Republicans, it is not exactly you to whom I now appeal, the appellation sets you above every thing of the kind, as to the complaint here made: it is they who call themselves, Reformers, yet imagine that to do certain things, or to use certain words and names, however honest, is not fashionable, or what they call respectable. My appeal is to those who hold on to the train of others, heedless where they are going: who fall in with the loudest clamour without examining upon what cause it is raised: who consider hat the mind like their dress should be regulated by fashion, however ridiculous or contemptible: who say and do things because they see others do so: finally, they who have no well-defined principles for their rule of action.

R. CARLILE.

66

THE FOLLY OF PROSECUTIONS FOR LIBELS, Exemplified in the Case of JOHN WILKES, and the No. 45 of The North Briton," a Weekly Publication at the commencement of the Reign of the THIRD GUELPH; to which is attached a perfect Copy of that celebrated Libel.

A CORRESPONDENT, under the signature" Janus," having suggested the propriety of our copying into "The Republican" the No. 45 of "The North Briton," which excited so much interest in the last century, an idea struck us, that it might be most appropriately done with an historical preface, to shew the utter folly and uselessness of all prosecutions for what are called Libels on Government, or the exposures of the conduct of the Ministers of the day, or discussions as to the value and validity of any public characters or institutions.

Near sixty years having elapsed since the first publication of that Number, but few men living at this day have any distinct recollection of the manner in which the country was agitated from one extremity to the other, upon the subject of the arrest of the person of John Wilkes, by a warrant of the Secretary of State, (Lord Halifax), and the seizure of all his papers; and we may wonder how so simple and harmless a paper as that which follows this article, could have called forth such rash measures on the part of the Go

vernment. However, it led to very important results, and originated much of that spirit which is to be found in the Press at this day, affording an ample proof that all such prosecutions for Libel, when met with spirit, tend most certainly to defeat the object of the prosecutor, to strengthen and increase that discussion which he wishes to suppress, and to excite public esteem, towards the person prosecuted in the same ratio as it recedes from the prosecutor.

John Wilkes was a Member of Parliament for the county of Buckinghamshire, (we believe) or for some borough in that county, and Colonel of its Militia. He was also the admitted author of the letters and essays which formed the weekly publication called "The North Briton," up to the No. 45, which was published on Saturday, April 23, 1763. It appears that in the course of that week the Parliament had closed its Session, and, as usual, a Speech had been made by the King, who was then quite a young man, and, through the intrigues of the Aristocracy, supported by those of his mother, the then Princess of Wales, was supposed completely to be in the hands of Earl Bute, the person alluded to in "The North Briton" under the epithet of the Scot. On Tuesday, the 26th of April, a warrant was issued by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, we should suppose, although we do not profess to be correct as to this particular, but this warrant ordered the arrest of the Authors, Printers, and Publishers of that Number of "The North Briton," and the seizure of all papers connected therewith; which was accordingly put in force against Mr. Wilkes, and he was committed to the Tower, from whence he was removed to the Court of Common Pleas, on the 3d of May, by Habeas Corpus; remanded again for the Judges to consider his case; brought up a second time on the 6th, and discharged on the ground of his Parliamentary privilege, and the decision by the Judges, that the publication of a Libel, although its tendency was towards a breach of the peace, yet that the thing itself did not constitute a breach of the peace; although the warrant set forth the Libel as seditious and treasonable.

The whole of Mr. Wilkes's desks and boxes were broke open, and his papers removed to the Office of the Secretary of State, who refused to give them up when applied for as stolen goods, and handed them over to the Attorney-General for his use in the prosecution of an ex officio Information against Mr. Wilkes.. But this seizure and holding of papers led on to an important result, for Mr. Wilkes brought his

action against the Secretary of State, and recovered a Thousand Pounds as damages, with the important decision of the Judges, that General Warrants were illegal.

Mr. Wilkes was deprived of his Colonelcy, and his success in point of popularity subjected him to the challenges of a succession of duellers, in one of which he received a grievous wound, never refusing to fight any of them. He was also brought to trial for publishing "The North Briton," and a pamphlet, entitled "An Essay on Woman," a copy of which was found among the stolen papers, and be was sentenced for imprisonment in the King's Bench Prison, but in passing from the Court to the Prison he was rescued, and the officers severely beaten, which led to the calling out of the military, and the loss of some lives in St. George's Fields. Mr. Wilkes, however, did not secrete himself, but voluntarily gave himself up to the Marshal of the Prison. During his confinement he was repeatedly returned as the Member for the county of Middlesex, and as often expelled the House of Commons, until, at length, the Government set up one Colonel Luttrel, the late Earl of Carhampton, who, getting a few votes, was declared by the House to be the choice of the electors of Middlesex, in consequence of the incapacity of Mr. Wilkes to take a seat!

Mr. Wilkes was, however, subsequently returned for the City of London, made an Alderman, and lastly Chamberlain of the City, where he sunk into a complete insignificancy, and a sort of moral and political apostacy.

No name, nor the conduct of no one person, save the late Queen, ever agitated the country so much as the name and conduct of Mr. Wilkes's did after the publication of the Number of "The North Briton" in question, and what does it contain, now, on a sober view of the whole matter? Why nothing that an Attorney-General, or even the Bridge Street Gang, would consider worth notice in the present day. The Times Newspaper of the present day contains daily paragraphs much stronger, and of the same description: and when we read the prattle about economy, we may fancy that "The North Briton" has been just written, and applies to the last speech of the kind.

The Editor of "The North Briton" thought it quite time' to cease talking about economy in his time, sixty years ago, still the thing has been kept up twice a year from that time' to this. The taxes were then not above a sixth of what they are at present, and the debt was in about the same ratio. Still economy is the order of the day! In talk, no2

thing else, and such will continue to be the case whilst we are subject to the vice of Kingcraft.

In the "Address to Men of Science" it is stated, that one Matthews was hanged in the reign of George the First, for printing what was called a treasonable libel. We have now the pamphlet in our possession, and as soon as we can fully authenticate it, we shall reprint it, just to see if Castlereagh will hang us for it now. If any one can give us information as to the particulars of this affair, we shall feel obliged. We have the authority of a historian of that day, that Matthews was hanged in the year 1719, for having written and printed a pamphlet entitled " Vox Populi:" Now we have the pamphlet entitled "Vox Populi, vox Dei," but it is dated 1709, which was in the reign of Anne, and we are dubious as to its authenticity, as it seems odd that a man should be hanged, ten years after printing a pamphlet in a former reign. We repeat, if any one can give us information on this subject, we shall feel obliged. The pamphlet we have, is certainly one of the best written pamphlets we ever met with of that era. It resembles the stile of Lord Somers' celebrated tract entitled "The Judgments of whole Kingdoms and Nations concerning the Rights, Powers, and Prerogatives of Kings" and in both, the right of deposing tyrannical kings, in opposition to the slavish doctrine of non-resistance and passive obedience is ably asserted; although the Vox Populi we have is so far superior to Lord Somers' Tract.

The republication of this Number of "The North Briton," will afford some idea of the progress of the power of the Printing Press. Such a publication would not now be deemed seditious, or called a libel by the Attorney-General, or the most high-flown Tory and tool of Kingcraft, yet when it first appeared, and when Mr. Wilkes was arrested for it, such a sensation and agitation was excited throughout the country, as has not since been equalled, powerful as many have been. It is impossible to calculate on the degree of folly displayed by the ministers of that day, and the odium brought down upon themselves, and the King in particular, by the prosecution of this article, whereas, if it had passed unnoticed by the Government, as every such article ought to do, the thing would not have created the least feeling or sensation of itself. Such was the clamour for "Wilkes and Liberty," that the phrase was common within the walls of the palace, and it was among the first words lisped by the present King, who is said soon to have discovered that it was a word of

offence to his Father, and to revenge his little disappointments and rebukes would often cry out "Wilkes and Liberty."

The volume of "The North Briton" which contains the No. 45, is very scarce, so much so, that we tried in vain to get it whilst in London, although we found the second volume quite common. We are indebted to a friend for the loan of it at this moment. "The North Briton" was the first periodical publication that was ever conducted with any thing like ability and good spirit in this country, and the publishers of it were harassed in a very similar way to what the publishers of "The Republican" have been. There was no cessation of arrests and prosecutions whilst the work lasted, but all these prosecutions effected nothing, for immediately on the breaking out of the American War, there came out a work still more bold, called "The Crisis," which has exceeded for strength any thing to be found in "The Republican." One of the numbers was headed, "A bloody King, a bloody Ministry, and a bloody Parliament:" alluding to the conduct of the whole towards the Americans. After The Crisis," came "The Letters of Junius," and then "The Political Works of Thomas Paine" which form the standard and the rock of political wisdom. The folly of prosecuting printed works as libels, is visible in this one thing, that it is a natural impossibility to suppress them, being once in circulation, and a prosecution, where there is the least idea that the Government is corrupt, is certain to give a tenfold degree of circulation to the opinions sought to be suppressed. Opinions are in the moral and political, what the gaseous principle of matter is in the physical world. You may counteract all its operations in some degrees, and on some occasions, but you can never annihilate it. The attempt or pretence to do it is an act of furious and bigotted madness. A free press would very soon correct all errors, and would be at the same time its own best corrector. The prattle about licentiousness is vague and ridiculous: the moral part of the Press would ever crush every thing of the kind. The Press is now the representative of the human mind, and let every man judge for himself, whether he feels a necessity of external control over his own mind, and then apply the principle to the Press. You can no more establish a uniformity with the Printing Press, than you can reduce the human mind to a standard of uniformity. Consider this, ye advocates of prosecutions and persecution, and judge from what passed with respect to