The National Register.
London, England, 1811-07-07 00:00:00

DOCTRINE OF AS3ASSINAI'ION.

Mr. WHITBREAD rose to say a fgw words for the putaosse of
enabling the Right Hon. Gentleman opposite (Perceval,) or any
other Member of the Government, to make the disavowal which
had been made in another place by.the Marquis Wellesley, he
believed, with rtaurd to a subject in which our taen Royal fa-
tnily, a'. well as ail other rulers and, indeed, all mankind were
intimately concerned—he alluded to the horrible doctrine of
assassination which had been preached up by a part of the press;
a d. 'cultic which no conceivable circumstances ceti!sl justify, and
of which the canseq.tences might he dreadful; a doctrine lead-
ing to the destruction of the innocent and meritorious, and of.
whom We ought not to be the judges. The Christian ;era had.
commenced, they had subsequently been told that the tune was
come when it was no longer " eye for eye and tooth for tooth."
He irtaht call upon them to show any instance in whit h good
had been done by assassination—to point out the beneficial resalt
when the crime or deed, as they would c. 11 it, had been pert e-!
trated. After the assassination of Caesar, had the iiberties cf
Rome been restored ? Had the assassin's knife always area di-
rected against the guilty ? In the long cat.doeue of uch horrid
deeds to be found in the history of maokind, had not the inno-
cent and no ritorious fallen oftener than the crimival f Henry.
the IVth of France had been assosinated ; thtre had been an
attempt to assassinate Louis the XVth of France ; an attempt
had been made to assassinate the great• Prince of Orange ; and
in the course of the reign of the existing Monarch of this coun-
try, two attempts had been made to assassinate him. Only a
few years ago the King of Sweden and the Emperor Paul of.
Russia had been assassinated. Let them look at these things,7
and then see whether it was prudent to preach up this doctrine,
to say that every man was to be the judge of who ought to be
assassinated. Bonaparte had, indeed, attacked Spain while at
peace with him, and unprepared for resistance—and had not we
acted in the same manner with regard to IC'aland ? Let them
think of our deeds in ladia while the Marquis Wellesley, now•
Siacretary of State, was Governor General. How; ver despotic
the Ind:an princes, they might have some personal friends t and
if they were to be the judges of who deserved to he assassinated;
if the fraa.ds of the Nabob of Oude—of the Carpal tc—of Tips'
pot, Sultaun, were to decide, would they nut say that the singer
ought to be ahned at the breasts of those who hat: effected the
subjugation of their Sovereigns ? Papers were printed here in
the freach langaage, with the connivance, if not approbation of
the Government, for the purpose of being eircuiatesi ii he Con-
tinent and wlatt would those thiek by wham dime papers'
were read? Bonaparte had held out that the Fogiish Govern-
ment encouraged attempts aaainst ; that it had landed',
men on the coast of France with this view, and that it a-as at•
the bottom of the projected assassination by the infernal machine;
and however untounded these charges were, yet sabst a coaiir-
mation would his assertions receive front the reia!ing of these
papers ? Suppose hint to be as black as the hi :ckest portrait
which they drew him, let them look at the consequence s of such'
principle if acted upon. Was Bonaparte a man likely to sit quiet
and endure all this without an attempt at retaliation ? The c ery•
prints which now preached up this doctrine had declared that a
person had been sent to this country by Bonaparte to assassinate
the King, and even mentioned the pursuit, one Beavais. With
the belief that Bonaparte was capable of such conduct, when he
suspected the Government of this country of encouraging at-
tempts at his life by assassination, were they justified in giving
colour to such suspicions, and exposing the Royal Family to re-
taliation. They believed, they said, that Bonaparte had a baed
ready even Mr such purposes—and what then was to be thought
of their conduct ? hose papers which might becalied iiidepeu-
, dent, and even those that were under the coinroul of the Trea-
sta y, had openly deprecated this doctrine. Marquis Welcsley,
had disavowed it, and he was unw.Ding that the House should
adjourn without a similar disavowal in that House. But the
doctrine haat was so horrible, he might say so „:unable, tiad
its consequences so dreadful, that he found it impossible not to
call for a distinct disavowal. It it bad been acted upon for these

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