Page images
PDF
EPUB

Majesty had left this country; she had moved in a foreign society, and one in some respects inferior to that to which her rank entitled her. This, however, was the fault of their lordships themselves, who, however at one time they had courted her society, had deserted her as soon as the sun of royal favour was withdrawn. Mr Brougham then pointed out the cruel treatment his illustrious client had on so many occasions experienced. She had never heard, first, of the marriage, and then of the death of her daughter, unless by mere accident. How wretched was the lot of this lady, as displayed in all the events of her chequered life! It was always her sad fate to lose her best stay, her strongest and surest protector, when danger threatened her; and, by a coincidence most miraculous in her eventful history, not one of her intrepid defenders was ever withdrawn from her, without that loss being the immediate signal for the renewal of momentous attacks upon her honour and her life. Mr Pitt, who had been her constant friend and protector, died in 1806. A few weeks after that event took place, the first attack was levelled at her. Mr Pitt left her as a legacy to Mr Perceval, who became her best, her most undaunted and firmest protector. But no sooner had the hand of an assassin laid prostrate that Minister, than her Royal Highness felt the force of the blow, by the commencement of a renewed attack, though she had but just been borne through the last by Mr Perceval's skilful and powerful defence of her character. Mr Whitbread then undertook her protection, but soon that melancholy catastrophe happened which all good men of every political party in the state, he believed, sincerely and universally lamented; then came with Mr Whitbread's dreadful loss the murmuring of that storm which was so soon to burst with all

its tempestuous fury upon her hapless and devoted head. Her daughter still lived, and was her friend; her enemies were afraid to strike, for they, in the wisdom of the world, worshipped the rising Sun. But when she lost that amiable and beloved daughter, she had no protector; her enemies had nothing to dread; innocent or guilty, there was no hope, and she yielded to the entreaty of those who advised her residence out of this country. Who, indeed, could love persecution so stedfastly, as to stay and brave its renewal and continuance, and harass the feelings of the only one she loved dearly, by combating such repeated attacks, which were still reiterated after the record of the fullest acquittal? It was, however, reserved for the Milan commission to concentrate and condense all the threatening clouds which were prepared to burst upon her ill-fated head; and, as if it were utterly impossible that the Queen could lose a single protector without the loss being instantaneously followed by the commencement of some important step against her, the same day which saw the remains of her venerable Sovereign entombed—of that beloved Sovereign who was from the outset her constant father and friend

that same sun which shone upon the Monarch's tomb, ushered into the palace of his illustrious son and successor one of the perjured witnesses who was brought over to depose against her Majesty's life.

Mr Brougham then proceeded to comment on the different parts of the evidence. He pointed out many parts which had been stated by the Attorney-General in opening the case, but which he had been unable to substantiate. He fully believed that his learned friend believed the truth of what he had asserted. He knew full well that there was no other way for these statements to have got into his learn

ed friend's brief but out of the mouths of the witnesses, who at first had not hesitated to garnish their stories, though they were not found afterwards hardy enough to adhere to their falsehoods when brought to their lordships' bar. When they came to the point, they were scared from their first statements. Mr Brougham observed, that the witnesses were all foreigners, and almost all from Italy, a country which had never been famous for the soundness of its testimony. There was only one nymph for the whole Helvetic Confederation-only one from Germany, a common chamber-maid at an inn; although her Majesty had lived much in both of these countries. The two principal witnesses were proved to have made averments directly contrary to those which they lately swore to; so that, at all events, their reputation for truth could not stand very high. Demont had been praised for her candour; but as this candour had merely consisted in frankly confessing herself a liar, it could not tend very much to raise her credit. Could it be supposed that she would have been so anxious to introduce her two younger sisters into the Queen's household, had she known it to be such as she represented it? Many of the facts were in themselves utterly incredible, both from shewing a degree of grossness which could not be supposed in a person of the Queen's rank and habits, and from the total absence of the most common precautions.

Such, Mr Brougham concluded, was the case before their lordships. He begged again to call their attention, at the risk of fatiguing by repetition, to the two grand points of defence which he hoped their lordships would never dismiss from their minds-first, that the case was not confirmed by witnesses, for neglecting to call whom there was no pretence whatever the

second point was, that every one witness that had been called was injured in credit. How but by these two tests could plots be discovered? Plots were often discovered by the second, when the first failed. When persons in respectable stations in life, previously of unimpeached characters, were got to give evidence in support of fraud and falsehood, the innocent must despair; escape became impossible, unless the plot appeared through the evidence-unless the testimony of the witnesses broke down under themunless some points, entirely neglected, or incautiously secured, exposed the whole fabrication to ruin and destruction. Their lordships would recollect an illustration of this, which was to be found in a great passage in the sacred volume. He called it a great passage, because it was full of instruction, because it was just, because it was eloquent. The two judges were prepared with evidence fitted to their object, and well arranged. They hardened their hearts, that the look of their innocent victim towards heaven could not divert them from doing the purposes of unjust judgment, or from giving a clear consistent story. But their falsehood was detected, and their victim was saved, by the little circumstance of a mastick-tree. This was a case applicable to all conspiracies and plots. This little circumstance was of the unessential, but decisive kind, which the providence of Heaven made use of to detect perjury. Such were Demont's letters; such Majochi's banker's clerk. Those circumstances were not important to the body of the case, but they were important to the body of credit belonging to it. "Such, my lords, (Mr Brougham continued), is the case now before you, and such is the evidence by which it is attempted to be upheld. It is evidence-inadequate to prove any proposition; impotent, to

deprive the lowest subject of any civil right; ridiculous, to establish the least offence; scandalous, to support a charge of the highest nature; monstrous, to ruin the honour of the Queen of England. What shall I say of it, then, as evidence to support a judicial act of legislature, an ex post facto law? My lords, I call upon you to pause. You stand on the brink of a precipice. If your judgment shall go out against the Queen, it will be the only act that ever went out without effecting its purpose; it will return to you upon your own heads. Save the country-save yourselves. Rescue the country; save the people, of whom you are the ornaments; but, severed from whom, you can no more live than the blossom that is severed from the root and tree on which it grows. Save the country, therefore, that you may continue to adorn itsave the crown, which is threatened with irreparable injury-save the aristocracy, which is surrounded with danger-save the altar, which is no longer safe when its kindred throne is shaken. You see that when the church and the throne would allow of no church solemnity in behalf of the Queen, the heartfelt prayers of the people rose to Heaven for her protection. I pray Heaven for her; and I here pour forth my fervent supplications at the throne of Mercy, that mercies may descend on the people of this country, richer than their rulers have deserved, and that your hearts may be turned to justice.

Mr Williams, following on the same side, expressed strongly the difficulty he felt in coming after a speech so effective and energetic as that of Mr Brougham. He dwelt much on the difficulties under which the Queen's defence laboured; the want of a specification of the charges, and list of witnesses; the distance of time at which the charges were laid, and the long pe

riod during which they had been allowed to lie dormant ; the remoteness of the place in which they were alleged to have taken place; and the shortness of the time they had to collect witnesses. Her opponents, on the contrary, had been collecting their evidence for years, with every means of information and influence at their command. Their Lordships were bound to make full allowance for all these disadvantages under which she laboured. The Solicitor-General had called upon them to produce Bergami and his brother. He saw no propriety in their production; but might not he much rather ask, why the opposite party had not brought forward Dr Hol land and the English ladies who lived with the Queen? Mr Williams went over the evidence in the same manner as Mr Brougham, shewing its nugatory and contradictory nature. The most novel part of his speech consisted in the specification of what he was to prove on the opposite side. All the particulars of the Queen's attending the opera at Naples, and of the following night, would be completely disproved. So far from her Majesty's dress being indecent, as Demont had sworn, according to the opening, it was particularly grave and decent, covering her person up to her chin, and covering almost the whole arm. The character which the Queen sustained was of a modest, severe, and simple kind. The Genius of History

was

"Sober, steadfast, and demure;" and naturally such in other attributes, as Milton described another imagi nary personage. It was not a fanciful, wild, and fantastical person that was to be represented; it was not the laughter-loving goddess, who was generally represented open and exposed in a considerable part of her dress. From the nature of her character,

therefore, and from memory, a positive contradiction would be given to this part. He would now proceed to take another instance. Their lordships would now call to their recollection the circumstances given in evidence as having occurred at Carlsruhe. Even as that stood at present, it was rendered impotent, when they considered the interference that had taken place for the prosecution and against the Queen. He alluded to the subtraction of a witness, whom the Queen desired to attend, and who was compelled not to come at the Queen's desire. Yet, although this interference was used to deprive the Queen of evidence, truth was not here without a witness. In page 188, their lordships would find the evidence of Kress, who fixed the time between seven and eight. In contradiction, they were able to prove the dining of the Princess and of Bergami abroad every day they were at Carlsruhe. On one day only, when Bergami was dining, he believed, with the Grand Duke-but that was not material-but he retired ⚫ from where he dined with the Queen unwell. Some music was afterwards given by the Grand Duchess, and the witness who would be called remembered it well, from having taken part in the musical performance.

The

Queen was there, and remained there two hours after the departure of Bergami. It would also be proved, that when she returned, Bergami was up and well, having had but a slight indisposition—a headache he believed. This completely covered the time Kress spoke to; and the dress and appearance of Bergami, which would be proved by the witness who accompanied him home-and his dress on the arrival of the Queen, the proof of which did not rest on one witness on ly, for two witnesses would speak to that fact-these circumstances comVOL. XIII. PART I.

pletely met the evidence of Kress. The witnesses to be produced for the Queen upon this point, speaking to facts with perfect recollection, were sufficient; above all, when they were able to produce evidence respecting Kress, which would render her not fit to be believed upon her oath. In these circumstances, the witnesses they would call would satisfy their lordships, that the evidence of Kress was not only not sufficient to deprive the Queen of her dignity, but utterly insufficient to deprive a sparrow of a feather of his wing. He would now call attention to another fact respecting details of evidence, which it was lamentable to see gone forth to the people of this country. Sacchi, Sacchimi, or whatever name he chose to be called by, was the author of this evidence. He alluded to the memorable journey to Senegaglia, when this witness described his drawing of the curtain, and seeing the indecencies which he would not mention more particularly. Three times over had Sacchi, according to this testimony, seen those indecencies. It was thought necessary thus to make assurance doubly sure. Now, in the first place, it would be proved, that the Queen travelled in a landau, and that there were no curtains to be drawn belonging to that carriage. In addition, it would be proved, that in that journey Sacchi was not the courier, or the person whose office it was to do the duty which he had so minutely represented. There was indeed a spring-blind, but not a curtain, and it could not be removed by a person in the outside. Another person, who well remembered that journey, had been the courier on the occasion, and the witness would state to their lordships his reasons for remembering it. Many witnesses would speak to this part of the case, and prove that the person to whom

[ocr errors]

he alluded was the courier. He did
not waste time in commenting on this
contradiction. If Sacchi was not there,
he saw not what he swore he had seen.
If there were no curtains, Sacchi did
not draw them. He would farther be
enabled to prove the falsehood of this
testimony by the presence of a person
who had been in the carriage on the
journey, and who would negative the
statement of Sacchi, so far as that was
possible in such a case. In the answers
of the mason, Ragazzoni, their lord-
ships would find that antediluvian
scene of Adam and Eve, which they
would remember, no doubt. They
(the Queen's counsel) should prove to
their Lordships that Ragazzoni could
not see what he had deposed to have
seen by the laws of optics-by the
laws of nature rather-and conse-
quently that the testimony he had
borne against the Queen of these
realms was false, foul, and malignant.
After the counsel had concluded,
Lord Grey noticed, that it appeared
from their statements, that Baron En-
de, chamberlain to the Grand Duke of
Baden, had been prevented by his
sovereign from coming over as a wit-
ness; that General Pino had been pro-
hibited by the Austrian government
from appearing in his uniform, and,
being afraid that this would involve
the forfeiture of his commission, he
had thus been deterred from coming.
If the government was to use their
influence in bringing over foreign wit-
nesses, it should be on both sides.

Lord Liverpool replied, that the principle laid down by the noble Earl was entirely that on which his Majesty's government had acted. Notice had been given to the Queen's agents, that any applications they might have to make to foreign courts would be immediately forwarded. With respect to the north of Italy, (the most material part, on account of the number of witnesses to be derived from thence),

those gentlemen were informed, that
if an agent were appointed by them
to collect evidence, this government
would write to the Austrian govern-
ment to request that all facilities
should be given to him, without the
necessity of any application to fo-
reign powers, or even to the British
ambassador. The matter was put up-
on this footing, because it was pre-
sumed that some agent would be ne-
cessary. The agent on the part of the
Crown was Colonel Brown; the agent
nominated on the part of her Majes-
ty was Mr Henry; and her legal ad-
visers were informed, that whatever
requisitions he might make would be
immediately acceded to. If her Ma-
jesty's counsel, instead of sending two
or three agents into Germany in her
Majesty's behalf, had applied to his
Majesty's ministers for the removal of
this obstacle, he would pledge his ho-
nour that not a single moment should
have been lost in sending a special
messenger to Baden. Indeed he would
now promise the learned counsel, that
if they were of opinion that the evi-
dence of the individual in question.
was material to their case, two hours
should not elapse before a special
messenger should be sent to request
his attendance.

Lord Grey professed himself satisfied with this explanation, and after a good deal of explanation, it was agreed that a messenger should be immediately sent to Baden, to solicit the attendance of Baron Ende.

The array of witnesses, brought forward on the Queen's side, presented a very different aspect from that which had appeared for the prosecu tion. Instead of wretched Italian postillions and waiting-maids, there appeared English noblemen, ladies of quality, men of letters, and, when it came to the worst, young naval officers of unimpeachable character. These individuals resided in the

« PreviousContinue »