THE EXAMINER. aad eee eee nearer eae e eee

179

have come to Town and received a Warrant (if indeed the Road correspondent had one suited in amount to the occasion); but they never laid it ont in Town with

out a loss—for who wants s:nali Warrants; and it isa remarkable fact that a small Warrant has been frequent- ly ata discount, when large ones for investment have deen sought after by monied men even at a premium. And supposing no discount were talked of at the store, it is not every storekeeper who cares to take a Warrant, and thus the unfortunate holder must march off to some other shop, and perhaps be at last forced to make the worst market. Benevolence may fairly be enlisted in favor of the general proposition; but our present object, we repeat, is to invite correspondence and information,

ment and found the Bill contained the names of Messrs. McGill, C. Welsh, and J. Davis, Senr., as well as that of Mr. Ings—the two first directly, and the third indi- rectly interested, and the fourth having amused himself, in concert with his friend and amanuensis, Collard—in

the publication of every libellous statement and threat on the subject matter to betried; and had this been

pleaded, it is well known that the indictment would have been at once quashed. But, perhaps, it is better that this piece of attempted tyranny has been sifted to the bottom, and the whole proceeding unveiled. We ure not now going to givea Jengthened commentary on ihe evidence, because there was not a shadow ofa shade of imputation, of connivance, participation or contrivance,

and our paper will be open to writers on all sides, if found to attach to any one of those ill-used gentlemen.

indeed, there be any room for controversy ; nor do we hesitate to give the general project entire praise, but we may as well be careful as to what conclusions we form on the several matters of detail. Thus much we, how- ever, may say, that if care can be taken as prudence demands, to prevent the transition from bearing all at once too hard on the resources at the cominand of the colony, the result cannot fail to be highly beneticial to all the industrial interests of the Island.

RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT.

It is our fate in nearly every number to be called to expose—not the fallacies, for they might be pardoned, but the false statements made by the supporters of the Compact and their party in and out of the Legislature, One of the most prominent of these, because it is on a subject of unusual and intense interest, is the delusion which they disseminate, that they favor Responsible Go- yernment. Public opinion being found to be a thing that even the all powerful Compact can no longer resist, they affect to be-accessories in this movement, and do not even blush to claim a community of sentiment with those who are ite real promoters. Now, what ia the fact? After having repeatedly divided in a minority wpon every stage of the discussion on this-head, in the last Session of the House of Assembly, they at last proposed, through Mr. John Longworth, an amendment on the Address introduced by Mr. Rae, and strenuously sup- ported by all his party. In this amendment, it wes ac- tually proposed, that the holders of office should be suf- fered to retain their places, even when the rest of the Government changed. Now, if any thing could decid- edly mark the hollow insincerity, and the innate selfish- ness of the authors of this absurd and unconstitutional proposition—if anything could -stamp them as the betrayers of public liberty, it was their cool and un- blushing advocacy ofa proposition, which, if carried, would be a complete overthrow of that system of Govern- ment of which they now profess to be so much enamored.

SUPREME COURT. THE LAST FARCE PLAYED BEFORE A CROWDED HOUSE.

The Hilary Term of the Supreme Court commenced on Tuesday last, and judging from the appearance of the Calendar, there is very little chance of any other than criminal cases being tried, they being rather more nu- merous than is, happily, usual, although, we believe, none of them are of a very serious character.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, have become famous in the annals of our Court—these days being devoted to the trial—yea, the trial—of the parties who were indicted by the Grand Jury at the last June Term, for daring to connect themselves with the procession which celebrated the triumphant election of the Hon. George Coles on the night of the 8th May last. It will be remembered that several panes of glass—9 or 10 in all-——were broken on this memorable night by some per- sons who attached themselves to the Procession, then and now unknown, but generally believed to be boys; and because the Hon. Mr. Coles, the Hon. Mr. Swabey, Ewen McMillan, Edward Whelan, Robert Mooney, Esquires, Messrs. Peter Gordon Clark, Benjamin Wil- liam Cochran, and Richard Walsh, formed part of the Procession, and were carried through the streets in a car of triumph—they having deeply and markedly in- terested themselves in the progress of Mr. Coles’ elec- tion—the Grand Jury thought proper to make them suf- fer for all the damage sustained.

No one can lament more than we do—and we are sure all the Defendants do—that any outrages were commit- ted, or that any injury should have been done to any individual. It wil] be recollected that the excitement was great—that the election was not one of ordinary and every-day interest,—the question had been tried, whether a strenuous advocate of the People’s rights and a firm supporter of the late Lieutenant Governor against his enemies—(enemies, because he saw the necessity of emancipating the Coiony from the thraldom in which it was held)—should be crushed by calumnies, by libel— by all the influences, corrupt and tyrannous, which could be brought to bear against a public man; and the electors had declared in his favour. The excitement was indeed great; and it is much lamented that even such a small affair as the breaking nine or ten panes of glass—net 500, as charged in the indictment—in differ- ent parts of the ‘Town, should have taken place at all; but it requires all the known malice of the opposing party—all their presumption, ignorance and littleness of soul, to think that even the laws of the land could be

strong language, we do not believe that all those who are our political opponents could have sanctioned this ridiculozs prosecution; and even the manner in which

dence—which would alone have entitled the Defendants

that they were not in the right path, and the moderation of which entitles them-+to some favorable, theuglhi late, consideration.

But what can be said of a Party that would resort to this disreputable means of gratifying their vengeance ? Honest and upright men itave been placed most unwor- thily an2 unwarrantably upon their trial—Politica] ma- lice has been carried to the utmost !imits—representa- tions of the foulest character against Mr. Coles and capt. Swabey have been transmitted to the Colonial Office; and yet all this—thanks to our laws—have been defeated by the honest pannel before which this case has been tried.

We shall forbearto make any further remarks on the merits of the prosecution until we shall be enabled to lay the whole proceedings of it before the public, which we hope to do in the next No. of the Examiner. We cannot, however, refrain from expressing our sincere gratification at the manner in which the whole trial has been conducted. Though every person is well aware of the fact, that political hatred and disappointment set the prosecution on foot, it was evident that no such hatred influenced the progress of the Trial. The Law Officers of the Crown entered onthe performance of their duties—duties evidently disagreeable to them, if their private feelings could be guessed at—with a degree of decorum and impartiality, yet with firmness and deci- sion, eminently creditable to them as gentlemen, and honourable to the high offices which they hold. The first day (Wednesday) was wholly occupied by the ad- dress of the Hon. the Solicitor General, and the evidence on the part of the Crown. On Thursday morning John Lawson, Esq.,—who appeared for two of the Traversers, Messrs. P. G. Clark and B. W. Cochran—opened the case for the Defence in an eloquent and well-sustained speech, and was followed by the Hon. Charles Young, who appeered for the Hon. Mr. Coles, the Hon. Mr. Swabey, Messrs. Whelan, McMillan and Walsh, and he reviewed at great length all the bearings of the case— ably combated the arguments advanced by the learned Solicitor General, and gave an outline of the evidence to be adduced on the part of the Traversers. Mr. Mooney,

It would have been competent to the accused to have|not deeming it necessary to retain Counsel, then rose pleaded, that the Grand Jury which made the Present- and addressed the Jury on his own behalf, and, with all

made subservient to their'tyranny. Whilst’we use this}.

that earnestness and enthusiasm for which his displays in the Assembly have been remarkable, insisted on hie inneeence of the offence of which he stood accused. ‘I'he remainder of the day was occupied in hearing a vast amount of evidence, all of which clearly established the innocence of the accused—the fact of there being re predetermination on the part of the Procession to create any disturbance or tuinuit--no preconcerted scheme to injure the property of any person, or to give rise to alarm in the minds of the peaceable and well-disposed, and it likewise proved, that the breaking of the glass was ‘strongly reprobated by those im the carriage on the nignt of the processign, who were the parties indicted.—On Fr.day the Hon. the Attorney General addressed the Jury for the Crown, after which his Lordship the Chef Justiee, charged; and never did Judge so grace the ermine—so nobly acquit himself of the iniportant duty he was culled upon to discharge. ‘The law bearing up- on the case was clearly stated, and afl the main points of the evidence, for the prosecution and the defence, were vividly brought before the minds of the Jury. From the recapitulation of the evidence in his Lordship's charge, no unbiassed mind could entertain a doubt of the innocence of the TTraversers. ‘he Jury retired about one o’clock, and shortly after returned with a verdict of Nor Guixty for a)! the Traversers; and we do not believe that one honest man in the community— now that the political ascerbity which gave rise to the prosecution has died away—could be found to object te that impartial verdict. Had this Jury not declared the innocence of the ‘l'raversers—they, aud not the ‘T'raver- sers, would have incurred the odium of the act, and the reprobation ofan impartial public. ‘I'he Jury have won the admiration of all good wen, and their nameg deserve to be honourably remembered :

Mr. James Connell, Foreman. Mr. William Cutliffe, James D. Lawson, Hugh McKenna, Joseph Crabb, Robert Hooper, George H. Chudldigh, James Corcoran, ‘Thomas Alley, Peter McMahan, William Lowe, James Crosby.

We defer publishing the Report, transmitted to us by the last Mail, of a Public Meeting recently held at Georgetown,--as we may have occasion in our next No. to-offer a few observations in-reference to the object of that Meeting.

Tue Apvertiser.—Mr. J.J. Pippy issued his Paper

Messrs. Davis, C. Welsh and McGill gave their evi-/on Saturday the Ist instant with a new ‘fit out of type.

It presents a very respectable appearance, and will

to an acquittal—indicated that they had misgivings command, we have no doubt, a generous patronage.

We understand that the Legislature will be called to meet for the dispatch of business on the first day of Fe- bruary next.

We-have to apologise to some of our patrons for the omission of their advertizements. We could not possai- bly make room for them in the present No.

Monpay, January 10. Owing to some delays, occasioned by the Trial in which we were engaged last week, we were prevented from going to Press on Saturday evening.

‘English Mail.

The English and Colonial Mails arrived yesterday (Sunday). So far as we have been enabled to glance through the papers we do not perceive the news to be of a very important character. Sixteen failures of Bankers and Commercial houses had taken place in various parts of Europe since the last mail. In Parliament the de- bates on the Currency and the Commercial affairs of England terminated in the appointment of a Committee to inquire into the causes of the present embarrassment, and the operation of the laws of 1819 and 1844 in refer- ence to it—An Arms Bill for Ireland excited much discussion in Parliament, and was likely to pasé.—In Switzerland, the war has resulted in the total overthrow of the Sonderbund party, and the acknowledgement by the League of the Federal Government.

mY ‘ ys WS SOUS.

HE Subscribers desire to inform their friends and

the Public generally, that they have opened an Es- tablishment in Kent Street, immediately opposite the premises of the Hon. Mr. Coles, where they are prepared to offer for Sale at the lowest casu Prices, a large and well selected Stock of

DRY GOODS, Hardware, Crockeryware, Groceries, &e.,

All of which they have received from some of the best houses in Manchester and Liverpool.

JAMES D. LAWSON & CO. Charlottetown, Jan. 8, 1848. tf

STRAYED

From the premises of the Subscriber, about the first of July last, a very small BLACK coW. Shemay

be known by having a smal) bit off the right ear. Any person who will give information that may lead to her

: his trouble. recovery, will be rewarded ee cK MACDONALD.

Kent Street, Charlottetown, Jan. 8, 1848.