The Sun.
London, England, 1803-12-21 00:00:00

eo'litiklence in him; and he, as well asliis two SiStCts,
iu fad, repose the most unlimited conheence
him. John Purcell was a man of very weak under.
standing, and might he very easily imposed upon.;
and the- two young ladies-were persons of no judg.
ment as to the management of business ; that was
clear frOm the letters, of Mr. Macnamara himself tO
one of his agents, in which he calls them ad& and
They reposed in him the must implicit con.
fidence, and there was no other person in whom they
could repose any confidence. ' Mr. Macnamara said,
they were in such a situation, that they had not a
friend or relation in this country Who would have
assisted them, or advanced them a single guinea for
their support, and that he was the °say person on-
whom they could depend. Theae young ladies, for
two or three years after their father's death, only
spent .3001. a year ; but after that, when Mr: Mac.
namata came-to have the management of their peco.
niary affairs, they expended 15001. a year. Here the
learned Counsel stated a number of Deeds, which
were exzeuted by the family of Purcell, in favour of
Mr. Macnimara. • The first of diese was-slued on
the 31st of December, 1776; the next on the 11th
and t sth of September, 1780; the next in 1783-4.,
and the last itvt7B6. The.effeet of these D• its was
to convey the whole of these estates, in fee-simple,
to Mr. Macnamara, for money that was said by Mr.
,Macnamara to have been advanced to these two
Ladies and their brother, to the amount of Eo,oool.
and upwards. All these Deeds were sought to be set
aside by this Bill. The Learned• Counsel conceived
there were two questiont in, this cause.: Ist,. Wise.
flier the absolute conveyance that had been made to
the Defendant, Mr. Macnamtra, could be stippritted
in that Court I And the other, was with respc to
the validity of the securities given by this Lady,
the Plaintiff, on behalf of her brother..
He apprehended it was very clear none of
these conveyances could stand in a Court or Equity.
Mr. Macnamara had every where in ills answer sup.
ported the first conveyance an the grounds of its
being a return or compensation for the greatest ser.
vices. it was possible for one individual to render to
another. He spoke every where of the most ion.
portant services, amid of the gratitude due to him
from Miss Purcell ;-but although there were allega.
tions with wt number, he could not find the smallest
degree of proof on the subjed ; and the person who
had 'drawn the answer seemed to have conceived that
a great number of allegations amounted to a proof,
otherwise one could not very well account for his
repeating.so often the same thing. If such important
services had been rendered by MraMacnamara to
the Purcell family, and if such debt of gratitude
hail been due, he should have thought he could
nut have had much difficulty in proving at least
one of them. Wartime any kind of evidence that
he had rendered them any service whatever? None.
And was there not a mismanagement, on his part, of
their affairs, in suffering them to do ads that were so
rash, so ill advised, so foolish, and so extravagant,
on the part of these young women ? lie was bound to
think Mr. Macnamara would he able to prove some
very important allegations. He would be able to
state how every part of that immense debt had teen
contrasted by the Purcell family to him. Mr. Ro.
atiLLY said, he was unable to state even a.conjeftare
how it had been coottattid. He had no (I,too but
that there would be full end complete satisfaction
on the subj-et, because Mr. iVticratmara, iii his an.
saver, says, he had nostaint but he should be Able to
she v, by the most positive evidence, that that sum
was then due to tram the Penni or, her brother,
and sister. The Learned Counsel said, he looked
with great anxiety for the arcoMplishment of that
promise on oath: As to the other out sti:m in this
cause, respeCting the securities given by ibis Lady
on behalf of her brother, though she might possibly
be bound by an act so very extravagant and so
foolish, it was quite impossible she should be bound
by it in favour that person tiding as her Trus.
tee, who tvas bound to let her see the amoorit of
the obligation, and how it would bind her after.
wards. He was bound to let her see what had been
done for the time past, and to let her see what s.he
was doing for the time to come, that she might be
aware how large a debt.had been contradeil at ahat
time, and whether or not she, would pledge every
thing she had in the world, not only to pay that debt,
but future deists; and on the contrasting of which
there was to be no restraint, but the discretion of
Mr. Purcell and Mr. Macnamara. He took it, that
'Miss Purcell Could only be pledged for the debt
which she herself owed, and not at all for any debt
of her brotherl. John Purcell, the brother, died in
1795, cutting off hie sisters, who had made such sa.
crifices fr,r him, with tai, each, and leaving all his
estate, real, and personal, to Mr. Macnamara. In
consequence-of the brother's death, without issue,
thew, two Ladies would now be tenants in common
of all these estates, if these Deeds had not been exc..
cute& On these grounds the Learned Counsel hoped
the Plaintiff would be entitled to the relief which
she prayed by this Bill.
Here is great body of evidence was read on the
part ail the Plaintiff, after which Mr. HART deliver.
etl :1 very able Speech on the same side.
Wile case' of thq Plaintiff being finished, Mr. S 9.
tictictiiolt GENERAL, next delivered a very eloquent
speech on the part of Mr. Mactia`marit, who, he
observed,' Was' called- upon by this Bill to explain,
transadions, some of which were so far back as 30
ytarS. Some of them were accounts stated and settled
in 1783 'nett 1784; and from those periods,
till the commencement of this shit, had been duly
acqUieseed"; in: and Mr. Macnamara was also called
uponby this Bill to do -that. Which was of much more
importance. to bins, to clear his charater from the
imputation of grosS fratid and itnpositiun alledged to
havo been practised by',liitti on a family to which he
Was' stated to be related',.., and all of whom,' fill the
filin`g.of this Bill, had lived in habits of the greatest
friendship. It was a considerable hardship on' this
Gentleman, after all this, to call for accounts, or to
imiAte fraud, after the time that'had elapsed in this
case, after itt: death el. many Of the persons who
'could best explain these transaetion,i between these
par tie after the death of Mr. Purcell and Wli;Buty,
teh-as his Lordship would find was out only emplay.
ed by this family, either to. settle or draw different
securities that passed between them and' Mr. Mad.