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for so many years, he had been were proved, there could be no receiving, we see a good deal to doubt that the person who had dwell upon, if I had time for it, I cut his throat was, at the time, in the conduct of these servants, labouring under mental delusion. whose attachment and gratitude But, and now mark, he is reported were so feelingly expressed upon to have said, "If it should unforthis occasion. These persons, be " tunately appear that there was it remembered, belonged to those "not sufficient evidence to prove "lower orders," of which he had" the insanity, he trusted the always spoken with so much con- Jury would pay some attention tempt and disdain, and whom he "to his humble opinion, which insulted with the name of basest" was, that no man could be in populace, when they stood for-"his proper senses at the moment ward in defence of the persecuted" he committed so rash an act as Caroline. Those tears should" self-murder"! have been hidden by his eulogist; This was no very humble for, in those tears of the servants opinion. It was we read the severest satire on the former conduct of the master.

a very bold one; and a very daring one; seeing that it was in direct oppoWe see, that, if the Report sition to the Law of the Lund, speaks truth, Viscount Sidmouth which, so far from presuming was in attendance. What could that self-murder must proceed that be for? Probably to give from insanity, provides a degrathat evidence of which the Co-dation to be inflicted on the boroner spoke as being at hand, but dies of self-murderers, and also which he regarded as unneces- the confiscation of their property sary, seeing that he had the Letter to the King. Mr. Coroner told of the Duke of Wellington, of his Jury, that, his opinion was in which letter I shall speak byand-by.

consonance with every moral sentiment, and with the information We next come to the Speech of which the wisest of men had the Coroner, which, as far as my given to the world. I do not observation has gone, was some know that he said this, to be sure; thing wholly new. He began, it but such is the Report that has appears from the Report, by pro- been published in the Courier nouncing a lofty eulogium upon and other papers. He quoted the person who had cut his throat, the Bible to show how strongly as well in his private as his public man was attached to life; but capacity. I shall dispute the as- he forgot to say how the Bible sertions of the Coroner as to the reprobates self-destruction. latter of these; but, I shall first repeated his opinion in these proceed with that part of the words; " he therefore viewed it speech which related to the bu-"as an axiom; that a man must siness before the Jury. necessarily be out of his mind · The Coroner here spoke after" at the moment of destroying the manner of a lawyer opening" himself."

He

his case. He told the Jury that Now, if this Coroner did say he should produce such and such this, for which we have no more evidence; and that that evidence than newspaper authority, mind, would, if produced, lead to such I say that he delivered a doctrine and such conclusions. He told completely at variance with the them that, if what he had heard Law of the Land, and that be

was guilty of a breach of his aside, and conjures up in its stead duty. The law adopts no such what he calls moral sentiment and axiom. BLACKSTONE, in his the information of the wisest of Fourth Book, and 14th Chap-men. What had he to do with ter, after calling suicide pretend-moral sentiment; what had he to ed heroism, but real cowardice, do with information of the wisest proceeds to say, that the Law of of men? What had he to do, in England has ranked this amongst short, with any thing but the law; the highest crimes, making it a and, had he not that law in Blackpeculiar spécies of felony. Then stone, in Hawkins, and in all the he goes on thus: "The party authorities to which they refer? "must be in his senses, else it Besides, if this Coroner be right, "is no crime. But this excuse what enormous wrong has been "ought not to be strained to that committed on self-murderers and length to which our Coroners' their families! How many bodies "Juries are apt to carry it; of poor men have been buried in "namely, that the very act of the highway! Was not Smith at "suicide is an evidence of in- Manchester, who hanged himself "sanity; as if every man who on being discarded by his sweet"acts contrary to reason had no heart; was not Sellis; was not the reason at all for the same unfortunate Spanish General the argument would prove every Marquis de Castro; were not "other criminal insane as well these buried in the highway? and as the self-murderer. The law if this Coroner, was right, again I "very rationally judges that say, what wrong has been done! 66 every melancholy fit does not deprive a man of the capacity "of discerning right from wrong; "and therefore, if a real lunatic "kill himself in a lucid interval, "he is a self-murderer as much "as another man."

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Blackstone is very particular in observing, that, a mere fit of melancholy is not to form a legal excuse. Look well at the evidence, and see if you can: discover proof of any thing like settled insanity. But, this is not all; Let the public judge, then, of for if even a real lunatic kill the manner in which this Coroner himself in a lucid interval he is a performed his duty upon this oc- self-murderer. Now, if you look casion. You see, even if a no- at the evidence of Doctor Banktorious lunatic, a man who has head, you will find that, when been a lunatic for years, kill him- the Doctor went into the dressingself in a lucid interval, the law room, he found. Castlereagh in sends his body to be buried in the it; and the Doctor says, “ his highway with a a stake driven" face was in an elevated posithrough it, and makes his goods" tion, directed towards the ceil and chattels forfeit to the King; "ing. Without turning his head, : "hoping," says Blackstone, "that" on the instant, he heard my "his care for either his own re- step, he exclaimed, Bankhead, putation, or the welfare of his "let me fall upon your arm : family, would be some motive “'tis all over He never: "to restrain him from so desperate" spoke again." Was there ever "and wicked an act." But what any thing in the world more ra is there to restrain any man, if tional than this? Must not the Juries act upon the opinion of this mind have been perfectly sane, Coroner, who sets the law totally that could have distinguished the

Doctor's step without seeing the evident to every one, that its proDoctor; that could have, not only per name was insanity, or madanticipated the fall, but haveness; for, if it did not amount provided against it; and that to this, it was nothing in exculpa could have stated, in words so tion. Here then we have the appropriate, the effect which the proof; proof sufficient to satisfy knife had ensured? Here then a Jury, that we had a ‹mad·· was the lucid interval, at any leader of the House of Com rate; and Blackstone says, that if mons; and a mad Minister sitting even a real lunatic kill himself in in Council with the King! a lucid interval he is a self-mur- -The Letter of the Duke of Welderer as much as another man. lington is a very curious affair, It is easy to conceive how anxious especially if we take it into view the family of Castlereagh must along with other circumstances. have been to prevent the conse- The Letter is written by the Duke“ quences of a verdict of felo-de-se. to Castlereagh's Doctor. A very Besides the burying in the high-extraordinary thing in itself. It is way, there was property to the very extraordinary that one of amount of perhaps two or three or the King's Ministers should write four hundred thousand pounds. a letter to a Doctor; should put On what ground the Jury did de- it down in black and white, that cide in favour of existing insanity another of the King's Ministers lait is not for me to say; but if their boured under "mental delirium ;" decision was founded on the axiom and then it comes in so pretty laid down by the Coroner, their a way, "I beg you will never décision was clearly contrary to mention to any one what I have law. However, as I find the evi-" communicated to you respecting dence given in the newspapers, so "his Lordship." This is so very I give it to you; take it, and all pretty; so extremely likely, that the circumstances belonging to it we cannot help believing this to into view, and come to that deci- be authentic! It is so perfectly in sion which reason and justice character, as coming from a Privy dictate. Councillor; and the thing winds Now let us take another view of up so well by the newspapers the matter. According to one of telling us, that, "immediately on these witnesses, he had been in- their announcement of the ver sane for a fortnight. According" diet, a despatch was forwarded to the other, he had been insane" to the Duke of Wellington, and for a shorter space of time. But," the Messenger was ordered to it unfortunately happened that he proceed with the utmost possible was present, and formed one in" expedition"! Well he might Council with the King, on the go with the " utmost possible" exFriday previous to the Monday pedition to tell the Duke that the on which he cut his throat! Ac- Doctor had already told his secret, cording to the Lady's Maid's ac- and that, too, without any neçescount, he was insane some days sity for it, seeing that the verdict while he was appearing and was recorded before the Letter speaking in Parliament. These was produced! The Duke would witnesses do, indeed, call it ill-not be a little surprised at the ness, and mental delusion, and news I dare say, but certainly his! nervousness, and headach, and surprise would not be greater than mental delirium ; but, it will be that of the whole of this nation, at

the various parts of this wonder- before he cut his throat, to go to ful proceeding. the continent, as the King's repre(sentative, at a Congress, where the affairs of Europe were to undergo discussion!

If all this were true, which, observe, I by no means either assert or believe, what a pretty situation this nation would be in! It would, indeed, be the envy of surrounding nations and admiration of the world. Men would no longer wonder at the miserable state in which they are; no longer wonder that famine and over-production of food should at once oppress the land. Here would be a solution of the whole of the wonder: a mad Secretary of State, and a mad Leader of the House of Commons.

We must now take a little look at the extra-judicial assertions connected with this affair. The Courier of Wednesday tells us, that the insanity under which the act was committed is proved by many circumstances not noticed at the time. "Had it been pos"sible or decorous to have de"manded His Majesty's testimony, we are informed that his evi"dence could have been had; and then the Courier proceeds to say, that the King observed it on the Friday. So that, if this varlet of a Courier were to be believed, which he is not, observe, the King went off to Scotland with a firm belief in his mind, that he left the office of Foreign Affairs in the You will observe the pitiful hands of a madman. The Courier pretences that have been hatched further tells us in the same paper, up as the cause of this insanity. that, there had been,“ mental In the Letter of the Duke of Welalienation" in some of the lington, the harassing and fatigue branches of Castlereagh's family. and over-working during the last So that, here we have it running Session of Parliament are stated in the blood; and now, perhaps, as the cause. The Courier comes we may account for those expres-with an amplification of this, and sions at which I used so to laugh, says, that people who did not exabout "sudden transitions from pect it "did not sufficiently calwar to peace; about capital "culate the effect of constant apfinding its way into new channels;" plication, unrelieved by any reabout digging holes one day and creation or leisure-of nights filling them up the next; about passed in harassing debates, leaving things to Nature; about" and of days devoted to equally the general working of events;" harassing diplomatic discusin short, we may now account for" sions-they did not reflect how all those wild things that I used" few hours could be passed in to say, as plainly as I dared, were" bed, and fewer still be passed never before uttered by any Gen-" in sleep." What impudence as tleman out of Bedlam. The well as nonsense! What diploCourier, in the same paper, tells matic discussions had he to worry us positively, that the King, be- him, when he had two under fore his departure, sent for Lord Li- Secretaries of State, two or three verpool to tell him that he thought dozen of clerks and messengers; Castlereagh's intellects were im- somebody to make even his pens paired. And, yet, this very same for him, and ten or a dozen hands paper of only one day before told to write as many lines of writing; us, that this very Castlereagh and this too, when, for seven long was preparing, the very day years, the King has been inces

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santly telling us twice a year, I mass of confusion is over, taking that he continues to receive no-it and laying the merits of the thing but assurances of peace and case, the pro and the con, and friendship from all foreign powers! nicely balancing one part against What diplomatic discussions had another; drawing, at last, the he, then? And as to the “harass- conclusion on which the mind of ing debates;" what harassing had the jury ought to rest: only think he, when every motion that he of all this; consider, that it is made was sure to be carried, and what every one of the Judges has nine times out of ten without an to perform almost every day of attempt at a division! If talking his life; and consider, too, that nonsense, indeed, proved him to the Judge is bound by law; that be insane, insane he has been ever every opinion he gives, every since I knew any thing of him; statement that he makes, every and certainly, the question that he colouring that he communicates to put to the witness, Anne Robin- any circumstance, are narrowly son, whether he had talked any watched by men as skilful and as nonsense to Doctor Bankhead, able as himself, who have a right proved any thing but his insanity; to call him to account, who do call for it proved that he had formed a him to account, upon the spot, if tolerably correct estimate of his he fall into error; and who can colloquial endowments. call for a revision of his decisions and bring against him any word that he may utter, and that, too, before a tribunal where his rivals sit in judgment with himself. Only think of this; and recollect, that the Judges never go mad; and so thoroughly are they imbued with a sense of obedience to the laws, that, however the cutting of throats may be in fashion, they take special good care never to cut theirs.

To talk of his mind having sunk under the load of his business is quite monstrous. The whole that he had to do, even if he had done it well, did not amount to a tenth of the labour that I have been constantly performing for these last twenty years; and if his mind sunk under his business, what is to become of the mind of a lawyer in extensive practice; of a Lord Chancellor, or of a Judge? The Chief Justice has more to do in a It is beastly nonsense, theremonth than he had to do in seven fore; it is nonsense such as years. Why, at this rate. no scarcely Castlereagh himself ever Lawyer or Chancellor, or Judge uttered, to talk of his having been ought to be suffered to move about driven out of his senses by his without a keeper. Only think of load of business. Deep thinking, a trial of considerable length, some people say, will drive a proceeding out of a complicated man mad. This is a very foolish declaration and pleadings of notion; but, at any rate, how length enormous; only think of deeply Castlereagh thought, may sitting and hearing the statements be judged of by his speeches and of the lawyers on both sides, of the result of his measures. It is not hearing the evidence of twenty or now that I say it for the first time thirty witnesses, swearing to dif- or for the thousandth time, for I ferent points of the question, ir-have always said, that it was one regularly as possible in point of of the most empty-headed creaorder; only think of making notes tures that ever existed; and that, of all this, and then, when all this it was sheer impudence, and the