippewa, it does not follow from thence that he went on board the boats—that he was one of those who, at dead hour of midnight, set fire to the steam-boat Caro line—that it was his hand which dealt the deadly blow which deprived Durfee of life. You are to inquire where, in reality, was M'Leod at that time ? Had he the honour or the disgrace to be en gaged in that expedition ? If he had, then, under the law, as applied to this case, I confess it will be your duty to find a verdict of guilty. When I make this confession, I must be understood as ref,rring to the law as it has been laid down and established by one of the higher tribunals of this State with reference to this' case, but not as I believe it, the firm and unshaken principles of the law of nation;. This case, gentlemen, presented some features of great peculiarity, to which allusion should be made, and which you should fully understand and properly appreciate. It is that from the beginning, as I have before had occasion to mention, long before the trial commenced, nay, nearly a year ego, the main features of cur defence, with nearly every attending cir cumstance, were fully and perfectly known to the counsel for the prosecution ; not indeed to the Learned Gentle man who now has it in charge, but to the Counsel for the people. And further, gentlemen, long since—a month ago, or nearly a month ago, our defence as far as respects the evidence which we have produced from witnesses in Canada—so far as respects our evi eene3 taken by comm'ssion, was fully awl perfectly known. Although generally speaking such evidence should be known to ourselves only, in cases of a high criminal nature especially, yet have we been driven t exhibit to the world as well as to the Counsel for Vie prosecution, long ago, almost every iverd of the evi dence, covering:cvery rniciute l'nearnent of our defence as it has been spread oat before you. The deposi tione were in the hands of our learned ale ersaries days and days before their witnesses were pro duced upon the stand here to be sworn ; and every word of these depositions had been read by their counsel. I am well convinced of this fact. This trial has not gone forward without having cars listening ; and 1 have reason to believe that there have been what may be called committee rooms, where those witnesses have had read to them from time to time the evidence which had been given in the case, and where they have had their minds prepared for the part which they themselves were about to take in the case. And you may be assured there was not one of those witnesses who had not a full knnwledge of the depositions. Ido not say, that the counsel for the prosecution have instructed the witnesses in this way, but do you suppose th st the Learned Attorney-General for the State of New York, that the District Attorney for the County of Niagara, that the District Attorney for the County of Oneida, and the Learned Counsel from Buffalo, who was himself one of the committee of vigi lance ; do you suppose that these are the only persons engaged in upholding th's prosecution ? I desire that such a misconception should be removed from your minds. 'These four gentlemen a-e but the corporal's guard of the army which spreads itself from one end of the State to the other. There arc generals, colo nels, subalterns, and privates, employed in this cru sade. The post-office department has been made subservient to their purposes ; secret communi cations have been successfully kept up, and no effart has been left unexerted which was calculated to secure the conviction of M4Leed—and for what ? Net, certainly, that they desire the blood of an in nocent man should be shed on the scaffold, but that the two countries should be involved in war, and that these persons may, by that means, be enabled again to enter Canada, though not as the vanguard, yet as the rear-guard of an American army, for the purpose of wresting it from British dominion. So strong was the evidence before Judge Ballwin, showing that M'Leod had no participation in the affair, that he determined to release him on his recognizance for his appearance. But as it happens in that dis trict of the country, an appeal lies from a judicial officer to a popular assembly. But I thank God that here no midnight mob, assembled to the noise of martial music, has the power to exert an influ ence over our deliberations. You will have it in your power to open the prison doors, and set your cap tive free ; if in your deliberate judgments you deter mine.. that justice requires that you s hould do so, v%:it h , out fear of popular tumult. When you hare gc_n t your verdict, after duo deliberatio n, y ou will not find nece ssary to apologise for the judg ment which you hare formed. No, gentlemen, Utica. Oneida, America itself, I hope, will be spared another exhibition so dis graceful to our law—so subversive of our liberties. 1 shall have occasion yet to show up the blackest per jury that was every brought to bear upon a trial. In dulge me, Gentlemen, in another remark, before I enter upon the tedious and thankless duty of examining the testimony of the witnesses one by one. It is, Gentle men, and it is not the first time that the thought has been suggested to you—it is that either one side or the other must be destitute of truth. That it is impossible for human ingenuity to reconcile the two sides of this case so as to furnish an apology for the witnesses on both sides. 'fo that Being alone who gave us existence is attributable the power of Übiquity. It is impossible for a human being, tabernacled in clay, to be in two places at once and the same instant of time. Alexander M'Leod was not in Stamford at all as it has been proved be was, if he had the slightest participa in the attack upon the Caroline and the murder of Durfee. Leod was not at Schlosser if he was at Stamford, as we maintain ho was. It follows, therefore, Gentlemen of the Jury, that painful as [must be the duty, you cannot escape its discharge ; you must find that either the one side or the other of the evidence which has been adduced before you is utterly false—a sheer fabrication, got up to answer the purposes of the present trial. Now, gentlemen, allow me to ask what motive could there be for the witnesses on the part of the defence to come forward and fabricate falsehoods, while on the other hand you have seen motives strong as death, viz. their darling object to involve this country in a war with Great Britain. I charge it upon them unhesitatingly. All their witnesses are of this character and descrip tion—if there are any exceptions they do not occur to me at this moment. Members of those secret lodges, bound by frightful oath to act in concert for the accomplishment of that which they dare not disclose for the laws.ose for fear of being subjected to puishmen t b y bTyhetbyecier r fruits tai ly ; ca a n n n d o w t h co a m t a p r la e in th o e f s u e s fr if ui w ts e ? ju them ; d l g n e t of h e t place, the contribution of money , which is t ‘ h t, e t si he ne c w ol o l- f war, to carry on their unholy p ur p oses tribution of personal services , of material aiment, munitions of wa r ; every spectes cold and hunger ; also , the contribution°netenflneeg danger and . of food and men who compose this h necessary as to beenca d rryo o n n e w abryagainste our neighbours these secret societies. Can you desire to have stronger evidence than the very secrecy of their proceedings, under the sanction of an unholy oath ? These men take the witness stand, and on their caths declare that they dare not confess the nature of their society's oaths for fear it should expose them to a cri minal prosecution ; and yet they expect to obtain cre dence from an intelligent Jury ! The witness Willson, who kept the ferry, not over the River Styx, but over the Niagara, and sailed not Charon's brat, but his own, could give free passage to the felon Lett,, that he might burn and destroy the property of the peaceable inhabitants ; that he might murder the lamented Usher, that he might destroy the monument of Sir Isaac Brook ; that he might set fire to the steam boats and destroy the lives of innocent persons. But alas! that celebrated C rptain-General has been lost to them, and they here bitterly felt the sting of their mortification. These are the witnesses— these are ti.e constituent parts of thet gallant and virtuous comleira'ion of ht roes, who come forward to teke away the life d an innocent man, thinking to cl tiro belief from an intelliget t. Jury. I shall pass oser at a glance, all that which has not an immediate and direct bearing upon the point at issue. They all show a desire to prevaricate and cenceal the truth. Take for example the first witness, Wells. Did he freely and franle'y give you tie honest truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? He stands utterly impeached and convicted of dircet perjury. The Court assembled at two o'clack, after the recess for dinner, and the number of ladies present was consi derably ine•eased, Mr. Spencer resumed his argument, and his exami nation of the evidence for the prosecution, which he said he verily believed was a wicked combination of wicked men to promote a hese and wicked purpose. He believed it was only necessary for those men to put forth their order and it would be obeyed, and it was his so lemn conviction that that dangerous combination along the frontiers of which lie had spoken, could furnish des perate men for any purpose, lie it even to hang I\l‘Lood. But if the British and American Goaernments would only see tin se things in their proper light, there would be no necessity to go to war, for tint combination consisted butof the scum cf the earth. The Learned Gentleman minutely examined the evidence for the prosecution, and the character of those who gave it ; and he expressed his surprise that the law officer of the Government who conducted the prosecution had not abandoned the case without asking a conviction on such testimony. The Attorney General at nine o'clock commenced his clos . ng address, r.nd spoke as follows : Gentlemen of the Jury Worn down with the labours of this case, I an calved upon at this late hour to bear up, not against the iatrinsic merits of the case, but against the powerful eloquence and the great - personal influence of the counsel for the prisoner—to bear up this case under my own fatigue, and exhausted as you are by this trial, which has been of so great extent, against false isaues, and extraneous issues, which the ingenuity of counsel has too successfully succeeded in placing before you. During the progress of this case, and the summing up, counsel for the prisoner have complained loudly of the manner in which the prosecution has been conducted, as if the:e had been something harsh and improper on the part of those whose duty it was to conduct it before you. We have been accused of concealing from him the names of the witnesses. Gentlemen, Ido not feel that that charge is properly brought against us. For one, 1 can say, it is not properly brought against me. As to harshness in the case, I owe it to the position which I hold to say, from the outset—from the first moment that the prism er at the bar was ar rested at Lewiston, to the present moment in which Pam addressing you, by the direction of the Executive o' your Sate, as well as those in whose more immediate hands the prosecution was, every attention given to the prisoner, and there has net been left the shadow of a shade of ground for the enemies of our State here or elsewhere, to charge us with having tarnished the mune of the State of New York in the adminis tretion of justice to tile prisoner at the bar. Gen tlemen of the Jury, I believe it not. Ido not believe it. So far as my knowledge extends I can say it is not so. If any such thing has been done it has been done without my knowledge. Sornethine has been said here of the mob at Lockport es connecting itself with the merits of this C.l C. 1 would nut lave men- Cenci' this, but that it has been trumpeted forth that in this State we arc so wild and regardless of law that we are ready to asassinate a judge on the bench. I stand not here to apologize for any ap pearance of vich nee at Lockport, but the circum stances were not as they have been exaggerated here this day, and as they have been represented in the public prints both here and in Europe. Get:- tlearearr—the prhsoner was, by a Judg , , let to bail without a precedent ; and the people, who were somewhat indignant at the outrage which had been committed at their very thresholds, were some what excited. They did net do yielence to any one ; they insisted that those who had become bound should cancel their bond, and that was the whole. Now, G.2ntl 'men, what progress have we mode in this case ? May I say, G..nil2men, that we have provcd.that the Caroline was destroyed, aed that D srfec was murdered. I confess, when the Counsel for the prisoner attacked so violently the testimony of Mr. Wells—the first witness who was caked to prove the de struction of the Caroline-1 began to be alarmed lest we bad riot proved that the Caroline was destroyed, and that Durfee was murdered. Gen tlemen, I do not think perjury is quite so common as the counsel seem to suppose ; but, Gentlemen, it is a common thing to swear to a little more than the witnesses know. MeNah, in his testimony, not that be intended delibarately to perjure himself, but he was willing to swear to more than be knew. Gentleman, the life of a man may he taken in lawful self defence, or it may have been taken by some individual in the protection of his own life. Yes, Gentlemen, it might be taken by some one in the patriotic defence of his country. On that point I will go as far as the Counsel for the pri soner, and I wou'd not restrict it to one individual alone. But does the testimony here make out a lawful taking away of life? Gentlemen, it does not approach it, though an attempt was made to put. forward testi mony in the nature of a defence. The Learned Gent. here read an extract from the diplomatic correspondence which has taken place between the British Minister and our Secretary of St ate, in which oar Secretary lays down the position that the airsir of the Caroline was unjustifiable even in a national point of view, unless there was strong necessity for instant stir defence, leaving no choice of means nor moment of deliberation, a necessity which the Government of the United States could not believe to have existed. The Learned Gentleman resumed :—Gentlemen, this has been extolled as an act entitled to be ranked among the glorious achievements of men. Yoe well recollect the description of this boot ; it was a ferry boat. It was so small that a person could step out of a row bo it on to her clack. Was it then so ter rible an engine, as would warrant s uch extra ordinary services? The persons on Navy Island might have been s'arved out ; bat this fact, though it may have been a sagacious one, was one of barbarian cruelty—lt was one which nothing but the rigour of war would justify. H our citizens were on Navy Island, they w ere no l onger our c i t i zen s, and if Cies h.d been but c h ere d or h ung , there could be no appeal to our law-s ; but when they come within our lines, God grant that we may ble can always add nothing n a o b t l i e li n a g od to w o i re lli z n tb g leo to protect our citizens. pinion of our Supreme Court, which I read to you in nay o p en i n g. I can only sa y, that Great Britain h erse lf h as d ec id e d t h at ques tion, when she refused to our Government to deliver up Greeley, when he wee taken at Madawaska for taking the census, on what may be alleged to be British ground. \\Then he was arrested for that act, and thrown into prison, and our Government complained of the impropriety of the act, what was the reply of the British Government ? " We can not interfere—our laws must be respected." That answer, so far as the law went, was conclusive. But so far as this was an act of war, that question bad also been disposed of by Great Bri'ain. When she seized our citizens taken on her shores, she tried them in her civil Courts, and sire condemned some to be executed and some to be banished. Yes, Gentlemen, ourclti zens have been thus treated, and the wises and children and brothers of those men have kneeled to Govern menttircsome. atWashington, again and again, imploring that thing may be done to procure their releaset from w e could fo reign bondage ; but they have been tollthat aws which not interfere. Shall not, then, the who same bind us from interfering with those i m perative rind tres pass on their soil, be "1" il turned, and their binding when the sides are rne so il ? During this citizens trt spass on our discussion, Gentlemen , atte ntion has beets your directed to some tanc es, supposed to be few ins t will not detain you at analagous to this case. I c annot allow an occasion of this late hour , bu t se much interest here and elsewhere , to p ass without one word with reference t o these instances which are 1 of the case of Florida • it , a cited. We are remindes ~ and anno y a ' Is ' s system of aggression , oaance contt a protracted . more than three years. No two cases are nued there for more di ss imilar ; at last Gen. Jackson followed th e fugi tivelndians out of their terri tor y ; and what then was the result ? t here was no case so extreme as that, y e t iby the very e xtremit y of necessity, n protection of our own rights, as you remember, gentlemen, a committee of both Houses of Congress, to whom was referred the subject, reported against the conduct o f G enera l Jackson ; although the majorities, were his political friends, yet they reported that the act was illegal ; he, then the darling of the nation, covered by fresh laurels, committed this deed, which that committee were com pelled to declare an unlawful act of aggression. Why is that brought fore and here ? Again you are referred to the case of the Leopard and the Chesapeake ; if I should so lect one case to maintain the decisions of our Court, it should be that case ; a gross outrage was committed by that vessel on our crews ; the Government complained ; England disavowed the act and the individual was pun ished. One word more ; although lam conscious lam trespassing on your patience, permit me to say one THE SUN• LONDON, SATURDAY, OC.TOBER 80,1841: there. He went away after breakfast. I cannot be mis taken about the night. I saw him agaitio ha returned from Chippewa, about three o'clockin the afternoon. He did not turn into our house. He went right on to Nia gara. He was on horseback, and had a carmen hall in his hand. It was said it was fired at him from Navy Island. • Harriet Morrison examined by Mr. Spencer am daughter of Mr. Morrison. I was at home in the•win ter of 1837. I have known Mr.. M‘Leod since about a year after we arrived in the country. I reepact hear ing of the affair of the Caroline the morning after it had happened. I heard my father tell* Mr. M•Leod in the parlour ; a friend of my father's bad told him at the gate ; it was Colonel Cameron. I saw M‘Leod the night before. I drank tea with him about seven o'clock. I retired that night betwixt nine and ten. He had not retired before I did. I spent my evening in the same room with him. The whole family was there. I saw him the next morning at breakfast. He left our house to go to Chippewa at nine or tm o'clock. Mr. Spencer here read the deposition of Duncan Cameron, which stated that he wp, i 6l years of age. It corroborated the testimony of the ! gdrrison family. SIXTH DAY. UTICA, OCT. 8. The Court sat last night until near ten o'clock, and Judge Gridley appeared to be as much disposed to con tinue sitting as he has been at any period of the trial ; but the jurors exhibited symptoms of drowsiness, and the appeal was irresistible. Oee juror had tied his handkerchief about his head, and appeared to be en joying a sound sleep while the depositions were being read ; others were resting their weary beads on the front of the jury box, and altogether they looked more like twelve convicts, broken down in mind and body, under the dreadful sentence which dooms to an igno minious death, than a jury sitting to decide on the fate of another. The Court accordingly was adjourned until a quarter to eight this morning, at which time Judge Gridley took his scat on the bench. He was, as usual, the first man in Court, and with all the freshness of joyous joeth : he never fails, nor does he betray any fatigue under his arduous duties. The depositions read are those of Sir Allan M' Nab, John Harris, Edward Zealand and, Will'am S. Light. The Court-room is almost destitute of spectators. An incident occurred yesterday which created much amusement. The " Patriot" General Sutherland is here busily engaged in reporting the trial for a small pamphlet. While thus engaged a stranger quietly took up Sutherland's cloak, under the nose of one of the officers, and walked with it out of Court. Suther land's consternation was ludicrous when he discovered his loss ; and the vexation of the officer was visible when he found a theft committed before his eyes; but in his justification he said the man walked away with it as though it belonged to him. There are many pick pockets in this neighbourhood. The Counsel got through the depositions by one o'clock, havaig read those of Sir Allan Al• Nab, John Harris, Edward Zealand, William S. Light, John Gor don, Christopher Beer, Hamilton Robert O'Rwilly, Captain M'Cormack, Frederick Cleverly, Thomas Hec tor, John I'. Batterbj, and Neil M'Gregor, and the Court then took a recess for dinner. These witnesses v.-cre distributed amongst the seven boats of the expe ditioa, and from each boat there was one or more of them proved that M'Leod was not in the boat in which the witness was seated. William Press examined by Mr. Spencer—l now re side at Hamilton, in Canada. lam a tavern-keeper. 1 kept the Promenade House. 1 lived at the village of Niagara from 1835 to the Ist of last July. 1 was a tavern keeper there. I knew M`Lesd well at that time. I made his acquaintance soon after I went to reside at Niagara. 1 lived about 300 or 400 yards from him. I recollect the troubles in Canada. I was at Chippewa only once during those troubles. I was there on the 29th of December. 1 left Chippewa the evening of the 29th, a little after dark. I put my horses in a place a little way from Davie's. Mr. O'Keith rode down with me, and Mr. M`Leod rode with me to Stamford. I mean the prisoner at the bet. Stamford is about six miles from Chippewa. The roads were very bad from Chippewa to the Falls. They always are in wet weather. In the state in which the roads were then it would take M'Leod an hour and a half to ride down. M'Leod left me at Mr. Nlorrison's gate. I knew Raincock, who has been spoken of, very well. He left Canada before the troubles. I ex pect he has not been back since. Shortly after I re ceived a letter from him from New York. 1 have heard of his being in England since, as a clerk on a railroad. I was told by a person who saw him. The proceedings of the Court were here interrupted by a terrific hailstorm. The Court-room became almost dark as night, and the rattling of the hail against the windows, some of which were much broken by the hail, overpowered the voice of the witness. 'l' he rain fell in torrents, .the lightning flashed, and the thunder rolled for some time after, and ruin fell through the ceiling of the Court-room in copious showers. When the storm subsided, the examination was resumed. John Morrison, examined by Mr. Spencer, I live at Stamford in Upper Canada. I have lived there six years. I removed from Toronto. I arrived in this country from Europe in June, 1835. I know Alex, ander M'Leod, perfectly. I made his acquaintance in 1836. I had seen him occasionally from that time. I heard of the destruction of the Caroline on the morn ing of the 30th December 1837, about eight o'clock. My boy told me that Colonel Cameron, late of the re giment that I belonged to, wanted to see me at the gate. I went to the gate and saw him, and lie asked me if I bad heard the news ? I asked hint what it was ? He told me a party had cut out the Caroline, and brought her and sent her over the Falls. He said it was done the night before. I then said to him, your friend, M‘Leod, is in our house, won't you come up and see him ? He begged to be excused, as lie was in a great hurry. M`Lcod was then in my cottage. Ile came there at half-past seven the night before, and slept in our parlour. He drank tea there that night. Ile Wok his breakfast in the same room that he slept in at my cottage. M‘Leoti and myself' retired to bed about half-past twelve o'clock. It was pretty near the " wee hour," at all events. Mr. Alelaeod was an old acquaintance. He was not used as a stranger, and I left him in the evening with the family. About half past tine, or from that to ten, we sat down and had a tumbler of toddy. He had not left his room that morning when I saw Colonel Cameron. When 1 re turned to the cottage from Colonel Cameron, I said, "M'Leod, what do you think has happened ?" I then told him Colonel Cameron had just told me, that a patty had gone last night and cut out the Caroline, and sent her over the Fads. He said, " You don't say so." I said I understood it was so. M'Leod said, I would to God I had been there." Margaret Morrison, examined by Mr. Spencer—l am the wife of Lieut. Morrison, who has just Oven his evidence ; I have known M`Leod six years ; 1 heard of the destruction of the steamboat Caroline ; I heard it in the morning ; I heard the boat had been destroyed the night before ; Col. Cameron, of Toronto, brought the intelligence ; he brought part of the boat ; I saw the small piece that Mr. Morrison cut off; Mr. M'Leod was then in our parlour ; he came there the night before about 7 o'clock I think ; he took tea ,there that night ; he remained all night ; Mr. Morrison would not allow him to go away that night ; Mr. Morrison and Mr. M'Leod sat up to past 12 o'clock ; I was in the room with them sometimes ; they were taking a glass of toddy together ; I was the last to go to bed ; but Mr. M'Leod slept in the parlour on a" stretcher," that is, a bed that closes up and stretches out when required for use ; Mr. M'Leod's boots were taken from the parlour and put before the kitchen fire a good deal before bed-time. The next morning they were in the same place. At night they were wet, but the next morning they were dry. Mr. M`Leod did not leave our house that night after be came in the evening. He could not have lett without my knowledge. He could not have gone without coming for his boots, and he could not have gut them without my knowledge. I slept in a lit tle room just off the kitchen, and I was kept awake by a sick child. There was also a watch-dog there. By the Court—l saw Mr. M'Leod after Mr. Morri son went to bed. It was past twelve o'clock, or near one. By Mr. Spencer—l saw him again about eight o'clock the next morning. I had been up about an hour. He was in the parlour when Colonel Cameron came along. Mr. Morrison came up and told Mr. M'Leod what had taken place. I think Mr. M'Leod wished he had been The Court re-assembled at the usual hour. Mr. Spencer informed the Court that he had many witnesses in attendance that - he intended to produce, to show more extensively the nature of 'the transaction out of which the trial has arisen. He -now wished the Court to understand that the evideuee was now offered, though under the rule laid down it was excluded. Jared Stocking, examined by Mr. Spencer—ln 1837 I was stationed at Chippewa. I commanded a de tachment of dragoons. I know Wm. Press. He lives opposite to me when I - am at home. I saw him at Chippewa on the 29th December. I showed him the batteries. He dined with me. I knew Mr. Rain cock as collector of Niagara. I have entered goods with him as custom-house officer. He left Canaa in the summer of 1837. lam one of his creditors. He went away, not being able to pay Isis debts. Mr. Spcncar then rose and said, this Court having felt it its duty to, exclude the evidence which we pro posed offering at the commencement of the trial, founded on national law, it, of course, leaves but a single question of fact to be investigated in this trial ; and that is, whether in truth M'Leod was one of the party who attacked and destroyed the Caroline. To this point, therefore, we have directed our attention, and produced all the evidence in, our power to bear on it ; and it consequently -closes the defence on which we rely for the acquittal of 11.'Leod. REPLY TO THE DEFENCE. The Attorney-General said, before` we call. wit nesses I will offer some documentary evidence. I offer first the enrollment, and the licence of the boat in Buffalo. Mr. Spencer—Let it be read, Sir. r The Attorney-General—l will now also, if the Court please, read the statement of the prisoner. It is the statement of the prisoner, made before Mr. Justice Bell, when he was informed of his rights. Judge Gridicy—ls it properly authenticated? Attorney-General—Yes, Sir. Mr. Jenkins—And it conflicts with'the statement of some of the prisoner's witnesses. The Attorney-General then read the deposition of Russell Inglis, bar-keeper at the North American Hotel, Toronto, Upper Canada, in which he swore that Alexander M'Leod came to the North American Hotel, Toronto, on December 31, 1837, and remained there until January 3, 1838. This was offered to conflict with and discredit the Morrison family, who swore that INl'Lewl slept at their house on the night of Jun. 2. Rev. John Marsh, examined by the Attorney-Gene ral—l am acquainted with Sanders Drown. I have been acquainted with him in Canada about four years. I am a Minister of the Gospel, of the Methodist Epis copal denomination. I have no reason to believe that be is not worthy of credit under oath. I lived at Chip pewa during the whole time he did. Mr. Jenkins—We offer to show that the prisoner was not at Mr. Morrison's, by showing that he was at Chippewa the 29th of December, at night, and was there the next morning, and alio the identical time when it was burned, that is when they were embarking and debarking ; and that he was at Chippewa on the morning of erwards, before sunrise, and from that time to ten o'clock. I wish to put that as a distinct offer, and I apprehend it does not come within the rule, so as to be excluded. Judge Gridley—l have a single remark to make, not assigning any further reason for the decision made ; but in rilation to the judgment made, I am sorry to hear an argument that the decision will not be satisfac tory to the public. The Attorney-General—lf the Court refers to my remarks, I beg to say I did not intend anything of that kind. Judge Gridley—Sitting here, as I do, indeeendent of all public opinion, on a question of law, as I regard it conscientiously, 1 can entertain no motive whatever; whether the decision will address itself to the feelings good or ill of others. I have in this very cause excluded from those depositions every portion which was not responsive, because I felt myself rigidly bound to de cide according to my own notion of law. I felt that I had no right in a capital case to enlarge the rules of evidence,.as they existed. I mean this decision to stand, to exclude the evidence offered, but not in any way in support of Drown, who may have bean impeached. The Attorney-General offered evidence to show that Drown had told to several persons the same story as he d told here, and that Lie told it soon after the occur- rence. Judge Gridley—l overrule it. William DAL.Id, examined by the Attorney-Go tare . —I reside at Queenston, district of ,Niagare, Upper Canada ; I know Mr. and Mrs. Morrison ;,I have not been et their house more than three times ; 1 .saw Mr. Morrison on this side, at Lewiston, in 1840,; 1 had then some conversation with him ; he said to. me, in conversation at his own house, that be hoped the Ame rican authorities would get hold of Mr. 111?Leed, and try him for his participation in the burning of the Caro line ; that was in September, 1839 ; about that time they were relating to me that Nl' Leod had seduced a daughter of Mr. Morrison's from her husband, and that Mr. Taylor, the husband, who was a wealthy mer chant from the Southern States, was gone in persuit of them to Toronto ; I asked him when I saw him in 1840 how be could prove an alibi ; and he said that,:he thought that Mr. M•Leod stopped at his place, thaf:. night ; I asked him if be was sure of that—he said 130 wts not; but M'Leod was one of her Majesty's subjects, and must be protected at any risk. Cross-examined by Mr. Spencer—l never aided the Patriots directly. I was at Detroit when they crossed from Prescott. I was on Navy Island :Than the Pa tricts were there. I was there eight days. M'Kenzie took me as a prisoner, and kept me till the evacuation. Ile kept me at their head quarters. General Van Rensselaer was quartered there. I was permitted to go out sometimes by the permission of the officers. I saw the men on parade, and counted 344 rank and file, besides the guards. lam a school teacher. By the Attorney-General--I am a native of Canada. Mr. Spencer—And no great friend - to it, arc you? Witness—Not particularly. Mr. Joseph Hamilton was called to prove that De field was not worthy of belief, and that Captain Mor rison was. I have known Defield since he was a boy. He has the reputation of being a quick, smart boy, but his reputation is not good. 1 have known Lieutenant Morrison for severar years • his character for truth and honesty is good. Cross-examined by the Attorney-General—l live in Queenston. lam a native of Canada. lam not an associate of Mr. Morrison, htit' I lave been in the habit of doing business with him. He resides on his income. The business we do together is the sale to me of bills of exchange for his pay. He resides about four miles from me. Defield was a serjeant of a company in Canada, and he deserted and went over to Navy Island. I am not aware of any civil prosecution hanging over I\l‘Leod ; I have heard of one.:l know nothing about my brother's threatening to remove the prisoner from the office of Deputy Sheriff. I had the greatest confi dence in M'Leotl. 1 heard my brother .say on ,his deathbed that M'Leod was not indebted to him, lie thought their accounts were balanced. By Mr. Spencer—l am a hanker. I I)are heard, ever since"that unfortunate exhibition al the examina tion of M'Leod, a year ago, of Mr. Morrison's being perfectly abstemious. At 20 minutes to eight-o'clock the,evidence on both sides was 'understood to be closed. Judge Gridley then ieformed,the Jury that it was necessary they should remain tegether, over the Sab bath, disagreeable as that was, and he advised them not only not to permit persons ,to approach. them and con verse on the subject.of this trial, but not to read news paper reports of the trial. • :•' • SEVENTH DAY. • UTICA, OCT. 11. Tho Court was open;:d this morning at fifteen minutes to eight o'clock, and for the first time during the trial, ladies attended, for whom seats were reserved behind the Jury box. ' The Jury all answered to their names, and the summing,up of Counsel was com menced by Mr. Bradley, who spoke as follows : May it please the Court, Gentlemen of the Jury— This cause which has probably to a greater extent than any other which has ever been brought before i4L ,pow ended. brought to After h a Jury, which has involved,interests reaching far beyond individuals—vvhich. has, endang ere d the tapeceexcitement peace and andT h er e tpeosstei which in -oof i n t y has n aa tt s °allv-Onts s ' created io this country, ex tending through a year, giving origin not only to popu lar tumult, but giving rise to exciting debates in the Legislature, and angry debates between nations, it has cow come to a close --to the prisoner for life or death this testimony is ended —to a country Who s b p eace it en dangers, whose interests it involves, whose frontier may be desolated by adverse armies and navies, which may be called forth for honour or disgrace, it is ended. To another nation, whose sO.leot the prisoner is— a nation which avows tliJ•act- charged on the pri- 1. ~ , ts 14: EVENING SUN ra . 110 hot t uo ,oIJ. ioe' J '