History of the war in the Peninsula and in the south of France from the year 1807 to the year 1814, vol. 6Napier, William Francis Patrick
History
History of the war in the Peninsula and in the south of France from the year 1807 to the year 1814, vol. 6
Napier, William Francis Patrick
Peninsular War, 1807-1814
The chief point of his _second pamphlet_, was the reiterated
assertion that he accompanied the prince regent over the bar of
Lisbon.
To this I could have replied, 1º. That I had seen a letter, written
at the time by Mr. Smith the naval officer commanding the boat which
conveyed lord Strangford from Lisbon to the prince’s ship, and in
that letter it was distinctly stated, _that they did not reach that
vessel until after she had passed the bar_. 2º. That I possessed
letters from other persons present at the emigration of the same
tenor, and that between the writers of those letters and the writer
of the Bruton-street dispatch, to decide which were the better
testimony, offered no difficulty.
Why did I not so reply? For a reason twice before published, namely,
that Mr. Justice Bailey had done it for me. Sir Walter takes no
notice of the judge’s answer, neither does Mr. Lockhart; and yet it
was the most important point of the case. Let the reader judge.
[Sidenote: Vide Sun newspaper 28th Nov. 1828.]
The editor of the Sun newspaper after quoting an article from the
Times upon the subject of my controversy with lord Strangford,
remarked, that his lordship “_would hardly be believed upon his oath,
certainly not upon his honour at the Old Bailey_.”
Lord Strangford obtained a rule to shew cause why a criminal
information should not be filed against the editor for a libel. The
present lord Brougham appeared for the defence and justified the
offensive passage by references to lord Strangford’s own admissions
in his controversy with me. The judges thinking the justification
good, discharged the rule by the mouth of lord Tenterden.
[Sidenote: Report in the Sun newspaper]
During the proceedings in court the attorney-general, on the part
of lord Strangford, referring to that nobleman’s dispatch which,
though purporting to be written on the 29th November from H.M.S.
Hibernia off the Tagus was really written the 29th of December in
Bruton-street, said, “Every body knew that in diplomacy there were
two copies prepared of all documents, No. 1 for the minister’s
inspection, No. 2 for the public.”
Mr. Justice Bayley shook his head in disapprobation.
Attorney-general—“Well, my lord, it is the practice of these
departments and may be justified by necessity.”
Mr. Justice Bayley—“_I like honesty in all places, Mr. Attorney_.”
And so do I, wherefore I recommend this pointed repeller to Mr.
Lockhart when he publishes another edition of his father-in-law’s
life.
COLONEL GURWOOD.
In the eighth volume of the Duke of Wellington’s Despatches page 531,
colonel Gurwood has inserted the following note:—
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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