The National Register.
London, England, 1809-06-25 00:00:00

u THE NATIONA

/ i.l .

TO Mit. WILLIAM COBBETT.

LETTER IV'.

" paiated by the most fiery Et! got, would be tsa mild a punishment

":or COMIETT.

C.
...2n 1

It is impos3ible not to admit the conclusion which you have
Ora w in the words I iiate aelerted final your letter fur

lily motto, :IA hich has been fully Lssentid to by a cry man

iu 1:In:;land w reail your own statement.

" 0 , that mire

v %vooll It ; ifca a. hook,' was the exclatnation of awise mart.

" CtirSO 011 the folly that prompted me to write a defence" yvill
be the luosuage of a wretch zdio is no fool. Thcsiinple st vie of ,
inkerroeatory, which I have hefiire adopted, suits my capacity,
and will, perhaps, 'hake the business easier eVen, to a mail of
fflor superior atteinments. •
" Sir George Young, adniittcd me without being detained a
single minute in purgatory—he hcard mg star .'
• In point of fairness and can-lour what reason or right have
-you to say "ik,7! was apparently all he wanted of me." if this
be any thing more than a silly, unmeaning sneer, it amounts to
an insinuntion that he proposed noosing more than merely to
hear your story without paying any attention to the complaint.
It means this or it means nothing. IThesthisconsist with his send-
ing for you immediately that yoor name was announced, in 'pre- "
ference to the crowd_ of hungry applicants who were in his anti-
rooet when you mite in ? This does not ammor to be a- correct
inference either in fact or in argument, but the very contrary.
" You mac to hear
.front Mtn in a day or ttua," that is you
.iihoughLso, for you do toteyea pretend to say he told you so. 1
. Whig, 'gir, if this *part of your defence be true, that the Secre-
lary at War heard your story, and (hot' apparenag this was all
tie want oil, how is itatukt yon dare t oeeusert in a subsequent part
-of your letter, that on this very tlth ,Lumerv, ;le OW MC that ur
A :) taken rare to gine d;,-ections to have these documents secured.
Now, Sir, if he had said En would you not have been ready
'to laugh out right in hie fare, at the very absurdity of such a.
lie. On theother hand, if hr did use the exp7es,sions, he must
far ;lave zooid paled even y our impatient w -Res as to base sent for
documents bni.ore he had heard your story : this is really toobad.
1V hat ioconb;steney is there in Sir th Young's ivritiog on the 15th
,Yehrunry, that "he• mild write th the Colonel of the regi-
moo oboat the hooks, although. says hr, I could.not doubt bat
flail the )•.7ginv!iitat t'oci,ks have hums ping( rty Sertired." Ile could
• net donh t, nor could any man doubt that: the books were in the
bonds of the proper dol'eer, and ould be totthcomiog, as they
. ;4c:wally wete oil the day of trial. lly your own statement
th-y «e;.e opsot to every body, long, very. long, after
.your
complaints were made, and as yon halt " a fr!cosci 1:i Court,"
if any altoutions had been mad.e, these is no fLeiht of your
ha% In; information, and we , should have heard of it.
I.)ou't tic ii know they were in lleactland's keeping., amid open
to the inTection of oicry officer as utohil ? Was any at-
tempt neyi.le fo remove or alter them ? No, Sir ; even your
firroetery, matchless tied intrepid as it is, has not ventured a lie
that could have• lasted only a day. But, your journey
Pollsinon:h gave on any infermation about the books, it
vas that they were actually ordered 14„,London, and you do
.Know, that they were nut in the hands 9f the accused from the
. I.lth January, to the very hour of trial. On this 14th of Jon.
.1792, you .e;.y, pose " I wrote to the then Secretary at
War, Sir Ceorge Yoorg, stating say ti citoaeo, my business with
. X 1:11.I.

Cur iflc, ComititutiOn, anb iLcitug.

SUNDAY, JUNE 1809.

him, and my intentions. I waded from the 14th to the k4th of
January". No, Sir, if what you say he true, yon did hot wait,
but wrote hitn on the 2'J January, for the exi•ress purpose of
having MI Looks secured. What! before he had taken the least
notice of your letter of the 14th, before. he had even favoured
you with an audience to bear your story, for you-say " 1 waited
from the 14th to the 24th Janaary,tathout receioing arta awaver
at all ; and then all I heard was that he wished to see me at the
War Ottice.",—P,ut you heard nothing for &teen days. Do you
recollect the situ,,tion of the country in the beginning of 1792,
atil du you conceive that the Socretary at War had no
other besinez-s at that alarming period to attend to than
a conialaint aguiesa the officers of your regiment. And be-
cause the proinritatie of military arrangements did not keep
pace with the im oat ience of your mind, forsooth, " you !iegan
to Le very siasp:cion3 that military justice in England ww• pretty
nearly a- kin id mililarg justice in Nova Scotia." Witat sort of
logic is this, Mr. Cohoett ? The letter you wrote 'to spur the
Relge Advocate was on the 10th February, to which "l got an
answer (you say), on the 150." What was the date of this
answer? it was, perhaps, written on the 11th or ; but yon
got it on the 15th, 46 although it might have. been trrittc-n in a
moment." I suppose this to be merely a figure of.speech, hat-it
informed you that 4ini 7 part of the charges were' proposed to
be tried t remember this, Mr.,Cobbett. Cu the 15th February
y oil knew this, and you acknowledge in the next senteace teat
a copy of thosr which were to be tried was sent yon on the 234.
February ; "Gut even of these-charges," you spy i• the most ' •
terint parts were entitled." Now, Sir, In page 905, :.ou tell US
16 all depended upon the written doeuments as • to 11e principal
,charges. FOR as. tilt Court Martial was to area-dile -
on the 24th Marehl, I went de.i.vn to Porr.mnuth on the 9.00,
in order toiknow for certain what was become of the books."
In the Srst place
.%.: tell us that on the 234 February, yott
knew tbeinost material part of the charges-were omitted, MA
yet on the 20th. Dilaret you, went 4olpn t 0..:; look after the
books in order to sobstantiate rheas petacipatekodoes which yeti •
/mete were omitted. Now, Sir, how do you recolacile your
having received these mutilated charges ua the 234 February,
when in yotmL Letter to the Judge Advocate on the 4th March,
you refuse Captain Pwcll any specific:at:an of the charges
preferrEqd against hia:. Take your choice of the alternative—A
either event you arc guilty of a direct falsehood, But, Sir,
von- did not go down to Portsmouth on the 2Uth Mare!). Your
lanliladv, Elizabeth Wools, has sworn that you did not leave
*vont. lodgings until the night attic 21:a.—Do yott believe there
iq a man in England will believe yonr assertion in opposition to
her oath.--Nor did the Judge. Advocate receive anyletter written.
1)% vou from Tratton on the :Milt 'March, he fiat/ sworn this;
indeed, he violet not.— You were net three, and you never wrote •
such a letter—otherwke the Judge Advocate is perjured, and .
you are to be helieved upon your bare word in oppositioa
to his oath. You say he Judge Advocate informed you on the
tsth March, that he hal laid your remonstranceos to the place
where the Covet INlartial was to be hell, before—,whom Uinta
you ? Not the King, but the accused parties. I accuse you
with here writing a deliberate falsehood. I will consent to lose
all credit with the public, if you can produce a letter to that
erect. The Jadge Advocate dim! no such thing; and yon•know
he did net. The-letter of the Judge Advocate upon-this subject
iw dated the M March anti not the sth, and he tells yon that he
thought it necessary to acquaint the Defendant that you had ap-
plied to have the Court Martial held in London; and on Feb.

18 he wrote to. Capt. Powell, that you bad offered some reason,
for this, which it teas Us My to lay before ihe King. On the 4th
March, in year: letter to the /tide Advocate, you soy that he
had acquiesced in your reasdtts, and you acknowledge the plea-
mad yea felt Id his having acquiesced. Hew dare you have the
impudence after this to say it .was held in London, iu consequence '
of your letter to Mr. Pitt, written on thu 'nth Mech
abominable tissue of fulteltOod is scarcely to be parallelled -in
the annals of the Old Bailey. Was it not the duty of the Judge
Advocate to inform Captain Powell of the wish you tied e), -
pressed to alter thoplace ',her, • Court Martial should be P.
awl %Ili it not equally Ills deity to hie the reasons hcCore the
:a .4 ."ere mit your wisnea inseediately comp! ied with ?
On the 1111 i of Mardi, yott persist in sl .:at you vviii sub.-
stantiate the charger,---What el, he dew model:et.
thane;-8, of which you had a cots- ‘.:: t;tt Vl' of February
uhirh omitted the, cha;.ges. far the proof of tellich fhe
books were a necescary ,oidtnee.—W ith revert to the Lem.:
said to have been ‘,..ritten by you to Mr. Pict on the Its of
March. it is impossible that buci a Letter could have been writ-
ten.— Ev,9l you, W rn. Cobbett could not have urged Mr. Pitt, on
the 7th of March, to inlet fere, hi order to have the Court Mar-
tial held in London, when sour own letter, on the 4th of
March, to the Judge Advocate, ackno is ledges and rejoices in
hi, teovlng lcceeded to your reasons for having it held there.—
Great liars, Mr. (:ohliett, should have good memories!! You
are an aniont in the practice, without slim essential requisite.—
Sir; if ou wrote, as you say you did, on the £o,h of
hl re ,In the .1 lige Advocate, from a village near Poris•Thoit i•
how came )6u to request him to send you an answer by Ike N ex
Dar AT NIGHT to sitst. lodgings Surely, Mr. Colibett
have hada dip in the Lir.. How did you know, if yon were
r: or at your lodging* on the day of the 2lst„ at night. that such
an answer as you requested was not sent? Hew did you keno
on the 81st " that ne, answer came," if von set of on the
" Aud as son hadlearued, in the mean lime, that there Was a design
to prosecute you for sedition, it quickened your movements." In
the meals time can only wean between the seclioe your letter of
lite 20: h and the Nee day at night when you fixed to have an an-
swer; it must be intended to convey this idea. or what you say
is nonsense, for otherwise it could not have induced yon to set
off, or, 1111 your own words, to quicken your movements. You
then proceed to oily, that a; you were going to Portsmouth, you.
heard the story about the sedition. Now, Sir, do you beliew.
that a single man in Great Britain, can avoid feeling the utmost
indignationat the libel you have presumed to utter against the
administration of justice in this country ? That a fear of being
prosecuted for what you never said, was the occasion of your
ahseoeding to France, (to revolutionary France, at this period).
Has it never been suggested to you by your friend and ccnfidant,
the traitor Fitzgerald, that if such takers were accused whose
loyalty was not to be seduced, and that if under pretence of
beim necessary witnesses, you could get 60 or 70 of the most loyal
of the soldiers removed out of the way, that Portsmouth might
be carried without difficulty. Did it never occur to your mind,
that the accusation of sedition might relate to certain projects
which you'mlght think very harmless, when concerted with the
only honest officer in this regiments Dues your recollec-
tion furnish no clue to the source of your fears upon that
occasion ? Does not the mind borrow eyes from the ap-
prehensions, and is not fear the usual companion of guilt

Can you recollect ena norsrsT max who eve; lied fron►
bis co miry under such circumstances? But " you had pro-

raised Besland not to mention his name without his discharge."
Is it credible that William Cobbett absconded to France •nd

JUNP 0,

such circuntslunces, merely to save this B.,!hrtil the cloture of
bloody shoulderS. The known 4umanfty of the fellow makes
any contradiction of this silly subtfrfuge unnecescary. But lose
iurdo were actually secured, and this same tiesrand did actually
appariar 1% tutees at the Comet Ifarliar. And tot cbarze of
...Noon was made agaii)st William C. bets, and no inteatioa
•• eisted of making such a charge. It is all a' hum ! You are the
au•hor of this Dilliehood }ourself. lint Captain thr,,,oi
. ontratdict ; Berland ton is dead ! What a tissue• of ealnitlicated
‘..tsohood and villainy. ! ! !
Do you expect that any man will believe you were so ixoorhat
in, not to !claw what the //uuse of Brunswick mremt. U fu!
,:rePte! for shame

t. an volt persuade one Man to &edit your (bat you
111 not know what it sugyerslon of the it‘iteas Corpus 4c:
Neaut! add vet that you ran away lest you 4ht::11(1 he Sent to L el.
RH) Bay, for utteriag words 3on oevcr tholt;..at of! And so ..ou
;id not leace Enplavd from this motive I 'not it Ix as on areauet of
:our poor friend whom on were afraid of irvolt ing NV lett. you
run away, nod leave infamy to attach everia-tirOy to your t ha-
racier, sooner am brer.k a pronii:,e to a frieod, (the sVead can tell
no tales).—But v.:O riot all'Ob reason t " on thi)v;:ht it het-
ter to leave the w hot:. set to do MY hat it was quite et !dent they had
resolved to do." What set ?—and what had th• v revolved to dot
Sir, whatever flattering unction you may ntiminister to yonrs-li;
Append upon it, there is a fund of gro, I sense in this country
that will not be long deceive m.'sterinus allusions,
these maligaaot and dark insinthitions will not impose opon the
credulity of one man v ho is not I,redetermined to believe w hat-
-ver you say. Your charade; is blasted, not by 30111 oppo-
nents but yourself.—The intrepid li.tr, the malignant calumni-
ator, the boasting braggart may live for a day.--But whew
truth has presented her mirror to the bloater wretch, we only
auut day-light and our senses to enable us to prunouuce him a
-Villain.

You say that only five out of I ►renty•seven Letters are printed,
she rest are suppressed, Examine, Sir, with a little attention
hat 'have ! eeu published, and you will find it ►s impossible
,here could have bleu written what you state. The dates and
t!ie references make it impossible. live surely, Sir, you wise
lan quote passages from your Letter to Mr. Pitt, eau furnish the
public with what yousay have beta suppressed. Why don't io
publish them? If these be necessary to yourjustification do print
them. Indeed, indeed you require all, to bolster up what 1 have,
no hesitation to pronounce a more barefaced and infamous
ftransaetion than was ever unblushingly avowed by the vile*
miscreant that ever existed. Your opponents, you say, feel
they are not sate while your pen is in action. tioperson, Sir,
is safe whilst such a man has the power of doing mischief.; and
whatever your vanity, or wretches of your own kidney may says
depend' upon it that you will, ere long. be considered as a Van-
gerous animal, and by the common consent of every honest mas
in society, be driven to herd with other beasts of prey. Tor the
rest you were banished this country till Capt. Powell was dead.
You know the Attorney and Solicitor General gave it as thek
opinion that you could not be indicted but for a compiency, and
that this transaction being purely your own,• yon must escape the
punishment you deserved. Nor were you ignorant that the Sta-
tute of Limitations prevented• the Officers from recovering da-
mages against you in a civil action. If I were your friend, I
would advise you to begin the task of Reform with yourself.—
Look into your own heart ; banish the malignant passions that
corrode it ; shew your gratitude for those abilities you possess
by a proper use of them, and endeavour to cultivate " Peace e
earth and good-will towards men. " If I were your enemy, I
would advise you, it 4 another paroxyism of rage and fury, to
sit down and write just such smother double letter as your last.--•
You may perhaps hear again from

A MODXSATI Ritronmut.