The Sun.
London, England, 1801-06-06 00:00:00

Gentlemen, he confessed he could not see. Utit
beforci he adverted to other arguments which the
slionourable, Gentleman had brought forward, he
should take a view of the general principles and
reasons that applied to the present measure--It was
stated [haft this was not to protect any persons who -
had- done:, any. thing which was wrong, but to
prevent them froin being subject to vexation upon
cases-upon which they, had done that which was
tight; 'and.that was rightly stated,--The necessity
of a measure of this sort seemed to be founded on
the peculiar nature ,of the present proceeding,
namely, " That those whO have aded .under the
Law, and who mux depend on the information of
others—lnformation which it is not. to•the adiantage
of the Pub is to be made known, have acted only
in the execution of their duty, and therefore,
'ought to. be protetled."—This measure, therefore, in
one View of it, was to be considered, properly
speaking, as a -measure for the }notation of the
rublic..agititist an injury which they might sustain by
an individual being called upon to produce the justi.
ficatiou under which he acted..—Now he was ready
to contend that it wet s not to the interest of the
?übiic, that a persOn who had acted in the service
of the Public should be so placed, and as to the
ihconveniencies which were supposed to he intro-
duced by this, pradiCeof taking secret information
for the safety of the Public, he should be disposed
to close with the Hon. Gentleman, and say, that the
inconvenience of 'putting an end to the pradice
Would be greater than the inconvenience of con-
tinuing, it, for he allowed the inconvenience was
considerable on both, sides. He would say, there.
fore, that an individual who bad acted, for the
nenefit of the Pubiie, ought never to be put in the
situation, such as many persons would be in, if the
Bill now before the House should not pass into a '
Law. The Hon. Gentleman's argument upon this
occasion *as not only calculated to slew' that the
imprisonment 'of peisons under the Suspension of
the Habeas Corpus At, was oppressive, but it went
the length of sliming, not only that the Com-
mitment of persons under this authority was
harsh, but also, ihat all proceeding whatever,
_upon such authority,. was improper.- It went the
length of -saying, that no proceeding whatever .
&Would have .taken place upon any Secret Infor-
nlition although the House had always intended,
and had frecrently expressed such intention, that
such roceedings- should take place. It being so in
theview of the House, it would not be inconsist-
ent with its duty, to att upon that idea. That be.
ing the state of the case, these persons must, or they
were •'r least likely to be in a situation in which'
they hod done right, and what the-House intended,
and yet, if they were not protedred by a Bill of this
sort, they would be open to vexation, accusation,
and, probably to punishment, unless they produced
that which it was inconvenient to the Public to have
produced. This, he apprehended, was something of
an evil. But the Hon.,Gentlernan said, we must con.
.upon. this occasion, the precedents which ;p-
-peared in our Parliamentary history, and he urged a
very hamane maxim, tO•which, under certain
heations, there could be no objedion. ', That it was
better that many 'guilty persons should escape, than
that one innocent one should be,condemoed. In
this humane maxim, he agreed with' the Hon. Gen-
. Heenan; but not in the application of it.; because
the case here was not, whether any innocent person
should be sacrificed that was imPossikk, since the
Utmost an innocent person could endure was im.,
trisonment, .convided he never could be without
clear and ,atisfaetory proof ofguilt ; and here he felt
himself disposed to,elose with the Hon. Gentleman,
that the inconvenience to the Public would be
.greater On the other side, fur under the apprehen.
lion, (because the thing was possible) that some
JR* -would misuse 'his power in some individual
rase, no power. should. be given at all to any
; that is 'to say, if _power be given,
tile person exercising it shall, at all risks to
the Public Safety, ,either„ give up the information
°I) which _he acted, a thing most mischievous in
Same eases, or the party using it, shall be liable to
'Punishment, a .thing most to be avoided, ,on account
-of the discouragement it would throw. in the way of
• rnen_who have arduous public duties, .to perform,—
would not. endeavour to stew, what indeed it
was. hardly 'possible to, shew, the exact proportion
• there was between the inconvenience:le ,the:grle and
'the other of these cases, but he was deceived if
}there was any difficulty in, deciding the matter.—
However, that must rest with the jUdgment of the
douse, The Question to be asked, of the House
3s this " Do, you, upon. the %%hole,' think that
theh' )vils, which have resulted from the power which
Suspension e" to those' 'who have .acted tinder the
tslich, as
of the • Habeas*, COrpus At have been
that it will be better to expose to prOsecu.
not perhaps to persecution, those Who have
- only acted conscientiously, but under your own
authority ? And will you piace them in a situation
in Which they may be punished for 'their virtue (for
If they
.are sued in a Court of, Law' for .aaing as
rue have done, they will be punished if they re-
use to deliVer. up the evidence on which they
400, the disclosure of which may he highly inju-
ftiOus to the PUblic, and therefore to punish men
(11 such refusal is to punish them for their virtue),
brwill you prated, them' for it ? ThiS, it must
remembered farther, was not' the whimsical
or capricious conduit of individuals, but the
‘414 of persons who had acted under, the Au.
0 ,
'nritY of the House. This, he said, however,
offered to the House, and not to the Honour
n , -
Gentleman, for he . had said that he, would
net
proceed at all on InformatiOn of:a -Secret
• fqr dice.of taking
c was against the whole ira
urutition from Spies and InformerS. h mode
c
rejeOing all Information froM Informers, was a
tort of a specific adopted Of late for certain pur-.
1)-1)ses; and to anwer certin complaints, which
entlemen on the opposite side of the. House had
t46n. under their roteaion. We know,' that
ag'inst Secret Combinations, fortified and concealed
~ '
as they were by the obligation of the most wicked
Oath, 'but on those who took them, most binding
k"
He would 'ask, therefore, what means were we to
1151'11.‘se of- proceeding to Orotett 'ourselves against
h evil sPirit-$,• if we had not Secret Information ?
deferencVe to Political Maxinvi, When they were
a b
ti le to the •subjed. in discussion; but here