284 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1818. 



Jh's seat at Dantsey, distant from 

 Bath about 26 miles. Upon this 

 occasion application was made to 

 Mr. Dore to midertake the super- 

 intendence of" the funeral on a 

 scale of unusual magnificence. It 

 was natural that he should accept 

 this offer, as it not only involved 

 a very considerable profit, but 

 furnished the opportunity of 

 displaying his skill in a very 

 peculiar branch of business. He 

 was sure the minds of the jury 

 would not be unfavourably pre- 

 possessed towards the claim of his 

 client, merely on account of the 

 extent or apparent enormity of 

 his demand. The question de- 

 pended on the nature of the 

 contract, and on the fact of the 

 work undertaken having been 

 performed. The payment of a 

 large portion of the debt into 

 Court excluded from considera- 

 tion every point except the bare 

 reasonableness of the various 

 items of which the plaintiff's 

 demand was composed. The 

 sum now disputed amounted to 

 900/., and as all attempts at an 

 amicable adjustment of this dif- 

 ference had mifortunately failed, 

 his client had been driven to his 

 action against the executors. It 

 would appear in evidence, that 

 Mr. Dore received his first in- 

 structions on this subject from 

 an intimate friend of the late 

 Lord Peterborough, Mr. Smith, 

 who informed him that the funeral 

 was to be conducted in no ordi- 

 nary way, and that he must 

 exercise his own judgment in the 

 preparation of it, on a plan of 

 adequate splendor. In addition 

 to this, it would be proved that 

 Mr. Coutts Trotter, one of tlie 

 executors, personally attended 



the funeral, and must have been 

 aware of its nature, and the 

 expense which it necessarily 

 involved. He might remark 

 also, that although the bill ivas 

 sent in immediately after the 

 funeral, no objection %vas made 

 to the charges it contained for a 

 period of six months. The de- 

 fendants had not, therefore, been 

 very suddenly struck with the 

 excess of the demand made upon 

 them. He would state, also, 

 without fear of contradiction, 

 that the ceremony had been con- 

 ducted in every respect with the 

 most perfect order, and in strict 

 conformity to the general instruc- 

 tions which had been received. 

 The procession had passed over 

 a space of two miles, and if it 

 was thought right in this manner 

 to consult the dignity of an Eng- 

 lish earl, the disposition to defray 

 the cost ought not to be wanting. 

 If thei'emains of the Earl of Peter- 

 borough were not to be deposited 

 in the grave without all these 

 accompaniments of grandeur, , 

 " The boast of heraldry, and 

 pomp of power,'' 

 the common principles of justice 

 required that the burthen should 

 fall on those who succeeded to 

 his property. It was probably 

 their elegance and taste which 

 had been the cause of so superb 

 a display of funeral ornament, 

 and they rnust not shrink from 

 the consequences of their gratifi- 

 cation. He would beg to draw 

 their attention to one single part 

 of the bill, on the fairness of which 

 they would be called on to decide; 

 because, if the justice of that 

 charge should be established, it 

 would serve to indicate the merits 

 of the whole inquiry. A sum of 



between 



