The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1803-02-22 00:00:00

dad adniitted that it as not only nicessarY to ?e-
-late tarts, but ihe causes of them, and to explain
their view and object. If a Government ahread
was. to publish a 'declaration of war against this
country, couched in the most insolent terms, any
person might republish it as a matter of historical
information, though it should be of a libellous ten-
dency, and he was at liberty also to' accompany
it with such observitionS as he might think propene
Stud) was precisely the principle on which this snp-
posed libel had been published by Mr. Peltier. His
intention was to amuse and instruct his companions
inorile, by pointing out to them the effects of a
fattion stated to exist in France: The learned
Counsel read the Otle which constituted the first
Itbel in the indierment. He next referred- to the im-
punity with which ne.wspapers were allowed in trans-
kiting the most violent libels from the French Jour-
Inds. A manifesto had recently been translated which
related to a subjea calculated to excite horror. It
eherged General Smart with wiiting letters, for the
purpose of procuring assessinetinn ; and a natiOn;
nntich lead never been stained with perfidy or
cite:lty—one which could boast mutinies 'without
bloodshed---rnbirs Without violence, and revolts-.
Lion without bloodshed, of promising to reward,
kim, if successful, with that honourable badge
which was reserved only for the most meritorious
services. • He reviewed many of the circuit'.
mances which had. occurred' during. the progress
of the French Revolution, till the assumption of the
k;everninent by Bonaparte, inferring, that after such
seenes.of guile eel ateocity as had been practised for
long a tier:eel, it was not likely that the disposi-
• lien and character of the [Tench peciple should have
neeoine entirely ameliorated, and consequently that
it was very probable the faCtion alluded to in the
:Lie had existence. He justified the satirical strain
in VhiCil it WaS drawls, by reference to the writings
of Swift and Buda-. Tire Learned Counsel after-
wards (ee:lined the libel supposed to he conveyed
in the paredv on• the speech of Lepidus. He in-
s:sted; if it .rd contain a Ebel, it we's direaed against
kceche, the Minister of Police of Paris, it it was
poe,ib:y such a man could be the object of a libel.
To slice.' that he could not, he rca I the letters of that
Miaitter, :e; inserted in a report printed at Paris,
•:vhich manifested the most saiwiinary disposition.
Having concluded his observations on the libels, he
Rated the va: ious examples to be found in the Eng-
lish histt ry,. against the interference of the Govern-
ment, at the request of foreign Powers ; particu-
larly, in the reign of Queen Elsizabcth, with respelt
fo the fifty thousand persons who took refuge in Eng- •
land upon the Revocation of the Edia of Nantes.
hie also referred to the unrestrained freedom of the
newspaper discussions; with regard to Corsica in
the reign of Louis XI V. the two partitions of Po-
hind, and the invasion of Switzerland. Upon the
supposition; that this cnuntry had been at peace with -
France,. at the period of the tyrannical conduct of
Robespierre, Marat, and. Carier, he argued, that
had the English mw:papers refrainedirom speaking
I f their proceedings with becoming indignation, the
Attorney-General would have been one of the' first
to have censured the disgraceful pusillanimity of
their Editors. Having' enlarged upon these and a
leariett of other topics, he terminated, by expressing
his firm confidence in the Jury pronouncing a ver-
aia of acquittal.
The Arrourrt Gestim. complimented him
upon the splendid speech he had. delivered. Had
got the itrevestpoot.esi it heem al t genersl nittire,
and avoided particular reference to the libels con-
tained in the India rent, he 'slioeld.. have found
Some dilliculty in replying to observations so elo-
quently delivered. proceeded to comment upon
afew of his points, contending that nothing he had
advanced, in the least degree tended to alter the
imposition with which he had set out ; that the
eh:trader cf the libel was of the most violent and
inflammatory nature, and direttiy aimed at the life
of the First Censuls _ _ _

Lord EL LEN 1101,40 UGH shortly addressed the Jury.
Pis Lordship complimented the defence, as one the
itiost eloquent he had ever heard, but observed that
it did not appear to him to remove the Attorney-
General from that claim he had made of a Verdia
against the Defendant.
The Jury, after consulting a very short time, pro-
*minced the Defendant—Guilty.