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London, England, 1820-09-09 00:00:00

mint. Why was this injury to be indicted on the arread,
of patting teeth the evidence end anomie, op for two
months before the eidetic* mold bevies, not bereave of any
thing done by the aceußed, but because the Noise had
'dared the %vent in a reurtitime in which it was impossible
for her to prepare for her &tome? The Noble Bart oM
maim bad endeavoured to remedy the iejnstice, and had
made a motion her yielding an equivalent to the Cosesetel for
the defence. The equivalent was certainty a very satiate.-
tory one, it was even of more value to a defence than the
right for withholding which it was given. The power of
again examining wstneoses at a distant flute, when snout
probably they would have forgotten the ragas, of their egi-
dew*, and the chances of embarrassing • bad altos.", were,
in this ease, greater than 'maid have hem eajoyeal by bar.
ing the list of witnesses lest of all furnished. Bet this ad-
vantage the Counsel for the Queen had now dialisled; they
did not ask for she exterior of this prat privilege. I. the
mesa time, the dolieitor.Gestera/ had declared Apt the case
was se simile that he did sot believe is admits* if eNg
answer. Might out the Counsel eo the other oble'ilt- Simla
be allowed to say, in reply to this assumption,l Donee be.
Neve in the iufereuce of my Learned Fries.); (hear senor-
rations to make on the evidence already before yogi, which
will give it a different bearing sad appearance'" Would
their Lordships allow this, and sultry that other ex-
planation to be given to the evidence ? then the bane
and antidote might go together; not ooly would
there be the car for the Crowe with the 'anew and
impressive slimming l.y the Solicitor-Getteral, bet thee:pl.-
nation would accompany it, sad serve to keep men's minds
in • state of more just and honourable iineertainly. They
ought to let the Counsel fur the gimes, go on, and ask time
hereafter if they found it needful. He knew their lord-
ships were honourable men, and would do what they could
to decide equitably; tint be was afraid to trust his awn
mind with the effect of that evidence which they hail heard,
and that speech which followed it, for two months. He con-
cluded by earnestly recommending to their Lordships to
hear the remarks of the Contuse fur the Queen upon the
case forthwith, and not confine him to the condition of im-
mediately afterwards producing his witnesses.
The Fail of Lau terdale stated the reasons why be
could not concur in the opinion of the Noble and learned
Lord. There must be some evil suffered in every case ; hut
no
fair man, much less any este of their Lordships, would
suffer his mind to he determined by the mere atatement of
the case as it hail been made hitherto. dot how was it on
the other side, The Couusel fur the Queen might state
what case they phrased; they might afterwards my, that
they believed in that case, hut that it failed them in evi-
dence, and this case, false or distorted as it might be, might
go forth in company with a trite case on the part of the 1)m-
-i/centime. Would it lie no injury to public justice fur thin
injustice to opt rate on the public Naiad without remedy for
two months?—(Naar.)—He slid not question the honour or
probity of her Majesty's advisers, eminent and respectable
as they were, bat be iterated it necessary to guard against
stab aecontingency ; beside', the thieves case was already
pretty well defended from the ell:et of prejudice,
by the rross.exansinstion which would accompany it.
By acceding to the proposition made by the Queen's Coon-
eel, they would allow their imagination full scope fur exec.
vise; they would afford them the opportunity of putting
the ease in the most distorted shape, and of prejudicing the
public mind to the utmost possible extent; and this without
knowing themselves whether it would be afterwards in their
power to supports their statement by pruu.f. He put it,
therefore, to their Lordships, whether the fairest time for
adjourning the defence was not wow, before It had been
entered on, instead of suspending it • n era speech should have
been made by her Majesty's Counsel, calculated to snake
the strongest impreesion on the public mind, and to remain
there for two months without any means whatever of de-
termining in the harvest, whether that impression were just
and well hionded Of otherwise.
The Lord Ctsaweellor said, that if a propesition were
made on the pretest occasion such as had never been hem d
of before in say Court of Justice, namely, that Counsel
shield be allowed to eater on their case, with the liberty
avowedly recognised beforehand of continuing or suspend-
ing it according to their discretion; still, considering the re-
markable peculiarities of this case, herout,' readily excuse
any individual Peer from whom it might proceed ; but for
himself, there was a dusty imposed on him which be was bound
to discharge to the best of his power, and if he felt himself
called on by his sense of that duty to oppose the proposition of
his Noble Friend (Lord Fatticiar), however painful such a tie.
termination might be to him, be mold not avoid expressing
and maintaining it. l'be consequences of adopting that
proposition would not be mallard to this House, but would,
in some degree, affect the general administration of justice.
He by no means, at that moment, felt that there was no di,-
Scatty attending the view of the case which he took ; be
knew it was otherwise. • Ile was well aware that their Lord.
ship" would be guilty of a violation of their duty, if they
suffered any impressions of the guilt of her Majesty to dwell
on their minds at the present stage of their proceediags ;
that they were to consider every syllable of the evidence
which they had beard to her prejudice, as capable of being
disproved.—(ffeer' Jeer.)—But though this might not be
-difficult to minds habituated to legal proceedings, and the
business of Courts of law, still he should not he des:ing
candidly with their Lordships did he assert, that if the mat-
ter ended where it was for the present, and stood still fur
idea monthswithout hearing any thing of what was to be said
in her defence, all undue impressions to the prejudice of her
Majesty could in the interim be gnarled against, either by
their Lordships in general, or the public. L'ut they were
placed is • situation in which they were compelled to make
a choice between evils; and if, as he admitted, there were
evils involved in the course be. bad just =maimed, they
were to consider what would be the consequence, if, after
the ease for the drfenee had bees stated by Colonel, they
should be obliged to pest pone she examinations of witnesses,
who might be necessary to establish any part of the state-
ment till a future period. He was sure, he thanked God!
that in whatever tray of them proposed to the House to do,
or to determine, that individual acted under a just "tweet
duty. Bet giving his Noble and Learned Friend all the cre-
dit possible for the goodoem of his motive in what he bad
recosonseaded, sad he alltiwed that he had had more rape.
ranee in things of this mature in the Courts below than him•
self, still he could sot help thinking that the course
he advised was far mere objectionable than the other.
His Noble Friend bad said' that a Judge had nu right to
call upon a Colima to soy before opening his ease, whether
he would afterwards call evidence or would not; but grant-
ing this, what was nought for here went much further than
any thing which 'night be supposed to be contained iu that
privilege of Coonsel. It was difficult for him to-illustrate
what he meant to soy by the practice of the Courts below,
but he wished to know whether, before inferiar tribunals, an
adjeterunieet of a case fur a space of two months after it
had been commenced, was not a thing perfectly amperes,
dented. He asked his Noble Friend, or any other Noble
Lord, if a Counsel berms statement of hi. case in another
Cowart, being at the same time of opinion that it would be
accessary tor him to call *imitates when it should Ise con-
cluded, whether he did not by such beginume give a pledge •
to the Court that be wasfally ready to call in his evidence,
and claw hie cane whenever the Court should think peeper,
whether he did not thereby gore a pledge that he was pre-
pared to anatomic his ease, and go on with it to the rod
He thought that be bad largely and liberally allowed for the
prejudice that might affect the public mind in the hest case,
but to understood the nature of that which would probably
operate in the seetrod, the line recommended by his Noble sod
Learned Friend, let it be supposed toot a prosecetor wished
Morse his cape withiut having his witnesses ready, would any
body admit it ? Certainly not. Theo why should it be permit-
ted oa the other side ? He granted, however, that there was a
difference to the eases. He concurred in what hod been mad
by the Noble Lied on the uric-beaches (Lord Lauderdale),
that the Beam might rely hugely and liberally oft the the-