diff options
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826-h.zip | bin | 178536 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826-h/23826-h.htm | 4666 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826-h/images/p0b.jpg | bin | 64291 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826-h/images/p0s.jpg | bin | 18468 -> 0 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826.txt | 4215 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | old/23826.zip | bin | 93462 -> 0 bytes |
6 files changed, 0 insertions, 8881 deletions
diff --git a/old/23826-h.zip b/old/23826-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index ca7f35a..0000000 --- a/old/23826-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/23826-h/23826-h.htm b/old/23826-h/23826-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index f3c3d0b..0000000 --- a/old/23826-h/23826-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4666 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html - PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<head> -<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=US-ASCII" /> -<title>A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry Cooper</title> - <style type="text/css"> -/*<![CDATA[ XML blockout */ -<!-- - P { margin-top: .75em; - margin-bottom: .75em; - } - P.headingsummary { margin-left: 5%;} - H1, H2 { - text-align: center; - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - } - H3, H4, H5 { - text-align: left; - margin-top: 1em; - margin-bottom: 1em; - } - BODY{margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; - } - table { border-collapse: collapse; } - td { vertical-align: top; border: 1px solid black;} - td p { margin: 0.2em; } - .blkquot {margin-left: 4em; margin-right: 4em;} /* block indent */ - - .smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} - - .pagenum {position: absolute; - left: 92%; - font-size: smaller; - text-align: right; - color: gray;} - - .citation {vertical-align: super; - font-size: .8em; - text-decoration: none;} - // --> - /* XML end ]]>*/ - </style> -</head> -<body> -<h2> -<a href="#startoftext">A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry Cooper, by William Cooper</a> -</h2> -<pre> -The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry -Cooper, by William Cooper - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry Cooper - Barrister-at-Law, of the Norfolk Circuit; as also, of his Father - - -Author: William Cooper - - - -Release Date: December 11, 2007 [eBook #23826] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF THE LATE -HENRY COOPER*** -</pre> -<p><a name="startoftext"></a></p> -<p>Transcribed from the [1856] W. & H. S. Warr edition by -David Price, ccx074@pglaf.org</p> -<p style="text-align: center"> -<a href="images/p0b.jpg"> -<img alt="A slight sketch of my Father, when over 70, taken in -Court by Mr. Joseph Geldart of Norwich" src="images/p0s.jpg" /> -</a></p> -<p style="text-align: center">W. & H. S. Warr 63, High -Holborn</p> -<h1><!-- page 1--><a name="page1"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -1</span>A SKETCH OF THE LIFE<br /> -<span class="smcap">of the late</span><br /> -HENRY COOPER,<br /> -<span class="smcap">barrister-at-law</span>, <span -class="smcap">of the norfolk circuit</span>;<br /> -<span class="smcap">as also</span>,<br /> -OF HIS FATHER,</h1> -<p style="text-align: center"><span class="smcap">by his -son</span>,</p> -<p style="text-align: center">WILLIAM COOPER, <span -class="smcap">Esq.</span>, B.A., Oxon.,</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><i>Of Lincoln’s Inn</i>, -<i>Barrister at Law</i>;</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><span class="smcap">author of the -dramas of</span></p> -<p style="text-align: center">“<span class="smcap">The -Student of Jena</span>,” “<span -class="smcap">Mokanna</span>,”<br /> -“<span class="smcap">Zopyrus</span>,” &c.</p> -<p style="text-align: center">“<span -class="smcap">Meminisse Juvat</span>.”</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><span -class="smcap">london</span>:<br /> -<span class="smcap">printed and published by w. & h. s. -warr</span>,<br /> -<span class="smcap">63</span>, <span class="smcap">high -holborn</span>.</p> -<h2><!-- page 5--><a name="page5"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -5</span>DEDICATION.</h2> -<p style="text-align: center">To <span class="smcap">Mr. SERGEANT -STORKS</span>.</p> -<p><span class="smcap">Dear Mr. Sergeant</span>,</p> -<p>To you I dedicate this sketch of the Life of my late brother, -Henry Cooper; and, for three good reasons—the first, -because, you were associated with my brother on circuit, knew him -well, and were one of those, who being often opposed to him in -court, were best able to appreciate his talents, eloquence, and -the general powers of his mind;—my second, because, when -young, I have listened often to your eloquence, and been made -merry by your wit and humour;—my third, because, you have -known all my family, and by one and all are much -respected;—and my dear Mr. Sergeant, with kind regards to -yourself, and best wishes to you and yours,</p> -<p style="text-align: right">Believe me,<br /> -Yours very truly,<br /> -WILLIAM COOPER.</p> -<p>3, <span class="smcap">Hare Court</span>, <span -class="smcap">Temple</span>,<br /> -<i>December</i>, 1856.</p> -<h2><!-- page 7--><a name="page7"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -7</span>PREFACE.</h2> -<p><span class="smcap">Kind Reader</span>,</p> -<p>In attempting the life of my late brother, who, after -struggling for years at the bar in almost obscurity, had, on a -sudden, his brilliancy noticed and his great talents -acknowledged, and no sooner had he reached that eminence in his -profession, when all was made easy before him, than unpitying -Clolho stept up, and cut his thread of life; I must ask your -indulgence, for the reasons you will see, as you proceed in this -my life of him, as also, from the very scanty materials I have -been able to collect for it. How the first idea of this -suggested itself to my mind, I will tell you; a few days ago, I -was about to re-publish some Dramas, written by me in earlier -years, and thinking one of them would scarcely make a volume by -itself, the <i>thought struck me</i>, on looking over my -treasures, and finding some verses of my brother Henry in his own -hand writing, amidst many youthful rhymes of my own and of my -family, <i>that</i> I would string them together, and so swell -the work alluded to. To do this I thought it necessary to -affix a short heading to each, to particularize <!-- page 8--><a -name="page8"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 8</span>the writer, and -for this purpose wrote, to head my brother’s, a short -biographical sketch of him, consisting of about thirty lines, and -quitting my house, left it on my way to chambers at my printers, -returned home, the labours of the day over,—went to bed, -but not to sleep, thought of my late brother, of that I had -written of him, pondered over the past anecdotes of his life, -that had been often told me, recalled his image to my memory, and -amidst airy visions of the past, of my father, earlier days, and -of youthful pleasures mixed with pain, fell asleep—<span -class="smcap">but</span>—with a determination. To -carry it out,—on the morrow I began this sketch. You -must judge how I have performed my self-imposed task, and wishing -it may amuse you, and encourage young aspirants who shall chance -to read it, not to give way under difficulties, but strenuously -to persevere, seeing how much may be achieved by diligence and a -determination not to yield, remembering ever the good advice and -the useful maxim delivered of old:—</p> -<blockquote><p>“Tu ne cede malis sed contra<br /> -Audacior ito—”<br /> -“Possunt quia posse videntur.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, yours faithfully,<br /> -W. COOPER.</p> -<h2><!-- page 9--><a name="page9"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -9</span>LIFE OF HENRY COOPER.</h2> -<p>The subject of the present memoir, Henry Cooper, was born at a -house in Bethel Street, in the City of Norwich, now well-known as -the late residence of Alderman Hawkes, and where resided for many -years his father, Charles, now better known as Old Counsellor -Cooper, a remarkable man, who, like the late William Cobbett, -though of humble origin, possessed one of those minds that will -and must, as they have ever done from the time of Deioces of -Ecbatana (recorded by Herodotus) till now, elevate the possessor -and compel the homage, whilst exciting the no small envy of -inferior intellects. What education he received was at a -small school kept by the Rev. John Bruckner (a Lutheran Divine), -who died in 1804, and was buried at Guist, in Norfolk, where -French, Latin, and the common rudiments of an English education -were taught; and where, too, the late William -Taylor,—perhaps one of the most extraordinary men Norwich -ever produced, the early and intimate friend of Southey, and who -was the first, according to Lockhart’s Life of Scott, to -give that great writer a taste for poetry by his (Taylor’s) -spirited and inimitable translation of Bürger’s well -known ballad beginning,—</p> -<blockquote><p>“At break of day from frightful dreams up -started Eleanor,”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>was his fellow pupil, and who has told me what a gentle, -industrious, and amiable boy he remembered my father <!-- page -10--><a name="page10"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -10</span>(truly, in this instance, the child was father of the -man); there he acquired, no doubt, some knowledge, but it was far -more to his own self-instruction that he was indebted for the -large and varied knowledge he possessed, for, as his brother -Samuel (his only and younger brother,—he had a sister but -she died young) informed my mother that such was his early thirst -for knowledge, that he not only repudiated all play, and the -sports of boyhood, taught himself Greek, and greedily devoured -the contents of every book that came within his reach, but would, -with the pocket-money given him, purchase candles, and when the -family had retired to rest, light one, and sit and read till the -dawn of day, when he would creep into bed, and sleep till the -hour of call, when he would rise to resume anew his mental -exercise. So years past by, and the young and sickly -looking boy grew into the youth, when his father, a man of strong -intellect, with a great deal of sound common sense, perceiving -the bent of his son’s mind,—and being a man who had -retired early in life from business with a small property, on -which he lived in a house at Heigham (a hamlet within the -city),—at once placed his son Charles with one of the most -respectable attornies, in large business in Norwich, as an -articled clerk to the law, where he very soon, by his persevering -industry, his assiduity, and the great acuteness shown in every -matter entrusted to his care and management, so conciliated the -good opinion of his master, who discovered progressively, the -evident marks of superior abilities [here, too, he indulged to an -excess his insatiable thirst for reading, that he would sit up -the greater part of the night for this purpose, to the neglect -and <!-- page 11--><a name="page11"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -11</span>injury of his health], that at the termination of his -engagement, his conduct was so acceptable, and his services so -manifest, and his influence, too, among the clients, was found to -be so extensive, that on his obtaining his certificate to -practise as an attorney, his principal was glad to offer him a -share in the business, and receive him as a partner; the -reputation he had already acquired became wide spread, and -quickly raised the firm in the estimation of the public, and -clients flocked to it, and all would see, if they could, and -consult with Mr. Cooper on their affairs.</p> -<p>Some years thus passed, when, from some cause or other, a -dissolution took place in the partnership, and when, probably -from the advice of friends stimulated by his wife’s -ambition (a Miss Yarrington, a woman as I have been given to -understand, of masculine mind, vast energy, and indomitable -spirit, whom her son Henry has been often said by those who knew -her, to have resembled in more than features, for in face he -resembled his mother), he was induced to enter himself at -Lincoln’s Inn, which he accordingly did in the year 1782, -and is thus entered: “Charles Cooper, of the City of -Norwich, eldest son of Charles Cooper of the same place, -merchant, admitted 22nd of April, 1782.” Prior to -this, a remarkable incident occurred in his life: he undertook -the conduct of a cause of great intricacy and importance for a -pauper, a labouring blacksmith. An extensive and valuable -landed property, well-known as Oby Hall, with its extensive -demesnes, had been for a long time in abeyance; the property was -estimated at that period, at not less than £30,000; on -failure of male issue, the descendants on the female side put in -their claim, among whom the blacksmith stood foremost; <!-- page -12--><a name="page12"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 12</span>he -came, consulted with my father on his claim, who became after a -time, convinced of the solidity of his title; and after examining -it with indefatigable assiduity, he at length, after much -entreaty, undertook to carry his cause through every court, were -it necessary, upon certain conditions; the conditions were, that -if my father succeeded in gaining the cause, in consideration of -taking upon himself all the risk, expenses, and labour, he should -enjoy the estate; whilst the claimant, having no relations but -the most distant, if any, was to receive an annuity for life of -£300. After almost insurmountable difficulties, great -expense, and consumption of time and labour, the long anticipated -time arrived when the trial was to decide the question of such -grave moment to the parties concerned: Lord Erskine came down to -Norwich specially retained for the claimant (the origin, I -believe of his after intimacy with Henry), the case came on for -trial,—was fought on both sides with all the ability and -ingenuity such a cause demanded (I forget the name of the -opposing counsel), the claimant’s title was confirmed, and -the estate gained. The claimant lived but a little more -than a year or two after to receive his annuity, to him absolute -wealth; and he died, I have heard, expressing to the last, his -gratitude to (as he styled my father) his protector.</p> -<p>Unfortunately, coming into the possession of the estate, my -father must turn farmer, and like him, I have before compared him -to, and I have often thought since reading the works of Cobbett, -that there was a similarity in their thoughts on many subjects; -he soon began to farm at a fearful loss (for to be a gainful -farmer, so farmers hold, or rather they did then, a man should -properly be trained to it from his youth), he <!-- page 13--><a -name="page13"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 13</span>was forced to -trust to others to do what he should himself have done, and being -still occupied in his professional pursuits at Norwich, his -visits to the hall and the estate were but occasional, and the -eye of the master was but too often absent; his family, however, -resided there, consisting of his wife and his four children, -Charles, Henry, Harriet, and Alfred, and there his affections -were centred, so that it cannot be wondered at, that with a -divided duty, and the course pursued, ere many years, but I am -forestalling, the estate soon became involved, and eventually he -was compelled to part with it at a loss, or rather with no gain, -for at the time of its sale, which happened at a period during -the long war, land fell all of a sudden greatly in value, and the -seller was glad to experience the truth of the old -saying—</p> -<blockquote><p>“When house and land and all are spent,<br -/> -Then learning is most excellent.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>This sale, however, did not occur till some years after the -death of his first wife, and when he had married his second, a -Miss Rose White, my mother, and by whom he had several children, -seven only living to maturity, all of whom, I being the eldest, -having survived him. His first family, with the exception -of his daughter, who died a few years ago, having all died -previous to the decease of their father. After having -pursued his studies with his accustomed assiduity, in chambers he -had taken in Stone Buildings, and eaten his terms, he was called -to the bar on the 9th of June, in the year 1788. (For these -several dates I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. Doyle, the -greatly respected steward of Lincoln’s <!-- page 14--><a -name="page14"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 14</span>Inn.) -When, having resided a few terms in London, he hastily left the -metropolis—the true and only sphere for the full -development of extensive legal knowledge and great abilities, -such as his,—to reside and practise as a provincial -barrister in his native city; where, from his previous -reputation, not only as a lawyer well versed in common law, with -great knowledge in the practical parts of it, but as a most -skilful conveyancer, and great real property lawyer, with a deep -knowledge of all its intricacies and moot points, he, at once, -obtained considerable practice, and a fine income, which, I -believe, by present provincial counsel would be regarded rather -as a fiction than reality. He was, moreover, a fluent -speaker, with diction pure, and most grammatical. I ought, -here, perhaps, to mention what will seem strange to the present -generation, that I have often heard my father say, that the first -book he began to study law from was “Wood’s -Institutes,” a book that “the Commentaries of -Blackstone,” rendering the study of the law far more -intelligible and easy to the student, has long completely -superseded. In Norwich he continued to reside up to his -death, where he was ever applied to by every attorney, without -exception, far and near, if any very difficult point of law -arose; and, till within some few years prior to his death, which -happened on the 21st of July, 1836, when age as, is usual, though -it kindly spared the vigour of his intellect, yet brought with it -its physical weakness and ailments, he was employed as leading -counsel in many important causes, where legal knowledge and -acumen was required; and, in the courts, from the high reputation -he had acquired, he ever commanded the ear of the judges, and the -respect of his brethren at the bar. <!-- page 15--><a -name="page15"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 15</span>He had the -joy, too, to live to see his son Henry rising fast to eminence in -the same profession, though the after pang and anguish to sorrow -for his death; and he grieved for him in heart, though not his -youngest, as did Jacob at the imagined loss of his favourite, -and, in my opinion, never did he quite get over it; he not only -loved, but was proud of him.</p> -<p>The latter years of him, whose life I have thus briefly -sketched, were past at his small country residence, situated at -Lakenham, where his second wife, who survived him, my mother, now -seventy-four, still resides, a hamlet of and situate two miles -from Norwich, where he spent the chief of his time, of that he -could spare from the city where he practised, till up to the last -twelve months of his life, when in his eighty-fourth year he -expired, worn out with past exertion and years, and was, as chief -Coroner and Magistrate of the Close and its precincts, under the -jurisdiction of the Dean and Chapter, buried within the cloisters -of the cathedral.</p> -<p>By his family, from his sweetness of disposition, kindness of -heart, and amiability of temper, he was tenderly beloved and -regretted, and still whenever recalled to memory in the quietude -of the chamber the eye will ever be moistened by a tear, and the -heart kindle at the recollection; and by many others he was and -will be yet greatly missed; the poor and struggling literary man -he would encourage not only with praise, but with his purse, and, -<span class="smcap">that</span>, the poor and needy had ever open -to them, and his advice besides gratuitously, whenever required -(and this might be confirmed by hundreds still living “in -the <span class="smcap">once</span> ancient city,” as a -certain wise Alderman of yore styled it), and to their affairs he -would give as much attention as to the richest client; his -private memoranda alone, after <!-- page 16--><a -name="page16"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 16</span>death, told -his good deeds, for he strictly adhered to the beautiful doctrine -laid down by the great Teacher, “But when thou doest alms, -let not thy left hand know what thy right hand -doeth,”—“<i>Quando ullum invenies -parem</i>?”</p> -<p>Of his first family, Charles, the eldest son, was intended for -the bar, and was entered at Lincoln’s Inn, but from the -natural sensitiveness of his disposition he never kept his terms, -and soon gave up all thoughts of the profession; he lingered at -home, a Westminster scholar, a man of extensive reading, and of -great intelligence [as I have been informed, for I was much too -young fully to appreciate him], till after many years, on -Henry’s quitting Bermudas, he became the secretary to Sir -James Cockburn, in which employment he continued some years, and -only returned when Sir James ceased to be the governor. He -then became a kind of superior clerk in the Marine office then -held in Spring Gardens, and subsequently died at the age of about -forty-five or forty-eight of consumption, a complaint of the -mother’s family. Alfred went into the army as an -ensign, was at the battle of Waterloo, was wounded there, was -ordered and went subsequently to India with his regiment, the -14th Foot, where, years after, just as he had obtained a sick -leave to return home, he was shot at Dinapoor, whilst reposing on -his sofa, thinking probably, or dreaming of home and its -affections, by a drunken Sepoy, mistaking him (in his mad -excitement) for his servant, who had just previously refused him -drink; the occurrence caused, necessarily, great excitement and -much conversation at the time, the man was caught and -hanged—a satisfaction to justice, but a wretched -consolation to his family, by whom, as the youngest, and amiable -as he was gentle, he was most fondly loved. His father and -sister, I <!-- page 17--><a name="page17"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 17</span>believe, were never made acquainted -with the true cause of his death. A letter of Henry’s -relating, though indistinctly, for evident reasons, to the sad -occurrence, will be placed before the reader. Harriet, as I -have said, the only sister (who married a Dr. Leath, a physician -in the army, who resides still at Bayswater) died not very long -ago, leaving no issue.</p> -<p>Having given a sketch, which I think and hope will have -interested the reader of him, from whom He sprung, whose life I -am about to delineate. I will now proceed to depict the -life of the Son, with the simple remark that I have undertaken a -task of no slight difficulty (and much such an one as that of the -poor Jews, who, under their hard taskmasters in Egypt, were set -to make bricks without straw), with very slight materials to -describe the life of one who died when I was sixteen, and whom I -loved from his unvaried kindness to me, of the life of one who, -had he lived, would have had a far abler biographer. Henry, -in early life, took a propensity to and entered the navy, and was -a midshipman in the battle of the Nile, but soon after, disliking -the service, quitted the profession.</p> -<p>His education, when he returned from sea, was, through -indulgence, neglected: and he passed most of his time at Oby -Hall, in Norfolk, the then residence of his father, and distant -about eight miles from Yarmouth, in shooting, fishing, and -driving a tandem-cart about the country, built of unusual height; -and an anecdote is related of him, that, after driving it awhile, -he went to Mr. Clements, the builder at Norwich, and said, -“Well, Clements, you have built a machine to surprise all -the world, and I am come to surprise you by paying you for -it.” And to show his early quick perception, ready -reply, wilfulness, and <!-- page 18--><a name="page18"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 18</span>precocity, I must here relate two -well-attested anecdotes: the first, when quite a child, and at -his lessons in the nursery, on his mother’s running up to -dispel the noise and disturbance he was making, she exclaimed in -anger, after in some measure correcting him, “Why, sir, if -you go on in this manner you’ll turn the house out of the -windows,” the young gentleman, looking roguishly at his -mother, responded, “How can I do that, Ma, for the house is -bigger than the windows?” this of course dissipated all -anger, and brought a smile to the mother’s face; silence, -however, was restored and study resumed. The other, when he -was about eleven or twelve years of age, a poor soldier, who had -been kind to him, assisting him in his fishing, boating, &c., -and who was at that time cleaning harness for my brother in the -stable, was arrested by an escort of soldiers, who suddenly came -to apprehend and convey him, for some alleged offence, to the -head quarters at Yarmouth; without saying a word or leaving a -message behind him, young Henry started off with his friend and -the soldiers, telling the captive, “Never to care, for he -would be his advocate.” He was, after some time had -elapsed, missed; search was made for him in every direction till -night came on, but no traces of his whereabouts could be -discovered, and, with fearful anxiety, as I have heard my father -often say, all, at last, worn out and weary with the fruitless -search, retired to bed, but not to rest; care brooded over their -pillows and dispelled sleep. Morning, at last, came, but -with it no tidings of Henry; and, when alarm had reached its -height, in ran the servant lad, in breathless haste, exclaiming, -“Master Henry is found,” and soon after he was seen, -being borne in triumph on a soldier’s back, with others -following, coming up the lawn. All were delighted to see -<!-- page 19--><a name="page19"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -19</span>the lost one safe, and, to delight was added -astonishment, on a soldier putting into his father’s hand a -letter, which was quickly opened and read, and which came from -the commanding officer. I regret that letter is lost; it -spoke, I have often heard my father and mother relate, in the -highest terms of the youngster, and warmly congratulating the -former on the possession of such a son, so noble in bearing, so -bold, and so talented; adding, that he had pleaded the -soldier’s case so well, that he had, so young an advocate -as he was, obtained the acquittal of his client. As he grew -up in years he was the pride and terror of the little farmers of -the neighbourhood,—the first from his ready wit, playful, -and genial disposition, which he ever retained; the latter from -the practical jokes he was constantly in the habit of playing on -them, many of which are remembered and spoken of at, and around -Oby, up to the present day: and he had the love of all, for, if -they wanted game, or any kindness done them, they had only to ask -and have. But midst this he read, and he lacked not mental -food to feed on, as his father possessed a large and well-stocked -library. Henry’s reading, however, was necessarily -desultory and discursive, but such the retention of his memory, -that he forgot nothing he had once conned; as an instance of this -I must relate an anecdote, often told of him by Mr. Jay, an -attorney at Norwich, still living, and who was an excellent -client, and a great admirer of my brother, that soon after large -business flowed in upon him, and he went into court with a bag -full of briefs; to his Mr. Jay’s utter astonishment, after -a case had been called on, in which he was the attorney, and the -several witnesses had been called, examined, and the cause -gained, my brother, who had <!-- page 20--><a -name="page20"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 20</span>led it, -turned round, and said, “There Jay, I have won your cause, -but I will be hanged if I know where your brief is; I read it, -but somehow lost it.” He, of course, used blank paper -for his notes. His perception, too, was so acute, his -imagination so vivid, and his memory so retentive, that he could -at once, and readily apply the knowledge so widely gleaned to the -subject under discussion, that they who were ignorant of his -previous mental instruction, would have imagined that he had, in -earlier years, been the lean and diligent student, who had wasted -the midnight oil in meditation and deep research.</p> -<p>After an interval of years, he became a member of -Lincoln’s Inn, when in due course of time he was proposed -by the late Mr. Justice, then James Allan Parke, Esquire, and -called to the bar, May 25th, 1811. Soon after his call, he -accompanied Sir James Cockburn, who had been just appointed -governor of the Bermudas, as his secretary, and after a short -period, on his arrival there, was made Attorney General, the -duties of which office he for some years performed to the entire -satisfaction of the governor. His letters thence, I have -understood, contained beautiful and vivid descriptions of</p> -<blockquote><p>“That happy island where huge lemons -grow”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>[he was an admirer of scenery and nature], and that the wit, -graphic portraitures of the men in office on the island, the -general chit chat, scandle and fun, intermixed with politics, -occasional rhymes, &c., put the reader [since dead] of a few -of them, in mind of the letters of Lord Byron. After his -return home, he took chambers in Fig Tree or Elm Court, in the -Temple, read and awaited clients, and went the Norfolk circuit; -but, alas! few profitable knocks came to his <!-- page 21--><a -name="page21"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 21</span>door, and the -circuit yielded rather expense than profit; but on he went -struggling and struggling, till at last his talents were -acknowledged; and the four years preceding his death, he was an -eminent leader, and engaged in almost every cause throughout his -circuit, and rapidly gaining a reputation in London from -“the very eloquent, bold, and honest style of his -defence,” for Mary Ann Carlile, who was prosecuted, by what -was then styled the Constitutional Association, for publishing a -libel upon the government, and the constitution of this -country. The trial ended after a brilliant speech of the -defendant’s counsel, full of argument, eloquence, and -ability, in the dismissal of the jury, after being locked up all -night; the counsel for the prosecution, the late Mr. Baron -Gurney, consenting to their discharge. The report of the -trial, and Henry Cooper’s speech in full, was printed and -published by the notorious Richard Carlile, who then kept a shop -in Fleet Street. At the early age of forty my brother died, -and he was then looked on by the profession, as a man, who, had -he lived, must have achieved the highest honours in it. He -was an ardent admirer of, and some of his friends were pleased to -say, a close imitator of the oratory of Lord Erskine, with whom, -till he died, he was on terms of the greatest intimacy. In -fact he was writing his life for publication, by the express -desire of Erskine himself, when death staid the pen. Alas! -but a few pages of it were written, and those in the rough, I -will, however, lay them, ere I have done, before the reader.</p> -<p>Henry, the last four years of his going circuit, and when his -abilities were acknowledged, was sometimes opposed to his father, -to the no small pleasure and amusement of the Norwich people, who -as greatly <!-- page 22--><a name="page22"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 22</span>respected the legal ability of the -one, as they admired the eloquence of the other; and it was often -a source of half suppressed laughter in that portion of the court -set aside for the public to hear “my learned friend” -banded from one to the other by the two Athlete—Father and -Son—the one as powerful from his tact, energy, and fervid -eloquence, as the other from his legal knowledge and great -acumen, and who was often the victor, for that knowledge, deep -and extensive gave the father a superiority on those points of a -case, in which law and fact were intermingled, and which were apt -from Henry’s comparative previous little business and short -practice as a leader to escape his attention, or when patent -rendered him less capable effectually to grapple with the legal -and knotty difficulty, for he had never had the advantage of a -pleader’s chambers; nor let it be thought in those days -that there were no giants to contend with—Sergeants -Blosset, Frere, and Storks, Messrs. Plumptre, Eagle, Robinson, -Prime, and others of note, with Biggs Andrews, now Q.C., and -George Raymond, author of the “Elliston Papers,” as -juniors were on the circuit, all of whom have long since been -dead, with the exception of Mr. Sergeant Storks and the four last -named.</p> -<p>And here I cannot do better than insert a paragraph signed J. -S., which appeared in the <i>Times</i>, I think in or about the -years 1831 or 1832; I copy from the paragraph cut out from the -paper, and at the time pasted in an album, to which the date was -omitted to be attached. The paragraph was headed, -“The late Henry Cooper:”—</p> -<blockquote><p>“To most of our legal readers, we feel -convinced, that this week’s sketch of the late <!-- page -23--><a name="page23"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 23</span>Henry -Cooper, the friend companion and intended biographer of the late -Lord Erskine, will prove highly acceptable. The unexpected -and melancholy event which deprived the bar of one of its most -promising ornaments, and cast a shade over the gay and talented -circle in which he moved, must be fresh within the memory of our -readers. As yet no memoir, no frail tribute to stamp even a -fleeting remembrance of his learning, professional fame, or -liberal principles has appeared, and while worthless rank and -heartlessness have been perpetuated by marble and the prostituted -energies of literature, genius, talent, and honor, have been left -to the obscurity of the grave; not one of those who shared his -gay and mirthful hours, who listened enraptured to his eloquence -and flashes of wit, which as Hamlet says ‘were won’t -to set the table in a roar,’ have endeavoured by giving to -the world his literary labours, or even a sketch of his life, to -preserve his memory from oblivion. Henry Cooper was the son -of an eminent counsellor of Norwich, a gentleman of powerful -mind, whose legal knowledge has rendered him one of the first -consulting men of the day. Even at his present advanced age -of near eighty, he may be seen early of a morning taking his -accustomed walk, or if the weather be too severe for exercise, -found in his library surrounded by his books and papers.</p> -<p>Raised by his own perseverance, and in a great measure -self-educated, it is not to be wondered at if from such a father, -the subject of our sketch, acquired those habits of perseverance -and industry which enabled him by system to attain knowledge and -fame in his profession.</p> -<p><!-- page 24--><a name="page24"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -24</span>Upon being called to the bar his convivial powers and -talent for conversation introduced him to Erskine, who found so -much pleasure in his society, that they became not mere friends, -but inseparable companions, and plunged together in the gay round -of pleasure, which the world too temptingly presents to men whose -minds enable them to watch its interests and guide the machine by -which society is regulated. To all who knew him, and the -thoughtless life he led, it was a matter of surprise how and when -he found time to attend to the numerous cases of his clients, for -his field of action soon became extended; yet we will venture to -pronounce and feel confident of being borne out by those who knew -him, that in no one instance did the cause of the party he -advocated suffer.</p> -<p>In the Court he appeared as well acquainted with the words of -his brief, as if it had been for months the object of his most -serious attention; not a thread or a link of evidence escaped -him, and so persuasive was his manner, so argumentive his style -of language, that the jury frequently received the impressions he -wished to convey, and their feelings generally, if not their -judgment, went in favour of his client. He used, on some -occasions, to plead in the Norfolk Courts, and we have frequently -seen him opposed to his father as a special pleader. The -old gentlemen, strong in the possession of his youthful -intellect, which time even to the present hour has failed to rob -him of, was perhaps less assailable by his pleasing manner and -florid speech than any of his brothers of the bar, and his -ejaculations not always of the most complimentary nature, were -sometimes loud and frequent. We have seen the son on such -occasions always the first to smile <!-- page 25--><a -name="page25"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 25</span>at his -father’s petulance, and the last to express any sense of -the impropriety of the interruption. We have seen the old -gentleman, in the midst of his son’s argument, write to the -opposing counsel suggesting authorities and giving references and -precedents against him, all with the most perfect good humour on -both sides; and the greatest triumph he could boast was to defeat -his son upon a point of law: on such occasions he would put his -hands behind his back, and moving round with a chuckle, exclaim, -“Something to learn yet, Harry!” The -father’s delight and pride in his superior legal knowledge -over his son, became at last a standing joke with the barristers -of the Court. The death of Lord Erskine blighted Henry -Cooper’s hopes to a seat in Parliament, where his eloquence -and sarcasm would have made him powerful as an ally, and feared -as an antagonist; liberal in his opinions to the present -exclusive system of the church, he was a decided enemy, and a -thorough reformer in the state. His services at a crisis -like the present, would have been of incalculable benefit to his -country.</p> -<p>From the period of the loss of his friend, till his own -untimely end, he devoted himself more than he had ever before, to -literary pursuits and the labours of his profession. A life -of Lord Erskine was nearly arranged for the press at the time of -his decease, and it is to be regretted that as yet his labours -have not been given, imperfect as they are, to the world; no one -could have had better opportunities or have been better -calculated for the task; alike the counsellor in his -difficulties, the companion of his mirthful hours, the springs of -action, the feelings of his breast, must have appeared unveiled -before him; Death, however, prevented the completion of his task -and removed him too early from the world his talents -ornamented.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p><!-- page 26--><a name="page26"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -26</span>I had forgotten to say, that on his return from Bermudas -he became and continued very intimate with the Cockburn family, -and often prophesied the future success of the late Attorney -General, now Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, then -young Alexander Cockburn; and often has my brother said to me, -then about sixteen, when speaking of the above family, -“rely upon it, Billy, young Alexander, if he enter the -profession, will do great things in it; he is a remarkably -clever, energetic, and talented young man.” Henry had -much of the restlessness and irritability, the usual -accompaniments of a high order of talent, with great earnestness -in diction and action.</p> -<p>Ere I proceed further; the reader will, perhaps, be pleased -with a likeness of the man. I should say, in height, he was -about five-feet eleven-inches; of spare and sinewy frame, with an -elastic tread, that those who knew him, and seeing him in the -distance, might truly say, as Ulysses of Diomede in -Shakspeare’s play of “Troilus and -Cressida,”</p> -<blockquote><p>“’Tis he, I ken the manner of his -gait;<br /> -That spirit of his in aspiration lifts him from the -earth.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>And often have I heard the late Mr. Alderson (the father of -the present judge), who travelled with my father, circuit and -sessions as a provincial barrister, more than thirty years, and -who was resident at Norwich, say,—“that Henry always -put him more in mind of a Spirit, that a man of flesh and -blood;” his eye dark, like that of Edmund Kean’s, the -great actor, showed every emotion of the soul, now fiery with -anger, now glazed with thought, and anon, melting into softness; -his head small, and finely rounded, and covered with thick -clustering curls of black crispy hair, was such as sculptors have -ever loved to give the youthful Antinous; <!-- page 27--><a -name="page27"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 27</span>his forehead -retreating was characteristic, as Lavater says, “of -genius;” his nose was slightly arched in the centre and -slightly fleshy near the nostrils; his face oval, with a well -defined chin and a mouth plain, but full of energy and -expression, and similar to Sterne’s, the contour, of whose -face I always thought my brother’s much resembled. I -have thus given, to please the lover of physiognomy, “a -shadow portrait,” not “a Myall’s -photograph,” which I hope will not only satisfy the -physiognomist, but which I think they, who but even slightly -remember Henry Cooper, have but to place before the tablet of -their memory and view the shade cast from it with their -“mind’s eye” to at once recall and recognize -the original. I have thus sketched his likeness, as I -regret to say, thus only can he be now known, or viewed by those -who were unacquainted with him living, as no portrait of him is -extant, he dying young, and for years previous struggling to -succeed in a profession where the “battle is not always to -the strong,” though in the long run the best man often -succeeds, as with few exceptions, perhaps, the long race, barring -accidents, is usually won by the best horse. He left no -writings behind him save a few letters, beautifully expressed, -but mostly relating to family matters, and, therefore, -uninteresting to the general reader, with the exception of five -or six preserved by my mother, which I will give the reader ere I -have ended this biographical sketch; and the few friends with -whom he corresponded, and to whom, occasionally, he showed, and -gave the productions of his pen, though they considered him a man -of considerable talent, set such small value on his effusions, -that, however, pleased at the time they might have been with them -<!-- page 28--><a name="page28"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -28</span>they were put aside forgotten and most probably -destroyed, and what he himself chanced to write and was pleased -with for the instant, was, from the natural carelessness of his -disposition, hastily cast aside, and, no doubt, often burnt with -the waste paper of his chambers; so that every endeavour I have -made to possess even a shred of these scraps, has been -futile. All I have been able to gather are the few letters -alluded to, with a few poetical lines which will be given to the -reader; and, as we often judge of character from trifles, he -must, from the slight sketch I have given, and the small crumbs I -have been able to collect, form a judgment of <span -class="smcap">him</span> I have endeavoured to describe. He -had all but reached the height of his profession, when he was -taken away, no doubt for a wise purpose, to the deep and lasting -regret of those who not only fondly loved him, but who had begun -to take, and no wonder, a warm pride in the object of their -affections.</p> -<p>He died on September 19th, 1824, having been attacked some -days previous by a severe attack of diarrhœa, which, by -some fatal mischance, was mistaken by the surgeons who attended -him, for brain fever; he was, consequently, bled, and drastic -medicines were administered, which must have hastened if they did -not cause his death, which happened at the house of a friend of -his, by the name of Hill, at Chelsea, where he was buried, but -his body was afterwards removed by his sister and deposited where -it now lies, near his father’s in the cloisters of Norwich -Cathedral.</p> -<p>I will now lay before the reader the few letters I -possess. By the letters of an ingenuous writer, it is said, -you can gain a clearer insight into his character, disposition, -and mental powers, than by long association or familiar <!-- page -29--><a name="page29"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -29</span>discourse; these letters have been kindly given me by my -mother, with whom Henry constantly corresponded, and whom he -always treated with marked respect and affection, which was fully -reciprocated. They were addressed to her at Norwich, where -she with my father resided, and the first bears date,</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right"><i>London</i>, -3<i>rd</i> <i>Nov.</i> 1815.</p> -<p>“My Dear Madam,</p> -<p>“And it came to pass that when they emptied their sacks, -lo! ev’ry man’s money was in the mouth of his -sack.” I have had the same measure from you which -Joseph’s liberality heaped on his brethren; and if you will -but believe that my proposal to you, to be allowed to be a -purchaser of half the preserved raspberry, was not a covert mode -of begging it as a gift; I thank you without any regret, and am -very much obliged to you. I thank you, too, very much for -the pheasant which flew into the window of the mail coach, and -startled me in St. Stephen’s Street. George, who is a -good lad, had put on his best legs, and soon overtaking the mail, -threw it in ‘<i>sans ceremonie</i>.’ It was a -pleasant disturbance from no very pleasant reverie, which my mind -set out on the moment the coach set out from the inn; and which -would, but for this agreeable interruption, have lasted me at -least as long as the first stage. For the rest of the good -things which you gave me while I was in Norwich, and sent me -laden away with, I must thank you <i>en masse</i>; for to thank -you one by one for them, would force me to write a long letter, -which I have not the least intention in the world of doing. -I was outside the mail, and for a long way the only -passenger. We learned at Newmarket, that the coachman, who -drove the coach, which was overturned the preceding night, lay -very much hurt. <!-- page 30--><a name="page30"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 30</span>His viscera are bruised, and his only -chance of life is in cool veins well emptied by the lancet. -’Tis right that he on whose care the safety of others -depends should be most prominently exposed to the danger of ill -conduct or neglect; I wish heartily that this liability could be -transferred from those who sit on the coach box, to those who sit -in the cabinet and hold the reins of the hard driven state! we -should then have had more peace and less taxes. Ask Mr. -Samuel Cooper [a great liberal and brother of my father] if we -should not?</p> -<p>At Chesterford your friend, Mr. Smith, the representative for -Norwich, took the mail; and after a nap, talked very -unrestrainedly with me on the present state of France, on -Buonaparte, the criminal law, and the wisdom of the Justices at -sessions. I was determined—like Horace’s -whetstone, which can sharpen other things, though blunt itself, -to put an edge on him—to say something deep and decisive on -some of the subjects, but I got nothing from him but working-day -talk. Perhaps (like the character with the Greek name in -the <i>Rambler</i>, who tells his guest, showing him his fine -things, that they were only brought into service when persons of -consequence visited him) he disdained to pull out his best to me, -yet I rather judge that he is only clever to the party at -Norwich; and as Oberon, though but six inches high, is yet tall -for a fairy, he is a great Apollo to the blue and whites [the -colours of the liberal party at Norwich]. For corroboration -of any opinion of theirs, I should always, like the Recorder of -London, think it right to ask the cook.</p> -<p>There’s my letter, a type of the miracle of the creation -and the lie to the great Epicurean maxim, that ‘Nothing can -be made out of nothing;’ for as one of those, that, as the -song runs, ‘None can love like,’ would exclaim, <!-- -page 31--><a name="page31"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -31</span>‘by Jasus, I had not a word to say, and yet I have -spoke three whole pages!’</p> -<p>My duty to my father, and if you please, my best regards to -Mrs. Watson [my mother’s sister], on condition she has no -more hysterics; and that is, as she pleases, more than perhaps -she is aware of. She is not naturally melancholy, and may -soon accustom her mind to like hope better than -remembrance. My best love to Harriet [his sister], I -should, as I promised her, have written to her if I had not -written to you, but one letter will serve both; pray assure her -how grateful I am to her for all her anxious care and attention -to me; I will not even allow that Charles [his eldest brother, -who was then the secretary to Sir James Cockburn at Bermudas] -loves her more than I, or esteems her more, or will be more glad -(as I told him in my letter) than I was to see that she was -better in health than she had been for years; ’twill make -him happy indeed, for the possibility of losing her is alarming -to him, and if she were to die, he would be most inconsolable; -yet his grief would not be more than mine, nor would he be more -ready to exclaim,—</p> -<p>‘I, nunc; et, numina non posse nega’</p> -<p>which, as you are a lady, I translate for you, ‘go now -and say, that angels cannot die.’ But you must not -read this to her, for she will absurdly say ’tis flattery, -as if I could have any motive to flatter her.</p> -<p>My love to Will [meaning myself]. He is so much improved -as to be an engaging boy, and I begin to like him very much.</p> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, dear Madam,<br /> -Yours very faithfully,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.</p> -<p><!-- page 32--><a name="page32"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -32</span>P.S.—If Mr. Boardman [an old friend of his] should -call, pray remember me most particularly to him. He has -long behaved to me with the affection of a brother. He has -even, in no few instances, preferred my interests to his -own. I am most deeply obliged to him, and I like to tell -people of it.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>The next letter bears date,—</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right"><i>London</i>, -31<i>st</i> <i>Dec.</i> 1815.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>To the same,—</p> -<blockquote><p>“I send you the only coin I have, my very -warm thanks for one of the finest and best turkeys that entered -the metropolis to be devoured in celebration and honour of -Christmas. A Christian of the utmost degree of faith, that -is as great as you ladies place in physicians, who devoured with -a devout and religious pique, could not have eaten more or with -more pleasure than I, though I sat down with no other zeal than -an hungry appetite, and little better than a mere heathen -stomach. When I reflected that you good people at Norwich -were rioting on just such a dinner (upon my honour), I could not -help blushing for your preposterous consciences, that, could -expect to enjoy so much pleasure in this world, and be saved in -the next too. ’Tis well for me that no one offered to -bet with me, that the pheasants did not come from you; but, I -pray, do not think of returning me the thanks, which I paid for -them. They are all due, and a vast sum more on the old -account, though you, like a liberal creditor, may have no idea of -urging the payment of the balance against me, and I beg they may -be carried to it. I had almost forgotten to add -Alfred’s thanks to mine for the turkey [he was the youngest -brother, who was an ensign in the 14th Foot, and had been wounded -in the recent battle]. He was here in time, and made <!-- -page 33--><a name="page33"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -33</span>a dinner that contrasts rather vividly with his first -meal after the battle of Waterloo, on a slice of old cow that -they shot with their muskets, and tore to pieces, without giving -themselves a moment’s pause to reflect whether the -Bramin’s might not be the true religion. But I must -not anticipate any part of his narrative to you, and Harriet, as -to another Dido and Anna, of all he has seen, done, and suffered, -throughout which he has been, like the French poets (Grissets) -famous parrot, <i>quite as unfortunate</i> as Æneas, and a -great deal more pious. In other respects, indeed, -you’ll not find him like that bird; he’ll not give -you his adventures with the gratuitous loquacity of poor -Poll. In this he’d rather resemble the bullfinch; you -must give out the tune to him, and chirrup with questions to him -before he will pipe his strain to you; and when I consider the -vast difficulty which the natural taciturnity of you ladies -places you under of asking questions, I feel for your curiosity -in its tight stays excessively. On this occasion, perhaps, -where the motive is so strong, you will break through your native -restraint; and, therefore, I advise you to have your -interrogatories ready by the 8th of January, 1816, when Alfred, -who means to accompany me, will be in Norwich. I am very -grateful to you for your benevolent wishes of prosperity and -happiness to me, but they fall on a heart dead to -expectation. I have been so long in obscurity, that hope -has quite left off visiting me; the best years of my life are -gone; and what is my condition? Depressed spirits, and ill -health; and the way as far as I can see before me, no better, nay -worse than the lengths behind. What right have I to -hope? The ring and the lamp of the Arabian tales must cease -to be fiction, before I can have any chance of good -fortune. <!-- page 34--><a name="page34"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 34</span>But I do not call for pity. If -I have not learned to be skilful in parrying and eluding the -blows of Adversity, from experience, I am at heart somewhat -hardened by long subjection, and habituation to them; and, if I -have not the soothing of Hope, I am not altogether without the -consolation of Philosophy. The happy must substract from -his happiness the frequent reflection, which comes like a cloud -over him, that death will snatch him from all his -blessings. The wretched finds relief in the certainty that -death will end his misery; therefore, that state is not very -enviable, nor this intolerable. Both will soon, very soon -be past, and small, indeed, is the difference between past -pleasure and past pain. Be assured, madam, that I, in -return, as warmly wish you prosperity and happiness; I wish not -only that the approaching, but many succeeding years, may have -both hands full of plenty and delight for you; and I trust that -it is not so unreasonable in you to believe, that future events -may give a character of prophecy to my present wishes, as it -would be in me to expect the fulfilment of yours.</p> -<p>Pray, have the goodness to tell my father, that the vol. of -Pickering, from Priestleys, is procured, and that the copy of the -Manuel Libraire, at Longman’s is still to be sold at four -guineas. Pray, make my thanks to him for letting me know -the day of the sessions at Norwich; I shall be present to help to -do the nothing there. I suppose he knows that the -Corporation of Yarmouth have elected Mr. W---, to the -stewardship. I hear him say ‘How stupid of them to -elect that fellow.’ I beg his pardon; it shewed -exquisite judgment; and yet, after all, there was somewhat of a -felicity in it. They thought it would be deserting -propriety <!-- page 35--><a name="page35"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 35</span>to have a man in the lower office of -steward of higher understanding than their Recorder. Now, -under all the fleecy cloud of wigs that lowers in the court of -King’s Bench, they could not have found a second rate head -to A---s, but that of W---d, and nothing but ‘a lucky hit -of nature’ that mended her design when she was determined -to make as thick a skull as she had ever yet turned out of her -hands, could have given existence even to this instance of -inferiority. He says he was quite ignorant of their -intention of the honour that has been done him. If this be -not affectation, I can imagine nothing with which to compare or -illustrate his surprise, except that which must have come over -the onion, when it discovered that the Egyptians had made a God -of it. I am wrong: surprise is the effect of perception and -he has none; his is like the genuine night, that admits no ray, -and in his very stupidity he is involved from the least -glimmering of consciousness of it. Pray, lessen the anxiety -of Harriet, which an unmerited affection for me betrays her into, -by telling her that I am getting better, and excuse the want of -turn to the conclusion of my letter in the want of paper; and -allow me abruptly to assure you that, I am, dear Madam,</p> -<p style="text-align: right">Yours most faithfully,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>The following letter, the reader must think very piquant and -graphic, and it will, probably, tend to throw a new light upon -his preconceived opinions and estimation of a certain great -man. He must remember, too, whilst reading it, that Admiral -Sir George Cockburn had the command of the ship which conveyed -Napoleon and his suite to St. Helena.</p> -<p><!-- page 36--><a name="page36"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -36</span>This letter is dated,</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right"><i>London</i>, 14 -<i>Oct.</i> 1816.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>To the same,—</p> -<blockquote><p>“I am very much obliged to you for your -excellent and most welcome present [it is below the dignity of -the Epopèe to say goose and sausages] which reached me on -Sunday, and the note which you were so kind as to send with it, I -can only repay you in this the old paper of unproductive thanks, -but the sincerity of them will be held in some estimation by the -mind actuated by the kindness that has excited them, and, -therefore, flimsy as they are, I venture to beg your acceptance -of them. I have nothing new, Madam, to send you for your -entertainment from this great city. That the Regent is -going to divorce the Princess of Wales, and excite the hope of -the husbands and the fear of the wives—that under such an -example, all the legal restraints to repudiation will be removed, -and the practice become wide, and quite fashionable; you have, of -course, heard long ago from the newspapers, they are eternally -depriving us by anticipation of the power of writing agreeable -and interesting letters to the Ladies in the country.</p> -<p>Sir James Cockburn arrived in town last Saturday from -Bermudas. He is quite well, and neither seems nor believes -himself an hour older for having been three years at Bermudas, -since he was last in England. I have been much with him and -his brother, the Admiral, lately. I have not (for your sex -has not <span class="smcap">all</span> the curiosity, though all -of a peculiar kind) omitted to ply him with questions about -Buonaparte. He is now admirably qualified to be Emperor in -that country of which I have read, where they elect the fattest -man in the state to the Empire. His legs are as bulky as my -body, the ribs in proportion; and <!-- page 37--><a -name="page37"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 37</span>since this -girth is all attained in little more than five-feet five-inches -of length, he is not what Miss Cruso or Miss Godfrey [the head -milliners of Norwich at the time] would call a very genteel -figure. He eats with voraciousness of the most luxurious -dishes; he has, in Cockburn’s opinion, a very mean -assemblage of features with something fearfully black and vicious -about the brows and eyes. His manners are coarse and -repulsive. Did you ever in a litter yard come suddenly on a -lady in the straw that starts up on her fore legs and, dropping -fourteen infant pigs from her teats, salutes you with a fierce -jumble of barking, grunting, and hissing? In exactly such a -sound is this amiable man represented to me to have always -replied to every address of Bertrand, Mouthoulon, and the others, -who are his fools and followers to St. Helena. Sometimes he -neglected all restraint on his nature, and gave the same -ferocious and inarticulate answers to the English officers. -He played chess so badly, that Bertrand and Mouthoulon, who had -too much discretion to excel their patron, had, at times, great -difficulty to lose the game to him; after trying for many nights -he could not attain the rudiments of whist, and went back to -vingt-un; but this is the man who has been described to us all as -<span class="smcap">all-intellect</span>. The newspapers, -too, said I remember, that at whist he left all instruction -behind him, and soon played so well, that he had won very large -sums of the Admiral by his superior play, even while he was only -a Tyro. I can tell you no more now; but the Admiral has had -the goodness to lend me a journal of his conversation with -Buonaparte on the passage out, and when I have the pleasure of -seeing you in the sessions week, I will give you some extracts -from my memory. I am, I <!-- page 38--><a -name="page38"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 38</span>believe, a -little better, but the disorder in the upper part of my stomach -still continues and oppresses me. It is now inveterate, the -complaint commenced last March, a twelvemonth past. If I -cannot rid myself of it, it will kill me in time. My best -duty to my father, love to William and ‘aliis,’</p> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, dear Madam,<br /> -Yours very faithfully,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.</p> -<p>P.S.—I write in a great hurry for I am making up my -parcel for Bermudas. I should not write to you at all, but -I do not like so long to delay my due thanks to your -kindness.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>This letter is dated,</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right">2, <i>Lamb’s -Buildings</i>,<br /> -27<i>th</i> <i>January</i>, 1817.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>To the same,—</p> -<blockquote><p>I am scarcely warm in my place in London before I -have to thank you for your present to me; you hardly give me -time, in the short intervals of these marks of your kindness to -me, to frame my thanks to you for each. I have exhausted -all my common-place forms and am forced to rack my invention (so -very often have you come forward with these welcome claims on me) -to give anything like a turn to the expression in which to convey -my thanks. Mr. Pope (in those rhymes for the nursery which -he has entitled the Universal Prayer) calls enjoyment obedience: -now if enjoyment be thankfulness, too, then never was a being -more completely thanked than yourself; for the ducks were -devoured with the most devout gust and appetite; they were the -most superb fowls that ever suffered martyrdom of their lives to -delight the palate and appease the hunger of the Lords of the -creation. <!-- page 39--><a name="page39"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 39</span>You should have sent them to some -imitator of the Dutch school, who could have painted them before -he ate them; the hare, too, is as good as it can be, and you are -agreeably thanked for it by an equal portion of enjoyment.</p> -<p>I must beg you to excuse a very short, dull, and hasty letter, -from me. If I were not impatient at the thought of letting -any longer time elapse without expressing my lively sense of your -frequent mark of kind consideration of me, I should not write at -all to day. I have something to do at my chambers, and in -ten minutes I must run down to Westminster Hall; and whilst I am -thus engaged, I am as much disqualified for writing, by a dark -fit of low spirits, as prevented by want of leisure. I -resist as much as I can these attacks of the night-mare by day, -but I cannot wholly succeed against them; my circumstances may -possibly change, and, if not, such gloominess is unreasonable; if -Fortune is never weary of persecuting me, I shall at last be past -the sense of her persecutions. In the meantime, whatever is -the colour of my life, I shall, if I can, continue to hope the -future cannot be the worse, and the present will be the more -tolerable for it. I shall, therefore, cling to her while I -live, and to apply a beautiful thought of Tibullus—</p> -<p>‘Dying, clasp her with my failing hand.’</p> -<p>In endeavouring to recollect me of the many fine things that -have been said of hope to crown my declaration of attachment to -that first place of our lives, I remember Cowley has observed -‘that it is as much destroyed by the possession of its -object as by exclusion from it.’ This is very -ingenious and very true, and though not to the purpose for which -I was seeking it <!-- page 40--><a name="page40"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 40</span>yet will very well serve -another. I wish my dear Madam, very sincerely, that the -former mode of destruction may speedily befall all your present -hopes, and that in future you will be surrounded by so many -blessings as will leave you no room for the exercise of any hope -but their continuance, My duty to my father, and my love to -William, I trust that he improves in Latin; pray tell him that I -was vexed not to find him so good a scholar in that language as I -expected; when I next see him I hope my expectations will be -exceeded.</p> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, my dear Madam,<br /> -Yours very truly,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>The following letter I have previously made reference -to. It is written, evidently, in despondency, and heartfelt -sorrow, under the shock of the frightful calamity. It -relates to the disastrous death of poor Alfred, his youngest -brother. It is dated from, and bears date</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right">2, <i>Elm Court</i>, -<i>Temple</i>,<br /> -25<i>th</i> <i>June</i>, 1822.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>To the same,—</p> -<blockquote><p>I received your letter yesterday, but I was so ill -(that important as the occasion is) I could not answer it. -To-day, nothing less than the urgency of the subject could -prevail upon me to make the smallest exertion, for I am scarcely -able to drag one limb up to the other. I have a violent -catarrh, the glands of my throat are further inflamed and -ulcerated, and I am burning with fever.</p> -<p>With regard to divulging to Harriet the disastrous event, for -which, when once known to her, she can never be consoled; I am in -a very unfit state to give advice. I am as I have always -been of opinion, that it should be concealed from her as long as -it can. It is a more <!-- page 41--><a -name="page41"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 41</span>generous -cause of grief than the loss of a lover; and as Harriet’s -mind is built, I think more likely to shock and destroy -her. You state only one reason for breaking the secrecy -which has hitherto been observed—that it appears strange, -the event public, that you are not in mourning for it. I -cannot but think that if any good can reasonably be expected from -withholding the knowledge of this dreadful incident, it would be -wrong and trifling to forego it, for the senseless custom of -putting yourself in black for a few months. I have no crape -about me. If any one were to ask the cause of my disregard -of a paltry decorum, I should either turn on my heel from him, or -explain to him that I did not put on the mockery of sorrow, lest -it should get to my sister’s ear; that I was in outward -mourning, and she had to be discovering for whom.</p> -<p>It is, surely, easy for you to say that you do not put on -black for the same reason, to all who may enquire, or to all -those to whom you wish to appear decorous. [He then writes -on family matters, but, after a few lines, again recurs to the -painful subject of his letter.] It is known to several with -whom I am acquainted in London; but, it is easy, as Harriet -restricts herself to a very narrow intercourse, to keep it still -from her knowledge, till she has recovered strength of body to -contend anew with severe and heavy affliction. How much I -have suffered from the intelligence I shall not attempt to -describe to you. I had but little interest in life before; -it is now heavy and sickening to me. I feel as if I never -should smile again; every circumstance of aggravation attends -it. To perish on the verge of the shore, when he was just -about to embark, after six years in the climate, when we thought -the danger past. <!-- page 42--><a name="page42"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 42</span>With letters from him full of -felicitation of himself, and rapture at the hope of soon meeting -us again, and when we were expecting him every moment in our -embrace, to be struck cold to the heart with the news that we -should never see him again. I owe little to man—I -shall soon owe nothing to any other being. I hate the cant -of the doctrine of Providence ‘your brother may be snatched -by a merciful power from impending evil.’ Bah! why -not the merciful being continue life to my brother, and destroy -the impending evil? Well, I shall soon be as he is, and -though there is no consolation in that feeling, it is some -assuagement of grief, because sorrow will then be at an -end. My duty to my father. I write in great pain.</p> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, dear Madam,<br /> -Yours very truly,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>The following makes the last of the letters I possess, and is -written six months previous to his death; and in answer to a -letter, of my mother to him, respecting the appointment of a paid -chairman, and he, a barrister of some standing, to preside at -Quarter Sessions, and to have besides (if my recollection be -correct) some civil power. This was then in the -contemplation of the Ministry; and as the poet says “coming -events cast their shadows before” evidently the shadow of -the present county courts. The letter is dated from and -bears date,</p> -<blockquote><p style="text-align: right">5, Hare Court, -Temple.<br /> -6th March, 1824.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>To the same,—</p> -<blockquote><p>“I did not return to Town till Sunday -morning, when I found your letter at my chambers. I hope -you <!-- page 43--><a name="page43"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -43</span>will accept, as a sufficient excuse, the extreme fatigue -and languor which I felt all yesterday for not answering it -immediately.</p> -<p>I lament exceedingly, that my father should not have been -early enough in his application to the Lieutenant of the County, -in whose gift, by the frame of the bill, the appointment is -placed, and in whose hand, I fear, by the act itself it will -remain.</p> -<p>I cannot conjecture to whom it has been promised by Col. -Wodehouse. To Alderson is not at all probable, from the -part he has taken against the Wodehouse’s, who are the most -bigoted and relentless Tories in existence. To Preston -[another provincial barrister in Norwich, and the late Jermy, who -was shot by Rush], ought not to be probable, because he is not -competent either in law or common sense to fill the office; and -the favour to him would be an injury to the public. My -father has every claim to it, and I think that it would have been -no more than what was due from Col. Wodehouse, both to the county -and my father, to offer it to him before he promised it to -another.</p> -<p>I wish you might be right in your surmise, that the patronage -will be placed in another quarter; but, of that there is the -faintest chance, I should advise you to press my father to exert -himself to procure the appointment, as it will be an office of -the most agreeable kind, affording considerable profit at very -little trouble. I, myself, know not a soul in the world who -could influence any one of the present government: and any -enquiries or attempt by me would have, in all probability, an -adverse operation. I am of no importance whatever to any -party, but my opinions, humble and insignificant as they are, -have been noticed and recorded; and I am down in the black <!-- -page 44--><a name="page44"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -44</span>book for persecution, rather than in the red for -favour. Of little note and importance as I am, such is the -consciousness, in their own infirmity, in those who rule us, that -the very lowest who have denounced their system, are objects of -their hatred, for they are the objects of their fear; and those -who have put them to the pain of apprehension, are marks for -their revenge. I should think that the best course that my -father could take would be to apply to Mr. John Harvey, to induce -his brother, Onley Harvey, Esq. (a brother barrister of my father -too), to ask it of the Home Department; if he asked it (supposing -the gift to be there), I think, without doubt it would be -given. [The rest of the letter relates to family matters, -and concludes my love to William. He attributes too much -honour to me by looking to me with any admiration.] My duty -to my father.</p> -<p style="text-align: right">I am, dear Madam,<br /> -Yours very truly,<br /> -HENRY COOPER.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>My task is all but accomplished. I have but now to lay -before the reader the promised verses; those on Buonaparte are -characteristic of the writer, who, with his high intellectual -powers, possessed to the last, a noble and independent spirit, -which despised even the appearance of servility. I shall -then add the notices that appeared in the <i>Morning -Chronicle</i>, and <i>Gentleman’s Magazine</i>, soon after -his decease, which clearly show <!-- page 45--><a -name="page45"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 45</span>that He, -whose death they record, was no common person; as, also, the high -estimation he was held in by the profession, to which he was an -honour; and by the public who admired him for his eloquence, and -prized him for his independence of character. In the -sketches I have given of the two lives, which were, of necessity -intermingled,—it is true, I have given but a rough outline -of each, and my hope is they will portray the lineaments and -character as effectually as a more lengthened biography; as I -have seen, and often the character of a friend’s face -better given in a few mere outlines, than in the finished -likeness. In looking at a small duodecimo edition I possess -of Plutarch’s lives, I perceive that the lives of his -greatest heroes and statesmen, are comprised within a hundred -pages, and yet how clearly does he portray their lives to the -reader. He gives a few anecdotes of their youth, a few -salient points of their character in manhood, and then concludes -with their actions and their deaths; and leaves the rest to the -imagination and “the mind’s eye;” and who, -after, reading them, does not see clearly before him the man -whose life has been so ably delineated? I mean not, by -this, to compare myself for an instant, with that great writer; -but, having, as I said before, such slender materials to deal -with, I have, as far as I was able, and after re-perusing the -writer referred to, done my best, with my small abilities to -follow his example, and pursue his arrangement; I can only hope I -may have in part succeeded.</p> -<p>After the notices referred to, I shall end by laying before -the reader the verses written on my brother, after his death, by -my mother and Mr. Wing; and in the appendix I shall refer the -reader to the life of Erskine <!-- page 46--><a -name="page46"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 46</span>before -alluded to; as, also, to the trial of Mary Ann Carlile, which -will show, and clearly, the style of the eloquence of her -advocate on the occasion, combined as it is with powerful -argument, and that clearness and lucid order which were his -forte. And now, reader, to use the words of Cicero, in -concluding one of his epistles to a friend, “vale et -valeas.”</p> -<h3>“IN BONAMPARTEM.”</h3> -<p>He ne’er shall be extoll’d by me,<br /> -Whom wealth and fortune raise to power;<br /> -But he, alone who will be free<br /> -From sordid shame, or live no more.<br /> -Let him with wreaths of song be crown’d,<br /> -Who life, deflower’d of glory, spurn’d,<br /> -And breaking from his kindred round,<br /> -To Carthage and to death return’d.</p> -<p>With him, who when his righteous hand,<br /> -In vain the splendid blow had given,<br /> -The tyrant, only chang’d, disdain’d<br /> -The light of unregarded Heaven.<br /> -And Cato—thou, who tyranny<br /> -All earth besides enslaved, withstood;<br /> -And failing to high liberty,<br /> -Pour’d fierce libation of thy blood.</p> -<p><!-- page 47--><a name="page47"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -47</span>Oh, Godlike men! you leave no praise<br /> -For him who to the king could bend,<br /> -To add a few unhonor’d days<br /> -To life, at latest—soon to end.<br /> -Nor him self-raised to Gallia’s throne,<br /> -Who, rushing with his martial hordes,<br /> -Cast Europe’s ancient sceptres down,<br /> -And made his slaves her sov’reign lords.</p> -<p>For his was not the heart that dar’d<br /> -When with the battle all was lost,<br /> -Plunge in the whirlpool of the war,<br /> -And share the slaughter of his host;<br /> -Nor his, the indignant soul with brave<br /> -And Roman arm, his life to shed;<br /> -But still he sought by flight to save<br /> -His outlaw’d and unlaurell’d head.</p> -<p>With face to earth his vet’rans’ lay<br /> -In ruins all who bore his name;<br /> -His mighty Empire past away,<br /> -And blasted, as a Chief, his fame.<br /> -Yet—yet—(so let him live) content<br /> -The sentence of his foes he bore,<br /> -Like a vile felon to be sent<br /> -An exile to a wretched shore.</p> -<h3><!-- page 48--><a name="page48"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -48</span>FROM THE PORTUGUESE.</h3> -<p>Where silver hairs no reverence meet,<br /> -Where to the weary stranger’s feet<br /> - To cross the threshold ’tis denied.<br /> -And at the genial board, her place<br /> -No kerchief’d matron takes to grace<br /> - Her savage husband’s haughty side;<br /> -Where Niger hides, or on the shore<br /> -Of dark and stormy Labrador.<br /> - O Castres,—I with thee would rove,<br /> -And, blest, thus wand’ring, if my mind<br /> -Could leave her galling bonds behind;<br /> - The bonds of an unworthy love.<br /> -Not like a Gambian slave that fled<br /> -(Of the pale Creole’s lash in dread)<br /> - From Rio, strives in fearful haste<br /> -The mountain’s woody side to gain;<br /> -But with him drags the clinking chain,<br /> - Lock’d at his waist or ancle fast.</p> -<h3>THE WOES OF THE RIVERS.</h3> -<p>“To each his suff’rings.”<br /> -Heaps of dead Trojans were Scamander’s bane,<br /> -Dead dogs, dead cats, and dung-boats shame the Seine,<br /> -Ten thousand shores and jakes the Thames defile,<br /> -And gradual mud is working woe to Nile;<br /> -Yet harder Duddon’s fate, her hapless stream<br /> -Of fifty strains by Wordsworth is the theme.</p> -<p style="text-align: center">* * * * *</p> -<p><!-- page 49--><a name="page49"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -49</span>The following <i>jeu d’esprit</i> was written on a -certain nobleman, who, leaving the Whig party, of which up to -that time he had been a strong adherent, and for the sake, it was -supposed, of gaining the Regent’s favour, not only voted, -but took a strong part against the Queen.</p> -<h3>TO LORD L---.</h3> -<p>What caused you L---, to rush in,<br /> -Through thick and thin, to give your Queen a splashing<br /> -For this your party, to the devil gave you,<br /> -And yet the rav’nous Tories will not have you.<br /> -So in that country (where with hopes you fool<br /> -Your second infancy, you yet shall rule)<br /> -A sect of devotees there is who tell ye<br /> -The way to heaven is through a fish’s belly;<br /> -And in the surges, on a certain day,<br /> -They give themselves to rav’nous sharks a prey.<br /> -Among the rest, an ancient beldame went,—<br /> -Weak, wither’d, wrinkled, tawny, tough, and bent<br /> -(Your very self in breeches she would be,<br /> -Put on her petticoats, and you were she);<br /> -She waded in the water to her haunches,<br /> -Hoping the sharks would pass her through their paunches;<br /> -But out of fifty, not a shark would have her,<br /> -Tho’ she implored them, as a special favour;<br /> -They came and smelt, and did not like her savour,<br /> -She threw their stomachs into such commotion,<br /> -They would not even bear her in the ocean.<br /> -But down they pushed her—roll’d her o’er and -o’er,<br /> -And shovel’d with their snouts again to shore;<br /> -Alike your fate: to be by sharks abhorr’d<br /> -Was her’s, and your’s by Minister’s old -<i>Lord</i>.</p> -<p style="text-align: center">* * * * *</p> -<p><!-- page 50--><a name="page50"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -50</span>In the <i>Chronicle</i> of September 27th, 1824, -appeared the following notice of my brother’s death, -headed:—“Death of Henry Cooper.—We regret to -have to announce the death of a gentleman warmly beloved by all -who knew him, Mr. Henry Cooper the barrister. He died on -Sunday the 19th, at the cottage of his friend, Mr. Hill, of -Chelsea, after a short illness which brought on an inflammation -in his bowels that proved fatal; he was interred on Friday -last.</p> -<p>“Mr. Cooper had overcome the difficulties of his -profession, and was rising fast into eminence. He was -already leader on the Norfolk circuit, and with his readiness, -his powerful memory, and his forcible and fluent delivery, the -most distinguished success was universally anticipated for him: -his vein of pleasantry was particularly rich, as an instance we -may refer to a case on the very last circuit in which a -hairdresser of Newmarket was one of the parties, and which he -made irresistibly amusing. We appeal confidently to those -of our readers who have attentively considered the signs of the -times, if there was not much distrust of the bar about the period -when Mr. Henry Cooper came into notice, and if he did not by his -exertions contribute greatly to remove it.</p> -<p>“He had been sometime employed procuring materials for a -life of Lord Erskine, with whom he was particularly intimate, -which he had undertaken to write; we suspect he had not made much -progress in the work when death erminated all his -labour.”</p> -<p>The next notice of his death is taken from the -<i>Gentleman’s Magazine</i>, from July to December, 1824; -vol. 94, part 2.—“On the 19th of September, 1824, at -Chelsea, Henry Cooper, barrister-at-law, in the vigour of life -and with every prospect of reaching the highest honors in his -profession. The death of this rising barrister <!-- page -51--><a name="page51"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 51</span>has -been recorded in page 381 [as above]. He died of -inflammation of the bowels, at the house of his friend, Mr. Hill, -at Chelsea. His age was about thirty-eight or thirty-nine, -and he had been about twelve years at the bar. He was the -son of a counsel of eminence residing at Norwich. He went -to sea with Lord Nelson, and was present at the battle of the -Nile, but he early quitted the naval profession for that of the -law, though he retained much of the frankness and gaiety of -manner which distinguish seamen, and the activity and strength of -frame which a seaman’s habits create. He was -afterwards Attorney General of the Bermudas, at the time when one -of the Cockburn’s was governor. On the appointment of -the late Mr. Serjeant Blossett to the Chief Justiceship of -Bengal, Mr. Cooper, who was then rapidly rising on his circuit -(the Norfolk) became one of the leaders; and at the two last -assizes, was in every cause.</p> -<p>“He possessed great activity and versatility of mind; no -one, according to the testimony of those who saw most of him, -combined with a fluent and powerful eloquence, a better judgment -and nicer skill in conducting a cause. But his best and -highest forensic quality, and that which, combined with his -talents, make the loss a national one, was his great moral and -professional courage, his unshaken attachment to what he -considered a good cause. No consideration ever warped him -from his duty. He was proof not merely against those -speculations on the best probable means of personal advancement -which many men reject as well as he did, but against that desire -of standing well with the judges, of getting the ear of the -judge, of obtaining the sympathy of men of professional standing, -which it requires much more firmness to resist; there was no one -on whom a defendant <!-- page 52--><a name="page52"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 52</span>exposed to the enmity of government, -or to the judges, or to any prejudices, could rely with greater -certainty; that he would not be compromised or betrayed by his -advocate. In a word, there was no man less of a -sycophant. He had a confidence that he could make himself a -name by his own merits, and he would have it.</p> -<blockquote><p>“But the fair guerdon when we hope to -find,<br /> -Comes the blind Fury with the abhorred shears<br /> -And slits the thin spun life.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>The following verses, soon after my brother’s death, -headed, “On the death of Henry Cooper, Esq.,” -appeared in the provincial papers; they were composed by my -mother, and had not only the tacit consent of all, but the -universal praise, and that openly expressed, for their spirit and -truthfulness which all felt, for all then knew and admired him -they mourned.</p> -<blockquote><p>The pride of the Circuit is gone,<br /> - The eloquent tongue is at rest;<br /> -The spirit so active is flown,<br /> - And still lies the quick heaving breast.</p> -<p>The mind so gigantic and strong,<br /> - Is vanish’d like vapour or breath;<br /> -And the fire that shone in his eye,<br /> - Is quenched by the cold hand of death.</p> -<p>Yet a balm to his friends shall arise,<br /> - That so soon he acquired a name;<br /> -For he dropp’d like a star from the skies,<br /> - Untarnished in lustre or fame.</p> -</blockquote> -<p><!-- page 53--><a name="page53"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -53</span>The following verses also, on the death of my brother, -appeared in the provincial papers, and were written by Frederic -Wing, Esq., attorney-at-law, residing at Bury St. Edmunds, -Suffolk, and headed, “On the death of the late Henry -Cooper.”</p> -<blockquote><p>“Ye friends of talent, genius, hither -come,<br /> -And bend with fond regret o’er Cooper’s tomb;<br /> -Closed are those lips, and pow’rless that tongue,<br /> -On whose swift accents you’ve delighted hung.<br /> -Cold is that heart,—unthinking now, the brain,<br /> -But late the seat of thought’s mysterious train,<br /> -For by the stern, relentless hand of death,<br /> -Is stopt the inspiring, animating breath:<br /> -And he whose powers of rhetoric all could charm,<br /> -Fail’d to arrest the Tyrant’s conquering arm.<br /> - Cooper,—Farewell!—<br /> -Transient, yet splendid, was thy short career,<br /> -Unfading laurels twine thy early bier.<br /> -To mourn thy exit, how can we refrain,<br /> -For seldom shall we see thy like again!<br /> -Who, to deep learning, and the soundest sense,<br /> -Join’d the rare gift of matchless eloquence.<br /> -Thy wit most keen, thy penetration clear,<br /> -Thy satire poignant, made corruption fear.<br /> -And such thy knowledge of the human heart,<br /> -So prompt to see, and to unmask each art.<br /> -Oppression shrunk abash’d, while innocence<br /> -Call’d thee her champion—her sure defence.<br /> -Once more, farewell, long shall thy name be dear,<br /> -And oft shall Independence drop a tear<br /> -Of grateful memory o’er departed worth,<br /> -And selfish, wish thee back again to earth.<br /> -<!-- page 54--><a name="page54"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -54</span>To abide the important issue of that cause,<br /> -Fix’d not by mortal, but celestial laws,<br /> -Thou’rt summon’d hence, may’st thou not plead -in vain,<br /> -But from our Heavenly Judge acceptance gain,<br /> -And sure admittance to those courts on high,<br /> -Where term and time are lost in blest eternity.</p> -</blockquote> -<h2><!-- page 55--><a name="page55"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -55</span>APPENDIX.<br /> -THE LIFE OF LORD ERSKINE.<br /> -<span class="smcap">as commenced by my brother</span></h2> -<p>Thomas Erskine, the only advocate, and, almost, the only -orator, whose speeches are likely to survive the interest of the -occasion that gave them birth in a country, where forensic -litigation abounds, and political institutions render the study -and exercise of eloquence important and necessary, was born on -the in --- the year 175, at ---, in Scotland; he was the third -son of the Earl of Buchan, by ---. This family is ancient, -and connects, with its pedigree, the sovereigns, both of Scotland -and England, related to the former. The marriage of the -daughter of James the First with the Palatine, mixed his line -with the descendants, and, consequently, united him with the -family that now reigns in England. He thus brought with him -to the profession of the bar, the advantage of all the prejudice -in favour of illustrious descents, and found easier way yielded -to his powerful talents by the diminution of envy which attended -it.</p> -<p>Of his very early years, I am unable to supply the public with -any information, and I regret it,—not that any very -important lesson of utility can be derived from the anecdotes of -childhood, but they are amusing, and amusing without harm; and I -agree with Dr. West <!-- page 56--><a name="page56"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 56</span>that he has a very imperfect -knowledge of human nature who is not convinced, that in a state -of refined society, it is impossible to amuse innocently. -All that I have been able to learn distinctly, is, that the most -playful vivacity, and the same good humour, which ever after -accompanied him even in the keenest rivalry of the bar, displayed -itself in his words and actions, and made him the delight of all, -but those who morose and splenetic, from their own disgust of -existence, conceive offence at others for that enjoyment of the -present, which can only subsist upon ignorance, and the hope of -the future that <span class="smcap">must be</span> -disappointed. To this vivacity, he, perhaps, owed as much -as to those endowments, which are deemed more solid -qualifications for the bar. It imparted itself to his eye, -his mouth, his tone, and his action, and held his hearers -engaged, when his periods were such as pronounced by an ordinary -speaker, would not have preserved the audience from that -listnessness, which is instantly seen and felt by the speaker, -and soon adds embarrassment and confusion to feebleness. In -private society, to the last months of his existence, it gave him -rather the air of a youth inexperienced in the realities of life, -and entering it under the ardour of hope, than of a man who had -almost reached the limits of human existence, in the exercise of -a profession, which lays the human breast naked to -inspection. It was said of Pope, from his primitive habits -of reflection and gravity, that he was never young; and, on the -contrary, it may be said with equal justice, from the playfulness -and vivacity of Erskine, that he was never old. At the age -of he entered the navy as a midshipman, and served in the ---, -commanded by Captain ---, in America. While in this station -he was employed in making a <!-- page 57--><a -name="page57"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 57</span>survey under -one of the lieutenants of the ship, off the coast of -Florida. He had some acquaintance with geometry; and, as he -tells us himself in his “Armata,” always retained a -fondness for that science. Whether this fondness grew in -acquiring the knowledge of navigation, indispensable to his -profession, or subsequently at the university in which it forms -so much the greater part of education, I am ignorant; but that he -was versed to a degree both in geometry and astronomy, is -evident, from the work I have named, and some pieces of his -poetry, which I have had access to. The cause that led him -to leave the navy and enter the army is unknown; it is most -likely to have been disgust and impatience of the subordination, -which in our fleets is rigid in the extreme, and never softened -by that alternation of social intercourse, at a common table at -which in the army, all the officers of the regiment meet daily, -and from which they rise with a feeling, not only that insulting -and overbearing command upon duty would be a violation of an -implied pledge of kindness, but injury to themselves, as -diminishing in the gloom that would spread over their next -meeting, the common stock of enjoyment. The condition of -our naval service is, in some respects, improved since Erskine -was a member of it; but then all knowledge beyond that of the -conduct of a ship, was deemed unnecessary, impertinent, and even -adverse to the attainment of nautical skill. The -intercourse of the officers even on the shore, was confined -almost entirely to one another, for not to speak of the -uncouthness of their habits, which made them as incapable of -mingling in society on land, as the beings of their element on -which their avocation lay, are of living in the air, their -language <!-- page 58--><a name="page58"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 58</span>was technical to a degree that -rendered it to all, except themselves, almost -unintelligible. With such persons for companions, and to -use Terence’s expression, quotidian and tedious sameness of -a life at sea, we need look no further for Erskine’s desire -to change his profession. When we consider the great -capacity which he possessed for observation, and his -extraordinary power of combining the knowledge that he so -acquired, the period which he gave to the naval service must have -been, to a spirit so active, a period of painful -constraints. I remember that in a conversation upon Lord -Erskine, with Mr. Capel Loft, after enumerating the many great -causes in which the great advocate had been engaged, he -exclaimed, “what an infinite multitude of ideas must have -passed through that man’s mind.” The remark is -not an empty one; I doubt whether there ever was a man who -exercised the faculty of reasoning more, who drew a greater -number of distinct conclusions, or whose materials of thought -were more the collection and property of his own -observation. Cicero, in his speech for Archias, appeals to -the judges whether he could possibly supply the demands upon him -for daily exertions of eloquence, unless he assidiously refreshed -his mind with studies, in which he was assisted by Archias and -other rhetoricians, and that he read copiously is manifested in -all his works. The accomplished academician, the able -balancer of the different schools of philosophy and morals, and -the studied Rhetor is obtruded upon us. He was, in every -sense of the term, learned; Erskine, on the contrary, cannot be -discovered by any of his speeches, or writings, to have read -much, and most probably had read very little. He was in no -sense of the word learned. He has, indeed by acuteness of -observation, <!-- page 59--><a name="page59"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 59</span>vigour of combination, and the ready -power of deduction that he possessed, been able to produce and -leave behind him what will become the learning of others, but he -was not learned himself. His qualities, from his earliest -years were quickness and acuteness, unchecked and insatiable -curiosity, retentive memory, and busy reflection; his mind was -never still. In the coffee-room he conversed and indulged -in humour with all round him. However important or heavy -the causes which were to occupy him in court, they never -oppressed his mind with a load of anxiety; his was not like -ordinary minds under great affairs, so absorbed that he could -perceive nothing round him; his, till the hour of solemn exertion -arrived, was disengaged and indulged in pleasantry; after the -toil of the day, the passion of eloquence and the intensity of -technical argument, he was full of spirits and waggery at dinner -and in the evening. And light as his topics sometimes were, -his thoughts were always distinct, and his expressions full; you -never from him heard any imperfect thoughts expressed, that (like -tadpoles, before they are complete, must go through other -processes of animation) required the exertion of your own -conceptions to attain their sense and spirit. The activity -of his mind was like that of the swallow, which either in sport -or pursuit is upon the wing for ever. With this character -it may readily be believed that young Erskine received his -discharge with feelings like those that attend the cessation of a -long and painful disease from a state which called for no -exercise of his great talents, and, neither yielded scope for the -communication of his own attainments nor opportunity to increase -them from the communications of others.</p> -<p>He became an ensign of the Royals and married not long <!-- -page 60--><a name="page60"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -60</span>after. He was sent with his corps to the -Mediterranean, and stationed either with his regiment or a -detachment of his regiment, at Minorca; there, under the -influence of an ardent feeling of religion, which he owed to the -anxious inculcations of his mother, from whom he received the -rudiments of education, he is said in the absence of the -chaplain, to have composed more than one sermon, and to have -delivered them to the assembled officers and privates of his -regiment. It never occurred to me to ask him whether there -was truth in this report; but he has frequently talked to me of -anecdotes which were circulated of him, some of which he -confirmed while he contradicted others, and never spoke of this -as unfounded; from my knowledge of his character it is highly -probable, and I believe it is true. About three years ago -he was at Tunbridge Wells with Mr. Coutts, and while there, -pointed out to a friend of mine a building, and said, -“There, when it was a public room, I preached a sermon of -my own composition to the company;” this was for a -wager. He returned to England in 17-- with his regiment, -the father of three children. The anxiety of his mother, -whose affections and care for her family rendered her most -estimable, and have endeared her memory to her descendants, was -excited by Thomas, who had nothing but his pay for the support of -his wife and his children, likely soon to become more -numerous. Her prudence suggested to her another profession -for him by the gains of which he might avoid the destitution -which she saw hanging over his head. With this design, she -sent for Mr. Adam, the barrister (now the Commissioner of the -Scotch jury courts), that she might receive the assistance of his -experience and advice. On his arrival she said, “My -son Tom has been thoughtless enough to <!-- page 61--><a -name="page61"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 61</span>marry a woman -without fortune, and she has brought him a family which he cannot -support himself, nor I for him,—what is to be done? -And I have been thinking that he must sell his commission, go to -the bar, and be Lord Chancellor.” It is interesting -to reflect, that while this excellent woman was endeavouring to -conceal the bitterness of an affectionate mother’s anguish -for her son’s imprudence, she was unconsciously pronouncing -a prophecy. Nor will it be less to see how trifling an -event would have prevented its accomplishment; Mr. Adam told her -that there were a great many steps from the entrance of the -profession and the very high rank which she purposed, many of -which he should be happy to congratulate her son on -attaining. The conference proceeded, the obstacles to -success at the bar were weighed against the certainty of domestic -calamities if he remained in his present profession, and they -parted, both of opinion, that in the direction of the bar, Thomas -Erskine was most likely to leave behind his present embarrassment -and reach prosperity. It remained, however, to procure the -consent of her son; that was not easy: he had no predilection for -the bar, and was attached to the army, and his regiment, to the -officers of which his sprightly and amiable manners had endeared -him, and in which he was soliciting promotion and expecting -it. At last, however, his conditional consent was drawn -from him. He agreed to let his mother dispose of him as she -wished, if he should be unsuccessful in his application for the -vacant captaincy in the Royals. This was far from -satisfying his mother, but he was peremptory, and she could not -induce him to more positive terms; thus, if Erskine could have -gained the rank of captain in the Royals, the destination of -which was, then, an <!-- page 62--><a name="page62"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 62</span>American colony, by which he might -have gained the privilege of being scalped by the savages, or -perishing in the swamps or forests of North America, the country -would never have known that splendid eloquence, which is its -boast and its pride; Tooke, Thelwall, Hardy, and the rest of -those unfortunate men who were held so long under the terror of -death, would probably have been hanged, and the country oppressed -by a gloomy precedent of constructive treason, under which no man -who has raised himself in opposition to a corrupt and sinister -government could have been safe; one is inclined to shudder, like -a man whom a shot has missed only by the breadth of a hair, in -contemplating how near so much danger was incurred, and so much -benefit lost. But it is not on the magnitude, but -continuity of the chain, that great results depend; on examining -the past, we shall find that as small a link struck out at one -point or other of succession, would have disappointed the most -important events of history. Happily for Erskine and his -country, his claims from the merit of his services were eluded, -and though he was more urgent in his applications, since the -alternative was to be the bar, he was refused promotion. -There was a singular coincidence in the fortune of the late Lord -Chatham and Erskine: the former was sent into parliament and -driven into violent opposition to Sir Robert Walpole, because -that minister had deprived him of a company of horse, and -dismissed him the service, an act of which the minister had -reason to repent. He was like the emblem of envy with the -recoiled dart in his own bosom; except Charles I., who stopped -Hampden and Cromwell from embarking upon the Thames to follow -liberty into the wilderness of America, no man had ever so much -reason <!-- page 63--><a name="page63"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 63</span>to curse himself for his own -acts. In the same manner a slight of Erskine’s claims -to promotion sent him to display an eloquence that had never yet -been heard at the English bar. His fame as an advocate, -drew the notice of the Whig party on him; he was enlisted in -their ranks and added an importance to the opposition, which not -unfrequently increased the embarrassment of the minister. -While he was held in suspense by those who had the disposal of -commissions, he was quartered at Maidstone, and entering the -court during the assizes there, was placed in his military -uniform upon the bench, beside the great Lord Mansfield, to whom -he was distantly related, and who at intervals of business, -conversed with him on the proposed change of arms for the -gown. This was another of the accidents which, by minds of -a certain frame would be regarded as an omen. After -relating this anecdote, he added, “Only four years from -that time, I was at the place in the lead of that very -circuit.” All his hopes of promotion at an end, the -commission so unequal to the demands for subsistance upon it, was -disposed of, and he was at once entered a student of the Law -Society of Lincoln’s Inn, and a Commoner at --- College, -Cambridge</p> -<p style="text-align: center">* * * * *</p> -<p>A few days before he was called to the bar, a friend came and -invited him to accompany him to dine at the villa of a wine -merchant, a few miles from London. The allurements were a -good dinner, and wine not to be procured but by a dealer, who -could cull his own stock from thousands of pipes, and they were -not to be resisted <!-- page 64--><a name="page64"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 64</span>by a young man fond of pleasure, to -whom such luxuries must come gratuitously, if they come at -all. Economy, which was important to Erskine, was not quite -beneath the regard of his friend, and after many proposals of -several modes of conveyance, which were all rejected, either for -their expense, or their humbleness, they agreed to walk; I have -heard playful exertions of the mind or body attributed to what -was denominated an excessive flow of animal spirits, a phrase -that sounds significantly in the ear, but gives no information to -the understanding. Those who use it, mean, I suppose, to -express that when the body has received more nutriment than is -necessary to promote its growth, or maintain it the redundancy is -thrown off in almost involuntary exertions of the limbs or of -mind. If this physiology be just, Erskine had an -extraordinary surplus of supply,—that regular discharge -like the back water of a mill, and it found vent in various -gambols and effusions of humour on the way to the wine -merchant’s. While Erskine, buoyed by high health and -ardent hope, scarcely felt the ground that he trod, the sight of -a ditch by the side of the road, tempted him to exercise his -agility. The impulse, and obedience to the impulse, were -the same. He made the attempt, but the ditch was too wide -for his spring, and he leaped a little short of the opposite -bank. His dress above was splashed with foul water, and his -legs booted in mud. Nothing was to be done on his part but -to return, and his companion with a kindness that does him -honour, would have returned with him, but this, Erskine was too -generous to allow; and while his friend continued his journey to -the wine merchant’s house and sumptuous dinner, Erskine -solitary and in pain (for he had severely sprained his leg) -returned to <!-- page 65--><a name="page65"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 65</span>town; on reaching his lodgings Mrs. -Erskine proposed a change of dress, and urged him yet to go to -dinner at the wine merchant’s. He objected his -lameness from the sprain, which she answered by proposing a coach -and the expense, which he hinted, was not to be weighed against -the benefit he might derive from the friends which his manners -and spirits were likely to make him in the mixed and numerous -company he would meet there. This was a consideration so -important to a young man on the verge of the bar, that -Erskine’s disinclination was overcome by these reasonings -of his wife. A coach was procured, and he again set out, -but he did not arrive till dinner was half over, and found -himself placed by this accident by the side of Captain Bailey, of -Greenwich Hospital. With the modesty which is always united -with true genius, Lord Erskine always spoke of this event as the -greatest instance of good fortune which ever befel him. But -for this, he said to me, “I might have waited years for an -opportunity to show that I had any talent for the bar; and when -it occurred I should not have pleaded with such effect, depressed -and mortified as I might have been by long expectation, and its -attendant evils, instead of seizing it with all the energy and -confidence of youth elated with hope.” I record this -to show how little he was actuated by arrogance or presumption; I -by no means assent to his opinion, on the contrary, I think he -would have waited a very short time for occasion to exert his -prominent talents. He slipt from high ground into the -profession. His rank would have drawn notice upon him, and -he had friends full of eagerness, and not altogether without -power. No more is the partiality which, it is said, was -manifestly shown him by Lord Mansfield, to be deemed a main <!-- -page 66--><a name="page66"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -66</span>cause of his success. On the contrary I am so -little inclined to attribute such an effect to it, that I believe -even the hostility of the bench could not have kept Erskine from -rising. His mind was not of the ordinary mould,—he -was excited by obstacles. Such was his temperament, that -the damp slight of discouragement which would have quenched -common spirits, by the ardour of his mind would have been -converted into fuel, and have increased the splendour with which -he burst forth at once at the English bar. How was the -delay of opportunity, or the frown of the judge to suppress the -eloquence whose first essay excelled, both in matter and -delivery, the latest efforts of the most experienced speakers in -our courts? when he rose Dunning, Bearcroft, Wallace and others, -were in the height of their reputation as speakers in Westminster -Hall. They were even eloquent, according to the judgment of -the day gazed at as the luminaries of the profession; but, -brilliant as they were, they were combust in the splendour of -Erskine, on his first appearance as an orator. This -considered, it is in vain to pretend, that, but for favourable -conjunctions which have happened to him and not to others, the -prosperous and devious career on which he immediately entered, -could have been prevented or even long delayed.—[Alas, no -more!]</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><!-- page 67--><a -name="page67"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 67</span><span -class="smcap">bridge street banditti</span>, <i>v.</i> <span -class="smcap">the press</span>.</p> -<p style="text-align: center">REPORT OF THE TRIAL<br /> -<span class="smcap">of</span><br /> -MARY-ANNE CARLILE,<br /> -<span class="smcap">for publishing a new year’s -address</span><br /> -<span class="smcap">to the</span><br /> -<span class="smcap">reformers of great britain</span>;<br /> -<span class="smcap">written by</span><br /> -RICHARD CARLILE;<br /> -<span class="smcap">at the instance of the constitutional -association</span>:<br /> -<span class="smcap">before</span><br /> -<span class="smcap">mr. justice best</span>, <span -class="smcap">and a special jury</span>,<br /> -<span class="smcap">at the</span><br /> -<i>Court of King’s Bench</i>, <i>Guildhall</i>, -<i>London</i>, <i>July</i> 24, 1821.</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><span class="smcap">with the noble -and effectual speech of</span><br /> -MR. COOPER,<br /> -<span class="smcap">in defence</span>, <span class="smcap">at -large</span>.</p> -<p style="text-align: center">LONDON:<br /> -<span class="smcap">printed and published by r. carlile</span>, -55, <span class="smcap">fleet street</span>.<br /> -1821.</p> -<h3><!-- page 68--><a name="page68"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -68</span>DEDICATION.</h3> -<p style="text-align: center"><span class="smcap">to</span><br /> -HENRY COOPER, <span class="smcap">Esq.</span>,<br /> -<span class="smcap">barrister at law</span>;</p> -<p>For the noble stand and more noble attitude which he took on -this trial—for the very eloquent, very bold, and very -honest style of his defence—and, above all, for the manly -resistance which he made to, and the contempt which he showed -for, the menacing frowns of those persons who conducted, -advocated, and supported this prosecution: and to those <span -class="smcap">honest Jurymen</span> who resisted their fellows in -the attempt to throw the defendant into the hands of her enemies, -and the enemies of their country; and who, by their honesty and -independence, have given a death blow to those corrupt, wicked, -and malignant <i>would-be</i>-censors of the Press, calling -themselves a Constitutional Association; this report of the -proceedings is gratefully dedicated by, and the sincere and -heartfelt thanks is hereby offered to them, of</p> -<p style="text-align: right">MARY-ANNE and RICHARD CARLILE.</p> -<h3><!-- page 71--><a name="page71"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -71</span>REPORT,<br /> -&c., &c.</h3> -<p>This was an indictment at the prosecution of “The -Constitutional Association,” and their first attempt to -obtain a verdict. The defendant pleaded Not Guilty.</p> -<p>The following are the names of the Jurors:—</p> -<h4>SPECIAL.</h4> -<p>John Stracey, of Smithfield Bars, Merchant,<br /> -Philip Jacob, of the Crescent, Cripplegate, ditto,<br /> -James Byrne, of Dyer’s Court, ditto,<br /> -Charles Wright, of the Old Jury, ditto, (foreman)<br /> -Henry Houghton, of King’s Arms Yard, ditto,<br /> -John Webb, of Coleman-street, ditto.</p> -<h4>TALESMEN.</h4> -<p>Joseph Blackburn, Russia Mat Dealer,<br /> -John Davis, Painter,<br /> -John Williams, Cheesemonger,<br /> -Bryan Mills, Packer,<br /> -Michael Williams, Agent,<br /> -Frederick Bennet, Smith.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>, at the request of -the defendant, enquired if either of the Jurors was a member of -the Constitutional Association. The answer was in the -negative.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Tindall</span> opened the -pleadings.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span> appeared to conduct the -prosecution, and Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span> was for -the defendant.</p> -<p><!-- page 72--><a name="page72"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -72</span>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—May it -please your lordship; gentlemen of the Jury; my friend, Mr. -Tindall, has told you the nature of this action, and it is now my -duty to lay this case before you. The indictment has been -found by a grand jury, upon the prosecution of the Constitutional -Association; and it charges the defendant, Mary Ann Carlile, with -publishing a libel upon the government and the constitution of -this country; and, gentlemen, after a not very limited experience -in these cases, I will say, that a more criminal and atrocious -libel never met my observation. It purports to be written -by Richard Carlile; it is dated from Dorchester Gaol, and it has -been published by the defendant, the sister of that man who is -now suffering imprisonment for his own criminal conduct. It -is entitled, “A New Year’s Address to the Reformers -of Great Britain;” and, among other objectionable passages -not charged as libelous, it contains the following; “As far -as the barrack system will admit”—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I do not -think that you are entitled to read that passage, Mr. Gurney.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I think not, my -lord; I was just rising to interrupt Mr. Gurney.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—I have no -objection, my lord, to abstain from reading the passage to which -I was about to call your attention. I shall read the -passage which is charged as libelous, and if the learned counsel -for the defendant can find throughout a single passage to qualify -its malignity, do you, gentleman, give the defendant the benefit -of it. The passage is this:—“To talk about the -British Constitution, is, in my opinion, a sure proof of -dishonesty; Britain has no constitution. If we speak of the -Spanish constitution, we have something <!-- page 73--><a -name="page73"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 73</span>tangible; -there is a substance and meaning as well as sound. In -Britain there is nothing constituted but corruption in the system -of government; our very laws are corrupt and partial, both in -themselves and in their administration; in fact, corruption as -notorious as the sun at noon-day, is an avowed part of our -system, and is denominated the necessary oil for the wheels of -the government; it is a most pernicious oil to the interests of -the people.” And in another passage the following -words were contained:—“Reform will be obtained when -the existing authorities have no longer the power to withhold it, -and not before. We shall gain it as early without -petitioning as with it, and I would again put forward my opinion, -that something more than a petitioning attitude is -necessary. At this moment I would not say a word about -insurrection, but I would strongly recommend union, activity, and -co-operation. Be ready and steady to meet any concurrent -circumstances.” Now, gentleman, these are the -passages charged as libelous, and I defy even the ingenuity of my -learned friend to show that they are not most odious -libels. What! are the people of this free and independent -country to be told that they have no constitution? It is an -assertion, the malignity of which is only equalled by its -falsehood. We have a free and glorious constitution. -It has descended to us from our brave and free ancestors, and I -trust that we, too, shall have virtue and magnanimity enough to -transmit it unimpaired to our posterity. We have laws, too, -equal in their administration. We have a constitution where -no lowness of birth—no meanness of origin—operate as -an obstacle to preferment; in which the chief situations are open -to competition, and for which the only qualifications are -integrity and information. Our laws are here <!-- page -74--><a name="page74"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -74</span>stigmatized as partial and corrupt. If they were -not impartial, this man would never have dared to vilify -them. The very accusation proves that the charge is false; -for if it were true, this libeler must have suddenly suffered for -this assertion. It is because that they are administered in -a spirit of mercy unknown to the laws of any other -country—it is because they are administered in tenderness, -that this man has had the power to promulgate his vile and odious -falsehood. He thought it meet and right, and most becoming -too, to tell the world that this was not the precise time for -insurrection. He plainly indicates, that he has no -objection to it; but he would not say a word about it at present, -the time was not come; but he tells his fellow reformers to be -“ready and steady to meet any concurrent -circumstances.” Gentlemen, it would be an idle and -impertinent waste of time to make any further observations upon -the pernicious tendency of this libel. But what is the -defence which is to be set up by my learned friend? Are we -to be told that the prosecution of this libel is an invasion of -the liberty of the press? I will not yield to my learned -friend, nor to any man in existence, in a just regard for the -freedom of the press. But who, I would ask, is invading its -liberty? He who brings to justice the offenders, or he who -under the sacred form of liberty promulgates such language as I -have just read to you? I do not think that on this subject -you can entertain a doubt. I feel the most perfect -confidence in committing this case to your good sense. If -you believe that the defendant is guilty of publishing this libel -with the intention charged, you will pronounce your verdict of -guilty. If, on the other hand, you think that the passages -which I have read to you contain nothing libelous, or that the -defendant is not <!-- page 75--><a name="page75"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 75</span>the publisher, I shall sincerely -rejoice in your conscientious acquittal.</p> -<p><i>James Rignall</i> deposed, that he had purchased the -pamphlet in question of the defendant, at her shop in Fleet -Street, on Friday evening, the 9th of March. There were -several other copies lying about on the counter.</p> -<p>Cross-examined by Mr. <span -class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Who are you?—I am an -agent to the Society for the Suppression of Vice.</p> -<p>But you are also employed by these constitutional people, as -they call themselves?—Only in this one instance.</p> -<p>Were you employed to purchase the pamphlet in -question?—I purchased that and others.</p> -<p>You were employed by the Constitutional Society to purchase -them?—Yes, I was.</p> -<p>Who sent you?—Mr. Murray.</p> -<p>The Attorney?—Yes.</p> -<p>And he directed you to purchase this pamphlet, eh?—He -did not particularize any.</p> -<p>Did he state his object in the purchase?—No.</p> -<p>What wages are you to have?—I have no wages.</p> -<p>Then you perform this agreeable duty gratuitously?—No, I -do not say that.</p> -<p>Then how are you paid?—I made a charge for my time.</p> -<p>Perhaps you belong to the society?—No, indeed I do not -(with vehemence).</p> -<p>Well, I do not wonder that you should be anxious to separate -yourself from the society (a laugh amongst the auditory).</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—I desire that no -such remarks may be made.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—What have you had -for this particular <!-- page 76--><a name="page76"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 76</span>job?—I have made a charge for -several other little things I did (a laugh).</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span> (to the -spectators),—I shall certainly move his Lordship to take -notice of some particular persons that I see misconducting -themselves.</p> -<p>Cross-examination resumed.—What other jobs did you for -the association?—I did several jobs; that I will not -deny.</p> -<p>How much have you had for these little jobs?—I declare -upon my oath, I cannot state particularly how much I had for -these little jobs. I made a charge. I don’t -recollect exactly what my charge was.</p> -<p>Come, come, the round sum?—I can tell you pretty nearly -the round sum, if that will satisfy you. I think it was -above seven pounds and under seven guineas. I was sent on -other business beside this.</p> -<p>I wish to know what that other business was?—Is it -necessary to answer that question?</p> -<p>I think it necessary.—Then I will take the sense of the -Court upon it. I have no objection to answer that or any -other question, if my Lord thinks I ought.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span> -(smiling).—It tends to nothing; but it is as well to answer -it.</p> -<p>Then I purchased come other different things for the -association, but it was not in consequence of any general or -particular orders I received: I went to purchase these -publications which I myself thought libels; I cannot state -exactly now what they were.</p> -<p>Then you did that, I suppose, without any hope of -reward?—I don’t state without any hope of reward; I -expected to be paid for my time.</p> -<p>Oh, then, it was not altogether out of virtue and patriotic -feeling?—Those were two of my motives, most certainly, but -not the only ones (general laughing).</p> -<p><!-- page 77--><a name="page77"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -77</span>Has this been the usual way of getting your -living?—It has for a year and a half past; I have had no -other feasible occupation during that time.</p> -<p>I suppose you received a considerable sum in the course of -this honourable employment?—I have told you the sum total -was about £7.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Do you -think that material, Mr. Cooper?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I do think it -material, to show the sort of agents that this honourable society -employs. (To witness.) And what did you do before you -suppressed vice and libels?—I got my living honourably as -an officer in his Majesty’s customs.</p> -<p>And are you still an honourable officer, &c.?—No; I -have lost my situation.</p> -<p>Retired upon a pension?—No.</p> -<p>How old are you?—Fifty-four.</p> -<p>No pension, eh?—None.</p> -<p>Re-examined by Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—I -have been in the employment of the Society for the Suppression of -Vice for a year and a half; I have been paid by them for my -services. In this instance, and in several others, I have -made some purchases for the Constitutional Association.</p> -<p><i>Horatio Orton</i> was then called. A general murmur -ran through the Court, which was crowded to excess; and all -persons most deferentially gave the witness way.</p> -<p>Examined by Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—I was -a witness before the Grand Jury. On the 10th of March I -purchased another copy of the pamphlet in question from Mary Anne -Carlile; I had it from her own hand.</p> -<p>Cross-examined by Mr. <span -class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—How came you to purchase this -on the 10th of March?—I was directed by Mr. Murray, the -solicitor, to purchase it.</p> -<p><!-- page 78--><a name="page78"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -78</span>This is the gentleman? (pointing to Mr. Murray, in -court)—Yes.</p> -<p>He is the Honorary Secretary to the Association, and the -disinterested attorney for this prosecution?—Yes, I was -sent by him for the express purpose of purchasing this pamphlet; -I should not have gone if I had not been directed by him.</p> -<p>What is your situation in the society?—My situation to -the Association is as clerk.</p> -<p>Clerk to Mr. Murray?—No; I am not in Mr. Murray’s -office.</p> -<p>In the Society’s office, separate from the -attorney’s office?—Yes.</p> -<p>In what situation were you before?—I used to assist my -brother in his correspondence with country newspapers.</p> -<p>Not for the town papers?—No, for himself; he takes the -reports of the House of Lords’ proceedings, and transmits -them to the editors of the country papers; I used to assist him -in the copying, and he paid me for my trouble.</p> -<p>What is your salary in your present honourable -situation?—It is not fixed.</p> -<p>It depends upon your exertions?—Yes.</p> -<p>Then you work at present by the piece?—No, I do not; the -committee have not yet come to a determination about my salary; I -have not made any demand for salary; I have not proposed any sum; -I mean to swear that; not any sum has been proposed to me; I -don’t say that I would work for the Society gratuitously; -if I want five or ten pounds I know where to go for it; not of -the Association; I can have it of my brother; I expect to receive -something of the Association.</p> -<p>In your modesty, what may be the extent of your -expectations?</p> -<p><!-- page 79--><a name="page79"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -79</span>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span> submitted that -this was not a proper mode of cross-examination.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I think it is, -and I shall persist in it until I am told by my Lord that it is -irregular.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I -don’t think any part of the cross-examination is -approaching to anything like regularity.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—If your Lordship -says I am not to be allowed the same latitude which is allowed to -counsel on other occasions, I shall not persevere.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I have no -objection to your taking your own course, but I think this course -of examination ought to have been stopped long ago. I think -every fair and reasonable indulgence ought to be allowed to -counsel in such a case, but if this was a mere civil case I -should have stopped you long ago.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Then I shall -proceed in my own way, with your Lordship’s -permission. (To witness.) Is this the first job you -have been employed in?—I don’t recollect any other of -this kind.</p> -<p>Are you sure you have been employed upon no other job of this -kind?—I cannot bring to my recollection whether I have not -been employed on any other. I may have been, but I am not -aware of any.</p> -<p>Do you know a man named King?—Yes, perfectly.</p> -<p>Do you recollect doing a job in which he was -concerned?—I don’t recollect doing a job of this kind -against King. I might if I saw the paper before me with my -mark upon it. There are so many of them that I cannot -recollect any in particular.</p> -<p>Have you not made an affidavit in the job against -King?—Yes; but that is since this. I cannot recollect -whether I have done any other jobs. I have been in the -employment of the Association about six months. I <!-- page -80--><a name="page80"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -80</span>commenced on the 8th of January. Since the 10th of -March, I don’t recollect how many jobs I have been engaged -in; they are so numerous I can’t recollect. The -orders which Mr. Murray gave me, were to go and purchase the -Reformers’ Address at the defendant’s shop. I -had not any general directions to buy at this or that -shop—not from Mr. Murray. I had from other persons, -general directions to make purchase of works; one of those -persons was Mr. Sharpe.</p> -<p>He is the Honorary Assistant Secretary?—Yes.</p> -<p>(All the preceding questions excited considerable sensations -amongst the audience, and produced a chorus of humourous -tittering).</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—The effect -of these questions, Mr. Cooper, you must feel. You cannot -wish, I am sure, to excite the sort of response which comes from -below the bar. You must see that it is done on -purpose. You cannot wish, I am sure, to produce that -effect.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I am the -last man in the world to do any thing inconsistent with the -gravity and decorum of a Court of Justice. I disclaim any -such intention; and I must disdain the insinuation of Mr. Gurney, -that I have taken up this cause for the purpose of adding to the -public odium in which the honourable Association is held.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span> said his learned friend, -Mr. Cooper, was mistaken; he had never insinuated anything of the -kind.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I am sure -no gentlemen at the bar would wish to produce the effect which -all the questions put by you have had below the bar.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span> said he could not -control the feelings of the auditory. He was only anxious -to do his duty to the best of his humble ability, and nothing -should deter him from discharging that duty freely and -undauntedly.</p> -<p><!-- page 81--><a name="page81"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -81</span>Cross-examination resumed.—What is the office of -the Honorary Assistant Secretary?—It is to do every thing -at the office.</p> -<p>To superintend the business of the office?—I consider -him as the acting manager.</p> -<p>Then the Honorary Secretary has a sinecure?—What does -the word honorary mean but a sinecure?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—“May it -please your Lordship; gentlemen of the jury; I am exceedingly -sorry that some more able counsel has not to address you on this -most important and momentous occasion. I should have been -unequal to the task, under any circumstances.”</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—“Stop a -minute.” (The learned counsel for the prosecution -here intimated, that he had something to add to his case; but, -after a pause, he intimated to Mr. Cooper, that he might -proceed.)</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Gentlemen, under -any circumstances, this would be a task, for which, I fear, I am -very ill qualified; but under those, in which I stand to address -you on this question, I feel my incapacity doubled and -trebled. I appear before you without notice, and almost -wholly without preparation. I was, indeed, applied to by -the defendant, some months ago, and negotiated with (if I may use -the phrase) to undertake her defence. But, after this, many -days and even weeks passed, during which I heard nothing of the -case; and I began to suppose that the defendant had determined to -employ some other counsel, or trust herself to her own address to -the jury against this charge. At the end of a month, -however, I was again applied to; and, again, weeks having -elapsed, without my hearing any more of this prosecution, I -dismissed it entirely, not only from my mind, but from my memory; -nor was it, till last night, that, that I was once more informed -that I was to be <!-- page 82--><a name="page82"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 82</span>employed as the defendant’s -counsel; and my brief at last put into my hands. I was then -unfortunately engaged in other important business: and the time, -I have taken to collect my own thoughts upon this question, and -huddle together a few extract’s from writers of authority, -I have been obliged to borrow from sleep; and have, therefore, in -a great measure counteracted myself; for I have lost in strength, -what I have gained in information, and appear before you ill -able, indeed, to do justice to this cause. But, whilst I -make this statement to excuse my own deficiency, I am bound to -acquit the defendant of any reproachable negligence of her own -interests. I understand, that the cause of her late -application to me, is, that having had, as a mere matter of -grace, three weeks’ notice of trial from another society, -by which she has been prosecuted, she mistook it for her right; -and expected the same notice from her present prosecutors. -As she had not received any such notice (and indeed she was not -in law entitled to it), she supposed, that either she was not to -be brought to trial at these sittings, or that the charge was -abandoned; as I wish it had been, and as it ought to have been; -for I am convinced, that this prosecution cannot be sustained by -either law or reason; and that it must be from the weakness of -the counsel alone, that you, gentlemen, can be betrayed to -pronounce a verdict of Guilty against the defendant.</p> -<p>Gentlemen, it is my duty to clear this case of every possible -prejudice that may hang about it in your minds before I enter -into the merits of my defence. I do not know how you are -affected, but I well know, that with many persons, I should have -a host of prejudices to contend against, in the very name alone -of Carlile. Many either believe, or affect to believe, that -the very sound is an omen and an execration, and that either he -cannot be <!-- page 83--><a name="page83"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 83</span>sincere and honest in the opinions -which he professes, or if he be, that those opinions are -incompatible with the existence or practice of any moral or -social virtue. But, whatever his opinions may be, and -whatever your sentiments upon them, I have at least a right to -ask of you not to allow any prejudice against the relation, -against the brother, to warp your judgment on the trial of the -defendant: for, what can possibly be more remote from justice, -than, instead of judging a person fairly for his own conduct, to -condemn him by our opinion of the sentiments and character of -another? I hope and trust that you have entertained no such -prejudices: but if you have, I feel assured, that you brought -them no further than the threshold of the court:—at that -door they fell from you, like the burthen from the pilgrim (in -the beautiful allegory) on his reaching the cross; and you stand -there with your minds unbiassed, free and pure, to decide between -the crown and the defendant in this cause. But it is not -only my duty, gentlemen, to clear the defendant, but to extricate -the counsel from every unfavourable suspicion, lest it should, -possibly, by any confusion of the client with the advocate, -operate to the disadvantage of the defendant.</p> -<p>Whatever, therefore, may be thought of the pamphlet which is -before you, as a libel, or of the writer or publisher, I most -solemnly affirm, that there is no one who more warmly admires the -English constitution, as it stands in theory and ought to exist -in practice, than myself, nor is there any one who would more -willingly shed his blood if it were necessary, or even lose his -life in its support. It is needless then to say, that a -more irreconcileable enemy would not be found than myself to the -man (if any such there be) who could attempt to overturn <!-- -page 84--><a name="page84"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -84</span>our mingled and limited forms of government: and -substitute a wild democracy in their place. I think, -indeed, that a democratic form of government, however specious in -argument, is by no means so capable of raising a state to that -eminence of civilization and prosperity, which this country has -reached; a condition, for which it is indebted to better times, -while the practice concurred with the theory of our government; -but which, unless the practice is brought back to the theory, I -venture to predict, has not much longer to continue. I, -gentlemen, appear here only in the discharge of my duty; and to -redeem that pledge to defend the accused, which every man, upon -assuming this gown, gives to the public of England. I -would, however, have it distinctly understood, that it is only to -guard against prejudice to the defendant, and not from any -apprehensions for myself, that I trouble you with this -explanation. For myself, I am extremely careless, what may -be thought of me for having come forward to defend this -unfortunate woman. I do not expect to escape obloquy in the -present overheated disposition of the country, How can I expect -it? when even the present Lord Erskine, whose talents and -independence should have rendered his character sacred, as soon -as it was known that he was to be counsel for Paine was -overwhelmed with abuse, and threatened with the loss of his -situation, as attorney general to the Prince, if he did not -decline the defence. But he knew his duty and discharged -it. And for which will he be most honoured by -posterity? By which most ennobled? for having in spite of -threats, and all the seductions of self-interest, persevered in -his duty? or for having been exalted to the peerage of England -and adorned with the national order of Scotch knighthood? -But, if even my humble situation, should not exempt me from the -attacks of the malicious and furious, <!-- page 85--><a -name="page85"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 85</span>I can tell -them that their malignity will be disappointed. Instead of -regret and mortification it will be a source of pride and -happiness to me. Small as my chance may be of credit for -the assertion, I declare, that I propose to myself no reward so -high for my exertions, as the consciousness of having, in spite -of all hopes on one side, or fears on the other, honestly -discharged my duty.</p> -<p>If ever in my course in the profession, I should find myself -wounded either in fortune or reputation, instead of regretting -and deploring it, I will rejoice and exult at it, and, at those -hours, when in full confidence of his companions, it is neither -indecent nor unsafe in a man to speak of his own actions, I will -boast of it, I will shew it, as an honourable scar.</p> -<p>Gentlemen, with these preliminary observations, I will proceed -to introduce my case to you. My learned friend, Mr. Gurney, -has opened this prosecution with all that pomp of eloquence, and -solemnity of declamation, which he possesses in so ample a -manner, and which make him so accomplished an advocate. But -what has he done? All, indeed, that he or any one else -could have done: yet, nothing more than repeat those arguments, -which are trite, and worn like a turnpike, and have been topics -for counsel after counsel, through a thousand of these -prosecutions; while he has left all the great subjects of -consideration that present themselves to the mind on these -questions, wholly untouched. He has declared, indeed, but -without showing you why, that the words, charged in the -indictment are an atrocious libel; in which, as it appears to me, -he has been rather premature, for a libel they are not, and -cannot be, unless your verdict should so declare them. I -assert, gentlemen, I am sure his Lordship will nod assent to me -while I assert it, that you are the only <!-- page 86--><a -name="page86"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 86</span>judges of the -law of libel in this case; and this paper, for which the -defendant stands before you, is either a libel or not a libel, as -you may in your consciences think it, and on your oaths pronounce -it.</p> -<p>The statute, indeed, which declares this the law, has given, -or rather left with his Lordship, the right of stating his -opinion on that question to you; but I am sure he will not think -that I exceed my duty, as an advocate, when I say, that though it -is your duty to receive his opinion with respect, and give it the -most attentive consideration, yet it still leaves you free to -your own judgments, and if after weighing his opinion, you find -yours unaltered, you have not only a right, but it is your duty -to reject his opinion and to act on your own.</p> -<p>Gentlemen, I submit that it is within your province to take -into consideration the nature and operation of those writings, -which are called in prosecutions of this kind libels. You -are sitting there to try this charge as an offence by the common -law of the land. The defendant is accused of having -committed an act in the nature of a nuisance; and you are to -judge whether that act could operate as a nuisance or not. -You are not bound, because pamphlets have been prosecuted as -libels time out of mind, or even because they have been declared -libels by the verdicts of preceding juries to tread in no other -path than their steps; and to find similar, or even the same -matter, libels, if you should not think them criminal or -dangerous. If you should be convinced by argument, not only -that the pamphlet before you is not a libel, but that almost all -those political writings, which it has been the habit of certain -people, taking up the cry from their leaders, to call libels, are -not merely not dangerous but beneficial to political society; is -it possible to conceive, that you can <!-- page 87--><a -name="page87"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 87</span>be induced to -pronounce a verdict of guilty against the defendant! How -can you come to such a conclusion; as that there should be -punishment where there has been no mischief, and where there -could have been none, and if there not only has been no mischief, -but could have been none,—nay, if even there must have been -benefit, how can you lay your hands on your hearts, and say there -has been crime? Suppose a man was indicted for a nuisance -in doing that for which a number of persons had in succession -been indicted and convicted, would that oblige a jury to find a -verdict against a person at this day indicted for the same act, -if he should prove to them by evidence, which their minds could -not resist, that what had been complained of as hurtful to public -health and morals was noxious to neither, but salutary to -both? Would you, in such a case, though a thousand -preceding juries had, in their ignorance, pronounced verdicts of -guilty, follow their example, against your full knowledge and -internal conscience? To illustrate by a familiar instance, -when hops were first introduced into this country they were very -generally believed to be pernicious. Several persons were I -believe prosecuted and convicted for using them; yet now they are -known not only to be not pernicious, but nutritious; they form a -principal ingredient in the daily beverage of our tables, and are -even employed largely in medicine. Let us now imagine a man -prosecuted for the use of hops or any other drugs upon the ground -that they injured health, and that upon his trial he should fill -the box with men of science as witnesses, and shew you to moral -demonstration, that so far from being injurious, they were highly -salutary, would you, because other juries had convicted in a -state of ignorance, imitate their blindness, and convict the -defendant? Certainly not. Then to apply <!-- page -88--><a name="page88"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 88</span>this -to writings, prosecuted as libels, though there may have been -hundreds, and thousands, nay tens of thousands of convictions -upon them, yet, if you should be convinced, that what are usually -called libels (and this among them) cannot be injurious, but so -far from it, that they are innocent and even salutary to the -state, in which they are published, would you hand over the -publisher to punishment by a verdict of guilty? But I am -anticipating, I fear, my defence, and introducing too early -observations, which will better be urged in a subsequent part of -my address to you. I will, therefore, pass at once to the -paper charged as a libel in the indictment, and examine, under -what circumstances it has come before you. And in the first -place, as to the publication, without which (whatever the nature -of the writing may be, there can be no crime) who are morally the -publishers of this pamphlet? Have you any evidence, -whatever, that any one of these pamphlets was in circulation, or -ever would have been circulated, but for the impertinent, -obtrusive, sordid, and base part of the ministers of the -Constitutional Association? How otherwise is this pamphlet -here? Let us turn back to the evidence of the first -witness. He was the worthy servant of the Association in -this and a few other recent instances, but for the most part, -within a year and a half, the servant of the Society for the -Suppression of Vice: a Society very different, indeed, from that -with which we have had to deal to-day;—not that I have any -affection even for that association: I would neither praise nor -even be suspected of approving it, but I will not be so unjust -and scandalous as to compare it with the Constitutional -Association. Before this witness was employed by that -society, he was a Custom-house officer. Are you, I asked -him, now a Custom-house officer? No. How comes -that? I lost <!-- page 89--><a name="page89"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 89</span>my place. How old are -you? Fifty-four. Have you any pension? -No. Now, gentlemen, I beg to observe, that it is not the -habit of the Custom-house to turn away officers, who have grown -grey in their service, without a pension; unless they have richly -deserved to be so discarded and abandoned. Such, gentlemen, -are the instruments employed as spies by the acting members of -this Association! This fellow is sent out with instructions -from the honorary secretary, Mr. Murray, who is the attorney for -the prosecution, to purchase, not this pamphlet alone, but any -political pamphlet, which in his judgment might be -libelous. Good God! to what a condition are we reduced, -when, under the auspices of this blessed Association, discarded -tide-waiters, and broken gaugers, are made judges of what is -libelous, and leagued with an attorney, are to determine what -may, and what may not, without the terror of a prosecution, issue -from a free press. Such was the course pursued: and can you -conscientiously say, that, but for this hiring of a spy to make a -purchase of this pamphlet for the sole purpose of founding this -prosecution upon that very instance of sale, the public would -ever have heard of it? Gentlemen, it is a great happiness, -and much security arises from it, that every person who stands -forward as a prosecutor exposes his own conduct, as it is -connected with the prosecution, to scrutiny and -animadversion. I have a right to assume that freedom which -is the privilege of the bar. I remember that in the case of -the King and the Dean of St. Asaph, in which the present Marshal -of the King’s Bench Prison, without any apparent connection -with the subject of the prosecution, was the prosecutor, the -counsel for the defendant exercised this right, and the Marshal -was successively the object of his ridicule and indignation.</p> -<p><!-- page 90--><a name="page90"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -90</span>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Mr. -Cooper do you think it acting fairly to make this sort of attack -on a gentleman who is not present? Is this the practice of -the bar?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I make -no attack on the Marshal. I only state that—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—These -observations being made on one who is not anywise connected with -this case, who is not present to answer for himself, and who -would not be permitted if he was, what are we to suppose? -Can any gentleman at the bar consider this as fair?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I have -no design to attack the Marshal either in his absence or -presence. I mentioned him but incidentally. What -earthly purpose could it answer to this case to attack him? -He <i>was</i> the prosecutor in <i>that</i> case, and I rather -incautiously, perhaps, mentioned who the prosecutor was, by name; -when I ought only to have said the prosecutor. If I have -done him any injustice, I beg his pardon as publicly for it, and -thus, I give a remedy as wide as the wound. I say then, -gentlemen, that the prosecutor in that case, was alternately the -object of the keenest indignation, and the most jeering ridicule, -and I have a right to be equally as free, as the counsel in that -case, with the prosecutors in this: but I shall by no means -follow the example. On the contrary, I think, we are deeply -indebted to the Constitutional Association. Consider how we -were circumstanced when they first arose amongst us. There -was the state, with a standing army of only a hundred thousand -men, and nothing besides, except the whole civil force of the -realm, a revenue of no more than seventy millions; and the feeble -assistance of the established law officers of the crown to -prosecute public offenders, when this Constitutional Association -in the pure spirit of chivalry, steps forward to help the -weakness of <!-- page 91--><a name="page91"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 91</span>Government, and succour its -distress. Now, whatever men may talk of justice, who can -say that disinterestedness has altogether abandoned the -earth? Who can say that generosity has forsaken us and -flown to heaven? Let it be considered too, that but for -their active vigilance Carlile’s shop would not have been -known. No productions from it had ever been the subject of -prosecution, and but for the keen scent of the Association, the -rank and huge sedition contained in the New Year’s Address -might have lain in its covert undetected and undisturbed. -But to drop this irony and be serious, the law officers of the -crown are fully adequate to their duties, and Carlile’s -shop was as well known to the Attorney General as St. -Paul’s to you. For years he has not had his eyes off -it. I will engage that every publication, that has issued -from it, and this very pamphlet among the rest, has passed -through his hands, and under his review. Yet the law -officers of the crown do not appear here to prosecute it as a -libel against the state; and I entreat you to mark this, for I -have a right to urge it, as a strong negative proof, that they do -not so consider it; and how can that require your condemnation -which they (with a judgment surely very much superior to that of -the Committee of the Constitutional Association) have not thought -worthy of prosecution or notice? Yes, you are actually -called upon by this Association to deliver over to punishment the -publisher of this paper, whilst the law officers of the crown -(who neglect their duty, if they do not prosecute offences -against the state) have thought it of a nature not at all -requiring their interference What can be so preposterous? -So monstrous? And in taking leave of this view of the case, -let me once more ask you who have been actually the publishers of -this paper? Have you a single iota of <!-- page 92--><a -name="page92"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 92</span>evidence, -which ought to satisfy your minds, that, but for the insidious -conduct of the Association, and its spies, this pamphlet would -ever have been before you or the public? Is there a shadow -of proof that one copy was ever sold, except those bought by the -creatures employed by the honorary secretary (who is also the -feed attorney in this prosecution) for the sole object of -entangling the defendant in this indictment? None, -whatever. None. They conspired you see to procure and -seduce (the word is neither too broad nor too long for their -conduct) the publication for the very purpose of this -prosecution. How then having thus suborned the offence of -which they complain, can they dare to stand forward as -prosecutors, when they themselves are the criminals, and ought to -be the defendants.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—You -mean. Mr. Cooper, to offer some evidence of that, I -suppose.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—None, my lord, -but the evidence already before the court and the jury, and the -strong and necessary inference from the facts proved by the -witnesses for the prosecution themselves.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—There were many -others lying on the counter.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—What of that, -does it follow that they must, therefore, have been sold? -In the absence of all other proof of any publication, I have a -right, I am forced to consider the Association as the only -publishers.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—In the -evidence there is nothing like it.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—What, gentlemen, -is it a necessary conclusion, that because the pamphlets were -lying in the shop, they must have been sold to other -persons? The defendant but for their intrusion, for the -sole design of <!-- page 93--><a name="page93"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 93</span>prosecution, might have sold no -others. She might have changed her intention to sell. -The pamphlets might have lain like bad verses untouched on the -shop counter, till they were turned over for waste paper, and not -a soul have ever known of their contents. The Association, -therefore, by their insidious and plotted purchase for the sole -object of prosecution, have provoked the act of publication, and -they, who provoke crimes are the criminals, and ought to be the -culprits; and those, who would punish the crimes that they have -provoked, are devils, and not men; “the tempters ere the -accusers.” When I contemplate such conduct—but -I will not waste another word, or another moment of your time -upon this miserable Association. If I had consulted my -better judgment, I should have passed them in silence; thus much -my indignation has wrung from my contempt.</p> -<p>I shall now, gentlemen, proceed to the examination of the -libel, or rather that which is charged as a libel itself; and I -shall begin with the last part so charged in the indictment, -instead (as my learned friend has done) with the first; and let -me beg your regard to one remarkable fact, that at the very point -of the paper, at which the motives, and design of the writer -present themselves to the reader; at that very point this -indictment stops. It has not, as you will presently see, -the candour to proceed a single syllable farther. I will -now read the passage, “Reform,” it says, “will -be obtained when the existing authorities have no longer the -power to withhold it, and not before, we shall gain it as early -without petitioning as with it; and I would again put forward my -opinion that something more than a petitioning attitude is -necessary.” This it has been urged to you, with great -emphasis, is an excitement to insurrection; and you are called -upon to <!-- page 94--><a name="page94"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 94</span>draw that inference, though the -author immediately afterwards disavows, expressly disavows any -such intention. But even, if the words stood alone, I deny -that you are compelled to such a construction. Gentlemen, -will any one venture to say, that I, standing in this place, and -in the very exercise of my profession, mean any thing, but what -is strictly legal, when I say myself, that supposing reform in -Parliament be necessary, something more than mere petitioning is -requisite to obtain it? But in saying this, do I mean any -thing violent or illegal? Heaven forbid; No: but I would -have societies formed, and meetings held for the purpose of -discussing that momentous subject. If reform be necessary, -and the desire of a great majority of the country, I would have -that desire shown unambiguously to the legislature, by -resolutions and declarations at such meetings. Who will -deny such societies and meetings to be legal? Yet, such -meetings would be more than mere petitioning, much more: and the -author means nothing beyond this; for I say, that in the absence -of all other criteria, the only means of judging of a -writer’s intentions are his words. Look then at the -words which immediately follow the assertion, that -“something more than a petitioning attitude is -necessary.” If those words had been included in the -indictment, this prosecution must have been at an end upon merely -reading the charge, and those words, therefore, the Association -avoided, as cautiously as they would the poison of a viper. -They felt, that though the indicted words standing alone might -perhaps admit of a doubt for a moment, yet the context completely -explained them, and gave an air of perfect innocence to the whole -passage. But you shall judge for yourselves: I will read -the passage,—“Something more than a <!-- page 95--><a -name="page95"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 95</span>petitioning -attitude is necessary. At this moment I would not say a -word about insurrection; but I would strongly recommend union, -activity, and co-operation. Be ready and steady to meet any -concurrent circumstance.” Now what kind of union, -activity, and co-operation does he mean? Is it military -association, marches, and attack? No. Hear the -writer’s own words again:—“The Union Rooms at -Manchester and Stockport are admirable models of co-operation, -and are more calculated than any thing else to strengthen the -body of reformers.” For what do the reformers -assemble in these rooms? How do they co-operate -there? Is it to consult how they shall arm and organize -themselves, and seize with a violent hand the reform which they -despair of gaining by petition? Nothing like it. The -writer himself still tells you his meaning. “Here -(that is at the Manchester and Stockport rooms) children are -educated, and adults instruct each other. Here there is a -continual and frequent communication between all the reformers in -those towns.” This, then, and no other, is the -co-operation which the author intended, and proposes. If -any man, taking the paper in his hand and reading the whole -paragraph, can say that any thing more is meant, to his reason I -should cease to appeal. I should sit down in silent despair -of making any impression on such an understanding; but you, -gentlemen, I ask you, adding the words which I have read to the -broken passage, which is insidiously separated and included in -the indictment, can there be a doubt remaining in any rational -and unprejudiced mind, that the union and co-operation called for -by this Address from those who desire reform in Parliament, is -nothing more than the establishment at other places, of rooms, on -the model of those at Stockport and Manchester; <!-- page 96--><a -name="page96"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 96</span>where -children and adults are instructed, and information disseminated -on the subject of Parliamentary Reform. And if this is all -that is meant, there is an end of this part of the indictment; -for it cannot be libelous to recommend in a writing the people to -do that, which it is perfectly legal to do.</p> -<p>With regard to reform itself, I cannot know, whether any of -you are advocates for it or opposed to it, nor is it requisite -that I should; I do not ask you to think or say with me, and -others, that reform in Parliament is necessary, and that nothing -but reform can save the country from ruin; all that I ask of you -is to allow me and others credit for the conscientiousness of our -opinions, and charitably admit, if yours are opposite, that -though we may be mistaken in our judgments, we must not of -necessity be criminal in our intentions. I leave you and -every man to the free exercise of your thoughts, and the free -enjoyment of the conclusions to which they lead you. Let -this liberality be reciprocal, and concede the same freedom to -others which you demand for yourselves. I have always -thought that a difference in religious and political matters need -not and ought not to create hostility of feeling, and sever -those, who would otherwise be friends. I myself enjoy the -friendship of several, who entertain very different opinions from -mine upon those subjects; and yet that difference has not, and -never shall, on my part, at least, disturb our friendship. -In all questions in which you cannot have mathematical -demonstration, there may be fair, honest, conscientious -difference of opinion; and you cannot have geometrical proof in -questions of religion, politics, and morals. The very -nature of the subjects altogether excludes it. To expect -it, as Bishop Sanderson says, would be as absurd as to expect to -see with the ear <!-- page 97--><a name="page97"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 97</span>and to hear with the eye. So -various are our opinions upon these subjects, that we not only -differ from one another upon them, but at different times we find -we differ from ourselves; and, as another learned churchman, in -more recent times, has said, what could be more unjust than to -quarrel with other men for differing in opinion from him, when no -two men ever differed more from one another than he at different -times differed on the very same subject from himself. Under -this state of uncertainty in human judgment, I call upon you, and -I am sure I shall not call in vain, to be slow to condemn the -opinions of others, because they are different from your own; -and, therefore, if any of you should think reform in Parliament -needless, or even dangerous, I still call upon you (though the -writer of this paper should be a reformer, and even though he is -called in reproach a radical reformer) not to condemn the -defendant in this case through prejudice against the -author’s opinions; but solely to enquire (be those opinions -ever so just or ever so absurd) whether he is sincere in -entertaining them; for, if he be (as I shall show you presently -from the highest authority) the law does not consider him -criminal. Try him by this test, and this test, and this -alone; and then, whatever may be your verdict, you will be free -from reproach, and secure to yourselves quiet by day, and sound -slumbers by night; for you will have discharged your duty to -yourselves, to the defendant, and to the country.</p> -<p>With regard, gentlemen, to the other part of the alleged -libel, I must bespeak your patience; for I am afraid that I shall -be drawn by my comments upon it into considerable length. -(I am afraid, gentlemen, I weary you, and I am sorry for -it. If I had had leisure, I would have condensed my -observations; but, under the circumstances I have <!-- page -98--><a name="page98"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -98</span>disclosed to you, I hope you will forgive me for -occupying more of your attention than I would otherwise have -done. I really have not had time to be short.) To -return to the passage in the paper, which is first charged as a -libel: it denies the existence of any constitution in Great -Britain. Now whether there be anything malicious and -criminal in this, depends entirely upon the meaning which the -author attaches to the word constitution. I confess it is a -word that gives me a very indistinct and uncertain idea; and I -believe that if any of you were now suddenly to ask yourselves -what you understood by it, you would find you were not very ready -to give yourselves an answer; and if you could even -satisfactorily answer yourselves, you would find if you were to -go further and question your neighbour, that he would give you a -very different definition from your own. In itself it means -nothing more than simply a standing or placing together; and it -really seems to me rather hard and venturous to indict a man for -denying the existence of something (whatever it may be) expressed -by the most indefinite term in our whole language. But, if -we were agreed upon the ideas which should be attached to the -word, let us examine whether, allowing for a certain freedom of -expression and the earnest eagerness with which a man who is -sincere in his doctrines enforces them in his composition, a -writer may not, without being exposed to a charge of criminal -intention, assert that there is no constitution in this -country. And let us take with us to this examination, that -a man is not to be too strictly tied to words, when under the -impulse of warm and keen feelings, and when the thoughts flow, as -it were, at once from the heart into the pen, he sits down to -excite his countrymen to their good, or warn them of their -danger. You must not think to bind him down with the -shackles <!-- page 99--><a name="page99"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 99</span>of verbal criticism, when he is too -intent upon his theme exactly to measure his expressions. -Now, that the writer of this paper is sincere in his opinions, -whatever the quality of those opinions is, it is difficult not to -believe. He published his opinions, though he exposed -himself to punishment for them, and he perseveres in them while -he is suffering a heavy punishment. You can have no more -convincing proof of sincerity than this. But, what if a -political writer has, in the warmth of composition, asserted that -in England we have no constitution, who can misunderstand -him? We cannot suppose he meant that there was a -dissolution of all law and government; because we know and feel -the contrary. Few would have occasion to ask him what he -meant. If, however, he were asked, he should explain by -telling you, that the constitution in theory is very much -corrupted from the practice; and I and you, and every person must -admit, that the practice has strayed wide from the theory; and, -forced to admit this, I assert with a writer, who (whatever was -thought of him once, and whilst those who were the objects of his -reproach still lived) is now the pride and boast of the country, -both for the supreme elegance and the principles of his political -writings, that “wherever the practice deviates from the -theory so far the practice is vicious and corrupt.” -Now, saying no more than this, and when it would have been the -merest stupidity to understand him literally, how can the writer -be convicted of a design to bring the Government into hatred and -contempt, because he has expressed his meaning by saying -figuratively “there is no Constitution.” But he -has previously said, that to talk about the British Constitution -is, in his opinion, dishonesty. I know he has. I did -not mean to pass it, I will not, gentlemen, shrink from any part -of <!-- page 100--><a name="page100"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -100</span>the passage, for I feel that it cannot bear with any -heavy pressure against me. “To talk of the British -Constitution is, in my opinion, a sure proof of -dishonesty.” Here it will be seen that the only -exception that can be taken to this sentence is the mere mode of -expression. If a man were to talk to me of the Constitution -of England, and, by omitting all notice of its aberrations in -practice from its theory, by which he would leave it free to me -to suspect, that he would insinuate that the theory and the -practice were the same, I should certainly say, that he was -exhibiting want of candour. I might, perhaps, think -dishonesty, rather too strong a term for such conduct; but I -should not scruple to say, that he was disingenuous, and he -<i>would</i> be guilty of a species of dishonesty; for all the -disingenuousness is to a degree dishonest; and, since the meaning -is the same, why should we quarrel at a mere difference of -expression? The author proceeds to say, “If we speak -of the Spanish Constitution, we have something tangible; there is -a substance and meaning as well as sound.” So that it -is clear he was saying, that we had no Constitution in comparison -with that just promulged by the Spanish nation. The -Spaniards we know have recently gained by their own glorious -efforts, that political liberty to which they had been so long -strangers; and their Legislature had just published a code of -fundamental laws, few in number, but most comprehensive in -securing freedom to the people, for whom they are framed. -They are (comparatively with the laws of countries, in which the -frame of government is old, and complicated) not numerous, but -the mind may collect them almost at a glance, and possess itself -of them with a single effort of the understanding. In this -view of the subject, without doubt, the Constitution of Spain is -tangible; and in this sense he is <!-- page 101--><a -name="page101"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 101</span>justified -in asserting that our own Constitution is not tangible; for is it -not notorious that our laws are spread through so many Acts of -Parliament of doubtful and difficult construction, and so many -books of reports, containing the common law of the land (and in -which there are no few conflicting decisions) that the whole life -of a man does not suffice to achieve a knowledge of them. -So multifarious and infinite and perplexed is our code, that even -amongst those whose profession is the law it is not possible to -meet with an accomplished lawyer.</p> -<p>The defendant here fainted, and was taken out of court. -After the interruption which this circumstance occasioned had -subsided, Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span> -proceeded—</p> -<p>Gentlemen, I lament in common with many others that this evil -has attended an extended degree of civilization and -trade—that our laws have become too numerous and -complicated for the capacity of the mind. That they are so, -is not my opinion alone, but that of the Legislature -itself. I believe that a committee of the Houses of -Parliament has been sitting and still sits for the object of -reducing our laws to some limit in their number and some order as -to their design; without which our Constitution, to use the words -of the writer, cannot be tangible; a tangible shape, at present -it does not possess, for that cannot be tangible which spreads -itself over a boundless extent, that eludes, and defies the grasp -of the human intellect.</p> -<p>Having disposed of thus much of this paragraph, I come to the -words, on which my learned friend, Mr. Gurney, laid such extreme -stress in his address to you. “Our very laws, are -corrupt and partial both in themselves, and in their -administration. In fact corruption <i>as notorious as the -sun at noon-day</i> is an avowed part of the system, and is -denominated the necessary oil for the wheels of Government. -<!-- page 102--><a name="page102"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -102</span>It is a most pernicious oil to the interests of the -people.” This is strong language I admit, and would -perhaps be censurable as imprudent, at least, if the very -expressions themselves, which the writer uses, did not guide us -directly to the facts to which he alludes, and explain the -passage. He alludes most manifestly to the celebrated -exclamation of a person at the time that he was in the seat of -office, the first commoner of the realm, and who instead of being -reproached for his words has retired from his office with the -honours which he has merited for his services in it. It -transpired in the House of Commons, that seats had been -trafficked for as articles of sale and purchase for money.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Is that a -subject at all relating to the question which is now before the -jury?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I am -going to use the declaration of the Speaker, as a matter of -history, and to show, that the words charged as criminal were an -allusion to it; and if so, were not criminally used. I do -not wish, nay I would avoid the introduction of any improper or -inflammatory topics. I would not attempt to serve my client -by such means. When it was exposed, that there had been -certain trafficking for seats in the House of Commons, the -Speaker used these words (and it is to them, I would show the -jury, the writer of the paper alludes), “practices are as -notorious as the sun at noon-day at which our ancestors would -have started with indignation,” and that -gentlemen—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Will you -allow me to ask you Mr. Cooper, I want to know where you get that -from.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, from all -the reports of the speeches in the newspapers of the day which -were never contradicted.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I beg to -state, that, whatever passed in Parliament, cannot be questioned -anywhere else. Whatever <!-- page 103--><a -name="page103"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 103</span>the Speaker -said in Parliament, he was justified in saying. But I have -no means of knowing, nor have you, whether he ever did say so or -not.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I am not -questioning anything he said in the House of Commons—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—If Mr. -Abbot had said it any where else, it would have been a libel on -the constitution; if he said it there, we cannot enquire about -it; it would be a breach of privilege.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Your Lordship -asked me, how I came to know that he said so. My Lord, I -have seen it in all the recorded speeches of the House of Commons -in the published debates in Parliament, and—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I say there -are no recorded speeches of the House of Commons to which we can -listen or attend.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Certainly, there -are no records of speeches in the House of Commons in the sense -in which the proceedings of courts of law are records, nor is -there in that sense any recorded speech of Cicero or of Lord -Chatham; but, my lord, will your lordship say, that I am not -entitled in my address to the jury to use that which has been -reported as part of a speech of Lord Chatham or of Cicero; -because there are no records filed, as in the courts of law, of -their speeches! I submit that they are matters of history; -and that, as such, I am at liberty to use them.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I tell you, -Mr. Cooper, what the distinction is. If you publish, that, -which may be said to be a speech of Lord Chatham’s, and it -may be an accurate report of his speech, you may be guilty of -publishing a libel, though the place, in which that speech was -delivered gave a liberty to the speech. You know it has -been so decided in my Lord Abingdon’s case, who published -his own speeches.</p> -<p><!-- page 104--><a name="page104"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -104</span>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—That, my -Lord, was a libel upon a private individual. I -say—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I say you -have no knowledge of anything which is said in the Houses of -Parliament.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—With great -submission I re-urge it as a matter of history, and as such I -would use it whether the fact is ten years old or ten thousand, I -submit makes no difference.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Mr. Cooper, -I have told you my opinion; if you don’t choose to submit -to it, the best way will be to go on, perhaps.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—With the utmost -deference to your Lordship—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—The Court -of King’s Bench has decided this very point, within the -last two terms, against what you are contending for. If -your own opinion be the better one, proceed.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Gentlemen, I was -going to say, when the Speaker of the House of Commons exclaimed -(I will not repeat particularly upon what occasion) that our -ancestors would have started with indignation at practices which -were “as notorious as the sun at noon-day,” can you -have any doubt in your mind that the writer of this pamphlet -alluded to that exclamation? Why look at the passage, see, -he uses the same words. “Corruption is as notorious -as the sun at noon-day” is his very expression. He is -citing the Speaker’s own words, and cannot but be supposed -to be speaking of the very same facts. It was proposed, on -that occasion, to impeach a nobleman, whom I will not name and -need not, for those practices. This however was resisted by -almost all, and even by some who were friendly to Parliamentary -reform, and politically adverse to the noblemen, to whom I -allude, <!-- page 105--><a name="page105"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 105</span>not, indeed, upon any pretext of his -innocence of the practices, charged against him; but on the sole -ground that those practices were so general and notorious that -they would condemn themselves in sentencing him; and among so -many guilty, it would be unjust to single him alone for -punishment. Yes; although they were practices, at which our -ancestors would have started with indignation, they were the -practices of numbers, and the practices were as notorious as the -sun at noon-day; and, therefore, the proposition of impeachment -was rejected, and rightly; for as it has been said by the first -speaker of all antiquity, we cannot call men to a strict account -for their actions, while we are infirm in our own conduct. -If this is the state of one branch of our Legislature, and if it -is avowed, and by those who would conceal it, if concealment were -possible (but it would be as easy to conceal the sun). Good -God! shall a man be prosecuted and pronounced guilty, and -consigned to punishment for affirming that our laws are corrupt; -that there is corruption in the system, and that corruption is an -avowed part of that system? when in so affirming he only echoes -the exclamation of the Speaker himself, that “practices, at -which our ancestors would have started with indignation, were as -notorious as the sun at noon-day?” Why, if as the -Speaker declared, such practices exist, and affect the most -important branch of the Legislature, I myself say, that there is -corruption in the very vitals of the Constitution itself. -In such a state of things, to talk of the Constitution, is -mockery and insult; and I say there is no Constitution. -What, then, has the writer of this pamphlet said more than has -been avowed by the highest authority, and everybody knows? -And now, can you lay your hands on your hearts, and by your -verdict of <!-- page 106--><a name="page106"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 106</span>Guilty send the defendant to linger -in a jail for having published what the author has, under such -circumstances, written?</p> -<p>Having thus concluded my observations on the passages selected -from this paper for prosecution, I will, for I have a right to -read it all if I please, direct your attention to another part of -it. Let us examine whether other passages will not convince -us, that (though he should be mistaken in some of his opinions) -the whole was written with a single and honest intention. I -myself never read a paper, which, on the whole, appeared to be -written with more candour. There is an openness that does -not even spare the writer himself. Indeed, with regard to -his opinions, peculiar and mistaken as he may be, he seems -himself, sincerely to believe in them. He is now suffering -for those opinions, and suffering with a firmness, which to those -who think him wrong, is stubbornness; and, thus, he affords -another proof of the extreme impolicy of attempting to impose -silence by prosecutions, and extort from the mind the abjuration -of opinions by external and physical force. It never -succeeds; but, on the contrary, works the very opposite effect to -that which is its object. As the author from whom I have -just now cited says, with extreme force and equal beauty, -“a kind of maternal feeling is excited in the mind that -makes us love the cause for which we suffer.” It is -not for the mere point of expression that it has been said, the -blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. It is not -theological doctrine alone, that thrives and nourishes under -persecution. The principle of the aphorism applies equally -to all opinions upon all subjects. There is widely spread -through our nature an inclination to suspect that there is a -secret value in that from which others attempt to drive us by -force; <!-- page 107--><a name="page107"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 107</span>and from this, joined to other -powerful motives, the persecution of men for their tenets, -whatever they may be, only draws their attachment closer, and -rivets their affections to them. Every effort to make them -abandon the obnoxious doctrine renders them more steadfast to -it. The loppings, which are designed to destroy, serve but -as prunings, from which it shoots with increased vigour, and -strikes its root still deeper. Has it not always been seen, -that persecution has bred in men that stubborn resolution, which -present death has not been able to shake; and, what is more, an -eagerness to disseminate amongst others those principles for -which they have themselves been prosecuted and pursued. I -therefore, from my very soul, deprecate every species of -persecution on account of religious and political opinions, not -only from its illiberality, but bad policy; and I am full of -hope, that you will by your verdict to day show, that you have an -equal aversion to it.</p> -<p>To recur, gentlemen, to the pamphlet; I submit to you that -there is a general air of sincerity in the language of the writer -throughout the composition, which obliges us to believe, that, -however mistaken you may think him in his opinions, he is honest -in his intentions. He says in another part of the address -“Every government must derive its support from the body of -the people; and it follows, as a matter of course, that the -people must have a power to withhold their supplies.” -Which is very true: for, where there is a shadow of political -liberty, a revenue can only be raised by taxes to which the -people have consented: it being allowed that where there is -taxation without representation tyranny begins. Now, if the -writer really believes that there are corrupt practices in the -Government, who can blame him, for proposing (by <!-- page -108--><a name="page108"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -108</span>abstinence from those articles which are taxed and -yield a revenue so large that it supports a system of -misgovernment) to compel our rulers, by a diminution of their -means of undue influence to a regard to economy and a just -administration? I know, indeed, that this doctrine is -considered offensive; nor am I prepared to say with confidence -that under the wide construction which has been given to the law -against conspiracy, persons who were to combine to force such a -change by abstaining from all exciseable articles might not be -indicted for it as a conspiracy. It may, for aught that I -know, be even indictable to unite and desist from using tea, -tobacco and snuff to coerce the government into reform by a -reduction of the revenue raised from those articles; but you are -not sitting there to try an indictment for a conspiracy; and, -therefore, though this passage may not be pleasing, I read it, -without hesitation, because it leads to others, which I think -demand your consideration and attention. “We must -deny ourselves, he proceeds to say, those little luxuries in -which we have long indulged. Why not? Who gains, and -who loses by this denial? We do not rob ourselves, we only -check our passions; and, in doing this, we strengthen both our -bodies and our purses. I would appeal to those, who, for -the last year, have had the courage and the virtue to abstain -from the use of malt and spirituous liquors, foreign tea and -coffee, tobacco, snuff, &c., whether they do not feel -satisfaction from the change of habit; and whether they are not -better in health and pocket, without the use of these -things.” This, gentlemen, is a sermon on temperance, -and I wish it were generally followed. I apprehend that -this is not only innocent, but highly meritorious. For my -own part I shall maintain the opinion (though ten thousand -Mandevilles should write, and imagine they have proved <!-- page -109--><a name="page109"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -109</span>private vices public benefits) that it is infinitely -more important and beneficial that the mass of the people should -be temperate and healthy, though poor, than that an immense -revenue should be collected from their addiction to sensual -pleasures and vicious luxuries. I say vicious, because all -moral writers concur in calling those sensualities vices, as free -indulgence in them leads to a state of total dissipation of mind -under which scarcely any profligacy seems a crime. The -writer continues: “There are a variety of other things -which are heavily excised, the use of which might be prudently -dropped; and which are not essential either to the health or -comfort of mankind. Speaking for myself, I can say, I do -not recommend more than I practise; and that my food for the last -year has consisted chiefly of milk and bread and raw native -fruits. I have been fatter and stronger than in any former -year of my life; and I feel as if I had obtained a new system by -the change. <i>My natural disposition is luxurious</i>, and -under a better system of government, or when this rational -warfare was not called for, I should at all times live up to my -income.” And here, gentlemen, I beg you to mark, that -so unreserved, so much in earnest is the writer in his object, -that he does not attempt even to conceal his own faults, and -weakness. I ask, whether you have ever found men, who were -acting and writing with duplicity and sinister intentions, -reproach or expose themselves? But the writer of this paper -practises no reserve; he conceals nothing, though the disclosure -should be against himself, but</p> -<blockquote><p> Pours out all -himself as plain,<br /> -As dowright Shippen, or as old Montaigne.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>He concludes this exhortation to temperance with this <!-- -page 110--><a name="page110"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -110</span>sentence, “Shrink not then you male and female -reformers from this virtuous mode of warfare; for to conquer our -injurious habits and our enemy at the same time is a double -conquest, to obtain which both man and woman and child can very -properly assist.” I read this conclusion of the -paragraph, gentlemen, and I beg your attention to it, because it -makes it manifest that the change which the writer proposes to -compass is a change by a moral operation through legal and -peaceful means; and that he never dreamed of inculcating, as it -is insinuated, any appeal to violence and arms.</p> -<p>I have now, gentlemen, concluded all the particular -observations which I had to address you upon this paper; and -having shown you that by the least liberal construction, no -criminality of intention can be imputed to the author, how can I -doubt of your acquittal? For it is your duty to construe -the author’s words so as to give them an innocent meaning -if they will bear it, and not come to a conclusion of guilt from -them unless you shall be convinced that they will not possibly -admit of any other than a criminal sense. That he had no -criminal design, is apparent enough, even from the indicted -passages; and by reading the context is put beyond the -possibility of a doubt. There are many other passages as -well as that, which I have read, which tend equally to the -inference of the sincerity with which the whole paper was -written, but which I will not consume your time in reading, as -you will have the whole before you when you deliberate on your -verdict, and they must themselves strike your attention.</p> -<p>Now, gentlemen, I cannot tell, how you feel, but I have no -opinion more deeply impressed on my mind than that the -prosecution of such political papers as this before you, as state -libels, is perfectly unnecessary; and, so far <!-- page 111--><a -name="page111"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 111</span>from doing -good, is, if any mischief can be produced by such writings, -mischievous. Prosecution excites the public regard, and a -curiosity that will not rest till it is gratified, towards that -which, under silent neglect, would hardly gain attention; if -indeed, it did not drop quite dead-born from the press. But -I deny wholly that any political writings, whatever their nature, -have done or ever could do any harm to political society. -Let those who advocate the contrary opinion show you a single -instance of a state injured or destroyed by inflammatory -political writings. The republic of Athens was not thrown -down by libels: no—she perished for want of that widely -diffused excitement to courage, and patriotism, and virtue, which -a press perfectly free and unshackled can alone spread throughout -a whole people. She was not ruined by anarchy into which -she was thrown by seditious writings, but because, sunk in luxury -and enervated by refinement, it was impossible to rouse the -Athenians to the energy and ardour of facing and withstanding the -enemy in the field. Rome too—as little was her -gigantic power levelled with the dust by libels, but perished -from the corruptions of the tyrannical government of the -Emperors, which drained the nation of all its ancient virtue, and -bred the slavery which produces an utter debasement of the mind -(and which never could have been, if a free publication of -political opinion had been suffered), and thus she fell an easy -conquest and prey to the barbarians and Goths. Both these -renowned states fell, because their governments and the people -wanted the goad of a free press to excite them to that public -spirit and virtue, without which no country is capable of -political independence and liberty. How our ears have been -dinned with the French revolution, and how often have we been -gravely told, that it was caused by the writings of Voltaire, -Rousseau, and <!-- page 112--><a name="page112"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 112</span>Helvetius. Ridiculous! I -have read the history of those times and have read it very -differently. I am forced to understand that the -inextricable and utter embarrassment of the French finances, the -selfish and insolent luxury of the nobles, the desperate -wretchedness of the lower orders of the people, and the -profligate licentiousness of the Court, were the causes and the -only causes of that great event. If the finances of that -country had been in order, the nobles moderate, the poor -unoppressed, and any public spirit in the Government, Voltaire, -and Helvetius, and Rousseau, might have racked their brains for -thought, and written themselves blind, before they would have -raised a single arm, or even excited a single voice to exclaim -for change. A perfect freedom of the press would, indeed, -have prevented the causes which roused the people to assert -themselves; but the causes once in existence, all the writers in -the world could not one moment have either retarded the -revolution or accelerated it. It is not the representations -of a political writer that can alter the nature of things. -Whose ingenuity, and wit, and eloquence, will persuade me that I -am cold when I am warm; that I am hungry when I am full; a slave -when I am free; and miserable, when I feel myself happy? -While such is my state, what writings would drive me into -insurrection? And if the contrary is my condition, what -stimulus could I want to free myself from it? What -persuasions could possibly even delay my utmost efforts for a -change? It is not by the prosecution of political libels -that the stability of a government and domestic peace is ever -secured. No; let the Government pursue its only end, the -public good, and let every man, or at least a large majority, -have more or less an interest in the preservation of the State, -and then all the writers in the country, from the highest down -<!-- page 113--><a name="page113"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -113</span>to the obscurest corners of Grub-Street, may wear their -fingers to the roots of the nails with their pens, before they -will work the slightest discontent in the public or change in the -government. Nothing, gentlemen, is more common with writers -and speakers, than to discourse of states by figures drawn from -the government of a ship; and I will tell you what I once heard -from a friend of mine who has served his country in our navy, and -which at the time most forcibly struck my mind. “When -I was stationed in the Mediterranean (he said, speaking of the -occurrences of his professional experience) we made captures of -the vessels of all countries except the Greeks, but we never -captured them; for they were always vigilant, active, and -brave. We never surprised them; if we chased them, they -escaped us; and if we attempted to cut them from the shelter to -which we had driven them, we were repulsed.” What -created this difference? By the rules of navigation amongst -the Greek islands, every man, from the captain down to the lowest -cabin-boy, has, more or less, a share in the vessel. They -watched, therefore,—they laboured and fought for their own -interest and property. Let those who sit at the helm and -govern us imitate this policy. Let them extend the elective -franchise; let them restore us to a condition in which industry -and skill may find employment and be secure in their gain. -Give men an interest and ownership in the state, and it shall -never be upset by libels; not a seditious or mutinous voice shall -be heard; and what foreign enemy shall dare to lift a hand -against us? But keep the people excluded from their share -in the representation, and pressed down by taxation, and millions -of prosecutions against libels will not save the country from -sinking in ruin.</p> -<p>Let me now, gentlemen, call your attention back to the <!-- -page 114--><a name="page114"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -114</span>argument I used almost at setting out in my address to -you, by which I attempted to maintain that you are not bound, -whatever you may judge the intention of the writer to have been, -to pronounce a publication a libel by your verdict, if you should -be of opinion that such a publication cannot be mischievous, and -that prosecution of it is unnecessary. If it can do no -harm, it is no nuisance at common law to have written a paper, -whatever its nature may be, and if it could be no nuisance, you -are bound in duty to acquit the defendant, who is only the -publisher. The doctrine for which I am contending with -regard to this paper, has been acted upon by the government of -one free country, with regard to all political writings, whatever -their intention or nature. The Legislature of the State of -Virginia has actually <i>legislated against</i> such -prosecutions, and declared them totally unnecessary.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—That is not -the law of this country.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I only use it my -Lord as part of my speech in argument.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I will tell -you what I am bound to tell the jury. I shall tell them -that we have nothing to do here with what may be expedient, we -are not legislating here—the question is whether this is a -proper prosecution?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I feel that it is -exceedingly important to use as matter of argument, and as a part -of my speech. If your Lordship stops me I know that it will -be my duty to submit.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—All this is -only drawing them away from the question they are to -consider. With the propriety of instituting the prosecution -they have nothing to do; the only questions they have to -determine, are—Is that paper a libel, and has the defendant -published it? An Act of the Assembly of Virginia has no -validity in this country.</p> -<p><!-- page 115--><a name="page115"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -115</span>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I -do not cite it as a statute of this realm to which we are bound -to pay legal attention—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—We are -bound to pay no attention to it.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—My Lord, I only -use it to show that other men have been of the opinion which I -have expressed to your Lordship and the jury. If your -Lordship insists on my not addressing myself to the jury upon it, -I know too well the deference that is due from me to the Bench to -persevere in attempting it.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—No, I -don’t insist upon it. But, Mr. Cooper, can you -deceive yourself so much as to think this has anything to do with -the question? I shall tell the jury to pay no attention to -it.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—Your Lordship -will make any observations your condescension may lead you to -make, as well on this as on any other part of the defence. -I believe the course which I wish to take was taken on a similar -occasion by a man who united the soundest and correctest judgment -with the brightest imagination—I mean Lord -Erskine—he—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I knew him -for thirty odd years at the bar, and I never in all my life knew -him address himself to points such as these—that is all I -can say. I know what is due to the liberty of the bar, and -I shall cherish a love for its freedom to the latest hour of my -life.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—If your lordship -refuses me—</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—No, I -don’t refuse you.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I think it -necessary to my case. The preamble is—(gentlemen, I -am sorry to detain you, but I have a most important duty to -discharge. If in addressing you, I am taking a course which -I ought not, I assure you it is an error of judgment and not of -design. I declare most sincerely, that I am addressing to -you arguments <!-- page 116--><a name="page116"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 116</span>which I should attend to if they -were addressed to myself in such a case. His Lordship will -have a right to make what observations he pleases, and of course -I offer this and every other argument to you liable to the honour -he may confer upon me of condescending to notice anything I have -said or may say. You, gentlemen, will, I know, regard my -observations or arguments solely as you think them forcible or -weak; if they are the former you will attend to them, if the -latter reject them. And with this observation I shall now -proceed to read to you the preamble to the Act of the Legislative -Assembly of Virginia.)</p> -<blockquote><p>“It is time enough for the rightful purposes -of Civil Government, for its officers to interfere when -principles break out into overt acts against peace and good -order, and that truth is great and will prevail if left to -herself, and that she is the proper and sufficient antagonist to -error, and has nothing to fear from the conflict, unless, by -human interposition disarmed of her natural weapons, free -argument and debate: errors ceasing to be dangerous, when it is -permitted freely to contradict them.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>Thus, you see, by an Act of the Legislature of that country, -passed by those who had all the knowledge of history before their -eyes, and ample experience in their own times, I am fully -supported in the position that prosecutions of this kind are not -only useless but hurtful. By free argument and debate -errors cease to be dangerous, if they are not exploded; but -attempts to stifle even errors by power and punishment, provoke a -stubborn adherence to them, and awake an eager spirit of -propagation. If erroneous positions are published, meet -them by argument, and refutation must ensue. If falsehood -uses the press to promulge her doctrines, let truth oppose her -with the same weapon. Let the press answer the <!-- page -117--><a name="page117"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -117</span>press, and what is there to fear? Shall I be told -that the propensity of human nature is so base and evil that it -will listen to falsehood and turn a deaf ear to truth? To -assert so is not only scandalous to human nature, but impious -towards the Creator. We are placed here imperfect indeed, -and erring; but still with preponderance of virtue over -vice. The Deity has sent us from his hands with qualities -fitting us for civil society: it is our natural state; and we -know that civil society is sapped by vice and supported by -virtue: if, therefore, our disposition to good did not redound -over the evil a state of society could not be maintained. -It would indeed be an impiety little short of blasphemy to the -great Being who has created us, to say, that mankind at large are -eagerly inclined to what is vicious, but turn with aversion from -what is moral and good. Yet this, whatever they may avow, -must be the opinion of those who say that good doctrine from the -press cannot be left with safety to oppose bad.</p> -<p>Now, gentlemen, not only am I not without the corroboration of -this enactment of the Legislature of Virginia for my humble -opinions, but the Act of Virginia is itself not without the very -highest human sanction, as I shall show you by a passage which I -am about to cite from the work of a man, with whom, in my mind, -the writings of all other men are but as the ill-timed uninformed -prattlings of children—a man from whom to differ in opinion -is but another phrase to be wrong. Need I, after this, name -him? for was there ever more than one man who could be identified -with such a description? I mean Locke, the great champion -of civil freedom. In this work on government he -says—</p> -<blockquote><p>“Perhaps it will be said, that the people -being ignorant <!-- page 118--><a name="page118"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 118</span>and always discontented, to lay the -foundations of government in the unsteady opinion and uncertain -humour of the people, is to expose it to certain ruin, and no -government will be able long to subsist if the people may set up -a new legislature whenever they take offence at the old. To -this I answer, quite the contrary, people are not so easy got out -of their old forms as some are apt to suggest; they are hardly to -be prevailed with to amend the acknowledged faults in the frame -they have been accustomed to, and if there be any original -defects or adventitious ones introduced by time or corruption, it -is not an easy thing to be changed, even where all the world sees -there is an opportunity for it. This slowness and aversion -in the people to quit their old constitutions has in the many -revolutions which have been seen in this kingdom still kept us -to, or, after some intervals of fruitless attempts, still brought -us back again to our old legislature of King, Lords and -Commons.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>Such is the opinion of this greatest of men, formed on the -most consummate wisdom, enriched by observation, during times -which afforded no small degree of experience. Upon his -authority, then, that men are not to be excited to sudden -discontent, and passion for hasty change, I assert, that there is -no danger to be apprehended from the freest political -discussions; and consequently no need of their condemnation by a -jury’s verdict of Guilty.</p> -<p>Milton, too, the greatest of poets, and hardly less a -politician, was of the same sentiment as to the firmness of the -people, and thought it might safely be left to them to read what -they pleased, and to their reason and discretion, what to object -and what to adopt, without any other interference. It is -his Areopagitica, in which he contends for unlicensed -printing—an oration addressed <!-- page 119--><a -name="page119"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 119</span>from his -closet to the Parliament of England, and which has been cited by -Lord Mansfield himself, on the bench. His words -are—“Nor is it to the common people less than a -reproach; for if we be so jealous of them that we cannot trust -them with an English pamphlet, what do we but censure them for a -giddy, vicious and ungrounded people? That this is care or -love of them we cannot pretend.”</p> -<p>Such are the sentiments of Milton, in that noble effort of -united argument and eloquence, which I should not fear to hold up -against the most splendid orations of antiquity.</p> -<p>Having thus, I submit, made good my position, that political -papers, whatever their description, can produce no mischief, and -that there is no need to prosecute them; I will now show you, -that not only can publications, containing false opinions, do no -mischief, but that they actually produce benefit, and that -therefore not they, but the prosecutions, which would check, and -stifle them are injurious. Is it meant to be contended that -error is stronger than truth; folly more powerful than reason, -and irreligion than religion? No man, in his senses, will -maintain such propositions. On the contrary, error has -always been dispersed before reason, and infidelity by -religion. The appearance of error and falsehood has always -roused Truth to rise to the work of refutation. Even the -sublime truths of religion have never been so completely -demonstrated, and conviction and faith have never been so firmly -fixed in the minds of men as by those books of controversy which -have been drawn forth by attacks upon Christianity; and which, -but for the publications denying the authenticity of the -religion, would never have been in existence; but, invaluable as -they are, the world must have wanted them. As to political -<!-- page 120--><a name="page120"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -120</span>writings, is it not notorious, that the very best -expositions of the nature of civil society and government, are -solely to be ascribed to the conflicts of reason with the false -and loathsome doctrines of passive obedience and divine -indefeasible right, which found their way into the world by the -freedom of publication? Even that great work, the treatise -of Locke on Government, itself, which is justly regarded as the -political Bible (I mean no irreverence) of Englishmen, would -never have seen the light, but that it was written to refute the -base and detestable tenets of Barclay and Filmer. Their -political treatises were false and slavish, and even illegal; for -they were the same for which Dr. Sacheverel was afterwards -impeached by the Parliament; and which he would not have been if -it had not been an offence to maintain and publish such -opinions. Yet were not their falsehoods and errors useful -and beneficial? Did they not provoke Locke to rise in all -the majesty and strength of truth and cast down Filmer and his -doctrines into the lowest abyss of contempt, never again to -emerge? See, now, if the government of those days had -prosecuted Barclay and Filmer, and suppressed their books by -power instead of leaving them to be demolished by reasoning, what -would have been the consequence? The mighty mind of Locke -would not have been called into action, and the total refutation -and utter explosion of Filmer would not have been effected. -By criminal prosecutions the odious positions would only have -been suppressed for a time, not as they now are, extinguished for -ever; and the base and degrading doctrines of passive obedience -and divine right, which are the stigma of the times in which they -prevailed, might have been the disgrace and reproach of ours.</p> -<p>But supposing that prosecutions for political writings <!-- -page 121--><a name="page121"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -121</span>were in any respect politic, useful, or wise, will they -prevent their publication? No more than your strong and -violent revenue laws have been able to suppress the rise of -illicit stills in Ireland and Scotland. Even if by dint of -the terror of prosecutions the press in this city could be -reduced to such awe and subjection, that everything that issued -from it was as flat and unmeaning as the most arbitrary -government could desire, its inhabitants would still gratify -their thirst for political discussion and information. They -would compose and print as they distil, in the depth of deserts -and the solitude of mountains, and under the cover of darkness -drop the pamphlets into the houses, or scatter them in the -streets, and the obstacles to circulation will serve only to -inflame the desire for possession. This would be the result -of a determination to suppress everything in the shape of -political discussion that did not please the humour of a set of -men in authority, while by far the greater part if not all those -publications which inspire so much apprehension, would if passed -in silence either never be noticed, or read their hour and -forgotten. It is these public trials that give them -importance and notoriety. They would not draw an eye but -for the glare thrown on them by these luminous -prosecutions. These indictments (though I would not -willingly be ludicrous on so serious an occasion) force into my -mind the course once adopted with regard to houses of ill-fame, -by the Society for the Suppression of Vice. They paid men -who were fixed before the doors of such houses with huge paper -lanterns, on which there was painted in large illuminated -letters, “This is a house of bad fame.” But, -instead of causing a desertion of the houses, they operated as an -advertisement and an allurement, and increased the numbers who -resorted <!-- page 122--><a name="page122"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 122</span>to them. Those who had before -frequented them did not discontinue their visits, and those who -were ignorant of such places and seeking them, on seeing the -emblazonment by the doors, cried out—that is just what we -wanted, and turned in. The society at last discovered their -mistake. They found that they were encouraging what they -wished to abolish, and discontinued the plan. My learned -friend, who is counsel for the society, can confirm me when I -assert that they do not now carry it into practice. -Precisely the operation that these lanterns had with regard to -houses of ill-fame, have these trials upon obnoxious -writings. They are illuminated by the rays which are shed -on them by these proceedings. They attract every eye, and -are read in the light (as it were) of the notoriety which is thus -thrown upon them by these prosecutions.</p> -<p>Gentlemen, it just occurs to my recollection, that I have -omitted in its proper place something which I ought to have -mentioned, and urged to you, and I beg your indulgence to supply -the omission. You will remember that in one of the passages -charged as libelous, the words “I will not, now, say a word -about insurrection” are to be found, and my learned friend, -Mr. Gurney, suggested to you that it was an excitement, at some -future period, to insurrection. I, gentlemen, repeat that -these words are not only no excitement to insurrection, but an -express disavowal of it. If you infer that he means -insurrection at any future time, you must also suppose that the -insurrection he contemplates is conditional, and in speculation -of conduct in the government that may justify it. Is there -any extrinsic evidence to show that he means something beyond the -words? None—and the words themselves are a literal -disclaimer of any intention of insurrection. And it is by -the words then that you will judge of his design, <!-- page -123--><a name="page123"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -123</span>and not take it from the vague and partial declamation -of the counsel for the prosecution, whose opinions ought no more -than my own, to have any weight with you, except as they are -supported by reason. If you can find any such meaning as an -intention to excite insurrection in the words, so much the worse -for the defendant; but, if you cannot, and I am sure you cannot, -then you will not hesitate to adjudge the words innocent. -What! may not I, or any man, say there is no occasion for -insurrection at this moment, but there may be at a future -time? Good God! are there no possible situations in which -resistance to a government will be justifiable? There have -been such situations, and may again. Surely there may -be. Why, even the most vehement strugglers for indefeasible -right and passive obedience have been forced (after involving -themselves in the most foolish inconsistencies, and after the -most ludicrous shuffling in attempting to deny it) to admit, that -there may be such a conjuncture. They have tried to qualify -the admission indeed—admitted, and then -retracted—then admitted again, and then denied in the term, -what they admitted in the phrase, till, as you shall see, nothing -ever equalled the absurdity, and ridiculousness of the -<i>rigmarole</i> into which they fell, in their unwillingness to -confess, what they were unable to deny. Yes, gentlemen, -there are situations in which insurrection against a government -is not only legal, but a duty and a virtue. The period of -our glorious revolution was such a situation. When the -bigot, James, attempted to force an odious superstition on the -people for their religion, and to violate the fundamental laws of -the realm, Englishmen owed it to themselves, they owed it to -millions of their fellow-creatures, not only in this country, but -all over the world; they owed it to God who had made them man to -rise <!-- page 124--><a name="page124"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 124</span>against such a government; and cast -ruin on the tyrant for the oppression and slavery which he -meditated for them. Locke, in the work from which I have -already cited to you, in the chapter entitled, “On -Dissolution of Government,” contends with Barclay, an -advocate for divine right and passive obedience, and refutes him -on this very question, and proves that subjects may use force -against tyranny in governments. He cites Barclay who wrote -in Latin, but I read to you from the translation.</p> -<blockquote><p>“Wherefore if the king shall be guilty of -immense and intolerable cruelty not only against individuals but -against the body of the state, that it is the whole people, or -any large part of the people, in such a case indeed it is -competent to the people to resist and defend themselves from -injury, but only to defend themselves, not to attack the prince, -and only to repair the injury they have received; not to depart, -on account of the injury received from the reverence which they -owe him. When the tyranny is intolerable (for we ought -always to submit to a tyranny in a moderate degree) the subject -may resist with reverence.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>In commenting on this passage, Mr. Locke, mixes with his -reasonings the ridicule it deserves:—“‘He (that -is Barclay) says, it must be with reverence.’ How to -resist force without striking again, or how to strike with -reverence, will need some skill to make intelligible. He -that shall oppose an assault only with a shield to receive the -blow, or in any more respectful posture without a sword in his -hand, to abate the confidence and force of the assailant will -quickly be at the end of his resistance, and will find such a -defence serve only to draw on him the worse usage: this is as -ridiculous a way of resisting, as Juvenal thought of fighting, -‘Ubi tu <i>pulsas</i>, ego <i>vapulo</i> <!-- page 125--><a -name="page125"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -125</span>tantum,’ and the result of the combat will be -unavoidably the same as he there describes it.</p> -<blockquote><p> Libertas -paupcris hæc est.<br /> -<i>Pulsatus</i> rogat, et <i>pugnis</i> concisus adorat,<br /> -Ut <i>liceat</i> paucis cum dentibus inde <i>reverti</i>.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>“‘This is the liberty of the slave: when beaten -and bruised with blows, he requests and implores as a favour to -be allowed to depart with some few of his teeth.’ -This will always be the event of such an imaginary resistance, -when men may not strike again. He, therefore, who may -resist must be allowed to strike. And then let our author, -or anybody else, join a knock on the head, or a cut on the face, -with as much reverence and respect as he thinks fit. He -that can reconcile blows and reverence may, for aught I know, -deserve for his pains, a civil respectful cudgeling whenever he -can meet with it.”</p> -<p>So much, gentlemen, for the doctrine of non-resistance. -Therefore the author of this paper in stating that there may be -times when insurrection may be called for, has done no more than -a hundred other writers, and among them Locke, have done before -him.</p> -<p>Locke proceeding still with the discussion of the question, -whether oppressive governments may be opposed by the people, and, -having concluded in the affirmative, says, “But here the -question may be made, who shall be judge whether the prince or -legislature act contrary to their trust. This, perhaps, ill -affected and factious men may spread among the people, when the -prince only makes use of his just prerogative. To this, I -reply, the people shall be judge; for who shall be judge whether -the trustee or deputy acts with and according to the trust that -is reposed in him, but he who deputes him, and must, by having -deputed him, have still a power to discard him <!-- page 126--><a -name="page126"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 126</span>when he -fails in his trust. If this be reasonable in particular -cases of private men, why should it be otherwise in that of the -greatest moment when the welfare of millions is concerned, and -also when the evil if not prevented is greater, and the redress -very dear, difficult, and dangerous.”</p> -<p>Locke, therefore, most unambiguously concludes that -insurrection may be justified and necessary. A greater and -more important truth does not exist, and we owe its promulgation -with such freedom and boldness to that most extraordinary and -felicitous conjuncture at the revolution which called upon us to -support a king against a king, and obliged us to explode (as has -been done most completely) the divine right and passive obedience -under which one king claimed, to maintain the legal title of the -other.</p> -<p>Locke goes on further to say—</p> -<p>“This question, who shall be supreme judge? cannot mean -that there is no judge at all. For where there is no -judicature on earth to decide controversies among men, God in -heaven is judge. But every man is to judge for himself, as -in all other cases, so in this, whether another hath put himself -in a state of war with him, and whether, as Jeptha did, he should -appeal to the Supreme Judge.”</p> -<p>I beg that I may not be misinterpreted, I hope it will not be -said I mean to insinuate that any circumstances at present exist -to justify insurrection. I protest against any such -inference. Nothing can be further from my thoughts, and I -regret that such an extravagant mode of construing men’s -words should be in fashion, as to render such a caution on my -part needful. All I say is, that the writer of this paper -spoke of insurrection conditionally, and prospectively only, and, -in doing so, has done no more than Locke, in other terms had done -before him.</p> -<p><!-- page 127--><a name="page127"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -127</span>Gentlemen, I have but a very few more arguments to -address to you, and I am glad of it, for I assure you, you cannot -be more exhausted in patience than I am in strength.</p> -<p>I now, gentlemen, ask you even admitting that the <i>style</i> -and manner, in which the opinions of the writer of this address -are expressed, should verge upon intemperance and impropriety, -would you venture, merely upon the ground of such a defect in -style, to say the defendant is guilty; when the very same -opinions in substance, expressed in a different style, would be -innocent and legal, and unquestionable? Gentlemen, I have -heard it asserted, with a surprise that I cannot express, that if -persons will write in a moderate, delicate, temperate, and -refined style they may discuss questions which become -exceptionable and forbidden if they are handled in a coarse and -illiberal style. Now I should have thought, that the very -reverse of this would have been the case; for by a refined and -guarded style you may insinuate and persuade—by vulgar -coarseness and intemperance you disgust and nauseate. To -say that a political paper of the very same sentiments, and -principles would be innocent, written in a calm and delicate -style which would be criminal, written in an abrupt, vehement and -passionate manner, is to remove guilt from the thought and -conception and substance of a writing, and impute it to the -medium only of the thought, the mere expression. So that -upon such a rule and principle of decision, if I were to heap -violent and gross abuse even on Abershaw, or any other -highwayman, who was deservedly hanged a hundred years ago, I -might actually be indicted for a libel. Such a course, -gentlemen, would be to degrade your judgments from a decision -upon the thought, and <!-- page 128--><a name="page128"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 128</span>opinions (which, are alone -important) of an author to a criticism and condemnation of his -words, and would be waging war with the vocabulary and the -dictionary, a degradation, to which I trust, your reason will -never submit. A difference of style in political writings -is much too refined and subtle to found a distinction upon -between innocence and crime. Difference of style is so -minute, and is a subject of such nice discrimination, that it -would not only be difficult, but almost impossible, and most -unsafe for any jury to attempt by it to draw a line between guilt -and innocence; besides, what would be the effect upon the -press? If I were told, when I sat down to write upon any -topic, that I must treat it in a given style, and no other, or -risk prosecution, I should be confounded, and throw down my pen -without writing at all. At least I should either not write -at all, or write in such a manner that I might as well not have -written at all, for I should most certainly never be read. -Good God! to leave a man the alternative of a particular style, -or an indictment for a libel, when he sat down to compose, would -be like placing a torpedo on his hand; for you cannot, as was -most forcibly, and beautifully said by Lord Erskine, -“expect men to communicate their free thoughts to one -another under the terror of a lash hanging over their -heads;” and again, on another occasion, “under such -circumstances, no man could sit down to write a pamphlet, without -an attorney at one elbow, and a counsel at the -other.” Gentlemen, if you, sitting coolly and -dispassionately to give a deliberate judgment upon the manner and -style of an author’s composition would find it difficult to -form a certain judgment, how great, how insuperable, must be the -difficulty of the writer himself. How is he when he sits -down intent on his subject and when vehement and <!-- page -129--><a name="page129"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -129</span>ardent (as he must be, if he is in earnest, and that he -may persuade others of that, which he feels himself) and his -ideas are thronging and pressing upon him for -expression—how is he to be select and cautious and measured -in his words? Would you not by subjecting the freedom of -political discussion to such a restriction run the hazard of -destroying it altogether? Upon this question of the -difficulty of distinguishing between propriety and impropriety in -the style of writings I can not abstain from reading to you a -passage from a speech of Lord Chesterfield, which was quoted by -Lord Erskine, when he was at the bar, upon a trial for -libel. On that occasion, indeed, Lord Kenyon told him, that -he believed it flowed from the pen of Dr. Johnson, and -<i>that</i> Lord Erskine took as a valuable concession; for from -the frame of mind and bias of that learned man on political -subjects, he was certainly not a friend to popular liberty, while -Lord Chesterfield, I believe, acted without deviation upon Whig -principles, and was a constant advocate for the freedom of the -press. From Dr. Johnson, however, it was most important, as -it had the effect of an unwilling admission, and if Lord Kenyon -was correct in attributing the speech to Dr. Johnson, its -excellence is to be inferred from the fact, that Lord -Chesterfield never discountenanced the opinion that he was its -author. The passage is this:—</p> -<blockquote><p>“One of the greatest blessings we enjoy, one -of the greatest blessings a people, my Lords, can enjoy, is -liberty; but every good in this life has its alloy of evil; -licentiousness is the alloy of liberty; it is an ebullition, an -excrescence—it is a speck upon the eye of the political -body: but which I can never touch but with a gentle, with a -trembling hand, lest I destroy the body, lest I injure the eye -upon which it is apt to appear.</p> -<p><!-- page 130--><a name="page130"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -130</span>“There is such a connection between -licentiousness and liberty, that it is not easy to correct the -one, without dangerously wounding the other: it is extremely hard -to distinguish the true limit between them: like a changeable -silk, we can easily see there are two different colours, but we -cannot easily discover where the one ends, or where the other -begins.”</p> -</blockquote> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>.—You should state, -in fairness and candour, that that was an argument against -licensing.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—I know it -was. The argument contends for the difficulty, next to -impossibility, of distinguishing where that which is allowable -ends, and that which is licentious begins. A licenser could -not tell where to allow, and where to object, yet a licenser, -gentlemen, would have had just the same means of judging that you -possess; and if he could not tell with distinctness and certainty -what to let pass and what to stop, how, with no greater power, -and means of judgment, can you? With what justice, then, -can it be objected to me, that I have shown any want of candour -in not stating the precise question on which the argument was -delivered, when in the principle there is not a shadow of -difference? My application of the passage is therefore -perfectly just.</p> -<p>Gentlemen, I have only one more quotation to trouble you with -before I conclude. That is the opinion of Lord -Loughborough, afterwards Chancellor of England. I do not -know in what case, or on what occasion it was delivered, but I -believe in a judgment on a case of libel. “Every man -(says that judge) may publish at his discretion, his opinions -concerning forms and systems of government. <i>If they be -weak and absurd</i>, <i>they will be laughed at and -forgotten</i>; <i>and</i>, <i>if they be</i> bonâ fide, -<i>they cannot be criminal</i>, <i>however -erroneous</i>.”</p> -<p><!-- page 131--><a name="page131"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -131</span>This is the opinion of a great judge upon political -publications, sitting under the authority of the king himself to -administer the laws; and to apply this authority to the paper -before you, what reason on earth have you to suppose, that the -writer from the beginning to the end was not bonâ fide in -his opinions; and then, however erroneous they may be, I say, -under the sanction of Lord Loughborough himself, they are not -criminal.</p> -<p>Having, gentlemen, submitted these observations to you, I -declare most unfeignedly that I have uttered them with the most -conscientious belief, that they are founded in reason, justice, -and truth. I have not advanced a proposition nor uttered a -sentiment as an advocate, which I am not prepared to avow and -maintain as a man. If I am wrong in my judgment, you will -correct me. You will, however, consider my reasonings, and -the passages which I have cited to you in support of them, and -judge if I have not maintained the propositions, which I have -submitted to you.</p> -<p>No argument can be drawn from any of the observations, which I -have addressed to you for impunity to libelers and defamers of -private character. No, they are justly called assassins; -for they who destroy that without which life is worthless are as -guilty as those who destroy life itself, and let them feel the -heaviest vengeance of the law. Private persons may be -attacked and have no power to defend themselves. They may -not only be unable themselves to answer published calumnies -against their character; but also unable to employ those who -can. But such can never be the case with those who -administer the affairs of the nation. All the wealth and -power of the country is in their hands. They may hire a -thousand writers to support their measures, and vindicate their -characters, and they <!-- page 132--><a name="page132"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 132</span>will not want volunteers; they can -command the press; and, for their protection, it is sufficient, -that the press should be opposed to the press. Private -individuals cannot command the press; and, therefore, let -slanderers of private character suffer the utmost punishment that -the law can inflict.</p> -<p>And now, gentlemen, I ask you to give me your verdict for the -defendant. I make no attempt to move your compassion. -I will not urge you to consider that the defendant is a woman, -and unable, from the tenderness of her sex, to sustain hardship; -nor call upon you to remember, that which you cannot but know, -that she has already been convicted upon one prosecution, for -which she will, without doubt, be the subject of severe -punishment. I ask it on the higher ground of justice; -though, I confess, that I hope and wish it with more anxiety, -because I trust it will send these embodied prosecutors, this -Constitutional Association, as (by the figure, I suppose, of -<i>lucus a non lucendo</i>) they entitle themselves, into that -obscurity to which they properly belong, or at least if they will -obtrude further upon the impatience of the public, let them carry -with them the ill omen of a failure in their first attempt to -insinuate, either that the English Constitution is deficient in -its establishment of responsible law officers of the crown, or -that those officers are incapable of fulfilling the duties of -their station. It is said, and I hope truly, that the -country is gradually recovering from the distress, under which it -has so long suffered, and that plenty and prosperity have again -begun to flow in upon us. May it be so! but we shall never -derive enjoyment from any improvement in our physical condition; -unless it is accompanied with domestic tranquillity. To be -happy we must be at peace amongst ourselves; and nothing will -<!-- page 133--><a name="page133"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -133</span>have the effect of allaying the heart-burnings of -political animosity and uniting us, as it were, in bands of -harmonious brotherhood, so much as a discouragement of these -party prosecutions, which, while they kindle feelings of -indignation, and hostility, and hatred in large numbers of the -people, are of no general benefit to the state. Fling back -this prosecution, then, in the faces of those who have instituted -it; and, instead of sending this unfortunate woman to a prison, -send her back by your verdict of acquittal to the children of her -brother, who, deprived (in the manner you know) both of their -father and mother, are as much orphans as they would be by their -death; and who, sordid and neglected in her absence, are -requiring her care. And, what is more, you will, by your -verdict of Not Guilty, give security to the free expression of -public opinion, compose our dissensions, and protect both -yourselves and posterity; since in calling on you to acquit the -defendant, I call on you to protect the freedom of the press, and -with it the freedom of the country; for unless the press is -preserved, and preserved inviolate, the political liberties of -Englishmen are lost.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—It was his -duty to call back the attention of the jury to the question which -they were to try. A number of observations had been made -relative to what had taken place in Virginia, but which had -nothing to do with the verdict which they were to give. One -observation had been made, in the propriety of which he perfectly -agreed, which was that they would dismiss from their minds all -prejudices. The learned counsel for the defendant seemed to -think that the name of Carlile was sufficient to create -prejudices. If that were the case, he hoped the jury would -forget that the present defendant was of that name. They -had nothing now to do but to exercise <!-- page 134--><a -name="page134"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 134</span>their -judgment upon the facts before them. The jury were told, -and truly told, that they were the judges as to whether this was -a libel or not. The statute gave the jury the power of -finding a general verdict; but they still were bound under the -sanction of their oaths to find it according to law. He -should give his opinion, and the jury were at liberty to differ -with him; but he must beg in the most distinct terms to state -that the jury or the court had nothing to do with the propriety -or impropriety of these prosecutions, or with the association by -which the prosecution had been instituted. For his own part -he did not know by whom it had been instituted until he had been -requested by the defendant to ask the jurors as they went into -the box, whether or not they were members of that -association. The two questions to be decided were, first, -Was this pamphlet a libel? and secondly, Was the defendant the -publisher? They must lay out of their consideration acts of -parliament passed in Virginia. The principles laid down in -the preamble of the act alluded to, might be a good principle for -America, but he was bound to tell them that it was not law in -England. In the book quoted from by the learned gentlemen, -it was said “how wretched must be the state of society in a -country where the laws were uncertain;” and that must be -the case where the jury take into consideration the propriety or -impropriety of laws. In his opinion this publication was -libelous, and if the jury were not satisfied of the contrary, the -safer course would be for the jury to agree in opinion with one -who must be presumed to be acquainted with the law, and who gives -that opinion upon his oath. No man could be a more ardent -admirer than he of the press, to the freedom of which Europe was -principally indebted for its happiness; and God forbid that he -should do anything <!-- page 135--><a name="page135"></a><span -class="pagenum">p. 135</span>which would for a moment extinguish -that liberty! The learned counsel for the defendant had -said, that the libel upon a private individual was a species of -moral assassination. It was odd that an individual could -not be libeled with impunity, and yet that society might be set -by the ears. The government were equally protected with all -others against the malevolence and virulence of the press. -He would again repeat, but he would say nothing as to what the -law ought to be, but he stated what it was. What he -conceived to be the true liberty of the press was this, that any -man might, without permission, publish what he please, if he were -responsible for what he might publish. It might be asked, -then is a man answerable for every expression? To that he -would answer, no; if a man’s intention were to convince the -people that the government was not acting right, he had a right -to publish his opinions; and if some sparks should fly out beyond -decorum when the real apparent object was to instruct, the -expressions ought not to be visited with punishment. But -men must not go farther than instruct: they must not say that the -system of government is a system of tyranny; which meant nothing -more than that the people ought to pull down such systems. -The learned counsel had alluded to Athens and Rome, but it was -well known that those States punished offences of this -description with greater severity than the laws of England -inflicted. Every man had a right to point out with -firmness, but with respect, the errors of government. Every -man has a right to appeal to the understanding, but not to the -passions; and the man who wished to do so need not be afraid to -write. The distinction between fair discussion and libel -was this, that one was an appeal to the passions, and the other -to the understanding. If the <!-- page 136--><a -name="page136"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 136</span>jury were -of opinion that this pamphlet was an address to the people of the -country, to induce them by legal and constitutional means to -procure a redress of grievances, then they would acquit the -defendant; but, if on the other hand, they should be of opinion -that the intention was to appeal to prejudices and passions (as -he thought) it was their bounden duty, whatever they might think -of the propriety or impropriety of the prosecution, to return a -verdict of guilty. He next felt it his duty to remark upon -the passages in the record, and if the learned gentleman had gone -through the pamphlet, he would have found in the next page, in -which the writer said, that the making and administration of laws -was corrupt, a sufficient explanation of what was intended by the -sentence, “to talk of the British Constitution, -&c.” There was in the country a constitution not -like the Spanish Constitution, created in a day; but matured by -the sense of ages, altering and adapting it to times and -circumstances until it became what was a practical and not -theoretical system of liberty. The learned counsel had made -some observations upon what had fallen from Lord Colchester in -the House of Commons; such observations he thought irregular, but -he permitted them sooner than it should be said that the -defendant, to use a familiar expression, had not “fair -play.” He did not want the authority of Lord -Colchester with respect to these corruptions, because he had -evidence of it in a case in which he tried twenty-four persons -for such practices. But was it the meaning of the passage, -that there was corruption in the House of Commons? No, the -expression was that the laws (which were corrupt enough to bring -to punishment persons guilty of those practices) were -corrupt. Was this true? If there were anything for -which this country was more distinguished than another <!-- page -137--><a name="page137"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 137</span>it -was the equity of the laws, and it was for this that the laws of -England were extolled by all foreigners. The writer could -not mean the borough of Grampound, or any other borough, when he -said that corruption was the oil of the system. When the -writer said he did not “at that moment speak of -insurrection,” what was his meaning? Why that -insurrection would not do then, but at some future time they -might, when satisfied of their strength, take advantage of all -circumstances. As far as he understood the nature of the -Manchester and Stockport Rooms they were for instruction, and if -the writer did not go farther, then indeed would the pamphlet be -harmless. “Delay some time.” “Have -such meetings as those at Manchester and Stockport; be assured of -your numbers, and you can overpower the Government.” -There could be no doubt that these passages were libelous. -The next question was, whether the defendant had or had not -published the libel? and it was in evidence that these copies -were purchased at two different times. The jury were not to -take into consideration the former conviction; and he could -assure the jury that no greater severity would be used than was -sufficient to restrain this licentiousness, which, if not -restrained, would overturn this or any other Government. -The revolution recommended by this pamphlet would not be an -ordinary change of masters, but a transfer of property.</p> -<p>At about four o’clock the jury retired; and, having -returned at quarter before five,</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span> said, he had -received a communication that they were not likely to agree; and -as they must agree at some time or other, he sent for them in -order to give them any information in his power upon such points -as they disagreed upon.</p> -<p><!-- page 138--><a name="page138"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -138</span>A Juror.—The Foreman was rather precipitate in -writing to your Lordship; we have not wasted much time, and we -are discussing it among ourselves.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I am not in -a hurry.</p> -<p>The Foreman said, there were four of the jurors obstinate, and -he would wish his Lordship to draw a juror.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—I have not -the power to do so.</p> -<p>A Juror.—I throw back the charge of obstinacy in the -teeth of the Foreman—he is obstinate.</p> -<p>Another Juryman.—My Lord there is obstinacy.</p> -<p>Second Juryman.—This is invidious; I am not the only one -who stands out; there are four of us.</p> -<p>The Foreman again expressed his opinion that they should not -agree.</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Best</span>.—Gentlemen, -you must see the impropriety of this public discussion; you had -better retire, and endeavour to agree among yourselves.</p> -<p>The jury again retired, and at eight o’clock desired -their families might be informed that it was not likely they -would return home before the morning.</p> -<h4>Wednesday, July 25th.</h4> -<p>This morning the jury were still enclosed without the least -chance of any agreement. A number of persons were in -waiting to hear the verdict. At half-past nine -o’clock, Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Holroyd</span> -appeared on the bench, and an intimation was conveyed to his -Lordship that there was no probability that the jury would -agree.</p> -<p>A conference took place between the counsel for the -prosecution and defence who appeared to be both willing to enter -a <i>Noli Prosequi</i> and discharge the jury without a -verdict.</p> -<p>A gentleman in black (said to be Mr. Longueville Clarke, one -of the Committee of the Constitutional <!-- page 139--><a -name="page139"></a><span class="pagenum">p. -139</span>Association, and one of the <i>State Locusts</i>) -suddenly started up, and declared that he would not consent to -such a course.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span> (to the man in -black).—Are you the attorney for the prosecution, sir?</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Longueville Clarke</span>.—No: I -am a member of the Constitutional Committee; and <i>I will</i> -have a verdict.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>.—However potent, -sir, your word might be in the committee-room, it has no power in -this Court.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Gurney</span>, as counsel for the -prosecution, in the absence of Mr. <span -class="smcap">Murray</span>, the attorney, would take upon -himself the responsibility of consenting to discharge the -jury.</p> -<p>Mr. <span class="smcap">Cooper</span>, thinking it cruelty to -confine the jury any longer would yield also to a consent for -their discharge.</p> -<p>The jury were then sent for, and in their passage to the Court -were loudly and rapturously cheered by the bystanders. -Having answered to their names,</p> -<p>Mr. Justice <span class="smcap">Holroyd</span> addressed -them.—Gentlemen of the jury, I am glad that it is in my -power to relieve you from your present unpleasant -situation. The learned counsel on both sides have consented -to discharge you without your returning a verdict.</p> -<p>The jury then left the Court, and were again loudly cheered in -their passage through the Hall.</p> -<p>Thus ended the first attempt of the Constitutional -Association, or the Bridge-street Banditti, to get a verdict; -particularly important to the country—particularly -honourable to the counsel for the defendant, and the honest -Jurors who made so noble a stand for the Liberty of the -Press—and particularly disgraceful to all parties connected -with the prosecution.</p> -<p style="text-align: center"><!-- page 140--><a -name="page140"></a><span class="pagenum">p. 140</span><span -class="smcap">london</span>:<br /> -<span class="smcap">W. & H. S. Warr</span>, Printers, -3, Red Lion Passage, & 63, High Holborn.</p> -<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF THE LATE -HENRY COOPER***</p> -<pre> - - -***** This file should be named 23826-h.htm or 23826-h.zip****** - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/3/8/2/23826 - - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, -set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to -copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to -protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project -Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you -charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you -do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the -rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose -such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and -research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do -practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is -subject to the trademark license, especially commercial -redistribution. - - - -*** START: FULL LICENSE *** - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project -Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at -http://www.gutenberg.org/license). - - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy -all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. -If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the -terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or -entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement -and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" -or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the -collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an -individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are -located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from -copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative -works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg -are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project -Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by -freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of -this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with -the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by -keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project -Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in -a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check -the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement -before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or -creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project -Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning -the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United -States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate -access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently -whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, -copied or distributed: - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived -from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is -posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied -and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees -or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work -with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the -work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 -through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the -Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or -1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional -terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked -to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the -permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any -word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or -distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than -"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version -posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), -you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a -copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon -request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other -form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided -that - -- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is - owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he - has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the - Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments - must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you - prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax - returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and - sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the - address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to - the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." - -- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or - destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium - and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of - Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any - money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days - of receipt of the work. - -- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set -forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from -both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael -Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the -Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm -collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain -"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or -corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual -property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a -computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by -your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with -your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with -the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a -refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity -providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to -receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy -is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further -opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER -WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO -WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. -If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the -law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be -interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by -the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any -provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance -with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, -promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, -harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, -that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do -or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm -work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any -Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. - - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers -including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists -because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from -people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. -To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation -and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 -and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf. - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive -Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent -permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. -Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered -throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at -809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email -business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact -information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official -page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact - -For additional contact information: - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To -SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any -particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. -To donate, please visit: -http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm -concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared -with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project -Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. -unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily -keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - -</pre></body> -</html> diff --git a/old/23826-h/images/p0b.jpg b/old/23826-h/images/p0b.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index b5684ce..0000000 --- a/old/23826-h/images/p0b.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/23826-h/images/p0s.jpg b/old/23826-h/images/p0s.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 17af5ea..0000000 --- a/old/23826-h/images/p0s.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/23826.txt b/old/23826.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 13087cb..0000000 --- a/old/23826.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4215 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry -Cooper, by William Cooper - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry Cooper - Barrister-at-Law, of the Norfolk Circuit; as also, of his Father - - -Author: William Cooper - - - -Release Date: December 11, 2007 [eBook #23826] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF THE LATE -HENRY COOPER*** - - -Credit - - - -Transcribed from the [1856] W. & H. S. Warr edition by David Price, -ccx074@pglaf.org - -{A slight sketch of my Father, when over 70, taken in Court by Mr. Joseph -Geldart of Norwich: p0.jpg} - -W. & H. S. Warr 63, High Holborn - - - - - -A SKETCH OF THE LIFE -OF THE LATE -HENRY COOPER, -BARRISTER-AT-LAW, OF THE NORFOLK CIRCUIT; -AS ALSO, -OF HIS FATHER, - - -BY HIS SON, - -WILLIAM COOPER, ESQ., B.A., Oxon., - -_Of Lincoln's Inn_, _Barrister at Law_; - -AUTHOR OF THE DRAMAS OF - -"THE STUDENT OF JENA," "MOKANNA," -"ZOPYRUS," &c. - -"MEMINISSE JUVAT." - -LONDON: -PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY W. & H. S. WARR, -63, HIGH HOLBORN. - - - - -DEDICATION. - - -To MR. SERGEANT STORKS. - -DEAR MR. SERGEANT, - -To you I dedicate this sketch of the Life of my late brother, Henry -Cooper; and, for three good reasons--the first, because, you were -associated with my brother on circuit, knew him well, and were one of -those, who being often opposed to him in court, were best able to -appreciate his talents, eloquence, and the general powers of his mind;--my -second, because, when young, I have listened often to your eloquence, and -been made merry by your wit and humour;--my third, because, you have -known all my family, and by one and all are much respected;--and my dear -Mr. Sergeant, with kind regards to yourself, and best wishes to you and -yours, - -Believe me, -Yours very truly, -WILLIAM COOPER. - -3, HARE COURT, TEMPLE, -_December_, 1856. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -KIND READER, - -In attempting the life of my late brother, who, after struggling for -years at the bar in almost obscurity, had, on a sudden, his brilliancy -noticed and his great talents acknowledged, and no sooner had he reached -that eminence in his profession, when all was made easy before him, than -unpitying Clolho stept up, and cut his thread of life; I must ask your -indulgence, for the reasons you will see, as you proceed in this my life -of him, as also, from the very scanty materials I have been able to -collect for it. How the first idea of this suggested itself to my mind, -I will tell you; a few days ago, I was about to re-publish some Dramas, -written by me in earlier years, and thinking one of them would scarcely -make a volume by itself, the _thought struck me_, on looking over my -treasures, and finding some verses of my brother Henry in his own hand -writing, amidst many youthful rhymes of my own and of my family, _that_ I -would string them together, and so swell the work alluded to. To do this -I thought it necessary to affix a short heading to each, to particularize -the writer, and for this purpose wrote, to head my brother's, a short -biographical sketch of him, consisting of about thirty lines, and -quitting my house, left it on my way to chambers at my printers, returned -home, the labours of the day over,--went to bed, but not to sleep, -thought of my late brother, of that I had written of him, pondered over -the past anecdotes of his life, that had been often told me, recalled his -image to my memory, and amidst airy visions of the past, of my father, -earlier days, and of youthful pleasures mixed with pain, fell -asleep--BUT--with a determination. To carry it out,--on the morrow I -began this sketch. You must judge how I have performed my self-imposed -task, and wishing it may amuse you, and encourage young aspirants who -shall chance to read it, not to give way under difficulties, but -strenuously to persevere, seeing how much may be achieved by diligence -and a determination not to yield, remembering ever the good advice and -the useful maxim delivered of old:-- - - "Tu ne cede malis sed contra - Audacior ito--" - "Possunt quia posse videntur." - -I am, yours faithfully, -W. COOPER. - - - - -LIFE OF HENRY COOPER. - - -The subject of the present memoir, Henry Cooper, was born at a house in -Bethel Street, in the City of Norwich, now well-known as the late -residence of Alderman Hawkes, and where resided for many years his -father, Charles, now better known as Old Counsellor Cooper, a remarkable -man, who, like the late William Cobbett, though of humble origin, -possessed one of those minds that will and must, as they have ever done -from the time of Deioces of Ecbatana (recorded by Herodotus) till now, -elevate the possessor and compel the homage, whilst exciting the no small -envy of inferior intellects. What education he received was at a small -school kept by the Rev. John Bruckner (a Lutheran Divine), who died in -1804, and was buried at Guist, in Norfolk, where French, Latin, and the -common rudiments of an English education were taught; and where, too, the -late William Taylor,--perhaps one of the most extraordinary men Norwich -ever produced, the early and intimate friend of Southey, and who was the -first, according to Lockhart's Life of Scott, to give that great writer a -taste for poetry by his (Taylor's) spirited and inimitable translation of -Burger's well known ballad beginning,-- - - "At break of day from frightful dreams up started Eleanor," - -was his fellow pupil, and who has told me what a gentle, industrious, and -amiable boy he remembered my father (truly, in this instance, the child -was father of the man); there he acquired, no doubt, some knowledge, but -it was far more to his own self-instruction that he was indebted for the -large and varied knowledge he possessed, for, as his brother Samuel (his -only and younger brother,--he had a sister but she died young) informed -my mother that such was his early thirst for knowledge, that he not only -repudiated all play, and the sports of boyhood, taught himself Greek, and -greedily devoured the contents of every book that came within his reach, -but would, with the pocket-money given him, purchase candles, and when -the family had retired to rest, light one, and sit and read till the dawn -of day, when he would creep into bed, and sleep till the hour of call, -when he would rise to resume anew his mental exercise. So years past by, -and the young and sickly looking boy grew into the youth, when his -father, a man of strong intellect, with a great deal of sound common -sense, perceiving the bent of his son's mind,--and being a man who had -retired early in life from business with a small property, on which he -lived in a house at Heigham (a hamlet within the city),--at once placed -his son Charles with one of the most respectable attornies, in large -business in Norwich, as an articled clerk to the law, where he very soon, -by his persevering industry, his assiduity, and the great acuteness shown -in every matter entrusted to his care and management, so conciliated the -good opinion of his master, who discovered progressively, the evident -marks of superior abilities [here, too, he indulged to an excess his -insatiable thirst for reading, that he would sit up the greater part of -the night for this purpose, to the neglect and injury of his health], -that at the termination of his engagement, his conduct was so acceptable, -and his services so manifest, and his influence, too, among the clients, -was found to be so extensive, that on his obtaining his certificate to -practise as an attorney, his principal was glad to offer him a share in -the business, and receive him as a partner; the reputation he had already -acquired became wide spread, and quickly raised the firm in the -estimation of the public, and clients flocked to it, and all would see, -if they could, and consult with Mr. Cooper on their affairs. - -Some years thus passed, when, from some cause or other, a dissolution -took place in the partnership, and when, probably from the advice of -friends stimulated by his wife's ambition (a Miss Yarrington, a woman as -I have been given to understand, of masculine mind, vast energy, and -indomitable spirit, whom her son Henry has been often said by those who -knew her, to have resembled in more than features, for in face he -resembled his mother), he was induced to enter himself at Lincoln's Inn, -which he accordingly did in the year 1782, and is thus entered: "Charles -Cooper, of the City of Norwich, eldest son of Charles Cooper of the same -place, merchant, admitted 22nd of April, 1782." Prior to this, a -remarkable incident occurred in his life: he undertook the conduct of a -cause of great intricacy and importance for a pauper, a labouring -blacksmith. An extensive and valuable landed property, well-known as Oby -Hall, with its extensive demesnes, had been for a long time in abeyance; -the property was estimated at that period, at not less than 30,000 -pounds; on failure of male issue, the descendants on the female side put -in their claim, among whom the blacksmith stood foremost; he came, -consulted with my father on his claim, who became after a time, convinced -of the solidity of his title; and after examining it with indefatigable -assiduity, he at length, after much entreaty, undertook to carry his -cause through every court, were it necessary, upon certain conditions; -the conditions were, that if my father succeeded in gaining the cause, in -consideration of taking upon himself all the risk, expenses, and labour, -he should enjoy the estate; whilst the claimant, having no relations but -the most distant, if any, was to receive an annuity for life of 300 -pounds. After almost insurmountable difficulties, great expense, and -consumption of time and labour, the long anticipated time arrived when -the trial was to decide the question of such grave moment to the parties -concerned: Lord Erskine came down to Norwich specially retained for the -claimant (the origin, I believe of his after intimacy with Henry), the -case came on for trial,--was fought on both sides with all the ability -and ingenuity such a cause demanded (I forget the name of the opposing -counsel), the claimant's title was confirmed, and the estate gained. The -claimant lived but a little more than a year or two after to receive his -annuity, to him absolute wealth; and he died, I have heard, expressing to -the last, his gratitude to (as he styled my father) his protector. - -Unfortunately, coming into the possession of the estate, my father must -turn farmer, and like him, I have before compared him to, and I have -often thought since reading the works of Cobbett, that there was a -similarity in their thoughts on many subjects; he soon began to farm at a -fearful loss (for to be a gainful farmer, so farmers hold, or rather they -did then, a man should properly be trained to it from his youth), he was -forced to trust to others to do what he should himself have done, and -being still occupied in his professional pursuits at Norwich, his visits -to the hall and the estate were but occasional, and the eye of the master -was but too often absent; his family, however, resided there, consisting -of his wife and his four children, Charles, Henry, Harriet, and Alfred, -and there his affections were centred, so that it cannot be wondered at, -that with a divided duty, and the course pursued, ere many years, but I -am forestalling, the estate soon became involved, and eventually he was -compelled to part with it at a loss, or rather with no gain, for at the -time of its sale, which happened at a period during the long war, land -fell all of a sudden greatly in value, and the seller was glad to -experience the truth of the old saying-- - - "When house and land and all are spent, - Then learning is most excellent." - -This sale, however, did not occur till some years after the death of his -first wife, and when he had married his second, a Miss Rose White, my -mother, and by whom he had several children, seven only living to -maturity, all of whom, I being the eldest, having survived him. His -first family, with the exception of his daughter, who died a few years -ago, having all died previous to the decease of their father. After -having pursued his studies with his accustomed assiduity, in chambers he -had taken in Stone Buildings, and eaten his terms, he was called to the -bar on the 9th of June, in the year 1788. (For these several dates I am -indebted to the kindness of Mr. Doyle, the greatly respected steward of -Lincoln's Inn.) When, having resided a few terms in London, he hastily -left the metropolis--the true and only sphere for the full development of -extensive legal knowledge and great abilities, such as his,--to reside -and practise as a provincial barrister in his native city; where, from -his previous reputation, not only as a lawyer well versed in common law, -with great knowledge in the practical parts of it, but as a most skilful -conveyancer, and great real property lawyer, with a deep knowledge of all -its intricacies and moot points, he, at once, obtained considerable -practice, and a fine income, which, I believe, by present provincial -counsel would be regarded rather as a fiction than reality. He was, -moreover, a fluent speaker, with diction pure, and most grammatical. I -ought, here, perhaps, to mention what will seem strange to the present -generation, that I have often heard my father say, that the first book he -began to study law from was "Wood's Institutes," a book that "the -Commentaries of Blackstone," rendering the study of the law far more -intelligible and easy to the student, has long completely superseded. In -Norwich he continued to reside up to his death, where he was ever applied -to by every attorney, without exception, far and near, if any very -difficult point of law arose; and, till within some few years prior to -his death, which happened on the 21st of July, 1836, when age as, is -usual, though it kindly spared the vigour of his intellect, yet brought -with it its physical weakness and ailments, he was employed as leading -counsel in many important causes, where legal knowledge and acumen was -required; and, in the courts, from the high reputation he had acquired, -he ever commanded the ear of the judges, and the respect of his brethren -at the bar. He had the joy, too, to live to see his son Henry rising -fast to eminence in the same profession, though the after pang and -anguish to sorrow for his death; and he grieved for him in heart, though -not his youngest, as did Jacob at the imagined loss of his favourite, -and, in my opinion, never did he quite get over it; he not only loved, -but was proud of him. - -The latter years of him, whose life I have thus briefly sketched, were -past at his small country residence, situated at Lakenham, where his -second wife, who survived him, my mother, now seventy-four, still -resides, a hamlet of and situate two miles from Norwich, where he spent -the chief of his time, of that he could spare from the city where he -practised, till up to the last twelve months of his life, when in his -eighty-fourth year he expired, worn out with past exertion and years, and -was, as chief Coroner and Magistrate of the Close and its precincts, -under the jurisdiction of the Dean and Chapter, buried within the -cloisters of the cathedral. - -By his family, from his sweetness of disposition, kindness of heart, and -amiability of temper, he was tenderly beloved and regretted, and still -whenever recalled to memory in the quietude of the chamber the eye will -ever be moistened by a tear, and the heart kindle at the recollection; -and by many others he was and will be yet greatly missed; the poor and -struggling literary man he would encourage not only with praise, but with -his purse, and, THAT, the poor and needy had ever open to them, and his -advice besides gratuitously, whenever required (and this might be -confirmed by hundreds still living "in the ONCE ancient city," as a -certain wise Alderman of yore styled it), and to their affairs he would -give as much attention as to the richest client; his private memoranda -alone, after death, told his good deeds, for he strictly adhered to the -beautiful doctrine laid down by the great Teacher, "But when thou doest -alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth,"--"_Quando -ullum invenies parem_?" - -Of his first family, Charles, the eldest son, was intended for the bar, -and was entered at Lincoln's Inn, but from the natural sensitiveness of -his disposition he never kept his terms, and soon gave up all thoughts of -the profession; he lingered at home, a Westminster scholar, a man of -extensive reading, and of great intelligence [as I have been informed, -for I was much too young fully to appreciate him], till after many years, -on Henry's quitting Bermudas, he became the secretary to Sir James -Cockburn, in which employment he continued some years, and only returned -when Sir James ceased to be the governor. He then became a kind of -superior clerk in the Marine office then held in Spring Gardens, and -subsequently died at the age of about forty-five or forty-eight of -consumption, a complaint of the mother's family. Alfred went into the -army as an ensign, was at the battle of Waterloo, was wounded there, was -ordered and went subsequently to India with his regiment, the 14th Foot, -where, years after, just as he had obtained a sick leave to return home, -he was shot at Dinapoor, whilst reposing on his sofa, thinking probably, -or dreaming of home and its affections, by a drunken Sepoy, mistaking him -(in his mad excitement) for his servant, who had just previously refused -him drink; the occurrence caused, necessarily, great excitement and much -conversation at the time, the man was caught and hanged--a satisfaction -to justice, but a wretched consolation to his family, by whom, as the -youngest, and amiable as he was gentle, he was most fondly loved. His -father and sister, I believe, were never made acquainted with the true -cause of his death. A letter of Henry's relating, though indistinctly, -for evident reasons, to the sad occurrence, will be placed before the -reader. Harriet, as I have said, the only sister (who married a Dr. -Leath, a physician in the army, who resides still at Bayswater) died not -very long ago, leaving no issue. - -Having given a sketch, which I think and hope will have interested the -reader of him, from whom He sprung, whose life I am about to delineate. I -will now proceed to depict the life of the Son, with the simple remark -that I have undertaken a task of no slight difficulty (and much such an -one as that of the poor Jews, who, under their hard taskmasters in Egypt, -were set to make bricks without straw), with very slight materials to -describe the life of one who died when I was sixteen, and whom I loved -from his unvaried kindness to me, of the life of one who, had he lived, -would have had a far abler biographer. Henry, in early life, took a -propensity to and entered the navy, and was a midshipman in the battle of -the Nile, but soon after, disliking the service, quitted the profession. - -His education, when he returned from sea, was, through indulgence, -neglected: and he passed most of his time at Oby Hall, in Norfolk, the -then residence of his father, and distant about eight miles from -Yarmouth, in shooting, fishing, and driving a tandem-cart about the -country, built of unusual height; and an anecdote is related of him, -that, after driving it awhile, he went to Mr. Clements, the builder at -Norwich, and said, "Well, Clements, you have built a machine to surprise -all the world, and I am come to surprise you by paying you for it." And -to show his early quick perception, ready reply, wilfulness, and -precocity, I must here relate two well-attested anecdotes: the first, -when quite a child, and at his lessons in the nursery, on his mother's -running up to dispel the noise and disturbance he was making, she -exclaimed in anger, after in some measure correcting him, "Why, sir, if -you go on in this manner you'll turn the house out of the windows," the -young gentleman, looking roguishly at his mother, responded, "How can I -do that, Ma, for the house is bigger than the windows?" this of course -dissipated all anger, and brought a smile to the mother's face; silence, -however, was restored and study resumed. The other, when he was about -eleven or twelve years of age, a poor soldier, who had been kind to him, -assisting him in his fishing, boating, &c., and who was at that time -cleaning harness for my brother in the stable, was arrested by an escort -of soldiers, who suddenly came to apprehend and convey him, for some -alleged offence, to the head quarters at Yarmouth; without saying a word -or leaving a message behind him, young Henry started off with his friend -and the soldiers, telling the captive, "Never to care, for he would be -his advocate." He was, after some time had elapsed, missed; search was -made for him in every direction till night came on, but no traces of his -whereabouts could be discovered, and, with fearful anxiety, as I have -heard my father often say, all, at last, worn out and weary with the -fruitless search, retired to bed, but not to rest; care brooded over -their pillows and dispelled sleep. Morning, at last, came, but with it -no tidings of Henry; and, when alarm had reached its height, in ran the -servant lad, in breathless haste, exclaiming, "Master Henry is found," -and soon after he was seen, being borne in triumph on a soldier's back, -with others following, coming up the lawn. All were delighted to see the -lost one safe, and, to delight was added astonishment, on a soldier -putting into his father's hand a letter, which was quickly opened and -read, and which came from the commanding officer. I regret that letter -is lost; it spoke, I have often heard my father and mother relate, in the -highest terms of the youngster, and warmly congratulating the former on -the possession of such a son, so noble in bearing, so bold, and so -talented; adding, that he had pleaded the soldier's case so well, that he -had, so young an advocate as he was, obtained the acquittal of his -client. As he grew up in years he was the pride and terror of the little -farmers of the neighbourhood,--the first from his ready wit, playful, and -genial disposition, which he ever retained; the latter from the practical -jokes he was constantly in the habit of playing on them, many of which -are remembered and spoken of at, and around Oby, up to the present day: -and he had the love of all, for, if they wanted game, or any kindness -done them, they had only to ask and have. But midst this he read, and he -lacked not mental food to feed on, as his father possessed a large and -well-stocked library. Henry's reading, however, was necessarily -desultory and discursive, but such the retention of his memory, that he -forgot nothing he had once conned; as an instance of this I must relate -an anecdote, often told of him by Mr. Jay, an attorney at Norwich, still -living, and who was an excellent client, and a great admirer of my -brother, that soon after large business flowed in upon him, and he went -into court with a bag full of briefs; to his Mr. Jay's utter -astonishment, after a case had been called on, in which he was the -attorney, and the several witnesses had been called, examined, and the -cause gained, my brother, who had led it, turned round, and said, "There -Jay, I have won your cause, but I will be hanged if I know where your -brief is; I read it, but somehow lost it." He, of course, used blank -paper for his notes. His perception, too, was so acute, his imagination -so vivid, and his memory so retentive, that he could at once, and readily -apply the knowledge so widely gleaned to the subject under discussion, -that they who were ignorant of his previous mental instruction, would -have imagined that he had, in earlier years, been the lean and diligent -student, who had wasted the midnight oil in meditation and deep research. - -After an interval of years, he became a member of Lincoln's Inn, when in -due course of time he was proposed by the late Mr. Justice, then James -Allan Parke, Esquire, and called to the bar, May 25th, 1811. Soon after -his call, he accompanied Sir James Cockburn, who had been just appointed -governor of the Bermudas, as his secretary, and after a short period, on -his arrival there, was made Attorney General, the duties of which office -he for some years performed to the entire satisfaction of the governor. -His letters thence, I have understood, contained beautiful and vivid -descriptions of - - "That happy island where huge lemons grow" - -[he was an admirer of scenery and nature], and that the wit, graphic -portraitures of the men in office on the island, the general chit chat, -scandle and fun, intermixed with politics, occasional rhymes, &c., put -the reader [since dead] of a few of them, in mind of the letters of Lord -Byron. After his return home, he took chambers in Fig Tree or Elm Court, -in the Temple, read and awaited clients, and went the Norfolk circuit; -but, alas! few profitable knocks came to his door, and the circuit -yielded rather expense than profit; but on he went struggling and -struggling, till at last his talents were acknowledged; and the four -years preceding his death, he was an eminent leader, and engaged in -almost every cause throughout his circuit, and rapidly gaining a -reputation in London from "the very eloquent, bold, and honest style of -his defence," for Mary Ann Carlile, who was prosecuted, by what was then -styled the Constitutional Association, for publishing a libel upon the -government, and the constitution of this country. The trial ended after -a brilliant speech of the defendant's counsel, full of argument, -eloquence, and ability, in the dismissal of the jury, after being locked -up all night; the counsel for the prosecution, the late Mr. Baron Gurney, -consenting to their discharge. The report of the trial, and Henry -Cooper's speech in full, was printed and published by the notorious -Richard Carlile, who then kept a shop in Fleet Street. At the early age -of forty my brother died, and he was then looked on by the profession, as -a man, who, had he lived, must have achieved the highest honours in it. -He was an ardent admirer of, and some of his friends were pleased to say, -a close imitator of the oratory of Lord Erskine, with whom, till he died, -he was on terms of the greatest intimacy. In fact he was writing his -life for publication, by the express desire of Erskine himself, when -death staid the pen. Alas! but a few pages of it were written, and those -in the rough, I will, however, lay them, ere I have done, before the -reader. - -Henry, the last four years of his going circuit, and when his abilities -were acknowledged, was sometimes opposed to his father, to the no small -pleasure and amusement of the Norwich people, who as greatly respected -the legal ability of the one, as they admired the eloquence of the other; -and it was often a source of half suppressed laughter in that portion of -the court set aside for the public to hear "my learned friend" banded -from one to the other by the two Athlete--Father and Son--the one as -powerful from his tact, energy, and fervid eloquence, as the other from -his legal knowledge and great acumen, and who was often the victor, for -that knowledge, deep and extensive gave the father a superiority on those -points of a case, in which law and fact were intermingled, and which were -apt from Henry's comparative previous little business and short practice -as a leader to escape his attention, or when patent rendered him less -capable effectually to grapple with the legal and knotty difficulty, for -he had never had the advantage of a pleader's chambers; nor let it be -thought in those days that there were no giants to contend with--Sergeants -Blosset, Frere, and Storks, Messrs. Plumptre, Eagle, Robinson, Prime, and -others of note, with Biggs Andrews, now Q.C., and George Raymond, author -of the "Elliston Papers," as juniors were on the circuit, all of whom -have long since been dead, with the exception of Mr. Sergeant Storks and -the four last named. - -And here I cannot do better than insert a paragraph signed J. S., which -appeared in the _Times_, I think in or about the years 1831 or 1832; I -copy from the paragraph cut out from the paper, and at the time pasted in -an album, to which the date was omitted to be attached. The paragraph -was headed, "The late Henry Cooper:"-- - - "To most of our legal readers, we feel convinced, that this week's - sketch of the late Henry Cooper, the friend companion and intended - biographer of the late Lord Erskine, will prove highly acceptable. The - unexpected and melancholy event which deprived the bar of one of its - most promising ornaments, and cast a shade over the gay and talented - circle in which he moved, must be fresh within the memory of our - readers. As yet no memoir, no frail tribute to stamp even a fleeting - remembrance of his learning, professional fame, or liberal principles - has appeared, and while worthless rank and heartlessness have been - perpetuated by marble and the prostituted energies of literature, - genius, talent, and honor, have been left to the obscurity of the - grave; not one of those who shared his gay and mirthful hours, who - listened enraptured to his eloquence and flashes of wit, which as - Hamlet says 'were won't to set the table in a roar,' have endeavoured - by giving to the world his literary labours, or even a sketch of his - life, to preserve his memory from oblivion. Henry Cooper was the son - of an eminent counsellor of Norwich, a gentleman of powerful mind, - whose legal knowledge has rendered him one of the first consulting men - of the day. Even at his present advanced age of near eighty, he may - be seen early of a morning taking his accustomed walk, or if the - weather be too severe for exercise, found in his library surrounded by - his books and papers. - - Raised by his own perseverance, and in a great measure self-educated, - it is not to be wondered at if from such a father, the subject of our - sketch, acquired those habits of perseverance and industry which - enabled him by system to attain knowledge and fame in his profession. - - Upon being called to the bar his convivial powers and talent for - conversation introduced him to Erskine, who found so much pleasure in - his society, that they became not mere friends, but inseparable - companions, and plunged together in the gay round of pleasure, which - the world too temptingly presents to men whose minds enable them to - watch its interests and guide the machine by which society is - regulated. To all who knew him, and the thoughtless life he led, it - was a matter of surprise how and when he found time to attend to the - numerous cases of his clients, for his field of action soon became - extended; yet we will venture to pronounce and feel confident of being - borne out by those who knew him, that in no one instance did the cause - of the party he advocated suffer. - - In the Court he appeared as well acquainted with the words of his - brief, as if it had been for months the object of his most serious - attention; not a thread or a link of evidence escaped him, and so - persuasive was his manner, so argumentive his style of language, that - the jury frequently received the impressions he wished to convey, and - their feelings generally, if not their judgment, went in favour of his - client. He used, on some occasions, to plead in the Norfolk Courts, - and we have frequently seen him opposed to his father as a special - pleader. The old gentlemen, strong in the possession of his youthful - intellect, which time even to the present hour has failed to rob him - of, was perhaps less assailable by his pleasing manner and florid - speech than any of his brothers of the bar, and his ejaculations not - always of the most complimentary nature, were sometimes loud and - frequent. We have seen the son on such occasions always the first to - smile at his father's petulance, and the last to express any sense of - the impropriety of the interruption. We have seen the old gentleman, - in the midst of his son's argument, write to the opposing counsel - suggesting authorities and giving references and precedents against - him, all with the most perfect good humour on both sides; and the - greatest triumph he could boast was to defeat his son upon a point of - law: on such occasions he would put his hands behind his back, and - moving round with a chuckle, exclaim, "Something to learn yet, Harry!" - The father's delight and pride in his superior legal knowledge over - his son, became at last a standing joke with the barristers of the - Court. The death of Lord Erskine blighted Henry Cooper's hopes to a - seat in Parliament, where his eloquence and sarcasm would have made - him powerful as an ally, and feared as an antagonist; liberal in his - opinions to the present exclusive system of the church, he was a - decided enemy, and a thorough reformer in the state. His services at - a crisis like the present, would have been of incalculable benefit to - his country. - - From the period of the loss of his friend, till his own untimely end, - he devoted himself more than he had ever before, to literary pursuits - and the labours of his profession. A life of Lord Erskine was nearly - arranged for the press at the time of his decease, and it is to be - regretted that as yet his labours have not been given, imperfect as - they are, to the world; no one could have had better opportunities or - have been better calculated for the task; alike the counsellor in his - difficulties, the companion of his mirthful hours, the springs of - action, the feelings of his breast, must have appeared unveiled before - him; Death, however, prevented the completion of his task and removed - him too early from the world his talents ornamented." - -I had forgotten to say, that on his return from Bermudas he became and -continued very intimate with the Cockburn family, and often prophesied -the future success of the late Attorney General, now Chief Justice of the -Court of Common Pleas, then young Alexander Cockburn; and often has my -brother said to me, then about sixteen, when speaking of the above -family, "rely upon it, Billy, young Alexander, if he enter the -profession, will do great things in it; he is a remarkably clever, -energetic, and talented young man." Henry had much of the restlessness -and irritability, the usual accompaniments of a high order of talent, -with great earnestness in diction and action. - -Ere I proceed further; the reader will, perhaps, be pleased with a -likeness of the man. I should say, in height, he was about five-feet -eleven-inches; of spare and sinewy frame, with an elastic tread, that -those who knew him, and seeing him in the distance, might truly say, as -Ulysses of Diomede in Shakspeare's play of "Troilus and Cressida," - - "'Tis he, I ken the manner of his gait; - That spirit of his in aspiration lifts him from the earth." - -And often have I heard the late Mr. Alderson (the father of the present -judge), who travelled with my father, circuit and sessions as a -provincial barrister, more than thirty years, and who was resident at -Norwich, say,--"that Henry always put him more in mind of a Spirit, that -a man of flesh and blood;" his eye dark, like that of Edmund Kean's, the -great actor, showed every emotion of the soul, now fiery with anger, now -glazed with thought, and anon, melting into softness; his head small, and -finely rounded, and covered with thick clustering curls of black crispy -hair, was such as sculptors have ever loved to give the youthful -Antinous; his forehead retreating was characteristic, as Lavater says, -"of genius;" his nose was slightly arched in the centre and slightly -fleshy near the nostrils; his face oval, with a well defined chin and a -mouth plain, but full of energy and expression, and similar to Sterne's, -the contour, of whose face I always thought my brother's much resembled. -I have thus given, to please the lover of physiognomy, "a shadow -portrait," not "a Myall's photograph," which I hope will not only satisfy -the physiognomist, but which I think they, who but even slightly remember -Henry Cooper, have but to place before the tablet of their memory and -view the shade cast from it with their "mind's eye" to at once recall and -recognize the original. I have thus sketched his likeness, as I regret -to say, thus only can he be now known, or viewed by those who were -unacquainted with him living, as no portrait of him is extant, he dying -young, and for years previous struggling to succeed in a profession where -the "battle is not always to the strong," though in the long run the best -man often succeeds, as with few exceptions, perhaps, the long race, -barring accidents, is usually won by the best horse. He left no writings -behind him save a few letters, beautifully expressed, but mostly relating -to family matters, and, therefore, uninteresting to the general reader, -with the exception of five or six preserved by my mother, which I will -give the reader ere I have ended this biographical sketch; and the few -friends with whom he corresponded, and to whom, occasionally, he showed, -and gave the productions of his pen, though they considered him a man of -considerable talent, set such small value on his effusions, that, -however, pleased at the time they might have been with them they were put -aside forgotten and most probably destroyed, and what he himself chanced -to write and was pleased with for the instant, was, from the natural -carelessness of his disposition, hastily cast aside, and, no doubt, often -burnt with the waste paper of his chambers; so that every endeavour I -have made to possess even a shred of these scraps, has been futile. All -I have been able to gather are the few letters alluded to, with a few -poetical lines which will be given to the reader; and, as we often judge -of character from trifles, he must, from the slight sketch I have given, -and the small crumbs I have been able to collect, form a judgment of HIM -I have endeavoured to describe. He had all but reached the height of his -profession, when he was taken away, no doubt for a wise purpose, to the -deep and lasting regret of those who not only fondly loved him, but who -had begun to take, and no wonder, a warm pride in the object of their -affections. - -He died on September 19th, 1824, having been attacked some days previous -by a severe attack of diarrhoea, which, by some fatal mischance, was -mistaken by the surgeons who attended him, for brain fever; he was, -consequently, bled, and drastic medicines were administered, which must -have hastened if they did not cause his death, which happened at the -house of a friend of his, by the name of Hill, at Chelsea, where he was -buried, but his body was afterwards removed by his sister and deposited -where it now lies, near his father's in the cloisters of Norwich -Cathedral. - -I will now lay before the reader the few letters I possess. By the -letters of an ingenuous writer, it is said, you can gain a clearer -insight into his character, disposition, and mental powers, than by long -association or familiar discourse; these letters have been kindly given -me by my mother, with whom Henry constantly corresponded, and whom he -always treated with marked respect and affection, which was fully -reciprocated. They were addressed to her at Norwich, where she with my -father resided, and the first bears date, - - _London_, 3_rd_ _Nov._ 1815. - - "My Dear Madam, - - "And it came to pass that when they emptied their sacks, lo! ev'ry - man's money was in the mouth of his sack." I have had the same - measure from you which Joseph's liberality heaped on his brethren; and - if you will but believe that my proposal to you, to be allowed to be a - purchaser of half the preserved raspberry, was not a covert mode of - begging it as a gift; I thank you without any regret, and am very much - obliged to you. I thank you, too, very much for the pheasant which - flew into the window of the mail coach, and startled me in St. - Stephen's Street. George, who is a good lad, had put on his best - legs, and soon overtaking the mail, threw it in '_sans ceremonie_.' It - was a pleasant disturbance from no very pleasant reverie, which my - mind set out on the moment the coach set out from the inn; and which - would, but for this agreeable interruption, have lasted me at least as - long as the first stage. For the rest of the good things which you - gave me while I was in Norwich, and sent me laden away with, I must - thank you _en masse_; for to thank you one by one for them, would - force me to write a long letter, which I have not the least intention - in the world of doing. I was outside the mail, and for a long way the - only passenger. We learned at Newmarket, that the coachman, who drove - the coach, which was overturned the preceding night, lay very much - hurt. His viscera are bruised, and his only chance of life is in cool - veins well emptied by the lancet. 'Tis right that he on whose care - the safety of others depends should be most prominently exposed to the - danger of ill conduct or neglect; I wish heartily that this liability - could be transferred from those who sit on the coach box, to those who - sit in the cabinet and hold the reins of the hard driven state! we - should then have had more peace and less taxes. Ask Mr. Samuel Cooper - [a great liberal and brother of my father] if we should not? - - At Chesterford your friend, Mr. Smith, the representative for Norwich, - took the mail; and after a nap, talked very unrestrainedly with me on - the present state of France, on Buonaparte, the criminal law, and the - wisdom of the Justices at sessions. I was determined--like Horace's - whetstone, which can sharpen other things, though blunt itself, to put - an edge on him--to say something deep and decisive on some of the - subjects, but I got nothing from him but working-day talk. Perhaps - (like the character with the Greek name in the _Rambler_, who tells - his guest, showing him his fine things, that they were only brought - into service when persons of consequence visited him) he disdained to - pull out his best to me, yet I rather judge that he is only clever to - the party at Norwich; and as Oberon, though but six inches high, is - yet tall for a fairy, he is a great Apollo to the blue and whites [the - colours of the liberal party at Norwich]. For corroboration of any - opinion of theirs, I should always, like the Recorder of London, think - it right to ask the cook. - - There's my letter, a type of the miracle of the creation and the lie - to the great Epicurean maxim, that 'Nothing can be made out of - nothing;' for as one of those, that, as the song runs, 'None can love - like,' would exclaim, 'by Jasus, I had not a word to say, and yet I - have spoke three whole pages!' - - My duty to my father, and if you please, my best regards to Mrs. - Watson [my mother's sister], on condition she has no more hysterics; - and that is, as she pleases, more than perhaps she is aware of. She - is not naturally melancholy, and may soon accustom her mind to like - hope better than remembrance. My best love to Harriet [his sister], I - should, as I promised her, have written to her if I had not written to - you, but one letter will serve both; pray assure her how grateful I am - to her for all her anxious care and attention to me; I will not even - allow that Charles [his eldest brother, who was then the secretary to - Sir James Cockburn at Bermudas] loves her more than I, or esteems her - more, or will be more glad (as I told him in my letter) than I was to - see that she was better in health than she had been for years; 'twill - make him happy indeed, for the possibility of losing her is alarming - to him, and if she were to die, he would be most inconsolable; yet his - grief would not be more than mine, nor would he be more ready to - exclaim,-- - - 'I, nunc; et, numina non posse nega' - - which, as you are a lady, I translate for you, 'go now and say, that - angels cannot die.' But you must not read this to her, for she will - absurdly say 'tis flattery, as if I could have any motive to flatter - her. - - My love to Will [meaning myself]. He is so much improved as to be an - engaging boy, and I begin to like him very much. - - I am, dear Madam, - Yours very faithfully, - HENRY COOPER. - - P.S.--If Mr. Boardman [an old friend of his] should call, pray - remember me most particularly to him. He has long behaved to me with - the affection of a brother. He has even, in no few instances, - preferred my interests to his own. I am most deeply obliged to him, - and I like to tell people of it." - -The next letter bears date,-- - - _London_, 31_st_ _Dec._ 1815. - -To the same,-- - - "I send you the only coin I have, my very warm thanks for one of the - finest and best turkeys that entered the metropolis to be devoured in - celebration and honour of Christmas. A Christian of the utmost degree - of faith, that is as great as you ladies place in physicians, who - devoured with a devout and religious pique, could not have eaten more - or with more pleasure than I, though I sat down with no other zeal - than an hungry appetite, and little better than a mere heathen - stomach. When I reflected that you good people at Norwich were - rioting on just such a dinner (upon my honour), I could not help - blushing for your preposterous consciences, that, could expect to - enjoy so much pleasure in this world, and be saved in the next too. - 'Tis well for me that no one offered to bet with me, that the - pheasants did not come from you; but, I pray, do not think of - returning me the thanks, which I paid for them. They are all due, and - a vast sum more on the old account, though you, like a liberal - creditor, may have no idea of urging the payment of the balance - against me, and I beg they may be carried to it. I had almost - forgotten to add Alfred's thanks to mine for the turkey [he was the - youngest brother, who was an ensign in the 14th Foot, and had been - wounded in the recent battle]. He was here in time, and made a dinner - that contrasts rather vividly with his first meal after the battle of - Waterloo, on a slice of old cow that they shot with their muskets, and - tore to pieces, without giving themselves a moment's pause to reflect - whether the Bramin's might not be the true religion. But I must not - anticipate any part of his narrative to you, and Harriet, as to - another Dido and Anna, of all he has seen, done, and suffered, - throughout which he has been, like the French poets (Grissets) famous - parrot, _quite as unfortunate_ as AEneas, and a great deal more pious. - In other respects, indeed, you'll not find him like that bird; he'll - not give you his adventures with the gratuitous loquacity of poor - Poll. In this he'd rather resemble the bullfinch; you must give out - the tune to him, and chirrup with questions to him before he will pipe - his strain to you; and when I consider the vast difficulty which the - natural taciturnity of you ladies places you under of asking - questions, I feel for your curiosity in its tight stays excessively. - On this occasion, perhaps, where the motive is so strong, you will - break through your native restraint; and, therefore, I advise you to - have your interrogatories ready by the 8th of January, 1816, when - Alfred, who means to accompany me, will be in Norwich. I am very - grateful to you for your benevolent wishes of prosperity and happiness - to me, but they fall on a heart dead to expectation. I have been so - long in obscurity, that hope has quite left off visiting me; the best - years of my life are gone; and what is my condition? Depressed - spirits, and ill health; and the way as far as I can see before me, no - better, nay worse than the lengths behind. What right have I to hope? - The ring and the lamp of the Arabian tales must cease to be fiction, - before I can have any chance of good fortune. But I do not call for - pity. If I have not learned to be skilful in parrying and eluding the - blows of Adversity, from experience, I am at heart somewhat hardened - by long subjection, and habituation to them; and, if I have not the - soothing of Hope, I am not altogether without the consolation of - Philosophy. The happy must substract from his happiness the frequent - reflection, which comes like a cloud over him, that death will snatch - him from all his blessings. The wretched finds relief in the - certainty that death will end his misery; therefore, that state is not - very enviable, nor this intolerable. Both will soon, very soon be - past, and small, indeed, is the difference between past pleasure and - past pain. Be assured, madam, that I, in return, as warmly wish you - prosperity and happiness; I wish not only that the approaching, but - many succeeding years, may have both hands full of plenty and delight - for you; and I trust that it is not so unreasonable in you to believe, - that future events may give a character of prophecy to my present - wishes, as it would be in me to expect the fulfilment of yours. - - Pray, have the goodness to tell my father, that the vol. of Pickering, - from Priestleys, is procured, and that the copy of the Manuel - Libraire, at Longman's is still to be sold at four guineas. Pray, - make my thanks to him for letting me know the day of the sessions at - Norwich; I shall be present to help to do the nothing there. I - suppose he knows that the Corporation of Yarmouth have elected Mr. W--- - , to the stewardship. I hear him say 'How stupid of them to elect - that fellow.' I beg his pardon; it shewed exquisite judgment; and - yet, after all, there was somewhat of a felicity in it. They thought - it would be deserting propriety to have a man in the lower office of - steward of higher understanding than their Recorder. Now, under all - the fleecy cloud of wigs that lowers in the court of King's Bench, - they could not have found a second rate head to A---s, but that of W--- - d, and nothing but 'a lucky hit of nature' that mended her design when - she was determined to make as thick a skull as she had ever yet turned - out of her hands, could have given existence even to this instance of - inferiority. He says he was quite ignorant of their intention of the - honour that has been done him. If this be not affectation, I can - imagine nothing with which to compare or illustrate his surprise, - except that which must have come over the onion, when it discovered - that the Egyptians had made a God of it. I am wrong: surprise is the - effect of perception and he has none; his is like the genuine night, - that admits no ray, and in his very stupidity he is involved from the - least glimmering of consciousness of it. Pray, lessen the anxiety of - Harriet, which an unmerited affection for me betrays her into, by - telling her that I am getting better, and excuse the want of turn to - the conclusion of my letter in the want of paper; and allow me - abruptly to assure you that, I am, dear Madam, - - Yours most faithfully, - HENRY COOPER." - -The following letter, the reader must think very piquant and graphic, and -it will, probably, tend to throw a new light upon his preconceived -opinions and estimation of a certain great man. He must remember, too, -whilst reading it, that Admiral Sir George Cockburn had the command of -the ship which conveyed Napoleon and his suite to St. Helena. - -This letter is dated, - - _London_, 14 _Oct._ 1816. - -To the same,-- - - "I am very much obliged to you for your excellent and most welcome - present [it is below the dignity of the Epopee to say goose and - sausages] which reached me on Sunday, and the note which you were so - kind as to send with it, I can only repay you in this the old paper of - unproductive thanks, but the sincerity of them will be held in some - estimation by the mind actuated by the kindness that has excited them, - and, therefore, flimsy as they are, I venture to beg your acceptance - of them. I have nothing new, Madam, to send you for your - entertainment from this great city. That the Regent is going to - divorce the Princess of Wales, and excite the hope of the husbands and - the fear of the wives--that under such an example, all the legal - restraints to repudiation will be removed, and the practice become - wide, and quite fashionable; you have, of course, heard long ago from - the newspapers, they are eternally depriving us by anticipation of the - power of writing agreeable and interesting letters to the Ladies in - the country. - - Sir James Cockburn arrived in town last Saturday from Bermudas. He is - quite well, and neither seems nor believes himself an hour older for - having been three years at Bermudas, since he was last in England. I - have been much with him and his brother, the Admiral, lately. I have - not (for your sex has not ALL the curiosity, though all of a peculiar - kind) omitted to ply him with questions about Buonaparte. He is now - admirably qualified to be Emperor in that country of which I have - read, where they elect the fattest man in the state to the Empire. His - legs are as bulky as my body, the ribs in proportion; and since this - girth is all attained in little more than five-feet five-inches of - length, he is not what Miss Cruso or Miss Godfrey [the head milliners - of Norwich at the time] would call a very genteel figure. He eats - with voraciousness of the most luxurious dishes; he has, in Cockburn's - opinion, a very mean assemblage of features with something fearfully - black and vicious about the brows and eyes. His manners are coarse - and repulsive. Did you ever in a litter yard come suddenly on a lady - in the straw that starts up on her fore legs and, dropping fourteen - infant pigs from her teats, salutes you with a fierce jumble of - barking, grunting, and hissing? In exactly such a sound is this - amiable man represented to me to have always replied to every address - of Bertrand, Mouthoulon, and the others, who are his fools and - followers to St. Helena. Sometimes he neglected all restraint on his - nature, and gave the same ferocious and inarticulate answers to the - English officers. He played chess so badly, that Bertrand and - Mouthoulon, who had too much discretion to excel their patron, had, at - times, great difficulty to lose the game to him; after trying for many - nights he could not attain the rudiments of whist, and went back to - vingt-un; but this is the man who has been described to us all as ALL- - INTELLECT. The newspapers, too, said I remember, that at whist he - left all instruction behind him, and soon played so well, that he had - won very large sums of the Admiral by his superior play, even while he - was only a Tyro. I can tell you no more now; but the Admiral has had - the goodness to lend me a journal of his conversation with Buonaparte - on the passage out, and when I have the pleasure of seeing you in the - sessions week, I will give you some extracts from my memory. I am, I - believe, a little better, but the disorder in the upper part of my - stomach still continues and oppresses me. It is now inveterate, the - complaint commenced last March, a twelvemonth past. If I cannot rid - myself of it, it will kill me in time. My best duty to my father, - love to William and 'aliis,' - - I am, dear Madam, - Yours very faithfully, - HENRY COOPER. - - P.S.--I write in a great hurry for I am making up my parcel for - Bermudas. I should not write to you at all, but I do not like so long - to delay my due thanks to your kindness." - -This letter is dated, - - 2, _Lamb's Buildings_, - 27_th_ _January_, 1817. - -To the same,-- - - I am scarcely warm in my place in London before I have to thank you - for your present to me; you hardly give me time, in the short - intervals of these marks of your kindness to me, to frame my thanks to - you for each. I have exhausted all my common-place forms and am - forced to rack my invention (so very often have you come forward with - these welcome claims on me) to give anything like a turn to the - expression in which to convey my thanks. Mr. Pope (in those rhymes - for the nursery which he has entitled the Universal Prayer) calls - enjoyment obedience: now if enjoyment be thankfulness, too, then never - was a being more completely thanked than yourself; for the ducks were - devoured with the most devout gust and appetite; they were the most - superb fowls that ever suffered martyrdom of their lives to delight - the palate and appease the hunger of the Lords of the creation. You - should have sent them to some imitator of the Dutch school, who could - have painted them before he ate them; the hare, too, is as good as it - can be, and you are agreeably thanked for it by an equal portion of - enjoyment. - - I must beg you to excuse a very short, dull, and hasty letter, from - me. If I were not impatient at the thought of letting any longer time - elapse without expressing my lively sense of your frequent mark of - kind consideration of me, I should not write at all to day. I have - something to do at my chambers, and in ten minutes I must run down to - Westminster Hall; and whilst I am thus engaged, I am as much - disqualified for writing, by a dark fit of low spirits, as prevented - by want of leisure. I resist as much as I can these attacks of the - night-mare by day, but I cannot wholly succeed against them; my - circumstances may possibly change, and, if not, such gloominess is - unreasonable; if Fortune is never weary of persecuting me, I shall at - last be past the sense of her persecutions. In the meantime, whatever - is the colour of my life, I shall, if I can, continue to hope the - future cannot be the worse, and the present will be the more tolerable - for it. I shall, therefore, cling to her while I live, and to apply a - beautiful thought of Tibullus-- - - 'Dying, clasp her with my failing hand.' - - In endeavouring to recollect me of the many fine things that have been - said of hope to crown my declaration of attachment to that first place - of our lives, I remember Cowley has observed 'that it is as much - destroyed by the possession of its object as by exclusion from it.' - This is very ingenious and very true, and though not to the purpose - for which I was seeking it yet will very well serve another. I wish - my dear Madam, very sincerely, that the former mode of destruction may - speedily befall all your present hopes, and that in future you will be - surrounded by so many blessings as will leave you no room for the - exercise of any hope but their continuance, My duty to my father, and - my love to William, I trust that he improves in Latin; pray tell him - that I was vexed not to find him so good a scholar in that language as - I expected; when I next see him I hope my expectations will be - exceeded. - - I am, my dear Madam, - Yours very truly, - HENRY COOPER." - -The following letter I have previously made reference to. It is written, -evidently, in despondency, and heartfelt sorrow, under the shock of the -frightful calamity. It relates to the disastrous death of poor Alfred, -his youngest brother. It is dated from, and bears date - - 2, _Elm Court_, _Temple_, - 25_th_ _June_, 1822. - -To the same,-- - - I received your letter yesterday, but I was so ill (that important as - the occasion is) I could not answer it. To-day, nothing less than the - urgency of the subject could prevail upon me to make the smallest - exertion, for I am scarcely able to drag one limb up to the other. I - have a violent catarrh, the glands of my throat are further inflamed - and ulcerated, and I am burning with fever. - - With regard to divulging to Harriet the disastrous event, for which, - when once known to her, she can never be consoled; I am in a very - unfit state to give advice. I am as I have always been of opinion, - that it should be concealed from her as long as it can. It is a more - generous cause of grief than the loss of a lover; and as Harriet's - mind is built, I think more likely to shock and destroy her. You - state only one reason for breaking the secrecy which has hitherto been - observed--that it appears strange, the event public, that you are not - in mourning for it. I cannot but think that if any good can - reasonably be expected from withholding the knowledge of this dreadful - incident, it would be wrong and trifling to forego it, for the - senseless custom of putting yourself in black for a few months. I - have no crape about me. If any one were to ask the cause of my - disregard of a paltry decorum, I should either turn on my heel from - him, or explain to him that I did not put on the mockery of sorrow, - lest it should get to my sister's ear; that I was in outward mourning, - and she had to be discovering for whom. - - It is, surely, easy for you to say that you do not put on black for - the same reason, to all who may enquire, or to all those to whom you - wish to appear decorous. [He then writes on family matters, but, - after a few lines, again recurs to the painful subject of his letter.] - It is known to several with whom I am acquainted in London; but, it is - easy, as Harriet restricts herself to a very narrow intercourse, to - keep it still from her knowledge, till she has recovered strength of - body to contend anew with severe and heavy affliction. How much I - have suffered from the intelligence I shall not attempt to describe to - you. I had but little interest in life before; it is now heavy and - sickening to me. I feel as if I never should smile again; every - circumstance of aggravation attends it. To perish on the verge of the - shore, when he was just about to embark, after six years in the - climate, when we thought the danger past. With letters from him full - of felicitation of himself, and rapture at the hope of soon meeting us - again, and when we were expecting him every moment in our embrace, to - be struck cold to the heart with the news that we should never see him - again. I owe little to man--I shall soon owe nothing to any other - being. I hate the cant of the doctrine of Providence 'your brother - may be snatched by a merciful power from impending evil.' Bah! why - not the merciful being continue life to my brother, and destroy the - impending evil? Well, I shall soon be as he is, and though there is - no consolation in that feeling, it is some assuagement of grief, - because sorrow will then be at an end. My duty to my father. I write - in great pain. - - I am, dear Madam, - Yours very truly, - HENRY COOPER." - -The following makes the last of the letters I possess, and is written six -months previous to his death; and in answer to a letter, of my mother to -him, respecting the appointment of a paid chairman, and he, a barrister -of some standing, to preside at Quarter Sessions, and to have besides (if -my recollection be correct) some civil power. This was then in the -contemplation of the Ministry; and as the poet says "coming events cast -their shadows before" evidently the shadow of the present county courts. -The letter is dated from and bears date, - - 5, Hare Court, Temple. - 6th March, 1824. - -To the same,-- - - "I did not return to Town till Sunday morning, when I found your - letter at my chambers. I hope you will accept, as a sufficient - excuse, the extreme fatigue and languor which I felt all yesterday for - not answering it immediately. - - I lament exceedingly, that my father should not have been early enough - in his application to the Lieutenant of the County, in whose gift, by - the frame of the bill, the appointment is placed, and in whose hand, I - fear, by the act itself it will remain. - - I cannot conjecture to whom it has been promised by Col. Wodehouse. To - Alderson is not at all probable, from the part he has taken against - the Wodehouse's, who are the most bigoted and relentless Tories in - existence. To Preston [another provincial barrister in Norwich, and - the late Jermy, who was shot by Rush], ought not to be probable, - because he is not competent either in law or common sense to fill the - office; and the favour to him would be an injury to the public. My - father has every claim to it, and I think that it would have been no - more than what was due from Col. Wodehouse, both to the county and my - father, to offer it to him before he promised it to another. - - I wish you might be right in your surmise, that the patronage will be - placed in another quarter; but, of that there is the faintest chance, - I should advise you to press my father to exert himself to procure the - appointment, as it will be an office of the most agreeable kind, - affording considerable profit at very little trouble. I, myself, know - not a soul in the world who could influence any one of the present - government: and any enquiries or attempt by me would have, in all - probability, an adverse operation. I am of no importance whatever to - any party, but my opinions, humble and insignificant as they are, have - been noticed and recorded; and I am down in the black book for - persecution, rather than in the red for favour. Of little note and - importance as I am, such is the consciousness, in their own infirmity, - in those who rule us, that the very lowest who have denounced their - system, are objects of their hatred, for they are the objects of their - fear; and those who have put them to the pain of apprehension, are - marks for their revenge. I should think that the best course that my - father could take would be to apply to Mr. John Harvey, to induce his - brother, Onley Harvey, Esq. (a brother barrister of my father too), to - ask it of the Home Department; if he asked it (supposing the gift to - be there), I think, without doubt it would be given. [The rest of the - letter relates to family matters, and concludes my love to William. He - attributes too much honour to me by looking to me with any - admiration.] My duty to my father. - - I am, dear Madam, - Yours very truly, - HENRY COOPER." - -My task is all but accomplished. I have but now to lay before the reader -the promised verses; those on Buonaparte are characteristic of the -writer, who, with his high intellectual powers, possessed to the last, a -noble and independent spirit, which despised even the appearance of -servility. I shall then add the notices that appeared in the _Morning -Chronicle_, and _Gentleman's Magazine_, soon after his decease, which -clearly show that He, whose death they record, was no common person; as, -also, the high estimation he was held in by the profession, to which he -was an honour; and by the public who admired him for his eloquence, and -prized him for his independence of character. In the sketches I have -given of the two lives, which were, of necessity intermingled,--it is -true, I have given but a rough outline of each, and my hope is they will -portray the lineaments and character as effectually as a more lengthened -biography; as I have seen, and often the character of a friend's face -better given in a few mere outlines, than in the finished likeness. In -looking at a small duodecimo edition I possess of Plutarch's lives, I -perceive that the lives of his greatest heroes and statesmen, are -comprised within a hundred pages, and yet how clearly does he portray -their lives to the reader. He gives a few anecdotes of their youth, a -few salient points of their character in manhood, and then concludes with -their actions and their deaths; and leaves the rest to the imagination -and "the mind's eye;" and who, after, reading them, does not see clearly -before him the man whose life has been so ably delineated? I mean not, -by this, to compare myself for an instant, with that great writer; but, -having, as I said before, such slender materials to deal with, I have, as -far as I was able, and after re-perusing the writer referred to, done my -best, with my small abilities to follow his example, and pursue his -arrangement; I can only hope I may have in part succeeded. - -After the notices referred to, I shall end by laying before the reader -the verses written on my brother, after his death, by my mother and Mr. -Wing; and in the appendix I shall refer the reader to the life of Erskine -before alluded to; as, also, to the trial of Mary Ann Carlile, which will -show, and clearly, the style of the eloquence of her advocate on the -occasion, combined as it is with powerful argument, and that clearness -and lucid order which were his forte. And now, reader, to use the words -of Cicero, in concluding one of his epistles to a friend, "vale et -valeas." - - - -"IN BONAMPARTEM." - - -He ne'er shall be extoll'd by me, -Whom wealth and fortune raise to power; -But he, alone who will be free -From sordid shame, or live no more. -Let him with wreaths of song be crown'd, -Who life, deflower'd of glory, spurn'd, -And breaking from his kindred round, -To Carthage and to death return'd. - -With him, who when his righteous hand, -In vain the splendid blow had given, -The tyrant, only chang'd, disdain'd -The light of unregarded Heaven. -And Cato--thou, who tyranny -All earth besides enslaved, withstood; -And failing to high liberty, -Pour'd fierce libation of thy blood. - -Oh, Godlike men! you leave no praise -For him who to the king could bend, -To add a few unhonor'd days -To life, at latest--soon to end. -Nor him self-raised to Gallia's throne, -Who, rushing with his martial hordes, -Cast Europe's ancient sceptres down, -And made his slaves her sov'reign lords. - -For his was not the heart that dar'd -When with the battle all was lost, -Plunge in the whirlpool of the war, -And share the slaughter of his host; -Nor his, the indignant soul with brave -And Roman arm, his life to shed; -But still he sought by flight to save -His outlaw'd and unlaurell'd head. - -With face to earth his vet'rans' lay -In ruins all who bore his name; -His mighty Empire past away, -And blasted, as a Chief, his fame. -Yet--yet--(so let him live) content -The sentence of his foes he bore, -Like a vile felon to be sent -An exile to a wretched shore. - - - -FROM THE PORTUGUESE. - - -Where silver hairs no reverence meet, -Where to the weary stranger's feet - To cross the threshold 'tis denied. -And at the genial board, her place -No kerchief'd matron takes to grace - Her savage husband's haughty side; -Where Niger hides, or on the shore -Of dark and stormy Labrador. - O Castres,--I with thee would rove, -And, blest, thus wand'ring, if my mind -Could leave her galling bonds behind; - The bonds of an unworthy love. -Not like a Gambian slave that fled -(Of the pale Creole's lash in dread) - From Rio, strives in fearful haste -The mountain's woody side to gain; -But with him drags the clinking chain, - Lock'd at his waist or ancle fast. - - - -THE WOES OF THE RIVERS. - - -"To each his suff'rings." -Heaps of dead Trojans were Scamander's bane, -Dead dogs, dead cats, and dung-boats shame the Seine, -Ten thousand shores and jakes the Thames defile, -And gradual mud is working woe to Nile; -Yet harder Duddon's fate, her hapless stream -Of fifty strains by Wordsworth is the theme. - -* * * * * - -The following _jeu d'esprit_ was written on a certain nobleman, who, -leaving the Whig party, of which up to that time he had been a strong -adherent, and for the sake, it was supposed, of gaining the Regent's -favour, not only voted, but took a strong part against the Queen. - - - -TO LORD L---. - - -What caused you L---, to rush in, -Through thick and thin, to give your Queen a splashing -For this your party, to the devil gave you, -And yet the rav'nous Tories will not have you. -So in that country (where with hopes you fool -Your second infancy, you yet shall rule) -A sect of devotees there is who tell ye -The way to heaven is through a fish's belly; -And in the surges, on a certain day, -They give themselves to rav'nous sharks a prey. -Among the rest, an ancient beldame went,-- -Weak, wither'd, wrinkled, tawny, tough, and bent -(Your very self in breeches she would be, -Put on her petticoats, and you were she); -She waded in the water to her haunches, -Hoping the sharks would pass her through their paunches; -But out of fifty, not a shark would have her, -Tho' she implored them, as a special favour; -They came and smelt, and did not like her savour, -She threw their stomachs into such commotion, -They would not even bear her in the ocean. -But down they pushed her--roll'd her o'er and o'er, -And shovel'd with their snouts again to shore; -Alike your fate: to be by sharks abhorr'd -Was her's, and your's by Minister's old _Lord_. - -* * * * * - -In the _Chronicle_ of September 27th, 1824, appeared the following notice -of my brother's death, headed:--"Death of Henry Cooper.--We regret to -have to announce the death of a gentleman warmly beloved by all who knew -him, Mr. Henry Cooper the barrister. He died on Sunday the 19th, at the -cottage of his friend, Mr. Hill, of Chelsea, after a short illness which -brought on an inflammation in his bowels that proved fatal; he was -interred on Friday last. - -"Mr. Cooper had overcome the difficulties of his profession, and was -rising fast into eminence. He was already leader on the Norfolk circuit, -and with his readiness, his powerful memory, and his forcible and fluent -delivery, the most distinguished success was universally anticipated for -him: his vein of pleasantry was particularly rich, as an instance we may -refer to a case on the very last circuit in which a hairdresser of -Newmarket was one of the parties, and which he made irresistibly amusing. -We appeal confidently to those of our readers who have attentively -considered the signs of the times, if there was not much distrust of the -bar about the period when Mr. Henry Cooper came into notice, and if he -did not by his exertions contribute greatly to remove it. - -"He had been sometime employed procuring materials for a life of Lord -Erskine, with whom he was particularly intimate, which he had undertaken -to write; we suspect he had not made much progress in the work when death -erminated all his labour." - -The next notice of his death is taken from the _Gentleman's Magazine_, -from July to December, 1824; vol. 94, part 2.--"On the 19th of September, -1824, at Chelsea, Henry Cooper, barrister-at-law, in the vigour of life -and with every prospect of reaching the highest honors in his profession. -The death of this rising barrister has been recorded in page 381 [as -above]. He died of inflammation of the bowels, at the house of his -friend, Mr. Hill, at Chelsea. His age was about thirty-eight or thirty- -nine, and he had been about twelve years at the bar. He was the son of a -counsel of eminence residing at Norwich. He went to sea with Lord -Nelson, and was present at the battle of the Nile, but he early quitted -the naval profession for that of the law, though he retained much of the -frankness and gaiety of manner which distinguish seamen, and the activity -and strength of frame which a seaman's habits create. He was afterwards -Attorney General of the Bermudas, at the time when one of the Cockburn's -was governor. On the appointment of the late Mr. Serjeant Blossett to -the Chief Justiceship of Bengal, Mr. Cooper, who was then rapidly rising -on his circuit (the Norfolk) became one of the leaders; and at the two -last assizes, was in every cause. - -"He possessed great activity and versatility of mind; no one, according -to the testimony of those who saw most of him, combined with a fluent and -powerful eloquence, a better judgment and nicer skill in conducting a -cause. But his best and highest forensic quality, and that which, -combined with his talents, make the loss a national one, was his great -moral and professional courage, his unshaken attachment to what he -considered a good cause. No consideration ever warped him from his duty. -He was proof not merely against those speculations on the best probable -means of personal advancement which many men reject as well as he did, -but against that desire of standing well with the judges, of getting the -ear of the judge, of obtaining the sympathy of men of professional -standing, which it requires much more firmness to resist; there was no -one on whom a defendant exposed to the enmity of government, or to the -judges, or to any prejudices, could rely with greater certainty; that he -would not be compromised or betrayed by his advocate. In a word, there -was no man less of a sycophant. He had a confidence that he could make -himself a name by his own merits, and he would have it. - - "But the fair guerdon when we hope to find, - Comes the blind Fury with the abhorred shears - And slits the thin spun life." - -The following verses, soon after my brother's death, headed, "On the -death of Henry Cooper, Esq.," appeared in the provincial papers; they -were composed by my mother, and had not only the tacit consent of all, -but the universal praise, and that openly expressed, for their spirit and -truthfulness which all felt, for all then knew and admired him they -mourned. - - The pride of the Circuit is gone, - The eloquent tongue is at rest; - The spirit so active is flown, - And still lies the quick heaving breast. - - The mind so gigantic and strong, - Is vanish'd like vapour or breath; - And the fire that shone in his eye, - Is quenched by the cold hand of death. - - Yet a balm to his friends shall arise, - That so soon he acquired a name; - For he dropp'd like a star from the skies, - Untarnished in lustre or fame. - -The following verses also, on the death of my brother, appeared in the -provincial papers, and were written by Frederic Wing, Esq., attorney-at- -law, residing at Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, and headed, "On the death of -the late Henry Cooper." - - "Ye friends of talent, genius, hither come, - And bend with fond regret o'er Cooper's tomb; - Closed are those lips, and pow'rless that tongue, - On whose swift accents you've delighted hung. - Cold is that heart,--unthinking now, the brain, - But late the seat of thought's mysterious train, - For by the stern, relentless hand of death, - Is stopt the inspiring, animating breath: - And he whose powers of rhetoric all could charm, - Fail'd to arrest the Tyrant's conquering arm. - Cooper,--Farewell!-- - Transient, yet splendid, was thy short career, - Unfading laurels twine thy early bier. - To mourn thy exit, how can we refrain, - For seldom shall we see thy like again! - Who, to deep learning, and the soundest sense, - Join'd the rare gift of matchless eloquence. - Thy wit most keen, thy penetration clear, - Thy satire poignant, made corruption fear. - And such thy knowledge of the human heart, - So prompt to see, and to unmask each art. - Oppression shrunk abash'd, while innocence - Call'd thee her champion--her sure defence. - Once more, farewell, long shall thy name be dear, - And oft shall Independence drop a tear - Of grateful memory o'er departed worth, - And selfish, wish thee back again to earth. - To abide the important issue of that cause, - Fix'd not by mortal, but celestial laws, - Thou'rt summon'd hence, may'st thou not plead in vain, - But from our Heavenly Judge acceptance gain, - And sure admittance to those courts on high, - Where term and time are lost in blest eternity. - - - - -APPENDIX. -THE LIFE OF LORD ERSKINE. -AS COMMENCED BY MY BROTHER - - -Thomas Erskine, the only advocate, and, almost, the only orator, whose -speeches are likely to survive the interest of the occasion that gave -them birth in a country, where forensic litigation abounds, and political -institutions render the study and exercise of eloquence important and -necessary, was born on the in --- the year 175, at ---, in Scotland; he -was the third son of the Earl of Buchan, by ---. This family is ancient, -and connects, with its pedigree, the sovereigns, both of Scotland and -England, related to the former. The marriage of the daughter of James -the First with the Palatine, mixed his line with the descendants, and, -consequently, united him with the family that now reigns in England. He -thus brought with him to the profession of the bar, the advantage of all -the prejudice in favour of illustrious descents, and found easier way -yielded to his powerful talents by the diminution of envy which attended -it. - -Of his very early years, I am unable to supply the public with any -information, and I regret it,--not that any very important lesson of -utility can be derived from the anecdotes of childhood, but they are -amusing, and amusing without harm; and I agree with Dr. West that he has -a very imperfect knowledge of human nature who is not convinced, that in -a state of refined society, it is impossible to amuse innocently. All -that I have been able to learn distinctly, is, that the most playful -vivacity, and the same good humour, which ever after accompanied him even -in the keenest rivalry of the bar, displayed itself in his words and -actions, and made him the delight of all, but those who morose and -splenetic, from their own disgust of existence, conceive offence at -others for that enjoyment of the present, which can only subsist upon -ignorance, and the hope of the future that MUST BE disappointed. To this -vivacity, he, perhaps, owed as much as to those endowments, which are -deemed more solid qualifications for the bar. It imparted itself to his -eye, his mouth, his tone, and his action, and held his hearers engaged, -when his periods were such as pronounced by an ordinary speaker, would -not have preserved the audience from that listnessness, which is -instantly seen and felt by the speaker, and soon adds embarrassment and -confusion to feebleness. In private society, to the last months of his -existence, it gave him rather the air of a youth inexperienced in the -realities of life, and entering it under the ardour of hope, than of a -man who had almost reached the limits of human existence, in the exercise -of a profession, which lays the human breast naked to inspection. It was -said of Pope, from his primitive habits of reflection and gravity, that -he was never young; and, on the contrary, it may be said with equal -justice, from the playfulness and vivacity of Erskine, that he was never -old. At the age of he entered the navy as a midshipman, and served in -the ---, commanded by Captain ---, in America. While in this station he -was employed in making a survey under one of the lieutenants of the ship, -off the coast of Florida. He had some acquaintance with geometry; and, -as he tells us himself in his "Armata," always retained a fondness for -that science. Whether this fondness grew in acquiring the knowledge of -navigation, indispensable to his profession, or subsequently at the -university in which it forms so much the greater part of education, I am -ignorant; but that he was versed to a degree both in geometry and -astronomy, is evident, from the work I have named, and some pieces of his -poetry, which I have had access to. The cause that led him to leave the -navy and enter the army is unknown; it is most likely to have been -disgust and impatience of the subordination, which in our fleets is rigid -in the extreme, and never softened by that alternation of social -intercourse, at a common table at which in the army, all the officers of -the regiment meet daily, and from which they rise with a feeling, not -only that insulting and overbearing command upon duty would be a -violation of an implied pledge of kindness, but injury to themselves, as -diminishing in the gloom that would spread over their next meeting, the -common stock of enjoyment. The condition of our naval service is, in -some respects, improved since Erskine was a member of it; but then all -knowledge beyond that of the conduct of a ship, was deemed unnecessary, -impertinent, and even adverse to the attainment of nautical skill. The -intercourse of the officers even on the shore, was confined almost -entirely to one another, for not to speak of the uncouthness of their -habits, which made them as incapable of mingling in society on land, as -the beings of their element on which their avocation lay, are of living -in the air, their language was technical to a degree that rendered it to -all, except themselves, almost unintelligible. With such persons for -companions, and to use Terence's expression, quotidian and tedious -sameness of a life at sea, we need look no further for Erskine's desire -to change his profession. When we consider the great capacity which he -possessed for observation, and his extraordinary power of combining the -knowledge that he so acquired, the period which he gave to the naval -service must have been, to a spirit so active, a period of painful -constraints. I remember that in a conversation upon Lord Erskine, with -Mr. Capel Loft, after enumerating the many great causes in which the -great advocate had been engaged, he exclaimed, "what an infinite -multitude of ideas must have passed through that man's mind." The remark -is not an empty one; I doubt whether there ever was a man who exercised -the faculty of reasoning more, who drew a greater number of distinct -conclusions, or whose materials of thought were more the collection and -property of his own observation. Cicero, in his speech for Archias, -appeals to the judges whether he could possibly supply the demands upon -him for daily exertions of eloquence, unless he assidiously refreshed his -mind with studies, in which he was assisted by Archias and other -rhetoricians, and that he read copiously is manifested in all his works. -The accomplished academician, the able balancer of the different schools -of philosophy and morals, and the studied Rhetor is obtruded upon us. He -was, in every sense of the term, learned; Erskine, on the contrary, -cannot be discovered by any of his speeches, or writings, to have read -much, and most probably had read very little. He was in no sense of the -word learned. He has, indeed by acuteness of observation, vigour of -combination, and the ready power of deduction that he possessed, been -able to produce and leave behind him what will become the learning of -others, but he was not learned himself. His qualities, from his earliest -years were quickness and acuteness, unchecked and insatiable curiosity, -retentive memory, and busy reflection; his mind was never still. In the -coffee-room he conversed and indulged in humour with all round him. -However important or heavy the causes which were to occupy him in court, -they never oppressed his mind with a load of anxiety; his was not like -ordinary minds under great affairs, so absorbed that he could perceive -nothing round him; his, till the hour of solemn exertion arrived, was -disengaged and indulged in pleasantry; after the toil of the day, the -passion of eloquence and the intensity of technical argument, he was full -of spirits and waggery at dinner and in the evening. And light as his -topics sometimes were, his thoughts were always distinct, and his -expressions full; you never from him heard any imperfect thoughts -expressed, that (like tadpoles, before they are complete, must go through -other processes of animation) required the exertion of your own -conceptions to attain their sense and spirit. The activity of his mind -was like that of the swallow, which either in sport or pursuit is upon -the wing for ever. With this character it may readily be believed that -young Erskine received his discharge with feelings like those that attend -the cessation of a long and painful disease from a state which called for -no exercise of his great talents, and, neither yielded scope for the -communication of his own attainments nor opportunity to increase them -from the communications of others. - -He became an ensign of the Royals and married not long after. He was -sent with his corps to the Mediterranean, and stationed either with his -regiment or a detachment of his regiment, at Minorca; there, under the -influence of an ardent feeling of religion, which he owed to the anxious -inculcations of his mother, from whom he received the rudiments of -education, he is said in the absence of the chaplain, to have composed -more than one sermon, and to have delivered them to the assembled -officers and privates of his regiment. It never occurred to me to ask -him whether there was truth in this report; but he has frequently talked -to me of anecdotes which were circulated of him, some of which he -confirmed while he contradicted others, and never spoke of this as -unfounded; from my knowledge of his character it is highly probable, and -I believe it is true. About three years ago he was at Tunbridge Wells -with Mr. Coutts, and while there, pointed out to a friend of mine a -building, and said, "There, when it was a public room, I preached a -sermon of my own composition to the company;" this was for a wager. He -returned to England in 17-- with his regiment, the father of three -children. The anxiety of his mother, whose affections and care for her -family rendered her most estimable, and have endeared her memory to her -descendants, was excited by Thomas, who had nothing but his pay for the -support of his wife and his children, likely soon to become more -numerous. Her prudence suggested to her another profession for him by -the gains of which he might avoid the destitution which she saw hanging -over his head. With this design, she sent for Mr. Adam, the barrister -(now the Commissioner of the Scotch jury courts), that she might receive -the assistance of his experience and advice. On his arrival she said, -"My son Tom has been thoughtless enough to marry a woman without fortune, -and she has brought him a family which he cannot support himself, nor I -for him,--what is to be done? And I have been thinking that he must sell -his commission, go to the bar, and be Lord Chancellor." It is -interesting to reflect, that while this excellent woman was endeavouring -to conceal the bitterness of an affectionate mother's anguish for her -son's imprudence, she was unconsciously pronouncing a prophecy. Nor will -it be less to see how trifling an event would have prevented its -accomplishment; Mr. Adam told her that there were a great many steps from -the entrance of the profession and the very high rank which she purposed, -many of which he should be happy to congratulate her son on attaining. -The conference proceeded, the obstacles to success at the bar were -weighed against the certainty of domestic calamities if he remained in -his present profession, and they parted, both of opinion, that in the -direction of the bar, Thomas Erskine was most likely to leave behind his -present embarrassment and reach prosperity. It remained, however, to -procure the consent of her son; that was not easy: he had no predilection -for the bar, and was attached to the army, and his regiment, to the -officers of which his sprightly and amiable manners had endeared him, and -in which he was soliciting promotion and expecting it. At last, however, -his conditional consent was drawn from him. He agreed to let his mother -dispose of him as she wished, if he should be unsuccessful in his -application for the vacant captaincy in the Royals. This was far from -satisfying his mother, but he was peremptory, and she could not induce -him to more positive terms; thus, if Erskine could have gained the rank -of captain in the Royals, the destination of which was, then, an American -colony, by which he might have gained the privilege of being scalped by -the savages, or perishing in the swamps or forests of North America, the -country would never have known that splendid eloquence, which is its -boast and its pride; Tooke, Thelwall, Hardy, and the rest of those -unfortunate men who were held so long under the terror of death, would -probably have been hanged, and the country oppressed by a gloomy -precedent of constructive treason, under which no man who has raised -himself in opposition to a corrupt and sinister government could have -been safe; one is inclined to shudder, like a man whom a shot has missed -only by the breadth of a hair, in contemplating how near so much danger -was incurred, and so much benefit lost. But it is not on the magnitude, -but continuity of the chain, that great results depend; on examining the -past, we shall find that as small a link struck out at one point or other -of succession, would have disappointed the most important events of -history. Happily for Erskine and his country, his claims from the merit -of his services were eluded, and though he was more urgent in his -applications, since the alternative was to be the bar, he was refused -promotion. There was a singular coincidence in the fortune of the late -Lord Chatham and Erskine: the former was sent into parliament and driven -into violent opposition to Sir Robert Walpole, because that minister had -deprived him of a company of horse, and dismissed him the service, an act -of which the minister had reason to repent. He was like the emblem of -envy with the recoiled dart in his own bosom; except Charles I., who -stopped Hampden and Cromwell from embarking upon the Thames to follow -liberty into the wilderness of America, no man had ever so much reason to -curse himself for his own acts. In the same manner a slight of Erskine's -claims to promotion sent him to display an eloquence that had never yet -been heard at the English bar. His fame as an advocate, drew the notice -of the Whig party on him; he was enlisted in their ranks and added an -importance to the opposition, which not unfrequently increased the -embarrassment of the minister. While he was held in suspense by those -who had the disposal of commissions, he was quartered at Maidstone, and -entering the court during the assizes there, was placed in his military -uniform upon the bench, beside the great Lord Mansfield, to whom he was -distantly related, and who at intervals of business, conversed with him -on the proposed change of arms for the gown. This was another of the -accidents which, by minds of a certain frame would be regarded as an -omen. After relating this anecdote, he added, "Only four years from that -time, I was at the place in the lead of that very circuit." All his -hopes of promotion at an end, the commission so unequal to the demands -for subsistance upon it, was disposed of, and he was at once entered a -student of the Law Society of Lincoln's Inn, and a Commoner at --- -College, Cambridge - -* * * * * - -A few days before he was called to the bar, a friend came and invited him -to accompany him to dine at the villa of a wine merchant, a few miles -from London. The allurements were a good dinner, and wine not to be -procured but by a dealer, who could cull his own stock from thousands of -pipes, and they were not to be resisted by a young man fond of pleasure, -to whom such luxuries must come gratuitously, if they come at all. -Economy, which was important to Erskine, was not quite beneath the regard -of his friend, and after many proposals of several modes of conveyance, -which were all rejected, either for their expense, or their humbleness, -they agreed to walk; I have heard playful exertions of the mind or body -attributed to what was denominated an excessive flow of animal spirits, a -phrase that sounds significantly in the ear, but gives no information to -the understanding. Those who use it, mean, I suppose, to express that -when the body has received more nutriment than is necessary to promote -its growth, or maintain it the redundancy is thrown off in almost -involuntary exertions of the limbs or of mind. If this physiology be -just, Erskine had an extraordinary surplus of supply,--that regular -discharge like the back water of a mill, and it found vent in various -gambols and effusions of humour on the way to the wine merchant's. While -Erskine, buoyed by high health and ardent hope, scarcely felt the ground -that he trod, the sight of a ditch by the side of the road, tempted him -to exercise his agility. The impulse, and obedience to the impulse, were -the same. He made the attempt, but the ditch was too wide for his -spring, and he leaped a little short of the opposite bank. His dress -above was splashed with foul water, and his legs booted in mud. Nothing -was to be done on his part but to return, and his companion with a -kindness that does him honour, would have returned with him, but this, -Erskine was too generous to allow; and while his friend continued his -journey to the wine merchant's house and sumptuous dinner, Erskine -solitary and in pain (for he had severely sprained his leg) returned to -town; on reaching his lodgings Mrs. Erskine proposed a change of dress, -and urged him yet to go to dinner at the wine merchant's. He objected -his lameness from the sprain, which she answered by proposing a coach and -the expense, which he hinted, was not to be weighed against the benefit -he might derive from the friends which his manners and spirits were -likely to make him in the mixed and numerous company he would meet there. -This was a consideration so important to a young man on the verge of the -bar, that Erskine's disinclination was overcome by these reasonings of -his wife. A coach was procured, and he again set out, but he did not -arrive till dinner was half over, and found himself placed by this -accident by the side of Captain Bailey, of Greenwich Hospital. With the -modesty which is always united with true genius, Lord Erskine always -spoke of this event as the greatest instance of good fortune which ever -befel him. But for this, he said to me, "I might have waited years for -an opportunity to show that I had any talent for the bar; and when it -occurred I should not have pleaded with such effect, depressed and -mortified as I might have been by long expectation, and its attendant -evils, instead of seizing it with all the energy and confidence of youth -elated with hope." I record this to show how little he was actuated by -arrogance or presumption; I by no means assent to his opinion, on the -contrary, I think he would have waited a very short time for occasion to -exert his prominent talents. He slipt from high ground into the -profession. His rank would have drawn notice upon him, and he had -friends full of eagerness, and not altogether without power. No more is -the partiality which, it is said, was manifestly shown him by Lord -Mansfield, to be deemed a main cause of his success. On the contrary I -am so little inclined to attribute such an effect to it, that I believe -even the hostility of the bench could not have kept Erskine from rising. -His mind was not of the ordinary mould,--he was excited by obstacles. -Such was his temperament, that the damp slight of discouragement which -would have quenched common spirits, by the ardour of his mind would have -been converted into fuel, and have increased the splendour with which he -burst forth at once at the English bar. How was the delay of -opportunity, or the frown of the judge to suppress the eloquence whose -first essay excelled, both in matter and delivery, the latest efforts of -the most experienced speakers in our courts? when he rose Dunning, -Bearcroft, Wallace and others, were in the height of their reputation as -speakers in Westminster Hall. They were even eloquent, according to the -judgment of the day gazed at as the luminaries of the profession; but, -brilliant as they were, they were combust in the splendour of Erskine, on -his first appearance as an orator. This considered, it is in vain to -pretend, that, but for favourable conjunctions which have happened to him -and not to others, the prosperous and devious career on which he -immediately entered, could have been prevented or even long -delayed.--[Alas, no more!] - -BRIDGE STREET BANDITTI, _v._ THE PRESS. - -REPORT OF THE TRIAL -OF -MARY-ANNE CARLILE, -FOR PUBLISHING A NEW YEAR'S ADDRESS -TO THE -REFORMERS OF GREAT BRITAIN; -WRITTEN BY -RICHARD CARLILE; -AT THE INSTANCE OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL ASSOCIATION: -BEFORE -MR. JUSTICE BEST, AND A SPECIAL JURY, -AT THE -_Court of King's Bench_, _Guildhall_, _London_, _July_ 24, 1821. - -WITH THE NOBLE AND EFFECTUAL SPEECH OF -MR. COOPER, -IN DEFENCE, AT LARGE. - -LONDON: -PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY R. CARLILE, 55, FLEET STREET. -1821. - - - -DEDICATION. - - -TO -HENRY COOPER, ESQ., -BARRISTER AT LAW; - -For the noble stand and more noble attitude which he took on this -trial--for the very eloquent, very bold, and very honest style of his -defence--and, above all, for the manly resistance which he made to, and -the contempt which he showed for, the menacing frowns of those persons -who conducted, advocated, and supported this prosecution: and to those -HONEST JURYMEN who resisted their fellows in the attempt to throw the -defendant into the hands of her enemies, and the enemies of their -country; and who, by their honesty and independence, have given a death -blow to those corrupt, wicked, and malignant _would-be_-censors of the -Press, calling themselves a Constitutional Association; this report of -the proceedings is gratefully dedicated by, and the sincere and heartfelt -thanks is hereby offered to them, of - -MARY-ANNE and RICHARD CARLILE. - - - -REPORT, -&c., &c. - - -This was an indictment at the prosecution of "The Constitutional -Association," and their first attempt to obtain a verdict. The defendant -pleaded Not Guilty. - -The following are the names of the Jurors:-- - - -SPECIAL. - - -John Stracey, of Smithfield Bars, Merchant, -Philip Jacob, of the Crescent, Cripplegate, ditto, -James Byrne, of Dyer's Court, ditto, -Charles Wright, of the Old Jury, ditto, (foreman) -Henry Houghton, of King's Arms Yard, ditto, -John Webb, of Coleman-street, ditto. - - -TALESMEN. - - -Joseph Blackburn, Russia Mat Dealer, -John Davis, Painter, -John Williams, Cheesemonger, -Bryan Mills, Packer, -Michael Williams, Agent, -Frederick Bennet, Smith. - -Mr. Justice BEST, at the request of the defendant, enquired if either of -the Jurors was a member of the Constitutional Association. The answer -was in the negative. - -Mr. TINDALL opened the pleadings. - -Mr. GURNEY appeared to conduct the prosecution, and Mr. COOPER was for -the defendant. - -Mr. GURNEY.--May it please your lordship; gentlemen of the Jury; my -friend, Mr. Tindall, has told you the nature of this action, and it is -now my duty to lay this case before you. The indictment has been found -by a grand jury, upon the prosecution of the Constitutional Association; -and it charges the defendant, Mary Ann Carlile, with publishing a libel -upon the government and the constitution of this country; and, gentlemen, -after a not very limited experience in these cases, I will say, that a -more criminal and atrocious libel never met my observation. It purports -to be written by Richard Carlile; it is dated from Dorchester Gaol, and -it has been published by the defendant, the sister of that man who is now -suffering imprisonment for his own criminal conduct. It is entitled, "A -New Year's Address to the Reformers of Great Britain;" and, among other -objectionable passages not charged as libelous, it contains the -following; "As far as the barrack system will admit"-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I do not think that you are entitled to read that -passage, Mr. Gurney. - -Mr. COOPER.--I think not, my lord; I was just rising to interrupt Mr. -Gurney. - -Mr. GURNEY.--I have no objection, my lord, to abstain from reading the -passage to which I was about to call your attention. I shall read the -passage which is charged as libelous, and if the learned counsel for the -defendant can find throughout a single passage to qualify its malignity, -do you, gentleman, give the defendant the benefit of it. The passage is -this:--"To talk about the British Constitution, is, in my opinion, a sure -proof of dishonesty; Britain has no constitution. If we speak of the -Spanish constitution, we have something tangible; there is a substance -and meaning as well as sound. In Britain there is nothing constituted -but corruption in the system of government; our very laws are corrupt and -partial, both in themselves and in their administration; in fact, -corruption as notorious as the sun at noon-day, is an avowed part of our -system, and is denominated the necessary oil for the wheels of the -government; it is a most pernicious oil to the interests of the people." -And in another passage the following words were contained:--"Reform will -be obtained when the existing authorities have no longer the power to -withhold it, and not before. We shall gain it as early without -petitioning as with it, and I would again put forward my opinion, that -something more than a petitioning attitude is necessary. At this moment -I would not say a word about insurrection, but I would strongly recommend -union, activity, and co-operation. Be ready and steady to meet any -concurrent circumstances." Now, gentleman, these are the passages -charged as libelous, and I defy even the ingenuity of my learned friend -to show that they are not most odious libels. What! are the people of -this free and independent country to be told that they have no -constitution? It is an assertion, the malignity of which is only -equalled by its falsehood. We have a free and glorious constitution. It -has descended to us from our brave and free ancestors, and I trust that -we, too, shall have virtue and magnanimity enough to transmit it -unimpaired to our posterity. We have laws, too, equal in their -administration. We have a constitution where no lowness of birth--no -meanness of origin--operate as an obstacle to preferment; in which the -chief situations are open to competition, and for which the only -qualifications are integrity and information. Our laws are here -stigmatized as partial and corrupt. If they were not impartial, this man -would never have dared to vilify them. The very accusation proves that -the charge is false; for if it were true, this libeler must have suddenly -suffered for this assertion. It is because that they are administered in -a spirit of mercy unknown to the laws of any other country--it is because -they are administered in tenderness, that this man has had the power to -promulgate his vile and odious falsehood. He thought it meet and right, -and most becoming too, to tell the world that this was not the precise -time for insurrection. He plainly indicates, that he has no objection to -it; but he would not say a word about it at present, the time was not -come; but he tells his fellow reformers to be "ready and steady to meet -any concurrent circumstances." Gentlemen, it would be an idle and -impertinent waste of time to make any further observations upon the -pernicious tendency of this libel. But what is the defence which is to -be set up by my learned friend? Are we to be told that the prosecution -of this libel is an invasion of the liberty of the press? I will not -yield to my learned friend, nor to any man in existence, in a just regard -for the freedom of the press. But who, I would ask, is invading its -liberty? He who brings to justice the offenders, or he who under the -sacred form of liberty promulgates such language as I have just read to -you? I do not think that on this subject you can entertain a doubt. I -feel the most perfect confidence in committing this case to your good -sense. If you believe that the defendant is guilty of publishing this -libel with the intention charged, you will pronounce your verdict of -guilty. If, on the other hand, you think that the passages which I have -read to you contain nothing libelous, or that the defendant is not the -publisher, I shall sincerely rejoice in your conscientious acquittal. - -_James Rignall_ deposed, that he had purchased the pamphlet in question -of the defendant, at her shop in Fleet Street, on Friday evening, the 9th -of March. There were several other copies lying about on the counter. - -Cross-examined by Mr. COOPER.--Who are you?--I am an agent to the Society -for the Suppression of Vice. - -But you are also employed by these constitutional people, as they call -themselves?--Only in this one instance. - -Were you employed to purchase the pamphlet in question?--I purchased that -and others. - -You were employed by the Constitutional Society to purchase them?--Yes, I -was. - -Who sent you?--Mr. Murray. - -The Attorney?--Yes. - -And he directed you to purchase this pamphlet, eh?--He did not -particularize any. - -Did he state his object in the purchase?--No. - -What wages are you to have?--I have no wages. - -Then you perform this agreeable duty gratuitously?--No, I do not say -that. - -Then how are you paid?--I made a charge for my time. - -Perhaps you belong to the society?--No, indeed I do not (with vehemence). - -Well, I do not wonder that you should be anxious to separate yourself -from the society (a laugh amongst the auditory). - -Mr. GURNEY.--I desire that no such remarks may be made. - -Mr. COOPER.--What have you had for this particular job?--I have made a -charge for several other little things I did (a laugh). - -Mr. GURNEY (to the spectators),--I shall certainly move his Lordship to -take notice of some particular persons that I see misconducting -themselves. - -Cross-examination resumed.--What other jobs did you for the -association?--I did several jobs; that I will not deny. - -How much have you had for these little jobs?--I declare upon my oath, I -cannot state particularly how much I had for these little jobs. I made a -charge. I don't recollect exactly what my charge was. - -Come, come, the round sum?--I can tell you pretty nearly the round sum, -if that will satisfy you. I think it was above seven pounds and under -seven guineas. I was sent on other business beside this. - -I wish to know what that other business was?--Is it necessary to answer -that question? - -I think it necessary.--Then I will take the sense of the Court upon it. I -have no objection to answer that or any other question, if my Lord thinks -I ought. - -Mr. Justice BEST (smiling).--It tends to nothing; but it is as well to -answer it. - -Then I purchased come other different things for the association, but it -was not in consequence of any general or particular orders I received: I -went to purchase these publications which I myself thought libels; I -cannot state exactly now what they were. - -Then you did that, I suppose, without any hope of reward?--I don't state -without any hope of reward; I expected to be paid for my time. - -Oh, then, it was not altogether out of virtue and patriotic -feeling?--Those were two of my motives, most certainly, but not the only -ones (general laughing). - -Has this been the usual way of getting your living?--It has for a year -and a half past; I have had no other feasible occupation during that -time. - -I suppose you received a considerable sum in the course of this -honourable employment?--I have told you the sum total was about 7 pounds. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Do you think that material, Mr. Cooper? - -Mr. COOPER.--I do think it material, to show the sort of agents that this -honourable society employs. (To witness.) And what did you do before -you suppressed vice and libels?--I got my living honourably as an officer -in his Majesty's customs. - -And are you still an honourable officer, &c.?--No; I have lost my -situation. - -Retired upon a pension?--No. - -How old are you?--Fifty-four. - -No pension, eh?--None. - -Re-examined by Mr. GURNEY.--I have been in the employment of the Society -for the Suppression of Vice for a year and a half; I have been paid by -them for my services. In this instance, and in several others, I have -made some purchases for the Constitutional Association. - -_Horatio Orton_ was then called. A general murmur ran through the Court, -which was crowded to excess; and all persons most deferentially gave the -witness way. - -Examined by Mr. GURNEY.--I was a witness before the Grand Jury. On the -10th of March I purchased another copy of the pamphlet in question from -Mary Anne Carlile; I had it from her own hand. - -Cross-examined by Mr. COOPER.--How came you to purchase this on the 10th -of March?--I was directed by Mr. Murray, the solicitor, to purchase it. - -This is the gentleman? (pointing to Mr. Murray, in court)--Yes. - -He is the Honorary Secretary to the Association, and the disinterested -attorney for this prosecution?--Yes, I was sent by him for the express -purpose of purchasing this pamphlet; I should not have gone if I had not -been directed by him. - -What is your situation in the society?--My situation to the Association -is as clerk. - -Clerk to Mr. Murray?--No; I am not in Mr. Murray's office. - -In the Society's office, separate from the attorney's office?--Yes. - -In what situation were you before?--I used to assist my brother in his -correspondence with country newspapers. - -Not for the town papers?--No, for himself; he takes the reports of the -House of Lords' proceedings, and transmits them to the editors of the -country papers; I used to assist him in the copying, and he paid me for -my trouble. - -What is your salary in your present honourable situation?--It is not -fixed. - -It depends upon your exertions?--Yes. - -Then you work at present by the piece?--No, I do not; the committee have -not yet come to a determination about my salary; I have not made any -demand for salary; I have not proposed any sum; I mean to swear that; not -any sum has been proposed to me; I don't say that I would work for the -Society gratuitously; if I want five or ten pounds I know where to go for -it; not of the Association; I can have it of my brother; I expect to -receive something of the Association. - -In your modesty, what may be the extent of your expectations? - -Mr. GURNEY submitted that this was not a proper mode of -cross-examination. - -Mr. COOPER.--I think it is, and I shall persist in it until I am told by -my Lord that it is irregular. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I don't think any part of the cross-examination is -approaching to anything like regularity. - -Mr. COOPER.--If your Lordship says I am not to be allowed the same -latitude which is allowed to counsel on other occasions, I shall not -persevere. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I have no objection to your taking your own course, -but I think this course of examination ought to have been stopped long -ago. I think every fair and reasonable indulgence ought to be allowed to -counsel in such a case, but if this was a mere civil case I should have -stopped you long ago. - -Mr. COOPER.--Then I shall proceed in my own way, with your Lordship's -permission. (To witness.) Is this the first job you have been employed -in?--I don't recollect any other of this kind. - -Are you sure you have been employed upon no other job of this kind?--I -cannot bring to my recollection whether I have not been employed on any -other. I may have been, but I am not aware of any. - -Do you know a man named King?--Yes, perfectly. - -Do you recollect doing a job in which he was concerned?--I don't -recollect doing a job of this kind against King. I might if I saw the -paper before me with my mark upon it. There are so many of them that I -cannot recollect any in particular. - -Have you not made an affidavit in the job against King?--Yes; but that is -since this. I cannot recollect whether I have done any other jobs. I -have been in the employment of the Association about six months. I -commenced on the 8th of January. Since the 10th of March, I don't -recollect how many jobs I have been engaged in; they are so numerous I -can't recollect. The orders which Mr. Murray gave me, were to go and -purchase the Reformers' Address at the defendant's shop. I had not any -general directions to buy at this or that shop--not from Mr. Murray. I -had from other persons, general directions to make purchase of works; one -of those persons was Mr. Sharpe. - -He is the Honorary Assistant Secretary?--Yes. - -(All the preceding questions excited considerable sensations amongst the -audience, and produced a chorus of humourous tittering). - -Mr. Justice BEST.--The effect of these questions, Mr. Cooper, you must -feel. You cannot wish, I am sure, to excite the sort of response which -comes from below the bar. You must see that it is done on purpose. You -cannot wish, I am sure, to produce that effect. - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I am the last man in the world to do any thing -inconsistent with the gravity and decorum of a Court of Justice. I -disclaim any such intention; and I must disdain the insinuation of Mr. -Gurney, that I have taken up this cause for the purpose of adding to the -public odium in which the honourable Association is held. - -Mr. GURNEY said his learned friend, Mr. Cooper, was mistaken; he had -never insinuated anything of the kind. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I am sure no gentlemen at the bar would wish to -produce the effect which all the questions put by you have had below the -bar. - -Mr. COOPER said he could not control the feelings of the auditory. He -was only anxious to do his duty to the best of his humble ability, and -nothing should deter him from discharging that duty freely and -undauntedly. - -Cross-examination resumed.--What is the office of the Honorary Assistant -Secretary?--It is to do every thing at the office. - -To superintend the business of the office?--I consider him as the acting -manager. - -Then the Honorary Secretary has a sinecure?--What does the word honorary -mean but a sinecure? - -Mr. COOPER.--"May it please your Lordship; gentlemen of the jury; I am -exceedingly sorry that some more able counsel has not to address you on -this most important and momentous occasion. I should have been unequal -to the task, under any circumstances." - -Mr. GURNEY.--"Stop a minute." (The learned counsel for the prosecution -here intimated, that he had something to add to his case; but, after a -pause, he intimated to Mr. Cooper, that he might proceed.) - -Mr. COOPER.--Gentlemen, under any circumstances, this would be a task, -for which, I fear, I am very ill qualified; but under those, in which I -stand to address you on this question, I feel my incapacity doubled and -trebled. I appear before you without notice, and almost wholly without -preparation. I was, indeed, applied to by the defendant, some months -ago, and negotiated with (if I may use the phrase) to undertake her -defence. But, after this, many days and even weeks passed, during which -I heard nothing of the case; and I began to suppose that the defendant -had determined to employ some other counsel, or trust herself to her own -address to the jury against this charge. At the end of a month, however, -I was again applied to; and, again, weeks having elapsed, without my -hearing any more of this prosecution, I dismissed it entirely, not only -from my mind, but from my memory; nor was it, till last night, that, that -I was once more informed that I was to be employed as the defendant's -counsel; and my brief at last put into my hands. I was then -unfortunately engaged in other important business: and the time, I have -taken to collect my own thoughts upon this question, and huddle together -a few extract's from writers of authority, I have been obliged to borrow -from sleep; and have, therefore, in a great measure counteracted myself; -for I have lost in strength, what I have gained in information, and -appear before you ill able, indeed, to do justice to this cause. But, -whilst I make this statement to excuse my own deficiency, I am bound to -acquit the defendant of any reproachable negligence of her own interests. -I understand, that the cause of her late application to me, is, that -having had, as a mere matter of grace, three weeks' notice of trial from -another society, by which she has been prosecuted, she mistook it for her -right; and expected the same notice from her present prosecutors. As she -had not received any such notice (and indeed she was not in law entitled -to it), she supposed, that either she was not to be brought to trial at -these sittings, or that the charge was abandoned; as I wish it had been, -and as it ought to have been; for I am convinced, that this prosecution -cannot be sustained by either law or reason; and that it must be from the -weakness of the counsel alone, that you, gentlemen, can be betrayed to -pronounce a verdict of Guilty against the defendant. - -Gentlemen, it is my duty to clear this case of every possible prejudice -that may hang about it in your minds before I enter into the merits of my -defence. I do not know how you are affected, but I well know, that with -many persons, I should have a host of prejudices to contend against, in -the very name alone of Carlile. Many either believe, or affect to -believe, that the very sound is an omen and an execration, and that -either he cannot be sincere and honest in the opinions which he -professes, or if he be, that those opinions are incompatible with the -existence or practice of any moral or social virtue. But, whatever his -opinions may be, and whatever your sentiments upon them, I have at least -a right to ask of you not to allow any prejudice against the relation, -against the brother, to warp your judgment on the trial of the defendant: -for, what can possibly be more remote from justice, than, instead of -judging a person fairly for his own conduct, to condemn him by our -opinion of the sentiments and character of another? I hope and trust -that you have entertained no such prejudices: but if you have, I feel -assured, that you brought them no further than the threshold of the -court:--at that door they fell from you, like the burthen from the -pilgrim (in the beautiful allegory) on his reaching the cross; and you -stand there with your minds unbiassed, free and pure, to decide between -the crown and the defendant in this cause. But it is not only my duty, -gentlemen, to clear the defendant, but to extricate the counsel from -every unfavourable suspicion, lest it should, possibly, by any confusion -of the client with the advocate, operate to the disadvantage of the -defendant. - -Whatever, therefore, may be thought of the pamphlet which is before you, -as a libel, or of the writer or publisher, I most solemnly affirm, that -there is no one who more warmly admires the English constitution, as it -stands in theory and ought to exist in practice, than myself, nor is -there any one who would more willingly shed his blood if it were -necessary, or even lose his life in its support. It is needless then to -say, that a more irreconcileable enemy would not be found than myself to -the man (if any such there be) who could attempt to overturn our mingled -and limited forms of government: and substitute a wild democracy in their -place. I think, indeed, that a democratic form of government, however -specious in argument, is by no means so capable of raising a state to -that eminence of civilization and prosperity, which this country has -reached; a condition, for which it is indebted to better times, while the -practice concurred with the theory of our government; but which, unless -the practice is brought back to the theory, I venture to predict, has not -much longer to continue. I, gentlemen, appear here only in the discharge -of my duty; and to redeem that pledge to defend the accused, which every -man, upon assuming this gown, gives to the public of England. I would, -however, have it distinctly understood, that it is only to guard against -prejudice to the defendant, and not from any apprehensions for myself, -that I trouble you with this explanation. For myself, I am extremely -careless, what may be thought of me for having come forward to defend -this unfortunate woman. I do not expect to escape obloquy in the present -overheated disposition of the country, How can I expect it? when even the -present Lord Erskine, whose talents and independence should have rendered -his character sacred, as soon as it was known that he was to be counsel -for Paine was overwhelmed with abuse, and threatened with the loss of his -situation, as attorney general to the Prince, if he did not decline the -defence. But he knew his duty and discharged it. And for which will he -be most honoured by posterity? By which most ennobled? for having in -spite of threats, and all the seductions of self-interest, persevered in -his duty? or for having been exalted to the peerage of England and -adorned with the national order of Scotch knighthood? But, if even my -humble situation, should not exempt me from the attacks of the malicious -and furious, I can tell them that their malignity will be disappointed. -Instead of regret and mortification it will be a source of pride and -happiness to me. Small as my chance may be of credit for the assertion, -I declare, that I propose to myself no reward so high for my exertions, -as the consciousness of having, in spite of all hopes on one side, or -fears on the other, honestly discharged my duty. - -If ever in my course in the profession, I should find myself wounded -either in fortune or reputation, instead of regretting and deploring it, -I will rejoice and exult at it, and, at those hours, when in full -confidence of his companions, it is neither indecent nor unsafe in a man -to speak of his own actions, I will boast of it, I will shew it, as an -honourable scar. - -Gentlemen, with these preliminary observations, I will proceed to -introduce my case to you. My learned friend, Mr. Gurney, has opened this -prosecution with all that pomp of eloquence, and solemnity of -declamation, which he possesses in so ample a manner, and which make him -so accomplished an advocate. But what has he done? All, indeed, that he -or any one else could have done: yet, nothing more than repeat those -arguments, which are trite, and worn like a turnpike, and have been -topics for counsel after counsel, through a thousand of these -prosecutions; while he has left all the great subjects of consideration -that present themselves to the mind on these questions, wholly untouched. -He has declared, indeed, but without showing you why, that the words, -charged in the indictment are an atrocious libel; in which, as it appears -to me, he has been rather premature, for a libel they are not, and cannot -be, unless your verdict should so declare them. I assert, gentlemen, I -am sure his Lordship will nod assent to me while I assert it, that you -are the only judges of the law of libel in this case; and this paper, for -which the defendant stands before you, is either a libel or not a libel, -as you may in your consciences think it, and on your oaths pronounce it. - -The statute, indeed, which declares this the law, has given, or rather -left with his Lordship, the right of stating his opinion on that question -to you; but I am sure he will not think that I exceed my duty, as an -advocate, when I say, that though it is your duty to receive his opinion -with respect, and give it the most attentive consideration, yet it still -leaves you free to your own judgments, and if after weighing his opinion, -you find yours unaltered, you have not only a right, but it is your duty -to reject his opinion and to act on your own. - -Gentlemen, I submit that it is within your province to take into -consideration the nature and operation of those writings, which are -called in prosecutions of this kind libels. You are sitting there to try -this charge as an offence by the common law of the land. The defendant -is accused of having committed an act in the nature of a nuisance; and -you are to judge whether that act could operate as a nuisance or not. You -are not bound, because pamphlets have been prosecuted as libels time out -of mind, or even because they have been declared libels by the verdicts -of preceding juries to tread in no other path than their steps; and to -find similar, or even the same matter, libels, if you should not think -them criminal or dangerous. If you should be convinced by argument, not -only that the pamphlet before you is not a libel, but that almost all -those political writings, which it has been the habit of certain people, -taking up the cry from their leaders, to call libels, are not merely not -dangerous but beneficial to political society; is it possible to -conceive, that you can be induced to pronounce a verdict of guilty -against the defendant! How can you come to such a conclusion; as that -there should be punishment where there has been no mischief, and where -there could have been none, and if there not only has been no mischief, -but could have been none,--nay, if even there must have been benefit, how -can you lay your hands on your hearts, and say there has been crime? -Suppose a man was indicted for a nuisance in doing that for which a -number of persons had in succession been indicted and convicted, would -that oblige a jury to find a verdict against a person at this day -indicted for the same act, if he should prove to them by evidence, which -their minds could not resist, that what had been complained of as hurtful -to public health and morals was noxious to neither, but salutary to both? -Would you, in such a case, though a thousand preceding juries had, in -their ignorance, pronounced verdicts of guilty, follow their example, -against your full knowledge and internal conscience? To illustrate by a -familiar instance, when hops were first introduced into this country they -were very generally believed to be pernicious. Several persons were I -believe prosecuted and convicted for using them; yet now they are known -not only to be not pernicious, but nutritious; they form a principal -ingredient in the daily beverage of our tables, and are even employed -largely in medicine. Let us now imagine a man prosecuted for the use of -hops or any other drugs upon the ground that they injured health, and -that upon his trial he should fill the box with men of science as -witnesses, and shew you to moral demonstration, that so far from being -injurious, they were highly salutary, would you, because other juries had -convicted in a state of ignorance, imitate their blindness, and convict -the defendant? Certainly not. Then to apply this to writings, -prosecuted as libels, though there may have been hundreds, and thousands, -nay tens of thousands of convictions upon them, yet, if you should be -convinced, that what are usually called libels (and this among them) -cannot be injurious, but so far from it, that they are innocent and even -salutary to the state, in which they are published, would you hand over -the publisher to punishment by a verdict of guilty? But I am -anticipating, I fear, my defence, and introducing too early observations, -which will better be urged in a subsequent part of my address to you. I -will, therefore, pass at once to the paper charged as a libel in the -indictment, and examine, under what circumstances it has come before you. -And in the first place, as to the publication, without which (whatever -the nature of the writing may be, there can be no crime) who are morally -the publishers of this pamphlet? Have you any evidence, whatever, that -any one of these pamphlets was in circulation, or ever would have been -circulated, but for the impertinent, obtrusive, sordid, and base part of -the ministers of the Constitutional Association? How otherwise is this -pamphlet here? Let us turn back to the evidence of the first witness. He -was the worthy servant of the Association in this and a few other recent -instances, but for the most part, within a year and a half, the servant -of the Society for the Suppression of Vice: a Society very different, -indeed, from that with which we have had to deal to-day;--not that I have -any affection even for that association: I would neither praise nor even -be suspected of approving it, but I will not be so unjust and scandalous -as to compare it with the Constitutional Association. Before this -witness was employed by that society, he was a Custom-house officer. Are -you, I asked him, now a Custom-house officer? No. How comes that? I -lost my place. How old are you? Fifty-four. Have you any pension? No. -Now, gentlemen, I beg to observe, that it is not the habit of the Custom- -house to turn away officers, who have grown grey in their service, -without a pension; unless they have richly deserved to be so discarded -and abandoned. Such, gentlemen, are the instruments employed as spies by -the acting members of this Association! This fellow is sent out with -instructions from the honorary secretary, Mr. Murray, who is the attorney -for the prosecution, to purchase, not this pamphlet alone, but any -political pamphlet, which in his judgment might be libelous. Good God! -to what a condition are we reduced, when, under the auspices of this -blessed Association, discarded tide-waiters, and broken gaugers, are made -judges of what is libelous, and leagued with an attorney, are to -determine what may, and what may not, without the terror of a -prosecution, issue from a free press. Such was the course pursued: and -can you conscientiously say, that, but for this hiring of a spy to make a -purchase of this pamphlet for the sole purpose of founding this -prosecution upon that very instance of sale, the public would ever have -heard of it? Gentlemen, it is a great happiness, and much security -arises from it, that every person who stands forward as a prosecutor -exposes his own conduct, as it is connected with the prosecution, to -scrutiny and animadversion. I have a right to assume that freedom which -is the privilege of the bar. I remember that in the case of the King and -the Dean of St. Asaph, in which the present Marshal of the King's Bench -Prison, without any apparent connection with the subject of the -prosecution, was the prosecutor, the counsel for the defendant exercised -this right, and the Marshal was successively the object of his ridicule -and indignation. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Mr. Cooper do you think it acting fairly to make this -sort of attack on a gentleman who is not present? Is this the practice -of the bar? - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I make no attack on the Marshal. I only state -that-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--These observations being made on one who is not -anywise connected with this case, who is not present to answer for -himself, and who would not be permitted if he was, what are we to -suppose? Can any gentleman at the bar consider this as fair? - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I have no design to attack the Marshal either in -his absence or presence. I mentioned him but incidentally. What earthly -purpose could it answer to this case to attack him? He _was_ the -prosecutor in _that_ case, and I rather incautiously, perhaps, mentioned -who the prosecutor was, by name; when I ought only to have said the -prosecutor. If I have done him any injustice, I beg his pardon as -publicly for it, and thus, I give a remedy as wide as the wound. I say -then, gentlemen, that the prosecutor in that case, was alternately the -object of the keenest indignation, and the most jeering ridicule, and I -have a right to be equally as free, as the counsel in that case, with the -prosecutors in this: but I shall by no means follow the example. On the -contrary, I think, we are deeply indebted to the Constitutional -Association. Consider how we were circumstanced when they first arose -amongst us. There was the state, with a standing army of only a hundred -thousand men, and nothing besides, except the whole civil force of the -realm, a revenue of no more than seventy millions; and the feeble -assistance of the established law officers of the crown to prosecute -public offenders, when this Constitutional Association in the pure spirit -of chivalry, steps forward to help the weakness of Government, and -succour its distress. Now, whatever men may talk of justice, who can say -that disinterestedness has altogether abandoned the earth? Who can say -that generosity has forsaken us and flown to heaven? Let it be -considered too, that but for their active vigilance Carlile's shop would -not have been known. No productions from it had ever been the subject of -prosecution, and but for the keen scent of the Association, the rank and -huge sedition contained in the New Year's Address might have lain in its -covert undetected and undisturbed. But to drop this irony and be -serious, the law officers of the crown are fully adequate to their -duties, and Carlile's shop was as well known to the Attorney General as -St. Paul's to you. For years he has not had his eyes off it. I will -engage that every publication, that has issued from it, and this very -pamphlet among the rest, has passed through his hands, and under his -review. Yet the law officers of the crown do not appear here to -prosecute it as a libel against the state; and I entreat you to mark -this, for I have a right to urge it, as a strong negative proof, that -they do not so consider it; and how can that require your condemnation -which they (with a judgment surely very much superior to that of the -Committee of the Constitutional Association) have not thought worthy of -prosecution or notice? Yes, you are actually called upon by this -Association to deliver over to punishment the publisher of this paper, -whilst the law officers of the crown (who neglect their duty, if they do -not prosecute offences against the state) have thought it of a nature not -at all requiring their interference What can be so preposterous? So -monstrous? And in taking leave of this view of the case, let me once -more ask you who have been actually the publishers of this paper? Have -you a single iota of evidence, which ought to satisfy your minds, that, -but for the insidious conduct of the Association, and its spies, this -pamphlet would ever have been before you or the public? Is there a -shadow of proof that one copy was ever sold, except those bought by the -creatures employed by the honorary secretary (who is also the feed -attorney in this prosecution) for the sole object of entangling the -defendant in this indictment? None, whatever. None. They conspired you -see to procure and seduce (the word is neither too broad nor too long for -their conduct) the publication for the very purpose of this prosecution. -How then having thus suborned the offence of which they complain, can -they dare to stand forward as prosecutors, when they themselves are the -criminals, and ought to be the defendants. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--You mean. Mr. Cooper, to offer some evidence of that, -I suppose. - -Mr. COOPER.--None, my lord, but the evidence already before the court and -the jury, and the strong and necessary inference from the facts proved by -the witnesses for the prosecution themselves. - -Mr. GURNEY.--There were many others lying on the counter. - -Mr. COOPER.--What of that, does it follow that they must, therefore, have -been sold? In the absence of all other proof of any publication, I have -a right, I am forced to consider the Association as the only publishers. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--In the evidence there is nothing like it. - -Mr. COOPER.--What, gentlemen, is it a necessary conclusion, that because -the pamphlets were lying in the shop, they must have been sold to other -persons? The defendant but for their intrusion, for the sole design of -prosecution, might have sold no others. She might have changed her -intention to sell. The pamphlets might have lain like bad verses -untouched on the shop counter, till they were turned over for waste -paper, and not a soul have ever known of their contents. The -Association, therefore, by their insidious and plotted purchase for the -sole object of prosecution, have provoked the act of publication, and -they, who provoke crimes are the criminals, and ought to be the culprits; -and those, who would punish the crimes that they have provoked, are -devils, and not men; "the tempters ere the accusers." When I contemplate -such conduct--but I will not waste another word, or another moment of -your time upon this miserable Association. If I had consulted my better -judgment, I should have passed them in silence; thus much my indignation -has wrung from my contempt. - -I shall now, gentlemen, proceed to the examination of the libel, or -rather that which is charged as a libel itself; and I shall begin with -the last part so charged in the indictment, instead (as my learned friend -has done) with the first; and let me beg your regard to one remarkable -fact, that at the very point of the paper, at which the motives, and -design of the writer present themselves to the reader; at that very point -this indictment stops. It has not, as you will presently see, the -candour to proceed a single syllable farther. I will now read the -passage, "Reform," it says, "will be obtained when the existing -authorities have no longer the power to withhold it, and not before, we -shall gain it as early without petitioning as with it; and I would again -put forward my opinion that something more than a petitioning attitude is -necessary." This it has been urged to you, with great emphasis, is an -excitement to insurrection; and you are called upon to draw that -inference, though the author immediately afterwards disavows, expressly -disavows any such intention. But even, if the words stood alone, I deny -that you are compelled to such a construction. Gentlemen, will any one -venture to say, that I, standing in this place, and in the very exercise -of my profession, mean any thing, but what is strictly legal, when I say -myself, that supposing reform in Parliament be necessary, something more -than mere petitioning is requisite to obtain it? But in saying this, do -I mean any thing violent or illegal? Heaven forbid; No: but I would have -societies formed, and meetings held for the purpose of discussing that -momentous subject. If reform be necessary, and the desire of a great -majority of the country, I would have that desire shown unambiguously to -the legislature, by resolutions and declarations at such meetings. Who -will deny such societies and meetings to be legal? Yet, such meetings -would be more than mere petitioning, much more: and the author means -nothing beyond this; for I say, that in the absence of all other -criteria, the only means of judging of a writer's intentions are his -words. Look then at the words which immediately follow the assertion, -that "something more than a petitioning attitude is necessary." If those -words had been included in the indictment, this prosecution must have -been at an end upon merely reading the charge, and those words, -therefore, the Association avoided, as cautiously as they would the -poison of a viper. They felt, that though the indicted words standing -alone might perhaps admit of a doubt for a moment, yet the context -completely explained them, and gave an air of perfect innocence to the -whole passage. But you shall judge for yourselves: I will read the -passage,--"Something more than a petitioning attitude is necessary. At -this moment I would not say a word about insurrection; but I would -strongly recommend union, activity, and co-operation. Be ready and -steady to meet any concurrent circumstance." Now what kind of union, -activity, and co-operation does he mean? Is it military association, -marches, and attack? No. Hear the writer's own words again:--"The Union -Rooms at Manchester and Stockport are admirable models of co-operation, -and are more calculated than any thing else to strengthen the body of -reformers." For what do the reformers assemble in these rooms? How do -they co-operate there? Is it to consult how they shall arm and organize -themselves, and seize with a violent hand the reform which they despair -of gaining by petition? Nothing like it. The writer himself still tells -you his meaning. "Here (that is at the Manchester and Stockport rooms) -children are educated, and adults instruct each other. Here there is a -continual and frequent communication between all the reformers in those -towns." This, then, and no other, is the co-operation which the author -intended, and proposes. If any man, taking the paper in his hand and -reading the whole paragraph, can say that any thing more is meant, to his -reason I should cease to appeal. I should sit down in silent despair of -making any impression on such an understanding; but you, gentlemen, I ask -you, adding the words which I have read to the broken passage, which is -insidiously separated and included in the indictment, can there be a -doubt remaining in any rational and unprejudiced mind, that the union and -co-operation called for by this Address from those who desire reform in -Parliament, is nothing more than the establishment at other places, of -rooms, on the model of those at Stockport and Manchester; where children -and adults are instructed, and information disseminated on the subject of -Parliamentary Reform. And if this is all that is meant, there is an end -of this part of the indictment; for it cannot be libelous to recommend in -a writing the people to do that, which it is perfectly legal to do. - -With regard to reform itself, I cannot know, whether any of you are -advocates for it or opposed to it, nor is it requisite that I should; I -do not ask you to think or say with me, and others, that reform in -Parliament is necessary, and that nothing but reform can save the country -from ruin; all that I ask of you is to allow me and others credit for the -conscientiousness of our opinions, and charitably admit, if yours are -opposite, that though we may be mistaken in our judgments, we must not of -necessity be criminal in our intentions. I leave you and every man to -the free exercise of your thoughts, and the free enjoyment of the -conclusions to which they lead you. Let this liberality be reciprocal, -and concede the same freedom to others which you demand for yourselves. I -have always thought that a difference in religious and political matters -need not and ought not to create hostility of feeling, and sever those, -who would otherwise be friends. I myself enjoy the friendship of -several, who entertain very different opinions from mine upon those -subjects; and yet that difference has not, and never shall, on my part, -at least, disturb our friendship. In all questions in which you cannot -have mathematical demonstration, there may be fair, honest, conscientious -difference of opinion; and you cannot have geometrical proof in questions -of religion, politics, and morals. The very nature of the subjects -altogether excludes it. To expect it, as Bishop Sanderson says, would be -as absurd as to expect to see with the ear and to hear with the eye. So -various are our opinions upon these subjects, that we not only differ -from one another upon them, but at different times we find we differ from -ourselves; and, as another learned churchman, in more recent times, has -said, what could be more unjust than to quarrel with other men for -differing in opinion from him, when no two men ever differed more from -one another than he at different times differed on the very same subject -from himself. Under this state of uncertainty in human judgment, I call -upon you, and I am sure I shall not call in vain, to be slow to condemn -the opinions of others, because they are different from your own; and, -therefore, if any of you should think reform in Parliament needless, or -even dangerous, I still call upon you (though the writer of this paper -should be a reformer, and even though he is called in reproach a radical -reformer) not to condemn the defendant in this case through prejudice -against the author's opinions; but solely to enquire (be those opinions -ever so just or ever so absurd) whether he is sincere in entertaining -them; for, if he be (as I shall show you presently from the highest -authority) the law does not consider him criminal. Try him by this test, -and this test, and this alone; and then, whatever may be your verdict, -you will be free from reproach, and secure to yourselves quiet by day, -and sound slumbers by night; for you will have discharged your duty to -yourselves, to the defendant, and to the country. - -With regard, gentlemen, to the other part of the alleged libel, I must -bespeak your patience; for I am afraid that I shall be drawn by my -comments upon it into considerable length. (I am afraid, gentlemen, I -weary you, and I am sorry for it. If I had had leisure, I would have -condensed my observations; but, under the circumstances I have disclosed -to you, I hope you will forgive me for occupying more of your attention -than I would otherwise have done. I really have not had time to be -short.) To return to the passage in the paper, which is first charged as -a libel: it denies the existence of any constitution in Great Britain. -Now whether there be anything malicious and criminal in this, depends -entirely upon the meaning which the author attaches to the word -constitution. I confess it is a word that gives me a very indistinct and -uncertain idea; and I believe that if any of you were now suddenly to ask -yourselves what you understood by it, you would find you were not very -ready to give yourselves an answer; and if you could even satisfactorily -answer yourselves, you would find if you were to go further and question -your neighbour, that he would give you a very different definition from -your own. In itself it means nothing more than simply a standing or -placing together; and it really seems to me rather hard and venturous to -indict a man for denying the existence of something (whatever it may be) -expressed by the most indefinite term in our whole language. But, if we -were agreed upon the ideas which should be attached to the word, let us -examine whether, allowing for a certain freedom of expression and the -earnest eagerness with which a man who is sincere in his doctrines -enforces them in his composition, a writer may not, without being exposed -to a charge of criminal intention, assert that there is no constitution -in this country. And let us take with us to this examination, that a man -is not to be too strictly tied to words, when under the impulse of warm -and keen feelings, and when the thoughts flow, as it were, at once from -the heart into the pen, he sits down to excite his countrymen to their -good, or warn them of their danger. You must not think to bind him down -with the shackles of verbal criticism, when he is too intent upon his -theme exactly to measure his expressions. Now, that the writer of this -paper is sincere in his opinions, whatever the quality of those opinions -is, it is difficult not to believe. He published his opinions, though he -exposed himself to punishment for them, and he perseveres in them while -he is suffering a heavy punishment. You can have no more convincing -proof of sincerity than this. But, what if a political writer has, in -the warmth of composition, asserted that in England we have no -constitution, who can misunderstand him? We cannot suppose he meant that -there was a dissolution of all law and government; because we know and -feel the contrary. Few would have occasion to ask him what he meant. If, -however, he were asked, he should explain by telling you, that the -constitution in theory is very much corrupted from the practice; and I -and you, and every person must admit, that the practice has strayed wide -from the theory; and, forced to admit this, I assert with a writer, who -(whatever was thought of him once, and whilst those who were the objects -of his reproach still lived) is now the pride and boast of the country, -both for the supreme elegance and the principles of his political -writings, that "wherever the practice deviates from the theory so far the -practice is vicious and corrupt." Now, saying no more than this, and -when it would have been the merest stupidity to understand him literally, -how can the writer be convicted of a design to bring the Government into -hatred and contempt, because he has expressed his meaning by saying -figuratively "there is no Constitution." But he has previously said, -that to talk about the British Constitution is, in his opinion, -dishonesty. I know he has. I did not mean to pass it, I will not, -gentlemen, shrink from any part of the passage, for I feel that it cannot -bear with any heavy pressure against me. "To talk of the British -Constitution is, in my opinion, a sure proof of dishonesty." Here it -will be seen that the only exception that can be taken to this sentence -is the mere mode of expression. If a man were to talk to me of the -Constitution of England, and, by omitting all notice of its aberrations -in practice from its theory, by which he would leave it free to me to -suspect, that he would insinuate that the theory and the practice were -the same, I should certainly say, that he was exhibiting want of candour. -I might, perhaps, think dishonesty, rather too strong a term for such -conduct; but I should not scruple to say, that he was disingenuous, and -he _would_ be guilty of a species of dishonesty; for all the -disingenuousness is to a degree dishonest; and, since the meaning is the -same, why should we quarrel at a mere difference of expression? The -author proceeds to say, "If we speak of the Spanish Constitution, we have -something tangible; there is a substance and meaning as well as sound." -So that it is clear he was saying, that we had no Constitution in -comparison with that just promulged by the Spanish nation. The Spaniards -we know have recently gained by their own glorious efforts, that -political liberty to which they had been so long strangers; and their -Legislature had just published a code of fundamental laws, few in number, -but most comprehensive in securing freedom to the people, for whom they -are framed. They are (comparatively with the laws of countries, in which -the frame of government is old, and complicated) not numerous, but the -mind may collect them almost at a glance, and possess itself of them with -a single effort of the understanding. In this view of the subject, -without doubt, the Constitution of Spain is tangible; and in this sense -he is justified in asserting that our own Constitution is not tangible; -for is it not notorious that our laws are spread through so many Acts of -Parliament of doubtful and difficult construction, and so many books of -reports, containing the common law of the land (and in which there are no -few conflicting decisions) that the whole life of a man does not suffice -to achieve a knowledge of them. So multifarious and infinite and -perplexed is our code, that even amongst those whose profession is the -law it is not possible to meet with an accomplished lawyer. - -The defendant here fainted, and was taken out of court. After the -interruption which this circumstance occasioned had subsided, Mr. COOPER -proceeded-- - -Gentlemen, I lament in common with many others that this evil has -attended an extended degree of civilization and trade--that our laws have -become too numerous and complicated for the capacity of the mind. That -they are so, is not my opinion alone, but that of the Legislature itself. -I believe that a committee of the Houses of Parliament has been sitting -and still sits for the object of reducing our laws to some limit in their -number and some order as to their design; without which our Constitution, -to use the words of the writer, cannot be tangible; a tangible shape, at -present it does not possess, for that cannot be tangible which spreads -itself over a boundless extent, that eludes, and defies the grasp of the -human intellect. - -Having disposed of thus much of this paragraph, I come to the words, on -which my learned friend, Mr. Gurney, laid such extreme stress in his -address to you. "Our very laws, are corrupt and partial both in -themselves, and in their administration. In fact corruption _as -notorious as the sun at noon-day_ is an avowed part of the system, and is -denominated the necessary oil for the wheels of Government. It is a most -pernicious oil to the interests of the people." This is strong language -I admit, and would perhaps be censurable as imprudent, at least, if the -very expressions themselves, which the writer uses, did not guide us -directly to the facts to which he alludes, and explain the passage. He -alludes most manifestly to the celebrated exclamation of a person at the -time that he was in the seat of office, the first commoner of the realm, -and who instead of being reproached for his words has retired from his -office with the honours which he has merited for his services in it. It -transpired in the House of Commons, that seats had been trafficked for as -articles of sale and purchase for money. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Is that a subject at all relating to the question -which is now before the jury? - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I am going to use the declaration of the Speaker, -as a matter of history, and to show, that the words charged as criminal -were an allusion to it; and if so, were not criminally used. I do not -wish, nay I would avoid the introduction of any improper or inflammatory -topics. I would not attempt to serve my client by such means. When it -was exposed, that there had been certain trafficking for seats in the -House of Commons, the Speaker used these words (and it is to them, I -would show the jury, the writer of the paper alludes), "practices are as -notorious as the sun at noon-day at which our ancestors would have -started with indignation," and that gentlemen-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Will you allow me to ask you Mr. Cooper, I want to -know where you get that from. - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, from all the reports of the speeches in the -newspapers of the day which were never contradicted. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I beg to state, that, whatever passed in Parliament, -cannot be questioned anywhere else. Whatever the Speaker said in -Parliament, he was justified in saying. But I have no means of knowing, -nor have you, whether he ever did say so or not. - -Mr. COOPER.--I am not questioning anything he said in the House of -Commons-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--If Mr. Abbot had said it any where else, it would have -been a libel on the constitution; if he said it there, we cannot enquire -about it; it would be a breach of privilege. - -Mr. COOPER.--Your Lordship asked me, how I came to know that he said so. -My Lord, I have seen it in all the recorded speeches of the House of -Commons in the published debates in Parliament, and-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I say there are no recorded speeches of the House of -Commons to which we can listen or attend. - -Mr. COOPER.--Certainly, there are no records of speeches in the House of -Commons in the sense in which the proceedings of courts of law are -records, nor is there in that sense any recorded speech of Cicero or of -Lord Chatham; but, my lord, will your lordship say, that I am not -entitled in my address to the jury to use that which has been reported as -part of a speech of Lord Chatham or of Cicero; because there are no -records filed, as in the courts of law, of their speeches! I submit that -they are matters of history; and that, as such, I am at liberty to use -them. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I tell you, Mr. Cooper, what the distinction is. If -you publish, that, which may be said to be a speech of Lord Chatham's, -and it may be an accurate report of his speech, you may be guilty of -publishing a libel, though the place, in which that speech was delivered -gave a liberty to the speech. You know it has been so decided in my Lord -Abingdon's case, who published his own speeches. - -Mr. COOPER.--That, my Lord, was a libel upon a private individual. I -say-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I say you have no knowledge of anything which is said -in the Houses of Parliament. - -Mr. COOPER.--With great submission I re-urge it as a matter of history, -and as such I would use it whether the fact is ten years old or ten -thousand, I submit makes no difference. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Mr. Cooper, I have told you my opinion; if you don't -choose to submit to it, the best way will be to go on, perhaps. - -Mr. COOPER.--With the utmost deference to your Lordship-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--The Court of King's Bench has decided this very point, -within the last two terms, against what you are contending for. If your -own opinion be the better one, proceed. - -Mr. COOPER.--Gentlemen, I was going to say, when the Speaker of the House -of Commons exclaimed (I will not repeat particularly upon what occasion) -that our ancestors would have started with indignation at practices which -were "as notorious as the sun at noon-day," can you have any doubt in -your mind that the writer of this pamphlet alluded to that exclamation? -Why look at the passage, see, he uses the same words. "Corruption is as -notorious as the sun at noon-day" is his very expression. He is citing -the Speaker's own words, and cannot but be supposed to be speaking of the -very same facts. It was proposed, on that occasion, to impeach a -nobleman, whom I will not name and need not, for those practices. This -however was resisted by almost all, and even by some who were friendly to -Parliamentary reform, and politically adverse to the noblemen, to whom I -allude, not, indeed, upon any pretext of his innocence of the practices, -charged against him; but on the sole ground that those practices were so -general and notorious that they would condemn themselves in sentencing -him; and among so many guilty, it would be unjust to single him alone for -punishment. Yes; although they were practices, at which our ancestors -would have started with indignation, they were the practices of numbers, -and the practices were as notorious as the sun at noon-day; and, -therefore, the proposition of impeachment was rejected, and rightly; for -as it has been said by the first speaker of all antiquity, we cannot call -men to a strict account for their actions, while we are infirm in our own -conduct. If this is the state of one branch of our Legislature, and if -it is avowed, and by those who would conceal it, if concealment were -possible (but it would be as easy to conceal the sun). Good God! shall a -man be prosecuted and pronounced guilty, and consigned to punishment for -affirming that our laws are corrupt; that there is corruption in the -system, and that corruption is an avowed part of that system? when in so -affirming he only echoes the exclamation of the Speaker himself, that -"practices, at which our ancestors would have started with indignation, -were as notorious as the sun at noon-day?" Why, if as the Speaker -declared, such practices exist, and affect the most important branch of -the Legislature, I myself say, that there is corruption in the very -vitals of the Constitution itself. In such a state of things, to talk of -the Constitution, is mockery and insult; and I say there is no -Constitution. What, then, has the writer of this pamphlet said more than -has been avowed by the highest authority, and everybody knows? And now, -can you lay your hands on your hearts, and by your verdict of Guilty send -the defendant to linger in a jail for having published what the author -has, under such circumstances, written? - -Having thus concluded my observations on the passages selected from this -paper for prosecution, I will, for I have a right to read it all if I -please, direct your attention to another part of it. Let us examine -whether other passages will not convince us, that (though he should be -mistaken in some of his opinions) the whole was written with a single and -honest intention. I myself never read a paper, which, on the whole, -appeared to be written with more candour. There is an openness that does -not even spare the writer himself. Indeed, with regard to his opinions, -peculiar and mistaken as he may be, he seems himself, sincerely to -believe in them. He is now suffering for those opinions, and suffering -with a firmness, which to those who think him wrong, is stubbornness; -and, thus, he affords another proof of the extreme impolicy of attempting -to impose silence by prosecutions, and extort from the mind the -abjuration of opinions by external and physical force. It never -succeeds; but, on the contrary, works the very opposite effect to that -which is its object. As the author from whom I have just now cited says, -with extreme force and equal beauty, "a kind of maternal feeling is -excited in the mind that makes us love the cause for which we suffer." It -is not for the mere point of expression that it has been said, the blood -of the martyrs is the seed of the church. It is not theological doctrine -alone, that thrives and nourishes under persecution. The principle of -the aphorism applies equally to all opinions upon all subjects. There is -widely spread through our nature an inclination to suspect that there is -a secret value in that from which others attempt to drive us by force; -and from this, joined to other powerful motives, the persecution of men -for their tenets, whatever they may be, only draws their attachment -closer, and rivets their affections to them. Every effort to make them -abandon the obnoxious doctrine renders them more steadfast to it. The -loppings, which are designed to destroy, serve but as prunings, from -which it shoots with increased vigour, and strikes its root still deeper. -Has it not always been seen, that persecution has bred in men that -stubborn resolution, which present death has not been able to shake; and, -what is more, an eagerness to disseminate amongst others those principles -for which they have themselves been prosecuted and pursued. I therefore, -from my very soul, deprecate every species of persecution on account of -religious and political opinions, not only from its illiberality, but bad -policy; and I am full of hope, that you will by your verdict to day show, -that you have an equal aversion to it. - -To recur, gentlemen, to the pamphlet; I submit to you that there is a -general air of sincerity in the language of the writer throughout the -composition, which obliges us to believe, that, however mistaken you may -think him in his opinions, he is honest in his intentions. He says in -another part of the address "Every government must derive its support -from the body of the people; and it follows, as a matter of course, that -the people must have a power to withhold their supplies." Which is very -true: for, where there is a shadow of political liberty, a revenue can -only be raised by taxes to which the people have consented: it being -allowed that where there is taxation without representation tyranny -begins. Now, if the writer really believes that there are corrupt -practices in the Government, who can blame him, for proposing (by -abstinence from those articles which are taxed and yield a revenue so -large that it supports a system of misgovernment) to compel our rulers, -by a diminution of their means of undue influence to a regard to economy -and a just administration? I know, indeed, that this doctrine is -considered offensive; nor am I prepared to say with confidence that under -the wide construction which has been given to the law against conspiracy, -persons who were to combine to force such a change by abstaining from all -exciseable articles might not be indicted for it as a conspiracy. It -may, for aught that I know, be even indictable to unite and desist from -using tea, tobacco and snuff to coerce the government into reform by a -reduction of the revenue raised from those articles; but you are not -sitting there to try an indictment for a conspiracy; and, therefore, -though this passage may not be pleasing, I read it, without hesitation, -because it leads to others, which I think demand your consideration and -attention. "We must deny ourselves, he proceeds to say, those little -luxuries in which we have long indulged. Why not? Who gains, and who -loses by this denial? We do not rob ourselves, we only check our -passions; and, in doing this, we strengthen both our bodies and our -purses. I would appeal to those, who, for the last year, have had the -courage and the virtue to abstain from the use of malt and spirituous -liquors, foreign tea and coffee, tobacco, snuff, &c., whether they do not -feel satisfaction from the change of habit; and whether they are not -better in health and pocket, without the use of these things." This, -gentlemen, is a sermon on temperance, and I wish it were generally -followed. I apprehend that this is not only innocent, but highly -meritorious. For my own part I shall maintain the opinion (though ten -thousand Mandevilles should write, and imagine they have proved private -vices public benefits) that it is infinitely more important and -beneficial that the mass of the people should be temperate and healthy, -though poor, than that an immense revenue should be collected from their -addiction to sensual pleasures and vicious luxuries. I say vicious, -because all moral writers concur in calling those sensualities vices, as -free indulgence in them leads to a state of total dissipation of mind -under which scarcely any profligacy seems a crime. The writer continues: -"There are a variety of other things which are heavily excised, the use -of which might be prudently dropped; and which are not essential either -to the health or comfort of mankind. Speaking for myself, I can say, I -do not recommend more than I practise; and that my food for the last year -has consisted chiefly of milk and bread and raw native fruits. I have -been fatter and stronger than in any former year of my life; and I feel -as if I had obtained a new system by the change. _My natural disposition -is luxurious_, and under a better system of government, or when this -rational warfare was not called for, I should at all times live up to my -income." And here, gentlemen, I beg you to mark, that so unreserved, so -much in earnest is the writer in his object, that he does not attempt -even to conceal his own faults, and weakness. I ask, whether you have -ever found men, who were acting and writing with duplicity and sinister -intentions, reproach or expose themselves? But the writer of this paper -practises no reserve; he conceals nothing, though the disclosure should -be against himself, but - - Pours out all himself as plain, - As dowright Shippen, or as old Montaigne. - -He concludes this exhortation to temperance with this sentence, "Shrink -not then you male and female reformers from this virtuous mode of -warfare; for to conquer our injurious habits and our enemy at the same -time is a double conquest, to obtain which both man and woman and child -can very properly assist." I read this conclusion of the paragraph, -gentlemen, and I beg your attention to it, because it makes it manifest -that the change which the writer proposes to compass is a change by a -moral operation through legal and peaceful means; and that he never -dreamed of inculcating, as it is insinuated, any appeal to violence and -arms. - -I have now, gentlemen, concluded all the particular observations which I -had to address you upon this paper; and having shown you that by the -least liberal construction, no criminality of intention can be imputed to -the author, how can I doubt of your acquittal? For it is your duty to -construe the author's words so as to give them an innocent meaning if -they will bear it, and not come to a conclusion of guilt from them unless -you shall be convinced that they will not possibly admit of any other -than a criminal sense. That he had no criminal design, is apparent -enough, even from the indicted passages; and by reading the context is -put beyond the possibility of a doubt. There are many other passages as -well as that, which I have read, which tend equally to the inference of -the sincerity with which the whole paper was written, but which I will -not consume your time in reading, as you will have the whole before you -when you deliberate on your verdict, and they must themselves strike your -attention. - -Now, gentlemen, I cannot tell, how you feel, but I have no opinion more -deeply impressed on my mind than that the prosecution of such political -papers as this before you, as state libels, is perfectly unnecessary; -and, so far from doing good, is, if any mischief can be produced by such -writings, mischievous. Prosecution excites the public regard, and a -curiosity that will not rest till it is gratified, towards that which, -under silent neglect, would hardly gain attention; if indeed, it did not -drop quite dead-born from the press. But I deny wholly that any -political writings, whatever their nature, have done or ever could do any -harm to political society. Let those who advocate the contrary opinion -show you a single instance of a state injured or destroyed by -inflammatory political writings. The republic of Athens was not thrown -down by libels: no--she perished for want of that widely diffused -excitement to courage, and patriotism, and virtue, which a press -perfectly free and unshackled can alone spread throughout a whole people. -She was not ruined by anarchy into which she was thrown by seditious -writings, but because, sunk in luxury and enervated by refinement, it was -impossible to rouse the Athenians to the energy and ardour of facing and -withstanding the enemy in the field. Rome too--as little was her -gigantic power levelled with the dust by libels, but perished from the -corruptions of the tyrannical government of the Emperors, which drained -the nation of all its ancient virtue, and bred the slavery which produces -an utter debasement of the mind (and which never could have been, if a -free publication of political opinion had been suffered), and thus she -fell an easy conquest and prey to the barbarians and Goths. Both these -renowned states fell, because their governments and the people wanted the -goad of a free press to excite them to that public spirit and virtue, -without which no country is capable of political independence and -liberty. How our ears have been dinned with the French revolution, and -how often have we been gravely told, that it was caused by the writings -of Voltaire, Rousseau, and Helvetius. Ridiculous! I have read the -history of those times and have read it very differently. I am forced to -understand that the inextricable and utter embarrassment of the French -finances, the selfish and insolent luxury of the nobles, the desperate -wretchedness of the lower orders of the people, and the profligate -licentiousness of the Court, were the causes and the only causes of that -great event. If the finances of that country had been in order, the -nobles moderate, the poor unoppressed, and any public spirit in the -Government, Voltaire, and Helvetius, and Rousseau, might have racked -their brains for thought, and written themselves blind, before they would -have raised a single arm, or even excited a single voice to exclaim for -change. A perfect freedom of the press would, indeed, have prevented the -causes which roused the people to assert themselves; but the causes once -in existence, all the writers in the world could not one moment have -either retarded the revolution or accelerated it. It is not the -representations of a political writer that can alter the nature of -things. Whose ingenuity, and wit, and eloquence, will persuade me that I -am cold when I am warm; that I am hungry when I am full; a slave when I -am free; and miserable, when I feel myself happy? While such is my -state, what writings would drive me into insurrection? And if the -contrary is my condition, what stimulus could I want to free myself from -it? What persuasions could possibly even delay my utmost efforts for a -change? It is not by the prosecution of political libels that the -stability of a government and domestic peace is ever secured. No; let -the Government pursue its only end, the public good, and let every man, -or at least a large majority, have more or less an interest in the -preservation of the State, and then all the writers in the country, from -the highest down to the obscurest corners of Grub-Street, may wear their -fingers to the roots of the nails with their pens, before they will work -the slightest discontent in the public or change in the government. -Nothing, gentlemen, is more common with writers and speakers, than to -discourse of states by figures drawn from the government of a ship; and I -will tell you what I once heard from a friend of mine who has served his -country in our navy, and which at the time most forcibly struck my mind. -"When I was stationed in the Mediterranean (he said, speaking of the -occurrences of his professional experience) we made captures of the -vessels of all countries except the Greeks, but we never captured them; -for they were always vigilant, active, and brave. We never surprised -them; if we chased them, they escaped us; and if we attempted to cut them -from the shelter to which we had driven them, we were repulsed." What -created this difference? By the rules of navigation amongst the Greek -islands, every man, from the captain down to the lowest cabin-boy, has, -more or less, a share in the vessel. They watched, therefore,--they -laboured and fought for their own interest and property. Let those who -sit at the helm and govern us imitate this policy. Let them extend the -elective franchise; let them restore us to a condition in which industry -and skill may find employment and be secure in their gain. Give men an -interest and ownership in the state, and it shall never be upset by -libels; not a seditious or mutinous voice shall be heard; and what -foreign enemy shall dare to lift a hand against us? But keep the people -excluded from their share in the representation, and pressed down by -taxation, and millions of prosecutions against libels will not save the -country from sinking in ruin. - -Let me now, gentlemen, call your attention back to the argument I used -almost at setting out in my address to you, by which I attempted to -maintain that you are not bound, whatever you may judge the intention of -the writer to have been, to pronounce a publication a libel by your -verdict, if you should be of opinion that such a publication cannot be -mischievous, and that prosecution of it is unnecessary. If it can do no -harm, it is no nuisance at common law to have written a paper, whatever -its nature may be, and if it could be no nuisance, you are bound in duty -to acquit the defendant, who is only the publisher. The doctrine for -which I am contending with regard to this paper, has been acted upon by -the government of one free country, with regard to all political -writings, whatever their intention or nature. The Legislature of the -State of Virginia has actually _legislated against_ such prosecutions, -and declared them totally unnecessary. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--That is not the law of this country. - -Mr. COOPER.--I only use it my Lord as part of my speech in argument. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I will tell you what I am bound to tell the jury. I -shall tell them that we have nothing to do here with what may be -expedient, we are not legislating here--the question is whether this is a -proper prosecution? - -Mr. COOPER.--I feel that it is exceedingly important to use as matter of -argument, and as a part of my speech. If your Lordship stops me I know -that it will be my duty to submit. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--All this is only drawing them away from the question -they are to consider. With the propriety of instituting the prosecution -they have nothing to do; the only questions they have to determine, -are--Is that paper a libel, and has the defendant published it? An Act -of the Assembly of Virginia has no validity in this country. - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I do not cite it as a statute of this realm to -which we are bound to pay legal attention-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--We are bound to pay no attention to it. - -Mr. COOPER.--My Lord, I only use it to show that other men have been of -the opinion which I have expressed to your Lordship and the jury. If -your Lordship insists on my not addressing myself to the jury upon it, I -know too well the deference that is due from me to the Bench to persevere -in attempting it. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--No, I don't insist upon it. But, Mr. Cooper, can you -deceive yourself so much as to think this has anything to do with the -question? I shall tell the jury to pay no attention to it. - -Mr. COOPER.--Your Lordship will make any observations your condescension -may lead you to make, as well on this as on any other part of the -defence. I believe the course which I wish to take was taken on a -similar occasion by a man who united the soundest and correctest judgment -with the brightest imagination--I mean Lord Erskine--he-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I knew him for thirty odd years at the bar, and I -never in all my life knew him address himself to points such as -these--that is all I can say. I know what is due to the liberty of the -bar, and I shall cherish a love for its freedom to the latest hour of my -life. - -Mr. COOPER.--If your lordship refuses me-- - -Mr. Justice BEST.--No, I don't refuse you. - -Mr. COOPER.--I think it necessary to my case. The preamble -is--(gentlemen, I am sorry to detain you, but I have a most important -duty to discharge. If in addressing you, I am taking a course which I -ought not, I assure you it is an error of judgment and not of design. I -declare most sincerely, that I am addressing to you arguments which I -should attend to if they were addressed to myself in such a case. His -Lordship will have a right to make what observations he pleases, and of -course I offer this and every other argument to you liable to the honour -he may confer upon me of condescending to notice anything I have said or -may say. You, gentlemen, will, I know, regard my observations or -arguments solely as you think them forcible or weak; if they are the -former you will attend to them, if the latter reject them. And with this -observation I shall now proceed to read to you the preamble to the Act of -the Legislative Assembly of Virginia.) - - "It is time enough for the rightful purposes of Civil Government, for - its officers to interfere when principles break out into overt acts - against peace and good order, and that truth is great and will prevail - if left to herself, and that she is the proper and sufficient - antagonist to error, and has nothing to fear from the conflict, - unless, by human interposition disarmed of her natural weapons, free - argument and debate: errors ceasing to be dangerous, when it is - permitted freely to contradict them." - -Thus, you see, by an Act of the Legislature of that country, passed by -those who had all the knowledge of history before their eyes, and ample -experience in their own times, I am fully supported in the position that -prosecutions of this kind are not only useless but hurtful. By free -argument and debate errors cease to be dangerous, if they are not -exploded; but attempts to stifle even errors by power and punishment, -provoke a stubborn adherence to them, and awake an eager spirit of -propagation. If erroneous positions are published, meet them by -argument, and refutation must ensue. If falsehood uses the press to -promulge her doctrines, let truth oppose her with the same weapon. Let -the press answer the press, and what is there to fear? Shall I be told -that the propensity of human nature is so base and evil that it will -listen to falsehood and turn a deaf ear to truth? To assert so is not -only scandalous to human nature, but impious towards the Creator. We are -placed here imperfect indeed, and erring; but still with preponderance of -virtue over vice. The Deity has sent us from his hands with qualities -fitting us for civil society: it is our natural state; and we know that -civil society is sapped by vice and supported by virtue: if, therefore, -our disposition to good did not redound over the evil a state of society -could not be maintained. It would indeed be an impiety little short of -blasphemy to the great Being who has created us, to say, that mankind at -large are eagerly inclined to what is vicious, but turn with aversion -from what is moral and good. Yet this, whatever they may avow, must be -the opinion of those who say that good doctrine from the press cannot be -left with safety to oppose bad. - -Now, gentlemen, not only am I not without the corroboration of this -enactment of the Legislature of Virginia for my humble opinions, but the -Act of Virginia is itself not without the very highest human sanction, as -I shall show you by a passage which I am about to cite from the work of a -man, with whom, in my mind, the writings of all other men are but as the -ill-timed uninformed prattlings of children--a man from whom to differ in -opinion is but another phrase to be wrong. Need I, after this, name him? -for was there ever more than one man who could be identified with such a -description? I mean Locke, the great champion of civil freedom. In this -work on government he says-- - - "Perhaps it will be said, that the people being ignorant and always - discontented, to lay the foundations of government in the unsteady - opinion and uncertain humour of the people, is to expose it to certain - ruin, and no government will be able long to subsist if the people may - set up a new legislature whenever they take offence at the old. To - this I answer, quite the contrary, people are not so easy got out of - their old forms as some are apt to suggest; they are hardly to be - prevailed with to amend the acknowledged faults in the frame they have - been accustomed to, and if there be any original defects or - adventitious ones introduced by time or corruption, it is not an easy - thing to be changed, even where all the world sees there is an - opportunity for it. This slowness and aversion in the people to quit - their old constitutions has in the many revolutions which have been - seen in this kingdom still kept us to, or, after some intervals of - fruitless attempts, still brought us back again to our old legislature - of King, Lords and Commons." - -Such is the opinion of this greatest of men, formed on the most -consummate wisdom, enriched by observation, during times which afforded -no small degree of experience. Upon his authority, then, that men are -not to be excited to sudden discontent, and passion for hasty change, I -assert, that there is no danger to be apprehended from the freest -political discussions; and consequently no need of their condemnation by -a jury's verdict of Guilty. - -Milton, too, the greatest of poets, and hardly less a politician, was of -the same sentiment as to the firmness of the people, and thought it might -safely be left to them to read what they pleased, and to their reason and -discretion, what to object and what to adopt, without any other -interference. It is his Areopagitica, in which he contends for -unlicensed printing--an oration addressed from his closet to the -Parliament of England, and which has been cited by Lord Mansfield -himself, on the bench. His words are--"Nor is it to the common people -less than a reproach; for if we be so jealous of them that we cannot -trust them with an English pamphlet, what do we but censure them for a -giddy, vicious and ungrounded people? That this is care or love of them -we cannot pretend." - -Such are the sentiments of Milton, in that noble effort of united -argument and eloquence, which I should not fear to hold up against the -most splendid orations of antiquity. - -Having thus, I submit, made good my position, that political papers, -whatever their description, can produce no mischief, and that there is no -need to prosecute them; I will now show you, that not only can -publications, containing false opinions, do no mischief, but that they -actually produce benefit, and that therefore not they, but the -prosecutions, which would check, and stifle them are injurious. Is it -meant to be contended that error is stronger than truth; folly more -powerful than reason, and irreligion than religion? No man, in his -senses, will maintain such propositions. On the contrary, error has -always been dispersed before reason, and infidelity by religion. The -appearance of error and falsehood has always roused Truth to rise to the -work of refutation. Even the sublime truths of religion have never been -so completely demonstrated, and conviction and faith have never been so -firmly fixed in the minds of men as by those books of controversy which -have been drawn forth by attacks upon Christianity; and which, but for -the publications denying the authenticity of the religion, would never -have been in existence; but, invaluable as they are, the world must have -wanted them. As to political writings, is it not notorious, that the -very best expositions of the nature of civil society and government, are -solely to be ascribed to the conflicts of reason with the false and -loathsome doctrines of passive obedience and divine indefeasible right, -which found their way into the world by the freedom of publication? Even -that great work, the treatise of Locke on Government, itself, which is -justly regarded as the political Bible (I mean no irreverence) of -Englishmen, would never have seen the light, but that it was written to -refute the base and detestable tenets of Barclay and Filmer. Their -political treatises were false and slavish, and even illegal; for they -were the same for which Dr. Sacheverel was afterwards impeached by the -Parliament; and which he would not have been if it had not been an -offence to maintain and publish such opinions. Yet were not their -falsehoods and errors useful and beneficial? Did they not provoke Locke -to rise in all the majesty and strength of truth and cast down Filmer and -his doctrines into the lowest abyss of contempt, never again to emerge? -See, now, if the government of those days had prosecuted Barclay and -Filmer, and suppressed their books by power instead of leaving them to be -demolished by reasoning, what would have been the consequence? The -mighty mind of Locke would not have been called into action, and the -total refutation and utter explosion of Filmer would not have been -effected. By criminal prosecutions the odious positions would only have -been suppressed for a time, not as they now are, extinguished for ever; -and the base and degrading doctrines of passive obedience and divine -right, which are the stigma of the times in which they prevailed, might -have been the disgrace and reproach of ours. - -But supposing that prosecutions for political writings were in any -respect politic, useful, or wise, will they prevent their publication? No -more than your strong and violent revenue laws have been able to suppress -the rise of illicit stills in Ireland and Scotland. Even if by dint of -the terror of prosecutions the press in this city could be reduced to -such awe and subjection, that everything that issued from it was as flat -and unmeaning as the most arbitrary government could desire, its -inhabitants would still gratify their thirst for political discussion and -information. They would compose and print as they distil, in the depth -of deserts and the solitude of mountains, and under the cover of darkness -drop the pamphlets into the houses, or scatter them in the streets, and -the obstacles to circulation will serve only to inflame the desire for -possession. This would be the result of a determination to suppress -everything in the shape of political discussion that did not please the -humour of a set of men in authority, while by far the greater part if not -all those publications which inspire so much apprehension, would if -passed in silence either never be noticed, or read their hour and -forgotten. It is these public trials that give them importance and -notoriety. They would not draw an eye but for the glare thrown on them -by these luminous prosecutions. These indictments (though I would not -willingly be ludicrous on so serious an occasion) force into my mind the -course once adopted with regard to houses of ill-fame, by the Society for -the Suppression of Vice. They paid men who were fixed before the doors -of such houses with huge paper lanterns, on which there was painted in -large illuminated letters, "This is a house of bad fame." But, instead -of causing a desertion of the houses, they operated as an advertisement -and an allurement, and increased the numbers who resorted to them. Those -who had before frequented them did not discontinue their visits, and -those who were ignorant of such places and seeking them, on seeing the -emblazonment by the doors, cried out--that is just what we wanted, and -turned in. The society at last discovered their mistake. They found -that they were encouraging what they wished to abolish, and discontinued -the plan. My learned friend, who is counsel for the society, can confirm -me when I assert that they do not now carry it into practice. Precisely -the operation that these lanterns had with regard to houses of ill-fame, -have these trials upon obnoxious writings. They are illuminated by the -rays which are shed on them by these proceedings. They attract every -eye, and are read in the light (as it were) of the notoriety which is -thus thrown upon them by these prosecutions. - -Gentlemen, it just occurs to my recollection, that I have omitted in its -proper place something which I ought to have mentioned, and urged to you, -and I beg your indulgence to supply the omission. You will remember that -in one of the passages charged as libelous, the words "I will not, now, -say a word about insurrection" are to be found, and my learned friend, -Mr. Gurney, suggested to you that it was an excitement, at some future -period, to insurrection. I, gentlemen, repeat that these words are not -only no excitement to insurrection, but an express disavowal of it. If -you infer that he means insurrection at any future time, you must also -suppose that the insurrection he contemplates is conditional, and in -speculation of conduct in the government that may justify it. Is there -any extrinsic evidence to show that he means something beyond the words? -None--and the words themselves are a literal disclaimer of any intention -of insurrection. And it is by the words then that you will judge of his -design, and not take it from the vague and partial declamation of the -counsel for the prosecution, whose opinions ought no more than my own, to -have any weight with you, except as they are supported by reason. If you -can find any such meaning as an intention to excite insurrection in the -words, so much the worse for the defendant; but, if you cannot, and I am -sure you cannot, then you will not hesitate to adjudge the words -innocent. What! may not I, or any man, say there is no occasion for -insurrection at this moment, but there may be at a future time? Good -God! are there no possible situations in which resistance to a government -will be justifiable? There have been such situations, and may again. -Surely there may be. Why, even the most vehement strugglers for -indefeasible right and passive obedience have been forced (after -involving themselves in the most foolish inconsistencies, and after the -most ludicrous shuffling in attempting to deny it) to admit, that there -may be such a conjuncture. They have tried to qualify the admission -indeed--admitted, and then retracted--then admitted again, and then -denied in the term, what they admitted in the phrase, till, as you shall -see, nothing ever equalled the absurdity, and ridiculousness of the -_rigmarole_ into which they fell, in their unwillingness to confess, what -they were unable to deny. Yes, gentlemen, there are situations in which -insurrection against a government is not only legal, but a duty and a -virtue. The period of our glorious revolution was such a situation. When -the bigot, James, attempted to force an odious superstition on the people -for their religion, and to violate the fundamental laws of the realm, -Englishmen owed it to themselves, they owed it to millions of their -fellow-creatures, not only in this country, but all over the world; they -owed it to God who had made them man to rise against such a government; -and cast ruin on the tyrant for the oppression and slavery which he -meditated for them. Locke, in the work from which I have already cited -to you, in the chapter entitled, "On Dissolution of Government," contends -with Barclay, an advocate for divine right and passive obedience, and -refutes him on this very question, and proves that subjects may use force -against tyranny in governments. He cites Barclay who wrote in Latin, but -I read to you from the translation. - - "Wherefore if the king shall be guilty of immense and intolerable - cruelty not only against individuals but against the body of the - state, that it is the whole people, or any large part of the people, - in such a case indeed it is competent to the people to resist and - defend themselves from injury, but only to defend themselves, not to - attack the prince, and only to repair the injury they have received; - not to depart, on account of the injury received from the reverence - which they owe him. When the tyranny is intolerable (for we ought - always to submit to a tyranny in a moderate degree) the subject may - resist with reverence." - -In commenting on this passage, Mr. Locke, mixes with his reasonings the -ridicule it deserves:--"'He (that is Barclay) says, it must be with -reverence.' How to resist force without striking again, or how to strike -with reverence, will need some skill to make intelligible. He that shall -oppose an assault only with a shield to receive the blow, or in any more -respectful posture without a sword in his hand, to abate the confidence -and force of the assailant will quickly be at the end of his resistance, -and will find such a defence serve only to draw on him the worse usage: -this is as ridiculous a way of resisting, as Juvenal thought of fighting, -'Ubi tu _pulsas_, ego _vapulo_ tantum,' and the result of the combat will -be unavoidably the same as he there describes it. - - Libertas paupcris haec est. - _Pulsatus_ rogat, et _pugnis_ concisus adorat, - Ut _liceat_ paucis cum dentibus inde _reverti_. - -"'This is the liberty of the slave: when beaten and bruised with blows, -he requests and implores as a favour to be allowed to depart with some -few of his teeth.' This will always be the event of such an imaginary -resistance, when men may not strike again. He, therefore, who may resist -must be allowed to strike. And then let our author, or anybody else, -join a knock on the head, or a cut on the face, with as much reverence -and respect as he thinks fit. He that can reconcile blows and reverence -may, for aught I know, deserve for his pains, a civil respectful -cudgeling whenever he can meet with it." - -So much, gentlemen, for the doctrine of non-resistance. Therefore the -author of this paper in stating that there may be times when insurrection -may be called for, has done no more than a hundred other writers, and -among them Locke, have done before him. - -Locke proceeding still with the discussion of the question, whether -oppressive governments may be opposed by the people, and, having -concluded in the affirmative, says, "But here the question may be made, -who shall be judge whether the prince or legislature act contrary to -their trust. This, perhaps, ill affected and factious men may spread -among the people, when the prince only makes use of his just prerogative. -To this, I reply, the people shall be judge; for who shall be judge -whether the trustee or deputy acts with and according to the trust that -is reposed in him, but he who deputes him, and must, by having deputed -him, have still a power to discard him when he fails in his trust. If -this be reasonable in particular cases of private men, why should it be -otherwise in that of the greatest moment when the welfare of millions is -concerned, and also when the evil if not prevented is greater, and the -redress very dear, difficult, and dangerous." - -Locke, therefore, most unambiguously concludes that insurrection may be -justified and necessary. A greater and more important truth does not -exist, and we owe its promulgation with such freedom and boldness to that -most extraordinary and felicitous conjuncture at the revolution which -called upon us to support a king against a king, and obliged us to -explode (as has been done most completely) the divine right and passive -obedience under which one king claimed, to maintain the legal title of -the other. - -Locke goes on further to say-- - -"This question, who shall be supreme judge? cannot mean that there is no -judge at all. For where there is no judicature on earth to decide -controversies among men, God in heaven is judge. But every man is to -judge for himself, as in all other cases, so in this, whether another -hath put himself in a state of war with him, and whether, as Jeptha did, -he should appeal to the Supreme Judge." - -I beg that I may not be misinterpreted, I hope it will not be said I mean -to insinuate that any circumstances at present exist to justify -insurrection. I protest against any such inference. Nothing can be -further from my thoughts, and I regret that such an extravagant mode of -construing men's words should be in fashion, as to render such a caution -on my part needful. All I say is, that the writer of this paper spoke of -insurrection conditionally, and prospectively only, and, in doing so, has -done no more than Locke, in other terms had done before him. - -Gentlemen, I have but a very few more arguments to address to you, and I -am glad of it, for I assure you, you cannot be more exhausted in patience -than I am in strength. - -I now, gentlemen, ask you even admitting that the _style_ and manner, in -which the opinions of the writer of this address are expressed, should -verge upon intemperance and impropriety, would you venture, merely upon -the ground of such a defect in style, to say the defendant is guilty; -when the very same opinions in substance, expressed in a different style, -would be innocent and legal, and unquestionable? Gentlemen, I have heard -it asserted, with a surprise that I cannot express, that if persons will -write in a moderate, delicate, temperate, and refined style they may -discuss questions which become exceptionable and forbidden if they are -handled in a coarse and illiberal style. Now I should have thought, that -the very reverse of this would have been the case; for by a refined and -guarded style you may insinuate and persuade--by vulgar coarseness and -intemperance you disgust and nauseate. To say that a political paper of -the very same sentiments, and principles would be innocent, written in a -calm and delicate style which would be criminal, written in an abrupt, -vehement and passionate manner, is to remove guilt from the thought and -conception and substance of a writing, and impute it to the medium only -of the thought, the mere expression. So that upon such a rule and -principle of decision, if I were to heap violent and gross abuse even on -Abershaw, or any other highwayman, who was deservedly hanged a hundred -years ago, I might actually be indicted for a libel. Such a course, -gentlemen, would be to degrade your judgments from a decision upon the -thought, and opinions (which, are alone important) of an author to a -criticism and condemnation of his words, and would be waging war with the -vocabulary and the dictionary, a degradation, to which I trust, your -reason will never submit. A difference of style in political writings is -much too refined and subtle to found a distinction upon between innocence -and crime. Difference of style is so minute, and is a subject of such -nice discrimination, that it would not only be difficult, but almost -impossible, and most unsafe for any jury to attempt by it to draw a line -between guilt and innocence; besides, what would be the effect upon the -press? If I were told, when I sat down to write upon any topic, that I -must treat it in a given style, and no other, or risk prosecution, I -should be confounded, and throw down my pen without writing at all. At -least I should either not write at all, or write in such a manner that I -might as well not have written at all, for I should most certainly never -be read. Good God! to leave a man the alternative of a particular style, -or an indictment for a libel, when he sat down to compose, would be like -placing a torpedo on his hand; for you cannot, as was most forcibly, and -beautifully said by Lord Erskine, "expect men to communicate their free -thoughts to one another under the terror of a lash hanging over their -heads;" and again, on another occasion, "under such circumstances, no man -could sit down to write a pamphlet, without an attorney at one elbow, and -a counsel at the other." Gentlemen, if you, sitting coolly and -dispassionately to give a deliberate judgment upon the manner and style -of an author's composition would find it difficult to form a certain -judgment, how great, how insuperable, must be the difficulty of the -writer himself. How is he when he sits down intent on his subject and -when vehement and ardent (as he must be, if he is in earnest, and that he -may persuade others of that, which he feels himself) and his ideas are -thronging and pressing upon him for expression--how is he to be select -and cautious and measured in his words? Would you not by subjecting the -freedom of political discussion to such a restriction run the hazard of -destroying it altogether? Upon this question of the difficulty of -distinguishing between propriety and impropriety in the style of writings -I can not abstain from reading to you a passage from a speech of Lord -Chesterfield, which was quoted by Lord Erskine, when he was at the bar, -upon a trial for libel. On that occasion, indeed, Lord Kenyon told him, -that he believed it flowed from the pen of Dr. Johnson, and _that_ Lord -Erskine took as a valuable concession; for from the frame of mind and -bias of that learned man on political subjects, he was certainly not a -friend to popular liberty, while Lord Chesterfield, I believe, acted -without deviation upon Whig principles, and was a constant advocate for -the freedom of the press. From Dr. Johnson, however, it was most -important, as it had the effect of an unwilling admission, and if Lord -Kenyon was correct in attributing the speech to Dr. Johnson, its -excellence is to be inferred from the fact, that Lord Chesterfield never -discountenanced the opinion that he was its author. The passage is -this:-- - - "One of the greatest blessings we enjoy, one of the greatest blessings - a people, my Lords, can enjoy, is liberty; but every good in this life - has its alloy of evil; licentiousness is the alloy of liberty; it is - an ebullition, an excrescence--it is a speck upon the eye of the - political body: but which I can never touch but with a gentle, with a - trembling hand, lest I destroy the body, lest I injure the eye upon - which it is apt to appear. - - "There is such a connection between licentiousness and liberty, that - it is not easy to correct the one, without dangerously wounding the - other: it is extremely hard to distinguish the true limit between - them: like a changeable silk, we can easily see there are two - different colours, but we cannot easily discover where the one ends, - or where the other begins." - -Mr. GURNEY.--You should state, in fairness and candour, that that was an -argument against licensing. - -Mr. COOPER.--I know it was. The argument contends for the difficulty, -next to impossibility, of distinguishing where that which is allowable -ends, and that which is licentious begins. A licenser could not tell -where to allow, and where to object, yet a licenser, gentlemen, would -have had just the same means of judging that you possess; and if he could -not tell with distinctness and certainty what to let pass and what to -stop, how, with no greater power, and means of judgment, can you? With -what justice, then, can it be objected to me, that I have shown any want -of candour in not stating the precise question on which the argument was -delivered, when in the principle there is not a shadow of difference? My -application of the passage is therefore perfectly just. - -Gentlemen, I have only one more quotation to trouble you with before I -conclude. That is the opinion of Lord Loughborough, afterwards -Chancellor of England. I do not know in what case, or on what occasion -it was delivered, but I believe in a judgment on a case of libel. "Every -man (says that judge) may publish at his discretion, his opinions -concerning forms and systems of government. _If they be weak and -absurd_, _they will be laughed at and forgotten_; _and_, _if they be_ -bona fide, _they cannot be criminal_, _however erroneous_." - -This is the opinion of a great judge upon political publications, sitting -under the authority of the king himself to administer the laws; and to -apply this authority to the paper before you, what reason on earth have -you to suppose, that the writer from the beginning to the end was not -bona fide in his opinions; and then, however erroneous they may be, I -say, under the sanction of Lord Loughborough himself, they are not -criminal. - -Having, gentlemen, submitted these observations to you, I declare most -unfeignedly that I have uttered them with the most conscientious belief, -that they are founded in reason, justice, and truth. I have not advanced -a proposition nor uttered a sentiment as an advocate, which I am not -prepared to avow and maintain as a man. If I am wrong in my judgment, -you will correct me. You will, however, consider my reasonings, and the -passages which I have cited to you in support of them, and judge if I -have not maintained the propositions, which I have submitted to you. - -No argument can be drawn from any of the observations, which I have -addressed to you for impunity to libelers and defamers of private -character. No, they are justly called assassins; for they who destroy -that without which life is worthless are as guilty as those who destroy -life itself, and let them feel the heaviest vengeance of the law. Private -persons may be attacked and have no power to defend themselves. They may -not only be unable themselves to answer published calumnies against their -character; but also unable to employ those who can. But such can never -be the case with those who administer the affairs of the nation. All the -wealth and power of the country is in their hands. They may hire a -thousand writers to support their measures, and vindicate their -characters, and they will not want volunteers; they can command the -press; and, for their protection, it is sufficient, that the press should -be opposed to the press. Private individuals cannot command the press; -and, therefore, let slanderers of private character suffer the utmost -punishment that the law can inflict. - -And now, gentlemen, I ask you to give me your verdict for the defendant. -I make no attempt to move your compassion. I will not urge you to -consider that the defendant is a woman, and unable, from the tenderness -of her sex, to sustain hardship; nor call upon you to remember, that -which you cannot but know, that she has already been convicted upon one -prosecution, for which she will, without doubt, be the subject of severe -punishment. I ask it on the higher ground of justice; though, I confess, -that I hope and wish it with more anxiety, because I trust it will send -these embodied prosecutors, this Constitutional Association, as (by the -figure, I suppose, of _lucus a non lucendo_) they entitle themselves, -into that obscurity to which they properly belong, or at least if they -will obtrude further upon the impatience of the public, let them carry -with them the ill omen of a failure in their first attempt to insinuate, -either that the English Constitution is deficient in its establishment of -responsible law officers of the crown, or that those officers are -incapable of fulfilling the duties of their station. It is said, and I -hope truly, that the country is gradually recovering from the distress, -under which it has so long suffered, and that plenty and prosperity have -again begun to flow in upon us. May it be so! but we shall never derive -enjoyment from any improvement in our physical condition; unless it is -accompanied with domestic tranquillity. To be happy we must be at peace -amongst ourselves; and nothing will have the effect of allaying the heart- -burnings of political animosity and uniting us, as it were, in bands of -harmonious brotherhood, so much as a discouragement of these party -prosecutions, which, while they kindle feelings of indignation, and -hostility, and hatred in large numbers of the people, are of no general -benefit to the state. Fling back this prosecution, then, in the faces of -those who have instituted it; and, instead of sending this unfortunate -woman to a prison, send her back by your verdict of acquittal to the -children of her brother, who, deprived (in the manner you know) both of -their father and mother, are as much orphans as they would be by their -death; and who, sordid and neglected in her absence, are requiring her -care. And, what is more, you will, by your verdict of Not Guilty, give -security to the free expression of public opinion, compose our -dissensions, and protect both yourselves and posterity; since in calling -on you to acquit the defendant, I call on you to protect the freedom of -the press, and with it the freedom of the country; for unless the press -is preserved, and preserved inviolate, the political liberties of -Englishmen are lost. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--It was his duty to call back the attention of the jury -to the question which they were to try. A number of observations had -been made relative to what had taken place in Virginia, but which had -nothing to do with the verdict which they were to give. One observation -had been made, in the propriety of which he perfectly agreed, which was -that they would dismiss from their minds all prejudices. The learned -counsel for the defendant seemed to think that the name of Carlile was -sufficient to create prejudices. If that were the case, he hoped the -jury would forget that the present defendant was of that name. They had -nothing now to do but to exercise their judgment upon the facts before -them. The jury were told, and truly told, that they were the judges as -to whether this was a libel or not. The statute gave the jury the power -of finding a general verdict; but they still were bound under the -sanction of their oaths to find it according to law. He should give his -opinion, and the jury were at liberty to differ with him; but he must beg -in the most distinct terms to state that the jury or the court had -nothing to do with the propriety or impropriety of these prosecutions, or -with the association by which the prosecution had been instituted. For -his own part he did not know by whom it had been instituted until he had -been requested by the defendant to ask the jurors as they went into the -box, whether or not they were members of that association. The two -questions to be decided were, first, Was this pamphlet a libel? and -secondly, Was the defendant the publisher? They must lay out of their -consideration acts of parliament passed in Virginia. The principles laid -down in the preamble of the act alluded to, might be a good principle for -America, but he was bound to tell them that it was not law in England. In -the book quoted from by the learned gentlemen, it was said "how wretched -must be the state of society in a country where the laws were uncertain;" -and that must be the case where the jury take into consideration the -propriety or impropriety of laws. In his opinion this publication was -libelous, and if the jury were not satisfied of the contrary, the safer -course would be for the jury to agree in opinion with one who must be -presumed to be acquainted with the law, and who gives that opinion upon -his oath. No man could be a more ardent admirer than he of the press, to -the freedom of which Europe was principally indebted for its happiness; -and God forbid that he should do anything which would for a moment -extinguish that liberty! The learned counsel for the defendant had said, -that the libel upon a private individual was a species of moral -assassination. It was odd that an individual could not be libeled with -impunity, and yet that society might be set by the ears. The government -were equally protected with all others against the malevolence and -virulence of the press. He would again repeat, but he would say nothing -as to what the law ought to be, but he stated what it was. What he -conceived to be the true liberty of the press was this, that any man -might, without permission, publish what he please, if he were responsible -for what he might publish. It might be asked, then is a man answerable -for every expression? To that he would answer, no; if a man's intention -were to convince the people that the government was not acting right, he -had a right to publish his opinions; and if some sparks should fly out -beyond decorum when the real apparent object was to instruct, the -expressions ought not to be visited with punishment. But men must not go -farther than instruct: they must not say that the system of government is -a system of tyranny; which meant nothing more than that the people ought -to pull down such systems. The learned counsel had alluded to Athens and -Rome, but it was well known that those States punished offences of this -description with greater severity than the laws of England inflicted. -Every man had a right to point out with firmness, but with respect, the -errors of government. Every man has a right to appeal to the -understanding, but not to the passions; and the man who wished to do so -need not be afraid to write. The distinction between fair discussion and -libel was this, that one was an appeal to the passions, and the other to -the understanding. If the jury were of opinion that this pamphlet was an -address to the people of the country, to induce them by legal and -constitutional means to procure a redress of grievances, then they would -acquit the defendant; but, if on the other hand, they should be of -opinion that the intention was to appeal to prejudices and passions (as -he thought) it was their bounden duty, whatever they might think of the -propriety or impropriety of the prosecution, to return a verdict of -guilty. He next felt it his duty to remark upon the passages in the -record, and if the learned gentleman had gone through the pamphlet, he -would have found in the next page, in which the writer said, that the -making and administration of laws was corrupt, a sufficient explanation -of what was intended by the sentence, "to talk of the British -Constitution, &c." There was in the country a constitution not like the -Spanish Constitution, created in a day; but matured by the sense of ages, -altering and adapting it to times and circumstances until it became what -was a practical and not theoretical system of liberty. The learned -counsel had made some observations upon what had fallen from Lord -Colchester in the House of Commons; such observations he thought -irregular, but he permitted them sooner than it should be said that the -defendant, to use a familiar expression, had not "fair play." He did not -want the authority of Lord Colchester with respect to these corruptions, -because he had evidence of it in a case in which he tried twenty-four -persons for such practices. But was it the meaning of the passage, that -there was corruption in the House of Commons? No, the expression was -that the laws (which were corrupt enough to bring to punishment persons -guilty of those practices) were corrupt. Was this true? If there were -anything for which this country was more distinguished than another it -was the equity of the laws, and it was for this that the laws of England -were extolled by all foreigners. The writer could not mean the borough -of Grampound, or any other borough, when he said that corruption was the -oil of the system. When the writer said he did not "at that moment speak -of insurrection," what was his meaning? Why that insurrection would not -do then, but at some future time they might, when satisfied of their -strength, take advantage of all circumstances. As far as he understood -the nature of the Manchester and Stockport Rooms they were for -instruction, and if the writer did not go farther, then indeed would the -pamphlet be harmless. "Delay some time." "Have such meetings as those -at Manchester and Stockport; be assured of your numbers, and you can -overpower the Government." There could be no doubt that these passages -were libelous. The next question was, whether the defendant had or had -not published the libel? and it was in evidence that these copies were -purchased at two different times. The jury were not to take into -consideration the former conviction; and he could assure the jury that no -greater severity would be used than was sufficient to restrain this -licentiousness, which, if not restrained, would overturn this or any -other Government. The revolution recommended by this pamphlet would not -be an ordinary change of masters, but a transfer of property. - -At about four o'clock the jury retired; and, having returned at quarter -before five, - -Mr. Justice BEST said, he had received a communication that they were not -likely to agree; and as they must agree at some time or other, he sent -for them in order to give them any information in his power upon such -points as they disagreed upon. - -A Juror.--The Foreman was rather precipitate in writing to your Lordship; -we have not wasted much time, and we are discussing it among ourselves. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I am not in a hurry. - -The Foreman said, there were four of the jurors obstinate, and he would -wish his Lordship to draw a juror. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--I have not the power to do so. - -A Juror.--I throw back the charge of obstinacy in the teeth of the -Foreman--he is obstinate. - -Another Juryman.--My Lord there is obstinacy. - -Second Juryman.--This is invidious; I am not the only one who stands out; -there are four of us. - -The Foreman again expressed his opinion that they should not agree. - -Mr. Justice BEST.--Gentlemen, you must see the impropriety of this public -discussion; you had better retire, and endeavour to agree among -yourselves. - -The jury again retired, and at eight o'clock desired their families might -be informed that it was not likely they would return home before the -morning. - - -Wednesday, July 25th. - - -This morning the jury were still enclosed without the least chance of any -agreement. A number of persons were in waiting to hear the verdict. At -half-past nine o'clock, Mr. Justice HOLROYD appeared on the bench, and an -intimation was conveyed to his Lordship that there was no probability -that the jury would agree. - -A conference took place between the counsel for the prosecution and -defence who appeared to be both willing to enter a _Noli Prosequi_ and -discharge the jury without a verdict. - -A gentleman in black (said to be Mr. Longueville Clarke, one of the -Committee of the Constitutional Association, and one of the _State -Locusts_) suddenly started up, and declared that he would not consent to -such a course. - -Mr. COOPER (to the man in black).--Are you the attorney for the -prosecution, sir? - -Mr. LONGUEVILLE CLARKE.--No: I am a member of the Constitutional -Committee; and _I will_ have a verdict. - -Mr. COOPER.--However potent, sir, your word might be in the committee- -room, it has no power in this Court. - -Mr. GURNEY, as counsel for the prosecution, in the absence of Mr. MURRAY, -the attorney, would take upon himself the responsibility of consenting to -discharge the jury. - -Mr. COOPER, thinking it cruelty to confine the jury any longer would -yield also to a consent for their discharge. - -The jury were then sent for, and in their passage to the Court were -loudly and rapturously cheered by the bystanders. Having answered to -their names, - -Mr. Justice HOLROYD addressed them.--Gentlemen of the jury, I am glad -that it is in my power to relieve you from your present unpleasant -situation. The learned counsel on both sides have consented to discharge -you without your returning a verdict. - -The jury then left the Court, and were again loudly cheered in their -passage through the Hall. - -Thus ended the first attempt of the Constitutional Association, or the -Bridge-street Banditti, to get a verdict; particularly important to the -country--particularly honourable to the counsel for the defendant, and -the honest Jurors who made so noble a stand for the Liberty of the -Press--and particularly disgraceful to all parties connected with the -prosecution. - -LONDON: -W. & H. S. WARR, Printers, 3, Red Lion Passage, & 63, High Holborn. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF THE LATE -HENRY COOPER*** - - -******* This file should be named 23826.txt or 23826.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/2/3/8/2/23826 - - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, -set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to -copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to -protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project -Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you -charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you -do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the -rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose -such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and -research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do -practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is -subject to the trademark license, especially commercial -redistribution. - - - -*** START: FULL LICENSE *** - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project -Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project -Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at -http://www.gutenberg.org/license). - - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy -all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. -If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the -terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or -entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. - -1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement -and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" -or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the -collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an -individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are -located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from -copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative -works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg -are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project -Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by -freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of -this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with -the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by -keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project -Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in -a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check -the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement -before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or -creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project -Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning -the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United -States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate -access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently -whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the -phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project -Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, -copied or distributed: - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived -from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is -posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied -and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees -or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work -with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the -work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 -through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the -Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or -1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional -terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked -to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the -permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg-tm License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any -word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or -distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than -"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version -posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), -you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a -copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon -request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other -form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm -License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided -that - -- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is - owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he - has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the - Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments - must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you - prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax - returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and - sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the - address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to - the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." - -- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm - License. You must require such a user to return or - destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium - and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of - Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any - money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days - of receipt of the work. - -- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm -electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set -forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from -both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael -Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the -Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm -collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain -"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or -corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual -property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a -computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by -your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right -of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with -your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with -the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a -refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity -providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to -receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy -is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further -opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO OTHER -WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO -WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. -If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the -law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be -interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by -the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any -provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance -with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, -promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, -harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, -that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do -or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm -work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any -Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. - - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm - -Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers -including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists -because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from -people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. -To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation -and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 -and the Foundation web page at http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/pglaf. - - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive -Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent -permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. -Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered -throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at -809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email -business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact -information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official -page at http://www.gutenberg.org/about/contact - -For additional contact information: - Dr. Gregory B. Newby - Chief Executive and Director - gbnewby@pglaf.org - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide -spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To -SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any -particular state visit http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. -To donate, please visit: -http://www.gutenberg.org/fundraising/donate - - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic -works. - -Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm -concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared -with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project -Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. -unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily -keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. - diff --git a/old/23826.zip b/old/23826.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 68ca197..0000000 --- a/old/23826.zip +++ /dev/null |
