ceased and the prisoner, but that they constantly had lived in friendship together; we find likewise that the deceased was about the age of nineteen, and Mr. Chetwynd about the age of fifteen; and that of this wound the deceased died the 29th of the same September; and whether upon the whole, the prisoner is guilty of all or any of the several indictments, the jury submit to the Court." That as it is expressly found, by this special verdict, that there never had been any quarrel or malice between the deceased and the petitioner, but that they constantly lived in friendship together; and as the fatal unhappy wound your petitioner gave the deceased was the effect of a sudden and instant provocation, and for which be has ever since been, and still is, under the deepest and most inconsolable affliction, and as the petititioner had not the most remote apprehension of murdering the deceased, and in regard to your petitioner's tender age. Your petitioner most humbly hopes be may, under all the circumstances of this unfortunate case, be considered as a proper object of the royal mercy; which your petitioner most humbly prays your excellencies will be graciously pleased to extend to him, by granting him the royal pardon for the said offence. And your petitioner, as in the strictest gratitude and duty bound, shall ever pray, &c. When their lordships were pleased to refer it made the following report thereupon : to the Attorney and Solicitor-General, who Mr. Clare's family. That the said Mr. Chetwynd, the prisoner, having his own cake in his hand, which was a hard cake called a simnel, and hard to cut; the deceased, Thomas Ricketts, asked him for a piece of it, which the said Chetwynd gave him. That the said Thomas Ricketts afterwards asking the said Chetwynd to give him some more of his cake, the said Chetwynd refused; and thereupon the said. Chetwynd went out of the said room with his cake under his arm, and the deceased followed him out of the said room; upon which the said Chetwynd returned again into the said room, and went to his own bureau, and cut another piece of the cake for himself; the said Ricketts offered to lend the said Chetwynd his knife to cut the cake, and at the same time pulled his knife (being a clasped knife) out of his pocket and opened it; but the said Chetwynd refusing to make use of Mr. Ricketts's knife, saying, he had a knife of his own, the said Mr. Ricketts put up his knife again; and immediately after this the said Chetwynd, being then at his bureau, cut off a piece of the said cake with his own knife, being a common knife, and such a one as the said Chetwynd and his school-fellows generally used, and laid the same piece of cake upon the top of his bureau for himself. That the said Chetwynd standing there, with his back to the rest of the company, was putting the rest of his cake into his bureau, and whilst he was so doing, the deceased came up and put his hand over the said Chetwynd's shoulder; whereupon the said Mr. Chetwynd, raising his arms, said to the deceased, Don't, Mr. Ricketts; and the said Mr. Ricketts immediately snatched the said piece of cake away, against the said Chetwynd's consent, which lay upon the top of the said bureau, and went to the said maid-servant about two or three yards off, and said, laughing, Hannah, I have got a piece of Chetwynd's cake, which he shewed her in his hand. That thereupon immediately the prisoner, Mr. Chetwynd, followed him with his knife in his hand, and demanded the said Mr. Ricketts to return him his piece of cake; the deceased Mr. Ricketts returned no answer to this, but con tinued laughing, and did not return the piece of cake; upon which the prisoner struck him back-handed with the said knife which he had kept in his hand all along (and with which he had cut the said cake,) the said Ricketts being then only in his waistcoat, which was then unbuttoned, and gave him a wound upon the right side of the belly, below the navel, which penetrated into the cavity of the belly, the deceased not having before struck the prisoner, and not having at that time any weapon in his hand. That immediately after the deceased cried out, Hannah, Chetwynd has stabbed me; and then the said Hannah said to the prisoner, What have you done? Upon which the said prisoner looked upon the said Hannah with concern, and said, If I have hurt Mr. Ricketts I am sorry for it. We find there never had been any quarrel or malice betwixt the deVOL. XVIII. 4 COPY of the REPORT of his Majesty's ATTORNEY and SOLICITOR-GENERAL, on Mr. Chetwynd's Petition. "To the King's most excellent Majesty in Council; May it please your majesty ; In humble obedience to their excellencies the lords justices commands signified to us by Mr. Stone, by his letter of 25th of October last, directing us to take the annexed Petition of William Chetwynd, an infant of the age of fifteen years, into consideration, and report our opinions what may be proper to be done therein; we have taken the same into consideration, after having been attended by the agent and counsel of the petitioner, and also by the agent and counsel for Mr. Roger Drake and Mr. Beeston Long, under whose care Thomas Ricketts the deceased mentioned in the petition had been placed by his father, who now lives at Jamaica ; and which said Mr. Drake and Mr. Long opposed before us the prayer of the said petition. "The petition states, That the petitioner had been tried at the last sessions of Oyer and Terminer at the Old-Bailey, on three indictments, for the murder of the said Thomas Ricketts his school-fellow, on the trial whereof the jury brought in a special verdict, which the petition sets forth particularly, and prays, that as it is expressly found by this special verdict, that there never had been any quarrel or malice between the deceased and the petitioner, but they Y constantly fived in friendship together, and as the fatal unhappy wound the petitioner gave the deceased was the effect of a sudden and instant provocation, and for which he hath ever since been, and is still under the deepest and most inconsolable affliction, and as he had not the most remote apprehension of murdering the deceased, and in regard to his tender age, the petitioner most humbly hopes he may, under all the circumstances of his unfortunate case, be considered as a proper object of the royal mercy, which he most humbly prays may be extended to him, by granting the royal pardon for the said offence. lows generally used, and laid the same piece of cake upon the top of his bureau for himself; that the said Chetwynd standing then with his back to the rest of the company, was putting the rest of his cake into his bureau; and whilst he was so doing, the deceased came up and put his hand over the said Chetwynd's shoulder, whereupon the said Mr. Chetwynd, raising his arms, said to the deceased, Don't, Mr. Ricketts; and the said Mr. Ricketts immediately snatched the said piece of cake away, against the said Chetwynd's consent, which lay upon the top of the said bureau, and went to the said maid-servant about two or "We have inquired into the case, and find three yards off, and said, laughing, Hannah, that the petitioner was indicted on three in- I have got a piece of Chetwynd's cake, which dictments, whereof copies are annexed, for he shewed her in his hand; that thereupon the killing of the said Thomas Ricketts; one of immediately the prisoner, Mr. Chetwynd, folwhich was on the coroner's inquest, which lowed him with his knife in his hand, and dehad found him guilty of manslaughter; ano-manded the said Mr. Ricketts to return him ther at common law for murder; and the third on the statute of stabbing, of the first year of king James the first, chap. 8th, all which were tried at the last sessions of Oyer and Terminer at the Old Bailey; and the jury found a special verdict, which is not yet drawn up in form, but the minutes thereof signed by the jury are in the following words, viz. "Middlesex.] The KING against WILLIAM CHETWYND, the same against the same, and the same against the same "That Thomas Ricketts, on the 26th of September, being a scholar at Mr. Clare's academy in Sobo-square, was in a room in the said Mr. Clare's house, in which the said Chetwynd used to lie, and not Mr. Ricketts, in company with the prisoner William Chetwynd, William Hamilton, Samuel Malcher, and Hannah Humphreys, a maid-servant in the said Mr. Clare's family.--That the said Mr. Chetwynd the prisoner having his own cake in his hand, which was a hard cake, called a simnel, and hard to cut, the deceased, Thomas Ricketts, asked him for a piece of it, which the said Chetwynd gave him; that the said Thomas Ricketts afterwards asking the said Chetwynd to give him some more of his cake, the said Chetwynd refused, and thereupon the said Chetwynd went out of the said room, with his cake under his arm, and the deceased followed hitn out of the said room; upon which the said Chetwynd returned again into his said room, and went to his own bureau, and cut another piece of the cake for himself; the said Ricketts offered to lend the said Chetwynd his knife to cut the cake, and at the same time pulled his knife (being a clasped knife) out of his pocket, and opened it, but the said Chetwynd refusing to make use of Mr. Ricketts's knife, saying, he had a knife of his own, the said Mr. Ricketts put up his knife again; and immediately after this, the said Chetwynd being then at his * As to various circumstances under which bureau, cut off a piece of the said cake with homicide shall be murder or not, see East's his knife, being a common knife, and such a Pl. Cr. ch. 5, and the other writers on Crown one as the said Chetwynd and his school-fel-Law, therein referred to. his piece of cake; the deceased Mr. Ricketts returned no answer to this, but continued laughing, and did not return the piece of cake, upon which the prisoner struck him backhanded with the said knife, which he bad kept in his hand all along, (and with which he had cut the said cake) the said Ricketts being then only in his waistcoat, which was then unbuttoned, and gave him a wound upon the right netrated into the cavity of the belly; the deside of the belly, below the navel, which peceased not having before struck the prisoner, and not having at that time any weapon in his hand. That immediately after the deceased cried out, Hannah, Chetwynd has stabbed me ; and then the said Hannah said to the prisoner, What have you done? Upon which the said prisoner looked on the said Hannah with concern, and said, If I have burt Mr. Ricketts, I am sorry for it. We find there never had been any quarrel or malice betwixt the deceased and the prisoner, but that they had constantly lived in friendship together. We find likewise, that the deceased was about the age of 19, and Mr. Chetwynd about the age of fifteen; and that of this wound the deceased died the 29th of the same September; and whether upon the whole the prisoner is guilty of all or any of the several indictments, the Jury submit to the Court.*—(Signed) Allen Evans, Charles Carleton, Benjamin Tickner, Samuel Bowler, Francis How, Thomas Hogg, Peter Archambo, Benjamin Ingram, John Holmes, Jacob Lebat, Jonathan Alderton, John Archambo. "As the minutes of the special verdict have stated the case with all its circumstances so very minutely, no other evidence was offered on either side to mitigate or aggravate the charge. And we beg leave humbly to certify ther and heir was beyond sea, but expected in time; and it was also insisted, that by virtue of 5 and 6 W. and M. c. 13, the Court should take security for the good-behaviour, your majesty, that it lies entirely in your majesty's royal breast, to pardon the petitioner or not; and if your majesty shall be graciously pleased to extend your royal mercy to him, there can be no objection thereto in point of law. "All which is humbly submitted to yourma. jesty's great wisdom. D. RYDER. "W. MURRAY." Upon which his majesty (being then returned from Hanover) was pleased to order his most gracious Pardon, for the said William Chetwynd, to be made out. As soon as this came to be known, a caveat was entered against passing the same at (lord Gower's) the lord privy-seal's office; whereupon the lord privyseal sent to sir Thomas Abuey, knt. one of the judges of the Court of Common Pleas, to assist bim at the hearing the same; sir Thomas in a very genteel letter begged to be excused, on account of his former intimacy with Walter Chetwynd, of Grendon in Warwickshire, esq. the young gentleman's late father; upon which the Lord Privy-seal sent to the Lord Chief Baron, to desire his assistance at the hearing of counsel (at Whitehall) for and against passing the said Pardon; when after hearing the arguments, (serjeant Wynne and Mr. Moreton for the caveat, and Mr. Lloyd and Mr. Legge against it) the Lord Privy-seal declared he had beard no reasons sufficient given against allowing the same, and put the privy-seal to the said pardon. After which the friends and relations of the deceased entered a caveat against passing the same at the Lord Chancellor's; when the right bonourable the earl of Hardwicke ordered the counsel on both sides to attend him at his house in Ormond-street; when after hearing the arguments on both sides, his lordship said, he had no doubt with him about passing the said Pardon, and ordered the great seal to be put to it. When the prisoner came to Westminster-hall in Hilary Term to plead this Pardon, it was strongly opposed by counsel; but after hearing the arguments on both sides, lord chief justice Lee declared, he had heard no sufficient reasons offered against the prisoner's taking the benefit of his majesty's pardon; which he did directly by pleading it on his knees, and was immediately discharged. Hilary Term, 17 George 2. DOMINUS REX ver. CHETWYND. "A special verdict, on an indictment for murder, was found at the Old Bailey, and removed into the King's-bench; but before argument the defendant obtained his majesty's pardon, which he pleaded upon his knees; and it was allowed. Then the counsel for the prosecutor insisted, that by virtue of 3 H. 7, c. 1. the Court ought to require bail for his appearance to answer an appeal; there being an affidavit produced, that the bro. * Strange's Reports, vol. 2, p. 1203, 4, 5, "The statute 3 H. 7, c. 1, runs: That if any person charged as principal or accessory, be acquitted at the king's suit, within the year and day, the justices, before whom he is acquitted, shal! not suffer him to go at large; but either remit him again to the prison, or else let him to bail, after their discretion, till the year and day be past.' 66 Upon this clause it was argued, that the dict, was stronger than the case of an acquittal case of pleading a pardon after a special verby a jury, which took away all the presumpton of guilt; and that this was an actual acquittal, and is called so in the pardon. The judgment is Quod eat inde sine Die,' and if he is again indicted, he may plead Autre foits acquitte, 11 H. 4. 41 Bro. 20. Coron. 29. 133. Fitz, N. B. 251. G. and the record being moved into the King's-bench, this Court are the justices before whom he is acquitted; * and it is * Slaughterford was acquitted before Holt, at Surrey assizes; and he took bail to answer an appeal; which was afterwards tried at bar, vol. 2, p. 1204. Slaughterford's case was this: and the party convicted and hanged. Strange, Christopher Slaughterford (son of a miller, himself a maltster of some substance, near Guildford in Surrey) courted one Jane Young, who thereupon left her service in order to be married to him; was seen in his company October 5, 1708, but never heard of afterwards; whereupon he was suspected of murdering her, taken up, and committed to the Marshalsea; and at the Lent assizes following, was tried at Kingston in Surrey, for the said murder, and acquitted. However, he was ordered to remain in gaol, many people thinking him guilty. The father and friends of the deceased being poor, a subscription was set on foot and money raised, and an appeal was brought against the said Slaughtsrford by Henry Young, brother of the deceased. He was brought to the Queen'sbench bar at Westminster, the second day of the term following, and tried before the lord chief justice Holt, on the said appeal, and convicted on very strong circumstances, and ordered for execution on Saturday July 9th. Slaughterford being led to the gibbet from Guildford (to which place he was carried from the Marshalsea), the only request he had to make to the executioner was, That he might only words he uttered there; for being tied up, throw himself off: and they were almost the before the executioner could descend to do the He seemed to die rest of his office, in turning him off the ladder, with a resolute obstinacy, but delivered the folhe had swung himself off. lowing paper to the sheriff. "Guildford, July 9, 1709. "I being brought here to die, according to the sentence passed upon me at the Queen's not discretionary only as to the point between bail and imprisonment, the latter of which the prosecutor did not insist upon. seven years; and if the party be an infant (which was the present case) then he is not to be bound, but must find sureties.'* Upon this clause, therefore, the prosecutor insisted upon sureties for the good behaviour, and instanced 2 H. P. C. 394, where it is said, that at common law, without the aid of 18 Eliz. c. 7, a party acquitted may be bound to his good-behaviour, if of ill fame. "But as to this point, the Court were of opinion, that the present case was not such as the act of parliament meant; and this being to subject the prisoner to a second trial, which before he was not, he not being indictable (Kelynge 23.) till the time to appeal was elapsed, till this act gave such a prosecution; it was therefore to be construed strictly, and confined literally to an acquittal by verdict (Kelynge 104.) upon an arraignment at the king's suit; and it was material, that no instance could be shewn of requiring such bail upon pleading a pardon; on the contrary, Bowen in Mich. 8 Ann. was discharged without bail. Acquittal, they said, must be under-vourable circumstances were stated in the verstood in a course of law, and not an interposition of the crown's mercy. “The counsel for the prisoner did not much oppose giving sureties, and said, they had them ready; and Mr. J. Wright and Mr. J. Dennison were inclined to take them; but as there had yet been no instance since the act, and this was merely discretionary, the chief justice (sir William Lee,) was unwilling to make the precedent in the case of an infant, where some fa dict. And the case Hale cites out of Rastal's entries, was, where (as the record says)⚫ testatnm fuit cur' per fide dignos,' that the defendant was of ill fame; and at last the others came in to discharge him without security." "The other point, as to sureties for the good behaviour, depended on the 5 and 6 W. and M. c. 13, which enacts, That the justices before whom any pardon for felony shall be pleaded, may, at their discretion, remand or commit the the prosecutor, (the heir being beyond sea) desir"N. B." I [sir John Strange]" on behalf of person pleading it to prison, till he shall entered it might be taken notice of, that we did not into a recognizance with two sureties, for his good behaviour, for any time not exceeding bench bar, for a crime of which I am wholly waive our demand; and upon that the Court said, it should be their own act, upon the dis cretion of the Court." The whole expence attending this prosecution, at consultations, fees to counsel at the trial, at the Attorney General's, at Lord Privy Seal's, at the Lord Chancellor's, and at the King'sbench on pleading his pardon, and imprisonment in Newgate from October to February, amounted to above 1,300l. This William Chetwynd, esq. was the last heir-male of the Chetwynds of Grendon in Warwickshire, and Rudgley in Staffordshire. For though (on the death of his elder brother, Walter Chetwynd, esq. who catched a fever by attending captain Clark's trial at the Old Bailey, April 1749, of which he died) he came into a good estate, as heir at law (his brother Walter's will being in part set aside on a trial in B. R.,) he enjoyed it but a few years. * See Leach's Hawkins's Pleas of the Crown, book 2, c. 37, § 70. East's Pl. Cr. c. 5, § 185. * 507. The Trial of FRANCIS TOWN LEY, esq. for High-Treason, (in levying War against his most Sacred Majesty King George the Second) at the Court-House at St. Margaret's-Hill, Southwark, before the Right Hon. the Lord Chief-Justice Lee, the Right Hon. the Lord Chief-Justice Willes, Mr. Justice Wright, Mr. Justice Dennison, Mr. Justice Foster, Mr. Justice Abney, Mr. Baron Reynolds, and Mr. Baron Clive; with Sir Thomas De Veil, knt. and Peter Theobalds, esq. (both Justices of the Peace for the County of Surry, and Gentlemen named in the Special Commission) July 15: 20 GEORGE II. A. d. 1746. D. Mr. Justice Foster has given the following order of seniority to the court-house at Saint Serjeants-Inn; and from thence proceeded in Report of PREPARATORY STEPS TO THE TRIAL "Vacation after Trinity Term, 1746. "Pursuant to this act, a commission of oyer and terminer, and gaol-delivery, for the county of Surry,† passed the great seal about the latter end of Trinity term. It was directed to every privy-counsellor by name, to all the judges, and to some private gentlemen, empowering them, or any three of them, (quorum un' &c.) to execute the commission. "The precept was signed by the three chiefs and the three senior judges, and was returnable the 23d day of June 1746; which made fifteen days exclusive between the teste and return. This was ordered on great deliberation and search of precedents. "On that day most of the judges met at Though there were no trials of the rebel commoners in 1715, printed in the collection of State Trials; yet we shall insert here a short account of a few of the trials of the principal commoners concerned in the rebellion in 1745-6, as printed at that time, (with additions) to shew they were persons of no consequence or estate, concerned in that unnatural rebellion; being either men of small fortunes, or who had run out what they had, or tradesmen, who took part in that desperate undertaking. Former Edition. Margaret's Hill in the borough of Southwark. "Lord Chief Justice Lee gave the charge; and the grand jury found bills against the earls of Kilmarnock and Cromartie, and the lord Balmerino: which bills were soon afterwards removed by Certiorari into parliament. "On the two following days bills of indictment were found against thirty-six of the principal rebels taken at Carlisle; and against one David Morgan, a barrister at law, who was taken in Staffordshire. "The prisoners were then brought to the bar and informed that bills were found against them, of which they should soon have copies; and the Court adjourned to that day se'nnight: and copies of the indictments with the caption were delivered the same day to the prisoners after the Court rose. "By this measure the prisoners had copies of their indictments five days before their arraignment, exclusive of that day and of the day copies were delivered, and also exclusive of the intervening Sunday. This was done er majori cautela, and in favour of life, Sunday not being a day on which the prisoners may be presumed to be advising with counsel and preparing for their defence. It was so done upon the commission which sat the same summer in the north; and had been done upon a like commission in the north after the rebellion of 1715. But the statute doth not require this caution with regard to Sunday, nor is it of absolute necessity; though in cases of life it is best to follow precedents, if the time will allow of it. "July 3. Upon the adjournment-day the prisoners were severally arraigned. Three pleaded guilty. The rest pleaded not guilty; and each of them produced an affidavit, to which they were sworn in court, setting forth that a material witness or witnesses (naming the witAnother commission of the like kindnesses and the places of their abode) would be issued at the same time for Middlesex; but there were no proceedings on it." Foster. wanted for their defence; and their counsel, who had before been assigned them, moved |