174 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1817. 



your own discretion. I have stated 

 the rule in intelligent and intelli- 

 gible terms. 



From this time to the termina- 

 tion of the triid almost the only 

 speakers were Lord Ellenborough 

 and Mr. Hone ; and although it 

 cannot be supposed that much ci- 

 vility passed between tliem, yet 

 it does not appear that his lord- 

 ship's decision respecting what was 

 or Avhat was not judicially admis- 

 sible, prevented the defendant 

 from bringing into Court the 

 greater part of the parodies which 

 was selected for their heaj'ing. 



Lord Ellenborough, in his 

 charge to the jury, declared, that 

 of all the parodies which the de- 

 fendant had read, he could not 

 find any that bore any proportion 

 to the enormity of the present ; 

 and in conclusion he said, that 

 he would deliver there his solemn 

 opinion, as he was required by 

 Act of Parliament to do ; and un- 

 do' the authority of that Act, and 

 still more in obedience to his con- 

 science and his God, he pronounced 

 this to be a most impious and pro- 

 fane libel. 



The jury retiied at a quarter 

 past si.K, and returned at eight j 

 Avhen the foreman, in a steady 

 voice, pronounced a verdict of 

 Not Guilty. 



The third day of Mr. Hone's 

 trial followed on December ^Oth. 

 Loi'd Ellenborough sat a second 

 time ; and the Attorney-General, 

 observing that the defendant was 

 obviously much Avearied by the 

 exertions of the two preceding 

 days, offered, as a matter of fa- 

 vour, to postpone the day. Mr. 

 Hone, however, declined the in- 

 dulgence, and wished the trial to 

 proceed. The jury consisted of 



seven special jurymen, and five 

 talesmen . 



The Attorney-General, in ad- 

 dressing them, said that it was 

 his duty to charge the defendant 

 with the publication of a profane 

 libel on that part of the service of 

 the Church of England, which 

 was called the Creed of St. Atha- 

 nasius. The work in Avhich it was 

 contained was entitled the Sine- 

 curist's Creed ; and he read seve- 

 ral passages of the work to prove 

 that it was a parody of that of 

 St. Athanasius. The whole was 

 afterwards read by Mr. Law ; and 

 whatever be thought of the adop- 

 tion of the latter creed by the 

 English church, it will scarcely 

 be disputed that the ridicule at- 

 tempted to be thrown upon it by 

 the Sinecurist's Creed was of the 

 lowest class of productions of that 

 nature. 



Mr. Hone then commenced his 

 defence, which he continued dur- 

 ing seven hours and a half with 

 extraordinary spirit, passing in 

 review the whole tribe of paro- 

 dists, ancient and modern. In the 

 reply of the Attorney-General, 

 and the charge by Lord Ellenbo- 

 rough to the jury, there was evi- 

 dently a falling off, compared to 

 the decision with wliich the de- 

 fendant had been pronounced upon 

 in the former days of the trial ; as 

 there was on his part a confident 

 appeal to the sentiments of the 

 jury. At 20 minutes after eight 

 the jury retired to consider their 

 verdict, and retuiriing into Court 

 at 12 minutes before nine, their 

 foreman pronounced a verdict of 

 Not Guilty. 



The moment the words were 

 pronounced, a spontaneous burst 

 of applause issued from the crowd 



in 



