The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1807-06-20

|cyphcr. Mr.. Martin. Let the court fay, whe-
Their that Ia a proper qucifion.
The Grief JyRies teSided, that Col, BPS
council fhouid so on with the other point
How far a wisnefs may refufe to anfwer quef-
ton, which he thinks would criminats him.
felfl
Mr.. Bot3J. 1t has been again ftrongly inf
nuatcd, that Wiliie's claim to the privilege of
not anfwering, pre-fuppoies his guilt.
Has Willie no reafon to ieek exemption from
the examination, but fueh as may grow oat of
a confcioufncfs of suilts
The attorney for the u. States fees every OBJ
jeef connected with Col. Burr, through jaun-
diced medium; with him, I" trfes as light as
air are combinations as frong as holy writ"
How far he might be difpofed to involve this
yousg man upon a confriiion of copying pa
per in cypher, though of harmless import, I
am not prepared to fay. But let Willie only
commit himfe'f 70 far, and then be carried by
his 6uiineis to that poor, unfortunate, out.
law'd, erflaved province of Louiiians, and a.
burdant cauir will be furnifhed for throwing
him into il,p's hole, where he may be heard
of no more or he may have The better fortune
of tranfportation to Warrington for trial
The danger apprehended grows out of no
vifionary climates. We have not arrived at
that poist of our enquiry, which will make the
occalion of arouiirg the indignation OF our
country apt. We ihall very ioon, Fir, give you
An awful inIpreGion of the miferics OF that ILL
fated territory, under the total furrender of the
civil authority to military guidance. am dfi-
ven prematurely TO glance at one outrage,
which may fervc as fample of the wretched
Rate in which that fiction of our dependencies
is. A citizen of the United States now within
the hearing Of my voice, in time of profound
peace, was feiZed in New-Orleans, and, with
out being charged with any offence, but mere
IN {,I{r cir hat he eiv
gainF Col. Burr in this court, to which place
he was willing to come, he was committed to
prifon without bal! or man-priZe ; thrown in
to a thinking room with the common feons and
negroes confined there, and only taken out at
la.t to be tranfportec. TO Richmond in cufody.
He was not even permitted to go to bis iodg-
ings to get ihrt, but like a nalefattor be
was forced to yield, in the humbrnefs of
tubmilion, to the will of his matters. Our re-
evolutionary heroes were provoked to indepen-
dence in part, by the wrongs of transporting
American criminals for trial to England /; bot
at this time, are content with fuch tranf-
portatiou, under circumstances of enormity,
OF one guilty of nothing but of fufprtted ca
paoity to be witrefsl Shall we not be wary
how I've furnifh a pretext ngainft this Granger
now called to implicate himfeif, in what are
called the treaions and miiocmcanors OF Col
Burr, when without this he has fuffered, tho
Orleans.
But it has been remarked, that my client
and his courirl Mad taken much intereR in this
privilege. We all feel interetcd in faving this
lnoffeuiive foreigner from the vengeance OF ilIe-
gal power. Col. Burr, particularly from the
circum0ance of having him in his fervice, is TO-
Iicitous that he alone iiould feel the prefTure
OF unjuit fufpicion and proiecution.
But now did this letter conc here There
r
mark in the mode of it's acquiition. Mr..
Hay fsid that there was pot mark. The
" IS" on the back is the only Poft mark of
many of the country pot Offices. Flow came
that mark there ! VIII the gentlemen fay how
the paper was acquiredl IF the poR office
was robbed, the pofefiion of the paper was
gained fcioniouay. The contribution has pro-
vlded agaiuft the feizure of papers and the aet
OF csngre.s has fixed the offence of Healing from
the poh Offices. 1t is impofiible that this moit
detefable vice Of the mott infamous of Euro.
pean courts can have been PatroniZed by the
government. BY familiarity of our ruler.
with iuch hateful practic IS, the habits of the
people would be demoraiZed. beg the CD.
polite council to join me in arragnng an act
which will difsrace all who had an agency in
1t. 1t mutt be dreadful fate Of fociety in
which fuch an oifeace fhould be made the
means of sihting to prove another. The prin
CIFdi or thl5 government, II mere, would lOin
in the denunciatiou. II il behoves the govern.
mcnt to fnpprefs a paper thus unconititntion-
ally, c!andefinely and illegally iobtaned-if
they cannot ufe the end without fanetfying the
,Eeans--if they in the noble, generous fpirit of
Chatham miniftrg, would dhcaim every i'm
pure cxpedient, their able representatives here
would do we'll not 70 dilgrsce their fingers with
its touch.
Now for the attrael quehion of law. The
queltion put TO Willie is '' do you ~undcrti and
that the original of this letter was written by
Col" Burr" (Mr. Nc Rae. No that is TO.
the queflion att put. The prefent queRion is
- do you underfand that part of the letter
which is in cypher ?') Very we'll. The gen.
tIemeD charge that this letter contains tFeafona-
bic niatter (Mr Hay. No fuch thng) Then
they mnit admit that it contains no treafonable
matter. Hence the letter is irrelevant and
forms no Gubjett for di(cufion.
The rule is, that you Ghall not make the
witnefs aniwer qneiton which may TEND to
implcate him in moral or legal turpitude.
The witnefs bimleIf m',6 be the Judge how far
bis aIfwer may affect hrn--otherwfe if he were
Obliged to anfEer for the court 10 Judge of its
tendency, he would be furendering his pro-
lection in the means OF fecuring it. If the ar
fwer fhould tend TO make up a Jingle link in the
chain of teftinoDy neccTary to involve him in
fufPicion, ne has, right 10 decline the anfwer.
The LAX cannot be perceived by the judge to
belong to the chain without an eXpof1re of c.
very other part Of it. The queaiou cued from