The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-12-19 00:00:00

414,1 iiitewled by it to charge iris client with the
..otninissioti of au abominable fraud.

-- Barnet, was then culled, and c.ramingd.

Ia keiver of the 801 l lii.huloo.ote-toreet,
adjacent to Air. Wal:legi..te', sovisoisr:•; recollects
the lire ; it lidupeneri un S3turrloy night, May 8,
Ihi l7 ; it WIER
caused by 2 htlrgr-keeper going into
the at•ldes with a candle, itstaxic ; the mils
was burned to death ; some of 6uotlik its the sun
were datum:rd. •
_

G. Cockerell valued the good* destroyed And
injured. belonging to Mr. Waltlegravy. at 719/. 6..
'Elva was the sum Chtillitarl and recovered in tlie
act. agoinvt Mr. Bigot)ld by the v...ignees.
• The Clerk then retni en account of the action
from the record...

E. MIL printer to the Norwich Union, was
banded s printed hand-bill, emit:Awing the libel. of
Which, lie bold, lie received the copy from Mr.
owl printed sod published immediately
shoot 3,000 of the :ante description mom% ►he
Members.

The libel was then read Ity the Clerk. It was
entitled, A Summary of Mr. Mgt's)ld's reasons
for resisting the demand of Wals-grave," and
stated, that all.snspiesous fires happened on s Sa-
turday night, or a Sunday; this happened on a
Saturday night, and the cause of it was never as-
certained; that Mr. IValdegrave's evidence was at
variance with the landlord's and occupiers of the
inn; that the damages recovered were live times the
amount of the loss; that the bankrupt had dis-
posed of the pretnises•descrilied sai the declaration
to John and Mary Anne end that conse-
quently they were not his, whe tt as, he swore at the
trial that the interest of then; was in himself; that
the premises burned were lint those described in the
policy of insurance ; that the proper premium had
not been paid to the Company ; that the policy had
not been received by Mr.. 11'uldegrave; and that
the asssigiirea, by making Wahlegrave a bankrupt,
were enabled to hrin4 him forward as a witness,
whsle they excluded Mr. Ilignold, lay snaking haul
Defendant.

George Clarke took R copy e,f the hand-bill for
publication to the ollice of the British Luminary.
• London weekly Paper.
The CHIEF JUSTICE milted of what number of
members the iisi.ociatioo coo•i•ted ?

Defendant's Counsel replied 80,000.
W. Chambers, publisher of the Paper, proved
the publication, and stated that the circulation on
that day was 2,000.
Mr. Bigooltl, jun. believed his father to be pos-
&costal of ci.to.illtr4l,:e property. bin was unable to
enter into particulars. lie could not say that his
profits ►n the last year, as Secretary, were 5 or
G,oool.
Cross.e.rwarined.—His father is not on good terms
with him ; lie was not secretary at present. The
former action was not brought at the desire and by
the direction: of Wablegrave ; Mr. Lamb, who con-
ducted it, was not his agent; he was not in any way
professionally concerned in it ; .lid not esquire into
the facts of the rase. The meetings to inspire into
the Society's athirs were sidisequetit to the trial.
lie-examined.—The trial gave rise to the meet-
ings ;iltol ;sot attend the first of them.

was the MeioticPe case.
Mr. S rjeant COPLEY «aid, he was extremely
happy to address gentlemen who could judge calm-
ly and tensperately on the occasion of the present
action; and he was confident they would believe
that no intenti of maligning Air. Waldegrave, of
imputing fraud to him, or M describing him to the
world as a man who heal VOIU:It;Irlly Net tire to bus
own house, for the purpose of rubbing the Norwich
'hoots Society, could have actuated his client. It
was necessary fur theta to revel to mind the cir-
cuinotencei under which the publication took place.
Mr. [lipoid had been fur many years Secretary of
the Society ; his exertions had been highly bench-
ciel to it ;*.but he was not in throw circumstances of
afiluence he was this day represented to be. lie
had been removed from the situation he held,
whether from a misconception of his conduct on
the part of the Members, or through the instal-
mentality and agency of his own son, lie should
not then inquire. The former action had been
brought egaitist him as Secretary, sod though he
had considered it as a duty he owed die Members
to defend the action, lie lisd never set up. or
glanced at, such a defence as fraud on the part of
Mr. Al'altlegrave. The result of the action gave
rise to various meetiogsi, in which the propriety of
Mr. B.'s conduct and motives was queNtioned and
strougly iirrnigued. Ile, eccorthogly, thou ht it a
course which prudence dictated, to draw up u sum-
mary of the circumstances whlch, in his mind, just
tilled him in resisting :fir. W.% demand, until an
investigation was entitle, and is coropellitig 'aim to
establish the justice of his claims. That was the sole
motive of the ptildit al inn— to convince the Members
that lie lied nut acted improperly in defending'; the
octioh, to vool,cat- his own character, aid thew
that he hail strong groinols for proceeding as be had.
The Learned Counsel than examined and com-
mented on various p tit- of the puhlitution, contend-
iu.z there was ninth colon r of truth to justify his
client in Ins asset timis. '1 he cause of the fire had
never been proved till that nay. The policy had,
in point of fact, been seta to Air. IValilegrave. but
he tun being at home, had been returned to the
Society for alteration. The premises were partly
mortgaged to John and Mary Anne "Vella. The
whole, lie continued. was merely an etliort by
Mr. Bigtiold, to sheet the members that he was
Wood to pot the facts in a trout of inquiry before
lie paid away funds of which he was intrusted with
the superinitaidence mid management—at all events,
he we* sole they would not consider it as a case of
damages. The publication not possibly
have the effect of injurjoig Mr. Waldegitive's chi:-
racier—every shade of suspicion had been removed
from him by the pircalliiig public trial—a trial
much discussed and itiquirt d isitn, and notorious in
,every part of the knigiloin. lie could, therefore,
have stisqiined do datonge from any thing said of
him by Mr. Bignold.
The 4..71;;EF JlATtns, iii the course of his charge
to the Jury. observed, he greatly reorited to
ecr a soli brought foilvard in a public t'ou't of
Justus', to give evidence against his own father—to
de, P4f• to the extein ul Ins failles'a property, fur
the purpose of causing heavier damage. to be
ivy:ward apiiist hint. Whoever might have been
the cense of producing Into, it wait a thing that
ou4lit tout to have l?ren dune—lad if by had ap.