Ye true bacchanals come to Ned of the Dales,
And there let’s carouse oe’r a butt of strong liquor,
Bring with you no shirkers, nor friends to usurpers,
But souls that will drink till their pulses beat quicker.
May the courtier who snarls at the friend of Prince C—s,
And eke who our houses and windows made dark,
Ne’er pilfer much treasure, nor taste of such pleasure;
Then hark to the chorus of Robin John Clark.
May each bung his eye till the vessel’s quite dry,
And drink to the low’ring extravagant taxes;
For the spirit of Britain, by foreigners spit on,
Quite cold by oppression and tyranny waxes.
Then here’s to the toast, tho’ the battle was lost,
And he who refuses a traytor we’ll mark:
Here’s a health to the prince, not meaning from whence,
For thus sings the chorus of Robin John Clark.
Then fill up another to the good duke his brother,
Not meaning that blood-thirsty cruel assassin;
May the Scotch partisans recollect their stout clans,
Their force, twenty thousand in number surpassing;
May they enter Whitehall, old St. James’s, and all,
While the troops are for safety encamp’d in the park;
May kind heaven inspire each volley and fire,
For thus sings the chorus of Robin John Clark.
Hand in hand let us joyn against such as combine,
And dare to enslave with vile usurpation;
Whenever time offers, we’ll open our coffers,
And fight to retrieve the bad state of the nation.
We’ll not only drink, but we’ll act as we think,
We’ll take the brown musket, the sword, and the dirk,
Thro’ all sorts of weather, we’ll trade it together,
So God bless the chorus of Robin John Clark.
In a note to this tale it is stated that tradition reports that the young
Pretender visited the Principality prior to the Rebellion; but this
statement is scarcely credible, nor is there any evidence in support of
its truth. It is, however, indisputable, that he reckoned the greater
number of the wealthy landowners of Wales among his adherents, and one of
the original projects of his army, in its advance from Scotland, was that
of marching into Wales, where the people, and even the clergy, {14a} were
well known to be warmly devoted to the Stuarts, while the character of
the country was considered to be favourable to the desultory mode of
warfare practised by the Highlanders. Anticipating that such a course
would be adopted, several of the leading gentry had prepared themselves
to join him, and many of them had left their houses, and were actually on
their way to meet him, {14b} when the mortifying intelligence reached
them of the retreat from Derby. At that period, the influence of the
gentry of Wales over their tenantry, and the peasantry generally, was
very great, and it is extremely probable that an advance into Wiles would
have secured to the Pretender an immense accession to his forces. The
unexpected retreat, however, prevented any rising among the Welsh, and
the adherents of the Stuarts were thus saved from the ruin in which most
probably they would otherwise have been eventually involved. They were
fully prepared to risk both life and estate in the cause of the prince
whom they loved, though that prince, like other Stuarts, may, after all,
have proved unworthy of their sacrifices and devotion. Tradition states
that, for many years subsequent to the memorable Forty-Five, {15a} the
Welsh squires, at their convivial meetings, were accustomed to discuss
and dispute as to the share which each had taken in the movement, and the
respective distances that intervened between them and the prince’s army,
when the news of the retreat reached them, and compelled them to return
to their homes. In a letter written many months subsequently, {15b} the
young Pretender, while referring incidently to Mr. Barry, states that he
“arrived at Derby two days after I parted. He had been sent by Sir
Watkin Wynn to assure me, in the name of my friends, that they were ready
to join me in what manner I pleased.”
The prince himself is said to have been most anxious to proceed into
Wales; {15c} for at Derby, when the retreat was under discussion, and all
his arguments in favour of an advance to London had proved unavailing,
he, at last, “as a middle course, proposed that they should march into
Wales, to give their partizans in that country an opportunity of
joining.” {15d}
Foremost and boldest among those who contended for a forward movement,
and counselled the advance upon Loudon, was David Morgan. He
determinedly opposed the retreat, and clearly foresaw its disastrous
consequences. W hen he found that the Scottish commanders had actually
commenced the retrograde movement, and that the troops were in full
retreat for Scotland, it is stated by one of the leading noblemen {16}
connected with the Pretender, that “Mr. Morgan, an English gentleman,
came up to Mr. Vaughan, who was riding with the Life Guards, and after
saluting him, said, ‘D— me, Vaughan, they are going to Scotland!’ Mr.
Vaughan replied, ‘wherever they go, I am determined, now I have joined
them, to go along with them.’ Upon which Mr. Morgan said, with an oath,
‘I had rather be _hanged_ than go to Scotland to _starve_.’ Mr. Morgan
_was hanged_ in 1746; and Mr. Vaughan _is an officer in Spain_.”
David Morgan, or, as he is occasionally designated, David Thomas Morgan,
was one of the boldest spirits associated with this momentous struggle.
He was among the first of the English, or Welsh, Jacobites to join the
forces of Charles Edward on his advance into England, and remained by his
side until the forward movement had been finally abandoned, and all hope
of a successful issue to the enterprize had been lost.
As was the case with many of the unfortunate participators in the
Rebellion, it was the fortune of David Morgan to be misrepresented by the
partisans of the reigning dynasty, and to have his memory assailed by the
most injurious aspersions, and discreditable calumnies. Long after the
turbulent times in which these brave and hapless men lived, it would have
been unsafe to suggest any palliation of their offence, to express any
sorrow for their melancholy fate, or to seek to defend their memories
from unmerited ignomy, and unjustifiable slander. And, yet many of those
whose memories have been clouded, and whose names have been involved in
partial oblivion, were men of the highest honour, the most refined
intelligence, and chivalrous self-devotion. In supporting the cause of
the prince, whom they regarded as the only lawful heir to the throne of
their country, the highest order of personal bravery, romantic heroism,
and complete disregard of all selfish considerations were evoked, and
called into existence. With a lofty disdain of the dangers which they
incurred, they braved the fearful penalties which the barbarous laws
relating to High Treason then awarded to its luckless victims, and were
content to sacrifice their positions (distinguished and influential as
many of them were), their homes, and fortunes, and even life itself, for
the cherished idea to which they clung, and were devoted. For themselves
individually, few of them could have anticipated much personal advantage,
even from a successful issue to their struggle; while all that men
cherished and held dear were fearfully imperilled. Yet these were the
men whom a merciless but dominant faction doomed to deaths invested with
every horror that cruelty and a brutal law could devise, and pursued with
malignant and unrelenting ferocity, even after they had expiated with
their lives the offences into which their mistaken but noble devotion had
led them.
Among the adherents of the young Pretender there were few who evinced
more devoted attachment to his cause, albeit a desperate one, than David
Morgan. He appears to have received prompt information of the movements
of Charles Edward, and to have been aware, at an early period, of the
projected advance into England. The army of the Pretender commenced its
adventurous march from Carlisle, where the onward movement was finally
decided upon, on the 20th of November, 1745; and arrived at Preston, in
Lancashire, on the 27th, {17a} where the two divisions into which their
forces had been divided were again united, and rested for the day.
Here it was that David Morgan joined them, with a friend, whose name is
unknown to me, but who, together with his servant, had accompanied him
from Monmouthshire. {17b} At the distance of a mile, or so, from the
town, the two gentlemen dismounted, and leaving their horses in charge of
the servant, walked to Preston, in order to elude observation, and to
avoid creating any suspicion of their intention to join the rebels.
The circumstance of its appearing in evidence that he had left
Monmouthshire with his friend probably caused it to be inferred that he
resided in that county. Such, however, was not the case. His residence
was in Glamorganshire, though close to the borders of the adjoining
county of Monmouth. It is somewhat singular that the house of his
father’s nativity, if not of his also, as well as that in which he
resided, though nearly 20 miles apart, were situated in nearly the same
relative position with reference to the counties of Monmouth and
Glamorgan; and were, in each case, not far removed from the Rhymney
river, which divides those shires.
He appears to have spent much of his time in London, and to have
possessed a residence there; but, when staying in Glamorganshire, he
resided at Penygraig Taf, which, at that period, must have been a
singularly secluded and solitary place. It is situated in the hamlet of
Forest, in the parish of Merthyr-Tydfil, and occupies an elevated and
picturesque position on the summit of the hill that divides the Taff from
the Bargoed Taff valley, and is now a farm-house, retaining nothing in
its character to distinguish it from the ordinary dwelling of a Welsh
farmer. At that period, the population must have been very limited, and
widely scattered; so that few scenes could be found of greater seclusion,
or more conducive to quiet and calm contentment.
The river Taff, that flowed far below in the depths of the valley, was
then unpolluted by the dross and impure refuse of the mines and
manufactures of Merthyr-Tydfil, and, except when agitated into wrathful
turbulence by storms, and the rapid influx of mountain torrents, rippled
by in pure and calm serenity. The small forge, at which iron had been
manufactured as early as the reign of Henry VIII., if not previously, at
the place now called Pontygwaith, or the bridge of the work, and
immediately below Penygraig, on the opposite side of the river, had long
ceased to resound in the valley, and Merthyr-Tydfil was then a quiet
village, containing perhaps at most a score of houses, or so. And now,
when little more than a century has passed away, how wonderfully have all
things changed, and the stillness of this remote locality been invaded.
Midway up the side of the valley, not more than a mile from Penygraig
House, now stands the Quaker’s-Yard Station of the West Midland Railway,
and the two noble viaducts that carry the Taff Vale and the West Midland
Railways across the Taff river; while at an equally short distance,
stands another viaduct of elegant proportions that spans the tributary
valley of Bargoed Taff.
In this quiet spot David Morgan was roused from what may possibly have
been peaceful dreams of happiness, and calm domesticity, to participate
in the anxieties and perils of the Rebellion. On receiving the first
intimation of the Pretender’s arrival in Scotland, he departed from
Penygraig, to return there no more; and there is a tradition still extant
in that neighbourhood that, in starting on his fatal journey, he stopped
at Efail Llancaiach, which still exists as a smithy, to have his horse
shod, and is stated so have said to the smith, in Welsh, “You are against
me now, but when I return you will be all with me.” He then appears to
have proceeded to join the friend of whom previous mention has been made,
and to have journeyed with him on horseback through North Wales into
Cheshire, where he paid a visit to an acquaintance residing at Etherton
Hall. From thence he rode to Preston, in Lancashire, as already stated,
to join the army of the Pretender.
It is quite manifest that he must have been very actively and
influentially engaged in the movement prior to this, and well known by
reputation, if not by actual correspondence, to Prince Charles Edward, as
he was immediately received into his confidence, and held so prominent a
position in his counsels as to cause him to be designated the
“Pretender’s Counsellor.” {19}
He accompanied the army in its onward march to Manchester, where it
arrived on the 29th. Though he had joined them only two days previously,
he was shown on his trial to have been one of the most prominent actors
in the proceedings that took place in that town. The Pretender was
received at Manchester with demonstrations of high satisfaction, and a
large number of the inhabitants enrolled themselves among his supporters,
under the designation of “the Manchester Regiment,” the command of which
was offered, in the first place, to David Morgan. He, however, declined
the position, and the unfortunate Colonel Towneley, {20a} who, Morgan
said, “was much fitter than he was for such an office,” a Roman Catholic
gentleman of ancient family, high reputation, and more than ordinary
attainments, consented to assume the command. But, though declining to
undertake any special command, he marched with the army as a gentleman
volunteer, was particularly active and prominent, and appears to have
been invested with considerable authority. He obtained an order from
Secretary Murray {20b} to search for arms, and for their surrender on
pain of military execution; and it was proved by one of the constables of
Manchester that he had obtained possession of arms, which he had
delivered at the lodgings of “Squire Morgan.” He wore a white cockade in
his hat, and a sword by his side. It was likewise shown that he paid the
expenses, when the officers and he dined together; and as one of the
witnesses stated at his trial, “gave all the directions about
everything,” and rode at the side of the Pretender, mounted on a bay
horse. It was further given in evidence against him, that, “being at
dinner with several rebel officers at Derby, he asked Lord Elcho what
number of men they had? to which his lordship answered, about 4 or 5000,
and 17 pieces of cannon. That he then asked, what religion the young
Pretender was of? and Lord Elcho replied, shaking his head, that he
believed his religion was to seek. That the prisoner advised to beat up
for volunteers, and said that it would be an easy matter to march to
London; for that there were not above 3000 soldiers between London and
that city, and those mostly dragoons, except a few undisciplined troops
lately raised by Lords Gower and Cholmondely, who could make but little
opposition.” {21}
They departed from Manchester on the 1st of December, and, marching
through Congleton, Leek, and Ashbourn, they entered on the 4th December
into the town of Derby, which was only one hundred and twenty-seven miles
distant from the metropolis.
The news of the Pretender having arrived at that town soon reached
London, and struck terror into the hearts of those who were unfavourable
to the Stuarts’ cause; and the King was so seriously alarmed, that he
ordered his yacht to be loaded with his valuables, and to remain at the
Tower Quay, prepared to start at the shortest intimation. At this time,
precarious as the Prince’s position unquestionably was, a bold dash in
the direction of London would probably have rendered him the possessor of
the throne of England. Weaker counsels, however, prevailed; the whole of
the principal leaders imperatively urged a retreat into Scotland, and the
Prince was compelled to succumb to their views, though wholly opposed to
his own convictions. This decision sealed the fate of Charles, and
destroyed the glowing hopes that had hitherto buoyed him up; but none of
his adherents, as has been already stated, were more clearly impressed
with the conviction of the suicidal impolicy of a retrograde movement
than David Morgan. Bold, decisive, and rapid action could alone have
saved them; and an onward march would have encouraged the wavering, and
strengthened the determination of the doubtful; while many of their
adherents, as in the case of the Welsh gentry, were at that moment on
their way to join them. But regardless of the prayers and entreaties of
the Prince, the Highland commanders held firmly to their determination to
return to Scotland; and on Friday, {22} the 6th of December, commenced
the melancholy retreat, that was the forerunner of so much subsequent
disaster, bloodshed, and ruthless cruelty. Seeing the utter hopelessness
of their position, if left to the tender mercies of the government, many
of the English Jacobites determined to share the fortunes of the
retreating army, while others withdrew themselves at various parts of the
route, and made an effort to save themselves by flight. Among those who
declined to proceed into Scotland, as already mentioned, was David
Morgan, who parted from his friends at Ashbourn, near Leek, in
Staffordshire, on Saturday, the 7th of December; and, accompanied by a
guide, proceeded in the direction of Stone, near which place he was
apprehended on suspicion of having belonged to the Pretender’s army, and
placed in confinement.
Though apprehended early in the month of December, 1745, and brought to
trial among the first batch of the unfortunate Jacobites, David Morgan
suffered imprisonment until the close of July, 1746. Immediately
preceding the trial, he was imprisoned in Newgate, to which prison it is
probable that he was removed shortly after his apprehension.
The special commission was opened on the 23rd of June, when eight of the
Judges went in procession from Sergeants’ Inn, to the Town Hall of St.
Margaret’s Hill, and Lord Chief Justice Lee delivered a charge to the
grand jury. The trials did not, however, commence before the 15th of
July, 1746, when seventeen prisoners, including David Morgan, were placed
at the bar, though his trial did not, after all, take place until the
18th.
It is stated that “the time, place, or circumstances were not varied in
any of the indictments, except Counsellor Morgan’s, who was indicted for
having been in arms in Derby on the 5th of December, and adhering to the
King’s enemies.” {23a}
David Morgan had been too bold and prominent an actor in the Rebellion to
render it in any degree difficult for the government to procure decisive
evidence of his complicity; and, though he made a lengthened and
ingenious defence, the united testimony of several credible witnesses
insured his conviction.
After the breaking up of the court, all those that were found guilty
received notice that sentence of death would be passed upon them on
Tuesday, the 22nd of July, and were required to be prepared on that day
with any plea they might have to urge in arrest of judgment. Many
objections were accordingly raised on behalf of the prisoners, but were
over-ruled by the court; and Lord Chief Justice Lee then proceeded to
pass sentence on the whole of the prisoners, seventeen in number, the
last of whom was David Morgan, in a lengthy address, and concluded by
sentencing them, in the barbarous terms prescribed by the law of high
treason, “to be drawn to the place of execution, and when they are come
there, they must be severally hanged by the neck, but not till they be
dead, for they must be cut down alive; then their bowels must be taken
out, and burnt before their faces; then their heads must be severed from
their bodies, and their bodies severally divided into four quarters, and
these must be at the King’s disposal.” {23b}
At two o’clock, on the 29th of the same month, an order arrived at the
gaol for the execution, on the next day, of Francis Towneley, George
Fletcher, Thomas Chadwick, James Dawson, Thomas Deacon, John Berwick,
Andrew Syddal, and David Morgan; and when it was intimated to them that
they were to die on the following morning; “they seemed not at all
shocked, but rather cheerful, only saying ‘God’s will be done.’ They
went to rest at the usual hour, and slept soundly; but first took leave
of their friends.” {24a} Among those who carne to take a sad farewell of
one of the unhappy men, was Mrs. Morgan. During the whole period of her
husband’s imprisonment she had attended on him with remarkable devotion,
and, to use the words of a contemporary writer, by no means favourable to
the unfortunate Jacobites, “had behaved with all the love and tenderness
becoming an affectionate wife.” {24b}
At six o’clock on the following morning they were aroused from sleep, and
unfastened from the floor, to which, since their condemnation, they had
been chained. On descending to the court-yard of their prison, Morgan
ordered coffee to be prepared for their breakfast, and bade them “take
care to make it very good and strong; for he had never drunk any since he
had been in that prison fit to come near a gentleman.” {24c}
With death in its most terrible form before them, never did men manifest
more undaunted courage and manly fortitude, nor more calmly await the
doom which they knew to be inevitable. Actors and sufferers in the same
cause, and participators in the same sad fate, they sympathised with, and
aided, comforted, and consoled each other like a band of brothers. Much
has been said of the lofty indifference to his doom that was exhibited at
his execution by the brave Lord Balmerino, which was of so remarkable a
character that a fear was expressed by himself that his coolness might
possibly be supposed to proceed from insensibility to the great change
that awaited him; from which, however, the noble fortitude of the old
Jacobite lord was very far removed. And, while clinging warmly to life,
and to the loved ones from whom they were about to be separated for ever,
David Morgan and his heroic companions had, in like manner, tutored their
hearts to manly resignation, and were determined so to die as to reflect
no dishonour on the cause which they had espoused. In their conduct and
demeanour in the hour of their great trial and suffering, they displayed
neither levity, nor stoical indifference to the awful fate that awaited
them; but comported themselves with the calmness and resignation of brave
Christian gentlemen. After breakfast their irons were struck off,
Colonel Towneley being the first to have them removed, and Mr. Morgan the
second. They were then pinioned, and, while the sledges were being
placed in readiness, they were removed for a short time into a back room.
After this they were placed in three sledges, each of which was drawn by
three horses; and about ten o’clock were removed from the gaol, and taken
to Kennington Common, guarded by a troop of dragoons, and some companies
of the Foot-Guards. There the gallows had been erected, and beside it
were placed a pile of faggots and a block. On their arrival, the doomed
men were removed from the sledges to a cart that was placed under the
beam, for the purpose of receiving, and turning them off. The faggots
were then set on fire, and the guards formed in a circle around the place
of execution.
There being no minister of religion in attendance on either of the
condemned men, “Mr. Morgan, with his spectacles on, read prayers, and
other pious meditations to them,” {25} out of some devotional work, to
which they all paid marked attention, and joined devoutly and fervently
in the prayers that were offered up. They continued at their devotions
for upwards of half-an-hour, after which they arose from their knees, and
each taking some papers out of the book that he held in his hand, threw
them, together with the book, among the spectators. Those papers appear
to have contained ardent professions of attachment to the cause for which
they died, and declarations that they remained faithful to their
principles, even to death. They likewise handed statements, of a similar
purport, to the sheriffs, and then flung their hats, which were laced
with gold, among the crowd. The executioner immediately placed the caps
on their heads, drew them over their faces, and, the ropes having been
adjusted round their necks, they were at once turned off. After they had
been suspended for about three minutes, their shoes, white stockings, and
breeches were pulled off by the soldiers, while the executioner himself
removed the other portions of the clothing, immediately after which the
body of Colonel Towneley was cut down, and placed on the block. Some
appearances of life having however, been observed, the executioner struck
the body, and cut the throat with a knife. He then proceeded to remove
the bowels and heart, which he threw into the fire. The head was
afterwards severed from the body with a cleaver, and both were placed in
a coffin that stood ready to receive them. The body of poor David Morgan
was the next to undergo the same disgusting and barbarous mutilation,
which was repeated in succession on all the other victims, terminating
with the unhappy Dawson, after which the executioner shouted aloud, “God
save King George,” to which the multitude responded with a yell.
The name of James Dawson is connected with a melancholy incident which
the poet Shenstone {26} made the subject of the pathetic ballad of “Jemmy
Dawson.” He belonged to a family of high respectability in Lancashire,
and had been educated at St. John’s College, Cambridge. Having formed an
ardent attachment for a young lady of handsome fortune, they were engaged
to be married just at the time of the outbreak of the Rebellion. All the
influence of his friends, and every effort that the most devoted
affection could suggest having failed to secure his pardon, no entreaties
or remonstrances could dissuade the faithful girl, to whom he was
affianced, from being present at the execution of the man whom she loved
with the deepest tenderness. Through all the horrors that characterised
the melancholy scene, and while witnessing the cruel and barbarous fate
of her lover, she exhibited no violent demonstration of sorrow; but when
all had been concluded, and the heart which had beaten so warmly for her
had been thrown into the flames, the terrible excitement, which had
hitherto sustained her wholly gave way, and, exclaiming—“my dear, I
follow thee!—I follow thee!—sweet Jesus, receive both our souls
together!” she fell back in the carriage, and expired, as the last word
trembled on her lips. {27a}
Though in passing to their trials the mob had hooted and insulted them,
it was observable at their execution that the assembled multitude
exhibited considerable sympathy, and appeared to commiserate the fate of
those gallant and hapless gentlemen.
When the horrible proceedings had been entirely concluded, the bodies of
the sufferers were removed to the prison from whence they had been
brought, “to await his Majesty’s pleasure;” and three days afterwards the
heads of Towneley and Fletcher were fixed on Temple Bar, while those of
Deacon, Berwick, Chadwick, and Syddal were preserved in spirits, and
conveyed to Manchester and Carlisle, to be exposed on conspicuous places
in those towns. I have failed to ascertain how the heads of Blood,
Dawson, and Morgan were disposed of; but it is probable that they were
allowed to remain with the bodies. Towneley’s body is said to have been
buried at St. Pancras, while the bodies of his companions were interred
in the burying-ground attached to the Foundling Hospital. {27b}
Shortly after the execution, the statements which they had delivered to
the sheriffs were published; {27c} and that written by David Morgan is
here introduced.
A true COPY of the Paper delivered by David Morgan, Esq., to the
Sheriff of Surry, at the Place of Execution, on Wednesday, July 30th,
1746.
It having been always deemed incumbent on every Person in my
_Situation_, to say something of himself, and _the Cause_ he
_suffers_ for, I could not decline it, however disagreeable to my
_Persecutors_, when I once held it my Duty.
The CAUSE I embarked in was that of my Liege Sovereign KING JAMES THE
THIRD, from an Opinion I long since had of his _just Right_: an
Opinion founded on the _Constitution_, and strongly recognized and
established by an ACT OF PARLIAMENT NOW IN ITS FULL VIGOUR, which
neither the People _collectively_ nor _representively_ have any Power
or Authority to _subvert_ or _alter_. [See the Statute of _Charles
II_.] Nor can that _Law_ be repealed but by a FREE PARLIAMENT
summoned to meet by a LAWFUL KING: Not by a Convention commanded by
_a_ foreign Prince and Usurper, and intimidated and directed by _him_
at the Head of a foreign Army.
To this _Convention_ we owe the Revolution; to the _Revolution_ we
owe the _Accession_ of the House of Hanover; and to this _Accession_
all our present Ills, and the melancholy and certain Prospect of the
intire Subversion of all that is dear and valuable to _Britons_.
_My Opinion of the King’s Title_ to the _imperial Crown of these
Realms_, thus uncontrovertible, received additional Strength and
Satisfaction from his _Character and Qualifications_, confirmed to me
by Persons of the strictest Honour and Credit, and demonstrated to
me, that _his Establishment_ on the _Throne_ of his _Ancestors_,
would be an _Incident_, as productive of Happiness to the _Subject_,
as of Justice to the _Sovereign_, since his MAJESTY’S confessed
superior _Understanding_ is absolutely necessary to extricate our
_Country_ out of that most desperate _State_ she has been declining
to since the _Revolution_, and has _precipitately_ fallen into since
the _Accession_.
On this Declension and Ruin of our _Country_ have the _Favourers_ and
_Friends_ of both _Revolution_ and _Accession_ built _vast_ and
_despicable Fortunes_; which possibly they may entail (with the
conditions of Slavery annexed) on their _betrayed_ and _abandoned
Issue_; it being much more clear that _Slavery_ will descend _from
Generation to Generation_, than such Fortunes _so acquired_.
Have we not seen _Parliaments_, in a _long Succession_, raise
_Supplies_ sufficient to surfeit _Avarice_? Do we not see _that
Avarice_ heaping up _Millions_ for the Nurture and Support of
_Foreign Dominions_, on the Ruins of that _Country_ that grants them?
Nor can this move the least Compassion, or even common Regard for her
Welfare and Interest, from that _ungrateful Avarice_.
_British Councils_, since the Usurper’s _Accession_, have had
_foreign Interest_ their constant Object; and the Power and Finances
of the _imperial Crown of Great Britain_ have been betrayed,
prostituted and squandered, for the Convenience and Support of the
meanest Electorate in Germany; and the _Elector’s_ Conduct has been
more destructive and detrimental to our Country, than all the
_Finesse_, _Treachery and Force_, that the _French_, or any other
_Adversary’s Council’s and Power_ could have attempted or effected.
_Land-Armies_ only can sustain and cover Dominions on the
_Continent_; these are raised in the Country _protected_, and
maintained by the Country _protecting_. Here _Great-Britain_ has all
the Burden, and _Hanover_ all the advantage: Whereas NAVIES are the
British Bulwarks, which have, by the _Elector_, been neglected,
misapplied, or employed to her Disadvantage, and can alone guard and
protect her _Dominions and Commerce_.
If the present _Convention_ had any regard to Self-Preservation, or
that of their Constituents, they would _this Session_ have made new
_Laws_ for the further Security of _Privilege_: The _Pannick_
diffused universally over the _Electoral Family_ would have prepared
an easy Assent to any Law in the Subject’s Favour: But, even here,
these _Representatives_ omitted this _second Opportunity_ of securing
and improving the Happiness of their Electors, and, instead thereof,
have given _additional Power_ to the Usurper to suspend the BULWARK
OF LIBERTY, and invert the Order and Method of _Trials for Treason_:
_Precedents_ they will have occasion one Day to _repent of_, since
they very probably may fall _Victims to them_.
The false Glosses and Fears of _Popery_, universally propagated, have
deluded _unthinking vulgar_ minds, and diverted all Attention to
Reason; when it is clear, to any just Reflection, that his MAJESTY
can have no _happiness_ but what results from _his Britain_, who, he
must know from _melancholy experience_, will not be tempted to part
with the _Doctrines_ and _Exercise_ of the _Religion established_ in
her. His _Majesty_ must know, that a _lawful King_ must adhere to
the _Constitution in Church and State_, and shew a most inviolable
Attachment to those _Laws_ that were made for the Security of _both_,
whatever Indulgences and Concessions are made by _Conventions_ to an
_Usurper_ for the Breach of all. A LAWFUL KING IS A NURSING FATHER,
who would protect us, and demand no more _Supplies_ than the
immediate Services required, and those from the Riches of the
_Country_, the Excrescences of _Trade_ and _Commerce_, without
Prejudice to either; and such would be deemed best that were just
sufficient for the Purposes they were raised, and for which only they
would be employed. But an Usurper is a Step-Father, that builds his
own Hopes and Views on the Ruin and Destruction of his _usurped
Dominions_, and has _Joy_ from the _fleecing and impoverishing_ of
those under his _Influence and Power_.
Even his _Majesty’s Enemies_ allow him _great Understanding_, nor has
any one of them imputed _Breach of Honour_ to him. His Abilities and
Sense of our Situation would move _him_ to interpose in favour of his
_Subjects_; and are equal (if human abilities are so) to extricate us
out of the various _Perplexities and Intricacies_ we have been
brought into by _Negotiations_, _for thirty Years_, for the
Preservation of the Balance of Power, to the _Disappointment_ of
every _Briton’s_ Hope, and the _Ridicule_ of all our _Enemies_.
If you once think, my Brethren, you must repent; if you repent, you
must make the _Constitution just Reparation_; which can only be done
by calling in your lawful KING JAMES THE THIRD, who has _Justice_ to
attempt, and _Wisdom_ to compleat, a thorough _Reformation_ in the
Constitution, and to fix in its pristine happy _State_; and which, in
spite of all Chicane and Prejudice, _without a_ RESTORATION will
never be done.
I am to declare my Happiness in having such a _Wife and Daughter_,
that forgive my involving them in my misfortunes, and having an
undeserved Share in them: I heartily thank them, and wish them both
temporal and eternal Happiness: and hope that those who are Friends
to my _King_ will look upon them as the Relict and Orphan of a
_Fellow-Subject_ that has _suffered_ in the ROYAL CAUSE.
I glory in the Honour I have had of seeing his ROYAL HIGHNESS CHARLES
PRINCE REGENT, and of being admitted into his Confidence; and I here
declare it the greatest Happiness I ever knew, and the highest
Satisfaction; and such as even my vainest Thoughts could never have
suggested to me: An Honour to every rational Creature that can judge
of the many requisite _Virtues_ of a PRINCE centred in him truly,
tho’ so often falsely assigned to the worst. His Character exceeds
any Thing I could have imagined or conceived: An Attempt to describe
him would seem gross Flattery; and nothing but a plain and naked
Narrative of his Conduct to all Persons, and in all Scenes he is
engaged in, can properly shew him. A _Prince_ betrayed by the
_Mercy_ he shewed his Enemies, in judging of the Dispositions of
_Mankind_ by the _Benignity_ of his own. His _Fortitude_ was
disarmed by it, and _his ungrateful Enemies_ think they have reaped
the Benefit of it; but let them not rejoice at _his Misfortunes_,
since his Failure of Success will, without the immediate
Interposition of _Providence_, be absolutely their _Ruin_. What a
Contrast is there between his Royal Highness the PRINCE and the Duke
of Cumberland! The first displays his _true Courage_, in Acts of
_Humanity_ and _Mercy_; the latter a _Cruelty_, in _Burning_,
_Devastation_, and _Destruction_ of the _British_ Subjects, their
Goods and Possessions; I would ask—Who is the true HERO?
The Report of my having betrayed his ROYAL HIGHNESS, or his Friends,
is scandalously false; my Appeal to the Counsel for the Prosecution
on my Trial, and my suffering Death, must refute it to all honest
Men: And I hereby declare I had rather suffer any Death the Law can
inflict.—I deem Death infinitely preferable to a Life of Infamy.—But
the Death I suffer for my KING, gives me vast _Consolation and
Honour_ that I am thought worthy of it.
To conclude, my _Brethren_ and _Fellow-Subjects_, I must make
Profession of that Religion I was baptized, have continued, and shall
through the divine Permission die in, which is that of the _Church_
of England, and which I hope will stand and prevail against the
Malice, Devices and Assaults of her Enemies, as well those of the
_Church of_ Rome, as those equally dangerous, the Followers of
_Luther_ and _Calvin_, covered under and concealed in the specious
Bugbears of _Popery and arbitrary Power_. This my Faith I have fully
set forth in a _Poem_ of two Books, intitled, _The Christian Test_,
_or the Coalition of Faith and Reason_; the first of which I have
already published, and the latter I have bequeathed to the care of my
unfortunate but very dutiful Daughter Mris. _Mary Morgan_, to be
published by her, since it has pleased GOD I shall not live to see
it. To this _Poem_ I refer, which I hope will obviate all Cavil to
the contrary.
I freely forgive all my Enemies from the Usurper to Weir and Maddox
the infamous Witnesses in support of his Prosecution of me: And I
must also, and do from my Heart, forgive my _Lord Chief Justice_, for
his _stupid and inveterate Zeal_, in painting _my Loyalty to my King_
with all the Reproaches he had Genius enough to bestow on it, when he
passed Sentence on Seventeen at once, and which he did without
Precedent because it was without Concern.
I beg all I have offended that they will forgive me for _Jesus
Christ’s_ Sake, my only Mediator and Advocate, _To whom with the
Father and the holy Spirit_, _be all Adoration_, _Praise_, _Glory_,
_Dominion and Power for ever_. Amen.