The Sun.
London, England, 1820-05-08 00:00:00

FOR THE SUN.

TREASON AND INFIDELITY.

MR. EDITOR—A s I disdain to trample on a fallen man,
Whatever may have heentils errors or his crimes, I should not
notice the audacious conduct of Titzsmr.woon in his appeal
against the verdict of his Peers, if it did not contain several
points eminently calculated to excite false commiseration in
the many thousand disciples of infidelity, who are to be found
in this once Christian country. If the grave could at the
saute time bide the infidel and his principles ; if the agitator
and the agitation could be r:lalued by the same solemn scene
of death and infamy ;—if the treason ended with the traitor,
criminal would that man he, who should fix a curse upon the
felOn's tomb, or wound a single heart by the remembrfince
of his waywardness; but there are times when private feel-
ing must yield to public duty, and the softer principles of in-
dividual charity fall before the imperious .demands of public
justice. This is one—the address of the unhappy man in
question, engendered in deceit and matured in infamy, will,
nevertheless, prove an abundant source of calumnious sophis-
try to the advocates of infidelity and sedition, and be recorded
as a lasting triumph of the power of their principles—what
iadeed must be the extent of that power when it can give
confidence to the rebel in his last moments, and cause the cold
blosided murderer to regard himself as a holy martyr in the
sacred strife of freedom ? Here, in the face of God ; in the
presence of indignant justice ; with the dread eternity which
is to fix his everlasting doom full before him, does a mur-
derer, an infidel, and a traitor, exult in the crime for which
he suffers, and call upon posterity to reverence his memory
as a Patriot. Whence, Sir, comes this sad perversion of the
iluman mind ? What extraordinary principle can have
stifled the common stirrings of upbraiding conscience ? Is
there any thing in the crime itself, any extenuation, which
can be supposed to operate against self-conviction ? No-
thing ! Not a shadow of even mistaken patriotism has
followed the march of the rebel. In his pursuits a wild dis-
sipated vagabond,—a gamester, a military renegade, a
public house disputant, a systematic plunderer of men's
tights to restore his own broken fortones, regardless of the
means by which their reparation was to he effected, or
ether anxious that they should be attended with inhuman
massacre—a seducer of men's minds for his own selfish pur-
poses; an infidel to his God, and a wanton trampler upon
every sacred institution. Such then was the rebel who called
himself a patriot. It may be urged that his exultation arose
from the ton coalition bravado of ignorance which scorns to
sue for pity or to acknowledge error. I heartily wish this
could fairly be imputed here; hut Thistlewood was not so

ignorant as not to know that to persist in error against self-
contiction adds to the cep of shame, and increases the pangs
of departing Nature. Wicked as he was, there is nothing in
the affair to induce this, comparatively grateful conclusion.—
No ! he has fallen a victim to false principles, the seeds of
which were sown in the French Revolution. and have been
fostered into ripeness by the wicked infidels who bare so long
made the public press the channel of their poison. If I should
say that the blood of the unfortunate men now sacrificed to
public vengeance, might be laid at the door of certain writers
by whom they were taught to laugh at the idea of Gud's ex-
istence according to the blessed revelation of the Scriptures,
and then told that resistance to the Constituted Authorities
of the Realm was a duty incumbent on them as a sacred prin-
ciple of nature, I should not be going too far, perhaps; but
I will leave that question to the sound sense, of those reflect-
ing men, who, for the sake of ascertaining the fact, will take
the pains of reading what is weekly written against Christiani-
ty, and against every institution, civil and political, which is
reverenced by the wise and virtuous, as necessary for good
Government and for the general welfare of Society. Every
evil propensity has a tendency to harden the mind, hut it is
only infidelity, as the natural parent of all vices, that can so
deceive it as to make that appear virtuous to the Infidel which
is hideous to the Christian. It is very remarkable that of the •
convicted traitors during the last two or three years, almost
all were infidels; from which we may fairly infer, that Chris-
tianity is in all its principles diametrically opposed to rebel-
lion, where resistance to authority does not become a matter
of absolute duty, as it frequently does in countries where the
Rights of the People and of the Sovereign are not clearly de-
fined by some well organized establislimeut. It is also wor-
thy of remark, that the source of our civil commotions way
be traced to that very liberty which traitors have declared
to have no actual existence. If men rebel against God, it
may very naturally be expected that they will have no sort
of respect for their earthly Sovereign, or, speaking more con-
stitutionally, for the establishment of which that Sovereign
is the duly recognized principal. Rebellion against God is '
unfortunately tolerated by the laws of the kingdom ; for Uni-
tarians, who deny the Divinity of the Saviour, are allowed
openly to promulgate their doctrines. The Unitarians them-
selves, strictly speaking, may be very good subjects; but does
not the law permit them to disseminate certain leading ob-
jections to Christianity, which, in a weak mind, soon lead on
to infidelity of the worst description, and naturally engender
t reasoA ? This is hardly a question ; for experience has prov-
ed the truth of the position. Now, with all my veneration
for religious toleration, and I will yield in this feeling
to no man, I will ask whether it can be consistent
with reason, (with policy I am sure it is not) to allow
the 'existence of any Sect, falsely calling themselves
Christians, whose doctrines are decidedly at variance with
those religious obligations which form part of the Establish-
ment; and does not the toleration which, in a Christian
Country, enables a man to call into question the truths of
Christianity, produce Rebellion against Church and State in
their various institutions ? To return, however, to Thistle-
wood; this moan, with unprecedented impudence, has asserted
revcral falsehoods for the purpose of inflaming the public
mind and keeping alive the spirit of sedition in his followers.
That he knew his assertions to be false does not admit of a
doubt ; but in'his view of the crime which lie had committed,
lie felt it a sort of duty to excite disaffection by every means
in his power—a lie on the lips of a dying man may do much
mischief. Let us calmly endeavour to avert it. First, he
complains of having been unfairly tried, and states, that if
lie had been allowed to discredit the testimony of certain
Witnesses, lie would net have been convicted. Yet shortly
<Afterwards, he acknowlet:ges to the full extent the truth of
the charges against him, which the evidence complained of
had previously established. Having acknowledged his inten-
tion to effect a revolution by means of murder and plunder,
it would be almost a waste of time to insist on the legality of
his conviction. 'silly, He says that Edwards was a spy of
Lord Sidmouth's to entrap hint. This would be a most se-
rious charge indeed if it did not want truth to support it.—
Employing a foolish coxcomb, for such Mist lewood describee
;•alwards to be, to ensnare an old and experienced Traitor,
would hare burn a sad proof of official caution; the idea of

such a plan almost belies Itself ; but it happens that Edwarde,
never was employed to ensnare Thist!ewood and to supply
money for a plot which, when matured, lie was to denounce.
There is no such refinement on French Police in this Coun-
try, thank God; and the evidence on the trial has fully proved
the falsehood of the accusation. AS-to the supply of money,
has it nut -been fully establisht;cl that funds were supplied by
Simmonds the footman ? If Edwards bad given a single
shilling some witness surely would have proved it; but there
is another point. Some weeks ago I sent a letter to your
Paper communicating the following intelligence, derived from
a person who was deeply initiated in the mysteries of the
Spenceans, viz., that Thist lewood had in the course of the

present peace been more than twice or three times to France ;
and that, although nearly destitute of money wheit he went,
he returned with considerable sums, which were itannediately
distributed amongst his associates. I never pledged ►nyself
for the authenticity of this statement, but it is rather curious
that none of Thistlewood's friends have ventured to con-
I am, Sir,
Your very obedient Servant,
G. M.