A true account of the behaviour and conduct of Archibald Stewart: Esq; late Lord Provost of Edinburgh. In a letter to a friend.

POSTSCRIPT.

I Intended to have sent this by _____ _____ but not being able to meet him before he left this Country, I was obliged to keep it by me till this time, when I hear, to my great Sa|tisfaction, that Mr. Stewart has been acquitted by the Jury Nemine contradicente, and that all the Facts contained in his Information, and in the foregoing Letter, were proved with an Evi|dence and Conviction, even beyond what he himself imagined. The Trial was the longest and most solemn that ever was known in this Country; and the Judges were even obliged, by Necessity, to break through an established Custom and Law, and adjourned the Court, on Account of the absolute Impossibility of suppor|ting, without Interruption, the Fatigues of so long a Trial. Mr. Stewart intended to have abridged their Trouble, by resting his Defence intirely on the Pursuer's Evidence, without ad|ducing a single Witness of his own: But he was over-ruled in this by his Council, who approved of the Confidence arising from Innocence, but still insisted upon having two Witnesses adduced, for all the principle Facts, upon which he ground|ed his Defence.

Several of the Jury had been Volunteers during the Rebellion, and all of them were particularly distinguished by their warm Zeal for the Go|vernment. As some People had been foolish e|nough to make this Trial a Party Business, all

Mr. Stewart's Friends were alarmed, when the•• saw the Names of the Jury. For tho' they wer•• sensible of the Probity of these Gentlemen, ye•• they dreaded their Prejudices, and were afraid▪ that Truth and Innocence would not obtain so full a Triumph (as they did afterwards) over Pas+sion and Party-Zeal.

I can assure you the King's Advocate did no•• want Keenness in this Affair, to give the mildes•• Appellation to his Conduct. And here I mus•• inform you, that what I heard of his Speech sug…gested to me a Remark, which I had often made▪ to the Honour of our Age and Nation, in one Particular, above the antient Times of Greec•• and Rome. Mr. Grant was very copious in in|sisting on the Suspicions this Country lay under with Regard to Jacobitism, the apparent Diffi|dence the Ministry had shewn to trust us with the Trials of the Rebels, the strong Conviction e|very one in England had of Mr. Stewart's Guilt, and the great Scandal his Acquital would bring on the Country; to which he added, that a very slight Punishment was intended, a few Days Im|prisonment, and a small Fine, which one so rich as Mr. Stewart could easily bear. But though you know that such extraneous and popular To|picks as these, are very usual in all the Poems and Epilogues of Cicero, and even of Demosthenes; yet I can assure you this Imitation of the an|tient Orators was not at all approved of, either by the Jury or the By-standers.

You will be very much surprized, I suppose, to hear, that many of the Whigs have betrayed such a furious Zeal on this Occasion, that they are mortified, or rather indeed inraged to the last Degree, that an innocent Man has been found

innocent: And this has given Occasion to the ••pposite Party, to make his Acquital a Matter of infinite Triumph and Rejoicing; as much al|most as the Defeat of Val, or the Surprizal of Bergen-op-zoom, or any other publick Calamity, ••hat has ever befallen us. Whatever opposes or ••isappoints the Government will always be, with|out Distinction, a great Satisfaction to them.

But I shall further explain to you the great Difference betwixt a political and a religious Whig, in Order to account for these odd Tran|••actions. The Idea I form of a political Whig is, ••hat of a Man of Sense and Moderation, a Lover of Laws and Liberty, whose chief Regard to particular Princes and Families, is founded on a Regard to the publick Good: The Leaders of this Party amongst us, are Men of great Worth, ••he President, for instance, and Lord Justice Clerk, especially the Former. I fay, especially ••he Former: for tho' 'tis certain the Conduct of the Justice Clerk was altogether commendable, as far as the Circumstances and Situations, in which he was placed, would admit; yet that of the President has been so singularly good and great, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 to be the Subject of Admiration, and even of Envy, if Virtue could ever excite that Passion.

The religious Whigs are a very different Set of Mortals, and in my Opinion, are much worse than the religious Tories; as the political Tories are inferior to the political Whigs. I know not how it happens, but it seems to me, that a Zeal for Bishops, and for the Book of Common-Prayer, tho' equally groundless, has never been able, when mixt up with Party Notions, to form so virulent and exalted a Poison in human Breasts, as ••he opposite Principles. Dissimulation, Hypocrisy,

Violence, Calumny, Selfishness are, generall•• speaking, the true and legitimate Offspring of th•• Kind of Zeal.

This Species of Whigs, whatever they ma•• imagine, form but the Fag-end of the Party▪ and are, at the Bottom, very heartily despised b•• their own Leaders. Once on a Time, indeed the Breech got over the Head; when Cromwel••▪ Ireton, Warriston, &c. ruled our Councils an•• Armies; and then there was fine Work indeed▪ But ever since, though their Assistance has bee•• taken at Elections, and they have been allowed▪ in Return, to rail and make a Noise as much a•• they please, they have had but little Influence o•• our publick Determinations; and long may 〈◊〉〈◊〉 continue so.

These are Mr. Stewart's greatest, and indeed▪ only Enemies. The political Whigs are, man•• of them, his personal Friends; and all of them are extremely pleased with his Acquital, becau•••• they believe, what is, indeed, undeniable, th•••• it was founded on his Innocence. I am charitabl•• enough to suppose, that the Joy of many of th•• Tories flowed from the same Motive. And as t•• those, if there were any such, who had a dif…ferent Motive, he will not, I believe, give the•• any Thanks for a Concern, which is more like•••• to hurt than to serve him.

FINIS.