Star.
London, England, 1818-01-28 00:00:00

THE ROYAL SPEECH.

The SPEAKER—" I have to inform the House,
that this House has attended in the House of Lords,
where they have heard the Prince Regent's most gra-
cious Speech, a copy of which I have obtained, and
which, to prevent mistakes, I will read!'
Having read the Speech ( for whied see our Loads'
Report.)
Mr. WODEHOUSE then rose, and said, that in
moving an Address to the Prince Regent, upon the
Speech delivered by the Lords Commissioners, he
should feel that he but feebly discharged his duty to
them, to the country, and to the Prince Regina, if
he did not in the first instance notice that unexpected
calamity which was so afflicting to his Royal High-
ness, and which had unhappily overthrown the fair-
ett hopes of the nation. The public attention appear-
ed to have been diverted, in some degree, from many:
important considerations at home, by the long dura-
tion of widely extended hostility. But when the
pleasing times of peace had again returned to us, we
naturally looked more to domestic affairs and pro-
spects ; and the whole country hailed the promising
life of an excellent and virtuous Princess, whose qua-
lities and endowments so justly excited the national
and patriotic expectations of all. The extinction of
such bright-hopes and prospects naturally affected
all who felt a love of their country and its interests.
It was -a groat and lamented public loss, and was
mournfully accompanied with all the bitterness of,
private woe. It would be useless for him, it would
even indeed be a kind of mockery in him, before
such an assembly as he was then addressing, to at-:
tempt a portrait of the departed Princess. Much-
might hi left to the memory of all, andle could not'
wish to obtrudt on those feelings which were at pre-
sent so deeply afflicted : but he might say, eonfidently
that the House sympathised fully with, his Royal
Highness, and associated themselves with all his.pa-
ternal feelings in the deprivation of his best hopes,
both in a private and a public view. The knowledge
of the sentiments of Parliament in such an event
must be regarded with universal interest. It would
afford an eminent proof of the indelible attachment
of the nation. After all our great and splendid ex-
ertions, this sentiment, he trusted, would be found a
striking feature among all those great moral energies
which so highly distinguished die people of this land.
The Speech also embraced a variety of topics, all of
them the fit and important subjects of future discus-
sions. Upon these different lsoints, he should not
trespass on the time of the. House, by entering tapbn
details. The Speech communicated the general state
of amity in which we were situated respecting foreign
Powers, the improved condition of our domestic con-
cerns, and the increase of our prosperity and happi-
ness at home. The picture, he believed, was not too
highly coloured. It was consolatory to know that
;here were such abundant proofs of the amelioration
of the condition of our fellow-subjects. He did not,
in this view of our affairs, speak the language of
flattery or delusion. This was to be seen, whether
we turned our attention to the state of our agricul-
ture, or reviewed the circumstances of the various
branches of our trade, manufactures, and commerce.
The country was no longer in that stagnant, strug.
gling state, which various circumstances had tempo-
rarily occasioned. The scene, fortunately, was now
changed, and we might look forward to the exercise
of that vigour and activity and elasticity which cha-
racterised our exertions, and which constituted our
Ipsraposity and our happiness, and which would
banish the hated spirit of disaffection front the land.
—The recommendation _respecting the increase of
Places of Worship deserved serious consideratiou.--
The Treaties concluded with Spain and Portugal, for
carrying into effect the long desired Abolition of the
Slave Trade, now drawn- within such narrow limits
by the merciful interposition of Great Britain, was a
peculiar topic of satisfaction and congratulation.
flais blessed achievement crowned all the other glo-
ries which the perseverance and resources of the
country had obtained. He did not feel that he should
occupy the attention of the House longer, and con-
cluded by moving an Address to the Prince Regent.
which corresponded as usual with the leading topics
of the Speech.

Mr. ‘VYNDHAM QUIN.--In rising to second the
motion, the Honourable Gelleman bespoke the in-
dulgence of the House, while he should shortly ad-
vert to some of the leading topics embraced in the
Speech from the Throne. In doing so, be trusted
that nothing would fall from him which might tend
to disturb the harmony of the House. The long and
continued illness of his Majesty was a subject in which
all felt the sincerest sympathy : but there was ano-
ther subject of mournful importance to which he
would call their attsntinn. Two years had not yet
elapsed since an event had taken place which excited
the highest hopes of the nation : he felt himself un-
eble to give any thing like 'adequate expression to

the sorrow and despondency which lately
'the cthuitry from one extremity to the oth
finding those hopes so sadly blighted by Oa
death. Never was there a Princess more e,
affection than that illustrious person ; and n
sympathy mote purely personal than that x
madmely end called forth. He little envi.el
at the heart of that matt who felt unrnevet
an awful dispensation. 'To dwell upon sec
ject was irksome as it was unavailing ; so,
say, that it was the will of PROVIDENCE to
hence who was the pride and hope of this II:
where you will, the calamity we have sell
deeply felt. It has pleased PROVIDENCE
her, but the memory of her virtues wee:,
for ever enshrined in the hearts and affect
grateful nation. He neat adverted to the re
dation respecting places of worship. Theo
person who had paid the least attention to
events which had lately convulsed and
nations of Europe, but must be convinced u
and intimate connection between the stabili
Throne and the morals of the People. 11:e I
tleman then briefly adverted to the imp' oven
revenue, the state el the imports ant expert
various other improvements in the internal s
country, and contended that they were mate
extensive than the most sanguine could have
In short, every consideration warranted ti.
sion, that the country was in a far better
last year. The improvement in the se.,„-.7.,
had the most beneficial effects; and this, it
Pence with the wise measures which had bet
secured our internal tranquillity. This
the answer to a question put by a Noble
Althorpe.) Had they rigidly confined the:,
precedent, can any one suppose they a.
been so completely successful in overtui
most tremendous tyranny that ever affiir,
tions ? Had it not been for the a ise
adopted, and the vigour with which they
secuted, this country had fallen from the,
glory oa which she stood into a state of co:
insignificance. Instead of this, she now
eminent in strength and security, an exam
nations to invigorate theirhopes and to Anil
efforts. It was now we began to reap the
our perseverance in the arduous struggle
we had been engaged. The Hor,ourat,l4
then made some observations upon the
succession teethe Throne. Under the ausi
House of llrunswick, this country had a,
arts, industry, in commerce, and civilizatic
hoped the British Empire would long ci
prosper under the influence of Princes of t
It might be said that the succession via::
mediate danger ; but it was a matter of F
tame that the Princes by whom we scar
versed should-be born and bred in Engle:
The SPEAKER now read the propose
which was,-as usual, an echo to the speech
Lord ALTHORPE would not object ti
ofthe address, and should be very sorry that
should be said to produce a difference of
( Herr, hear.) Much doubt and consider,
rence must indeed exist, as to the part of tl
which ascribed the present tranquillity of
try to the measures of Government ; but
. subject he would not enter at present. But
one subject to which he felt himself Mimi
attention of the House. He did not owe
any specific motion upon it, and therefore
to it noiv,..because the present he underst,
the only nity of offering observe!
subject, secrEri:laccompanying them will
ponding motion. He alluded to the late
cessive trials. It was a topic of great del
cause the professed cause of those prosec,
parodies on sacred subjects, no man could eostongly disapproved of those parodies
in•common with the bulk of the nation, rej
an individual without any support had
over the extraordinary severity of his proses
( Hear, hear.) He could not say that hr
Mr. Hope's character, because he did not
rodies he had composed and published ; b:
defence of himself convinced him, as it had
three Juries', that he had been guilty of net le;
The Honourable and Learned GentlemaL
torney-General) should not have -pmsecuted at a,
such a case. The regular mode of going
charge before a Grand Jury ought to have
adopted in this instance. But•it was ansuestionah
the right of the Learned Gentleman to prosecute ;;
officio, if he was so disposed. But why was the pn
secution continued after a Jury had reticencei
verdict of acquittal ?—(lfear, hear.) A Jury watts
:onlg competent tribunal to say what was, ur eat
was not a libel. The Judge had given his own ce•
nion, in opposition to the Jury, the only corepe:
authority—(Hear, hear.) The opinion of the Jr,*
was not desired at all on such a queition. He ,i,i
not mean to say any thing disrespectful to the ?"
nourable and Learned Gentleman opposite: l'jtS
arae,•by his official character, disqualified to say •t 1
was libel, and what was not. Yet he, after a
had &mid that the sußject of prosecution v.... '1
libel, proceeded to a second and a third trial.
the trials ended, no evil was done; but if i:
turned out otherwise, if a conviction had been . •
mined on the third trial, it was manifest, front •
nature of the proceedings, that the punishment s.
have been as great as if a conviction had he
tained for the whole. The evil of prosecutio:: '
this sort was great indeed, but it was not to he • •
pared with the evil of destroying the confidence
the country in the trial by Jury—(llear, At ar.) !•
had said this because the present was the only cr:'
tunity of adverting to the subject. In every p..:
the Address he willingly acquiesced.
The ATTORNEY-GENERAL stated it to I;:
been the subject of serious consideration with !":
whether, after the first verdict, it would be e: 0:••
go on, or to abandon the prosecutions, and t.:e
was, a conviction in his own mind, that by y.
them up he should be guilty of a gross
his duty to the public. Unless he had felt
from what came out on the first trial, that t! . :
cations were not what he had previously cot.•.
them to be, he was forced to proceed with th.
two. And he now begged to say, that not •.% • :
ing the verdict given by the Jury--(he cca.. -
sorry to say any thing of verdicts given in .1
Of Justice), he had not been convinced, but far t:
!t, that Mr. 1i0..e was not guilty of a libel i.
second ptthlicatior., though he had been atquit:::.

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nice, they were on different parts of the Service of, niters did not think tranquillity solar restored as to!
Church of England, and were therefcre the & permit those to go at large concerning whom only
.tiect, of distinct prosecutions. His mind had not slight suspicious had been entertained. Do they call
at all convinced, though by the law of England this the strength or the weakness of their case P Whe-
e Jury had the right—and GOD forbid they should ther is such conduct a ground for merit or repreha-
. have it—of deciding on the guilt or innocence of tion on the part of the House and country at large ?
puny accused ;—yet still he had not been convinced Upon the cases of those persons confined or held to
the publications an question were not what they bail upon similar charges in Scotland, I shall not
been charged to be. On such papers every man had touch, as I find it is resolved upon that these are to
-;ht to exercise his own judgment. Had he felt that be the subject of a separate motion—although it will
11,1 been in error when he first proceeded against be fresh in the recollection of the House, what a
, —had the first trial produced this conviction on lively impression was made on that memorable night'
• mind, he should have felt it his bounden duty to when the Learned Lord Advocate of Scotland, now
r the proceedings ; but in the absence of such con- sitting opposite, came into the House, fresh from
rMm, ought he to have abstained from proceeding the dreadful scene of sedition which se so alarm-
ith the second prosecution, beCause the first had ingly described, •and mad the dreadful oath said to
fled? Was such the principle on which the admi- have been administered and administering through-
inis..raticn of the justice of the country -ought to rest? out that district. Yet after all the parade of crimi-
it could be shewn by the Noble Lord that be had nalitf, these vouchers of rebellion and treason, that
Bred in the prosecutions from malice, or from Learned Lord and his Colleagues had only selected
spirit of revenge, then he might make out a charge one person for prosecution, who, after three attempts
Mist him ; but if this were not made out or stated, to draw up an indictment against him, was acquitted,
o would say that his conduct had not been impro• to their utter confusion and refutation—Wear, hear.)
r, and that to have withdrawn from the prosecu- Do not these disclosures and discornfitures of the legal
*Ca of two of the parodies after a verdict of acquit- advisers of the Crown throw light upon the minds of,
..1 had been pronounced on the first, would have our Constituents, and develope the true situation of
en taken for a confession on his part, that the first the country for months back ? Are they not aware of
.roreeLling had been wring. Would it have been the delusion which has been practised upon them,
'Oa for him to have made such a confession, when and that the country has been, without cause, robbed
.e had no reason to believe or to imagine that such of its Constitution so long ?—_(Near, hear.) Much is
as is isel the fact ? Whether Os. not such was the due so the ingenious and meritorious stand ma-deat
pinion of other persons, was quite another question: the late trials at Derby by the Counsel for the priso-
nt with the impression be had had on his mind, it nets, against the novel and dangerous attempt at
as his bounden duty, after the' result of the first construing the law of treason by the Crown Lawyers,
al was knowa, to bring the second publication un- although the parties who suffered there, I have no
the consideration of a Jury. To have acted other- doubt, suffered justly the punishment of crimes liable
:oe. he ceinceived then—he conceived now, and he to the penalty of death, whether guilty of the trea-
onet he should ever remaia in the same mind, son or not. Through these different sources of in-
mild on his part have amounted to a dereliction of formation upon the nature of our situation for some
.ity, and he might, in such a case, have been justly • the back, who is there now who pereeivei 'not
urged with weakness, and unbecoming apprehen- that the very measures of Government have been the,
Fan for the issue, if he had not taken a verdict on cause of that insurrection which they affected here tb
each of the publications. be anxious to prevent, by measures of precaution?.
Sir SAMUEL ROYIILLY.—" Mr. Speaker, I feel Who has not been easily able thereby to detect this
particularly gratified in giving my assent to the pro- anxiety of Government to conceal the cause of those
posed Address, and thould consider it a circumstance revolutionary acts in that .part of the country? Uposi
leeply to be regretted, that any complaint which the'trial of Brandreth and others, the Attorney-Gene-
Plight be made as to toents which have happened ral continually repeated, during the examination of
etween the late and the present meeting of :Perlis- evidence, that he wished to confine himself to the
ent, should be construed as interrupting the unani- period of the Bth of June, when these deluded people
icy which se properly prevails as to the expediency appeared in arms, and consummated the offence for
•
whi

that Addresi—(Near, kw.) If sever there was a
me that unanimity became a duty, if ever theie was
public event that deserved to be considered a pri-
nce and individual calamity; it is that upon which,
e Commons House were now called on, in corn-1
y with the whole nation, to condole with his Royal
lighness—(Hear, hear.) The unanimity or sincerity
our sorrow cannot be impeached by the allusion
hich the Noble Lord has just made to the subject of
late trials; far from it. 'lt is the privilege as well
duty of Members solicitous for the well-being of
iety at large, uponsthe opening of Parliament by
.e Speech from the Throne, to proceed to the exa-
mination of such acts as appear to have emanated
from his Majesty's Ministers in the interval between
the Sessions of Parliament, and produced private
grievance or public. itwotoceniencemer. lear,lreß.
tore particularly so when these appear not as isolat-
ed acts, but as part of a system openly adopted by
his Majesty's Ministers for. curtailing the rights, pri-
vileges, and liberties of the people of England—inso-
much so, that the once-boasted Constitution of this
country no longer can be said to exist, and this House
is called again together to transact the public busi-
ness, dunn& a period of the deepest national calamity,
the suspension of that Constitution, to obtain which
our ancestors made such vigorous struggles and glo-
rious sacrifices. While proceeding in that act of un-
pralleled temerity, it will be recollected, that the
House, in consequence of the suggestion of the Mini-
nen, that a disclosure of facts, names, plans, and
dates, would prevent the delinquents being brought
to justice, consented to take the greater part of the
Report of the Secret Committee, as proved without
the means of accurate investigation. So far the
House proceeded to pass the Act for suspending the
Constitution in the dark—c Hear, hear). Since our
last meeting, the transactions which have taken place
upon the trial of the offenders at Manchester, Glas-
gow, and Derby, have thrown a new light upon the
real foundation of that daring act of legislation.-
1 ant perfectly prepared,by the subsequent disclosures,
to call your attention to the manner in which the in-
surrectional meetings at Manchester were described
in that Report, and the actual nature of those meet-
ngs, as appeared by the subsequent proceedings at
the Acsites. In the Reports of this House and the
Lords, it was stated that treasonable conspiracies of
the most atrocious nature had been detected to exist
is Manchester and the country round about; that the
associated bad conspired to destroy the barracks, and
to burn the manufactories, with the diabolical inters-
Con of increasing the mass of the disaffected by the
dertruet;on of those very sources of employment ;
that they had sworn to render Manchester another
Moscow, a signal monument of their vengeance.—
The Reports added, that some of these conspirators
were then actually in custody. Many months have
z.r.ce elapsed, various persons have been examined,
and some held to bail ; but no such treasonable plots
o: horrid machinations have been discovered, nor one
tn been convicted of any such attempts, or even
assigns—(Hear.) _lf there are any, why have they
:int been brought to trial? Why have not the Re-
p s endeavoured to be authenticated? No ! the
Aucancy-General, to prevent a disclosure of circum-
stances prejudicial to the interests of the State, re-
movLd the cases by certiorari into the King's Bench.
1.. c next Session he allows them all to escape, be-
cl,:se he possesses no evidence whereby he could pro-
cu:a tneir conviction, and then Government make a
ner:t of what they call their clemency, but which
rr.,..,ra they in fact could never have had any preten-
sA,-.5 to, were it not for the wrong they themselves
committed in the first instance by the apprehension
ei,:lese poor people. (Hear, and loud cheering) If
I:ad possessed evidence to convict them, would
Lei have escaped so ? or if they were justly charged
offences of this enormous mac itude, were they-
,l)jects for the clemency of the Crown ? (Hear.)
L.l September we find these people, so strongly
tna:i.,ed with rebellious conspiracies andovert acts of
1. let loose, because, it is saido the tranquillity"
"'.he country is so ikr siotored, that =serer may be

_iich they suffeied, although in his opening speech
he had assured the Court he should be able to give most
convincing proofs of anterior meetings to that date,
and a regularly preconcerted and organised conspirac y.
Notwithstanding the well-known activity of the mis-
sionary of revolution sent down there to foment dissa-
tisfaction, and occasion that much-to-be-lamented
explosion which ended in the sacrifice of the lives of
several individuals, still the Law-Officers of the Crown
dared not to draw aside the veil which covered the
doubtful proceedings anterior to the Sth of June, and
to which the Attorney-General had in a former stage
alluded with so much confidence. These anterior pro-
ceedings, notwithstanding the examination of evidence
upon the first, second, and thirdtrial, remain, and are
likely for ever to remain in profound obscurity. It
issemarkable,' that ria the. passing of she Ass foe .des
Suspension of the Habeas Corpus, some objected its
this House to keeping the names secret as answering
no good purpose. The Ministers observed, it would
be eligible for the prevention of insurrection, because
they could keep their eyes fixed in secret upon such
as they knew to be leaders, and seize them at the mo-
ment their treasonable projects were about to be exe-
cuted. Wow Brancireth, 'tis said, had long been known
to be the most determined of their leaders, yet he was
suffered to go at large until he completed the trea-
sonable outrages which it was their duty to have an-
ticipated. To advert to the subject of the parodies
alluded to, I recollect the late Attorney-General,
inmentioning them, refused to read publications of
10 flagitious a nature in a British House of Com-
mons, and flung them in a sealed cover upon the
table. The present Attomey-General now adopted a
different plan; and by his triple prosecution and triple
defeaataixtve these, very improperly, a publicity to
thotl seho never otherwise would have heard
of than. Whilst some curious persons would have
given a guinea for one parody, the Attorney-General
determines to print an immense and new edition of
all the parodies at less than their original price ; and
yet he had this evening stated, that his motive for
prosecution ass the prevention of the circulation of
such works—(lifeer and laughing.)—Thus, in the case
of the atrocious delinquents at Manchester, he sought
credit for advising an act of clemency, where it was
his duty to have prosecuted the offenders to convic-
tion ; but in Hone's case, where clemency might,
with so much credit to his politic foresight, have boon
extended, he pertinaciously sought a Conviction, and
brought down nothing, but disgrace and defeat on his
head. After having revived by the trials what had
been suppressed some months before through Hone's
apprehensions, it was not surprising, that, after-two
defeats, he should have prosecuted Hone upon the
parody upon the Atlutuation Creed, which, in the
Court of King's Bench, had been already decided,
in the case of another party tried for publishing
these parodies, to be of a less objectionable nature.
Would it have been wealinais or neglect of duty in
this case to have let this apocryphal parody pass
unnoticed ?—or is it every Attorney General's busi-
ness to prosecute every kliel or parody that is pub-
lished ? Ns, certainly. But the object of those pro-
secutions is too plain ; Government felt sore at hav-
ing their conduct and character exposed to public
view, as impolitic Statesmen and improvident trea-
surers of the public money, in a language familiar to
all years and. capacities. Yet this was not the only
abject in the view of either his Majesty's Ministers, or
their defender, the Right Honourable Gentleman.—
There was another motive for this pertinacious zeal,
which prompted these three distinct and separate trials:
It was intended to throw discredit on Juries, had the
latter prosecutions been successful : but happily for,
us and the country at large, the turn has been in fa-
vour of Juries. Is it possible then that this has been
part of a design meditated, and almost matured by
Ministers, to take from us, piece by piece, our vs-,
luable Constitution ? (Loud cries of Hear, Bear.)—.
May not these acts be coupled with similar ones of
the same Administration, who have condescended to
temper with the Magistracy throughout the country,
and prescribed their line ca cendirt by circulars of

eh tintottatinifioe al ahj umearrantable nattire--who a ed. sowl really Wish eveerindividtial to I'l/446%
have suspended the Constitution of this country upon lect what was the statement of the Honlairable and
frivolous and unfounded representations—who have Learned Lord OR that occasion. lie stated to this
told the Commons of England that they are not fit House that there were hundreds of thousands of per-
to be entrusted with the authentication of the exis- sons involved in those criminal proceedings. if that
tence of an alleged conspiracy against the Govern- be the case. how is it that the Hon. and Learned
merit of this Country—who have dared to commit i Lord, and all his colleagues, had introduced but one
men to prison without crime, and, after discharging i trial ? Why did they not select many individual% ?
them for want of evidence, taken securities from The trial in question did indeed involve two persons,
them to surrender themselves at any time they may but it was substantially instituted against one. I shall
be called upon And shall an Administration like not now go into a history of that transaction, althouvh
this expect to receive at our hands an indemnity for I have my decided opinion as to the conduct of iLe,
conduct like this—for such repeated and causeless Law Of of the Crown in Scotland, which I will
invasion of our best liberties?—(Hear, hear, hear.)— state and maintain at the proper period. But I will
No—perish the thought ! and with it perish the hope tell the Honourable Lord this, that he is very mate-
that they ever will be enabled to erect that projected rially connected with that individual against whom
new constitution amongst us, so opposite to all which a motion of crimination ought to be proposed. Ido
is valuable in that bequeathed to us by our antes- not think I am called on to say more on this occasion.
tors—a species of constitution which would persuade I may be allowed, however, to observe, that if Mi-
es- that an Act of Parliament expressly passed for !sisters, in their proceedings, have not been actuated
the regulation of prisons, could not affect the King's by their desire of purniing a system of unjust accu-
prerogative, or mitigate the sufferings of the persons sation,and severe oppression,their conduct has clearly
so confined! Fortunately for this country, the public evinced the existence of feelings of sharpness and
has recovered from its false alarms ; all attempts to asperity :inconsistent with the declarations which they
sustain the delusion have failed; the feelings of the last Session made to this House. I will not trespass
public are hostile to the attempts of Administration to further on the attention of the House—but I protest
remodel their happy form of Government ; and Par- against appearing to acquiesce in one single point
liament, I trust, will shortly shew its just indigna- asserted by the Honourable and Learned Lord with
Lion at the deception which has been practised upon reference to the trial in question."
is, when they shall _appear at the Bar of this House Lord FOLKESTONE said, that no man who re-
and apply for an Act of Indemnity to cover the of- spected those feelings which once actuated the graat
• of which they hare been guilty durittg the last tibcly lithe people of England, could remaiwiilent
few portentous months."—(Hear, hear,) when he reflected on the unprecedented conduct of
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL..." I have to la- the servants of the Crown during the recess of Par-
ziteot that the House has been so far taken by surprise, liament. Allusion had been made by his Noble and
by the observations which have fallen from the Noble Honourable Friend, who on that side of the House
Lord and the Honourable Baronet this evening. In preceded him, to the trials both in this country and
the course of the observations which have fallen in Scotland. On the first he should offer a few ob-
from the latter, he appears completely to have con- servations then, but reserve himself as to the other
founded the cases of those persons charged with till the noticed motion respecting Scotland was duly
treason with the cases of those persons called Blan- before the House. If there was a man in that house,
ketteers. As to the trials at Derby, I never expected or out of it, who had carefully read the proceedings
to have heard any objection-made on the part of my of the late trials in this country, and did not concer
Honourable Friend to proceedings which I had flat- in the correct conclusions of his Honourable and
tered myself had been conducted so fairly, and ter- Learned Friend, as to the spirit and tendency of such a
minated so satisfactorily to all parties roosent—(A system, it was in vain fer him, after such arguments
laugh). If the parties accused Could have shewn as had been already advanced, to hope to convinci:
that in the meetings previous to the Bth of June they him. Notwithstanding the answer of the Solicitor (h-
-had been been innocently made the victirtis of artful and neral, he could not help considering the persons lately
insidious persons, why did not their Counsel prove it discharged on their recognizances, as the persons for-
upon the trial, and avail themselves of the advan- merly charged with the destruction of Manchester.—
tages resulting from such evidence? Were we The Reports of both Houses of Parliament had con-
bound to adduce all that had happentiii anterior to sidered them as the some persons ; on that charge
the Bth ofJline, merely to please the worthy Baronet? they averred that these people were apprehended,
That which .has given rise to this debate, has sur- and of course it was, on the failure of that accusa-
prised me more than all the rest—l mean the prose- tion, they were discharged. With respect to the
cution of Hone for libel. Do the Noble Lord and trial% at Derby, the Honourablethe Solicitor-General
the Honourable Baronet contend, that because there seemed to think that it was sufficient argument to
were thrbe libels, one exceeding the others in atro- prove that the evidence was complete enough to en-
city and pernicious tendency, that none should be sure partial correction. But he- would -adc, ought
prosecuted, because the prosecution had the same the duty and responsibility of Govittiment to. rest
tendency as a publication. note? If so, then there? Was evidence of that kind sufficient to let the
the laws respecting libels are all a farce, and it House and the country into the details ofthis alleged
must come to this, that no libel, however atrocious conspiracy? After all the coercive measures of last
or blasphemous, should ever be proceeded against, Session, was not- the House and the country entitled
lest it have the effect of disseminating its baneful in- at least to a full disclosure?—(Hear, hear.) But li-
fluence once more throughout society. If, on the mited as even the information was which the country
first case failing, his Right Honourable Friend jthe could glean from these prosecutions, who that emelt:led

resh rushed with a f argument fof doing so from the
mouth of the Honourable Baronet (Sir Samuel Ro-
milly), who thinks the second the wont and most
culpable in a moral sense—Wear).—Although the
third parody was the weakest case confessedly, still
the Court of King's Bench had condemned the printer
of it to four months imprisonment ; whilst for another
it had sentenced him to eight months confinement.
It is absurd to say that by Hone's suppressing this
publication, after a good sale of many days, the evil
`ceased ; for after this, and before it, Carlisle and
others had inundated the kingdom with editions on
editions of the same at the lowest price ; and who.so
justly deserved punishment as the fountain whence
all the mischief had sprung—the wholesale dealer in
seditious blasphemy ? The House must therefore see
that the juster inference in cases of this nature is, that
those entrusted with the guardianship of society, can-
not, without a culpable neglect of duty, suffer the
offence of libel to go unpunished, although the re-
medy itself may inevitably be productive of the very
evil which it was intended to correct.

proved at Derby was the treason of Mr. Oliver ?
(Hear. hear)—was the production of an agent of the
Government—agent of the Government he would
say, for who would deny that Mr. Oliver was the
agent of Lord Sidmouth ? The feelings of those who
did consign to punishment his victims he could not
envy—(Hear, hear, hear.) With respect to Mr. Hone,
he never could view that prosecution but in one (X
two lights—either a spirit of persecution against that
individual, or 3 marked evidence of imbecility on the
'part of those who were labouring for a case, and who
'dreaded the responsibility that they themselves felt
to attach to their own oppressions—(hear, hear, hear.]
What he had to complain of; what he thotight Par-
liament ought intensely to feel, was the state of de-
gradation which those proceedings entailed upon the
Courts of Justice and the administration of the law-.1
(Hear, hear.) Was it possible to read the accounts
of Mr. Home's trials without feoling that the dignity
of our judicial character was much more lowered b:
'the prosecution than religion could have been in-
jured by the obnoxious publications ? He 'could cEs-
I cover no other object for such a course but either
from the determination to sacrifice the man, as an
evidence of that cry of blasphemous and seditious li-
belling of which so much use was made last Session,
or with the view of obtaining some ground-work ft
a future interference with the Liberty of the Press.
The scene that took place within these few days In the
Court of King's Bench (alluding to the Blanketeers '
gave a finish to the picture of that degradation. a
a future occasion, it would no doubt come before the,
consideration of that House--(Hear, hear).—Ther,
reMained, however, another transaction which more
fully evinced the tendency of the system pursued by
Government; in which he himself was more p:uticu-
larly interested. Need he refer to the total clutregin'
of a positive statute—to the opposition given by th
servants of the Crown—tp a Court of .Session--a li
gal Colin, whose decisions they were bound to nphol
and support—in the case of the persons solitarily cot
' fined under the Suspension Act? After, these recollec•
it was impossible for him to give .his unquali-
fied assent to the Address which had been prpfloted,
as an echo to the Speech. He cot'ld see no ground
'for congratulation on the present improved feeling,
the country- -(A murmur that there -...scs so such porn
graph).--If, said the Noble Lord, I wanted a salvo,
I would refer to the paragraph respecting Spain
but I shall forbear from that point, as the 1 feat
itself will in a short time be submitted to the House,
&It what I object to in the whole tenor of thii Speed
is, its miserable inadequacy to the wants and interests
and wishes of the country—(hear, Twee*).at a moment
too, when the liberties of England lie prostrate at the
feet of ' its Ministers, and 'when the arbitrary powers
with which they have invested themselves have been
used in 'a way wholly unprecedented in any former
period of its htstory—(Heer, hear, hear). The Speed
from the Throne ought to be a full exposition of the
state of the .nation. Has, to use a common but
applicable expression, the wishy-washy communict,
Lion which the House is now considering, any claim
to the character of such an exposition—(hror, hear)
It was in the best periods of Constitutional practice
the custom so to consider the communications of the
Throne ; and in order tillt give a due answer, instead

The LORD ADVOCATE of SCOTLAND--,, I
beg leave, on the present occasion, to make a few ob-
servations, having been particularly alluded to by
my Honourable and Learned Friend opposite. Ido
not now mean to go into a review of the circumstan-
ces connected with the subject which he has intro-
dueesl to the House—but, when the motion of the
Noble Lord (A. Hamilton) is brought forward, I shall
be prepared to spew, from the proceedings in the
Court, and the issue of the trial, that the charges in-
sinuated by my Honourable and Learned Friend are
wholly unfounded. I will 'hew, that the imputation
of ignorance, in drawing up the indictment, is corn-
pletely fallacious ; and, from the issue of the trial—
from the address of the Judge to the prisoner, on
his being dismissed from the bar—when the Jury
had returned a verdict, well known in the law of
Scotland, as distinguished from a verdict of "
guilty"—l mean a verdict of not proven--I will sub-
stantiate the fact, that the oath to whid( I refer-
red was taken by certain persons engaged in a
,traitorous conspiracy at Glasgow. With respect to
another allegation, of far more importance—namely,
that I acted corruptly, or that I suffered corrupt
practices to be resorted to, for the purpose of in-
-1 fluencing evidence ; instead of the statement of my 1
Honourable- and Learned Friend being correct, I shall
be able to prove to the satisfaction of the House, that,
so far from any thing corrupt having been done by-
me, or any other servant of the Crown, on. the occa-
sion adverted to, we had, in fact, done nothing but
what we could not have omitted doing, without being
guilty of a great dereliction of our public duty."
Lord ARCHIBALD HAMILTON—" I am de-
sirous of making one or two observations, in conse..
quence of what has fallen from the Hon. and Lear-
ned Lurd. I have no intention at present of entering
into the subject which has called forth his statement;
but I beg leave to say, that I not only dissent from
what be has advanced, but when the proper time ar-
rives, I will positively contradict what he has now
asserted. The Hon. and Learned Lord says, be is
prepared tashew, that all the charges and statements
promulgated in the last Session, with regard to a con-
spiracy or istsurtocaion in Scotland, ware well fount-