Norwich bulletin., 1914-08-05
FAMOUS TRIALS
TRIAL OF LORD CARDIGAN.

There has been only one trial of peer of England before the sovereign in parliament since 1716. This was Lord Cardigan, whose very name was odious to the people, and who, by what may be inferred from the words of Macaulay, could not go into a theatre without being insulted. and could not got into railway train unless hiss was raised against him.
 Lord Cardigan at the time Of his trial was commanding officer of the 11th Hussars, and many were the in- suits given to other officers of the same regiment, by the sending of insulti lg messages, the fiogging of a soldier on Sunday between the services. where half an hour before the soldiers com rades had mustered for worship, and finally Lord Cardigan went so far as to fight a duel with a lieutenant who had left the corps and shot him through the body.
 In September. 1S40, a letter was in- serted in the Morning Chronicle de- nouncing Lord Cardigan with refer- ence to his insults and. in other words. writing a letter which. although true, was not expected to make the public any more friendly toward the despotic officer and lord. It was signed An Old Soldier" but was written by a Capt Harvey Tuckett, whose name and address were (with his consenD given to Lord Cardigan on his appu- cation to the Chronicle.
 4 challenge was sent and the two fought a duel on Wimbledon common near a windmill. At the second ex-
 change of shots Capt Tuckett was wounded and the parties were taken into custody by the miller at the
 windmill. who had, to prevent recur- renee of duels on the common, some time before been made a constable.
 Under the Magma Charter peer
 tried for felony must be tried by his
 peers, and on Feb. Is. 1S41, a brilliant
 array of these dignitaries was assem-
 bled at the peers chamber. Cardigan
 was first taken to task by the bishop
 of London for his language. and Lord
 Eldon expressed his inability to under stand how a man could fight duel without some amount of delinquency while the bishop of London stigmatiZed dueling as "a shame and a scandal, the remains of the system of chivalry,
 barbarous wicked and unchristian."
 The miller. whose name was Thomas
 Hunt Damn, was first called. On Sat- urday, Sept. ?. 1S40. about o'clock m the afternoon. he said, two carriages from which Lord Cardigan and three other gentlemen alighted, after which he witnessed the duel. He took all four into custody. but allowed Tuckett, having been wounded, to proceed to
 his home on giving him his visiting card,
 But the prosecution suddenly found
 themselves in a quandary. No witness to the transaction could prove the real Christian names of Capt Tuckett-the only Christian name of his they knew was Harvey" A chemist knew him as Harvey Tuckett, and MT. Codd, an army agent, knew him as Harvey Gar net Phipps Tuckett, but had not seen
 him at Hamilton place or Poultry place and consequently could not connect him with the Tuckett mentioned by the miller. Lord DenmaD was not the man where defendants liberty was in peril, to refuse him the benefit of any flaw, however trivial. There was, he ob- served. "an absolute want of circum- l stances to connect the individual at whom the pistol was fired and who af- | terward was seen wounded at Hamil- l ton place, with the half pay officer l known to MT Codd as bearing the names set forth in the indictment. The mere fact of the wounded person bear ] ing some of the names used by the half l pay officer is no proof that the former and the latter are the same"
 The peers concurred in the proposal l strangers were readmitted and silence proclaimed. The lord high steward i then put the question individually to ]! every peer, calling the names from 3 l list. Addressing the junior baron h. i inquired; John Lord Keane. how sass l your lordship. is James Thomas, earl 1 of Cardigan, guilty of the felony where 1 of he stands indicted, or not guilty?'' ] Whereupon, Lord Keane, standing UT ] in his place uncovered, and laying his l right hand on his breast answered: i Not guilty, upon my honor" All the peers present concurred In this da- qualified verdict.