Selected quad for the lemma: law_n
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A53097
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Captain Charles Newy's case impartially laid open, or, A true and full narrative of the clandestine proceedings aginst [sic] him as it was hatched, contrived, and maliciously carried on by Mrs. Margaret Newey, widdow.
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Newey, Charles.
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1700
(1700)
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Wing N917; ESTC R42213
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29,009
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19
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Westcombs Son and is since gone away without paying his Lodgings which are things rather to be blushed at than my standing in the Pillory upon a perjured Fellows Evidence Can any one blame me for geting my own of a young Fellow that had no residence I that could not follow him and had so much need of Mony which is the Sinnews of all affairs for one cannot be Hanged a Free cost I return'd him his Wigg tho' he gave me but Seven Pistols and is worth 30 l. which is a Demonstration of my acting Civiler than I ought seeing I might have done otherwise but better Men than I have given way to their Enemies having been betrayed by Misfortune or oppressed by Multitudes but he that sinks under Labour or Affliction the Opinions or Reproaches of Men are overcome by their own Effeminacy and Softness What Noise is this that 's been made about my supposed Crimes cannot our Capital or our Laws be saved or a young Man ruin'd without making use of perjur'd Wretches which no one can no more understand than a Cuckow the making of a Cabinet Where will design'd Envy Malice and Impudence runn consider of it by Common Law which says no Man shall be Tryed but by Judges upon their Oathes and without prejudice that if his Judges or Jury err against him they are punishable and in the Person of the King we 'll deny Justice to no particular Person neither shall a Subject be Tryed by perjudic'd Persons or Condemned without undoubted and clear proofs I hope I shall not be blam'd my being a true English Man and speaking plain English tho' unfortunate for it never was pretended by any Man or will it be asserted by any Creature that understands himself or the constitutions of the Government of this Kingdom that a Subject can or ought to be Buried alive in Prison for Misdeamenor or Fin'd one more than he is worth they tell me ' its against Common Law Magna Carta and Thirty Seven Acts of Parliament No Act of Parliament is allowed binding against Magna Carta which is the Fundamental Laws of this Kingdom I could say more to the purpose and which could infinitly clear me of all but I dare not and therefore shall only begg the Town will inform themselves if my Sister has not Married for the secret Services he did her against me Mr. Allen I mean the Sub-Ordinary of Newgate or is not to be soon Married and if they find he is Married to her let them believe me Guilty if they can especially if they will but Inquire how often the said Allen and my Sister with several of her Neighbours was with and Treated this Jones alias Ambrell alias Clement in Disguise in Newgate what means was used by them but espicially by this Allen's carrying Letters to the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor Mr. Recorder and others what Tricks he plaid with this Jones to Engage him to Swear against me as well as with all the poor Prisoners by telling them he would save their Lives if they or their Friends would give what Mony Fate had left them which when done he never more appeared If he did not get Two Guineas of Mr. Squib to save Mr. Nortons Life that Poyson'd himself or what he wheedled Sr. George out of by telling him what Interest he had with the Arch Bishop let the World but Inquire of every Prisoner or Person that has had to do with him apart they 'll then no longer wonder at my being found Guilty I most humbly begg the World will but take notice that I have not a Creature that Swears against me or said the least thing against my Reputation but those who own'd themselves Perjur'd and are of no Credit or Reputation so I may be Innocent My Sister is notoriously Forsworn First in denying her Husbands Hand Writing or the 105 Guineas being lent tho' she own'd it before Secondly for Swearing I hung the Gallows in Mourning when it was never done this deserves much more my punishment for making a poor Boy who own'd it in his Fright in the presence of several who are ready to make Affidavit of it that she had made him Forswear himself against me what Bribes she gives from time to time to get me Ill us'd in hopes to bring me by Poverty and other Miseries to own my self Guilty which I 'll rather Die then do I am in hopes to learn in time who it was that undertook to Poyson me Mr. Allen had not been gone a quarter of an Hour but I was Invited to Drink hot Ale and Brandy which is what is Drunk there and I accepted but finding it tast oddly I threw it down the Dog licking some of it up Dyed immediatly as can be proved by several as well as my finding my self Ill and taking counter Poyson not that I have any other reason in the World to desire to Live than that of Clearing my self which I do assure my Reader shall be the whole study of my Life being assured that my past Indiscretions cannot but prove a knowing Pilot to my future Conduct And I am so far from complaining of my Judges or Juries that I am sure they did me justice and can't Act otherwise than according to their Evidence I return them my most humble thanks and am troubled at nothing so much as at my Passion for which tho' I perish here it cannot be too great an Atonement My not being used to be thought Guilty of such Crimes as what they charged me with and seeing the Justices before whom I was first brought and my Judges and Juries give Credit to what my Enemies Swore made me who had always lived like a Gentleman Distracted and now renders me who cannot think of what I am acused of without the greatest Horror and concern Imaginable uncapable of Writing as I should or making my Innocency appear as I ought Tho Mr. Allen the Famous Sub-Ordinary of Newgat's Name being set to a Paper lately Printed and Intituled the Last Dying Speech of John Larken alias Young be a sufficent reason for the World to suspect the Truth of it from him who is accustomed to make Dying Men Speak what they never knew or thought of yet will I leave my Readers to Judge if I Rail or so much as Mention the Right Honourable the Lord Chief Baron c. or how it can be possible Larken should know whether whâ—â— he only Copy'd out for me was true or false Whether Copying out any Mans Case can or ought 〈◊〉 Trouble a Dying Man or whether the true season was not Mr. Allens fear of being Detected and what he Catch'd at to prevent his Drowning Whether it be not a Flaming Flam-boy for the World to see his Malice by An Instance of his having Wrong'd me by being an Evidence against me But if he Imagins that speaking Truth or doing what I can to make my Innocency appear be a Crime it s such a one that I desire to be thought Guilty of
I to be thought what I am for what they charge me with might be the Effects of passion Youth or Indiscretion and being Young some hopes was still left for expiation and attonement But I beg of my Reader by all that 's dear to him that he will but examin what Reason or what thing in Nature could be capable to induce me to suborn this Jones alias Ambrell alias Clement such a one that my Misfortunes will not permit me to describe and to take away my Sister's Life which if accomplished would rather prove my Ruin and not only the loss of 105 Guineas lent but other pretensions I wanted no proof I had done my Business against her in Doctors-Commons and at Common-Law without making use of this Fellow now the World may easily know and see that I had no design nor could I if I had been willing which I never was to take away my Brothers Life which is too false an asperssion to be bore or believed that I could be Married to such a one when there is so many better and not one Reason to induce me to this is what I hope no unprejudiced Person will believe no more than my Hanging the Gallows in Mourning Can there be in nature a clearer proof of my Innocency and her barbarous Perjury seeing the thing was never done and that she positively Swore that I did it and had often acknowledg'd it to her What Impious Insollence what Prophain breath dares or ought ever to appear in defence of her Wickedness and Perjury unless they 'll dip in her Impiety Can any one believe that such Villains as the Witnesses against me are known to be fit Instruments to consumate the finishing stroak of Justice By what I have said I do not nor would I be taken to Arraign the Justice of my Country or the Judges before whom I was Tryed But yet I must beg leave to say that I never heard that the Judges or Juries of England do or ever did claim to be guided in their proceedings in Cases of this nature by any Spirit of Infallibility For the Lord Cook in his pleas of the crown Reports a sad Case of a Persons being Condemn'd and Executed for the Murther of a Girl who after the Execution of the party so condemned was found to be Living and in perfect Health Nay a sadder accident yet happen'd in King Charles the Second's Reign in which 3 Persons viz. the Mother and her two Sons were Condemn'd Executed and Hang'd in Chains for the Murther of a Person who afterwards was found to be Living and never to be any ways Assaulted or hurt by those who were Executed for this Murther All this is known to be evidently True Innocent Persons you see have been Executed by publick Verdicts and Judgments and yet the Judges nor Juries no ways blemished but they must be taken to proceed always according to what is Sworn whether True or False is only what God knows what has happened may happen again as is most Evident in my Case who am found Guilty on the Evidences of two Villains who are Guilty of Perjury c. If a Prisoner be Fin'd more than he is able to Pay it 's the same thing as if they Imprison'd him for Life which is against Law and what was thought a grievance in the late Reigns and against an Act of Parliament of King William and Queen Mary which says no Man shall be Fined more than he is worth which is the contents of Magna Carta and worse then Death why are there Powers that Barr the Vengeance of such unparallel'd Wrongs as mine it 's my Fate to speake Truth and not to be believ'd but I am Dumb and shall be glad amongst so many Infidels to gain one Believer or make one Proselite There is another thing which I am neither Committed nor Indicted for I hear has done me as much Harm as what they charge me with believing my Enemies could do nothing against me till the begining of the Sessions I neglected what ought to a been done against them to obtain a very Honourable Place which I certainly had by the Interest of some Persons of Quality had it not been for this Misfortune which startled my Friends and was Musick for my Enemies I sent to Mr Gombleton to borrow a Perriwigg for mine was gone to be altered every one knows that I did not want one it was sent me and I was taken with it on next Morning he hearing of my Misfortune came for it I told him that it had cost me considerable to come to the Press Yard and that they were continually asking me for Mony and tho' I had Mony oweing me yet could I be sure of none being a Prisoner That I did not know what occasion I might have so I hoped he would not take it Ill if I return'd not the Wigg till I had the 10 Guineas I had lent him when he lost his Mony at the Beesset Bank in Bridges-Street in Covent-Garden which can be proved by several Gentlemen who saw me lend him two or three Guineas at a time as he lost them He told me that he was to go to Court that Morning and that he hoped I would have Patience till his Mony came out of the Countrey I told him I was rather to be pittied than blamed that I should not have refused him any thing at another time but in my Circumstances I questioned whether my Debtors would pay me a Farthing of what was owing me He went and brought a Barber drest like a Gentleman who Personated his Uncle whom he told me be longed to Court and should serve me and soon get me out by the Intrest he had with the Lord Mayor and most of the City I told him he could not deny but that it was a just Debt and that there was a necessity for me to borrow Tenn Guineas upon it to pay my self at that time which I should not have done at another tho' I had been told that he was a very ill pay Master Then he told me that he believed it was not quite Tenn Guineas and that he had pay'd a Guinea or a Half Guinea to such a Gentleman besides what he had paid the House for me I told him that nothing should induce me to any thing unworthy of a Gentleman that I would give him a Note under my Hand for what I Receiv'd and we would account when my Misfortunes were over He gave me Seven Pistoles which he said was all he had or could get I gave him my Note for the Receit of them before my Wife who Witnessed it and said what he would do to serve me But he 's known to be a lying Boy which he practised at Tunbridge and had like to a been Beaten for it if he had not denied it Beaten as he was in the Pit at the Old-Play-House by Mr. Goodard he has plaid a Thousand Tricks in borrowing of Mony in geting Cloaths given him by passing for Mrs.