APPENDIX TO CHRONICLE. 



173 



returned to the box in less than a 

 quarter of an hour ; when it be- 

 ing asked by the Clerk of the 

 Court whether they found the de- 

 fendant guilty or not guilty, their 

 foreman replied in a firm voice, 

 Not Guilty. 



Loud acclamations were in- 

 stantly heard in all parts of the 

 Court, which continued for seve- 

 ral minutes. 



The next cause between the 

 King and William Hone was tried at 

 the Court of King's-bench, befor* 

 Lord Ellenborough and a special 

 jury, on December 19. Of the 

 special jury only six making their 

 appearance, the rest consieted of 

 talesmen made up in Court. 



The Attorney-General, address- 

 ing the jury, said that they were 

 assembled to try a cause of the 

 utmost importance to the consti- 

 tution of society. It was that of 

 a libel which was a parody of that 

 part of the divine service called 

 tlie Litany, or General Supj)lica- 

 tion. The information charged 

 the defendant with having, for 

 the purpose of exciting impiety 

 and irrehgion, and to bring into 

 contempt in the minds of his Ma- 

 jeity's subjects that part of the 

 public scnice called the Litany, 

 and to aj)ply the style and form of 

 expression there used, to scanda- 

 lous purposes, had published the 

 libel in question. He then gave 

 the jury a taste of the mode in 

 which this conversion of the true 

 sense of the Litany was cifected ; 

 but while he was with due gravity 

 applying to the Prince Regent, 

 and the Housesof Lords and Com- 

 mons, the expressions of a solenm 

 form of devotion, he was discon- 

 certed by the indecorous laughter 



of a part of the auditory. Reco- 

 vering from this unexpected at- 

 tack, he spoke with much seve- 

 rity of such interruptions of the 

 courts of justice ; and he con- 

 cluded with saying, that if the 

 defendant's pamphlet were deter- 

 mined not to be a profane libel, 

 theie was no insult of the kind 

 that miglit not be offered to the 

 established religion, and to the 

 sacred writings, with impunity. 



The libel was next read by the 

 Clerk of nisi prius. It was en- 

 titled "The Political Litany j" 

 and its direct purpose was to con- 

 vert to a political meaning, the 

 several articles of religious faith, 

 in the order laid down in the ori- 

 ginal composition. 



The case on the part of the 

 Crown being closed, Mr. Hone 

 rose with the intention of com- 

 mencing his defence. Before h« 

 had proceeded to any length. Lord 

 Ellenborough thought it proper to 

 apprize him, that if he wished to 

 show that similar applications or 

 misapplications of texts of Scrip- 

 ture, or what is usually revered 

 by the subjects of the realm, have 

 been made by others as well as 

 himself, he should not receive it. 



I have stated (said his lordship) 

 my decided purpose ; and you may 

 now use your own discretion whe- 

 ther you will dilate further upon 

 a point which I declare is not 

 judicially admissible! 



Mr. Hone. I ask your lord- 

 ship whether you mean to send 

 me from this place to a prison ? 

 If you do not hear me, J«u do 

 that. If 30U will not allowtne to 

 make my defence to the jury, how 

 can I avoid it ? 



After some fuither discussion, 

 his lordship said. Go on, exercise 



vour 



