985]

for High Treason.

have fully proved the treason and the overt act laid in the indictment. We think it may reasonably be concluded from the evidence, that the prisoner has conspired, consulted and agreed to raise and levy war within this kingdom, to depose and murder the king; that he has written to and received from his correspondents abroad many letters to procure foreign assistance for that purpose; and the Court will inform you, gentlemen, that this is treason in the prisoner at the bar.

L. C. Baron. Gentlemen of the Jury, Francis Francia stands indicted of high treason, for compassing and imagining the king's death; contriving to depose him from the throne, and And to advance the Pretender to the crown. there are laid in the indictment several overt acts; one is, that he consulted and agreed to raise an insurrection and rebellion against the king: and that for that purpose he wrote letters to divers foreigners, to solicit and procure arms, men and money, and to cause an invasion; and caused those letters to be sent to divers foreigners in France.

This is the substance of the indictment; and to prove this, it has been shewn you how he was taken and seized. And Mr. Smith tells you, it was upon the 19th day of September, 1715, that he had a warrant to seize him; that he went with another messenger, since deceased, whose name was Wilcox, and found him and a woman in bed. The prisoner in a little time got up. He tells you there was a closet in the room, the door whereof he caused to be opened, and in it, upon a shelf, found a parcel of letters lying open in folio, wrote in French, and a book, that has been produced, lying upon the desk. He put up the letters and the book together; when he had so done, says the prisoner, "What do you take that book for? That is my copy-book of my letters to my correspondents, and there is nothing material in that." The messenger took notice of a sort of writing at the end of it, that he knew it by again, and the prisoner said, "That was his son's writing." It has been deduced to you, that the book and the letters that have been produced to you, are the same book and letters that were seized in the prisoner's house, and carried to my lord Townshend's office.

Mr. Walpole tells you on what day the warrant was granted, and that the next day the book and papers were delivered to him by the messenger; that he looked over them with Mr. Buckley, and then he carried them to my lord Townshend; and that the prisoner owned the letters upon his examination before my lord, and said, "This is my book of my letters to my correspondents: some of them were entered by me, and the rest of them by my son." This is proved to be the same book; and upon perusal of the letters, Mr. Walpole proves them to be the same that were brought to him by the mcssenger.

Mr. Buckley says, that when these letters were brought to the office, he read several of

them; and that when Mr. Walpole went to
Holland, they were left with him, and he copied
Mr. Buckley
several passages out of them.
was present at the prisoner's examination, but
cannot say any thing as to the book's being
shewn to him, because he was busy in taking
the examination; but says, that Francia, upon
his examination, would not be sworn upon a
New Testament; but took a book out of his
He subscribed his name
pocket, and was sworn upon that, that his exa-
mination was true.

to it, and it was read over to him. It was ob-
jected, that he was refused the liberty of read-
ing it: but there was no such thing; he might
have read it, and it was read to him, and he
was never refused to read it.

And

My lord Townshend informs you, that he' having received an information, that a correspondence was carried on between the duke D'Aumont, the late duke of Ormond, and Mr. Harvey, and that letters past between them by means of the prisoner, there were orders sent to the post-office, to stop all letters directed to Francia; that the prisoner being examined before my lord, owned all these letters. says he, "As to my own letters, I appeal to my book which will shew them," these are so "What others write many evidences that he owned this book to be the book of his letters. to me," says he, "cannot affect me; but as for my own letters I appeal to my book." My lord says, there seemed to be a disposition in him to tell all he knew, and he offered to explain the letters there produced; that at the next time Mr. Harvey's letter was produced, and he explained the figures in that letter; and my lord Townshend then took him to be sincere, but he found afterwards, that he had not discovered all he knew. These letters were laid upon the table during the time of the examination, and were taken back again. The prisoner asked several questions about money being given him, and more offered to him, by my lord Townshend. My lord gave an account of that, and says, that the prisoner pretended to be in a miserable condition, his wife starving, and he begged hard for something, pretending to be miserably poor; and as he was going away, as mere alins, my lord gave him three, or four, or five guineas, not as any encouragement to him to swear any thing, but as mere alms, because he begged so hard, and pretended to be in so miserable a condition. Then he desired to know, whether it was not promised him, that his examination should not be produced against him. He was told, that if he was candid, there should be no advantage taken against him, and that my lord would intercede on his behalf; and if he had been so, no doubt, my lord would have done what he could to incline the king to be favourable to him; but after this, my lord found he knew a great deal more than he would discover. His wife came indeed to my lord, and pretended she could

* As to this, see in Leach Mrs. Rudd's Case. See, too, Dr. Dodd's Case, in the same book.

prevail upon him to discover, if she might be admitted to him; but after this, when he was in Newgate, a letter was found directed to his wife, in which he said, he met with good company in Newgate, and hoped he had said nothing against Mr. Harvey which would preju- | dice him; and upon this, my lord Townshend did not think him so sincere as he pretended to be at first. Mr. Buckley proves that letter to be of his hand-writing. In it he desires his wife to make herself easy, "They were all Tories that were there; he had good company, and the business will be at an end in a fortnight." What business could be mean? Nothing but that about which the correspondence was, and “God will assist us; I know nothing against Mr. Harvey, he is only suspected to be for the affair, he was well known to be so before; and if all were here that are so, he believed three parts of the nation would be there." So that he had a good opinion of the cause, and that it would be over in a fortnight.

Harvey, by Payen alias D'Aulmay, was the design of the Pretender to invade these king. doms; this he could not know, unless he had been privy to the design. If a maa is privy to a treasonable design, and contributes to carry it on, it is not then barely a misprision: If he comes to the knowledge of treason, without being otherwise concerned in it, and does not discover it to a magistrate, this is misprision of treason; but if he assents to the treason, or acts in carrying it on, it is high-treason.

In the next examination it is, that he shews what the marks in Mr. Harvey's letter siguify: That 22 is the duke D'Aumont, 6 the French king, 17 is the word Tory, and believes that by 8 is to be understood the Pretender, and by 9 is to be understood his majesty. There are some marks that he does not know, but his knowing thus far the signification of these marks, shews that he was privy to the design.

Mr. Harvey's letter is annexed to this exa. mination, and that has been read to you; there are some things remarkable in that letter, This examination was also proved by Mr. though a great part of it seems to be about some Stanhope, who says, that the letter of Mr. Har- money that he wanted to be paid him; yet at vey annexed to it, was produced at council to the end he says, Press 22 to think of his friends; Mr. Harvey; that he was in the utmost confu- it will be well for 6; all things look well for 8, sion, changed countenance, desired to with- and in my heart, I think better than ever; 9, draw, and to have liberty to speak to a certain says he, every day loses himself, and for the Jord: My lord Townshend, and Mr. Stanhope, 24000 that makes for 8 and 6, that is, for the both thought him in a good disposition to dis- Pretender and the French king. He says, that cover, but that very night he stabbed himself. opening the cover the letter stuck to the seal, As to the examination, he pretended he was not and that was the reason that he kept it by him, suffered to read it; but Mr. Stanhope says, and did not send it forward. If this man had that every thing of consideration was repeat- not been for carrying on the design, it had been ed more than once or twice; and after the his duty to have carried this letter to the secre first night's examination, he represented him-tary of state, he ought to have discovered it to self to be in a miserable condition, and there- a magistrate; but instead of that, be owns, upon my lord Townshend did give him some that he has since written other letters that have money, what it was he knows not; and this been read to you. was after he had signed his examination, and At the beginning of the correspondence shewed no reluctancy to it; and says, that D'Aulmay desires to have some news, and he would not have been denied to have read Francia tells him, there was a discourse of a it, if he had desired it. This examination marriage in forwardness between the prince being thus proved, it appears to have been at Lorrain and the arch duchess." Let me taken as fairly and carefully in all respects, know, says he, what is in it, for it is for the inand with as much kindness to the prisoner terest of your wife," for he had married a wife as could be things were gone over and whose name was Butler. D'Aulmay_writes over again. It has been read, and there are word again, "as for the marriage of the C―r some things in it that explain this correspon- St. G- -e;" but it is in answer to the former dence, and tell you how it was begun and car-letter, and it is known that he was called by the

ried on.

It was begun by means of a law-suit that was recommended to him to manage here, and that brought on the correspondence between him and the abbot Butler: This began a little before the queen's death, and it continued till within a few days of the prisoner's examination. During that correspondence he received several letters from the abbot, directed to Mr. Harvey, and several were conveyed to the abbot from Mr. Harvey, which were sometimes brought by Mr. Harvey himself, and sometimes sent by other hands. The prisoner also explains the initial letters and numbers in Mr. Harvey's letter, and then tells you, that be believes the subject matter of the letters wrote to Mr.

name of the Chevalier St. George; so that it must be the same person. He says, "there had been some talk of that marriage, but no mention had been made of it lately, I am of opinion, says he, that it will not be a sure way to bring his affairs to a happy issue; a party-war would be of more advantage:" Francia writes again to D'Aulmay, and complains, that some letters had not been answered, though entirely for the affair. And what that affair is, must be left to you to judge. Besides, says he, I must tell you, that persons of 50 or 60 thousand crowns a year will not run the hazard of losing such estates, unless more encourage ment is given them; you will be understood if you mention it to that lord. And I must add,

that the misfortune of a certain person is more owing to your delays on the other side the water, than to the party that is against him. They would have you think, that by persons of 50 or 60 thousand crowns a year, was meant a person in France, that had suffered by being concerned in the revenues; but it is plain, it is meant of persons here, that would not hazard their estates: And he adds, You will be understood if you mention this to duke D'Aumont. There are other letters from the prisoner; in one he tells D'Aulnay, he would advise them to satisfy Mr. Harvey, I am persuaded to deal with him as has been done is no good policy; and if ever I have the honour to talk face to face with you, I will shew you clearly, how unhappily, through negligences, very important affairs have miscarried; this must be the affair of the Pretender, and not of the law-suit: The affair that concerned Mr. Harvey, for Mr. Harvey had nothing to do with the law-suit, but by his letter shews himself to be concerned for what makes for 8 and 6, that is for the Pretender and French king.

There is another letter from Francia, wherein he writes, "What you tell me at the end of your letter, of your having spoken in the manner I desired you, is sufficient, and consequently we are now to expect every thing from your side of the water, that is to say, explications," &c. I must leave it to you to consider what he meant by that.

In another letter he says, "I am ordered to tell you on the part of Mr. Harvey, that you will do him a pleasure in desiring the duke D'Aumont, in his name, to send hither some persons to fetch the horses and dogs he has had so long, or else to send orders to somebody to take them: Affairs are here in such a situation, that great precautions must be used to avoid giving umbrage to those who are in power. When I have any thing particular to write to you, I will do it by a strange hand, and will sign Jacques Chrêtien. Take notice of this, and provided you let me know you received this letter, without its having been opened, I shall be easy." There then began to be more difficulty, and therefore the correspondence must be carried on in that name, and in a strange hand. In another letter he writes, " Mr. Harvey gives his service to you, and bid me tell you, when any thing new offers, if he cannot write himself, he will get J. C. to write for him." That must be Jacques Chrêtien.

He goes on," and that at last, God blessing the just cause of our friend, will let him gain his suit; at least, assistance and powerful solicitations shall not be wanting."

There are other letters which shew he knew the design, and was privy to it; "Our friend's cause will soon be ready, God willing, to be tried." That could not be the law-suit depending on this side the water; for that letter was wrote from France; and he says, " All preparations are making for it. The friend who is related to my wife," that is, the duke of Ormond, "has read your two letters, and is mightily pleased with them." Which implies, that he had wrote letters, though they are not entered in the copy-book.

Then he writes upon the 24th of August, under the name of Payen; "I am very much astonished I did not hear from you by the post which arrived yesterday. Our friend was at my house expecting it. We both of us desire you not to let one post go without writing to us, and letting us know all that passes relating to the cause of our common friend." That can not be the cause of Butler's or D'Aulmay's friend that was depending here. There are several other letters which have been read to you, which mention both those causes, and shew that he made a distinction between them.

On the 14th of September, says D'Aulmay, "The contents of your last without a date were very agreeable to me, as well as to all our friends, who give you thanks for it, and have ordered me to tell you so, and to desire you to continue. We know already part of what you tell us about the cause of our friend, which will soon end (please God) to his satisfaction, or all appearances would deceive us. As to my own cause, I cannot help telling you, that my fate is very unhappy to have to do with so dishonest

a man."

I think this is the substance of most of the letters that have been read to you, which relate to his correspondence, in endeavouring to procure the Pretender to make an invasion here.

Upon these letters it has been observed, that the cause of the Pretender is one, and the cause of the law-suit is another; but in all these letters there is plain mention made of the Pretender; advising how to bring it on, and giving intelligence about it. And these letters being in the prisoner's custody, and written to him, and having such treason in them as is mentioned; and he keeping these letters by him, is Then there are other letters from D'Aulmay a great evidence that he assented to the transto Francia, which were found in the prisoner's action, and to the endeavouring to bring the custody; and several of them import his having Pretender over, and to contrive, as well as be received letters from Francia. In one of them could, to carry on the affair. If he had reD'Aulmay says, "You are in the right to in-ceived but one letter, and did not design to proveigh against the indolence you reproach us with; but be persuaded, it is only so in appearance. I even hope, that by this time you have convincing proofs of it, and that suitable returns are made to the good dispositions of your side." This grew near the time of the rebellion. This letter was dated the 7th of August, and the rebellion broke out in October.

mote the cause, he should have carried it to the secretary of state, and then he had done his duty. But to receive so many letters,* and to

*At O. B. Sept. sess. 1784, colonel Gordon was tried for the murder of lieutenant colonel Thomas in a duel. The letter from col. Gordon, containing the challenge, was carried by bis

452. Proceedings on an Impeachment and Act of Attainder, for High Treason, against HENRY Lord Viscount BOLINGBROKE: 1 & 2 GEORGE I. A. D. 1715.*

+ See this Report in the Parl. Hist. as re-treaty and alliance, made and concluded in or ferred to in lord Oxford's Case.