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troop, and that he was there when the young Chevalier was proclaimed regent. Two other witnesses proved that his lordship was called colonel of his troop ;—that he always acted in that station;-gave orders on all occasions to his officers;—and that he was in great favour with Prince Charles. The evidence on the part of the crown having been finished, the lord-high-steward asked the prisoner if he had any thing to offer in his defence, or meant to call any witnesses. His lordship replied that he had nothing to say, but to make an exception to the indictment which was incorrect in charging him with being at Carlisle at the time it was taken by the Highlanders. The peers then adjourned to their chamber to consider the objection, and after a long debate, the house came to the resolution of taking the opinion of the judges upon the point. The peers having returned to the court, the lord-highsteward put the question to the judges, who were unanimously of opinion, that, as an overt act of treason and other acts of treason had been proved beyond contradiction, there was no occasion to prove explicitly every thing that was laid in the indictment; and that, of course, the prisoner's objection was not material. Proclamation for silence having been then made, the lord-high-steward, addressing each peer by name, one by one, beginning with the youngest baron, said, "What says your lordship? Is Arthur Lord Balmerino guilty of the high treason whereot he stands impeached, or not guilty ?" Whereupon, each peer so called upon, stood up in his place uncovered, and laying his right hand upon his breast, said, "Guilty, upon my honour." After Lord Balmerino had been found guilty, the other two lords were brought to the bar, and were informed by the lord-high-steward, that if either of them had any thing to move in arrest of judgment, they must come prepared on the Wednesday following at eleven o'clock, and state their objections, otherwise sentence of death would be awarded against them. The three lords were then carried back to the Tower in coaches, and the axe, which was in the coach with Lord Balmerino, had its edge pointed towards him.

The court accordingly met again on Wednesday the thirtieth of July, when the lord-high-steward addressed the prisoners; and beginning with Lord Kilmarnock, asked him if he had any thing to offer why judgment of death should not be passed against him. His lordship stated, that having, from a due sense of his folly, and the heinousness of his crimes, acknowledged his guilt, he meant to offer nothing in extenuation, but to throw himself entirely on the compassion of the court, that it might intercede with his majesty for his royal clemency. He observed that his father had been an early and steady friend to the Revolution, and very active in settling and securing the succession, and in promoting the union between the two kingdoms; and that he had endeavoured to instil into the prisoner, in his early years, the principles of the Revolution; that the whole tenor of his (the prisoner's) life had been in conformity with these principles till the fatal moment when he was induced

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to join in the insurrection ;-that, in proof of this, he had only to refer to the manner in which he had educated his children, the eldest of whom had the honour of holding a commission under his majesty, and had always conducted himself like a gentleman;—that he had endeavoured, to the best of his ability, to be useful to the crown on all occasions, and even at the breaking out of the rebellion, he was so far from approving of it, or showing the least proneness to promote that "unnatural scheme," that he had used his interest in Kilmarnock and places adjacent, and had prevented numbers from joining in the insurrection ;—that after joining the insurrection after the battle of Prestonpans, he was so far from assuming any consequence, that he had neither provided arms nor raised a single man for the service of the insurgents; that he had been instrumental in saving the lives of many of his majesty's loyal subjects who had been taken prisoners;-that he had assisted the sick and wounded, and had done every thing in his power to make their confinement tolerable ;-that he had not been long with the insurgents till he saw his error; and that, with this impression, he had allowed himself to be taken prisoner after the battle of Culloden, when he could have escaped. He concluded by stating, that if after what he had stated their lordships did not feel themselves called upon to employ their interest with his majesty for his royal clemency, that he would lay down his life with the utmost resignation, and that his last moments should" be employed in fervent prayer for the preservation of the illustrious house of Hanover, and the peace and prosperity of Great Britain."

The earl of Cromarty began a most humiliating but pathetic appeal, by declaring that he had been guilty of an offence which merited the highest indignation of his majesty, their lordships, and the public; and that it was from a conviction of his guilt that he had not presumed to trouble their lordships with any defence. "Nothing remains, my lords," he continued, "but to throw myself, my life, and fortune, upon your lordships' compassion; but of these, my lords, as to myself is the least part of my sufferings. I have involved an affectionate wife, with an unborn infant, as parties of my guilt, to share its penalties; I have involved my eldest son, whose infancy and regard for his parents hurried him down the stream of rebellion. I have involved also eight innocent children, who must feel their parents' punishment before they know his guilt. Let them, my lords, be pledges to his majesty; let them be pledges to your lordships; let them be pledges to my country for mercy; let the silent eloquence of their grief and tears; let the powerful language of innocent nature supply my want of eloquence and persuasion; let me enjoy mercy, but no longer than I deserve it; and let me no longer enjoy life than I shall use it to deface the crime I have been guilty of. Whilst I thus intercede to his majesty through the mediation of your lordships for mercy, let my remorse for my guilt as a subject; let the sorrow of my heart as a husband; let the anguish of my mind as a father, speak the rest of my misery. As your lordships are men,

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feel as men; but may none of you ever suffer the smallest part of my anguish. But if after all, my lords, my safety shall be found inconsistent with that of the public, and nothing but my blood can atone for my unhappy crime; if the sacrifice of my life, my fortune and family, is judged indispensably necessary for stopping the loud demands for public justice; and if the bitter cup is not to pass from me, not mine, but thy will, O God, be done."

When the lord-high-steward addressed Lord Balmerino, he produced a paper, and desired it might be read. His grace told his lordship that he was at liberty to read it if he pleased; but his lordship replied that his voice was too low, and that he could not read it so distinctly as he could wish. One of the clerks of parliament, by order of the lord-highsteward, then read the paper, which was to this effect:-That although his majesty had been empowered by an act of parliament, made the last session, to appoint the trials for high treason to take place in any county he should appoint; yet, as the alleged act of treason was stated to have been committed at Carlisle, and prior to the passing of the said act, he ought to have been indicted at Carlisle, and not in the county of Surrey, as the act could not have a retrospective effect. His lordship prayed the court to assign him counsel to argue the point. The peers then retired to their own house where they debated the matter, and after they had returned to the court, the lord-high-steward stated to Lord Balmerino, that the lords had agreed to his petition for counsel, and at his request they assigned him Messrs Wilbraham and Forrester, and adjourned the court to the first of August.

The three prisoners were again brought back from the Tower. On that day the lord-high-steward asked Lord Balmerino if he was then ready by his counsel to argue the point, which he proposed to the court on the previous day. His lordship answered, that as his counsel had advised him that there was nothing in the objection sufficient to found an arrest of judgment upon, he begged to withdraw the objection, and craved their lordships' pardon for giving them so much trouble. The prisoners then all declaring that they submitted themselves to the court, Lord Hardwicke addressed them in a suitable speech, and concluded by pronouncing the following sentence:-"The judgment of the law is, and this high court doth award, that you, William, earl of Kilmarnock; George, earl of Cromarty; and Arthur Lord Balmerino, and every of you, return to the prison of the Tower from whence you came: from thence you must be drawn to the place of execution: when you come there, you must be hanged by the neck, but not till you are dead; for you must be cut down alive; then your bowels must be taken out and burnt before your faces; then your heads must be severed from your bodies; and your bodies must be divided each into four quarters; and these must be at the king's disposal. And God Almighty be merciful to your souls." Then the prisoners were removed from the bar to be carried back to the Tower; and the lord-high-steward standing up un

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