Life of Lord Byron, Vol. 6: With His Letters and JournalsMoore, Thomas
General
Life of Lord Byron, Vol. 6: With His Letters and Journals
Moore, Thomas
Byron, George Gordon Byron, Baron, 1788-1824; Poets, English -- 19th century -- Biography
To the other topics touched upon in the petition, I shall
not now advert, from a wish not to encroach upon the time of the
House; but I do most sincerely call the attention of your Lordships
to its general contents--it is in the cause of the parliament and
people that the rights of this venerable freeman have been violated,
and it is, in my opinion, the highest mark of respect that could be
paid to the House, that to your justice, rather than by appeal to any
inferior court, he now commits, himself. Whatever may be the fate of
his remonstrance, it is some satisfaction to me, though mixed with
regret for the occasion, that I have this opportunity of publicly
stating the obstruction to which the subject is liable, in the
prosecution of the most lawful and imperious of his duties, the
obtaining by petition reform in parliament. I have shortly stated his
complaint; the petitioner has more fully expressed it. Your Lordships
will, I hope, adopt some measure fully to protect and redress him,
and not him alone, but the whole body of the people, insulted and
aggrieved in his person, by the interposition of an abused civil, and
unlawful military force between them and their right of petition to
their own representatives.
His Lordship then presented the petition from Major Cartwright, which
was read, complaining of the circumstances at Huddersfield, and of
interruptions given to the right of petitioning in several places in
the northern parts of the kingdom, and which his Lordship moved
should be laid on the table.
Several lords having spoken on the question,
Lord Byron replied, that he had, from motives of duty, presented this
petition to their Lordships' consideration. The noble Earl had
contended, that it was not a petition, but a speech; and that, as it
contained no prayer, it should not be received. What was the
necessity of a prayer? If that word were to be used in its proper
sense, their Lordships could not expect that any man should pray to
others. He had only to say, that the petition, though in some parts
expressed strongly perhaps, did not contain any improper mode of
address, but was couched in respectful language towards their
Lordships; he should therefore trust their Lordships would allow the
petition to be received.
A FRAGMENT.[1]
[Footnote 1: During a week of rain at Diodati, in the summer of 1816,
the party having amused themselves with reading German ghost stories,
they agreed at last to write something in imitation of them. "You and
I," said Lord Byron to Mrs. Shelley, "will publish ours together." He
then began his tale of the Vampire; and, having the whole arranged in
his head, repeated to them a sketch of the story one evening;--but,
from the narrative being in prose, made but little progress in
filling up his outline. The most memorable result, indeed, of their
storytelling compact, was Mrs. Shelley's wild and powerful romance of
Frankenstein.--MOORE.
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