Never, perhaps, were any persons accused of high treason (certainly not since the government became settled at the Revolution) exposed to such great difficulties in making their defence. It will be seen by the following speeches, and by the indictment prefixed to them, that the prisoners were charged with compassing and imagining the death of the King, the overt act being a conspiracy, which, though masked under the pretence of procuring by legal means a reform in the Commons House of Parliament, had for its real object the subversion by rebellious force of the whole frame of the constitution of the country. In support of this indictment it will be seen by the following speeches that the evidence for the Crown was divided into two distinct branches, viz., to establish, first, that such a conspiracy existed, and, secondly, to prove that the prisoners were parties to it. This course of proceeding had been sanctioned by the opinions of the judges upon other trials, but the adoption of it upon this occasion, however legal, undoubtedly exposed the prisoners to great peril of prejudgment, because almost the whole of the evidence given by the Crown against them had been collected by both Houses of Parliament just before the trial, and printed by their authority; and a statute* had even been passed, declaring that the treacherous conspiracy, which constituted the first and very important branch of the evidence, did in fact exist within the kingdom. We say a very important branch of the evidence, because undoubtedly if the jury had considered that the evidence supported the truth of the preamble to the Act of Parliament, the prisoners must have been in a manner without a defence. Authority was also given to detain, .without bail, persons already in custody, on suspicion of being engaged in the above conspiracy, or who should be thereafter committed on that account. With regard to this Act of Parliament, it is impossible, on the one hand, to deny the constitutional competency of Parliament to declare the existence of a dangerous and extended conspiracy, endangering not only the safety, but the very existence of the state. On the other hand, the persons who may become obnoxious to suspicion, and be subjected to a public prosecution in consequence of such a legislative proceeding, come to a trial under seemingly insurmountable disadvantages. In the very case before us, the two Houses of Parliament had collected and arranged the greater part of the written evidence afterwards produced by the Crown against the prisoners, and in the preamble of the Act had given it the character of a detestable conspiracy to subvert the monarchy, although, as has been already stated, the inquiry of the jury was to be divided into two branches-first, whether the evidence, great part of which had been so collected and arranged in Parliament and published, substantiated the declaration made in the preamble of the bill, of the existence of such a conspiracy to subvert the Government? and, secondly, whether the prisoners had any, and what share in it? Now, it is most obvious that if, in deference to the judgment of Parliament, the first part of this division had been found by the jury, and the law of high *34th Geo. III., c. 54. The preamble to the bill states, that "whereas a treacherous and detestable conspiracy has been formed for subverting the existing laws and constitution, and for introducing the system of anarchy and confusion which has so lately prevailed in France," &c. treason, as stated by the counsel for the Crown, had been adopted, the prisoners could scarcely have had any defence, as they then must have been taken, upon the whole of the evidence, to have been privy to proceedings throughout the whole kingdom, directed to the subversion of the monarchy, and destruction of the king. All that can be said upon such a case is, first, that dependence must be had upon the sacred trust of the Legislature, not without urgent necessity to adopt such a proceeding, and carefully to consider the fair result of the evidence, when made the foundation of an Act of Parliament; and, secondly, that the British constitution provides for the safety of all who have the happiness to live under its protection, by giving to twelve men, to be taken from the mass of the people, the privilege and the duty to sit in judgment upon all that the authority of Parliament may have decided to be the fact, and all that the learning of the judges may consider to be the application of the law. In that respect, whatever may be the merits of this case, and whatever, amidst the variety of judgments in a free country, may be the prevailing opinion concerning it, the trial by jury must ever be dear to Englishmen. The verdict of acquittal, instead of giving encouragement to whatever spirit of sedition might have existed at that period, produced an universal spirit of content and confidence in the people. Nothing indeed could more properly excite such sentiments than so memorable a proof of safety under the laws. THE INDICTMENT. SESSION HOUSE IN THE OLD BAILEY, PRESENT,-Lord Chief-Justice EYRE; Lord Chief-Baron THOMAS HARDY, JOHN HORNE TOOKE, JOHN AUGUSTUS BONNEY, STEWART KYD, JEREMIAH JOYCE, THOMAS HOLCROFT, JOHN RICHTER, JOHN THELWALL, and JOHN BAXTER, were arraigned, and severally pleaded Not guilty. The indictment charged, that the prisoners, being subjects of our Lord the King, not having the fear of God in their hearts, nor weighing the duty of their allegiance, but being moved and seduced by the instigation of the devil, as false traitors against our said Lord the King, their supreme, true, lawful, and undoubted lord, and wholly withdrawing the cordial love and true and due obedience which every true and faithful subject of our said Lord the King should and of right ought to bear towards our said Lord the King, and contriving, and with all their strength intending, traitorously to break and disturb the peace and common tranquillity of this kingdom of Great Britain, and to stir, move, and excite insurrection, rebellion, and war against our said Lord the King within this kingdom, and to subvert and alter the legislature, rule, and government now duly and happily established in this kingdom, and to depose our said Lord the King from the royal state, title, power, and government of this kingdom, and to bring and put our said Lord the King to death, on the first day of March, in the thirty-third year of the reign of our sovereign Lord the now King, and on divers other days and times, maliciously and traitorously, with force and arms, &c., did amongst themselves, and together with divers other false traitors, to the said jurors unknown, conspire, compass, imagine, and intend to stir up, move, and excite insurrection, rebellion, and war against our said Lord the King, within this kingdom of Great Britain, and to subvert and alter the legislature, rule, and government now duly and happily established within this kingdom of Great Britain, and to depose our said Lord the King from the royal state, title, power, and government of this kingdom, and to bring and put our said Lord the King to death. And that to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, they, with force and arms, maliciously and traitorously did meet, conspire, consult, and agree among themselves, and together with divers other false traitors, to the said jurors unknown, to cause and procure a convention and meeting of divers subjects of our said Lord the King to be assembled and held within this kingdom, with intent and in order that the persons to be assembled at such convention and meeting should and might wickedly and traitorously, without and in defiance of the authority, and against the will of the Parliament of this kingdom, subvert and alter, and cause to be subverted and altered, the legislature, rule, and government now duly and happily established in this kingdom, and depose and cause to be deposed our said Lord the King from the royal state, title, power, and government thereof. And further to fulfil, perfect, and to bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, and in order the more readily and effectually to assemble such convention and meeting as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid, and thereby to accomplish the same purposes, they, together with divers other false traitors, to the jurors unknown, maliciously and traitorously did compose and write, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously cause to be composed and written, divers books, pamphlets, letters, instructions, resolutions, orders, declarations, addresses, and writings, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously publish, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously cause to be published, divers other books, pamphlets, letters, instructions, resolutions, orders, declarations, addresses, and writings, the said books, pamphlets, letters, instructions, resolutions, orders, declarations, addresses, and writings so respectively composed, written, published, and cause to be composed, written, and published, purporting and containing therein, among other things, incitements, encouragements, and exhortations to move, induce, and persuade the subjects of our said Lord the King to choose, depute, and send, and cause to be chosen, deputed, and sent, persons as delegates, to compose and constitute such convention and meeting as aforesaid, to be so holden as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, and in order the more readily and effectually to assemble such convention and meeting as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid, and thereby to accomplish the same purposes, they did meet, consult, and deliberate among themselves, and together with divers other false traitors, to the said jurors unknown, of and concerning the calling and assembling such convention and meeting as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid, and how, when, and where such convention and meeting should be assembled and held, and by what means the subjects of our said Lord the King should and might be induced and moved to send persons as delegates to compose and constitute the same. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, and in order the more readily and effectually to assemble such convention and meeting as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid, and thereby to accomplish the same purposes, maliciously and traitorously did consent and agree that the said Jeremiah Joyce, John Augustus Bonney, John Horne Tooke, Thomas Wardle, Matthew Moore, John Thelwall, John Baxter, Richard Hodgson, one John Lovett, one William Sharp, and one John Pearson, should meet, confer, and co-operate among themselves, and together with divers other false traitors, to the jurors unknown, for and towards the calling and assembling such convention and meeting as aforesaid, for the traitorous purposes aforesaid. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, they maliciously and traitorously did cause and procure to be made and provided, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously consent and agree to the making and providing of divers arms and offensive weapons, to wit, guns, muskets, pikes, and axes, for the purpose of arming divers subjects of our said Lord the King, in order and to the intent that the same subjects should and might unlawfully, forcibly, and traitorously oppose and withstand our said Lord the King in the due and lawful exercise of his royal power and authority in the execution of the laws and statutes of this realm, and should and might unlawfully, forcibly and traitorously subvert and alter, and aid and assist in subverting and altering, without and in defiance of the authority and against the will of the Parliament of this kindom, the legislature, rule, and government now duly and happily established in this kingdom, and depose, and aid and assist in deposing, our said Lord the King from the royal state, title, power, and government of this kingdom. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, they with force and arms maliciously and traitorously did meet, conspire, consult, and agree among themselves to raise, levy, and make insurrection, rebellion, and war within this kingdom of Great Britain, against our said Lord the King. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, they maliciously and traitorously did meet, conspire, consult, and agree amongst themselves, and together with divers other false traitors, to the jurors unknown, unlawfully, wickedly, and traitorously to subvert and alter, and cause to be subverted and altered, the legislature, rule, and government now duly and happily established in this kingdom, and to depose and cause to be deposed our said Lord the King from the royal state, title, power, and government of this kingdom. And further to fulfil, perfect, and bring to effect their most evil and wicked treason and treasonable compassings and imaginations aforesaid, and in order the more readily and effectually to bring about such subversion, alteration, and deposition as last aforesaid, they maliciously and traitorously did prepare and compose, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously cause and procure to be prepared and composed, divers books, pamphlets, letters, declarations, instructions, resolutions, orders, addresses, and writings, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously publish and disperse, and did then and there maliciously and traitorously cause and procure to be published and dispersed, divers other books, pamphlets, letters, declarations, instructions, resolutions, orders, addresses, and writings, the said several books, pamphlets, letters, declarations, instructions, resolutions, orders. addresses, and writings so respectively prepared, composed, published, dispersed, and caused to be prepared, composed, published, and dispersed, as last aforesaid, purporting and containing therein (amongst other things) incitements, encouragements, and exhortations, to move, induce, and persuade the subjects of our said Lord and King to aid and assist in carrying into effect such traitorous subversion, alteration, and deposition as last aforesaid, and also containing therein (amongst other things) information, instructions, and directions to the subjects of our said Lord the King, how, when, and upon what occasions the traitorous purposes last aforesaid should and might be carried into effect. And further to |