The Prisoners were examined before the Court Martial one by one; the Questions asked them were to this Purpose, Was you enlisted? Have you taken the Oaths? Have you received your Pay? Had you your Cloathing regularly? To all which they answered in the Affirmative: They were asked if they had any Complaints against their Officers, they all answered in the Negative, and in general pleaded nothing in Alleviation of their Crime before the Court Martial, but Inadvertency, and that they were moved to it by a Report which prevailed of their being sent to the _West-Indies_, and into a Climate destructive of their Health. I cannot help in this Place to take notice of the remarkable Officiousness of this Stranger. He takes upon him without being asked, or the least apparent Interest in the Prisoners, to advise them in Matters of the last Consequence to them, their Lives and Reputation; has the Rashness to prejudge the Opinion of the Honourable the Court Martial in a Point of Law, which is at least a moot Point amongst the Lawyers themselves. How unreasonable was it for any Man to pretend to determine what Weight any Plea would have before a Court of Judicature determining in a Case of Life and Death; and how unjust to the Prisoners, to advise them to conceal any Circumstance in their Case that might have the smallest Tendency towards alleviating their Crimes, or raising the smallest Motions of Compassion towards them in the Breasts of their Judges! Suppose there had been but little Weight in the Plea of their Want of Pay, yet still it was a Circumstance closely connected with their Crime, without which it was impossible to form a just Judgment of the Heinousness of that Action. For it must be granted on the one hand, that a Soldier who deserts and cannot plead Want of Pay, etc., is less excusable, and consequently deserves a greater Degree of Punishment than he who has such a Pretence; this must be granted, tho’ it should be admitted on the other hand, that there is not so much in this Plea, as to skreen the Criminals totally from Punishment; But how much, or little is in it, is a Case few wise Men will determine dogmatically, especially against the Prisoner, since History, either antient or modern, does not afford any one Instance of Capital Punishments inflicted on Soldiers who mutinied for Want of Pay. It is true, the Pay they want is but small; by their own Account ten or twelve shillings, some less, some a trifle more, which I mention out of Justice to the Officers, because it was currently reported in Town that the Deficiency was much more considerable. But however trifling this and their other Complaints may seem to Men not concerned, yet I cannot but reckon it barbarous to have advised them to conceal these Circumstances, the Relation of which could not be supposed to have been capable of making the Court Martial less merciful to the Prisoners, if it had not the contrary effect.