Star.
London, England, 1827-01-29 00:00:00

V. TUE DUKE Or BtAUTOILT.

The ATTORNEY GENERAL said, that in commenting
upon the affidavit of Mr. Wellesley, it was particularly
disagreeable to be obliged to attribute to him actions
inconsistent with the character of a Gentleman. The
question at issue was, whether Mr. Wellesley was orl
was not a fit person to have the care of his own children ?I
Was it not important that the education and care of
children should be entrusted to a person of unimpeached
veracity; to a man who, as a husband and a father,
stood undefiled by foul reproach ? He had carefully
perused the affidavits again and again, and his opinion
was unchanged. Mr. Wellesley, with his wife and
family, reached Naples on the 15th of November, 1822,
and Mr. and Mrs. Bligh arrived on the 29th of May,
.1823. Long before this, Mrs. Wellesley had been ac-
quainted with Mrs. Bligh. She was the daughter of a
Colonel Patterson, who had greatly distinguished him-
self in India, and who bad resided upon the estate of
Wanstead, which was now unhappily dissipated, and
its mansion destroyed. There Mr. Wellesley had seenl
Mrs. B. then Miss Patterson, although he had sworn'
that he had not seen her before her arrival at Naples,
in 1823. In this, perhaps, he might have been mis-1
taken. Mrs. Wellesley had sworn. that the first time
of her seeing Mrs. Bligh was at a ball given by Mr.
Hamilton, the English Ambassador at Naples. She
then saw Mr. Wellesley walking with her, and asked
him who she was, but he did not introduce her.
Mrs. Wellesley and Mrs. Bligh were introduced sub-
sequently by the Ambassador's Lady, and they then be-
came intimate. Mr. Wellesley had sworn that he was
averse tothe introduction, which was of his wife's seeking.
Seeing the perfect subjection, the slavish servility, in
,which Mr. Wellesley kept his unfortunate wife, it was
perfectly absurd to suppose that her introduction to
Mrs. Bligh was against his wishes. This statement
was nothing less than guess moral perjury. In the ex-
cursion to Mount Vesuvius, Mrs. Wellesley was net of
the party, and the whole of them passed the night in
one of the huts on the mountain. Mrs. Wellesley had
been kept from this party, under a pretence of delicate
heath. Shortly after the improper intimacy between
Mr. Wellesley and Mrs. Bligh began to be rumoured,
and Dr. Bulkeley commenced his attendance upon
Mrs. Bligh for her pregnancy, whilst be impressively
warned Mr. Wellesley that he was treading upon a vol.
cano. This was in June, and on 31st July, Mrs. Bligh
left her house, owing, as Mr. Wellesley pretends, to
some quarrel with her husband. The falsehood of this
assertion was only to be equalled by its meanness and
stupidity. The deed of adultery was alone the cause
of her leaving her husband's house. Meara swore
that the day after Mrs. Bligh fled from her husband,
Mr. Wellesley commissioned him to bribe Mr. Bligh's
groom and Mrs. Bligh's waiting-maid to secresy of their
mistress's adultery with him. The very next day Mr.
Wellesley swore that he had never seen Mrs. Bligh but
in general society, and under her husband's roof. It
was made a great objection to Dr. Bulkeley's evidence
that he had provoked a duel between Captain Bligh and-
Mr. Wellesley ; but the fact was that instead of pro-
voking, he had prevented a duel. His Lordship had
naturally inquired why, if the adultery had taken place
at Naples, it was not so proved on the trial? But
his Lordship must be well aware of the tactics that
were often resorted to in these cases ; besides, the
parties here were not the same; nor was the
subject matter the same as in the trial at law.—
There was no attempt to contradict Dr. Bulkeley's affi-1
davit, as far as it related to Mr. W.'s conduct at Flo-1
rence, where it was so gross and vulgar, that even Mrs.
Wellesley was convinced of the nature of his connection
with Mrs. Bligh ; and after she had withdrawn her
protection from her, Mr. %Vellesley took lodgings for
her in the same hotel with his wife, and continued his
adultery with her. It was indubitably proved, that the
criminal intercourse between Mr. Wellesley and Mt s.
Bligh continued from its commencement at Naples to
the period when a child was born to them. On the 15thl
July, 1824. Mrs. W. left Paris, when, notwithstanding all
patience, obedience, and submission, she could no longer
endure to live with her husband. Mrs.W. at that timegave
some instructions relative to his children's education,
which he readily admitted were very proper. She pro-
ceeded to Draycot, and lived these while the children

were under the care of Mr. Pittman, a man admitted to
be a very proper person to conduct their education. His
Lordship would in the next place please to advert to
Mr. Wellesley's arrival in London, and visit at Clarges—
street. It was in proof that he arrived on the 25th of
June, MS, and went with Mrs. Bligh to Seymour-
place, where Dr. took a house for her, stating to
the owner of the house that she was pregnant, and that
her name was Madame Roncet, Mrs. Wellesley being at

hat time le: id'og in Clarges•stteet. A .!e!ter had been
• ritt.-n by Nlrs. 11 ellesley to Colonel S,-iats, mentioning
•ter determ;nation to pr cute a legal separation from
her husband, and ;nthat letter icirtisintimaird that she
had commtplica•ed her'reo'utionto Lord Marybotough,
and that Mr. Wellesles knew it. What was the object
of Mr. Welksley's breaking two the pri•acy of his wife
in Clatgerstreet, after she had .o prop:rly separated
from him ? It was to induce her not to sue out a se-
paration, or to enable him to set the applica ion aside
by a condonation, the Court often granting a condona-
tion upon the affidavit that the patties had been seen
together. The mode of Mr. Wellesles's paying that
visit was di.graceful to him in the extreme ; nothing,
however, could have been more cruel. The Learrid
Gent. proceeded to vind cate the testimony of Mrs.
Scott and the watchmen from the imputation of perjury.
The facts to which they deposed, were such as were
I not likely to come tinder the observation t f other per-
sons. Who else could so well testify to Mrs. Bligh's
coming home at three or four o'sl ch its the morning?
The Learned Counsel here adverted to a fact sworn to,
as evidence of Mr. Wellesley's general moral habits.
The next point to which he wools! refer, was Mr. Wel-
lesley's declaration, that if he could not get his chil-
dren by legal means he would have recount • to statagem
to obtain them. And it was important for the Court to
consider, whether the present defence, the subrrrnatioa
of perjury, was not a constituent part of that statagem.
After commenting on the means by which Mr. W. en-
deavoured to deprive his wife of her pin-money, of
11,0001. a year, after spending the remainder of her
fortune, and after she had generously thrown her pin-
money into a common stock for their support, and
which attempt was only prevented by the influence of
Lord Mat yborough, the Learned Counsel said he would
next make a few observations on Mr. Wellesiey's con-
duct in relation to his children.

The Loan Cn•nsaLum.—The Court will commence on Mr.
day by hearing what you may have to say on that subject. ffis
Lordship then rose.

VICE-CHANCELLOR'S COURT, Jaw. 27.
Tat AITORNIIT 131111,1tAL IP. 2111 UAL 07 LOVIDALIL
This was a bill filed by the Attorney Generat against
the Noble defendant, for the purpose of procurir.g a
decree to re•establish a Charity, and to compel the ap-
propriation of the revenues of those devises intended for
its sustenance.

It appeared that a Viscount Lonsdale had established,
some time prior to the year 1697, a manufactory for
the instruction of the poor children of the parish of
Lowther, in Westmoreland, in various branches of trade,
and for their consequent future maintenance and sup-
port. That generous intention had, however, been
thwarted by the indolence or dislike of those persons
for whose benefit it was intended, and the manufac-
tory failed. His Lordship, irritated by this circum-
stance, then changed his designs; and in the month
of May, 1697, executed a trust deed, by which he
conveyed to thirteen trustees named in the deed, certain
estates, lands, and rectories therein enumerated, the
rents and profits of which were to be applied to the
erection and support of a school, for the education of a
certain number of young Gentlemen ; and setting
forth in the same instrument, as the cause of this
mttlement, 4, that he had tried an experiment for the
benefit and support of the poor; and as they, either from
their indisposition or their negligence, did not choose to
take advantage of his good intentions, he was deter-
mined to turn his attention in future to the rickand apply
the funds he had devoted to the one in aid of the other:'
The deed then went on to recite, that the Noble donor
resersed to himself the power and the right of appointing
the Masters of the said School, and of regulating the
amount of their salaries; which power was to be exer-
cised by an order or appointment drawn up by himself,
and witnessed by three respectable witnesses, who were
to put their names upon the paper. The schoolhouse,
in pursuance of the terms of this deed, was built, and
Masters were appointed, to whom salaries were paid;
but it did not appear that' any young Gentlemen had
ever availed themselves of its advantages before eke
death of the founder—who, in his last will, made a
particular reference to the school-house, and devised the
whole of the lands mentioned in the deed, with the
exception of one small portion, for its future support,
and commanded, that if the project failed, his executors
were to devote the produce of the estates to any other
charitable purpose they might think fit, provided that
it was conducive to the benefit of the inhabitants of the
county of Westmoreland, and more particularly of the
residents in the parish of Lowther. After the death of
that Viscount Lonsdale, however, the school-house was
changed into a carpet manufactory, and so it had con-
tinued, throughout a long series of years, ie the hands
of the same family, until, in the time of the late Earl,
when it was converted, about the year 1812, into a
barn, and had since been devoted altogether to agricul-
tural purposes.
Mr. PEMBERTON having stated these facts, as con-
nected with the charity which he now sought to have
revived, then observed, that he understood the ground
of opposition rested en the discovery, that the estate on
which the school-house was built had formed a portion
of the marriage settlement of Viscount Lonsdale ; and
as he was only tenant for life, and could not appropriate
it to the purposes of the charity, the whole of the cha-
rity itself was therefore null and void.
Mr. HART opposed the object of the bill. The paper
spoken of in the deed had never been executed ; no
attempt had been made to establish the Charity; that
it was not witnessed according to any of the provisions,
and must therefore be considered as nothing better than
waste paper, as no action of trove/ could be maintained
to recover it.
After some discussion, with respect to the point of the Lensdale
family possessing the right of election in carrying into effect the
WIZ:of the Charity,
Vies CHANCELLOR said, he was of opinion that
there was a good charitable gift passed by the deed,
and that it did not make the slightest difference whe-
ther the charity was to Gentlemen or to paupers ;it was
as good a gift to them as to the poor of a ia oikhouse.
The point respecting the school-house, however, was a
very nice one, and deserved further consideration ; as,
if he could not devise the ground on which it was
erected, no case of election could arise. Viscount Lons-
dale, however, could not, after the execution of the
deed, make any alterption by his will, with regard to
the lands he had appropriate,* to the purposes of the
charity ; as it was a clear sift to trustees, for cha-
ritable purposes.
iiis Hamm concluded by sobeii.ing, that be would consider the
point oftlr►scksul ousysodve kit *oleo on a future day.
COURT OR KING'S BENCH, lattuaar 27.

Till [WO IP. A 11AG30TIAT[ PO& vait.antTr OF STA From
Mr. CANPIELL moved fyr i rule, coiling upon a Ma-
gibtrate of the Countjeof Stafford (but whose same the
Learned Counsel begged to, decline matitioiderig), to
shew cause why a criminal information should lbot be