Chapter XII (3)

From this important object, the parliament converted its attention to a regulation of a much more private nature. In consequence of a petition by the lord-mayor, aldermen, and commons of the city of London, a bill was brought in, and passed into a law without opposition, for the more effectual preservation and improvement of the fry and spawn of fish in the river Thames, and waters of Medway, and for the better regulating the fishery in those rivers. The two next measures taken for the benefit of the public were, first, a bill to render more effectual the several laws then in being, for the amendment and preservation of the highways and turnpike-roads of the kingdom; the other for the more effectually preventing the spreading of the contagious distemper which, at that time, raged among the horned cattle. A third arose from the distress of poor silk manufacturers, who were destitute of employment, and deprived of all means of subsisting, through the interruption of the Levant trade; occasioned by the war, and the delay of the merchant ships from Italy. In order to remedy this inconvenience, a bill was prepared, enacting, that any person might import from any place, in any ship or vessel whatsoever, till the first day of December, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-seven, organzine thrown silk of the growth or production of Italy, to be brought to the custom-house of London, wheresoever landed; but that no Italian thrown silk, coarser than Bologna, nor any tram of the growth of Italy, nor any other thrown silk of the growth or production of Turkey, Persia, East Indies, or China, should be imported by this act, under the penalty of the forfeiture thereof. Notwithstanding several petitions, presented by the merchants, owners, and commanders of ships, and others trading to Leghorn, and other ports of Italy, as well as by the importers and manufacturers of raw silks, representing the evil consequences that would probably attend the passing of such a bill, the parliament agreed to this temporary deviation from the famous act of navigation, for a present supply to the poor manufacturers.

The next civil regulation established in this session of parliament was in itself judicious, and, had it been more earnestly suggested, might have been more beneficial to the public. In order to discourage the practice of smuggling, and prevent the desperadoes concerned therein from enlisting in the service of the enemy, a law was passed, enacting, that every person who had been, before the first of May in the present year, guilty of illegally running, concealing, receiving, or carrying any wool, or prohibited goods, or any foreign commodities liable to duties, the same not having been paid or secured; or of aiding therein, or had been found with fire-arms or weapons, in order to be aiding to such offenders; or had been guilty of receiving such goods after seizure; or of any act whatsoever, whereby persons might be deemed runners of foreign goods; or of hindering, wounding, or beating any officer in the execution of his duty, or assisting therein,--should be indemnified from all such offences, concerning which no suit should then have been commenced, or composition made, on condition that he should, before being apprehended or prosecuted, and before the first day of December, enter himself with some commissioned officer of his majesty’s fleet, to serve as a common sailor; and should, for three years from such entry, unless sooner duly discharged, actually serve and do duty in that station, and register his name, &c, with the clerk of the peace of the county where he resided, as the act prescribes. An attempt was made in favour of the seamen employed in the navy, who had been very irregularly paid, and subject to grievous hardships in consequence of this irregularity. Mr. Grenville, brother to earl Temple, moved for leave to bring in a bill for the encouragement of seamen employed in his majesty’s navy, and for establishing a regular method for the punctual, speedy, and certain payment of their wages, as well as for rescuing them from the arts and frauds of imposition. The proposal was corroborated by divers petitions: the bill was prepared, read, printed, and, after it had undergone some amendment, passed into the house of lords, where it was encountered with several objections, and dropped for this session of parliament.

INQUIRY INTO THE SCARCITY OF CORN.

The house of commons being desirous of preventing, for the future, such distresses as the poor had lately undergone, appointed a committee to consider of proper provisions to restrain the price of corn and bread within due bounds for the future. For this purpose they were empowered to send for persons, papers, and records; and it was resolved, that all who attended the committee should have voices. Having inquired into the causes of the late scarcity, they agreed to several resolutions, and a bill was brought in to explain and amend the laws against regraters, forestalled, and engrossers of corn. The committee also received instructions to inquire into the abuses of millers, mealmen, and bakers, with regard to bread, and to consider of proper methods to prevent them in the sequel; but no further progress was made in this important affair, which was the more interesting, as the lives of individuals, in a great measure, depended upon a speedy reformation; for the millers and bakers were said to have adulterated their flour with common whiting, lime, bone ashes, alum, and other ingredients pernicious to the human constitution; a consummation of villany for which no adequate punishment could be inflicted. Among the measures proposed in parliament which did not succeed, one of the most remarkable was a bill prepared by Mr. Rose Fuller, Mr. Charles Townshend, and Mr. Banks, to explain, amend, and render more effectual a law passed in the reign of king William the Third, intituled,

“An act to punish governors of plantations, in this kingdom, for crimes committed by them in the plantation.” This bill was proposed in consequence of some complaints, specifying acts of cruelty, folly, and oppression, by which some British governors had been lately distinguished; but, before the bill could be brought in, the parliament was prorogued.

INVESTIGATION OF THE LOSS OF MINORCA.

But no step taken by the house of commons, in the course of this session, was more interesting to the body of the people than the inquiry into the loss of Minorca, which had excited such loud and universal clamour. By addresses to the king, unanimously voted, the commons requested that his majesty would give directions for laying before them copies of all the letters and papers containing any intelligence received by the secretaries of state, the commissioners of the admiralty, or any others of his majesty’s ministers, in relation to the equipment of the French fleet at Toulon, or the designs of the French on Minorca, or any other of his majesty’s possessions in Europe, since the first day of January, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, to the first day of August, one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six. They likewise desired to peruse a list of the ships of war that were equipped and made ready for sea, from the first of August, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, to the thirtieth day of April in the following year; with the copies of all sailing orders sent to the commanders during that period; as also the state and condition of his majesty’s ships in the several ports of Great Britain at the time of admiral Byng’s departure, with the squadron under his command, for the relief of fort St. Philip, during the period of time above-mentioned, according to the monthly returns made by the admiralty, with the number of seamen mustered and borne aboard the respective ships. They demanded copies of all orders and instructions given to that admiral, and of letters written to and received from him, during his continuance in that command, either by the secretaries of state, or lords of the admiralty, relating to the condition of his squadron, and to the execution of his orders. In a word, they required the inspection of all papers which could, in any manner, tend to explain the loss of Minorca, and the miscarriage of Mr. Byng’s squadron. His majesty complied with every article of their request: the papers were presented to the house, ordered to lie upon the table for the perusal of the members, and finally referred to the consideration of a committee of the whole house. In the course of their deliberations they addressed his majesty for more information, till at length the truth seemed to be smothered under such an enormous burden of papers, as the efforts of a whole session could not have properly removed. Indeed, many discerning persons without doors began to despair of seeing the mystery unfolded, as soon as the inquiry was undertaken by a committee of the whole house. They observed, that an affair of such a dark, intricate, and suspicious nature, ought to have been referred to a select and secret committee, chosen by ballot, empowered to send for persons, papers, and records, and to examine witnesses in the most solemn and deliberate manner; that the names of the committee ought to have been published for the satisfaction of the people, who could have judged, with some certainty, whether the inquiry would be carried on with such impartiality as the national misfortune required. They suspected that this reference to a committee of the whole house was a mal-contrivance, to prevent a regular and minute investigation, to introduce confusion and contest, to puzzle, perplex, and obumbrate; to teaze, fatigue, and disgust the inquirers, that the examination might be hurried over in a superficial and perfunctory manner; and the ministry, from this anarchy and confusion of materials, half explored and undigested, derive a general parliamentary approbation, to which they might appeal from the accusations of the people. A select committee would have probably examined some of the clerks of the respective offices, that they might certainly know whether any letters or papers had been suppressed, whether the extracts had been faithfully made, and whether there might not be papers of intelligence, which, though proper to be submitted to a select and secret committee, could not, consistently with the honour of the nation, be communicated to a committee of the whole house. Indeed, it does not appear that the ministers had any foreign intelligence or correspondence that could be much depended upon in any matter of national importance, and no evidence was examined on the occasion; a circumstance the less to be regretted, as, in times past, evil ministers have generally found means to render such inquiries ineffectual; and the same arts would, at any rate, have operated with the same efficacy, had a secret committee been employed at this juncture. Be that as it may, several resolutions were reported from the committee, though some of them were not carried by the majority without violent dispute and severe altercation. The first and last of their resolutions require particular notice. By the former, it appeared to the committee, that his majesty, from the twenty-seventh day of August, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, to the twentieth day of April in the succeeding year, received such repeated and concurrent intelligence, as gave just reason to believe that the French king intended to invade his dominions of Great Britain or Ireland. In the latter they declared their opinion, that no greater number of ships of war could be sent into the Mediterranean, than were actually sent thither under the command of admiral Byng; nor any greater reinforcement than the regiment which was sent, and the detachment, equal to a battalion, which was ordered to the relief of fort St. Philip, consistently with the state of the navy, and the various services essential to the safety of his majesty’s dominions, and the interest of his subjects. It must have been something more powerful than ordinary conviction that suggested these opinions. Whatever reports might have been circulated by the French ministry, in order to amuse, intimidate, and detach the attention of the English government from America and the Mediterranean, where they really intended to exert themselves, yet, the circumstances of the two nations being considered, one would think there could have been no just grounds to fear an invasion of Great Britain or Ireland, especially when other intelligence seemed to point out much more probable scenes of action. But the last resolution is still more incomprehensible to those who know not exactly the basis on which it was raised. The number of ships of war in actual commission amounted to two hundred and fifty, having on board fifty thousand seamen and marines. Intelligence and repeated information of the French design upon Minorca had been conveyed to the ministry of England, about six months before it was put in execution. Is it credible, that in all this time the nation could not equip or spare above eleven ships of the line and six frigates, to save the important island of Minorca? Is it easy to conceive, that from a standing army of fifty thousand men, one regiment of troops could not have been detached to reinforce a garrison, well known to be insufficient for the works it was destined to defend? To persons of common intellects it appeared, that intelligence of the armament at Toulon was conveyed to the admiralty as early as the month of September, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-five, with express notice that it would consist of twelve ships of the line: that the design against Minorca was communicated as early as the twenty-seventh day of August, by consul Banks, of Carthagena; confirmed by letters from consul Bertes, at Genoa, dated on the seventeenth and twenty-sixth of January, and received by Mr. Fox, secretary of state, on the fourth and eleventh of February, as well as by many subsequent intimations; that, notwithstanding these repeated advices, even after hostilities had commenced in Europe, when the garrison of Minorca amounted to no more than four incomplete regiments, and one company of artillery, forty-two officers being absent, and the place otherwise unprovided for a siege, when the Mediterranean squadron, commanded by Mr. Edgecumbe, consisted of two ships of the line, and five frigates; neither stores, ammunition, or provisions, the absent officers belonging to the garrison, recruits for the regiments, though ready raised, miners, nor any additional troops, were sent to the island, nor the squadron augmented, till admiral Byng sailed from Spithead on the sixth day of April, with no more ships of the line than, by the most early and authentic intelligence, the government were informed would sail from Toulon, even when Mr. Byng should have been joined by commodore Edgecumbe; a junction upon which no dependence ought to have been laid; that this squadron contained no troops but such as belonged to the four regiments in garrison, except one battalion to serve in the fleet as marines, unless we include the order for another to be embarked at Gibraltar; which order was neither obeyed nor understood: that, considering the danger to which Minorca was exposed, and the forwardness of the enemy’s preparations at Toulon, admiral Osborne, with thirteen ships of the line and one frigate, who returned on the sixteenth of February, after having convoyed a fleet of merchant ships, might have been detached to Minorca, without hazarding the coast of Great Britain; for at that time, exclusive of this squadron, there were eight ships of the line and thirty-two frigates ready manned, and thirty-two ships of the line and five frigates almost equipped; that admiral Hawke was sent with fourteen ships of the line and one frigate to cruise in the bay of Biscay, after repeated intelligence had been received that the French fleet had sailed for the West Indies, and the eleven ships remaining at Brest and Rochefort were in want of hands and cannon, so that they could never serve to cover any embarkation or descent, consequently Mr. Hawke’s squadron might have been spared for the relief of Minorca; that, instead of attending to this important object, the admiralty, on the eighth day of March, sent two ships of the line and three frigates to intercept a coasting convoy off Cape Barfleur: on the eleventh of the same month they detached two ships of the line to the West Indies, and on the nineteenth two more to North America, where they could be of little immediate service; on the twenty-third, two of the line and three frigates a convoy-hunting off Cherbourg; and on the first of April five ships of the line, including three returned from this last service, to reinforce sir Edward Hawke, already too strong for the French fleet bound to Canada; that all these ships might have been added to Mr. Byng’s squadron, without exposing Great Britain or Ireland to any hazard of invasion: that at length Mr. Byng was detached with ten great ships only, and even denied a frigate to repeat signals, for which he petitioned; although at that very time there were in port, exclusive of his squadron, seventeen ships of the line and thirteen frigates ready for sea, besides eleven of the line and nineteen frigates almost equipped. From these and other circumstances, particularized and urged with great vivacity, many individuals inferred, that a greater number of ships might have been detached to the Mediterranean than were actually sent with admiral Byng; that the not sending an earlier and stronger force was one great cause of Minorca’s being lost, and co-operated with the delay of the ministry in sending thither reinforcements of troops, their neglect in suffering the officers of the garrison to continue absent from their duty, and their omitting to give orders for raising miners to serve in the fortress of Mahon.

{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}

EXAMINATION of the AMERICAN CONTRACT.

The next inquiry in which the house of commons engaged, related to the contracts for victualling the forces in America, which were supposed by some patriots to be fraudulent and unconscionable. This suspicion arose from an ambiguous expression, on which the contractor being interrogated by the committee appointed to examine the particulars, he prudently interpreted it in such a manner, as to screen himself from the resentment of the legislature. The house, therefore, resolved that the contract entered into on the twenty-sixth day of March, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-six, by the commissioners of the treasury, with William Baker, Christopher Kilby, and Richard Baker, of London, merchants, for furnishing provisions to the forces under the command of the earl of Loudon, was prudent and necessary, and properly adapted to the securing a constant and effectual supply for those forces in America.

INQUIRY INTO THE CONDUCT OF ADMIRAL KNOWLES, &c.

The preceding session an address had been presented to the king by the house of commons, desiring his majesty would give orders for laying before them several papers relating to disputes which had lately happened between his excellency Charles Knowles, esq., and some of the principal inhabitants of the island of Jamaica. This governor was accused of many illegal, cruel, and arbitrary acts, during the course of his administration; but these imputations he incurred by an exertion of power, which was in itself laudable, and well intended for the commercial interest of the island. This was his changing the seat of government, and procuring an act of assembly for removing the several laws, records, books, papers, and writings belonging to several offices in that island, from Spanish Town to Kingston; and for obliging the several officers to keep their offices, and hold a supreme court of judicature, at this last place, to which he had moved the seat of government. Spanish Town, otherwise called St. Jago de la Vega, the old capital, was an inconsiderable inland place, of no security, trade, or importance; whereas Kingston was the centre of commerce, situated on the side of a fine harbour filled with ships, well secured from the insults of an enemy, large, wealthy, and flourishing. Here the merchants dwell, and ship the greatest part of the sugars that grow upon the island. They found it extremely inconvenient and expensive to take out their clearances at Spanish Town, which stands at a considerable distance; and the same inconvenience and expense being felt by the rest of the inhabitants, who had occasion to prosecute suits at law, or attend the assembly of the island, they joined in representations to the governor, requesting, that, in consideration of these inconveniences, added to that of the weakness of Spanish Town and the importance of Kingston, the seat of government might be removed. He complied with their request, and in so doing entailed upon himself the hatred and resentment of certain powerful planters, who possessed estates in and about the old town of St. Jago de la Vega, thus deserted. This seems to have been the real source of the animosity and clamour incurred by Mr. Knowles, against whom a petition, signed by nineteen members of the assembly, had been sent to England, and presented to his majesty.--In the two sessions preceding this year, the affair had been brought into the house of commons, where this governor’s character was painted in frightful colours, and divers papers relating to the dispute were examined. Mr. Knowles having by this time returned to England, the subject of his administration was revived, and referred to a committee of the whole house. In the meantime, petitions were presented by several merchants of London and Liverpool, concerned in the trade to Jamaica, alleging, that the removal of the public courts, offices, and records of the island of Jamaica to Kingston, and fixing the seat of government there, had been productive of many important advantages, by rendering the strength of the island more formidable, the property of the traders and inhabitants more secure, and the prosecution of all commercial business more expeditious and less expensive than formerly; therefore, praying that the purposes of the act passed in Jamaica for that end might be carried into effectual execution, in such manner as the house should think proper. The committee, having examined a great number of papers, agreed to some resolutions, importing, that a certain resolution of the assembly of Jamaica, dated on the twenty-ninth day of October, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three, implying a claim of right in that assembly to raise and apply public money without the consent of the governor and council, was illegal, repugnant to the terms of his majesty’s commission to his governor of the said island, and derogatory of the rights of the crown and people of Great Britain; that the six last resolutions taken in the assembly of Jamaica, on the twenty-ninth day of October, in the year one thousand seven hundred and fifty-three, proceeded on a manifest misapprehension of the king’s instruction to his governor, requiring him not to give his assent to any bill of an unusual or extraordinary nature and importance, wherein his majesty’s prerogative, or the property of his subjects, might be prejudiced, or the trade or shipping of the kingdom any-ways affected, unless there should be a clause inserted, suspending the execution of such bill until his majesty’s pleasure should be known; that such instruction was just and necessary, and no alteration of the constitution of the island, nor any way derogatory to the rights of the subjects in Jamaica. From these resolutions the reader may perceive the nature of the dispute which had arisen between the people of Jamaica and their governor, vice-admiral Knowles, whose conduct on this occasion seems to have been justified by the legislature. The parliament, however, forebore to determine the question, whether the removal of the courts of judicature from Spanish Town to Kingston was a measure calculated for the interest of the island in general.

RESOLUTIONS concerning MILFORD-HAVEN.

The last object which we shall mention, as having fallen under the cognizance of the commons during this session of parliament, was the state of Milford-haven on the coast of Wales, one of the most capacious, safe, and commodious harbours in Great Britain. Here the country affords many conveniences for building ships of war, and erecting forts, docks, quays, and magazines. It might be fortified at a very small expense, so as to be quite secure from any attempts of the enemy, and rendered by far the most useful harbour in the kingdom for fleets, cruisers, trading ships, and packet boats, bound to and from the westward; for from hence they may put sea almost with any wind, and even at low water; they may weather Scilly and Cape Clear when no vessel can stir from the British channel, or out of the French ports of Brest and Rochefort, and as a post can travel from hence in three days to London, it might become the centre of very useful sea intelligence. A petition from several merchants in London was presented, and recommended to the house in a message from the king, specifying the advantages of this harbour, and the small expense at which it might be fortified, and praying that the house would take this important subject into consideration. Accordingly, a committee was appointed for this purpose, with power to send for persons, papers, and records and every circumstance relating to it was examined with accuracy and deliberation. At length the report being made to the house by Mr. Charles Townshend, they unanimously agreed to an address, representing to his majesty, that many great losses had been sustained by the trade of the kingdom, in time of war, from the want of a safe harbour on the western coast of the island, for the reception and protection of merchants’ ships, and sending out cruisers; that the harbour of Milford-haven, in the county of Pembroke, is most advantageously situated, and if properly defended and secured, in every respect adapted to the answering those important purposes; they, therefore, humbly besought his majesty, that he would give immediate directions for erecting batteries, with proper cover, on the sides of the said harbour, in the most convenient places for guarding the entrance called Hubber-stone-road, and also such other fortifications as might be necessary to secure the interior parts of the harbour, and that, until such batteries and fortifications could be completed, some temporary defence might be provided for the immediate protection of the ships and vessels lying in the said harbour; finally, they assured him the house would make good to his majesty all such expenses as should be incurred for these purposes. The address met with a gracious reception, and a promise that such directions should be given. The harbour was actually surveyed, the places were pitched upon for batteries, and the estimates prepared, but no further progress hath since been made.

SESSION CLOSED.

We have now finished the detail of all the material transactions of this session, except what relates to the fate of admiral Byng, which now claims our attention. In the meantime, we may observe, that on the fourth day of July the session was closed with his majesty’s harangue, the most remarkable and pleasing paragraph of which turned upon his royal assurance, that the succour and preservation of his dominions in America had been his constant care, and, next to the security of his kingdoms, should continue to be his great and principal object. He told them he had taken such measures as, he trusted, by the blessing of God, might effectually disappoint the designs of the enemy in those parts; that he had no further view but to vindicate the just rights of his crown and subjects from the most injurious encroachments; to preserve tranquillity, as far as the circumstances of things might admit; to prevent the true friends of Britain, and the liberties of Europe, from being oppressed and endangered by any unprovoked and unnatural conjunction.

TRIAL OF ADMIRAL BYNG.

Of all the transactions that distinguished this year, the most extraordinary was the sentence executed on admiral Byng, the son of that great officer who had acquired such honour by his naval exploits in the preceding reign, and was ennobled for his services by the title of lord viscount Torrington. His second son, John Byng, had from his earliest youth been trained to his father’s profession; and was generally esteemed one of the best officers in the navy, when he embarked in that expedition to Minorca, which covered his character with disgrace, and even exposed him to all the horrors of an ignominious death. On the twenty-eighth day of December his trial began before a court-martial, held on board the ship St. George, in the harbour of Portsmouth, to which place Mr. Byng had been conveyed from Greenwich by a party of horse-guards, and insulted by the populace in every town and village through which he passed. The court having proceeded to examine the evidences for the crown and the prisoner, from day to day, in the course of a long sitting, agreed unanimously to thirty-seven resolutions, implying their opinion, that admiral Byng, during the engagement between the British and French fleets, on the twentieth day of May last, did not do his utmost endeavour to take, seize, and destroy the ships of the French king, which it was his duty to have engaged, and to assist such of his majesty’s ships as were engaged, which it was his duty to have assisted; and that he did not exert his utmost-power for the relief of St. Philip’s castle. They, therefore, unanimously agreed that he fell under part of the twelfth article of an act of parliament passed in the twenty-second year of the present reign, for amending, explaining, and reducing into one act of parliament, the laws relating to the government of his majesty’s ships, vessels, and forces by sea; and as that article positively prescribed death, without any alternative left to the discretion of the court under any variation of circumstances, they unanimously adjudged the said admiral John Byng to be shot to death, at such time, and on board of such ship, as the lords commissioners of the admiralty should please to direct. But as it appeared, by the evidence of the officers who were near the admiral’s person, that no backwardness was perceivable in him during the action, nor any mark of fear or confusion either in his countenance or behaviour; but that he delivered his orders coolly and distinctly, without seeming deficient in personal courage; and, from other circumstances, they believed his misconduct did not arise either from cowardice or disaffection, they unanimously and earnestly recommended him as a proper object of mercy. The admiral himself behaved through the whole trial with the most cheerful composure, seemingly the effect of conscious innocence, upon which, perhaps, he too much relied. Even after he heard the evidence examined against him, and finished his own defence, he laid his account in being honourably acquitted; and ordered his coach to be ready for conveying him directly from the tribunal to London. A gentleman, his friend, by whom he was attended, having received intimation of the sentence to be pronounced, thought it his duty to prepare him for the occasion, that he might summon all his fortitude to his assistance, and accordingly made him acquainted with the information he had received. The admiral gave tokens of surprise and resentment, but betrayed no marks of fear or disorder, either then or in the court when the sentence was pronounced. On the contrary, while divers members of the court-martial manifested grief, anxiety, and trepidation, shedding tears, and sighing with extraordinary emotion, he heard his doom denounced without undergoing the least alteration of feature, and made a low obeisance to the president and the other members of the court, as he retired.

The officers who composed this tribunal were so sensible of the law’s severity, that they unanimously subscribed a letter to the board of admiralty containing this remarkable paragraph:--“We cannot help laying the distresses of our minds before your lordships on this occasion, in finding ourselves under necessity of condemning a man to death, from the great severity of the twelfth article of war, part of which he falls under, which admits of no mitigation if the crime should be committed by an error in judgment; and, therefore, for our own consciences’ sake, as well as in justice to the prisoner, we pray your lordships, in the most earnest manner, to recommend him to his majesty’s clemency.” The lords of the admiralty, instead of complying with the request of the court-martial, transmitted their letter to the king, with copies of their proceedings, and a letter from themselves to his majesty, specifying a doubt with regard to the legality of the sentence, as the crime of negligence, for which the admiral had been condemned, was not expressed in any part of the proceedings. At the same time, copies of two petitions from George lord viscount Torrington, in behalf of his kinsman admiral Byng, were submitted to his majesty’s royal wisdom and determination. All the friends and relations of the unhappy convict employed and exerted their influence and interest for his pardon; and, as the circumstances had appeared so strong in his favour, it was supposed that the sceptre of royal mercy would be extended for his preservation; but infamous arts were used to whet the savage appetite of the populace for blood. The cry of vengeance was loud throughout the land: sullen clouds of suspicion and malevolence interposing, were said to obstruct the genial beams of the best virtue that adorns the throne; and the sovereign was given to understand, that the execution of admiral Byng was a victim absolutely necessary to appease the fury of the people. His majesty, in consequence of the representation made by the lords of the admiralty, referred the sentence to the consideration of the twelve judges, who were unanimously of opinion that the sentence was legal. This report being transmitted from the privy-council to the admiralty, their lordships issued a warrant for executing the sentence of death on the twenty-eighth day of February. One gentleman at the board, however, refused to subscribe the warrant, assigning for his refusal the reasons which we have inserted by way of note, for the satisfaction of the reader. [401] _[See note 3 H, at the end of this Vol.]_

Though mercy was denied to the criminal, the crown seemed determined to do nothing that should be thought inconsistent with law. A member of parliament, who had sat upon the court-martial at Portsmouth, rose up in his place, and made application to the house of commons in behalf of himself and several other members of that tribunal, praying the aid of the legislature to be released from the oath of secrecy imposed on courts-martial, that they might disclose the grounds on which sentence of death had passed on admiral Byng, and, perhaps, discover such circumstances as might show the sentence to be improper. Although this application produced no resolution in the house, the king, on the twenty-sixth day of February, sent a message to the commons by Mr. Secretary Pitt, importing, that, though he had determined to let the law take its course with relation to admiral Byng, and resisted all solicitations to the contrary, yet, as a member of the house had expressed some scruples about the sentence, his majesty had thought fit to respite the execution of it, that there might be an opportunity of knowing, by the separate examination of the members of the court-martial, upon oath, what grounds there were for such scruples, and that his majesty was resolved still to let the sentence be carried into execution, unless it should appear from the said examination, that admiral Byng was unjustly condemned. The sentence might be strictly legal, and, at the same time very severe, according to the maxim, _summum jus, summa injuria_. In such cases, and perhaps in such cases only, the rigour of the law ought to be softened by the lenient hand of the royal prerogative. That this was the case of admiral Byng appears from the warm and eager intercession of his jury, a species of intercession which hath generally, if not always, prevailed at the foot of the throne, when any thing favourable for the criminal had appeared in the course of the trial. How much more then might it have been expected to succeed, when earnestly urged as a case of conscience, in behalf of a man whom his judges had expressly acquitted of cowardice and treachery, the only two imputations that rendered him criminal in the eyes of the nation! Such an interposition of the crown in parliamentary transactions was irregular, unnecessary, and at another juncture might have been productive of violent heats and declamation. At present, however, it passed without censure, as the effect of inattention, rather than a design to encroach upon the privileges of the house.

BILL TO RELEASE THE MEMBERS OF THE COURT-MARTIAL, &c

The message being communicated, a bill was immediately brought in, to release the members of the court-martial from the obligation of secrecy, and passed through the lower house without opposition; but in the house of lords it appeared to be destitute of a proper foundation. They sent a message to the commons, desiring them to give leave that such of the members of the court-martial as were members of that house might attend their lordships, in order to be examined on the second reading of the bill; accordingly they, and the rest of the court-martial, attended, and answered all questions without hesitation. As they did not insist upon any excuse, nor produce any satisfactory reason for showing that the man they had condemned was a proper object of mercy, their lordships were of opinion that there was no occasion for passing any such bill, which, therefore, they almost unanimously rejected. It is not easy to conceive what stronger reasons could be given for proving Mr. Byng an object of mercy, than those mentioned in the letter sent to the board of admiralty by the members of the court-martial, who were empowered to try the imputed offence, consequently must have been deemed well qualified to judge of his conduct.

EXECUTION OF ADMIRAL BYNG.

The unfortunate admiral being thus abandoned to the stroke of justice, prepared himself for death with resignation and tranquillity. He maintained a surprising cheerfulness to the last; nor did he, from his condemnation to his execution, exhibit the least sign of impatience or apprehension. During that interval he had remained on board of the Monarque, a third-rate ship of war, anchored in the harbour of Portsmouth, under a strong guard, in custody of the marshal of the admiralty. On the fourteenth of March, the day fixed for his execution, the boats belonging to the squadron at Spithead being manned and armed, containing their captains and officers, with a detachment of marines, attended this solemnity in the harbour, which was also crowded with an infinite number of other boats and vessels filled with spectators. About noon, the admiral having taken leave of a clergyman, and two friends who accompanied him, walked out of the great cabin to the quarter-deck, where two files of marines were ready to execute the sentence. He advanced with a firm deliberate step, a composed and resolute countenance, and resolved to suffer with his face uncovered, until his friends, representing that his looks would possibly intimidate the soldiers, and prevent their taking aim properly, he submitted to their request, threw his hat on the deck, kneeled on a cushion, tied one white handkerchief over his eyes, and dropped the other as a signal for his executioners, who fired a volley so decisive, that five balls passed through his body, and he dropped down dead in an instant. The time in which this tragedy was acted, from his walking out of the cabin to his being deposited in the coffin, did not exceed three minutes.

Thus fell, to the astonishment of all Europe, admiral John Byng; who, whatever his errors and indiscretions might have been, seems to have been rashly condemned, meanly given up, and cruelly sacrificed to vile considerations. The sentiments of his own fate he avowed on the verge of eternity, when there was no longer any cause of dissimulation, in the following declaration, which, immediately before his death, he delivered to the marshal of the admiralty: “A few moments will now deliver me from the virulent persecution, and frustrate the further malice of my enemies: nor need I envy them a life subject to the sensations my injuries, and the injustice done me, must create. Persuaded I am, that justice will be done to my reputation hereafter: the manner and cause of raising and keeping up the popular clamour and prejudice against me, will be seen through. I shall be considered (as I now perceive myself) a victim destined to divert the indignation and resentment of an injured and deluded people from the proper objects. My enemies themselves must now think me innocent. Happy for me, at this my last moment, that I know my own innocence, and am conscious that no part of my country’s misfortunes can be owing to me. I heartily wish the shedding my blood may contribute to the happiness and service of my country; but cannot resign my just claim to a faithful discharge of my duty according to the best of my judgment, and the utmost exertion of my ability for his majesty’s honour, and my country’s service. I am sorry that my endeavours were not attended with more success, and that the armament under my command proved too weak to succeed in an expedition of such moment. Truth has prevailed over calumny and falsehood, and justice has wiped off the ignominious stain of my supposed want of personal courage, and the charge of disaffection. My heart acquits me of these crimes; but who can be presumptuously sure of his own judgment? If my crime is an error in judgment, or differing in opinion from my judges, and if yet the error in judgment should be on their side, God forgive them, as I do; and may the distress of their minds, and uneasiness of their consciences, which in justice to me they have represented, be relieved, and subside as my resentment has done. The supreme judge sees all hearts and motives, and to him I must submit the justice of my cause.”

{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}

REMARKS ON ADMIRAL BYNG’S FATE.

Notwithstanding all that has been said in his favour, notwithstanding the infamous arts that were practised to keep up the cry against him, notwithstanding this solemn appeal to heaven in his last moments, and even self-conviction of innocence, the character of admiral Byng, in point of personal courage, will still, with many people, remain problematical. They will still be of opinion, that if the spirit of a British admiral had been properly exerted, the French fleet would have been defeated, and Minorca relieved. A man’s opinion of danger varies at different times, in consequence of an irregular tide of animal spirits, and he is actuated by considerations which he dares not avow. After an officer, thus influenced, has hesitated or kept aloof in the hour of trial, the mind, eager for its own justification, assembles, with surprising industry, every favourable circumstance of excuse, and broods over them with parental partiality, until it becomes not only satisfied, but even enamoured of their beauty and complexion, like a doating mother, blind to the deformity of her own offspring. Whatever Mr. Byng’s internal feelings might have been, whatever consequences might have attended his behaviour on that occasion; as the tribunal before which he was tried acquitted him expressly of cowardice and treachery, he was, without all doubt, a proper object for royal clemency; and so impartial posterity will judge him, after all those dishonourable motives of faction and of fear, by which his fate was influenced, shall be lost in oblivion, or remembered with disdain. The people of Great Britain, naturally fierce, impatient, and clamorous, have been too much indulged, upon every petty miscarriage, with trials, courts-martial, and dismissions, which tend only to render their military commanders rash and precipitate, the populace more licentious and intractable, and to disgrace the national character in the opinion of mankind.