The Trial of Charles Random de Berenger, Sir Thomas Cochrane Part 88

_Q._ Nor had you at the time?

_A._ No, I had not.

_Q._ Nor since?

_A._ No.

_Mr. Gurney._ The only remaining head of evidence that I have to trouble your lords.h.i.+p with, is with respect to a check for .56. 5_s._ paid by Mr. Fearn to Mr. b.u.t.t, and the produce of that.

_Mr. Pattesall sworn;_

_Examined by Mr. Gurney._

_Q._ Are you a partner in the house of Bond & Company?

_A._ I am.

_Q._ Look at that check of Mr. Fearn's, did you pay that?

_A._ I did not.

_Q._ Who did pay it?

_A._ Mr. Evans, a clerk of ours.

_Q._ Is Mr. Evans here?

_A._ Upon my word I cannot tell.

_Mr. Gurney._ He has been expressly desired to be in attendance.

_Lord Ellenborough._ Then call him upon his subpoena if he does not appear.

_Mr. Gurney._ Just look and see whether the entry is Evans's hand-writing.

_A._ It is Evans's hand-writing.

_Thomas Evans was called on his subpoena, and did not appear._

_Lord Ellenborough._ This entry then will be of no use to you.

_Mr. Gurney._ No, my Lord; it was mentioned that there were two Napoleons in the letter case: Mr. Wood has those two Napoleons to produce.

[_Mr. Wood produced two Napoleons._]

_Mr. Gurney._ This, my Lord, is the evidence on the part of the prosecution.

_Mr. Serjeant Best._ I wish to apprize your Lords.h.i.+p that I think it will be necessary for the defendants to call witnesses.

_Lord Ellenborough._ I should wish to hear your opening, and to get into the defendants case, if I can; there are several gentlemen attending as witnesses, who, I find cannot, without the greatest public inconvenience, attend to-morrow.

_Mr. Park._. The difficulty we feel, I am sure your Lords.h.i.+p will feel as strongly as we do the fatigue, owing to the length of our attendance here; but we will proceed if your Lords.h.i.+p desires it.

_Lord Ellenborough._ I would wish to get into the case, so as to have the examination of several witnesses, upon whom the public business of certain offices depend, gone through, if possible.

_Mr. Park._ I have undergone very great fatigue, which I am able to bear; but I would submit to your Lords.h.i.+p the hards.h.i.+p upon parties who are charged with so very serious an offence as this, if their case is heard at this late hour; and then a fresh day is given to my learned friend to reply.

_Lord Ellenborough._ It will not be a fresh day when you will be here by nine o'clock, and the sun will be up almost before we can adjourn; I will sit through it if you require it, rather than that.

_Mr. Alley._ On the part of M'Rae, I shall not trouble your Lords.h.i.+p with any witnesses or observations.

MR. SERJEANT BEST.

May it please your Lords.h.i.+p,

Gentlemen of the Jury,

I a.s.sure you I am extremely sorry on my own account, and still more sorry on your account, that it will be necessary for me, if I am able to do it, to take up a considerable portion more of your time, in the discussion of this most important question; a question, certainly, of great importance to the public; a question, of great importance to the three individuals whose interests are committed to my charge; for, gentlemen, upon the issue of this question, with reference to them, depends whether they are to hold the situation in society which they have hitherto held, or whether they are to be completely degraded and ruined.

Gentlemen, allusions in the course of the day have been made to that which pa.s.ses at the Old Bailey; no sentence that can be pa.s.sed there, can be felt more by the persons on whom it is pa.s.sed, than a verdict of Guilty will be felt by these three persons.

Gentlemen, from the attention I have observed every one of you giving to the evidence, and from the accuracy of the notes that have been taken by the n.o.ble and learned Judge, I have, at this late hour, this consolation left to me, that whatever I may omit, you will supply; whatever I shall not be able to impress upon you, in the manner it ought to be impressed upon you, will be brought to your consideration by his Lords.h.i.+p, and that that explanation which I shall feel myself unable to give, he will be in a situation to give; and with this hope, I proceed to call your attention to the case of these gentlemen:--My Lord Cochrane, Mr.

Cochrane Johnstone, and Mr. b.u.t.t; the interests of the other defendants being committed to much abler hands.

Gentlemen, there are very few of the introductory observations that were made to you by my learned friend, which I am in a condition, or feel any disposition to dispute. I by no means dispute, that what is charged in this indictment is not an offence of very considerable magnitude; if I was satisfied that it was not an offence which the law of the country reaches, I protest to you, that I would not take any objection upon that score; because I am quite convinced that acquittal, upon such a ground as that, would be an acquittal that would not answer the purpose of the respectable gentlemen that I represent before you.

Gentlemen, I have observed some of my learned friends asking questions, which seemed calculated to obtain answers on which some legal objection might be founded. I hope you will recollect, that I have never asked any such questions; on the contrary, I have avoided looking at the indictment, lest I should see any thing that should force an objection upon me, and prevent this case from being decided upon its merits.

Gentlemen, I certainly do admit, that it is a crime, and a crime of a great magnitude, for any person, by means of the circulation of false news, to attempt to raise the price of the public funds; in consequence of which, individuals who are fair purchasers of such funds, are compelled to pay more than the stock they purchase is fairly worth. I hope, whoever were the authors of this, which has been called, and improperly called, a hoax, will suffer for their offence; but when we are reminded, that certain persons have suffered by it, I must say, that the fair purchasers who have suffered, are but few in comparison to those who are objects of no compa.s.sion, namely, the gamblers who attended at the Stock Exchange upon this occasion.

Gentlemen, I admit also, that which has been stated by my learned friends, that it is not necessary, for the purpose of bringing home the crime of conspiracy to any individual who may be charged with it, that you should call a person who was present at any of the consultations--shew the casting of the different parts of those who were to act in the drama, and point out distinctly who those were who were to perform, and how afterwards they have performed these parts. I admit that all this is not necessary to be proved: conspiracy, like every other offence, may be brought home by circ.u.mstantial proof. Indeed, circ.u.mstantial proof is, in many cases, more satisfactory than that which is direct and positive, because it is free from the suspicion of falsehood. But I deny, upon this occasion, that there are any circ.u.mstances that bring home the crime of conspiracy to any of the three persons whom I represent. All that is proved may be true, and yet the defendants may be innocent. The circ.u.mstantial evidence that alone can warrant conviction, is the proof of such facts as could not have happened had the accused been innocent.

Gentlemen, whether Mr. De Berenger be the Colonel Du Bourg who pretended to bring the news from France, or not, it is not for me to discuss; I shall leave that question to my learned friend Mr. Park, who is counsel for Mr. De Berenger, and who, I hope, will be able to satisfy you that Mr. De Berenger is not that Colonel Du Bourg; if he is not that Colonel Du Bourg, then there is no evidence against either of the parties I represent. But admitting, for the purpose of my presenting the case to you which I am called upon to support, that De Berenger is that Du Bourg, still it is another question, whether either of these defendants were connected with De Berenger; and I do, notwithstanding what has been stated to you by my learned friend, that he was perfectly certain that he should bring home the guilt charged by this indictment to all the defendants, submit most confidently, that there is no evidence against either of my clients.

Gentlemen, it is extremely difficult, amidst such a ma.s.s of evidence as has been laid before you, to bring one's attention, or to call your attention immediately to the evidence that applied to any particular person. I will take the three cases in the order in which they stand upon this indictment; and the first of those three for whom I am concerned, is my Lord Cochrane.

Now, gentlemen, let us examine the evidence that is offered to you, to prove that he is connected with this conspiracy. It consists in this, that my Lord Cochrane did, on the 21st of February, sell .139,000 Omnium; and further, that Mr. De Berenger was, on the morning of the 21st of February, at the house of Lord Cochrane. Gentlemen, as far as I can collect, from the attention I have been able to give to the evidence, I have stated the utmost effect of the evidence against my Lord Cochrane; for, gentlemen, though it was suggested by my learned friend, Mr. Gurney, that he should trace some of the notes which were found in the desk of Mr. De Berenger into the hands of my Lord Cochrane, I beg to state, that there is not one single note traced into the hands of my Lord Cochrane. I admit that there are notes found in the chest of De Berenger, traced into the hands of the other two defendants; but I believe I shall be able, by and by, satisfactorily to shew you how these notes came from the hands of one of the defendants into the hands of De Berenger, and to prove that they came into the hands of De Berenger, under circ.u.mstances altogether unconnected with that which is the subject of your enquiry; but I am, for the present, only considering the case of Lord Cochrane; and I would beg the favour of his Lords.h.i.+p now to refer to his notes, and I am persuaded his Lords.h.i.+p will go along with me in the observations I am making, that there is no evidence whatever to bring home any one of the notes to my Lord Cochrane.