The Statesman.
London, England, 1819-02-25 00:00:00

This wagon action to recover damages for a false,
eeandalses, and malicioes libel against Lord Henry
Howard biotin's:, the Misfit, written by the De.
feedant, the Ile,. Mr. Mortis, a Clergymen et the
FatahHated Chinch, and Rector of Tortingtoo near
Arendt!, Semi, and poblished in the Londe,' Wieldy
Newspaper called the fixentsser, early in Jaweary,
1816. The cassia was eft down for trial is the Sit-
ling after Michaelmas 'retro, bet continued a ruse.
mint till the present Sittings. It neeopied the Geer'
this day from half-put 12 own 11 o'clock at night.
The damages were laid at 5001. The extreme length
of the proceedings obfiges es to coedits ear detail to
a vary short sketch.

Ths pcoceeding were spewed by Mr. DtllNAlt,
,and tie WO fog the Ptalatiffstaged by Mt. Sc.oaisrr,
who professed bat motley was stet the object of Lis
Client, bat the vindication of his honour.—The facts
Hated, sad afterwards sustained In evidence, •ere
shortly thew :

The Defendant was isavrimi toe Mies 'rinse, ose
of the saterel daughters of be let. bake of Nor-
Mk; and his Gems, at the Defendant's marriage,
presented hits with the living of Sivelfbanger, in the
county of Norfolk, woUb about 4001. a year, and
In wale plats afterwards encoereged his to come
land live sear Areadel, sod presented him with a
small living ie that neimbhowtheed, and frequently
retained him and his wife with great kindwees end
hospitality et Arundel Castle, along with other cos-
, pan, who visited there. Bet the Defendant, coo.
editing the f.t. failed to treat his wife with the tel.
'speet which be thought her entitled to, as his Grace's
natural daughter, he frogvently remonstrated with
the Doke : warm akmeations arms betwee• them.
The Doke disclaimed any iatestion to treat hue
with enkinduess, but his Grace had always uni-
formly declared his principle was, never to put
hit illegitimate children nn the use footing of
*eternity sad respect with his legitimate owl.—
Os this ground, the Defendant and his wife
abeested themselves for some time from the Castle.
The Doke had also declared that the names of Ms il-
legitimate children shoeld never appesr in his will,
but they sheold be provided for otbereise by annui-
ties charged upon his estate. In 1815 his Grace died,
Sad left his personal estate arnotipt his neat relatives
of the same; and enseogst others, be bequeathed to
the Plalotili feer-tenths of his personal eff'cts,
alneanting to about 300,0001. subject to certain le-
germs. The Plirilatiff *es his pertieelar f
sines a school-boy. He gave bile a home in his eon
boom, sod was 'brays looked on by the family, as
his intended heir to the principal put of his seen-
toiled repitti. 'lir, It appeared, that in his Grace's
will no provisibti whatever was mode for the Defend-
set's wife, nor any thing more then 351. to her en.
married sitter, which she eseelly bed in his life-tlene.
Bet this the eseeetore, ender a discretion given them
Its the will, lecreaaed by an addition of 701. a year
WO re.

The circumstance .6 exasperated the Defendant,
diarist pahliabeil the libel stated in this cause, in the
stapes( an easier to a public Address from the Plaits-
Ile to his constituents at Gloucester (for which city
be had b.ete years Member), declining to stand
the 1.11, Gevoral Lieetion but one, referring to his
noihro ferric,.' and challenging the investigation of
connect;Zia and in this answer the Defendant not
only charred the l'i4intitt with being a dependent
slave to the political influence of the late Duke of
Nort,llt ; but also with clinging to, meal hanging
about him for a WI'S of years, at a legacy bunter,
and @sing bate, dishonnarable, and servile means, to
Wore Is Grace in bequeath him the principal part
of his fortune, and with standing between his Grace
end his natural children, and preveutiog him from
ioakiog provision for them,while be himself enjoyed so
reel a portion of his Graces property, though only
a distant relation. This was the substance of the
libel, but it was coached In terms of the strongest
reproach and invective, end concluded by stating,
that persona capable of acting as legacy bunters in
such base and dishonourable ways, should be scooted
from the society of all honourable men.
The libel was fully proved, and the falsehood of
it, is every particular, most satisfactorily sestaloed
by a umber of most respectable witnesses.
The Defendant pleaded Not Guilty, and proposed
to justify the publication on the ground that It was
tree. And be addressed the Court and the Jery in
a speech of two hours and a half continuance' which
be read from manuscript. And he also calledoeveral
*knew's, from no one of whom did be obtain a
shoes answer to ski his defence.
Mr. SCARLETT replied in a speech of sub tile.
qeence end force.
' After which the CHIEF Jusvicr ammed up the
evidence with appropriate observations to the Jolty,
who, after retiring fur began boor, found a verdict
for the Plaintiff—Damages 501.

' —Tbe toy.ware was sent borne to the Defendant
on the Sd of February. After litmeloieg about
two months in her possession, they:ates, on lb. lit
of April, returned to the Plaintiff, by s kjod of ratio
'alt verve is the following oatteitri•—tivo men sod
%boy gilled early an that morolog at the Misfire
boom with u large sack, sod desired to be admitted,
as they were the bearers of articles for him from Nat-
thigbam. When the door was opened, they peaked
the Plaintiff *Wide, and threw down into the were.
Imes: their sad, which contained the toys that Bed
beta sold is tke month of February to tire Defied.
'sot. After baying dose Ibis they rue away.
De the port of eve Defendant, it mos stated by
Me. Strip/at Vavettax, sod premed in evidence.
that the amides thou returned had origloolly bees
listen home by the Defendant, on so assurance from
the Plaintiff, diet the case in which they were pocked
up contained Plead' toys of the 'sweat fashion, and
to a perfect mete. Who. the awe, however, wee
.specked at the Defendant's bore*, it was found to
contain many Eagllsh toys of the commonest kind,
and some French dolls, which were oat of fashion
and mach defaced.
In consequence of this discovery. the Defendant
woo very angry, and told the Ptalexiff tint he shoeld
take back the toys. In. answer to this, the Plaiotif
said, that be Meisel bed bete imposed on in per-1
chasing the articles coetelood in the cote, and re-
quested that eke Defendant would esdeaeour to sell
them at the best pries that els• could, and that be
would make an attowonce to her accordingly. Whew,
however, the Defendant some lime ofterwardl, in
consequence of being enable to sell the toys, re.
visited that the Plalnffff Weald seed for them, he
refused to do so, alleging that she had agreed to pur-
chase them enconditiesally. The evidence of one
witness exantioed for the Defendant proved, that the
fact was otherwise, so clearly that the question wee
not allowed to go to the Joel. The Plaintiff was,
therefore, sssss ited.

always- found ea the same aide of the Hoare with
It. Under such circemstancr, it might have been
eapected,that when their nominee was *Soling every
nerve against Sir M. Milnell, and when theyt were
doing their utmost to support ids in these etertions,
the Whigs would have pet their shoelders to the
wheel, )ud bay* assisted Mese to drive away the
Ministerial Csadliate. Nothing of this sort was
however done. Diming three months in which you
netted yourselves nobly, sod pot such a fare open
the Satter as banished him entirely from t4e held,
they did big eves stir a single lager In your case.;
they- preserved what they called as armed neutrality
and said they should like to see is what sooner tee
Reformers *mold be able by themselves to fight tt •
battle of the People evilest the Court. This !sting
the case, elle tees geed they might have done, or at.
templed to do, in their oppneitins le the Court. they
bad done but little toward the Electors of We,;-
simmer ; la aloft, be could not help observing, that
their lowly merit was, that when the Court Candidate
hal been fairly drirge from theieldby tbeesertiolle of
Ike I odepeadont Electors,t hed t reacher nes: v
some forward to rob them of the rewards of victory.
This statement, though its language might be hush,
was a plain statement without any eseggeration, sod
was so palpably correct, that he 'weld eves appeal
Wootheir opponests to confirms it. He would scot
the. baldly whether it was net the fact ?—(lir, if
tiree, very tree, seserted from the croscd.)—As to
ffiseir motives is bringing forward another C.ndailste,
ifter the Ministerial Candidate Ind bees drivesheat
Use contest, he knew himself to be too insisnibcant
an object to think that they were directed against
him ; they were directed against the pormseent
session of a Refers is Parliament, sad were, he
believed, confeuedly intended to depreciate the
character of Sir Freseis Berdett..—(Therr their
tided, mid nothing else, ,ssisd from use crowd )
—Every man Is the Meeting whom he ad:
dressed, knew this to be the feet, sad also knew
that they bad employed the latesperate ruffian oe
the other side of the Hestiego to assist them is
erecting this Infamous pompom,. After this, it ought
sot to etch.. surprise in any thinking mind that
the Whig Candidate should costae forward, end is a
tone of mock coodolesce, should espies his sorrow
WO the Honourable Baronet was losing ell his infs.
PM with the Electors of Westminster. He wooed
thelitiog of the modesty, of lbw/ dellosity, or the
propriety of so young a man as Mr. Lamb taunt.
lag them with the fall of a lost-established fa.
twits; nor yet would be lay a ford on the an.
egadsome conduct pursued by that Honoerablo
Gentleman's friends sod partisans towards the re-
Opsetabto iodised's! whose motives and actions they so
laseesetly 'swagged; ho would °sly eapress his
sorrow, that the Hen. Gentleman should have him-
self so far condescended as to become an humble in-
strument is the hands of others, to end to
fain a character which had been fairly earned by 13
long pears of Itonoorable exertion. 'Mom who em-
ployed him to do so, would live to rue the intern-
;renege df which they bad been guilty; and would
cosier or later have caws to regret that they, stand-
log forward as the advocates of the People, should
Agee dune all they coald to ruin a *an, who more
lastly them any other, might be distinguished by the
title of the Man of the Poople.—(Great applause.)
As far as Westminster was conceived, be maintained
that the Whigs bad no ruses to take OtO high ground
ow which they b.rd placed themselves; and therefore
he could not disguise the surprise which he had felt
the other dab on meeting certain banners inscribed
with " Lamb and Liberty." He could sot`cos-
coif* who had been so istatested as to advise theft
wind these iscosg r words together, or who
had boss se acute as to decipher their Meaning.—
The liberty which they destined for Westminster
was dearly evinced by ail their actions. He was
sorry to relate to them that the greater part
of hip time was now costumed is hearing complaints
of the unjust, the endue, and the tyrannise' Inds-
sum which had been employed in forcing Electors
to attend the Poll ; tad he knew the spirit of the
Ann who were Hiss treated, too well to think that soda
was the liberty which they wished to enjoy, or form
Ohl &station to which they were williag to submit.
Though It was sot his intention to detain theta
melt longer, he could not refrain from mentioning,
before he left them, a clrcemetance which involved a
wary important question. That question ought to
bate bees decided before they same the lissiiogs, es
It related to the paragon of the Poor Rates, and night
sot to hate been left for en argument after the polling
bad commenced. It had appeared by th.decision which
the Returning Officer had made, that those who
had not paid the Poor Rates were not entitled
to vote, or, in ether worde, wet* totally disfran-
ebbed. . He asserted that this decisiouwes
ter cooformable to the law of the land nor
to the suggestions of reason ; and argued that, thoggh
the Returning Otlicer bad acted upon his eon pm...
dents, sod upon two decisions of the House of Com-
mons, the sabsequent decisions on the Shaftesbury
case were diametrically opposite to that which he
had lately gins. He maintained, that if the Poor
Rates were sot regularly paid, the proper method of
proceeding was to distrais for them; bet now the
defeatists, Instead of being distrainerl on, are dis-
franchised at a blow, by the Kigg's Ilinicters. The
effects of this system were mom lamentable; taxation
had increased the poverty of the nation, sad the po-
verty of the nation had diminished the fooshisemest,
se that their poverty Well converted late BO MONO to
support the present weight of pasties. 'this was,
indeed, proceeding is a circle, and was setbieg she
than obliging men, who had become poorer by not-
ation, to contribute to those who oppressed and hay
porovished them. The ewes which thy had lost by
this detlaiell were numerical's, equal to the snotty