Star.
London, England, 1801-12-28 00:00:00

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be the circa of railing quellions upon the applica-
tion of that money. Unlefs he very much maim-
dernood the cattle indeed, there were grave and
Nvtighty quenions, worthy the confideratiun of
thtm all. His Lorellhip next adverted to that'
pail of the cafe which arofc out of the deed of
1798. In that deed Sheridan, Richardfon, and
Colibb, were defcribed as Joint-Proprietors of the
Theatre. It would he difficult of that deed to lay,
that the parties to it had no notice of the ler.:
mer truth. This deed proofed to do that which
was incontinent with the former deed of 1793,
and by Come of the fame parties who were alto
parties to that former decd. This deed alfo
was infilled by Mr. Grubb, to contain pregnant
evidence that he was a Proprietor ; but it mull
afro be admitted, that it was attended with cir-,
cumffances, which, in the language of Lawyers,
operated as an 4, ercyon of a conches." Mr.
Sheridan protefled aganin its fo deferibing Grubb
at the time, and an indorfement was made upon
the deed to that effee. He then coupled this with
another circumflance : for he I.tid, that Sheridan
had drawn bills of exchange, in which he de-
feribed him as a Joint-proprietor. Sheridan ad-
mitted the fain, but attributed it to negligence.
It might be ft), but it was imponible to ray that
it was not grave evidence for thole to confider,
who thould have to determine upon the fithjee.
Te whole tranfation was thrown into fuch con-
fufion; and conrequent obfctirity, that he would
not give an opinion. He would not fiy, that
Grubb was not a proprietor ; nor did he know 1
whether a Jury would not fay In; but he tlissught I
it moll fcr the interen of Grubb, that lie thould be
extrcated by the aorta ponible mcans from his
miterable fituation. It was on this latter deed
that the fill 'order of Court was made, for re-
vering the box money from the purpores of the
general trans, to the particular truth of that deed;
which was followed by the order for fcquefirating
the pit money in like manner. There orders having
been thus made, he did not wonder at the confu-
firm which be Court, in hopes of fet-
tling a few clathing intereas, had done that, which
had nearly flopped the hand fupplying the Thea-
tre, and tiifled the voice of thole who fupported it;
and at lin to refette the concern from ruin, they
were obliged to fitter a liberty to be taken with
their order, which it was not for their honour to
have fettered. Under there eircumllances,of ge-
neral contirftnn, it was his bufinefs to ab!lain from
ailing, as long as the parties would permit him.
He valtted little the applaufe given to a quick de-
cifton of important caures. He had not the talent
fo to dilpenle jullice. He would rather fitter any
imputation, than lay his hand' on, and what mull
be the conlequenee, dearoy the property which
might be fared and preferred by the parties them-
felves ailing unfettered ; he being bound by rules
of praeice which he could not depart front. But he
fail this, if the property was not better for him, it
Ihould be no worfe ; and therefore, that in the de-
lay between this day and the t 7th of January, he
should take care that the tr.tdefmcn and per.
formers fbould be paid. Having thus gone through
the general cafe, his Lordthip adverted minutely
to every particular claim 'write him. With re• '
fix& to Mr. Grubb, he reftated much of what we
hive above detailed; and with refpee to the pe-
tition againfl Mr. Holland, he did not think
there was fttfficient evidence of a contra& His
Lordthip again and again recommended modera-
doa and forbearance to all parties, as the only
means of preferving the property; and declared,
that any one infihing upon their aria legal rights
would deftroy the whole. It was poflible he had
taken a wrong view of the fubjee ; but it he erred,
it was not fur want of labour and attention ; he
bad endeavoured to underhand every part of the
cattle : lie had received great Alliance in it ; hut
from the very nature of the butinefs, he had

wanted that material atliftunce need:try for the
perfon who was bound to decide as a judge. He
who mutt adminiller the fame meare of juflice
fu.

to the careful and the negligent—to the p-roftife
and to the referred. The view he had taken of
it had firmly convinced his own mind, that it was
the intcreti of every man polfefling any interca in
the event by mutual fitcritices to make a new al':
rangement, taking up the cafe as it now Ilood ;
and•to make the belt provifions that in fuch a com-
plicated bufinefs could be made. His Lardthip, in
adverting to thc claims of the performers, and as
to the lien which they had for their arrears, oh- ,
(erred, if he were to fay that they had any fuch
fpecitic remedy, he would aikthem whether it

Bras
as wife to exert it! The queltion might arifc
whether byincliexaaion they would not dilappoint

the willies of all ? He looked forward to .6ettcr

hopes, and trulled that a plan would be adopt-
ed, by which all claims might be gradually and
ultimattly liquidated. Ile thousht that the
public were deeply intereflcd in this caufe. The
fheatie mull either be a fchool of /morality, or it

mud be the reprefentative of licentioufnels and
•ice. It was important, by regular payment, to

„ .
fecore as Performers men of virtuous princivles,
who might interpofe their charaSers to prevent
the emanation of any vicious datrines from that
fource. Having; thus looked one end of the
concern, he now looked at the other end, where

Mr. Sheridan was placed. To him lie would re-
commend to look at the concern with that firm-
nets and fortitude which was the true charaae-

riitie of the indozpendence lleprofcifel lie was

the man to whnle talents andacltannfter the Sub-

teribers looked tip as the rnear.s of making the
Ipectibt,ion fuecelsful. But was it nit necelEtty
to have fome man of ability between him and the

Performers ? The plans cif accommodatiol con-
tained no loch provitioa, and it w:ts not from that
place that h: ought to recomnitnd any Mr.
Sheridan Lad :idtrii:ted hirafelf to have a9ct.l with

great negii,.;enc.•, whit h admiltion recalled to his
•J a pa!lage from the cl,fe of one .1 I%r. John.
t Lives. Tisat mat man conclodc I with fely-
ir.y. atter adverting to a timilAr condu:l, that he
Mall have Co:set:LA in his hopes, if he had
. .

L+. bow.:vcr
v t.ll bad cad; ...VA I.IIC mind. pct lay lac-

iziH,nce 1 .ti; continticd, k;towltti;;k: Lcatnc
Lis .. Cs, wit r;.lictilous, and crninc t
Nctl;g:n4-.c mutt be long coutiuul:J bt.turc tuth

knowledge could become ufelels—loch wit: intim
lons, or Inch genius contemptible. And he (the
Chancellor) affo added, that he thould have done
the belt of aass if he had perfuaded thole who had
iluffcred by fuels negligence, not to fuller it to be a
further fource of evil. The negligent man might
I not be criminal himfelf, but the criminality it
might occation, by its confegnences, on ottiers,
was what could not be meafured a priori. Having'
laid this, be would adi no more than kid to fay,
Ihe thought it neceffary to review the whole con-1
cern ; and that this cafe, of all he ever heard of;
or ever read of, had for its prominent charatter,
I that it ought not to be decided by a Court, un-
lefs a Court was compelled to do it. If he were
forced to do it, he was ready : and in fulpending
his judgment till the t 7th of January, it was not
with any hope that he fhould change his opinion,
but that by that day the parties would relieve him
from deciding at all. And he lhould make provi-
i lion for the payment of adors and tradefmen till
that period.
The Chancellor having concluded, Mr. Sheridan
rote, and Paid, there was a point or two, which he
feared his Lnrcllhip had milapprehended, and which
he willed much to explain, but that he feared it
was improper to offer any thing after his Lord-
fhip's fumming up.
The CHANCELLOR laid, 4, Mr. Sheridan, I (hall
hear you with great pleafure."
Mr. SHERIDAN proceeded and laid, that he mull
firlt beg leave to return his thanks to his Lordlhip,!
for the infinite attention and laborious application
which he had fo manifellly bellowed on the fuhjed
in queftion; but that which he moll particularly
thanked him for, was, Ills Lordlhip's full admif-
lion, that he, Mr. Sheridan, had been ftudious to
bring forward every circumflance conpeaed with
the prefent difeufficnr, and to conceal nothing.
That had been truly the cafe with him, he had no-
thing to conceal ; there was nothing he feared to
have difclofed ; he had, from the firll, &fired the
whole matter to be lifted to the bottom, confident,
that no poflible 'imputation could rest upon him,
but that of negligence, which his Lordlhip had
pretty fully commented upon ; but which negli-
gence he was peremptory certain, would be found
ultimately to have been injurious only to his own
fortune. But it was not to his thanks only use
Chancellor was entitled, in his judgment every
perfon interefted in the property were bound in
gratitude to his Lordfhip. Yet in the compre-
henfiee view which Itis'Lordfhip had taken of the
bufinels, it could not but happen that even hit
Lordlhip's acute apprehenfion.might have been in
fume things milled. His Lortlll4p had fpoken of
the troll of 1796, in terms of doubt, if not of dif-
approbation, and had expreffed his furprife at the
application of the money by the minces, lktelfrs.
Drewe 'and Hugh Hammerfley. Mr. Sheridan
felt himfelf bound in plaice to thole Gentlemen to
flate,what appeared to him to he his Lordthip's mif-
apprebenfion in this matter, wiling, undoubtedly,
Tram mifinformation.—His Lorelfhip had laid, that
the fix hundred pound annuities, together with
other fecurities in the hands of the truftees, were
all applicable to the finifhing of the building, and
not applicable to any other purpofe whatever.
Mr. SHRRIDAN begged his Lordthip to obferve
by the account, to what purpofes the money arif-
ing from the fale of there annuities had been ap-
plied. It hid been applied towards the liquida-
tion of the unpaid mortgages. And Mr. Sheridan,
with great deference, contended that the Truftees
Melfrs. Drewe and Hugh Hammerfley, had done
perfealy right in fo applying it, and that they
would have done entirely wrong had they applied
any part of it to the building. For what was the
car.: ? Mr. Harris was to have received fix hundred
pounds per annum for the dormant patent. Mr.
Harris wifhed to receive a film of money inftcad,
and a clank Has introduced in the trult-deed of
1793, enabling them to advance the fum of eleven
thouland pounds and upwards to Mr. Harris, out
of the original fithfcription of one hundred and fif-
ty thoufand pounds, entitling the truftees at the
Came time to take to themfeives the annuity of fix
hundred pounds per annum, and fell it in divided
annuities of fifty pounds each, with certain privi-
leges, in or der to replace to the trult-fund the mo-
ney fo advanced to Mr. Harris. When the ori-
ginal fund became entirely exhaufled. it appeared
that about 33,c001. of the mortgage debt remained
unpaid, and yet in arianels the whole of the mort-
gage debt on-ght ro hare ban paid off before one
pound had been applied to the building. The
truft deed of 1796 was afterwards created for their
fecurity and payment. and there twelve 501. an-
nuities, together with ten 3:-.031. (hares, and the
fifteen private boxes made over to Meffrs. Drewe
and Hugh Hammer: Ley, the Trudees under that
deed. Mr. Harris had been paid its fad by money
belonging to thefeunfatisfied mortgages, and when
the annuities created to replace that money came
to be fold, to whom could the purchafe money
belong but to thole mortgagees ?
Mr. SH E R IDA N reafoned in the fame manner with
refpeet to the private boxes. It was true that by
the deed of 1793, they were rcferved for finilhin:
and decorating the Theatre, not however for 01;t
only, but for new feenery, unforefeen expences,
&e. iSte. But this destination of the boxes was
grounded entirely on an affirmpticur that :ill tl
mortgages ()multi be firft fitisfied ; in fast, till
then, ail hams laid out on the building were
to be reclaimed by the mortgagees as unjultly
taken from them. As that money. however,
could not be refunded, it %iris judged equitable,
upon much ads ice and cordideratinn,to make over

the private boxes to the prior eleirn of th mott•

gagt_ec.
Mr.Stt E toAN ftid he had no perfonal intcrelt in
flatirg this trarfaai sit, for V. liether tlittfr

vilcd the mcallirz lui.l,;cd rightly nr not, 11,:
cutitl d, ''n li's own p.trt, to cl:,5111 un Cmall
i.l credit for :Lc:pie-cm,: in i!. It wab not h .1111ile,
circtimaanced a, the c for ?MITI to

make a grcatcr factilice than he did, by
himfell of Clc refouree cxprrfl y provi.leci t coy
the Itandim.7 dcht on 01. f alt.l the be ivy
eVence of new teen. i c and tile vari.w: other at
ticks.

Mr. Sheridan then n2v..r !Le ar,N;:ty ex-
prclred by hik LorJ i p Nt.::, I..,s.trd to tL.: ;rrc.tr.

• to 'performers
.and tradefmeis, an "anz.itiyin tlu
. higheß degree liberal and jult. But Mr. Sheridan
I was fearful that his Lordthip had received an int.
Ipreflion as to the exiitcnce oegreat dircontent and
apprehenfion on this fobjeet, which he could Wore
his Lo;clfhip bad very little foundation, either
among the performers or the tradefmen. His
Lordthip had reviewed the different applications
which bad appeared to the Court with the great:
eft clearnefs and candour—it certainly was a con.,
folatory eirctuntlance ro obfervc how few they
were, and it was !till more confolator) to tint., go
eye to the interelts of thole who had metes-led no I
claim. Not one new renter, not one old renter, not
one mortgagee—but one tradefman, and no one
performer. His Lordthip had oblervecl that be
walled the Theatre to derive every advantage
from Mr. Sheridan's troll ‘l,-,:d to Mr. Adam—Le
begged to allure his Lordfltip, that bad that deed
been purfued, these would learcely have &en on
the day he was fpeaking, any unfatisfied pet former
or tradefman; but that in purfuance of the pledge ;
he had made the &ft day in Court, not to corn-I
promife with any perfon out of the Court, he had!
fufpended all proceeding with rei.pea to that deed, r
but in proof that he was not over langttine in his
ideas on this lobje:1, the moment the tiro had ex-
pired to which his Lordfhip had limited the re.i
ceiving of auy further petitions or applications, lie
had dirated all thole of the Company to olt;tin
any arrears were due, to be called t0:...;.:th.:r, wh_n
there did nor appear one or rdatant
voice as to acceptimT the fecuritic.ll.-Are prepared I
for them. He was titre hi, Lordthip would hear
this with fincere fatbfaelion, and he trolled that
before the day named by his Lordthip, there would
not be a tingle claim of any fort unpaid or unit:-
cured.

Mr. Sheridan concluded by entreating his Lord-
(hip to fix the arbitration with Mr. Grubb before
the Court rote.

The CHANCELLOR replied—" Mr. Sheridan, I
cannot order an arbitration ; I can do no more
than repeat my firong recommendation."
At length it was agreed, that all that part of the
cafe which related to Mr. Grubb lhould be rekr-
red to Mr. Serjeant Palmer; to whom the Chan-
cellor fail, Mr. Palmer, you have my perfonal
thanks for undertaking this, and I will give you
every aflitlaact in my power."