JET. 42.] THE TRIAL. 383 



these laughed to scorn the stories told by the Italian 

 witnesses about what passed on shore, and still more, 

 if possible, the tales of what passed on board ship in 

 the Levant. 



When it was resolved to go on with the bill, the 

 difficulty arose from both the Queen's law officers 

 being in Parliament, as were also the Attorney and 

 Solicitor General of the King. I proposed to relin- 

 quish my seat, without having previously made any 

 arrangement for being again returned by Lord Dar- 

 lington, after the cause should be at an end. My 

 Parish School Bill had been introduced, which I after- 

 wards was prevented from carrying by the absurd 

 and groundless prejudice of the Dissenters, when it 

 was supported by the Church the Dissenters oppos- 

 ing it because it was so supported. The second read- 

 ing and full defence of its principles was brought on 

 immediately by me, because I believed that I should 

 a few days after be out of Parliament. But the min- 

 isters were so much at a loss for their Crown lawyers, 

 should they as well as we be obliged to quit their 

 seats, that the very extraordinary course was taken of 

 allowing us all to take part in the proceedings upon 

 the bill a thing without any example, and which 

 has never been done in any case since. 



In the conduct of our case I laid down some rules, 

 which we found of the greatest importance, trivial as 

 they now appear. One was that we should have a 

 consultation both before and after each day's proceed- 

 ings. For this purpose I required that we should 

 breakfast at the House of Lords, and we had a room 

 allotted to us connected with the coffee-house. I con- 

 sidered that this insured the attendance of all at the 



