carried on by the means of sub-were carried in to them; that ornation and perjury. they were commodiously lodged, 3. It is, further, notorious, fed, and entertained, with exthat, these facts being well ceeding care and liberality; and known, it was asked of the pro- that it was physically impossible secutors, before the trial com- for any one of them to be submenced, what security there tracted from the enclosure, or would be for the punishment of fortress, except by the will of any witnesses, who might per- the person, or persons, under jure themselves upon this trial; whose guardianship they were,, and that the Ministers, who had or without the disobedience or filled the green bags, and who treachery of the keeper of the had assisted in making the Re- fortress.

5. But lest, by any accident,

port of the Secret Committee, who had brought in the Bill of any one of them should escape Pains and Penalties, and who, through such a series of precauto all these functions, were now tions, an Alien Act was in existseen amongst the judges of the ence; kept in existence in opQueen, to find evidence against position to a petition presented whom, they had established, to the two Houses, wherein the and sent out, an Inquisitorial petitioners stated, that vile use Commission; it was now de-might be made of it with reclared by those Ministers, that, gard to witnesses for or against whatever witnesses might give the Queen, and which petition evidence against the Queen, was rejected upon the ground, they should all be forth-coming that, not to pass the Bill, would to answer any charge that might be to throw on the Ministers be brought against them. a suspicion that they were ca

4. It is a fact, equally noto-pable of using it for so foul and rious with the former, that al- infamous a purpose; that this most the whole of the witnesses Bill, therefore, continued to be, against the Queen were shut up and still is, in existence; that in a small place, called Cotton- this Bill absolutely enables the garden? that they were locked Ministers to prevent any fointo that place; that they were reigner from quitting the counguarded, besides, by soldiers, try without a passport from day and night; that provisions themselves; that this Bill,

8. That it now became essential to justice towards the

therefore, fully enabled the Mi-in giving some of them mo+ nisters to make good the so-ney; in offering others molemn pledge which they had ney and other rewards which given, of keeping in the coun- they refused to take; and, in try every witness who should short, in acting in the capacity depose against the Queen, in or- of an authorised collector and der to that witness being made suborner of witnesses, answerable for any perjury of which he might be guilty; and that, thus, the solemn pledge Queen, to recall Rastelli, in or was not only given, but the der that he might, at once, full power to fulfil that pledge interrogated as to these alleged was possessed by the Minis- acts of subornation; and that, to the utter astonishment and in6. The next fact is, that there dignation of the public, it was was a witness against the now found, that Rastelli was Queen, named Rastelli; that not only not forthcoming, but this witness swore to several that he had been taken out of

ters.

things of an important nature.

be

the locked up fortress; that mo ney had been furnished him to carry him to Milan; that a passport had been given him, signed by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (Castlereagh); and that thus he was gone off completely out of the country!

7. That, after many days had been spent, in the examination of witnesses on the side of her Majesty, there came two most respectable witnesses from Italy, one of them had been the master tradesman in the building line, and the employer of Rastelli, who was a journeyman, or labourer, under him; that the evidence of these two most credible persons proved that Rastelli had sworn falsely, and it further proved, that he had been engaged at Milan in collecting witnesses against the Queen; in asking them to and responsibility to the First come and swear against her; Lord of the Treasury, were.

9. The Ministers, who had made the pledge for forthcoming, had the witnesses in their charge and in their power; the Ministers were the accusers and prosecutors; the Attorney-Gene ral was their Advocate; the Solicitor to the Treasury was their Attorney, and to his charge

these witnesses all committed. of Lords, without being sent This man's name is Maule; this for, without pretending any man was responsible to Liver-right to be there, and he tells pool, Liverpool to his col-the House of Lords, that he it leagues, and the whole Minis-was who took Rastelli out of try to the nation, for the safe the fortress that he it was, keeping of these witnesses. who, out of his own head, and

10. When it is discovered that without instructions or authoRastelli is gone, Maule is not rity from any body, had taken called upon; the Attorney-Ge-Rastelli forth from the depot, neral is not called upon; Liver-had got him a passport signed pool is not called upon; the by Castlereagh, had sent him Ministry are not called upon; off out of the country, and had but there comes up to the bar received intelligence, that, since a man of the name of Powell, his arrival at Milan, he had an obscure attorney, living been blooded and lay ill of a somewhere in London, of fever.

whom, indeed, the public have

11. Being asked whom the heard, as the frequent visitor of passport was signed by, he said the chambermaid, named De Castlereagh; and afterwards Mont, who went under the Castlereagh's secretary was name of a Countess; of whom, indeed, the public have heard, as having been in a big house in Pall-Mall, just about the time of the King's death, along with Majocchi, at the time when Majocchi came out of that house with great parcels of gold in his hands; but of whom in any

public capacity, in any office

under government, in any public employ whatsoever, neither the nation, the House of Lords, nor the Ministers, knew any thing at all; there comes this Powell to the bar of the House

called, and this man, Planta, swore that the passport was a blank passport that Castlereagh had signed before, and that he, Planta, it was, who filled up the passport with Rastelli's name, and thus enabled the perjuror and suborner to get himself out of the reach of the laws.

12. When Powell was asked what were his reasons for sending Rastelli away, he answered that he sent him away to convince the relations of the good people in the fortress, that those

good people were safe and self for the good motives and sound, those good people's re- good character of Powell; the lations having been alarmed for Lord Chancellor joined in this, their safety, in consequence of and eulogized the character of what he called the riots at Do- Cooke; and Lord Blessington is ver, though those good people reported to have said, that themselves, after the riots at Do- Powell was a most worthy

ver, had once again been in safe- person, and that he had the

HONOUR of his acquaintance!

14.

ty upon the Continent; though they might have written from There is only to be there to satisfy their relations of added, that the CANDOUR their safety; and though they and HIGH CHARACTER

might all again have written of Liverpool were extolled several times from the depot, to the skies by those who or fortress, having this kind are said to be in opposition to and tender-hearted Government him; and that the Counsel for to send off their letters for them, the Queen did not scrape their and having the no-less-kind papers up together, ram them Colonel Brownto distribute into their bags, make a low bow the letters amongst those affec- to the assembly, and leave those tionate relatives; notwithstand-who had begun the proceedings ing all these circumstances, Ras-to end them in any manner they telli must be sent away to in-pleased.

form the affectionate people of Upon this subject, not another the safety of their friends, of word need be said. The whole their being so comfortably matter explains itself: to comlodged, and so amply fed, at ment upon it; to attempt any the expence of the people of thing in the way of illustration, England. or of enforcing, would be to diminish the effect which the plain narrative must make upon every mind.

13. When the House of Lords heard this story from the mouths of Powell and Planta; when Powell had come before this Conspiracy against the PeoHouse, and told this story, ple. This matter is very nearly Lord Liverpool said Rastelli had as plain as the last, and not been sent away without his much inferior to it in point of knowledge; but pledged him- importance. A boy is taken up

for distributing handbills, in the tion was, on the part of Frankname, and under the signatures lin, at least, and those under of, certain gentlemen composing whom Franklin acted, to cause the Queen's Plate Committee. it to be believed, that the RaThese placards, or handbills, are dicals were actually preparing such as are usually denominated, for a general violent assault in the cant of the day, seditious upon that upholder of Social and treasonable. I have read Order, called the Government. several of them, and I declare There can be no doubt that the that I think them not only very Placards, that recently led to well written, but that I greatly the shedding of blood in Scotapprove of their contents; and land, proceeded from the same that Mr. Franklin, or Mr. source. Upon, any other supFletcher, or Mr. O'Bryen, or position, it was perfectly mirawhoever else may have been culous how the country, for the author or distributor of twelve miles round Glasgow them, has, for this act, my most and Paisley, could be supplied unqualified thanks. with these without the detecBut, the merit of the produc- tion of any printer or any pubtions has nothing to do with lisher. There cannot be the this question, which relates, smallest doubt in the mind of first, to the object of issuing any man, that the object was to them; and, secondly, to the produce a sudden burst here, in conduct of the Ministry, and of London; to cause the rich and Sidmouth, in particular, with timid to be alarmed; to get regard to the Police Magistrate, some blood to be shed; to idenBaker, and with regard to the tify the Queen with the appanot making of efforts to secure rent rebellion; to frighten peoFranklin, who had been proved ple from the support of her by to be a publisher of the hand- this means; or, at the very bills, or, at least, had been charged on oath, before the magistrate, of the offence.

least, to terrify the mass of quiet people of property; and to prepare the way for a total extinction of the press under a law of censorship.

As to the first of these, considering the source whence the Bills came, there cannot be the These were so manifestly the smallest doubt that the inten-objects of these publications,