The Statesman.
London, England, 1809-12-06 00:00:00

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44 Tottoninouvotsconotoi,or twenty yeti,* standing,
64 are-made in two or thrOVdnys, I ant- soweiticed
14 that those honourable diameters must save beea
" iv:pelted uptiscft- He colds' not,lherrfors but
deeply lament, that they should here seat such a
tpaper into eheirotid, under - IRO cireemstanees.
But he hoped ibiliP trusted, that he should be able
to go through -me in,efestigatioei, and that .more
fully ; and ashen 'revers."' -'• tried over again, k.would
,
l*seett; whethetieffeliecounts that hail been lnitb.
fished, *ere not in6ilid. On the subject eft the
Private- Box is,. it 'lea not a litde digit/aft
Ito speak-with tempeK The conduct •of the
Manageri:'• in that respect, was certainly Most
reprehenelble. Was it even decent, that •
BritisteTheatre, delegated to the Proprietors for
thel'lne Jed accommodation of the Public, should
contain Private Boxes? Was there to be found
11
any man who could defend them ? It had ever
heen admitted as the established, and recognised 9
custom. in English Theatres, that every man who
goes eith money, in his pocket, has a right of
general admission : and he who goes first, to a
place of public entertainaient, had an unquestion-
able right to the best place. What right had the
Managers to say, " ibis Box is constantly re.
ic served fur a particular individual, for somebody
e. connected with my Lord A. or my Lord B. ?"
When the Patent was granted, it was not so
granted, for the particular, and privileged accom-
modation, of either rank, or wealth. The mo-
storey was granted, fur the benefit of the public
at large, and, because, it was judged that the
!granting of such monopoly would enable the Pa.
tentees, to provide accommodation for the public
at large, superior to what could at tr at day, be
possibly effected, were general competition ad-
mitted. The Learned Serjea. nt, was far from
wishing, that persons of high rank, might not
have some places, in which they could enjoy, par-
ticular, and exclusive accommodation ; for he
should ever look up, without jealousy and with-
out envy, to those who, in consequence of their
rank, were so properly distinguished, by the 'ma-
ture of our Constitution. But there were surely
other places, iii %leech these privileges might be
exercised, than in an English Theatre. But, in
&alit was not a privilege exclusively conferred on
oar Nobility. The Private Boxes would not long bc
reserved for them. In the present state at society
but a few or the Nobillty, comparatively speaking,
could consistently afford suit an expeoce. The
Private Boxes, woullnot long be reserved for those
'Ladies who had a VIA interest in their Lord:—
they would be reserved', fur those only, who have
their Lords but fur a season. But was it fitting,
that any degree of rank, or respectability, should
i.e.laim a right, to that privilege, which is not as.
taunted even by the Monarch of this powerful Em.
pire. Were there a plat,: ••set apart, on which,
I no foot but that of Royalty, should ever tread,
he should he amongst the hist, to accede to the
!propriety of such a tribute of respect, to the
'Sovereign of thane Realms. Bat, even the Box
of the King of England, has ever been open to
the pnblic, in the absence of their Majesties—
and any individual rind his family, might occupy
I.the Royal Bi,ii, at such seasons, as freely, as any
other Bea in the Theatre. It was Impossible,
that any man could, letall4, be deprive(' of his
right of admittance, to any part of a building,
exclusively devoted as a National Theatre, to
'the use of the public—that any man could have
an exclusive privilege to any part of the. House,
from which the public could be exeluded, was ut-
terly inconsistent with the natnre, and spirit, of
the principle, on which the monopoly had been
granted. The Patent—if indeed the Proprietors
hod one—must of necessity, expressly declare it
to have been granted for the benefit of the public
at large. 11'hen the Managers made their appeal
to the publie, they manifestly submitted - them-
selves to the approbation or disapprobation of
that public in whose decisiun, be it what it might,
it was their duty to hue acquieiced—and after
making,that appeal, it ea, positively incumbent
on them to give the public full satisfaction. The
Learned Serjeant, aietv disclaimed any intention,
of attempting to jut y, a riot. We mast, how-
ever, he said, take Englishmen as we find them—
and thee much, lie would venture to say, that
when Englishmen cease to express their opinions
strongly, when they believe they have just cause
fur so doing, they cease to have that spirit of free-
dom, which has, hitherto, preserved'''s a free
nation at home—and fro v the pressure of
hostile insult from abroad f. —For, if men
lost their spirit of freedom, and resistance
of imposition, on one occasion, there would
be little hope thut they would retain it on others.
" And with great truth can I say," exelaimad the
Learned Serjeant, 4‘ that I pity not those who are
the objects of the alleged riot; bat I do sincerely
commiserate •those whim are unjustly termed
rioters." That great noises had %een made, he
had already stated himself to be eapable of bearing
witness, but he should contend, that'noire alone
deer not constitute riot.- As well behind, as be-
fere the seems, had there been frequent insranees
of noises ; but It was impossible to construe such
noises into riots. To constitute a riot, the di.-
turbance and agitation, must be such as to maks
a firm man tremble fur his safety ;•letnust he it_
tender) with force and violence, or threaten,-forise,
alit' violence, for, Without these ooncomieuits, no
noise, however greet, could, eccording to his Ideas
of lair, constitute a riot. What was the damage
produced, by the great number of successive
nights, on which riot was alleged ? Could the
Manager* display the aggravating fragments .of
a singlet chandelier? Could they chew, six.
penny.vrorth of =Ott damage? He had
himself seen '• the proceedings' of these ac.
cused' of tinting, and • certainly, as to any
acts of violence or damage, he had never 'ler a
more harmless set of teen, thin were these Risks'''.
The alleged, tnmelt, ou the
,pert of•the Public,
had been greatly overstated, nut of doors, and lie
was wigged, that a strict attention to she Evi.
i dome; which he'shonid peleduce, week! convince
: the Jury, as he was sure it would his Lordship,
I that'thereliall been io riot, at kart artlis Pub-
tic, amid whiltever riot there might have been, or
' by whoever it might have been created, certain
'• he was, that bit Client could nut, byfiedisibi.

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