manded that he fhould be taken from the

bar by force.

The jury then heard the opinion of the judge, that good characters were of no weight against positive evidence, though they might turn the scale where it was doubtful; and that though, when two men attack each other, the death of either is only manslaughter; but where one is the aggreffor, as in the cafe before them, and, in purfuance of his first attack, kills the other, the law supposes the action, however fudden, to be malicious. They then deliberated upon their verdict, and determined that Mr. Savage and Mr. Gregory were guilty of murder, and Mr. Merchant, who had no fword, only of manflaughter.

Thus ended this memorable trial, which lafted eight hours, Mr. Savage and Mr. Gregory were conducted back to prison, where they were more clofely confined, and loaded with irons of fifty pounds weight: four days afterwards they were fent back to the court to receive fentence; on which occafion Mr.

Savage made, as far as it could be retained in memory, the following speech.

"It is now, my Lord, too late to offer any "thing by way of defence or vindication ;

nor can we expect from your Lordships, in "this court, but the fentence which the law "requires you, as judges, to pronounce against

men of our calamitous condition.-But we 66 are also perfuaded, that as mere men, and out of this feat of rigorous justice, you are "fufceptive of the tender paffions, and too "humane, not to commiferate the unhappy "fituation of those, whom the law fometimes "perhaps exacts-from you to pronounce

upon. No doubt you distinguish between "offences, which arife out of premeditation, "and a difpofition habituated to vice or im"morality, and tranfgreffions, which are the "unhappy and unforeseen effects of cafual "absence of reafon, and fudden impulfe of

46

paffion: we therefore hope you will contri"bute all you can to an extension of that mercy, which the gentlemen of the jury "have been pleased to fhew Mr. Merchant, "who (allowing facts as fworn against us by

"the evidence) has led us into this our calamity. I hope this will not be conftrued, as if we meant to reflect upon that gentle

man, or remove any thing from us upon “him, or that we repine the more at our fate, "because he has no participation of it: No, 66 my Lord! For my part, I declare nothing "could more foften my grief, than to be "without any companion in fo great a mis"fortune*."

Mr. Savage had now no hopes of life, but from the mercy of the crown, which was very earneftly folicited by his friends, and which, with whatever difficulty the story may obtain belief, was obftructed only by his

mother.

To prejudice the Queen against him, she made use of an incident, which was omitted in the order of time, that it might be mentioned together with the purpose which it was made to ferve. Mr. Savage, when he had discovered his birth, had an inceffant defire to fpeak to his mother, who always avoided.

* Mr. Savage's Life,

him in publick, and refused him admiffion into her house. One evening walking, as it was his cuftom, in the street that the inhabited, he faw the door of her house by accident open; he entered it, and, finding no perfon in the paffage to hinder him, went up stairs to falute her. She difcovered him before he could enter her chamber, alarmed the family with the most distressful outcries, and when fhe had by her fcreams gathered them about her, ordered them to drive out of the house that villain, who had forced himself in upon her, and endeavoured to murder her. Savage, who had attempted with the most fubmiffive tenderness to foften her rage, hearing her utter fo deteftable an accufation, thought it prudent to retire; and, I believe, never attempted afterwards to speak to her.

But, fhocked as he was with her falfhood and her cruelty, he imagined that the intended no other use of her lye, than to set herself free from his embraces and folicitations, and was very far from suspecting that she would treasure it in her memory, as an inftrument of future wickedness, or that he would en

deavour

deavour for this fictitious affault to deprive him of his life.

But when the Queen was folicited for his pardon, and informed of the fevere treatment which he had fuffered from his judge, she anfwered, that, however unjustifiable might be the manner of his trial, or whatever extenuation the action for which he was condemned might admit, she could not think that man a proper object of the King's mercy, who had been capable of entering his mother's house in the night, with an intent to murder her.

By whom this atrocious calumny had been transmitted to the Queen; whether the that invented had the front to relate it; whether she found any one weak enough to credit it, or corrupt enough to concur with her in her hateful defign, I know not: but methods had been taken to perfuade the Queen so strongly of the truth of it, that fhe for a long time refused to hear any of those who petitioned for his life.

Thus had Savage perished by the evidence of a bawd, a ftrumpet, and his mother, had VOL. III.

R

not