not justice and compaffion procured him an advocate of rank too great to be rejected unheard, and of virtue too eminent to be heard without being believed. His merit and his calamities happened to reach the ear of the Countess of Hertford, who engaged in his fupport with all the tenderness that is excited by pity, and all the zeal which is kindled by generofity; and, demanding an audience of the Queen, laid before her the whole series of his mother's cruelty, expofed the improbability of an accufation by which he was charged with an intent to commit a murder that could produce no advantage, and foon convinced her how little his former conduct could deferve to be mentioned as a reafon for extraordinary feverity.

The interpofition of this Lady was fo fuccefsful, that he was foon after admitted to bail, and, on the 9th of March 1728, pleaded the King's pardon.

It is natural to enquire upon what motives his mother could profecute him in a manner fo outrageous and implacable; for what reafon she could employ all the arts of ma

I

lice,

lice, and all the fnares of calumny, to take away the life of her own fon, of a fon who never injured her, who was never supported by her expence, nor obstructed any prospect of pleasure or advantage; why she should endeavour to deftroy him by a lye-a lye which could not gain credit, but muft vanish of itself at the firft moment of examination, and of which only this can be faid to make it probable, that it may be obferved from her conduct, that the most execrable crimes are fometimes committed without apparent temptation.

This mother is ftill alive, and may per haps even yet, though her malice was so often defeated, enjoy the pleasure of reflecting, that the life, which fhe often endeavoured to deftroy, was at least shortened by her maternal offices; that though fhe could not tranfport her fon to the plantations, bury him in the fhop of a mechanic, or haften the hand of the public executioner, fhe has yet had the fatisfaction of imbittering all his hours, and forcing him into exigencies that hurried on his death.

It is by no means neceffary to aggravate the enormity of this woman's conduct, by placing it in oppofition to that of the Countefs of Hertford; no one can fail to obferve how much more amiable it is to relieve, than to opprefs, and to rescue innocence from deftruction, than to deftroy without an injury.

Mr. Savage, during his imprisonment, his trial, and the time in which he lay under fentence of death, behaved with great firmnefs and equality of mind, and confirmed by his fortitude the esteem of those who before admired him for his abilities. The peculiar circumftances of his life were made more generally known by a fhort account*, which was then published, and of which several thousands were in a few weeks difperfed over the nation: and the compaffion of mankind operated fo powerfully in his favour, that he was enabled, by frequent prefents, not only to support himself, but to affift Mr. Gregory in prison; and, when he was pardoned and released, he found the number of his friends not leffened.

Written by Mr. Beckingham and another gentleman.

The

The nature of the act for which he had been tried was in itself doubtful; of the evidences which appeared against him, the character of the man was not unexceptionable, that of the woman notorioufly infamous: fhe, whofe teftimony chiefly influenced the jury to condemn him, afterwards retracted her affertions. He always himself denied that he was drunk, as had been generally reported. Mr. Gregory, who is now Collector of Antigua, is faid to declare him far less criminal than he was imagined, even by fome who favoured him: and Page himself afterwards confeffed, that he had treated him with uncommon rigour. When all these particulars are rated together, perhaps the memory of Savage may not be much fullied by his trial,

Some time after he had obtained his li berty, he met in the street the woman that had sworn with fo much malignity against him, She informed him, that he was in distress, and, with a degree of confidence not easily attainable, defired him to relieve her. He, instead of infulting her mifery, and taking pleasure in the calamities of one who had brought his life into danger, reprov

ed her gently for her perjury; and changing the only guinea that he had, divided it equally between her and himself.

This is an action which in fome ages would have made a faint, and perhaps in others a hero, and which, without any hyperbolical encomiums, muft be allowed to be an inftance of uncommon generofity, an act of complicated virtue; by which he at once relieved the poor, corrected the vicious, and forgave an enemy; by which he at once remitted the strongest provocations, and exercifed the most ardent charity.

Compaffion was indeed the distinguishing quality of Savage; he never appeared inclined to take advantage of weakness, to attack the defencelefs, or to prefs upon the falling: whoever was diftreffed was certain at leaft of his good wifhes; and when he could give no affiftance to extricate them from misfortunes, he endeavoured to footh them by fympathy and tenderness.

But when his heart was not foftened by the fight of mifery, he was fometimes obftinate in his refentment, and did not quickly

lofe