speciAL COLLeCCiONS [ey^^ t)OUQLAS LibRAK:? queeN's uNiveusiiy AT kiNQsroN kiNQSTON ONTARIO CANADA : THE THREE TRIALS OF WILLIAM HONE, FOR PUDLISUING THREE PARODIES ; VIZ. THE LATE JOHN WILKEs's CATECHISM, THE POLITICAL LITANY, AND THE S I N E C U U I S t's CREED; OS Zi)vtt ^x=(BBcio information^, AT GUILDHALL, LOXDON, PURINQ THREE SUCCESSIVE DAYS, DECEMBER 18, 19, & 30, 1817 i BKFORE THREE SPECIAL JURJESy AND MR. JUSTICE ABBOTT, ON THE FIRST D.VY AND LORD CHIEF JUSTICE ELLENBOROUGII, ON THE LAST TWO DAYS. Thrice the brindled cat hath mew'd ! SHAKSrEARE. LONDON PRINTED BY & FOR WILLIAM HONE, 67, OLD BAILEY, AND SOLD BY AIL DOOKSELLERS. 18 IS. MEETING — PRICE--AVITH THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE PUBLIC rOUR SHILLINGS IN BOARDS. /ft 1//, '^'^' ^^^^ .i^ ? ^:^iat ADDRESS. I intimated an intention of exhorting my fellow-citizens against parodying Scripiure or the forms of worship established by Jaw. I am glad to find that the intimation had the effect I wished. Had the Parodies been re-published in the way I anti- cipated, the 3Iinisters of the Crown might perhaps have essayed another alarum to the weak-minded ; and—as there is no cal- culating upon the movements of folly—have asked Parliament for another suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act. They are laughed out of Court; but instead of arising and putting their house in order, and going forth—like sensible men—and doing as one of old did, they still seek unrefreshing slumbers upon jhe bed of office. The solemn bigotry of one of my Prosecu- tors, the noble Secretary of State for the Home Departmenf, reposes beneath the unblushing hypocrisy of another of ray Prosecutors—my brother parodist—the Right Honourable Pre- sident of the Board of Control. Hence, if they keep their places during the year, we may expect four New Lotteries, at least, with improved Schemes, and an increased number of Bible Societies and Executions. It is my wish and intention, because I trust I shall be en- abled, to commence business as a Bookseller, upon a more respectable footing than hitherto. I should be wantino- in justice to my family, and in gratitude to my friends, if I did not take this opportunity of making my purpose known. I shall prepare at leisure, and with care, an enlarged Report of my three Trials, in a form more permanent than this, and more ^acceptable to the library. Of course there will be great IV a(iditi«n>'. I have just obtained a short-hand verbatim Report of my third day's Defence, with the Attorney-General's Reply, and the Cliief Justice's Charge; and am procuring what else I can, respecting the other Trials, from other sources. Thus assisted, 1 sIniH be enabled to conjplete the Report agreeably to my o\rn wishes, and perhaps the desire of the Public. The work will be preceded by a narrative of every material fact connected with the Prosecutions, from the time I stopped the sale of the Parodies, tmtil the close of the Public Sub- scription now open in my behalf—it will conclude with a List of the Subscribers, properly arranged. The Notes and Appendix will possess much interest, on account of the curious matter they will include, from sources of reading and information, to "which few take the pains to resort. It will have correct copies of the Parodies I read and referred to in Court, with several others of remarkable interest; and 1 shall give it all the legal, pol ti>:al, and literary elucidation in my power. It will likewise be illustrated by reduced y«c-smi7e engravings of every print exhibited and referred to on the Trials. These will be executed with great care, and faithfully coloured in the same manner as the originals. The book will be handsomely printed in royal octavo, and I shall omit no pains to render it worthy a place in the best collections. In prefixing my portrait to it, and publishing it by subscription, I follow the advice of the Gen- tlemen with whom the idea of the Work originated. I shall issue a Prospectus as soon as 1 correctly ascertain the extent and cost of the undertaking, and I purpase it to be my first Publication on commencing my new career in r)usincss. WILLIAM HONE, January 23, 1818. TIIE FIRST TRIAL OP WILLIAM HONE, V* AT GUILDHALL, LONDON, DECEMBEH^IS, 181?| BEFORE Mr. justice ABBQ^fTC AND A SPECIAL JURY, FOR PUBLISHING A FAROUT ON THE LATE JOHN WILKES S CATECHISM OF A MINISTERIAL MEMBER. LONDON: PKINTED BY AND FOR WILLIAM HONE, 67, OLD BAILEY AND SOLD BY ALL BOOKSELLERS. 1817. J*BICE ONE SHILLING. SUBSCRIPTION FOR MR. HONE. At a MEETING of the FRIENDS of the LIBERTY of the PRESS and TRIAL by JURY, held at the City of London Tavern, on Mon- day, December 29, 1817, Mr. WAITIIMAN in the Chair, Resolved unanimously, 1. That the Liberty of the Press is one of the dearest rights and proudest dis- tinctions of Englishmen, and is inseparably connected with, and wholly de- pendent on the purity of the Trial by Jury. 2. That the inestimable importance of the sacred and constitutional right of Trial I)y Jury, has never been more demonstratively proved tlian by the recent prosecutions and honourable acquittals of Mr. William Hone. 'J. That Parodies on Scripture bavins; been written and published by Martin Luther, the Father of the Reformation, by Dignitaries of the Church, and by other eminent and learned personages down to the present time, we are per- suaded (hat the exception taken to the parodies of Mr. Hone by tlie present Ministers of the (>own was to answer political purposes against the Liberty of the Press. 4. That a hypocritical prostitution of Religion, and a pretended zeal for its defence, when used by corrupt Statesmen as a mask for political persecution^ must ever be held by all sincere Christians as the worst profanation of its sacred name. 5. That it is evident from the manner in which those prosecutions were com- menced and conducted, that the real object of Ministers was not to protect Re- ligion; but to crush an apparently defenceless individual who had exposed their political delinquencies, to stifle public discussion, to destroy the Liberty of the Press, and to uphold existing abuse. 6. That the extensive knowledge; the varied talents; the manly intrepidity: the energy of mind ; and the unshaken perseverance which enabled Mr. Wil- liam Hone so dauntlessly to resist the reiterated assaults of Ministerial persecu- tion, entitle him to the gratitude and support of every friend to constitutional freedom. 7. That a Subscription be now opened, and that the money which may be sub- scribed, be placed in the hands of a Committee to be used in such way as shall appear to them best calculated to promote the permanent welfare of Mr. Hone and his Family. 8. That the following Gentlemen be of the Committee —Alderman Goodbe- here. Alderman Thorp, Robert Waithman, Joseph Hurcombe, William Sturcl)^ Samuel Brooks, William Williams, William Teasdale. 9. That Robert Waithman, be the Treasurer. 10. That the Thanks of this Meeting are due to Sir Francis Burdett, Bart, for his spontaneous oflers of co-operation with the Getitlemen originating the Sub- seription—in strict conformity with a life of pure patriotism and love of country. 11. That the Thanks of this Meeting are hereby cordially given to Mr. Charl«s Pearson, for his manly and successful struggle in correcting the corrupt systeai of packing Juries, which has contributed so essentially toward the present- triumph; and especially for the gratuitous advice and assistance given to Mr. Hone throughout the whole of the prosecutions, affording a rare example to bis profession of zeal, independence, and disinterestedness. 12. That the Thanks of this Meeting be given to Lord Cochrane, for his zeal- ous endeavours on the present occasion. ROBERT WAITHMAN, Chairman. 13. That the Thanks of this Meeting be given to Mr. Waithman, for his coo- duct in the Chair, and for bis exertions upon all occasions to support the rauae of Liberty. W. STURCH. Subscriptions will be received by Robert Waithman, the Treasurer, Bridge- street, Blackfriars; Alderman Thorp, Aldgate, High-street; Robert Carter, Minories ; Joseph Hurcombe, St. Paul's Church-yard; Samuel Brooks, Strand; and Alexander Galloway, High Holborn. *^* The Proprietors of Independent Conntri/ Newspapers at Liverpool and other places, considering that the Liberty of the Fnblic Press has been essentially promoted by Mr. Hone's exertions, have most hand- somely opened Books for Subscriptions at their respective Offices, and vohmtarily in their Journals promoted the object which the Committee have in view. Su7ns so snbscribed, as well as those procured by the spontaneous hindnest of other individuals in the country, who are de- sirous of contributiufj by their exertions to the future welfare of Mr. Hone and his Family, are respectfully requested to transmit the amounts, received by them, as often as convenient, to Mr, Waithman, tJie Trea- iurcr, in London. — TRIAL. THE KING against WILLIAM HONE, ON AN EX-OFFICIO INFORMATION FOR PUBLISHING THE LATE JOHN WILKES'S CATECHISM. Tried in Guildhall^ London, on Thursday, December 18, 1817, attfte London Sittings after Michaelmas Term. BEFORE MR. JUSTICE ABBOTT AND A SPECIAL JURY. The Trial of this issue excited considerable interest. So early as eight o'clock the avenues leading to the Court became crowded ; the doors were thrown open shortly after, and the Court immediately filled. About twenty minutes after nine o'clock, Mr. Hone entered, attended by a j'outh, his brother, who placed on the table of the Court several parcels of books and papers, which nearly covered the table.