without any reproach to their reputation, but that to suffer themselves to be told of what they had done without resenting it would bring an indelible stain on their honour, immediately took fire and complained to the judge; and afterwards one of them told a friend of mine that he thought they were bound, as gentlemen, to insist on Mr. Coke's making them satisfaction, or fighting them one after another. Mr. Burke's favourite spirit of chivalry, you see, is not quite extinguished; and when one finds so much of it still prevailing among the noblesse of Birmingham, one cannot be surprised that the doctrines of the National Assembly are with them so unpopular. The rage which prevails in Warwickshire against the Dissenters is not to be conceived by any one who has not been there. There is no story so incredible, no calumny so gross, as does not meet with implicit credit, and the most speedy propagation among the friends of Church and King; and the complete refutation of one calumny, instead of begetting distrust of the truth of another, only procures it a more easy reception. The appetite for defamation grows stronger as it has missed the prey, of which it thought itself secure. I heard one of these zealots declaring his utter detestation, not of Dissenters in general, but of those of Birmingham, founded, as he said, on the whole of their conduct, which he declared to have been scandalous and infamous beyond all example. These expressions were so strong, and were uttered with so much vehemence, that I thought I had now at last found the opportunity, which I had so often wished for before in vain, of hearing some specific charges which had been the pretext for the persecution; and I ventured to ask the gentleman what were the facts to which he alluded; but I am afraid my question, though certainly unintentionally, was expressed in such a way as betrayed more doubt than curiosity; for he told me, with great impatience, that it was to no purpose to talk with a person so prejudiced as I was. The sufferers by the riots, though several of them were in Warwick, thought it decent not to appear in court, and indeed they had no more business there than any other spectator; but I heard it observed by a warm Churchman, that not one of the Dissenters had dared to show his face in court during the trials. The prosecutions have all been conducted entirely by the Solicitor of the Treasury; and yet I have heard many persons say that the Dissenters were so malignant that they tried to get all the rioters hanged, and that they would not be satisfied unless they could hang half the town of Birmingham. The Dissenters had established a Sunday school at Warwick, and through mere charity had sent thither some children of poor persons who were of the Church of England. This diabolical conduct has produced several meetings of the Churchmen of Warwick; and, with a Rev. Mr. Daniel in the chair, they have voted this conduct to be a dangerous attack upon the rights of the Church, and have appointed a committee to watch over and protect the Church from invasion. In a word, the spirit that prevails against Dissenters now in Warwickshire, and, I believe, in some of the adjoining counties, is not unlike that which raged against the Catholics in the time of the famous Popish plot. A gentleman of good education, and who, on all other subjects, is certainly a sensible man, told me, as a story which he had heard from good authority, and to which he gave implicit credit, that, on the day after the revolutionary dinner, a hamper was brought to the hotel, and left there without direction; that, on being opened, it was found to be full of daggers, and that it has never since been sent for, and no one knows by whom it was brought. At the time of the riots, a common cry among the mob was, "No philosophers Church and King for ever!" and some persons painted up on their houses, "No philosophers!" Two of the men who were convicted have been pardoned; one of them very soon after the trial, and without any application being made for him by the people of Birmingham. His pardon was a matter of great surprise to the Birmingham people, as he was a man of very bad character. It is said he has a brother at Windsor, who is in a mean way of life, but with whom the King has sometimes entered into conversation in his walks. Dr. Parr is almost as unpopular at Birmingham as Dr. Priestley. The reason alleged for his unpopularity is, that, in a sermon which he lately preached in the town, he mentioned Dr. Priestley by name, spoke in praise of him, and recommended some of his sermons. Perhaps a more probable cause of his loss of popularity is, that he has had private quarrels with the heads of the church-andking faction. But, whatever be the cause of it, the fact is certain, that he has the honour to be involved in the persecution of the Dissenters; and, himself an intolerant high churchman, he wonders to find himself an object of enmity to an intolerant high church mob. Ille fugit, per quæ fuerat loca sæpe secutus : LETTER LXXXVI. FROM MADAME G Paris, 1791. Nous avons revu avec intérêt Mr. Smith, puisqu'il nous a donné de vos nouvelles avec détail, mais nous sommes extrêmement fachés d'avoir aussi peu profité de son séjour. Il paroît partir avec une assez triste opinion de notre Assemblée Législative*; il est sûr qu'elle a bien perdu son temps depuis qu'elle est assemblée, et que du bruit, du tumulte, des dénonciations, puis du tumulte et du bruit, sont les seuls résultats de ses séances. Les têtes exaltées, LETTER LXXXVI. Paris, 1791. We had much pleasure in seeing Mr. Smith again, for he gave us many particulars about you; but we are very sorry to have enjoyed so little of his society during his stay here. He appears to leave us with but a poor opinion of our Legislative Assembly*; and, certainly, from the first day of their meeting, they have only been wasting their time. Noise and tumult and recrimination, and then tumult and noise again, are the only results of their sittings. Hitherto the en * It had commenced its sittings on the 1st of October, 1791. jusqu'à présent, y ont eu une grande influence. Le désir général de la nation actuellement est pourtant celui de la paix et du repos. Toutes les classes de la société sentent que les temps de révolution ne sont favorables ni aux affaires ni aux plaisirs ; et depuis ceux qui ont besoin de gagner leur vie, jusqu'à ceux qui ne veulent la passer qu'à jouir, tous souhaitent également l'affermissement de l'ordre. Mais il y a quelques obstacles qui s'opposent à l'accomplissement de ce vœu général, et nous serons encore assez longtemps obligés de les combattre. Les émigrations sont dans ce moment plus nombreuses que jamais; on dit même qu'elles gagnent d'autres classes que celle de l'ancienne noblesse. Il est très-difficile de deviner les motifs qui peuvent engager à cette triste résolution, car les puissances étrangères paroissent assez peu disposées à venir nous attaquer, et nous nous berçons beaucoup de l'idée que nous n'avons rien à en craindre. On commence à s'effrayer de cette émigration, et l'on pense qu'il seroit prudent de prendre thusiasts have had great influence among them, although the general wish of the nation now is for peace and quiet. All classes of society feel that times of revolution are not favourable either to business or pleasure; and from those who have their livelihood to gain, to those who live only to enjoy themselves, all are equally desirous for the establishment of order; but however general the wish, there are several obstacles to its accomplishment, against which we shall still have to struggle for a long time. Emigration is at this moment more frequent than ever; and it is even said that it is spreading to other classes besides that of the old noblesse. It is very difficult to conceive the motives for so sad a determination; for foreign powers seem little disposed to attack us, and we even buoy ourselves up with the belief that we have nothing to fear from them. People are beginning to be alarmed at this emigration, and to think that it would be prudent to take some steps to put a stop |