The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1810-06-08

rather than libel. In;that letter there was
one expression that had been much insisted
upon in the course of the discussion upon it,
as most offensive and libcllous--it was that
passage in which the speakers warrant was
described as thing SUI generis now, ia
order to shew that. this assertion was no, al
together SO unfounded as had been pretend.
ed. and as smoothing had as yet been said upon
that part of the subject, except in the reso-
buttons, he would take the liberty of trespas-
sing upon their attention for few moments;
while he proceeded to trace the progress of
the warrant from the time of its being issu-
by the speaker to that Of its being carri-
ed into effect. 1t appeared then that the
speaker after having drawn up his war,
rant, presented it to the SERGEANT, who pro.
ceeded to execute it, but on his arrival at
the house of sir Francis, he stumbles upon
the unforeseen obstacle Of q closed hall door
Ca laugh How was this formidable barrier
to be disposed of .t.teE
'Fhe SERGEANT looked at his warrant and
then at the door, and could make nothing
OF either ;-he found himself at a loss, nei-
ther, more nor less than what they called
Puzzled, and as. in such cases, sage advice
is desirable, he turns away from the hall
door and proceeds to consult the speaker :;
and what does the Speaker! Why, he re-.
ters to the warrant, and, after due delibe-
ration. finds himself just as much huzzled
as the SERGEANT had been; Ca laugh, } but
there was to be another iuzzie-she speak
err having advised the sevjeant to consult
the magistrates, away goes the serjeant to
the Bow street officers, but they under.
stood too we'll the nature of a legal warrant
to be able to make any thing OF an insrru..
ment with which they were so wholly unac
quaiuted, and so the Bow street officers be-.
ing as much fuzzfed as either the serjeant
or the speaker himself, refused to give any
advice at all upon the subject { a laugh, J
they understood the laws of the land, but
they did not pretend to the knowledge of the
speakers warrant. But there was to be vet,
another hnzzie, a laugh, and it was fated
that this all-potent and undisputed instru..
ment of power that had uzzieG the ser
Jeant. the speaker and the Bow street ma
gistrates, was to puzzle no less than cabi-
net council.--( laughter 1.-The serjeant in
his distress, turns from Bow street to the
grave collected wisdom of the government,
where all the hrst men of the state, the
learned, the mighty and the wise, were as
sembled together in council, the lord nigh
chancellor himself, and to crown all, the
nnheard OF talents of the 7vise man of
the east. With all this accession of wis
dom, what did this great council of state,
| IN order to solve the puzzle? Why, they
raj to help them. As soon as the cabinet
council had resolved themselves puzzled,
the chancellor of the exchequer himself,
lawyer, advises the serjeant to ask ad-
wee OF the attorney general Just as all the
F, others had, after grave deliberations, adj
vised him to take advice of somebody else.
Wei then, the unfortunate paper, after
travelling so far to no purpose, now that it
was before the attorney general, might be
| thought to be in sight of land--according
| ly the attorney general bears down upon it
with the whole weight of his legal know.
ledge, and after studying, and celebrating
and resolving, this great law officer gives it
| as his opinion and advice, that the serjeant
should lay a state of the case before him,
the attorney general--( Laughter -
So much for this plain and explicit piece of
paper. so paramount, ineligible and indis.
! putable, though it puzzled the serieant who
was to execute it, the Speaker who issued
1T, the civil authority who was to enforce it,
| and the attorney general that was to explain
lit AhhIauses. )-But after puzzIing
so many, there remained one party yet to be
puzzled, and that was British Jury. It,
perhaps, remained for British Jury to
| show, if not what it was, for that might be
impossible, what twas not.-( .4hhiaus-
es. )-And yet, though it had puzzled the
knowledge and the wisdom of the state. il
was libel to call it " thing SUI generis. %
In the name OF common sense, what was it (?
lie would not quarrel about words, but was
1T, or was it not, thing that nobody could
understand! If it was usage, why had it
been stated upon all hands, that there was
no precedent for breaking open outer doors
to enforce it ? And if it was law, why
were all the great lawyers at such a stand {?
Why should it prove such stumbling block
TO government oflawyers? He would now
beg leave to trouble them with one or two
observations on the case not yet reverted to-.
| When the case OF Mr.. Gale Jones was first
| before the House of Commons, how high
and poBpous Vas the language of certain
gentlemen, upon the privileges of Parlia-
privileges, and nothing but priviIeg..
| es, great, because underlined, its obscnrity
was pleaded as proof of its authority. The
House was the judge of its own privileges,
and no other power whatever had right to
Judge, to illustrate, or to circumscribe them
the House alone could best know and de
eide upon their own privileges. But how
was this high tone lowered in the subsequent
case of Sir Francis Burdett Then those
mighty privileges, of which the House alone
could judge, shifted their ground, and in
stead Of resting upon the underlined discre-
ton OF the House itself, question said to
involve them all, is anxiously referred to
the decision of the Bow street magistrates
{ Laughter and aftLauSes. )-Without say
ing more upon the subject of that paper, he
would take that opportunity of avowing to
his fellow -citizens present, that ne had, from
he Eret of rr,cd frOr, b,s ~