Star.
London, England, 1805-07-05 00:00:00

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HOUSE OF COMMONS.

The Houk went into a Committee on. Moor% Divorce BiUt
Mr. Adam was heard as Counfel in fupport of the Bill, awl evi-
dence was adduced to prove. the fads of Margiage and adultery.
The Ho-ife alfo went iota a Committee on Garioer's Divorce
Bill, before which Counfel was baud, and witneffes examined in
fupport of the Bill
A Meffage was delivered from the Lords, Rating that they had
agreed to the Eight hocalion the Two Million and a Half, and the
One Million and a Half Loan Ms, the Ilk of Man Duty Bill, and
feveral Privae Bills.
Mr. WHY I'BREAD brought up the Report of the Committee
which had tree appointed toe:amine into the Lords' Journals for
information as to their Lordihips proceedings in eaks Raabe to
that which was now broight againft Lord Melville.—Ordered to
be laid ea the table.
The Chalon Bay BM was read the third time, potted, and or-
dered to the Lords.
An anfwer scat ordered to be feat to the Lords, in reply to their
meffage, requelting the evidence vs be laid before them, on which
the Houle had paired the Duke of: Athol's Compenfation Bin, fig-
aifying that fuck a communication of evidence was contrary to
parliamentary ufage.
The Houfe, on the motion of Mr. YANSITTART, refolved
into a Committee on timid& Revenue Regulation Rill; went
through the fame; reported fortftwith,and orderedto be enrolled.
The Southust Whale Piker, Bill was reported, and ordered to
be 'read a third time tomorrow.
The ATTORNEY GENERAL moved that the Lords'Ainend-
meets in the Stipendiary Curates Bin be now taken into conkleca-
don ; which being agreed to, when the Speaker came to tome
which altered the quantum of money, he reminded them that it
was of fuck a nature that that Houfe could not, continently with
its peculiar privileges, concur in it.
On the motion of the ATTORNEY GENERAL, the further
confideration of the Bin was poßponed to this day three months.
He then fail, that as the &Rion was fo near its dote, and that his
motion might be productive of fome difeuffion, he thould defer
bringing it forward till early in theism (Atm.
The Pilots' Regulation Bill was committed, and ordered to be
read a third time to.morrow.
_ _ _ _ _ _ .

The Paddington Coal. the Scots Affered tares and the Coat°.
Mated Fund Bills, were mods tided time, and palled.
The Id& Duty Colledlino BQ. the hi& Dilttllery, and the lei&
Military Survey Bills, were reported. and ordeeedm be reported
. .
tomorrow.
IMPEACNMIIIIT AGAINST I.OIILO MILVILiIt. •
_ _

Mr. Vi—firißßEAD br;ught up theiteptrt or reteSominicter
appointed to prepare articles of Impediment aguinft•lienry Cord
Vilonunt Melville.
The Hon. Member then Rated, that the number
of articles was eight. He had himfelf thought thai
the tranfaelion relative to Mr. Jellicoe's arrears, was
ftrong to conflitute a diflina Article in
the Impeachment; but, as it was found that that
cafe did not make an equal degree of impreffion on
the minds of other Gentlemen in the Houfe, that

tranfadion was now excluded. And, though the ar-
ticles might be fomewhat extended on account of ne-
ceffary forms, there was in fad no new 'natter but
that which was contained in one article only. It had
been already mentioned, that thcre was the fum of
to,oool. unaccounted for, or in advance at the time
that Mr. Trotter became Paymaller to the Navy.—
There was a fum of to,oool. alfo, which had been
mentioned by Lord Melville in his defence in that
Houfe, the application of which he had refuted to
reveal. Now, he wifhed it to be clearly underftood,
that that fum appeared t 6 the Committee to be entire-
ly feparate and diftind from that which had been.
previouny -mentioned. and that, therefore, it formed
a new Article in the Impeachment, which they
had the honour to prepare. The runt of ax,ocol.
which had been borrowed without intereft, and the
22,0001. for which intereft had been paid, were both
already fpoken of, and of courfe the Houfe were
aware that they would form a parr of the Articles to
be drawn Iv againft that Noble Lord.. There Wass
fum amounting to fomething from to 0120,0001. which
had pallid through the hands of, Tweedie ; with this
circumftance the Houle .`was already acquainted.—
Thtrk was another charge, however, which had not
yet been mentioned ; ang; though it confifted of no-
thing that was new in point of falt,-be thought it ne-
ceffary to (fate it to the Houfe—that mos. a general
charge of violation of the law. As the whole world
not be likely to be printed before Monday, he flinutit
conclude with moving, firfi, That this Report be
printed ; and fecondly, That it be taken intofurther
confideration on Monday;.—The motions were then
unanimoufly agreed to, and orders mad; accordingly.
TROTTER'S INDEMNITY _

Mr. WHITBREAD moved the order of the day I
for the third reading of the Bill for indemnifying t
witneffes on Lord Melville's Impeachment, from any
legal con,fc4uences of their teßimony.—The Bill was
read the third time, when
Mr:WHITBREAD rote again to offer, by way of
rider to the Bill, a particular claufe of indemnity is
favour of Mr. Trotter. He begged to remind the
Houfe of a declaration made by the Noble Lord,
againfl whom they had voted the impeachment, that
there were tranfataions between him and Mr. Trotter
whith none but either could reveal ; it was therefore
of high importance to obtain, if poffible, the tellimony
of W. Trotter upon nutters of Inch cautious feerecy,
whiehit was very natural to conclude mutt be highly.
effential to the carafe of jutlife. There were, it was
ttae, lawyers of fume eminence, who held that no
tallintony given by Mr. Trotter before the Houk of
Lord...could be turned to his own difadvantage upon
lithis or any other ground in evidence before a Court•
,of Law; and there were other lawyers who main-
tained the contrary opinion. To obviatea however,

a(lubts upon the fulije, and to rel;ere Mr.Tte
mind from all apprehention and embarratiment,
telped to any confequences that tnight be roppof,.,,
to attach upon him, frnm hit declaring the t,
as well as to eafe the appreher,Con,
orfut
Bond) who had manifefied throughout the whole
tehie in
Rtillgihst e.Hreo' n. Gentleman over agalmt 11'm (m,
this In liners the molt honoreable, manly, and digr.:
(Mr. Whitbreact) teat hip
:eydinfetealiknigng, ainhdistioch h
fecund
ppLrtunity to acknowledge.
he felt it right to prnpofe the prefent claufe, the fa.).
fiance of which was, that no evidecce given by Els
witnefs os witnefTes in this cafe fhouki be read againk
him or them, in any fuit or profecution commenced,
or to be commenced againft them, by or o.TI belt& of
his Majefly, any law to the contrary notwithkanding.
' This claufe, he conceived, in addition to the .other
clank already inferted in the Bid, and indetnnifytn
the witnefies from any civil lint in confequenee 0,
their tenimonials, would be fufficient to obviate air
apprehenfions on the part of Mr. Trotter or others.
Sir WILLIAM ELFORD thought the claufc did
not go far enough to put Mr. Trotter totally out of
the reach of embarraffment. It declared, indeed,
that no tellimony given by him fhould be read in est-
dence in any fuit agaiolk him, but though it might
not be read in evidence, it might be ufed to create in
men's minds injurious impreffinns againa him. The
Hon. Baronet produced, in fupport of hisobjeßions,
an opinitin of Connfellor, Dallas on the nature of evi-
dence, and a cafe in reake's Nifi Prins. It ankh:
fait}, be the wifb of every one, that in this ears fob-
Randal jullice Druid be done, and to this end it was
neceffary the witneffee to be adduced fhould be clear
from all embarralfment of apprehenfion for any ill
confequences of their teftimony to themfelves ; be.
fides, I.ord Melville would have the advantage of
their crofs examioation, and if Mr. Trotter's evi-
dence fhould not go to a fufficient extent to convict
the Noble Lord, might. many years hence, operate
to his prejudice, and be confirited as the difbelief of
his teflimnny & and, therefore he thought that, in addi-
tion to this clank, them Could be forme other, for put.
tin g a complete flop to all civil Ruts in this cafe.
Mr. WHITBREAD faid, he had propofed the
Claufe, conceiving it fully competent to all the objeas
mentioned by the Honourable Baronet. It was for
the Hon. Baronet, or the Houle, to do with the
Claufe what they thought proper.
Mt. STURGES BO,UttNE thought the Clank
not competent to its profeffed ohjea. becaufe a man,
might be indided for perjug on the ground of his
evidence.

Mr. Serjeant BEST thought the Claufe much more
favourable to Mr. Trotter than he had any right to
ex.pea. Its main object wits to render him a better
viinefs than he otherwife could be, without srifle of
injury to hintfelf ; and his Honourable Frientt ip
fhapini it, 'had done much more for Mr. Trotter,,
than in fairnds hE could hope for. An Honourable
Baronet (Sir W. Word) had talked of &curing Mr.
Trotter againd future apprehenfions, but he fhould
be lorry indeed to fee his Honourable Friend in the
predicanient tf being obliged to frame fuch a chafe,
in the prefent cafe, as Gould guard filch men as Mr.
Trotter againft all future apprehenflons ; nor could
he fee why Mr. Trotter Gould be placed on a round
of feeling different from other men in firgilar &cunt;
deuces ; any Court of Law would proteft him againti,
the confequence of his evidence in criminal cafes; and
his Hon. Friend went Hill farther, by protefting him
lin civil cafes; and litre he was, Mr. Tro:ter was en-
titled to no more than the Bill fo amended would al-
low him. If, after giving. his teilimony, it Gould
appear that further indemnity was requifite, it would
be for the High Court before whom that teflimony
would be offered, to frame a law for the porpok,
which he was fore would not meet with any refillanee" •
frtm his Hon. Friend, or thole who fuppoitedhim.
Mr. DUNDAS declared his tole obieft to be the
complete indemnification of Mr. Trotter. ' '
Mr. WHITBREAD •declared his objeft to be pre-
cifely the fame; the claufe had been drawn up by an
able lawyer for that purpofe.
Mr. ALEXANDER wifhed to poßpone the third .
reading of the Bill, with a view to re-confider the
chide, or adopt Come other nsore completely anfwer-
able to its profeffed objects, or elfe to leave the law
. .
as it at prefent Rands on the fulled.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHDZIER
Paid, that Mr. Trotter certainly was a material w;t-
nefs, bat he could not be brought forward without
indemnification ; nor could he be ailed to give evi-
dence under a liability to any future civil fuit found-
ed upon his teftimony. It would be no hanky to
a matt, that his evidence could not be read okay
future occafion againft him in one fhape, while the
fubflance of that evidence might be turned againft
him in another. He nnetedlood it to be the intention
of the Houle, 'when criminal profeceon was adopt-
ed, that all civil fuits Gould not only be fufpended,
but abandoned ; and therefore he had no dontit, that
when Impeachment againft Lord Melville was =foie-
eiron, that all civil proceedings would be flopped ;
and in the cafe of Mr. -Trotter, it vies impoffible
to call upon him for evidence, unlefs ell civil pro-
ceedings againtt bim were. compktely (topped ;
and if this was the opinion of the Houk, there Mould
be fume claufe or refolution adopted clearly and de-
cidedly to that cite&
Mr. WHITBREAD Paid, that if fuch was the
fenfe of the Idoufe, he fhould :.ortfent to withdraw
his motion,-
' Mr. C. W. WYNNE fpoke in favour of a total ex-
emption. • • . • . • •• •
Sir W. BURROUGHS was of the fame opining.
He recommended, that the record of the civil p; r.
cefs Gould be withdrawn • and for that purpofe, that
the further confederation Of the bill be deferred till to-
morrow. - : • • .
Sir W. ELFORD Paid, that in.cafe of the Motion
being evithdravrn, he fhould to-morrow move, that
the civil procefs againff Mr. Trotter be withdrawn.
• After a few obiervations from Mr. Ws aaaaa ORM
the Motion was withdrawn, and the further confi-
deration of the• Bill pofiponed till to-morrow. •