The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1820-05-03 00:00:00

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the administration of Assets, where Moe parties
were uut of the realm.
-EDWARIPS, TN F. SPY.
Mr. Aldermen WOOD rose, sod spoke
lows :—" There is a question which I fret it mj?
ditty to bring 'belie the House, and which I coop
seder to be of the highestlimpormare. 1 mu be
wniog, but it is for you, Mr. Spesker. and the
Houses tom)? if the comae I am now about to take
19 the proper mie. The question to which I sin
tuboire to refer to owe which not only, involves our
interest, but safety, end I therefore think it
neii be considered as a question of privilege. I
holm a paper in my hand, containing the depositions
of seven persons, made before me in my siination
as a Nlagiiitrate. They applied to me for a warrant
to arrest II person named George Edwards. The
seven persons went with me far examination into •
private room, and also with • very worthy Magi',
trate, Alderman Sir William Denville. These
deponents, four • of them in particular, in their
private exit eee i ll idiot, stated, among other facts, one
which materially concerns this House, and to that I
mean to confine myself on the present occasion,
and to refrain from entering upon other pert,
of the depositions, which refer to plots against
Milliliters, and other acts of atrocity. The
persons. and I shall read the words of their
depositions touching this fact, state. that
it was the practice of this person, named George
Edward., to go about cutistaittly from public-house
to public-house, and indeed to private ones also,
instigating those whom he found to the commission
of acts of outrage. On one of these occasions he
strorigly recommended the destruction of the Mem-
bers of the House of Commons. He said it would
be very ra•y to introduce six or seven persons into
the Howie, particularly while the Members were
busily employed in public business. It would be
Ve.y en-y. he represented, to come in here, and that
it would not be necessary to come in very clean
'other, for there would be no objection to • man's
bridging, in as it were books under his arm, and
toot the cases representing books could easily
(meant cut gun-barrels of a certain number
of unite. in length, which could be well stopped
and filled with gunpowder. Thesi could be easily
throwit tome about the House in the heat of dr-
bier, nod what with giro:ides and missiles of gun-
',oder and phosphorus, the whole thing might
easily be accomplished. In one of these conver.
• lion., Edwards said the plan was a good one,
tool that ;le snout as Thistlewood got out of Hum-
bert' gaol, which would soon be, lie was the boy
to do it. A few days after this very period, I hare
r•oettoo to know Edwards got sequatnted with This.
at the house of Preston. the cobbler. Ed-
wends did their absolutely get up the cases he talked
of, anti prepartt iiw gun-barrels and combustibles.
At this period of his career he was supplied with
1111 l ley from some hand or other; he was, in fact,
year finch of it, though just before he had not half-
pence rill/Ugh to buy a pot of porter. These
are the general facts as affecting the safety
of thi• Iloose through the machinations of Ed-
5,4(11%, as deposed to by the protons to whom I
abate. I wilt not enter further into the matter
of these depositions. unless called on by the House
la a Ceminittee of Secresy ; then I shall be ready
to lay tn-hire them the whole of my information
Telipectltig the alleged dreadful transactions of this
matt. far they are dreadful indeed. They are all
attiotteted to him (Edwards), and several witnesses
speck to his repotted contrivances, time after time,
it, furtherance of his projects, and there are wit-
awes.* who spark to them who appear to be finite
disinterested, and unconoected at either side of the
-lists tef witnesses during the late trials. I ask then,
unary these circumstances, and with this infor-
unitiott.'witieh I am ready to tender, what course
or ought, to pursue? Whether I ought to make
.1... a question of privilege, in as much as all
at-
tack was to have been made oti this House. or
whether the better way would he to proceed by a
Committee of Secresy. and then to go through the
w:eile of :he evidence ? I ram ready to move either
. to4y, and determined to shape my duty in this bu-
siness to what shall appear the general feeling. 1
of coarse cannot answer for all the witnesses, as I
hive not had time to inquire fully into their chine-
tets.—(ii Hear, hear," front the Treasury Beaches.)
—Et was quite impossible for me, with the sense of
do:). l fuel. to overlook this business.—(ilea,
hear.)—l told the parties. that as parts of the de-
pusitions referred to the city of Weittninsiter, and
parts to the county of Middlesex, I could not in-
terfere further, being a hls,Ostrate of London,
tlie. to take care and have the party who is
within the city apprehended the moment war-
/Witr were issued by the proper authorities. for
• I do not choose to interfere unnecessarily within
the juristisetion of others. It is tiecesary for me
to Wale to the House, that I took the whole of the
• depositions, m well as the parties making them,
duo', to Lord Sirimouth's W.:ice. 'lite Noble Lord
was just goot• few minutes before, and I left them
there with an Hon. Member who is vow in my eye.
I soon lifter received au answer, which it is not pro-
per tat ins to read now. Ail I can say is. that I
lea me done my duty 111 bridging the feeder forward,
yeti that the fault is riot mete if justice is eluded.
if the depositions be true tli any degree, the per-
ton to whom they refer is the worst possible man
tat be antlered to move in society—a man !piing
about frau' !three to place. in public and in private,
instigoing and exciting others to commit the most
'mobile actions, and to stir Up plots of all sorts.
Ile was very early connected woh lhr last theattful
plot, of which so much has beta, lately said. .I tun
itile to produce eViOrilCe ck !Hill very deeply
ineutpairs him in the origin of that transactiou, and
if proper steps tire. taken he may be punished for
it, if hr does not escape from the country. a course
which he will undoubtedly take if the most prompt
measures are not resorted to." The worthy Alder.
inure, after a short pause, as if for consultation as to
the course which-be was about to pursue., concluded
by 'moving that George Edwards be forthwith
brought to the bar of that House.
Mr. Ilossx seconded the motion.
Mr. MUG GE BATHURST—I, I do not rise, Sir,
to cutter into the motives of the worthy Alderman
in bringing forward this subject, but I merely look
upoia the question itself as it refers to our privi.
loges. I will ask, then. whether it is possible, by
soy coustructwu of our privileges, to consider the
TlOlllOll put as involving them ?—(Hear, Hear.
from the Treasury heaehes.)—W hat other course
it would be advisable to pursue respecting the

' •!''' • `-
matter tiro not new sars'bot game it to !kV
fuikir cousisleratinsi of the worthy Alderman his- •
stelf. WINS aught to be done in dive course of
I am not called upon to retier to, but as. a case of •
privilege I do not tree how weevily touch it.—(Hear,
hear./—t beseech the !louse to see in what state
we should stand if we celled • mon to our her to
querns/psi him respecting his own acts, which isr-
volved so high is c r as high treason7-(//ear)
—to ask lain if he was not the accomplice of the
unfortunate men who lately Suffered. In the first
!dace, if he intended to destroy the Members of
the House of C mune., lie could nut be well con-
sidered !viol guilty than those who t.ptely forfetted
their hires for meditating the murder of Nliiinsiers."
—(Henr.)—The Right Hon. Gent lemais coptclutled
by expressing his strong opposit to considering
such matter as hid been stated as iiivolvitig their
privileges,. It could not be done without calling
.ust a man to say whether he had committed crimes
of the blackest dye.—(Hear.)
Mr. Alderman Wooly —" I said at the beg. • g
that I had not decided on what would be the !pro-
per course to take on such an occasion as this; that
I left altogether for the coosideration of this
House. I wish the Noose to bike it up in whatever
shape it thinks hest. I have tried to have it con-
sidered in one quarter (Lord Solmolith%), and was
disappointed—( Hear, kcard —I theiclore COM,i•
dered it my duly to bring it here, particularly as
the point relative to the 'wended attack ou this
House never came out during the late prosecutions.
The depositions related to matters calculated to
make ally one shudder, and ought not to he passed
aitde as trivial matters. I take it for granted it is
known in a certain quarter where this Edwards is
to be found ; he has been communicating for a lung
time with that quarter, and if on such depositions
as these, those who have him will not proceed, it is
surely not blameable for other. to stir the [nat-
ter. He appears to be the prime instigator of
every desperate character he could meet in his
rounds, and ready to promote and bring into
action the most diabolical and infernal projects;
and I do not doubt of what is avrorti to be true, in-
deed I think it completely established upon the
evidence ready to be adduced, that lie was the sole
plotter and founder of the late atrocious Cato street
conspiracy. I repeot, I have plow done my duty.
If the question does not involve our privileges, I
am ready to withdraw my motion, and put it any
other shape the :tight Hum Gentleman opposite
shall desire."

Mr. Iluxte—" I seconded my worthy Friend's
motion on the deepest conviction, from what I
heard, of the necessity of pressing this matter to a
full inquiry. The moment I understood that it was
not the intetition of his Nlajesty's Ministers to call
the individual to account, then I thought the only
chance remaining of having the facto investigated
was by an application in this House. There are two
particular facts which imperatively require this
House to do behalf of the eiols or jus-
tice in this case. It appears this individual is
not effected by one deposition, but by several,
which speak to concurring lad.. He went frail,
house to house, according to the depositinii of a per-
son named Chambers, during the forty-eight hours
that preceded the :23(1 February, trying by every
means in his power to toils' men in his trill.
for the counisiosion of the must diabolical acts. He
was at one time without a littlfpently ; just after he
gist quite l'ssidied with cosh, and was able to buy
arms of ail kinds fur every cagspirator he could pro-
cure, and to *omelet and nose them vu dtfiirre
preparations. There woe one, thing that cid come
out during the late trials, Which was, that filinisters
were for some time in
.polUeessi 0000 of a plot, but
there was another that did not mile out, namely. a
discovery of the hood from which ibis plotter's
money came. In the present stage or this bus:ideas
I think the party who had Edwards at their
disposal, should pledge themselves that he shuttlel
not leave the country, to el tsde the further proceed-
ings respecting his conduct. I hope, therefore. my
worthy friend will not withdraw his motion until
some pledge is given, or some course taken re-
specting this rants."—(( rids of "Question ."' from
the Treasury Benches.)
Mr. Beouoitme—l' I certainly. Sir, wish the
worthy Alnernian would rather, in this instance,
accede to what seems to be the wish of the House,
and withdraw his motion, rather then abide by the
recommendation of the worthy Seconder ; but I
cast by no omen« refight Crum espressiog my sur-
prise at the levity w;th which +moue Gentlemen op-
posits iseeined disposed to view so nerve awl' im-
portant a question as the present subject involves.
I agree with them, that this is not such a case as by
u discreet and lit use of our privileges calls for their
application to the particular circumstance. If I
am, however, asked, whether these.focts, if proved,
amount to a breach of our privilege* or not, I do
not hesitate to say that they nut only involve a
gross violation of our privileges-011 that point
I am as clear as that I exist—but also what is a
thousand times worse, a plot to overthrow us while
deliberating, which is (I mean the plot) a high mis-
demeanor, according to the old Art of Edward
the Third, which I am tint aware has been incseased
or altered by the late Acts. The execution of
such a plot is, I know, high treason. As to
what has been said about a person's implicat—
ing himself by his Illtt,weri at our bar, that is what
is always done in cases of libel. Ido not, as I be-
fore stated, think it u case which it would he fit
and proper to consider as a breach of privilege.
But is what has beets stated of this mats nothiog ?
is it no offence at all ?—( lear, bear.)—lles he
tint been charged with a plot to.attack this House
in a horrible manner, while gravely engaged its the
important busioeta of the country ? Is this no
crime, or where are we when such a subject is to be
treated with levity and ridicule ?—(Hear, heur.)—
When a plot is discovered to murder the Cabinet
Ministers, it is called high treason, and men lose
their lives for it ; and is it nothing to compire to
blow up this House ?—('tear. hear, hear.)—ls
this the way to deal with such transactions; to
say we don't wish to pursue the subject ? it this
be so, it is indeed to me matter of much astunissli-
ment. I join, as I have tilresirly said, in the wish
that this motion be witlidrnwn, but nut its the ex-
pectation that nothing more skill be dune iu it ;
on the contrary, I wish we should hold to the clue
we have now got from soy worthy Friend. and
punish the matter to the bottout.—(/fear, hear.)
--Amid why?—because in the proper quarter I see
no attempt likely to be made to bring the offeusler,

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