The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1821-03-09 00:00:00

At of tile prime
oitee! Ile had au apnoea! metiass--elt, No! his ohjer t
oast practically to sopprirt this truly Britialt privilege, as
nett as to defend his character from the attar!. of libeller.'
Dow ! why, by taking nutria, care that they should not he
Permitted to prove the truth of their statements! But
slot, fore du Ikea talk about the liberty of the press
•19 /kV refer to this malarial blaster, which is the grand
reeineetive of the Constitution, that without it would soon
sigh into .treat' and death? Why, simply for the purpose
.1 taking this noble ground of defence out of the month of
lire Defenduate, awl by placing it in that of the dignified
Prosecutor, buten the Jury to imagine that his motives
neve not personal, that he did not intend to piori,h the De-
feo/Jame fur having hurt his feelings by communirating in.
1, threw* cumeeloiag unpalatable tenths. No, only
lustsseement, to those who chum to believe it, was of a phi-
loitheopie and patrintle nature. He wished to 'appal t the
pallorlieva uS &High freedom in ills notable way. His (Mr.
A.'s) Lrarued Friend hod told the Jury In what the liberty
of the peers 4t4 net consist—That it was not privately calm-
unapt, impasiterial, cruel, or malignant. lie granted it,
nod he would gladly limit It still more, by telling hie
Leased Priead that it was not servile, sycophantic, fawn.
tog, cringing, and always saying pleasstrable things. This
otet at liberty would do very well for those Asiatic depot-
ions about which its Learned Friend had au eloquently t.lk.
ed, and to which be intended to go should be lose this trial
(1.7 the way, Imo wished him • pleating journey), but it would
spat Jo for a free Government, where truths, however unpa-
latable, must be fairly and fully told. For the possession of
this glorious privilege, many personal sacrifices must be
node, and ma wen ought to be ready to endure any
little eiaresinees or trilling incoseenieace the poblies-
lion of truth may pollen., as it is necessary for the ge-
neral good and the prosperity of the State. Had bide.
vidualu nothing said of them but what was civil and
ohligiag, why, whet would the difference cousist in
between essrsolves and the future residence of his Lear..
•d Friend,: the pleasant despotism's of Asia?—Writers
are iillowed there to say as many civil and obliging things
WA they please, sad, is fact, he knew of as tyrant prohibit-
ing at any period the liberty of praising him to the skies;
it was absurd therifure to talk about the liberty of the press
in a prosecute's instituted fur the express purpose of pssmb-
ing wlsa imagine they poetess, d it. The Hill brought
fertilised by the istimatal Foe gave the Jury the power of
deciding upon heals the law mod the fact of libel, but pro.
'nosily to Ito roisterer. the Jury was limited to deride only
:spelt the twit of libel. The Judge could may state hie
apinioa, and it was well it was so, as Judges, from their dig.
tithed stations, could net enter so completely into the feel-
ings and motives of the Defendants as the Jury, who, from
residing iu the same county, hail an infinitely better chance
of knowing the intentions of the parties. Every thing,
therefore, in this rause, as well as in all others of a similar
nature, would dope's.* opine the circumstances. His Learned
Friend had offered bins the choireuf two alternatives—either
to allow that his clients were actuated by malignancy or a de.
tire of gain. Now, this was really absurd. What Malignancy
rwrld they entertain against a Nobleman who was neither
politically our personally known to them ! The last wittiest
%had mind that the Marquis dismissed several of his
small tenants fur the good of the country; why, we.
there any thing malignant in slating that feet? Truly, if be
Lad come in during his Leaned Friend's harangue, he
should have theinght some illustrious professor of political
economy, some le legislative science, " bolding
high converse" with Adam Smith, Arthur Young, and Parson
Malthus, stood before hint, arrayed in all the brilliancy of
the intellectual and the. profuudity of the ineotopreheuel-
ble. For bis part, be (Mr. Alderson), believed every word
bis Learned Friend bad said—he believed that it was better
for the country to. bare large farms than small saes--hr be.
Breed that the Noble Marquis acted from the purest benevo-
lence in ejecting his tenants (although one of then did hap
pen to die by being lovut out); and surely if it was suck a
' bold and alieetimiatesaa, the Defradaats ought not to be
punished for acquainting the world with it. If it was sup-
• purled by such great -authorities es Malthus, Smith, and
Yueug, and was a proof of thi •• purest benevolence" on the
, part of the Noble
.Marquis, although Messrs. Jollie might
happen to differ from him, why be was right and they were
wrong. But surely when they simply and truly stated the
facts, declining to comment upon them, the world, which in
. political esoconty is guided by the illustrious writers referred
to, would praise rather thou blame him fur this theritalite
sestina ; and it would be madness to find the Defeadasta
guilty fur exalting the character of the Illustrious and Noble
J'ruseettior. Whet if the Marquis not permit deem • beg-
gars," as his Leaned Pared had called them, who had been
all their files lemmas .on his estates, and were wedded to
the soil, to die where they had lived; what if they did
. die nu being forcibly spread front the homes of their GSM
fathers, surely' every mat why is at all acquainted with the
philanihnipic principle of the anti-populating liefithos,
must have Itutiwo that it was an act sir extreme Igimosity
to save the poor wretches from the misery, folly, sad Mee
they would have beep subjected to had they castigated to
live in their little hurries. It was wily such ignorant indi.
',duets as the Messrs whose martow-mindedness pre.
vented their seeing thegoodners sod charity of Ibis conduct,
whn'would bare held ny their bands with astriabliment, as
every oilier ignorant man, unacquainted with the sublime
v.-ample, of depopulation, would likewise have done. Hie
Learned. Friend bad eiriusseuted upon a paragraph imosodi.
'xyely preceding thealleged libel, and referring to the Dow
earssshise militia, in order to shew the mischievous sl=
1,0,, y.f the Defrodants, to' the great annoyarce lie
Marquis. Now he(Mr Alderson) could not trace the slightest
„,ssesiun between 11.4.0,- JI Cr, his Learned Friend
could see hother into the bueilien, ac l he only marvelled
that hie Leanne, Friend bad not she*, a similar esosesiss.
•uil en equally mischievous disposition in the niticle above
it, stag big that there were some See ripe cherries, most sur-
prisingly grossilig, fur that reason a the years in *garden
in the neighbourhood of ADM2I3.
Mr ALDZILION then proceeded to analyze the
bet, which lie allowed, had an indictment been prefeleat
against twin for want of taste, 'would have fully here. Metre.
There was some beautiful poetry from Goldsmith; hal ha
gave it as his bumble °inner°, which, however, might he ten.
'reverted by iris Learned Friend, that beautiful peals* IPSO
ant Übe/loos—at least he never beard of filelamoillrbobisi

0 •

pe_ste_f4e4g time fa'
*Wild look a little at its

. allowed by his
avid aut *tar a. aro-
`motif had eel are
twilit hardly he
&Wag Ida regiment, he
blood, owesuating

mentioned as
Ir. Alderson's)
4, hit iadigna-
Defendants say
Where do we live,
fvuod we did;
very passage,
of lie Dace-

comment until they
blarqui+ might
mmuecios be-

Masai. or
apssets? H.
t Weans, the
, and every body
execution of this
of the agents nail
supposed to know
had Off arrest.
that be bad a
libel to say he
sis own tenants.
libel upon shove
common sense,
_ meld
serrely give ostlers
Iprirty its the mode
itribro•blo, aid. was
SO 1 xrcutr it. Had
himself with setting
expulsion, causing the

justify ii,inaseinch
ruts alosse could have
~
carried li...ordrr(a proper . - legal au.) into execution.—
Wet it out the height of *maelnees, therefore, to prefer an in-
dictment on the part of the Marquis against the Defendants,
fur their having pimply stated, if they aimed ally thing about
hint, that he had lard 1114 legal poirilege of ejecting his
tenants ? That atone (sir. Aide rson coutended) was the fair
and proper construction to be pot upon the language, after
divesting it of the tinsel of eloquence and the Sewers Of
poesy. Diet as there was al/ count charging the Defendants
with libelling the egrets, lie trusted the Jury would insane.
diately give a verdict of acquittal.—Geetlemesi, said the
Learned Counsel, in a straits of impassioned eloquence, if you
Lad a dear, a bosom friend, a friend whose existruce was at.
111041 identified with your own, a friend who land cherish. il,
il. lighted, andemsobled you, would yoe,for the sakeof • INN,
word, said at an iincuardeil time, for an iiitcoppeftlitlnte•
pression, the offspring of nvonteotety thoughtlessness, would
you visit that friend with the severest sentence 111111 tisk
heaviest punishment: or rather would you out kindly forgive
him, and, ice the Impinge of geode reproof, teach hint to 111'
snore circumspect in his conduct ? Swell a friend, (leestlid
men, is the liberty of ibe press; by it you hate political eik
titmice and intelleciusl enjoyment— wilhoet it you would
be miserable slaves or iguorant savages; and should this be
ass error, why it is owe of those venial, chose momentary.f.ults,
which, require reproof, um punishment; kind re-biike, nits
onMerciful castigation. They would, he was sere, coasts's
the language of the alleged libel candidly, charitably, astik,
kindly; nod as there was every reason to believe that it ma/1
leered to the acts of the agents rather than to those of this
Noble Marquis, they would acquit the Defendants of soy ale
leniion to libel the latter. As to thee last paragraph relating
to the " grime being more compassionate diem man," aVomild
110 i refer ter the dignified Prosecutor, man Wing a gooseig
term which t be applied individually. But, supposing
it could, still the reference mast be to 114 improper and coif
conduct of the agents and not to the Marquis, unless ha Is
supposed to be the representative of the whole species. TIM
Mal poinage looted from Goldsmith's Traveller was not at ail
a to the case—it had nothing to du with the subject ;.,
solely to the faction, which distracted England, mil
M lbws lodividisals who having obtained fortunes in ladle,
trotiottort ioakusated by pillaging the eisfortmiate end belp-•
losatioliablearito, minnoed home so lord it as petty and over.,
hoariest end naprincipled tyrants. The lamentil C4llOllO
einaglAsed his speech bylavoking the attention of the Juryttp.
the peenliar case of the Defendants. They were nut the
writers of the article—they had received it from a ',tweeting.
datol.-they had Immo malting about the Marquis—he wife
so political character, suet consequently neither auppatqad
woe =owl them as newspaper proprietors, lustest/ilwy
amid um malignity or entirety against him, and it mould
he the bright of madness to suppose they could gain nay
*log by inserting such a paragraph. Should it be wrung, at
111, it could only have been admitted through inadvertence,
so through a wish to dared the chanieters his Leaned Friend
hod spoke of so lightly, bet of which he thought as lightly,
tnamall farmers cad leaded proprietors of Cumberland.
were the Statesaies of the county, and the doctrine of
• *Mewing small farms sad convert lug them into large sues,
bore as the Defeadants 'were in this county with their &el-
ls's, their peradietkomand he would say, their prejudiegu
outiast such a system, it is natural they should sirimitg
=Say ibirig which militated against their neigh
associates, and countrymen. His learned :71:12
-had said the forts were false, the Deity knew whether they
were or mar, but all be could say was, if they were untrue,
Me of no iodide/and against the Defendants, kr-
aree
it bringing an action at law, left a strong suspicion
Mat mere could be proved than was agreeable lea the Noble
Promeutor. Be that as it sleight, he had a right to choose
willow way to obtain reparatioa for his faseird swings, but
So (Mr. Aldersou) ferveutly wasted, under the cireurastances
dif theta...the seer they bad made to mei redoes it, iftbe Mar-
ode AWN aim it was sot trite, their receiving of it from
A wind the other argunicats he had feebly bat
boosetly Sky would Mara a verdict of Mg Wility.
His Lordship his Add. as to the Jury, by oh-
serving that the, ts suffered nothing by their oust
basing bees artodulso by Mr. Alderson; that no Coossel at
the Bar etrold prattity have said more few them ; thed his
elospieem was • post and perfect, that every 'whist that
could be said hod been mid, and yet nothing was said that
ought to have been omitted. He then read the indict-
, meat, and explained its nature—there were two questions
for the Jury's considerctioa ; Ist. Was it IWOIrd that the
words referred to the Nobly Marquis ? sod 2.11 y, If so,
were they libellous ? If they thought the libel applied dose
to his spots without the Marquis being at all referred to in
any way, they would acquit the Defendants ; but he walla
read it to them : his Lordship the read the libel—said •
the Marquis mentioned must mega the Marquis of Queens-
berry, and also by the generic term man, it was evident he
lila alluded to. Now, by Mr. Fox's Bill, the principles of
Liphkeii were opposed by many learned and high authorities
Ain it was framed, thee Jury were empowered to &fermis*,
0 voimellyr it was a libel or nut ; his business was merely to
state the law to them, and give them his directions. If
' they believed the paper calculated to vilify the Marquis io any
N way, or to induce perms. to 'hark he hail acted improperly, ig
was • libel. His Lordship sulogised the liberty of the press,
but mid it had limits which mast scot be overstepped ; us
writer had a right to trench upon private character, ear to NI
himself up as a censor. as the Courts of Justice, where both
parties may meet, and at the same moment decide the glint
or innocence of either, were the only legal tribmsala of stab
Miff. If the defendants imputed ei achy or impsephity *0
, dip Noble Marquis, 11w liberty of the press could mat jest*
limais. His Lordship contrasted the stole of freedom ni dad
colletry and what existed at Duane when Galileo was in.
primed in the luptiaittun fur stating a great philosophical
MO; sow, in this country my philosophital tenth or npl. I
WWI alight be stated and repot,' teal without its biting towel.
pews as librllonr. Sometimes too, in discussing pollard
=7, a little latitude might Ise allured for uccasimul
raster of expression, whin there appeared to he an im
WON of instructing. On this case be must again ask the%
was the paper a libel or not? The verses of Goldsmith, el. ,
• though absurd, is as much as they • xpresseel opinieus with.
oat Lavin any reference to indivldeinis, w..we emulate not
libellous. If small firma •%iviril, a. kt, seemed to wish, It
would destroy owe-third of the produce of the country. Ills
Idedeship then said, the De timelines, in support of their opi.
aims, 'night bevy stated the facts, and said they were sorry

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f liaagga.a gagegegsbigeli gigs bbi wee pre„. to lbw Imattea, sad staged their tenings •; it coal
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*ova Sot, the teleophasaf einespanapneestheot ilithlp, that that edema' to wake any comment
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• ''‘ . host laud •60 side..—thialling that she Mai
--•- :Als,allllls Oleg eismeneite4 newel ens, Imre- be right hot iot Nem tthe 'my) make the tot
--- - L--'t. .....-104Milieg i*... AlteeNbtligiqngrat thatat the t, - and the next seisleuee—" the Noble
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a.m.. Daltaissis _ . ' to spy pormbly jestify it."—• Why at
A i- • . winerst. • *Or ~e. ghe ageistanos a void egeib.—Why meats? Why? but I
• ' , Mir ginee,illggiseguits, lbw bra trusted the JIM, r timeght, as be ilruegbl, as they, am'
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.. 3,...11;dthe 11111.1%. wigirk. mike bet - ~ 4.1„ artpais—that he mold not be enppos
-' sestly kept* bit . . " ... • i• ' t the circuketitncea until they hi
and Aleigkeest• eitramisties '•• . • that he did gushing more than simply ohs
41 • freed heir eggamem4 hie ......s, s ..obe it. kali 004 110 ils, sod which it could be no libr
brag of geognig. was Winos ~Met• 1111 fassomoss • had Jug., rentiweli the tiropir rjrctiou of his o
iriegommisso.,..is eee4, be sever M booggeore This might certainly he c.instrited irk a libel
eif so Ippologino far two, Is which the gereisei fpr this ' Wulf; het WS EMU could say, possessing eon'
. 9rompush.l64 SW act is w almitor guggiuges....it wee au. i that it lihnihnillis Warr:ilk in she least. The M.
. twig .karigesi-4.0 gag 114p..i5/rem to ggyegy Mown gw. Set be seggiemal In hare &re wore than merely
( octet., trOMlNk•ha by grefeseitig Ifs :-agtsallinent M. it ; fur the cjertgerelit trey enmity ur impropriety i
um/ tfre agrormet. 4,4,6„, a 40,6" the awe of of c tint
.owest, •f tt.urse, be ititribrkb
. gh4 pays" by todkosimpa, a Whybmgm then
lila ht: kw egfesagg to germ the bulbs( bfirgete. the charged the Marquis himself r
i lugs,a eels en Skalind gettulliveutot for its great and Arc to the Mears, and, by a forcible expulsion
sr/Wier principles ; bat be put it to the Jury, cattail there be &Whet 11.1014 emselm, st blight he a libel; but iiii:C
city Hume inure gravely ludiermot, more abooltitely Obvront, the reverse._ by calling 'upon the agents to justify i
I 'Pm* the Nobk Marquiut kisooth, was iudineed by his at. es illeY(DrfeedilitiOverYwell 141,••,• Iht•re0"310"
14C11111411 to the liberty of the press to iastituto•tbis.pruse. , ffried this ardcr(a proper mid legal one) into e
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aut lobellues--al least be t
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