TH

HE variety of remarks which have been made upon the laft letter of Junius, and my own opinion of the writer, who, whatever may be his faults, is certainly not a weak man, have induced me to examine, with fome attention, the subject of that letter. I could not perfuade myself that, while he had plenty of important materials, he would have taken up a light or trifling occafion to attack the ministry; much lefs could I conceive that it was his intention to ruin the officers concerned in the refcue of General Ganfell, or to injure the General himself. Thefe are little objects, and can no way contribute to the great purposes he seems to have in view by addreffing himfelf to the public. Without confidering the ornamented ftile he has adopted, I determined to look farther into the matter, before I decided upon the merits of his letter. The first step I took was to enquire into the truth of the facts; for if thefe were either falfe or

mifreprefented, the most artful exertion of his understanding, in reafoning upon them, would only be a difgrace to him.-Now, Sir, I have found every circumstance stated by Junius to be literally true. General Ganfell

perfuaded the bailiffs to conduct him to the parade, and certainly folicited a corporal and other foldiers to affift him in making his escape. Captain Dodd * did certainly apply to Captain Garth for the affistance of his guard. Captain Garth declined appearing himself, but ftood aloof, while the other took upon him to order out the King's guard, and by main force refcued the General. It is alfo ftrictly true, that the General was escorted by a file of mufqueteers to a place of fecurity. -Thefe are facts, Mr. Woodfall, which I promise you no gentleman in the guards will deny. If all or any of them are false, why are they not contradicted by the parties themfelves? However fecure against military cenfure, they have yet a character to lofe, and furely, if they are innocent, it is not beneath them to pay fome attention to the opinion of the public.

THE force of Junius's Obfervations upon thefe facts cannot be better marked, than by

* Dodd and Garth, though only lieutenants, had captains rank. All the lieutenants of the Guards, have captains rank.

flating

ftating and refuting the objections which have been made to them. One writer fays, "Admitting the officers have offended, they

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are punishable at common law, and will "you have a British fubje&t punished twice "for the fame offence?"-I anfwer that they have committed two offences, both very enormous, and violated two laws. The rescue is one offence, the flagrant breach of difcipline another, and hitherto it does not appear that they have been punished, or even cenfured for either. Another gentleman lays much stress upon the calamity of the case, and, inftead of difproving facts, appeals at once to the compaffion of the public. This idea, as well as the infinuation that depriving the parties of their commiffions would be an injury to their creditors, can only refer to General Ganfell. The other officers are in no diftrefs, therefore have no claim to compaffion, nor does it appear, that their creditors, if they have any, are more likely to be satisfied by their continuing in the guards. But this fort of plea will not hold in any fhape. Compaffion to an offender, who has grofsly violated the laws, is in effect a cruelty to the peaceable subject who has obferved them; and, even admitting the force of any alleviating circumftances, it is nevertheless true, that, in this inftance, the royal compaffion has interpofed too foon. The legal and pro

per

per mercy of a King of England may remit the punishment, but ought not to stop the trial.

a

BESIDES thefe particular objections, there has been a cry raised against Junius for his malice and injuftice in attacking the minifry upon an event, which they could neither hinder nor forefee. This, I must affirm, is a falfe reprefentation of his argument. He lays no stress upon the event itself, as ground of accufation against the miniftry, but dwells entirely upon their fubfequent conduct. He does not fay that they are anfwerable for the offence, but for the scandalous neglect of their duty, in fuffering an offence, fo flagrant, to pafs by without notice or inquiry. Suppofing them ever so regardlefs of what they owe to the public, and as indifferent about the opinion as they are about the interefts of their country, what anfwer, as officers of the crown, will they give to Junius, when he asks them, Are they aware of the outrage offered to their Sovereign, when his own proper guard is ordered out to stop, by main force, the execution of his laws ?-And when we see a ministry giving fuch a strange unaccountable protection to the officers of the guards, is it unfair to fufpect, that they have fome fecret and unwarrantable motives for their conduct? If they feel themselves in

jured

jured by fuch a fufpicion, why do they not immediately clear themfelves from it, by doing their duty? For the honour of the guards, I cannot help expreffing another fufpicion, that if the commanding officer had not received a fecret injunction to the contrary, he would, in the ordinary courfe of his bufinefs, have applied for a court martial to try the two fubalterns; the one for quitting his guard-the other for taking upon him the command of the guard, and employing it in the manner he did. I do not mean to enter into or defend the feverity, with which Junius treats the guards. On the contrary, I will fuppofe, for a moment, that they deserve a very different character If this be true, in what light will they confider the conduct of the two fubalterns, but as a general reproach and difgrace to the whole corps? And will they not wish to fee them cenfured in a military way, if it were only for the credit and discipline of the regiment.

UPON the whole, Sir, the Ministry feem to me to have taken a very improper advantage of the good-nature of the public, whofe humanity, they found, confidered nothing in this affair but the distress of General Ganfell. They would perfuade us that it was only a common refcue by a few diforderly foldiers, and not the formal deliberate act VOL. I. M

of