’ HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
On the 16th day of the trial sentence 
was pronounced ; so that this trial 
in Westminster Hall was concluded 
within ashorter time after its com- 
mencement, than the trial of lord 
Macclesfield at the bar of the house of 
lords. ‘I'he credit of this dispatch 
was in agreat measure due to the 
lord chancellor, whose consummate 
kuowledge of the law of evidence 
coustituted him the best authority in 
every question of thatsort which oc- 
curred, while the candour and fairness 
of nisconduct induced all parties to ac- 
quicscemost readily in his decisions. 
The trial, as we have already said, 
began on the 29th of April ; the evi- 
dence and arguments of the council 
on both sides closed on the 17th 
of May; and sentence was pro- 
nounced on the 12th of June. , 
Weshall now proceed togive as full 
an account of the evidence’ adduced 
ana arguments employed in_ this 
important trial, as the narrow li- 
mits of our work will admit. 
The articles ofimpeachment were 
ten in number, andin substance as 
follows : 
Ist. That lord Melville while 
treasurer of the navy, did previous- 
ly te the 10th of January 1786, 
take and receive out of the moncy 
entrusted tu him from his majesty’s 
exchequer, the sum of 10,000/. and 
fraudulently and illegally convert 
the same to his own use, or to some 
ether corrupt and illegal purposes ; 
and on the 11th of June 1805, in 
the house of commons, did refuse to 
account fer the application of the 
Said sum ;. 
2nd. That, after the passing of 
the act of parliament on the 25th 
year of his majesty’s reign, enti- 
tuled ‘‘ an act for better regulating 
the office of treasurer of his majesty’s 
navy,” lord Melville, contrary to 
‘Vor; XLVIII, by 
113 
the provisions of that act, did per- 
mit Alexander Trotter, his paymas- 
ter, illegally to draw from the bank 
of England, for other purposes 
than for immediate application to 
navy services, large sums of money, 
which had been issued to the bank 
on account of lord Melville as treaw 
surer of the navy, and place the 
same in the hands of Thomas Coutts 
and Co. his private bankers, in his 
own name, and subject to his sole 
control and disposition ; 
3rd. That not only did lord Mel- 
ville permit Trotter to place as 
aforesaid the public money in the 
hands of Thomas Coutts and Co, 
his private bankers, but to apply the 
same for purposes of private pro- 
fit and emolument, whereby the 
said money was exposed to great 
risk of loss, and withdrawn from 
the control and disposition of the 
treasurer of the navy ; 
4th. That part of the money so 
taken by Trotter from the bank, 
was, by permission of lord Mel- 
ville, placed in the hands of Mark 
Sprott and others, and applied for 
purposes of private profit and emo-- 
lument ; ; 
5th. That lord Melville himself 
did, after the 10th of January 1786, 
take and receive from the public 
money issued to the bank of Eng- 
land, the sum of 10,0001. and frau- 
dulently and illegally convert the 
same to his own use or to some 
other corrupt and illegal purpose ; 
6th. That lord Melville received 
advances of large sums of money 
from Troiter, out of the public mo- 
ney so obtained by him and depo- 
sited in the hands of his private 
bankers, which advances were en- 
tered in an account current kept 
between Trotter and lord Mel- 
ville, and preserved till February 
1803, 
