Lord SWINTON--My Lords, the objection made to the admitting of Andrew Ainslie is that he was an accomplice. I am clear to repel the objection in so far as it goes against the admissibility of the witness, but reserving it in full force, and leaving it to the conscience of the jury, in so far as it strikes against the credibility of the witness. In all my practice, ever since I knew this Court, although I have often heard the objection made, I never knew one instance in which it was sustained. If the jury were bound to believe every word a witness said, be his character what it may, there would be good reason for sustaining the objection, but where objections are reserved against the credibility of a witness, the jury are left at liberty to believe as much or as little of what he says as they see good cause for so doing. The repelling of this objection, which is now the uniform practice, was founded upon good sense and reason, for as accomplices are best qualified to make discoveries, so, many crimes, were they excluded from being witnesses, would pass unpunished; and any hazard of their being guilty of perjury may be easily prevented by the Court’s informing them that the evidence they are to give cannot affect themselves. The LORD JUSTICE-CLERK--My Lords, were such an objection as this to be sustained, we would find very few instances, as one of your Lordships has very well observed, where a crime such as the present, of an occult and secret nature, could be brought to light. My Lords, as to the objection of the _socius criminis_, I will not say a single word upon it. I always thought, my Lords, that it contained in itself a complete answer, since the allegeance that the witness is a _socius criminis_ implies that the pannel is guilty of the crime. What is said by the Dean of Faculty about a supposed bargain betwixt the Sheriff of Edinburgh and Ainslie is by no means such an objection as affects his admissibility, although I will not say that his credibility may not be in some degree diminished by it; and the Dean of Faculty will be right in making his own use of it to the jury. Had the Dean of Faculty alleged that this bargain was corruptly made by my Lord Advocate, I could have understood him. But the Sheriff is only an inferior officer, and had no power to enter into any such transaction. Had he been ever so willing he could not have given Ainslie the smallest security that the terms and conditions of the bargain were to be fulfilled on the part of the Crown in consequence of Ainslie performing what was required of him. A higher authority was necessary, and none but the Lord Advocate himself could with any effect enter into an agreement with a witness to procure him His Majesty’s pardon for becoming King’s evidence. It is therefore not enough to say that offers were made him, whatever they were, by the Sheriff, and we must examine him, reserving all objections to his credibility. The Court then pronounced the following interlocutor:--