The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-10-15 00:00:00

•
, he alt. mpt<d lei suppress optima daring his Attorney Ge-
-1 iseralship, in the metropolis; and though.fifillemenel NU".
herd filed this isiformationearrangesamals eserq mask Ileat he
should never brine it iasto•Ouvirt. Gentleemo, see let the
lusty °robe press, he who seareely eon be have • will of
,his owes, is not calculated to dew Ike Sine' between the
fair liberty of the press and its *opposed liosallieumew.
Gentlemen, at ibis moment Ham is a horrible permeation
on the Continent sef the Jews, and thiarremailms arises
from • religions feeling. Gentlesweiagi &mitt nut that you
are al 'painted with the duties of Juror., seed it is fur you
to say *heftier 11w Attormy-General has fairly made out his
charges against me. He bas not made. it clear, .tow could
he, that in the boo* in aniaestion pas thing was cunt•ined
either untrue or immoral. Gentlemen, I hope pm well
know that you represent in that box the real pimple of Eng-
laud ; I lease no hesitation in saying, that • Jury is the only
system of representalinee shed exists in this country. Gen-
tlemen, you are one body—l leave scarcely a hope that
i your ananirueus verdict wilt be that of Not Gailly—of pose
verdict, Gentlemen, I have hut too mach mama to fear ; I
I um sorry to sey, that it has come to my kuowledge to make
public • declaration of one of you. I Imes beer, joeorined
tit it one of yule declared that be hoped to condemn that
rascal Cathie to five years imprisonment, on bread sued
water. [This ohms vation excited in the auditors • consith r-
able sensation, several eef the Jury rose from their Wall,
and requested the Defendant to name the Juror.—The Chief
Justice observed, that so indecorous an observation routd
never leave been made. The Defendant, after a pause, re-
sumed.] Ga linemen, I hope the slight allusion I have made,
will be forgiven—it might have been imprudent, but 1
omelet not wish to say soy thing that would give ;Mot--
ehould it he iimessary, in support of • motion fur a user
trial. I shall he more explicit. It is • maxim of the-
English law, that Melee persuus as Jurors feral one body—
said a doubt on the mind of ogee person is the doubt eef the
whole, and if such a Maeda exist be the mind of our eat you,
lam entitled to your acquittal. The law of England
humanely holds that it is better tell guilty should toe pe
than one inneemot man sl 1.1 lie le L Your verdict
must he one clear nernoilified verdict of guilty or not gently,
fur it is plebe the melanin:: of the law refers to the adjudica-
tiou of the twelve men ; if one nasal doubts, that most be
taken as the doubt of the whole—if you, as a body, field a
verdict of guilty, you commit the mine fault that • single
individual amongst yon would, wiles would say he wan per.
redly convinced of the fact of guilt, anal yet who felt
scruples, but yielded to the voice and wishes of she rest. Gm-
newel. I repeat it, 1 ebutilal be sorry to give offence; I sun
nut sufficiently skilled in the practice and proceedings or a
Cuurt of Justice to know whew I give uffence or not. Gen-
arnica, the question is purely one of opinion; else y one of
you entertain certain opi Mum ale matters of
it out be bard to call un you to lay milk your opinions? anal
surely 1 might be allowed to entertain miur without punish-
ment. Gentlemen, ma ',boiler charges I have atonally suffer-
ed s permeutione. 'three infurmations have been tiled
&galas( me on a similar charge. I have been del/lived of
nay liberty fur 18 weeks; after that I was liberated without
a trial, and the fervid was withdrawn. I was told the
king was my prosecutor; that I had no 'terrain to appeal to,
and no 1111.21111 of redress. Thee e sir four either informations
against me, and I am to be also proses tiled fur a publicabon
in a twopenny pamphlet, which the Attorney-Generil lass
called a Peden 0000 s libel—that ieformation was filed with
the intention of harassing me in my mode of deliver..
—Gentlemen. 1 know not whether the Attorney Gene-
riel has untidiness' the isfulitiettuns veiniest me, but I
am told he may bring them uu when lee Ovules. Gentle-
men, independent of there, there are twee other iudiciments
for publishing the mine hook—that i., the !unties actually
iodicied me to ice for one and the sante offence. The übject
sue ely 1111111111 be the attainment of public justice—if so, one
deCiIII//11 would be sufficient fur the whole. The libel (teethe
Political Libel is probably the next that will be brought uu.
The object of these accumulated indictments is to
me in my mode of defence—• defence of this kind,
Geoilemen, is suture than the sulk of one mind.
Why then should I be harassed, dragged as I have
been into Court, nut aware of abet trial would he first
proceeded on? Gentleineu, if you bring a verdict agaiust
me, accumulated fines and imprisonment will follies,. 1
shall be thrown hew the hand. of my prosecutors; I shall be
mistime for ever; 1 shell weer get over it, ear rise above it.
Theis eve el if I have erred, I have reetnenii led an offence too
tnithig to (161/11.1e me to the puoiehtneue abide awaits me.
The sentence will be yours, as it •ill baud we over to toy
pruseciehlrll. It is summary to make some vises vat ions un
the lawn! liln 1. Gentlemen, the inteution of the accused is
the tiocatiou ; but the Attormy•Gmetal mid his Ltirelabip
say, thet it i 3 not the 'ideation of the publisher, but thee
tendency of the work, that is the tinestion. To ascertain
the iuteution is not their (dims ; their object is to prociere
couviction. The law is in toy favour. 11 has beets asserted,
that the Christian belief in the Old and New Testament is
the roadie' eat the law. Now. if it be the religion of the
law, it is the law itself. The law may he examined
into by the humblest ileitis idual in ibis country; so,
therefere, inn, be the re legion. If religion were out placed
under the piotection e.f the law, it might have 'mutated a
higher character. Under the law 1 felt justified iu publish.
ing the hook before you. It cannot be coutrudicted, that if
the doctrine of the Trinity is taken asay from the Christian
religion, it will leave nothing behind; yet the Bell brought
into flee House of Commons Mei aits the impugning of the
Holy Trinity ruder that law, • man is allowed iu explain
the grimed of los disbelief. I eta •ware, that the iudivi.
dual also brought in that Bill perviously submitted it
to the Ilkhops. 11 was stated, that a number of re.
speclable tool enlightened subjects lame Unitariau Chris-
leans. and were expose el to the ;muskies of the law. But
the Unitarians leave discarded the doctrines ou which Chris.
tiauity is founded; they deny that Jesus Chriat was begot.
ten of the Holy Spirit ; they have • New Testament of their
own. soot they have discarded certain parts of the Old; they
Imluve in mote miracles performed by Christ, but not to all.
If I were • sincere Cbrisban, 1 world protest agaiust the
passing of ibis Bill, because it goes to undertnine Chris-
tonsity ; the Archbishops and Bisdup, however, approved
of it. I will now 'horny state the origin of Ibis statute:
Mr. Jeremy Bentham, who has peeved himself the friend of
free elimussion, was 01/3001111 to know from Mr.lVm. Smith
what parsed lactate') him sod the Birhops; he was anxious
to ascertain how far they were disposed to alter flee discus-
sion me all subjects; and he fur this purpose opened a cor-
reepontlestee well, Mr. Smith, which 1 shall teed to you
Here !tie. Curiae proceeded, at cousiderable lesigth, to read
she letters of Mr. Bentham. He was ail length interrupted
by—
The Cuter JUSTICE, lilho said, that what the 10e.
fendant was reading was against himself, but that if the
Defendant And an object in it, if he thought It would be
eervicenble to hie case, he might proceed; but it seemed NA
his Lordship that flee Deckled:oil was uraccessmily fatiguing
himself and others.

Ale. Cartile—The nett passage speaks on the common law
or the subject.
The Congo it/trice—lf you think it will do you good, I
do not object to your reading it.
Mr. Carlile proreed.d, and after reading the letters of
Mr. Bentham, be resumed his defence. To him It ap.
peered that the doctrine of the Trinity was the whole
foundation of the Christie, religion. In the thirty.uitse
articles it was said that the established religiuti wu
founded on the belief of the Father, Sou, and Holy Ghost.
Now, if such were the case, be roatended that rejecting the
doctrine of the Trinity was in fact reviling the Christian re.
ligintt. Perhaps it did not swear an to the Arclibishopa,
In u the propriety of passing the statute was referred to
cousideratiou ; but was not the fact so? The Act there.
fore look away all peualties fur reviling the duettists of
Christianity; and lie hoped the Gentlemen of theJary would
take that with them to returniog their verdict, and re.
collect that that was the force and effect of it. It was
a maxim in law, that the common law did not affect
the statute law; but the. a statute, es the contrary, so-
perst ded and lock away abet had been rum law. Rest.
alt on this principle, and conceiving that be bad the protep
t,o of the statute IsB Geo. 111. he had dune what wait im-
paled to him as a crime, and published the works in ques.
lion. The impropriety of briogisig a work of Ibis kind into
a loan of justice, alum have sleuth them, oh. re the only
tit (care which la the tiature of things, he could have had,
namely, a jaattiseatitia of the fact, was not by the yaks of
the Court, or of law, permitted to be given. Hip trial tti eon.
miturace, was staithiLg but a mockery of • tint!. He could

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liai,ejorliied not oaly the publication of MC Puise's winter,- I
"I every beltenter gull repression they contained; hut that
he was rut allowed itr Ntrtapl. But he thowell that the !
denial Sf an opportunity to establish the Joshes of Mr.
Paisse's attintadventinisa uts reiligiou, would do more injury
to the established religion than the mos! waraton and brutal
attack which could possibly be made on it. He had not at- '
tempted to defend himself in the way commonly resorted to,
by enlarging on the advantages of maintaining the liberty of
the press, or by placing himself before them in the character
of a I ookselles—thoesgh in fact it was sitereasnamble to taken
boAreller answerable for any opinions contained im the
works whirl, lee sold—he was a mere instrument, by which
the public were made acipiainied with the sentiments of
°there. A bookseller stood to the public in the relation of
• midwife to the Muses. Publishers retitled a variety of li.
serail prodoefirins ;
know, immune!' as it was tint within the liner of possibi•
the meteors of them all they could nut
lily they timid read them all He assumed them that a
great number of publications and pamphlets passed through
his hands without big reading them—because, lead he flee
sired it, be had not limn. It was not Po•alble that
bookseller could jowly be convicted of n inalicinies
in publishing any book its his shop ; the author of that
hook knew whether there was any thing offensive in it, hot
the bookseller could nut. However, as for himself, Ise did
not wish lea be misunderstood ; he did sort mean to say, that
he did out know what were the contents of this hook ; on
the contrary, he declared that he did krone them, and that
lie published the work heroine lee thought that Mr. Paine's
ideas of religion and the Deity were superior to any thing of
' the sort be had ever read, and would powerfully contribute
towards dispelling the mints of superstition, and introduce.
int 34 pure and enlightened philosophy and religion. In
what he had said his essileavour had been not nuly to defend
himself, but the ideas of the author. Mr. Paine had lore,.
loaded with much oblogny,and even branded with the statue of
an Atheist. Hot he would assert, and was ready to prove, that
eau 111111 had ever dots more than he to refute and overthrow
that system. He bosh put on paper a short appeal, with
which his hail thought it twerssary to conclude his defence.
He appealed to their feelings 1111 moral in,.,, as linsbands, as
fathers, as members of suriety—he entreated that, before
;kilter" be their verdict, they would maturely consider how
much it might ameliorate the cumlilitou of th.st suciely. He
cultivated they would, ley their verdict, annihilate the vague
and infamous law of libel, when applied to matters of rrli.
gion—that, by their verdict, they would fur ever put a stop
to bpi prose cutlets for religious opinions—that y would
extinguish all bigotry and religious prejerdteee— that they
would onsliackle and enlarge human resorts, and allow a free
and open field for basin-rises—that they wonld guard against
the Suture degradation of the dignity of the mind of man—
that, by their verdict, they would encourage and soppiest the
free diffieron of the ideas of well-informed and eulightened
men, which could never demoralise society, for it was flow
the s (furls of the ignorant alone that society could lee so
vitally ittjurtil; and in those his last words, lie implored
Uwe') to keep themselves guarded against the unfair advan-
tage a Inch the Attorney-General might possibly in his reply
take of any thing which had fallen front hint Mr. Carlile),
when be should have ito opportunity of addressing them
*gaits. He besought them nut to suffer their hearts ear their
understandings to he influenced by such an attempt. The
Attorney Gem rat had staled to them, Ihat mach was at
stake on this trill; but, in fact, he (the Attoroey-Griieral)
had as much depending cm the issue of it as himself.
He (Mr. Cathie) had at stake all perhaps that he possessed
in the world—the Attorney-General all his professional es-
pecial and objects of ambition; fur, should he fail in
the Penaccolion, lie had very little hopes of promotion iu
race. He !Draftily thanked them for the very kind and
lieut all oml deliberation with which airy had heard
him. He confidently relied that twelve enlightened mer-
chants (or tit least some among them merchants) of the
city of London would see the necessity of tolerating at this
day a free deteutsiou ua every subject of this kind. lie had
made it clear to the that there was no law adverse to him
but 11111V/1111111111 law, while he was supported and justified
by the statute law; under that law he hail believed himself
to be sheltered, and he therefore hoped for protection in
their verdict.
After an interval of a few minutes, Mr. Carlile rose again
and said, My Lord, I beg bi---
Chief Justice—Some of the Gentlemen of the Jury are
not in their places.
When the absent Jurors had returned, Mr. Carlile said,
My Lord, Wore I venture to call any prisons to evidence.;
I wish to say a few words in explanatiou as to what prayed-1
bet VII C 111.114 fast aikhe.

The Chug' Jusitec—Tell me to what point you wish to
call eviiieuce?

Mr.lile—My Lord, I wished to bring before the Jury
the leading persons of the different sects prolcuing the
Christie,, religion.

The Chief Justice—well, Sir?
Mr. Caulde—And to have ►lran to the Jury the side dif-
ference of opinions and faith dial prevailed between these
Netts; that MOM of them approached near to dy own pro..
feasiou of faith, and that as they are tolerated, I ought to
be tolerated.

l'he Chief Justice—That was ynur object ?
Mr. Car had a further object; but I undo-Maud it
was objected to. I intended to take the opinions of different
sectarianism' various parts of the Old nod New Testament.
The Chief Jlll.l ICC—Any farther?
Mr. Carlile—M y chief object, my Lord, was to bate
slwwe to the Jury, that every one of these sects gave a dii-
(cleat oiplintatiou of certaiu passages is the Old and New
Testament.

The Chief Justice—That was your object?
'Jr. Cathie—Vex, by the leading members of the sects.
The Chief Jubilee—l omit:naiad that to be your object,
and no other?

Mr. Carlile—Nn; I meant to put it to every one of those
persons u Iwther Christianity required the ■id of the secular
bran to uphold it.
_ _

The Chief Justice—Have ye• now fully explained your.
self, and is there nothing farther?
Mr. Carlile—l have, my Lind.
The Chief Justice—Then I am very clearly of opinion
that witnesses cannot be examined uu any of these points.
The truth of the Christian religion is nut to be called in
question. That there are • variety of different sects and
opinions iu religion, we all know ; but that is nut the in.
quiry. It nuuld be moat extravagant and indecent id me
to suffer these per.u•s to be examined relative to the evi-
dence and truth of the Christian faith.

Mr. Carlile—Nut the truth, my Lurd.
The Chief Justice—You bold memo, object.
Mr. Carlile—Am 1 to understand, my Lord, that uo exa-
mination is to be permitted as to matters of opiniou ?
The Chief Justice--Yes, certainly. Such a thing was
done in a Court of Justice--risch an examination
might be eudless--you might call into Court half the City of
London.

Mr. Carlite—l had confined myself to the most eminent
sutung Oise Seclnman.

Ibe Chief Justice—Yon have already bad my opinion.
It is enough to my it can't be done.
Mr. Carlile—Then for the information of those Gentlemen
who had been subpirnaed by me, 1 would say, that I consider.
ell the thing all through as ■ matter of opinion, and that
with that view 1 summoned (hem.

The thief .I;stliee-----That.;;be an apology for them,
bat I must exercise my judgment. Is there uuthingel.e?
Mr. Carble—There was something else, but it refers to
matter of opinion, sod if I am precluded from that topic, 1
caul pursue it.

The; Chief Jomice—Arm' certainly are; it wu newer done.
After a passe—
Mr. Quitle—l would call Wm. Cosmic.
The Chief Joslice—As to what ?
Mr. Castile—Mural character.

Ms. Car love another questiee lb- pet to this
*item.
The Chief Justice—S/bat is it
Mr. Garble—l would wish him to say whether I have mot
an aged another.
Tbe Chief Justice--No; an inqttiry into moral character
is stosyi general. There may be some emir. in every mail's
conduct. YOll have hail the Worth of the must gagersl and
favourable answer.
Mr. Cummin—l de not believe him capable of an untruth
fur nny consideratiun.
The Chief Justice—Well, Sir, the inquiry does not go to
that. _ . .

Witness withdrew, and James Jeuo was cailed. Having
been sworn—

The Chief 'notice—Whit is your business or profession,
Mr. Jeuis?—A. lamin nu business at locals'. lam retired
f business.
The Chief Justice—Thai's 'laugh, Sir. Row lung have
you kiwi" the Defendant?—A. About six years.
The Chief Justice--Durnig that lame what kas been his
general moral character?—A. Very good; be lodged with
me about. three years.
Thomas Walker was then called and sworn.
The Chief !twice—Are you in any business ?—A. I am
a messenger ill the Navy Office.

The Chief Juslite—How lung have you known the De-
fentlant?—A. I believe between four and fire years, my
Lord.
The Chief Justice—During that time what has been his
general moral character ?—A. lie lodged iu my house (or
'three years; he always condocted himself as au honest, in.
dostrions, soMme mass ; hr always paid his rent regularly.—
[Witness left the Mix.]
Mr. Cartile—That, of course, my I.ortl, includes moral
character.

The Chief Justiee—What bee beet, hi. moral character?—
A. I believe my good, toy Lord; I beard uotbiug bad of

Mr. Carlile—l wish to explain, my Lord.
The Chief Justice—This is not the time for explanation.
Mr. Carlile—Merely to say, my Lord, that I lived with
these three persons, as an apprentice or a lodger, till I be-
came a housekeeper myself.
The Attorney-General then, after a short interval of time,
replied to the followiut effect :—Geuileineu of the Jury,
after the very long, painful, and laborious attention you
have given to the Defendant's case, it is, I assure you, with
:echoic* of considerable uneasiness that I feel it necessary
sir offer any farther observations to you, because it appears
to me that the case against the DeCaidant has been made
out, as far as cast CAR be made out, and that any observa-
tions with that view, are perfectly unnecessary—for, if any
doubt had existed on your minds as to the intention of the
Defendant in publishing the wink in question, previous to
his defence, that doubt moat have been long since removed
by the open declarations and express avowal* of himself, the
best evidence you can have on the subject ; for, he nut only
openly, clearly, and directly avowed, that previous to the
publication he was cogniz int and acquainted with the run.
testis of the work, but the unhappy mau (for unhappy
will call him) attempted to justify the matter and ex-
pressions of it. I say then, Gentlemen, that had it toot been
for sonic remarks of his wills respect to the law of the case,
1 don't kuow, but 1 should better discharge my duty to the
Court and my country by sending the case to your considera.
Linn without one more comment ; because if you air not
already satisfied that he was well aware of the contents of
this book when he sent it wit to the world, nathing
can produce conviction in your minds. Now, Gentle-
men, with respect to the law, and the statute on which
he places such &prudence, I assert thatthe correspondence

nail by the Dann 'himself (and of the rxisteure
of which I had not been asset before), between Mr.
Smith and Mr. Bent ILon, expressly proves, nut only
what a-as the intention of the Le.gislat ore in passing it, but
what was the object of those alio procured mid were duly
grateful for the enactment of it. It proves that the Act
was never intended to be set up in a Court of Law, as a de.
fetter not of this or that religious sect or tenet; hut of that
which is a direct attack, a most gross abuse, ridicule, seal
blasphemy of Christianity in general, which would altogether
abolish slid sweep out thetslahlisheil religion of the country,
and tolerate not only Dti9o3, but Atheism, Polytheism, ur any
system (I cannot call it religion) which any frantic sperm.
latisls ur wild •isiimaries might think proper to embrace.
Hut fort isnately the period is not yet come, notwithstanding
the intentions of the Defendant and those who have assisted
him here, and from time to time supplied and fed I uOM
matter and arsuments—fortunately the day has out yet ar.
rived when the edition of the laud is to be utterly twin.
euitilwil by means of the labours of those enlighteued indi-
viduals. The law of England allows full liberty of thinking,
it does not pruhibit or punish any man for holding the
opinions he approves of. ltut the conduct of the Defendant
was quite another antic. The object now was to undermine,
sap, and overthrow the relieion sanctioned by the law of lIIW
laud, and to introduce ma its ruins a chaos of Deism, Athe.
ism, or any other blasphemies and ab.urilities. Snell were
the objects on Inc waxenl occasion, and such were the avow.
ed objects. The Defendant set out by saying, that there
was 110 common law iii this country. "It n. tell
the written law," says he, s' on the expressed will
of the Legi.lature alone we stand ; and if the Aunt-
ney-General cannot produce some written law
torwinst which I have offended, there is an rod of
the prosecution, and tile information falls to the
ground." Can the Defendant he so ignorant (hut
1 cannot suppose that he or his advisers are so com-
pletely blind 441 the suoject) as taut to know that
the prosecution and punishment of the most
flagrant crimes, evets of murder and robbery, de-
petal on the cominun law?—that till the rights of
real propene, so extensive an article in our
code, are derived not from any written law,
but the unwritten common law? But the De-
fendant's observations oil this part of the sub-
ject skewed. that us he wished to get rid of ell
religion, an he was desirous to rivet-throve all law.
Boit 1 ant well satisfied the efforts of him and his
associates will never be successful, and God forbid
they should ! for with the fall of religion and law,
the end would come of till freedom and huppinese.
But he says, that if there was no CUOMO° law in
existence, he has to statute which tolerates such
acts es the one he is charged with. He would
argue that by the 53d of the King, not ouly
an extended toleration was granted to a certain
class of Christians, but that the flood-gates of
all vice and wickeduese, and piohnieneas were
thrown open, and mill vain and impious theories. all
impious hypothesis, all insane delusioos. let in upon
society. But, Gentlemen, the law lo9s int such
thing ;itis as brief and plain as airy matter. The
statute 9 and 10 Willman 111. did not introduce any
new offence. but created certain new itenaltirs ; it
provided several penalties on several distmet offences.
It enacted that if soy perun educated in, or having
made itsofestion of the Christian telogimi, shall
by writing, printing, teaching, or advised speaking,
deity the Christian religion to be true, or time Holy
Scriptures to be cf theme authority, and shall upots
indictuteht or informati )))) be convicted thereof, he
shel! be subject to certain penalties which it enu-
merates. But biome that time were not ditferrot per-
sons, as the Defendant well knew, brought to trial on
The witness was accordingly called. and with some dui. the ore-existing moil utirepwaled corn iiiii re law. on
tally made his nay through the crowd Into the box.
The Chief Justice flhat is your ussuel—A.
charges. similar to that agailist him ? :Joan what was
Cuenaihs.
Wilhelm prosecuted, and Eaton ? Not scum the no-
The Chief Justice—How lane have you Insows the De. tote but the common law ; but according to the De.
foichuit, Mr. Carlile?—A. About 111 years. (earn:, there was ao coalition law ; whereas, 00 law.
The Chief Jomitt"—Dofin Ihrt base what has htwa his law
had ever dreamt but that it was by the contains
general mural character?—A. Allow ass So observe, that be law that these individuals hail been prosecuted. con-
served as so apprruitee who toe for sews years.
The Caief Justice—And what has bees his geserst eha. . stetell, and sentences pronounced proportionate to
racier far morals?—A. Very geed. their offences. In the year 1813. though 1 believe
4 The Chief howler-44m psit may take penes to call? the wa..yptnaiseFlltttz dal WetClitiell faiths . , ties{. $l,,