to the puone. It is to appear on the morning of the meeting of parliament. Lord Mansfield flatters himself that I have dropped all thoughts of attacking him, and I would give him as little time as possible to concert his measures with the ministry. The address to Lord Camden will be accounted for, when I say, that the nation in general are not quite so secure of his firmness as they are of Lord Chatham.

"I am so clearly satisfied that Lord Mansfield has done an act not warranted by law, and that the inclosed argument is not to be answered (besides that I find the lawyers concur with me), that I am inclined to expect he may himself acknowledge it as an oversight, and endeavour to whittle it away to nothing. For this possible event I would wish your Lordship and the Duke of Richmond to be prepared to take down his words, and thereupon to move for committing him to the Tower. I hope that proper steps will also be taken in the House of Commons. If he makes no confession of his guilt, but attempts to defend himself by any legal argument, I then submit it to your Lordship whether it might not be proper to put the following questions to the judges. In fact, they answer themselves; but it will embarrass the ministry, and ruin the character which Mansfield pretends to, if the House should put a direct negative upon the motion :

"1. Whether, according to the true meaning and intendment of the laws of England, relative to bail for criminal offences, a person positively charged with felony, taken in flagrante delicto, with the mainœuvre, and not making any defence, nor offering any evidence to induce a doubt whether he be guilty or innocent, is bailable or not bailable?

"2. "Whether the power exercised by the Judges of the Court of King's Bench, of bailing for offences not bailable by a justice of peace, be an absolute power, of mere will and pleasure in the judge, or a discretionary power, regulated and governed in the application of it by the true meaning and intendment of the law relative to bail?'

"Lord Mansfield's constant endeavour to misinterpret the laws of England is a sufficient general ground of impeachment. The specific instances may be taken from his doctrine concerning libels,—the Grosvenor cause; his pleading Mr. De Grey's defence upon the bench, when he said, idem fecerunt alii, et multi et boni; his suffering an affidavit to be read, in the King against Blair, tending to inflame the court against the defendant when he was

were published on the 21st of January, and were the last efforts of this celebrated writer under the signature of Junius.-Editors of the Chatham Papers.

See the private notes of Junius to Mr. Woodfall, Nos. 48 and 49, p. 52, which refer to the subject of the letter to Lord Chatham.

brought up to receive sentence; his direction to the jury, in the cause of Ansell, by which he admitted parol evidence against a written agreement, and in consequence of which the Court of Common Pleas granted a new trial; and lastly, his partial and wicked motives for bailing Eyre. There are some material circumstances relative to this last, which I thought it right to reserve for your Lordship alone.

"It will appear by the evidence of the gaoler and the city solicitor's clerk, that Lord Mansfield refused to hear the return read, and at first ordered Eyre to be bound only in 2007. with two sureties, until his clerk, Mr. Platt, proposed 300l. with three sureties. Mr. King, clerk to the city solicitor, was never asked for his consent, nor did he ever give any. From these facts I conclude, either that he bailed without knowing the cause of commitment, or, which is highly probable, that he knew it extra-judicially from the Scotchmen, and was ashamed to have the return read.

"I will not presume to trouble your Lordship with any assurances, however sincere, of my respect and esteem for your character, and admiration of your abilities. Retired and unknown, I live in the shade, and have only a speculative ambition. In the warmth of my imagination, I sometimes conceive that, when Junius exerts his utmost faculties in the service of his country, he approaches in theory to that exalted character which Lord Chatham alone fills up and uniformly supports in action.

"JUNIUS."

LETTERS OF COLONEL BARRÉ

COLONEL BARRÉ was a man (as already observed, Essay, p. xxxi) of remarkable abilities and remarkable history. He was a native of Dublin, of humble parentage, born about the year 1726. He entered the army at an early age, and gradually rose to the rank or colonel. After the death of General Wolfe, his commander and friend, he addressed a letter to Mr. Pitt, then Secretary of State, describing his services and want of interest with people in power, and soliciting his aid. He was then a major, and the following is a copy of his letter, from the Chatham Papers.

"SIR, "New York, April 28, 1760. If I presume to address myself to the first minister of my country, it is under the sanction of a name which is still grateful to his ear. General Wolfe fell, in the arms of victory, on the plain of Abraham. I received near his person a very dangerous wound, and, by the neglect I have since met with, I am apprehensive that my pretensions are to be buried with my only protector and friend. The packets bring no directions concerning me; so that I remain

as adjutant-general with General Amherst, by his desire; though with very bad prospect of ever being taken notice of.

From power I have not interest enough to ask favour; but, unless the discernment of my late general be much called in question, I may claim some title to justice. If my demands appear reasonable, an application to Mr. Pitt cannot be charged with great impropriety.

"For want of friends, I had lingered a subaltern officer eleven years, when Mr. Wolfe's opinion of me rescued me from that obscurity. I attended him as major of brigade to the siege of Louisburg, in which campaign my zeal for the service confirmed him my friend, and gained the approbation of General Amherst. When the expedition to Canada was determined upon, General Wolfe got his Majesty's permission to name me his adjutant-general. Upon this occasion, I only got the rank of major in America, and captain in the army; my being still a subaltern was the reason assigned for such moderate honours. Thus my misfortune was imputed to me as a fault, and though thought worthy of that high employment, the rank of lieutenant-colonel (so necessary to add weight to it) was refused, although generally given in like cases, and in some instances to younger officers.

"My conduct in that station was so highly approved of by the General, that when the success of the campaign seemed doubtful, he regretted his want of power to serve me, and only wished with impatience for an opportunity to make me the messenger of agreeable news. This last honour the battle of Quebec deprived me of*. After the defeat of his Majesty's enemies, the trophies I can boast only indicate how much I suffered; my zealous and sole advocate killed, my left eye rendered useless, and the ball still in my head. "The presumption in appealing to you, I hope, will be pardoned when I affirm that I am almost utterly unknown to the Secretary at War. Besides, Sir, I confess it would be the most flattering circumstance of my life to owe my preferment to that minister who honoured my late general with so important a command, and which I had the pleasure of seeing executed with satisfaction to my King and country. I have the honour to be, with the most profound respect, Sir, "Your most devoted humble servant,, "ISAAC BARRE."

This application was refused by Mr. Pitt on the ground that senior officers would be injured by the promotion, and in a subsequent letter Barré expressed himself satisfied, and "bound in the highest gratitude" for the attention he had received. Afterwards he appears to have considered himself neglected, and obtaining a

In the following September, Barré was the bearer of the despatches sunouncing the surrender of Montreal

~L II.

EE

seat in Parliament through the interest of Lord Shelburne, in the following year, he made a violent attack on Mr. Pitt. It is likely this maiden outbreak was the result of inexperience as well as pique; at all events it was in bad taste. Describing the oratorical manner of Mr. Pitt, he said,—" There he would stand, turning up his eyes to heaven, that witnessed his perjuries; and laying his hand in a solemn manner upon the table-that sacrilegious hand that had been employed in tearing out the bowels of his country." A few years later the Colonel and Lord Chatham became good friends, for in politics there seems neither friendships nor enmities -only interests. Lest too unfavourable an impression should be left by this incident in Barré's career, and the better to elucidate the obscure history and character of a meritorious man, I insert two letters from Colonel Barré, written in France in 1764, and contained in Mr. Burton's late publication of "Letters of Eminent Persons addressed to David Hume," the historian :—

"DEAR HUME, "Rochefort, August 3, 1764. "When you joked me about my native country, as you was pleased to call it, I did not imagine that it was likely to produce any other good to me but a little amusement, and the pleasure of meeting you in Paris. However, since my arrival in this part of France, I find that an uncle of mine (younger, and only brother to my father) died lately, possessed of about ten thousand pounds sterling, which (as there was no will) has been very rapidly divided amongst a number of very distant relations, who supposed me dead. I don't know all the particulars as yet, but intend to set out for the very spot to-morrow morning early, and after getting all the information I can, I shall go to Bordeaux, where I shall state the whole affair to some able lawyer, and be directed by him how to proceed. Forgive me if I trouble you upon this occasion; you see it is a serious one. First, let me know what the law, custom, or court opinion is as to the right of succession in an Englishman to an inhabitant of this country. Next, pray prepare yourself to support me with all your influence, if it comes to any trial. I only ask justice; but you'll perhaps tell me that I am very unconscionable. I would not have you speak of this, till I can write to you more fully; but, in the meantime, you may, perhaps, be able to send me some recommendation at Bordeaux, which may be of use to me in this affair: I mean in the law vay. This will, probably, break through my proposed plan, and keep me longer at Bordeaux than I at first intended. However, the object is to me important. Indeed, if it had not been so, I should not have given you any trouble. Believe me most sincerely yours,

"Direct to me, at Messrs Ainsley's, Bordeaux."

"I. BARRE

"Toulouse, September 4.

"DNAR HUME, "I thank you for your last letter from Paris which I received just as Smith and his élève, and L'Abbé Colbert were sitting down to dine with me at Bordeaux. The latter is a very honest fellow, and deserves to be a bishop; make him one if you can. I stated my case (or, rather, my father's) to a lawyer at Bordeaux, who thinks he has no right; and grounds his opinion upon several of the King's declarations; and particularly upon one of the 27th of Cstober, 1725. He makes the whole turn upon my grandfather's being a Protestant. This 1 have alleged (though without any positive proof) to be the case. May I beg of you to take some lawyer's opinion, at Paris, simply upon this case as I state it, viz.:-Barré dies in France about twenty-five years ago, leaving two sons, Peter and John; Peter went over to Ireland about the year 1720 or 22, young and unmarried, but afterwards married and settled there. John, being upon the spot at the time of his father's death, divided the property very nearly as he thought proper. John dies in September, 1760, intestate and childless. Bonnomeau, a maternal uncle of his, takes possession of his estate as nearest heir. This Bonnomeau died in the month following, and his whole fortune was divided between sixteen nephews or nieces, who stood in the same degree of relation to him as the deceased John Barré did. At the time of John's death it had been reported that Peter and his children were dead. Now, I wish to know what right Peter has to the estate of his brother John, considering the circumstances of his having left France, and his living so long in Ireland, professing the Protestant religion, and whether that right is affected by his father being a Protestant. John was generally thought to be a Protestant, though his heirs contrived to have him buried as a Catholic. When you get an opinion, pray send it to Foley's, who forwards all my letters, and knows where to find me. Why will you triumph and talk of platte couture? You have friends on both sides. Smith agrees with me in thinking that you are turned soft by the délices of a French court, and that you don't write in that nervous manner you was remarkable for in the more northern climates. Besides, what is still worse, you take your politics from your Elliots, Rigbys, and Selwyns!!! A bad politician tells me just now that we are to have war. Impossible. Adieu."

DUEL BETWEEN MR. HASTINGS AND SIR PHILIP FRANCIS.

The circumstances attending the personal rencontre between these two eminent persons were somewhat peculiar, and may deserve mor particular notice than is given in the Essay, p. l.