of the popular prejudice in his favour, he has not even the mechanical qualities of an orator. His person is good, and his gesture is easy; but his attitudes are frequently awkward, and his delivery often interrupted. Fluency is not his property. You are forced constantly to perceive that he is hunting musical words and, being some times thrown out in the chase, he manifests his embarrassment by stammering and rolling his eyes with perplexity to the ceiling.

I have been led to this analysis of the character of the supposed SULPITIUS, for the benefit of such of our youth as aim at the character of eloquence. It is my wish to show them, that if they desire to excel, they must look to something beyond the achievements of this speaker. Let them study the defences of Curran and Erskine-let them endeavour to catch their spirit. When they shall have done this, the citizens of America will hear, applaud, and imitate.

It is not correct to blame Virginia for want of orators of the higher class, whilst we recollect the brilliant talents of PATRICK HENRY. But even at present, in all our courts, we find a number of very respectable speakers; and, in congress, Virginian eloquence generally conducts the vanguard. Some of her speakers in that body, have borne the same share in the opinion of the republic, which the tenth legion bore in the confidence of Julius Cæsar. Our country is young; but it has done wonders in its time; and if it can preserve its republican forms, there is no doubt, in due time, it will emulate, if not surpass, whatever we have heard of Greek or Roman oratory.

THE TRIAL

OF ARCHIBALD HAMILTON ROWAN, ESQ. FOR THE PUBLI
CATION OF A LIBEL.

IN the latter end of December, 1792, Mr. Rowan was ar rested by virtue of Mr. Justice Downes's warrant, on a charge of distributing a seditious paper. Mr. Downes having assured Mr. Rowan, that the examinations, upon which the warrant was grounded, would be returned to the clerk of the crown, and that they would, he supposed, be in course by him laid before the next term grand jury, Mr. Rowan, instead of going to gaol, in pursuance of his own opinion, followed the advice of his law friends, and gave bail for his appearance in the king's bench, to answer such charges as should be there made against him. During the succeeding Hilary term, Mr. Rowan daily attended in the king's bench, and on the last day of that term finding that no éxaminations had been laid before the grand jury, against him, he applied, by counsel, to the court, that the examinations should be forthwith returned, particularly, as Mr. Attorney-General had, in the course of the term, filed two informations, ex officio, against him, the one for the same alleged offence of distributing a seditious paper, and the other for a seditious conspiracy; whereupon Mr. Justice Downes, who was on the bench, having asserted that he had on the first day of the term, returned the examinations to the clerk of the crown, and the clerk of the crown having said, that from the multiplicity of the examinations returned to him on the first day of the term, and even on that day, he had not time to look them

VOL. I.

G

over, the court refused to make any order. Mr. Rowan daily attended the king's bench on the following Easter term, until the same was nearly spent, and finding that no bills were sent up to the grand jury against him, he moved the court, by counsel, that the recognisance entered into by him and his bail should be vacated, and publicly declared, that if this motion was not granted, he would surrender himself in discharge of his bail. The Attorney-General consenting, the motion was granted, and the recognisance was vacated.

In the above-mentioned Easter term, a motion was made, on behalf of Mr. Rowan, to fix certain days for trial of the informations filed ex officio against him, and the Attorney-General having agreed to the appointment of two days in the ensuing Trinity term, viz. the 3d and 7th days of May, those days were accordingly appointed for the purpose. However, in the Easter vacation, the Attorney-General served a notice on Mr. Rowan, stating, that he would not proceed to trial on those days, but he would apply to the court to appoint other days, grounded on an affidavit to be filed, of which notice would be given; nothing was done upon this notice, and no affidavit was filed, or motion made thereon, and the venire, the process necessary for empannelling juries on the days appointed, having been, after being issued, kept by Mr. Kemmis, the crown solicitor, instead of being delivered to the sheriff, a motion was made on behalf of Mr. Rowan; in the last Trinity term, that the venire should be delivered to the proper officer, in order that the trials might be had on the days appointed, in case the court should not grant any motion the Attorney-General might make for postponing the trials. This motion was opposed by the Attorney-General; he declared, that there was error in the information for distributing a seditious paper. Mr. Rowan offered to agree to an immediate amendment of the information, or that a fresh one should be filed and pleaded to instanter, or that he would release all errors; all these offers were severally refused. The object

of the Attorney-General appeared to be to postpone the trials, and though only one of the informations was stated to be informal, yet the day appointed for the trial of the other, which was supposed to be formal, passed away without trial, equally with the day appointed for the one which was stated to be informal. The Attorney-General afterwards withdrew the information stated to have been informal, and filed another in the stead thereof. Many of Mr. Rowan's friends suspected, that the motive for postponing the trials was the expectation of having, under the shrievalty of Mr. Giffard, juries more favourable to government prosecutions, than they could entertain any hopes of having during the shrievalty of Mr. Hutton.* In Michaelmas term last, the Attor ney-General applied to the court, that a day should be appointed for the trial of the information for distributing a se ditious paper; the court would not appoint a day in that term, but appointed a day for the trial of that information in Hilary term following.

The following information was filed by his majesty's attorney-general, ex officio, against Arch. H. Rowan, Esq. viz. KING'S BENCH.

Of Trinity term, in the 33d year of the reign of our sovereign lord George the third, now king of Great Britain, &c. in the year of our Lord 1793.

}

County of the City of Dublin, BE IT REMEMBERED, That the to wit: Right Hon. Arthur Wolfe, attorney-general of our present sovereign lord the king, who for our said lord the king prosecutes in this behalf, in his proper person comes into the court of our said lord the king, before the king himself, at the city of Dublin, in the county of the said city, on the 8th day of June in the same term,

There were strong grounds for this suspicion. Mr. G. was a captain of militia, had a lucrative office in the custom-house, and was then conductor of a government newspaper. The whole producing not less than 2,000l. a Fear!

and for our said lord the king gives the court here to under stand and be informed, that Archibald Hamilton Rowan, of the city of Dublin, Esq. being a person of a wicked and turbulent disposition, and maliciously designing and intending to excite and diffuse among the subjects of this realm of Ireland, discontents, jealousies, and suspicions of our said lord the king, and his government, and disaffection and disloyalty to the person and government of our said lord the king, and to raise very dangerous seditions and tumults within this kingdom of Ireland; and to draw the government of this kingdom into great scandal, infamy and disgrace; and to incite the subjects of our said lord the king to attempt, by force and violence, and with arms, to make alterations in the government, state, and constitution of this kingdom, and to incite his majesty's said subjects to tumult and anarchy, and to intimidate and overturn the legislature of this kingdom, by an armed force, on the 16th day of December, in the 33d year of our said present sovereign lord George the third by the grace of God of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, king, defender of the faith, and so forth, with force and arms, at Dublin aforesaid, to wit, in the parish and ward of St. Michael the Archangel, and in the county of the said city, wickedly, maliciously, and seditiously, did publish, and cause and procure to be published, a certain false, wicked, malicious, scandalous, and seditious libel, of and concerning the government, state, and constitution of this kingdom, according to the tenor and effect following, that is to say:

THE SOCIETY OF UNITED IRISHMEN, DUBLIN, TO THE
VOLUNTEERS OF IRELAND.

Wm. Drennan, Chairman.-ARCH. H. ROWAN, Secretary. "Citizen Soldiers!

"YOU first took up arms to protect your country from foreign enemies, and from domestic disturbance; for the same purposes it now becomes necessary that you should re