The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-11-18 00:00:00

IGGULDEW V. DE LA BERTH.

The Cuurt was oceupird the remainder of the
day in hearing interrogatories read in th s cause.

COURT OF KING'S BENCH, Wurnimma,

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 17.

SENTENCE OF HENRY SWANN. ESQ.

Al one o'clock this flay the ATTORNEY-GENERAL
rose and moved the Court that
,judgment be pro-
nounced upon Henry Swann, E•q. who was con-
victed at the List Spring As■isrs for the County of
Cornwall, held at Bodinin, of wilfully, wickedly,
and con aptly giving certain bnbrii to some of the
Electors of the Borough of Penryn for their votes
in his behalf, to return hint at one of the Members
to represent that Borough
Mr. Swann immediately ruse and stood on the
floor.

Mr. Justice BU,•r then read to the Court his
notes of the trial, said record of the Defendant's
conviction. Our reader* will recollect that the
whole particulars trithspired in the House of Com-
mons last Session.

Mr. Swine was then asked if he had any affidavits
to put in P He replied in the itegotivc, and pro-
ceeded to address the Court in a speech of consi-
derable length. He t•ommencrd by alluding to
the 11W11111t of professional ossistonce at his trial, in
consequence of Seneants Pell and Lens being re-
tained against him, Nod lamented the consequences
that ensued by his having in person undertaken his
own cause. lie found himself at his trial overcome
by his situation, and unable to meet tie charge as
it might have been met by a cool professsonal
Gentleman, if lie had had the good fortune to have
retained one. It may, perhops, he asked of him, with
his unfortunate experience of the post, why he now
in person came to that Court to urge arguments is
mitigation of his offence—his answer was, that ham
nig no affidavits to offer, and having incurred the
enormous expense or an election conies., which
cost him 7.000!. and also the expense of 1,200/.
to consequence of the Petition to the !louse
of C mono, he was unprepared to meet any addi-
I I charge upon his fortune, and ►till less prepared
to incur the expense of any arrest of judgment, or of
prolorigisig his mental anxiety by siostponing the pe-
nod of his sentesice. Ile assured the Court that
he entertained a deep ionise of the necessity
in an offence like that of which he stood charged,
of making an example of an offender, to prevent
the House of Commons from being rendered con-
temptible in the eyes of the torople at large. In his
case there had berm peculiar and unprecedented hard-
ship's, ftr on all former occasions of pro-ecutions by
the House of Commons they were undertake.' after
reports of Special Committees, sold these reports
were alone the instructions to the Attorney Gene.
ral to prosecute. The late Attorney General (than
whom he valued no man more) had departed from
this course. Had lie confined I self to it, he (Mr.
Swami) must have been acipoitted.—iii fact, lie
was ■t the trial acquitted of all the counts in the
information, which contained the charges brought
against him in the House of Commons. But in
his case, the Ationiey.tlemeral did not confine
himself to the Connor's', Itep•rt—he sent down the
Solicitor of the Treasury to Proiryn, to rake up ad-
dttooal mid ou these alone hail his couvic-
tion been grounded. The Attorney-General in