and yet he had every reafon to believe he was profecuting a perfon who had not been in the country for a long time before the publication took place; the perfon to whom he alluded was not a non-entity, but he was equally fo for the ends of justice; he was out of his reach, or if in the country, in fome part of it where he was not amenable to the laws of the land. Some time ago a Gentleman had given fecurity for the stamps, but more than a year and a half had elapfed fince he had parted with his intereft in the paper; and he would afk, would it not be hard to prosecute him criminally, and to convert the subfequent publication into an engine for his punishment. There was another fact which was alfo material. They boasted in the French Councils, that they had their printers in this country, labouring in their caufe: this he could not believe: but what was certainly of importance, he faw accounts published in this country, favourable to their caufe, tranflated into the French papers, where they must certainly prove injurious to this nation. Shortly after this circumftance, his attention was called to another. He had then in his hand a paper, found with a number of others in a neutral veffel, bound for France, all unftamped, and containing fuch intelligence as no perfon could carry to the enemy, without being regarded in the moft criminal light. He would therefore afk how would the law, as it then flood, enable him to profecute the printer, or recover the money of which the revenue was defrauded? This event was attended with another circumftance: two papers were found in the fame veffel, one of them ftamped, the other unftamped; the ftamp-office in confequence addreffed a circular letter to the printers, cautioning them against publishing on unftamped paper. To which one of the offices replied, that it was an improper practice, and that there was no fair and honourable dealer who would not willingly abandon it. Here then was a very handfome answer; but, to his great furprife, however, the very paper which fpoke of the measure in that way, and which he held in is hand was without a ftamp (a loud laugh).

fuf

It had always appeared to him a great bleffing to the country, that the principles of the Conftitution fecured the liberty of the prefs; there was alfo another principle, which, as appli cable to the people, induced them to fubmit to a temporary penfion of their rights, without violating its freedom, in cafes where its exercife might prove injurious to the fafety of the na It was his opinion, however, that no danger, be it ever fo great, fhould induce them to forego one jot of their liberties. He had no fuch propofition to offer, but he hoped he would not be told that perfons deriving confiderable profits from the publi

tion.

cation of newspapers, fhall not be held to an efficacious refponfibility. To obtain that defirable end, fhould he fucceed in obtaining leave to bring in a Bill for the purpose, he promised to make it the bounden duty of the commiffioners not to deliver any ftamps to any perfons, except the printers, proprietors, and publishers themselves: that an affidavit fhould be made, ftating who these perfons were: that notice should be ferved on them, and that they fhould be all held refponfible. This was the subftance of the regulation he meant to propofe, for the neceffity of which there were many other reasons besides those he had mentioned. He remembered being concerned in a caufe in the Court of Chancery for a man who conceived himself entitled to fome property arifing out of the profits of a newfpaper. According to the practice of the court, a bill had been filed; it was of that kind that is called a fishing bill, containing every interrogatory that the ingenuity of the counfel who drew it could fuggeft, as tending to extort from the defendant a full confeffion of all the profits of the paper. But how was he furprifed, when he was told by his client, that his interrogatories were not fufficient, and that he should have asked him what were the profits on the paragraphs which he had not published.

In a modern publication, which he held in his hand, under colour of advice to Earl Spencer and the Admiralty, a most ingenious mode was contrived of fending intelligence to our enemies. This publication ftated, that the prefent outward bound fleet was very valuable; that such a fleet should have more than two frigates for its protection: that if two men of war were to flip out of Breft water, the whole convoy would be taken. That the French must be aware of this, and would probably feize the advantage. Such was the good-natured and loyal advice given to Earl Spencer, and the Lords of the Admiralty: and here he would be glad to know why fuch a mode of intelligence fhould be favoured, and what would be the fate of a man who fhould take a private letter, containing the fame information, for the purpose of having it delivered into the hands of the French?

Another cafe precifely of the fame nature appeared in a newfpaper which he had occafion to read laft night. It stated, "that Ireland, not England, was the intended object of attack; that the French must be aware of the parts where Great Britain was vulnerable, and asked what means of defence exifted in Ireland, if a rifing en maffe was the best mode of defending England?" What was this, he would afk, but telling the French to go to Ireland, and affuring them that there their arms would be crowned with fuccefs. Under all thefe circumftances, therefore, he fhould hope that Gentlemen would fee the abfolute neceffity for fome regulations.

There

There was alfo another point to which he wished to draw the attention of the House; there were printed in this city, and in all great towns, anonymous papers and pamphlets, but by whom published or written, it was impoffible to afcertain; from the ftyle of the productions, it was obvious, the authors must be able men; but the doctrines they contained were, as to religion, abominable-and as to political principles, wicked and treafonable. With refpect to thefe, he did not mean now to propofe any specific regulation; it was a subject, however, which had given him confiderable anxiety, which he would watch with attention, and on which he would probably fubmit fome meafure on a future day. For the prefent he fhould feel a peculiar fatisfaction if the regulation which he deemed it his duty to propose, fhould prove-the means of bringing to juftice thofe perfons who were guilty of public and private flanders, and who, from the difficulty of procuring the neceffary proofs, had been hitherto able to fet the laws at defiance, and evade the punishment due to their offence. And here he begged leave to be understood, that he did not look to any newspaper in particular, but that every one of them, whatever party it efpoufed, and whatever its character, was alike within the object and view of his regulations. He concluded with moving, "That leave be given

to bring in a Bill for preventing the mifchiefs arifing from "the publication of newfpapers and papers of the like nature, by perfons not known, and for regulating fuch papers "other refpects."

Mr. Sheridan faid, that though it was not his intention now to enter at length into the measure propofed, he would say, even in this ftage, that it fhould be with the utmost reluctance that he would give his confent to any measure by which the liberty of the prefs would be affected. The Learned Gentleman had opened his fpeech certainly with great ability and candour, but nevertheless he could difcover in the propofition not merely the beginning but the continuance of a fyftem to restrain the real liberty of the prefs. It was faid that newspapers were fometimes printed on unftamped paper; he wifhed to know whether the Anti-Jacobin, a paper which fome Gentlemen on the other fide might know, was to be included in the regu lations, and whether this collection of wit and pleafantry was to be printed on ftamped paper.

The Learned Gentlemen faid, that papers of every party were to be comprehended in the measure he propofed. If the Learned Gentleman did not know that the papers which were in the intereft of Minifters indulged in that species of flander and abuse which he reprobated, his reading must be confined to the oppofition papers. He never had heard, however, that

the

the calumnies from that quarter had ever called forth the exertion of the Learned Gentleman in his official capacity. With regard to the regulation, that all the proprietors fhould be obliged to give bond to be refponfible, it was one to which he could not agree. Unless a number of perfons were to join in the eftablishment of a paper, it would often be impoffible from the capital required to establish one at all, and fuch a regulation would certainly difcourage people from having any share in a newspaper. He fhould be glad to know whether by this it was meant that if Government paid a paper for abufing oppofition, the Treafury, by fo affifting to keep up the paper, was to be confidered as a proprietor, and to be refponfible for the confequences. If fo, it would tend to reconcile him to the meafure. Already the price of newspapers had been raised to such a degree as to operate, not fo much for the advantage of the revenue, as to fupprefs the information which thofe vehicles afforded, to thofe whofe fituation deprived them of other fources. He wished it to be understood, therefore, that he did not affent to the propofal, but should take another opportunity to confider it more fully.

The Attorney General faid, he hoped the propofal would be watched; and, in particular, he wifhed the Honourable Gentleman would keep his word, and attend the difcuffion. The Anti-Jacobin certainly was within the fcope of the regulation, and was printed upon ftamped paper. As to the pay given to papers, the Honourable Gentleman did not fay what papers, nor by what Government and what Treafury they were paid. With regard to the profecutions which he carried on in his offi cial capacity, he found that the abufe of individuals of which he complained was always combined with attempts to degrade and vilify the Government and Conftitution of the Country; and he never had obferved that the latter had ever been abused in thofe papers to which the Honourable Gentleman alluded. If the Houfe would look to what had been his conduct fince he had been Attorney General, they would find that his line of profecution was, whether the intention was malignant or not. Mr. Sheridan faid, he did not complain that profecutions were not raised against the calumnies he had mentioned. He was an enemy to fuch profecutions, though perhaps he was as much provoked to it as any man.

Mr. Tierney, alluding to the cafe mentioned by the Learned Gentleman of an account inferted in a paper of the cruelties exercifed upon French prifoners, took notice of an affertion, that that account had been inferted by the editor, knowing it to be falfe. He had himself, however, good reafon to believe, for he had been requested by the perfon alluded to, to affure the Learned

Learned Gentleman, that the editor had not the most diftant caufe to fuppofe he was ftating a falfehood. Had he done it, knowing it to be falfe, his conduct certainly would have merited the highest indignation; indeed he thought the Houfe had condefcended much too far by going into the fubject. He never did, he never meant to impute to Government any fuch thing as ill treatment of the prifoners. All that he felt it his duty to do was, that it should not go out to the world that the Learned Gentleman had faid, that the account had been inferted willingly by perfons who knew it to be falfe. He now alluded to the cafe of the profecution commenced against Mr. Johnston for the publication of an anfwer to the Bishop of Landaff's pamphlet; and he directed the attention of the Houfe to one of the counts in the information against Mr. Johnston. It ran thus: That the faid Edward Johnfton, meaning to vilify and bring into disrepute the Government and Conftitution of the Country, did go the defperate length of doubting the fincerity of the Right Honourable William Pitt. The words were, that the Right Honourable William Pitt did not enter with fincerity into the late negotiation for peace. This he conceived to be entirely a new point of law.

The Attorney General faid, that he had already mentioned that no perfons were found, against whom a profecution could be raised, fo that the Honourable Gentleman was mistaken when he faid that a profecution was depending. With respect o the editor, he knew nothing. It certainly was no apology o fay he did not know it was falfe; it was a very high offence o publish fuch an account without knowing it to be true. With efpect to the information against the book feller alluded to, the bill had been found by the Grand Jury; but the cafe was such, as that he would have confidered it his duty to have profecuted, even had the bill been thrown out. The whole of the pamphlet, which contained the paffage on which the charge alluded to was founded, was of the most feditious and traitorous tendency. To fay that perfons, in the fituation of the Right Honourable Gentleman, were infincere in the negotiation for peace, might, when coupled with the other dangerous and traitorous matter of the pamphlet, be of the most fatal tendency, in continuing upon the country the miferies of war. But, as had ever been his cuftom, he would fubmit to the jury to decide, whether the doubt was honeftly entertained, or whether it was expreffed with a malignant intention. This queftion he found it his bounden duty to bring before a jury in the cafe which had been mentioned.

Mr. Hobhoufe felt confiderable fatisfaction that no previous reftraints were to be impofed on the publication of newspapers.