Star.
London, England, 1820-08-09 00:00:00

that het Majesty Might addreas her Reyai
in the language of Queen Caiirritie
0 Sir, I desire you, do me tighb and justice,
Arid to bestow yter pity on me; for
I am a Most poor moment mete stranger,
Born ore of raw &Minions; having here
No judge intilllrrent, nor no mare assurance
Of equal friendship and proanding."---,
After a few other remarks on the same suhjeeti he
retired ftbm the front of the hustings, but shortly af-
terwards came forward and said, that he had forgot-
ten one of the subjects on which he had intended to
address them. His colleague (Mr. Byng) had gone
with his family abroad some weeks ago, and there
had not been time, since the Meeting had been called;
to give him notice of it. •
Mr. MILLS then rose, and said that he had an Ad-
dress to his Majesty in his hand, which, whether he
moved it not, he could wish to read to the Meeting,
In order to record the sentiments which he enter-
tained upon this most important subject. He would
preface what he had to say upon it with a remark
or two upon the constitution of the House of Lords.
He was not sufficiently acquainted 'with the history
of that body to say when it became possessed of
judicial authority, nor would he give an opinion
whether such authority did or did not rightfully
belong to it. This, however, he would say—that he
called in question the right 4:f twenty-eight members
of that House to decide upon the point whether her
Majesty should or should not be put Into possession
of a list of the witnesses who were to appear against
her. Even supposing the House collectively to haie
the power of making such a decision, scathe thought
that a part, and a small part of it too, could not be
equally possessed of it; if they could be so pos-
sessed of it, then Ministers were also possessed of
it ; and, whenever there was any obnoxious indi-
vidual whom they wished to crash, would only
have to erect themselves into the characters of
judges, jurors, and accuseri, in order to do it.--
He could see nu reason why there should be a call of
the House on the 17th of August, when there had
not been one on the day when they had previously
done a judicial action—lie meant the day when they
had refused her Majesty the names' of those who
were to appear as witnesses against her. The lan-
guage of Ministers to her Majesty was this s•-.. 4 We
will first examine witnesses against you, and will af-
terwards give you time to examine into their conduct
and character, just as long as you please: in the
course of the proceedings, you will learn where the
witnesses live, and that circumstance will help you in
your examinations." But supposing that, upon in-
quiry, no such person as the witness was described
to be was to be found either in Venice, or in any other
part of Italy, what would Sir R. Giffard say then?
Why he would say, " You'observe that you can't
make out who the witness is whom I have produced
against you: it may be so; but what then? Have
you anything to say in contradiction to the evidence
produced against you, and can you prove what has
been alleged against you to be entirely untrue ?"
Good GOD cif Heaven ! what woman, if accused of
adultery, could be acquitted on a trial conducted
upon such circumstances? Ought not the witnesses
to be cross-examined in the very box, and at the very
time, in which they were committing their perjury ?
He thought that they ought, especially when he re-
collected the fate which had attended on the Don-
glases, and the perjuries which it appeared to him
that they were daily in the habir of swearing. 'What,
he would ask, was the reason why Lord Eldon had
screened them from such prosecution? To prevent
a recurrence of similar scenes in future, he could
wish the Address which he had in his hand to be
read over to them:
" TO THE KING'S MOST EXCELLENT MAJESTY,
K TRL HCIISLZ TSTITNIN Or THE INHABITANTS OF THE COMITY-Or
1111DOLESI*N, COTNTY MEETING AMILMILETA,
" MAY IT PLEASE YOUN Maresre—We, your Majesty's duti-
ful and loyal subjects, the Inhabitants of the County of Middle-
sex, approach your Majesty's throne with feelings of the most
profound sorrow at perceiving that you. Majesty's Advisers are
carrying on an unfair, an unjust, and a cruel prosecution against
your Royal and long-oppressed Consort.
" We cannot but remembtr the former foul attempts to de-
stroy her Majesty's fair fame ; and, In the present proceeding,
we but too clearly see a revival of those attempts. We remem-
ber the perjuries that were comtwitted against her, and we also
remember the impunity of the perjurers.
" Evidence collected in the dark, communicated in pealed
bags, submitted to a Secret. Committee, and by that Committee
moulded into a charge of crime, is so abhorrent from our ideas
of justice, that we cannot refrain from praying that it may never
be suffered to be a ground of proceeding against her Alajesty.,
" TO punish by Rill is, in our apprehension, wholly contrary.
to the Lass s and Constitution of England ; but, %viten we see the
accusers also the Judges and Jurors, and when we well know
that a decided majority of the whole Assembly are, at all times,
disposed to act in conformity with the wishes of your Majesty's
advisers, we should be guilty of a shameful want of duty to-
wards your Majesty if we refrained from expressing to you our
conviction, that, in this case, the world will never be satisfied
with the decision of that Assembly, whose disposition has been
but too clearly manifested, in its refusal to furnish heir Majesty
with the names of the witnesses to be brought against her—in a
like refusal with regard to the names of the places where the
alleged offences were committed—and
sin the monstrous Measure
of promulgating Mr fral' se long a time before it permitted her
Majesty to-offer anything in-her defence, and by which promul-
gation it must necessarily have been intended to cause her. Ma-
jesty to be prejudged by the world, and to bring her to trial
already covered with infamy.
" Therefore, relying on your Majesty's gracious disposition—
appealing to' your Royal justice against the machinations of your
advisers—we most humbly pray that your Majesty will be
pleased to restrain those advisers, and to afford your Royal
Consort the means of fair and open trial before a lawful tribunal.
" And your Petitioners, as in duty bound, shall ever pray."
Mr. Sheriff PARKINS could not allow this Resolu-
tion to be put in silence ; the subject on which it was
founded was not once mentioned in the Requisition.
Mr. MILLS maintained a contrary opinion.
The Requisition was then read, upon which
Mr. Sheriff PARKINS said that he was willing to
give the most liberal construction to it possible; but
it certainly could not bear the construction which was
now attempted to be placed upon it. If Gentlemen
wished to call another Meeting on that point, he
should be happy to give them an opportunity of
doing it— (Loud cheers).
Loud cries were heard of, " Withdraw, withdraw;'
after which Mr. Mills withdrew his proposition.
Mr. Alderman WAITHMAN declared, that when he
first entered into that room, he had no intention of
addressing them ; and yet, when he told them that
he had at last risen with considerable reluctance to
place his sentiments before them, he trusted that they
would not attribute that reluctance to a want of that
common feeling which actuated the whole country,
but to other causes, which were of a temporary and
transitory nature, and which he had on a former oc-
casion explained at some length to the electors of
MiddlestX. He had, however, beets asked to move


one of the Resolutions; aa as it was one well Cat
eulated to obtain and secure the *pprobation of the
people, be thought it right to say a few words regard-
mg it. It was to propose a Petition to Lite Lcirds,
founded on the resolutions which had just been recd
to them ; and that Petition—whatever might be the
fate of the Petition proposed to be presented to the
King—was fully within the scope of the Requisition.
The worthy Alderman then proceeded to *sit Mr.
Under-She►iff Turner to read the Petition for him.

The Petition was read, and carried, with only one
dissentient voice. The reason of that dissent was
afterwards stated to be, that the Gentleman who ex-
pressed it did not think the Lords to be worth pe-
titioning, and that no good could be effected by it.
Sir FRANCIS BIT/IDETT, being loudly called on by
the Meeting, case forward, and was greeted with
general cheers. He said he bad arrived late in town
last night, and had then, for the first time, heard that
the present Meeting was convened. He was, at first,
rather unwilling to attend, because, on such occasions,
he conceived there ought to be a general and spon-
taneous burst of feelings, and that those wko attended
at one place should appear and take the lead at
others. Bat he thought, at the same time, he should
not pay a proper respect to the freeholders of the
County of Middlesex, if, being in town, he did not
attend a Meeting so convened. He had hoped, as
the business of that day had been discussed with so
much ability by many individuals, that he would
riot have been called upon to address the Meeting ;
but as an Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Waithman) had ex-
pressed a wish that he should deliver his sentiments
on this exhausted topic, he would state those observa-
tions that occurred to him at the moment. The
!worthy Alderman who called him forward rendered
Ithe task imposed on him somewhat difficult, he hav-
ing himself discussed the question Kith great force
and eloquence. To address an assembly of English-
men on this occasion, on a political subject, he felt it
to be more incumbent on him than be had ever felt
it to be before, because it was a duty that could not
be, performed without some risk and danger. The
Government under which they now lived, whatever
its incapacities might be, certainly possessed this ca-
pacity—that it well knew when to owe and when to
pay; and the punishments which had recently been
;inflicted on individuals looked rather like paying off
of old scores, than visitations for present offences.—
In such a state of things, Innocence was no protection,
caution was no security. No sagacity that any man
might possess could induce him confidently to say,
" I will erform my duties to the people of England,
because lam secure under the laws of my country"—
(Applease).—Por his own part, he was in the sitita-.,
don of those persons who had proceeded to, such
a length, that " return was as tedious as to go on."-
Undoubtedly no honour could be gained by retreat-
ing, whatever danger might be incurred by proceed-
ling farther. The principles he had adopted were well,
known to the country, and he hoped he shoal,' al-
ways have the fortitude to maintain them with firm-
ness—(Applause).--lie considered this subject in pre-
eisel y the same light as the Honourable Member for
Coventry ; be did not look on it so much on account of
any particular individual, however elevated the rank of
that individual might be; he did not view it with such
'deep anxiety because a Queen of England was con-
nected with the pending proceedings, although that
was a cause :efficient to interest every manly mind.
r These circumstances were undoubtedly of moment;
but they were insignificant when compared with the
great cause of public justice. It was not difficuk to
address one's self to an assembly on a topic like this,
because it was intimately connected with the best in-
terests of the country; and sorry he was, that, in de-
livering his sentiments on this occasion, he was obliged
to call to the minds of his afflicted countrymen a
time fall of public misfortune and private suffering;
a time when innocent blood had been shed, by that
sword which should only be used against the enemies
of the country, but which had been wielded against
the People, peaceably and legally assembled. The
present period was replete on every side with party
feeling and political animosity, and therefore was.
one or extreme danger. He might say further, that
it was one of extreme weakness on' the part f the
People, and of extreme power on the part of their
oppressors. Though they had now arrived at the
seventh year of peace, the present period was more
cruel tliari a time of absolute war. That so much
vaunted period of peace was a long term of unmiti-
gable suffering—(Applause).—They saw the sword
still brandished in the eyes of the peaceable citizens.
The Government would not lay down its arms, and
yet they had no other enemies than the People!—
' He well knew what every Englishman must feel
when he saw that a Government of the sword had
superseded the Government of the laws—when he
saw the land covered with barracks, and beheld for-
tifications rising in every part of the country. All
this was done with no pretence of foreign danger,
without any apprehension save that which the expres-
siou of public sentiment and public feeling instilled
into the minds of those who held the reins of Govern-
ment—(Applause). Under these circumstances it was
that the same reports of Secret Committees, the same
modes of secret accusation, were made use of to
oppress the Queen, that had formerly been resorted
to for the oppression of the People ! The People had
been the victims of green bag informations, and their
laws, rights, and liberties, had been suspended on the
reports of Secret Committees. The lives of many of
them had been risked in consequence of their at-
tempts to propagate constitutional principles: the
health of some had been sacrificed by long pro-
tracted confinement for the same cause; and accu-
mulated sufferings were heaped on all those who had
dared to think for themselves. Individuals had been'
incarcerated for two, three, five, and one individual
whom he knew, for seven years,without being brought
' to any trial—without being called to face any accuser.
Therefore it was that he called their attention to the
mode of trial adopted in this. case, because if they
did not make a stand against the extraordinary dan-
ger with which they were threatened, no man in the
land, from the highest to the lowest, could hope to
escape such treatment. To call it a judicialproceed-
ing would be an abuse of language. What Ministers
quoted as precedents were nothing but acts of atro-
cious tyranny ; but not one of them was to be com-
pared to that monstrous acme of injustice which was'
attempted in. the present instance. Here the Honour-
able Baronet alluded to the Bills against Bishop At-,
terbury and Sir John Fetiwick, both of which he
ri strongly coulemand. It would have been more to