280 ANNUAL REGISTER, 181S 



Merceron ; had It been produced 

 as it ought to have been, in order 

 to warrant the passing of it, the 

 witness must have observed it. 

 When Mr. Merceron's book was 

 taken to witness's house to be 

 copied, he did not know of the entry 

 of Dann and Crosland's bill, nor 

 did he discover it until the inquiry 

 before the Committee of the 

 House of Commons in the session 

 of 1816-17. The Hon. Mr. 

 Bennet produced there Dann and 

 Crosland's bill, the back of which 

 was then perfect, but it had since 

 been torn, and a different entry 

 of 10 guineas made as the ex- 

 penses of Mr. Merceron, for 

 coach-hire, &c. The witness 

 was present daring the whole of 

 the audit-vestry. 



Cross-examined. — Mr. Merce- 

 ron had resided in the parish for 

 50 years, and had been a magis- 

 trate for about 25 years. He 

 had been treasurer of the parish 

 for 30 years, with the exception 

 of ISl*, when he was out, but 

 re-elected. Thanks had many 

 times been voted to him. Great 

 animosities and a high party 

 spirit had prevailed in the parish 

 of St. Matthew, Bethnal- green; 

 and it had increased within the 

 last 3 or 4 years; in that time 

 the Ilev. Mr. King had been 

 rector. At the commencement 

 of the prosecutions of 1813, the 

 witness was attorney for Mr. 

 Merceron, but he had given them 

 up, because he was hkely to be 

 called as a witness. The wit- 

 ness's trifling bill was paid by 

 the parish. In the vestry-book 

 there appeared a reference to a 

 notice given in church on Sunday, 

 'i2nd April, that the subject of 

 the defendant's accoimts would 



be taken into consideration. Mr. 

 Piatt is a dissenting minister, and 

 the owner of property in the 

 parish — to what extent the witness 

 could not state. On the audit- 

 day, 6th April, the thanks of the 

 vestry were voted to the defend- 

 ant. A perfect copy of the de- 

 fendant's book was kept by the 

 witness, and was open to the 

 inspection of all the parishioners. 

 The practice was, to call over the 

 items, one by one, and to tick 

 them off afterwards : the meeting 

 was very crowded, but the witness 

 swore positively that in his hearing 

 no mention was made of Dann 

 and Crosland's bill. The entry 

 in Merceron's book, passing the 

 accounts, was signed by 34 ves* 

 trymen. 



Re-examined. — When the entry 

 of Dann and Crosland's bill was 

 first mentioned to the witness, he 

 did not believe it. Mr. Piatt had 

 been, as he believed, a doll-maker, 

 or some such trade, before he 

 became a dissenting minister : he 

 married the daughter of Mr. 

 Wilmot, a man of property, at 

 Bethnal-green. The witness had 

 not heard the notice at church on 

 the 22nd of August respecting 

 Merceron's accounts, but at the 

 vestry of the 16th of August no 

 order was made for such a notice. 

 It was not usual for any one 

 governor or director under the 

 act to give an order for a notice 

 in church ; it was usually done by 

 nine governors, or by the parish 

 officers. 



Mr. Wrightson, who had signed 

 the treasurer's book under the 

 conviction that the bill of Messrs. 

 Dann and Crosland was not pass- 

 ed, gave positive evidence that 

 the sum and names were never 

 announced 



