brought on by a violent cough. He applied to different gentlemen of the faculty, who prefcribed many recipes, which he took, but found not the least benefit from any of them. After paffing fome years in this melancholy fituation, and expending much money, he was advifed by an old woman in the country to fmoke coltsfoot, mixed with a little grafs cut. Though his faith in her prefcription was not great, he determined to make trial of it; he accordingly fmoaked, morning and evening, about two pipes, and in a very few days perceived in himself a great change for the betzer. He perfevered for fome months, and is now perfectly free from his complaint.

22. Lord G. Gordon arrived at Harwich, having been escorted to the packet by a file of mufqueteers. The original orders of the burgomatters of Amfterdam, delivered to him by a fheriff's officer, were to this effect: 66 My lord George Gordon, by order of the high esteemed lords the burgomafters of Amfterdam, you are to leave this city within the space of twenty-four Signed TELLIER, fheriff's officer." 23. On Saturday, the feifons ended at the Old Bailey, when nineteen convicts received fentence of death.

hours.

At this feffions came on the remarkable trial of John Elliot, for fhooting at Mifs Boydell, niece to Mr. alderman Boydell. It appeared, that as Mifs Boydell, and Mr. Nicol, bookfeller, in the Strand, were walking up Prince's-fireet, Leicester-fields, a perfon came behind them, and' fuddenly fired a pair of pistols fo elofe to the lady's lide as to fet fire to her cloak, yet fhe received no other hurt than a Right contufion on her fhoulder.

*

Mr. Nicol inftantly feized the affailant; and the pistols (fast bound together with a cord) were picked up by a fervant that was paffing by at the inftant, and who faw them difcharged. The perfon who fired them being carried before a magi

rate, appeared to be Dr. Ellior, well known among the literati, whose infanity was attempted to be esablifhed. Dr. Simmons, phyfician to St. Luke's hospital, faid, he had known the prifoner more than ten years, and that for fome time pat he had confidered him as infanc. He had obferved, that from being one of the mildest and most inoffenfive men he had ever known, he had gradually become irritable and paffionate, very unequal in his fpirits, and fond of maintaining strange inconfiftent opinions. Dr. Simmons particularly mentioned a letter he had received from the prifoner in January laft, which contained a paffage that had still more confirmed him in his opinion of the deranged state of his intellects. This letter had been fent to him with a view to its being prefented to the royal fociety; but the doctor had declined giving it in, as thinking it too vilionary and inconfiftent: a part only of the letter was read to the court, and the paffage which the doctor pointed out particularly to their attention was, that in which the author afferts, that the fun is not a body of fire as hath been hitherto fuppofed, "but that its light proceeds from a dense and univerfal aurora, which may afford ample light to the inhabitants of the fur face (of the fun) beneath, and yet be at fuch a distance aloft as not to annoy them. No objection, fays he, arifeth to that great luminary's being inhabited, vegetation may obtain there as well as with us. There may be water and dry land,

hills and dales, rain and fair weathers and as the light, fo the feafon must be eternal; confequently, it may cafily be conceived to be by far the most blissful habitation of the whole fyftem." To this paffage the recorder objected, that if an extravagant hypothefis were to be adduced as a proof of infanity, the fame proof might hold good with refpect to fome other theorifts; and he defired Dr. Simmons to tell the court, what he thought of the theories of Burnet and Buffon: but the doctor begged to be excufed from faying any thing on thofe fubjects; adding, that he had formed his opinion of Dr. Elliot's infanity, not merely from this letter, but from a variety of circumftances which he had obferved in his converfation and conduct, and which had convinced him that he had for a confiderable time paft laboured under a deranged state of mind..

Other witneffes were likewife called to prove the infanity of the prifoner; which, however, could not be established to the fatisfaction of the court. The prifoner, never theless, was acquitted; becaufe he had been indicted for fhooting at the profecutrix with a pistol and ball; and the jury were fatisfied that there was no ball in the pistol. He was then remanded to Newgate, in order to take his trial for an affault; but the feelings of the unhappy man, it is fuppofed, were infupportable; for he died a few days after; and the coroner's jury brought in their verdict, "That he died by the vifitation of God."

At this feffion alfo was tried Henrietta Radbourn, otherwife Gibson, for the murder of her miftrefs, Hannah Morgan, by wounding and ftabbing her in the head, while afleep in her bed: she was indicted, in one count, for petty treafon, and

for wilful murder. The jury acquitted her of the former, and found her guilty of the latter; upon which judgment was refpited till the opinion of the twelve judges could be taken. See p. 48.

23. An account is received by late advices from Madras, of the following very extraordinary citcumftance.

Shaik Soyliman, a private foldier of the 2cth battalion of the Seapoy corps, ftationed at Chepauk, was tried at the Madras quarter feffion, in October laft, for murder ing his wife: the fact being fufficiently proved, the prifoner made the following very extraordinary defence: that he and his family having, from a variety of circumftances, been plunged into an infupportable state of dittrefs, himself and his wife thought death infinitely preferable to the lingering rack of exift ence; that, after debating again and again the melancholy fubject, it was refolved that he should first de ftroy their infant daughter, then his wife, and afterwards himself. This horrid plan was defeated, he said, by his wife's maternal feelings, who not being able to endure the dread fu! thought of beholding the flaugh ter of her beloved and only child, entreated him to give her the first fatal blow; that, in compliance with her request, he put an end to her mifery, by plunging a dagger into her bofom, and that, whilst in an agony of defpair, he was, preparing to deftroy his daughter, the guards, alarmed by her cries, rushed in, and prevented the execution of his purpose.

The jury, taking all the circum ftances into their confideration, brought in their verdict, "Guilty without malice"--but the court reprefenting the illegality of fuch a verdict, they agreed to find him "Guilty,"

(C 2)

that, in the month of December Jatt, lord George Gordon had repeatedly vifited the lodge, and afked to fee the prifoners, particularly thofe under fentence of death, which request was often denied. On the publication of the pamphlet in queftion, lord George fent a copy to him, and others to Mr. Akerman, and Mr. Villette the ordinary. A few days after, he found a man and woman diftributing them in great numbers at the door of the prifon, Ju confequence of this, he waited on lord George at his houfe in Welbeck-ftreet, and told him that there was fad work about the diribution of the pamphlet; to which his lordship replied, "No matter, let them come on as foon as they pleafe; I am ready for them." He then faw a great number of the books in the room, and took one to Mr. Akerman, at lord George's particular defire; and alfo gave a direction to the refidence of thofe perfons who had distributed the pamphlets in the Old Bailey.

The records of the conviction of feveral perfons were then read and authenticated; and Mr. Akerman, and Mr. Hall, the keeper of the New Jail, Southwark, were called, for the purpofe of proving, that there exifted, at the time, convicts of the fame defeription as thofe who were fuppofed to have addreff ed the pamphlet to the defendant.

Lord George afked the witneffes, feverally, whether he had ever any conference with the perfons mentioned in the record; to which they replied in the negative.

His lordship then entered on his defence; which was delivered in a defultory manner, and made up of materials as heterogeneous as ever went to fuch a compofition. A petty fraud, he faid, committed in his own family, had first drawn his at

tention to the laws againft felony, when he found that it conftituted a capital crime, though the fum taken was no more than eighteen pence. He then entered into a hiftory of our criminal law, from the time of Athelstan, for the purpofe of proving that code, in its prefent ftate, to be by much too fanguinary. This, he faid, was a fubject which ftruck his heart. He had communicated his ideas to lord Mansfield, and to the recorder, who had admitted their propriety; and to judge Gould, who had defired him to put his thoughts on piper. This was all he had done in the prefent inftance. His idea was only to enlarge the powers of the judges; though wicked lawyers had attributed to him another intention. He quoted the act of parliament for fending the convicts to South Wales, as a proof that the legislature thought with him on the subject : he quoted the Gazette of laft Saturday, as a proof of his majefty's attention to God's laws, which he faid were directly contrary to the prefent practice and he affured the court, that, if he had time to fend for his books, he could fhew them that every word of his pamphlet was actually in the Bible! -His lordship complained very much of thofe vexatious profecutions which were inftituted against him. He quoted Blackstone's Commentaries, book iv. cap. 23. who fays,

:

that informations filed ex officio, by the attorney general, are proper only for fuch enormous mifdemeanors as peculiarly tend to disturb or endanger the king's government, and in the punishment or prevention of which a moment's delay would be fatal." This, he said, had by no means appeared in his cafe, as one of the informations against him had been pending for ten, and

the

the other for fix months. This extraordinary mode was therefore a grievance on him, which was not juftified, as it appeared, by any preffing neceffity. He exhorted judge Buller not to lose the prefent opportunity of intructing the jury on the difputed point, whether they were to judge of law as well as of fact. He then complained, that fpies had been fet over him by the treafury for feveral vonths; and concluded with repeating his declaration, that his object had been reformation, not tumult. His lordfhip fpoke for upwards of an hour and a half.

Judge Buller, having briefly fummed up the evidence, remarked, that there could be no doubt of the fact of the defendant's having writ ten and published the libel, the former of which he had actually confeffed. There remained, therefore, only to determine whether the averments in the information were equally true; that is, whether the judges of the different courts, his majefty's law officers, were those alluded to, on which the jury were to determine.

The jury, without hesitation, returned their verdict, GUILTY.

The printer, Thomas Wilkins, was then tried, and found GUIL

TY.

Lord George then prefented an affidavit for the purpofe of putting off his trial on the fecond information; ftating, that he had proceeded, accompanied by a proper perfon, to Mrs. Fitzherbert's, in order to ferve her with a fubpoena: that, on appearing at the door, he read the original fubpoena, and at the fame time prefented the copy and a fhilling; but was, together with his attendant, turned out of doors by the fervants; under thefe circumftances, fo contemptuous both to

the name of the king himself, and his "dearly beloved Francis Buller," it would, he was convinced, render it indifpenfably neceffary for the court to poftpone his trial; and, as ho confidered the virtues of the judge equal to his abilities (both of which he admitted to be bright), he trufted his integrity would still remain unfullied, and that the court would not proceed to try him till they had evinced their power fufficient to the production of his witnefes, and believed they would not attempt to decide on him till they were first enabled to do him juf

tice.

The attorney general faid, that he could not poffibly allow the merits of this affidavit. The notice of trial had been given near three weeks ago; therefore an ineffectual attempt to ferve a fubpoena but two days ago, could not form a fufficient claim to any farther delay. He wifhed alfo to know to what parts of his defence the evidence of Mrs. Fitzherbert would be applicable.

Lord George replied, by mentioning a converfation which, he faid, he had with Mrs. Fitzherbert at Paris, with the relation of which he intermingled fo many allufions to the fituation of that lady, either too indelicate, or too abfurd for repetition, that judge Buller was compelled to interpofc. His lordfhip was with fome difficulty filenced; and it was then ordered, that the trial fhould proceed.

The information was then read; which stated, as libellous and feditious, two paragraphs which ap peared in the Public Advertiser, on different days in the month of Augutt laft, relating the particulars of a vifit paid by count Cagliostro, accompanied by lord George Gordon, to Monf. Barthelemy, the French Chargé des Affaires, enlarg