510 
ferent ; but on duly weighing all 
authorities, he thought himself 
bound to give effect to the statute, 
and had no doubt of the relevancy 
of the indictment against Mr. 
Lamont. In the course of his ob- 
servations, his Lordship said no- 
thing on the expediency or policy 
of the law, nor of the present 
prosecution. 
The usual interlocutor of rele- 
vancy was then pronounced, and 
‘a jury sworn. 
The Advocate Depute then 
stated, that the present indictment 
contained two specific and dis- 
tinct charges; Ist, The celebra- 
ting of marriage by a person not 
entitled to do so, the panel be- 
ing a Popish Priest: and 2nd, The 
celebration of marriage without 
the due proclamation of bans. 
Both these charges he thought he 
could have been able to establish, 
but on account of the necessary 
absence of a material witness, 
whom he expected to be able to 
adduce, he was not prepared to 
prove that the bans were not 
proclaimed, and he, therefore, 
abandoned that part of the charge. 
He expected, however, to be able 
to establish the other charges 
contained in the indictment. 
Mr. Grant then mentioned, 
that he had not stated, and did 
hot mean to state, any objection 
to the relevancy. But from the 
new light which had broke forth 
from the statement of the prose- 
cutor, he felt himself called on to 
state the reasons why he thought 
this prosecution could not pro- 
ceed. For this extraordinary pro- 
secution itself, he could not re- 
frain from saying, as a lawyer 
and a gentleman, that he con- 
sidered it the most illiberal, the 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 
1815. 
most ufwise, and the most re- 
pugnant to all the feelings which 
dignify human nature that had 
ever fallen under his observation. 
The learned gentleman then con- 
tended, that from what had now 
been stated by the Advocate De- 
pute, the trial could not proceed. 
He called the attention of the 
Court to the crimes stated in the 
major proposition, and then ad- 
verted to the particular offences 
with which the prisoner was charg- 
ed in the minor; and as in each 
case it was stated, not merely 
that a marriage by a person not — 
authorised, but a clandestine mar- 
riage, without proclamation of 
bans, was celebrated by this 
person, blending in both cases 
the incapacity of the celebrator 
with the omission of the procla- 
mation, the learned gentleman 
contended, that unless the pro- 
secutor would undertake to prove 
that the bans were not proclaim- 
ed, he must relinquish the trial. 
If, however, their lordships should 
be of a different opinion, it must 
of course be in the view of the 
Court and jury, that the prisoner 
was entitled to assume, that the 
bans had been proclaimed. He 
trusted, however, that the trial 
would be stopped. 
The Lord Justice Clerk ob- 
served, that the trial could not 
stop, but the arguments of the 
prisoner’s counsel were worthy of 
the consideration of the jury. 
A number of witnesses were 
then examined by the Advocate 
Depute, and several as to the 
character of the prisoner, who all 
bore testimony to its being most 
respectable. 
The jury were then addressed 
by the Advocate Depute, and 
