seems to imply, that they have seen reason to question it in other respects? Is it meant to be insinuated that they saw reason to question their veracity, not in respect of an unfavourable bias, but of a bias in my favour? I cannot impute to them such an insinuation, because I am satisfied that the Commissioners would never have intended to insinuate any thing so directly contrary to the truth. The witnesses specifically pointed out, as thus particularly deserving of credit, are *W. Cole, R. Bidgood, †F. Lloyd, and Mrs. Lisle. With respect to Mrs. Lisle, I trust your Majesty will permit me to make my observations upon her examination, as distinctly and separately, as I possibly can, from the others. Because, as I ever had, and have now, as much as ever, the most perfect respect for Mrs. Lisle, I would avoid the possibility of having it imagined that such observations, as I shall be under the absolute necessity of making, upon the other witnesses, could be intended, in any degree, to be applied to her. With respect to Cole, Bidgood, and Lloyd, they have all lived in their places, for a long time; they had lived with his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales before he married, and were * Appendix (A.) No. 5. L appointed by him to situations about me; Cole and Lloyd immediately upon my marriage, and Bidgood very shortly afterwards. I know not whether from this circumstance they may consider themselves as not owing that undivided duty and regard to me, which servants of my own appoint ment, might possibly have felt; [but if I knew nothing more of them than that they had consented to be voluntarily examined, for the purpose of supporting the statement of Lady Douglas on a charge so deeply affecting my honour, without communicating to me the fact of such examination, your Majesty would not, I am sure, be surprised to find, that I saw, in that circumstance alone, sufficient to raise some suspicions of an unfavourable bias. But when I find Cole, particularly, submitting to this secret and voluntary examination against me, no less than four times, and when I found, during the pendency of this Inquiry before the Commissioners, that one of them, R. Bidgood, was so far connected, and in league, with Sir John and Lady Douglas, as to have communication with the latter, I thought I saw the proof of such decided hostility and confederacy against me, that I felt obliged to order the discontinuance of his attendance at my house till further orders. Of the real bias of their minds, however, with respect to me, your Majesty will be better able to judge from the consideration of their evidence. The imputations which I collect to be considered as cast upon me by these several witnesses, are too great familiarity and intimacy with several gentlemen,-Sir Sidney Smith, Mr. Lawrence, Captain Manby, and I know not whether the same are not meant to be extended to Lord Hood, Mr. Chester, and Captain More. With your Majesty's permission, therefore, I will examine the depositions of the witnesses, as they respect these several gentlemen, in their order, keeping the evidence, which is applicable to each case, as distinct from the others as I can. And I will begin with those which respect Sir Sidney Smith, as he is the person first mentioned in the deposition of W. Cole. W. Cole says," * "that Sir Sidney Smith first visited at Montague House in 1802; that he observed that the Princess was too familiar with Sir Sidney Smith. One day, he thinks in Febru ary, he (Cole) carried into the Blue Room to the Princess some sandwiches which she had ordered, and was surprised to see that Sir Sidney was there. He must have come in from the Park. If he had been let in from Blackheath, he must have passed through the room in which he (Cole) was waiting. When he had left the sandwiches he returned, after some time, into the room, and Sir Sidney Smith was sitting very close to the Princess on the sofa; He (Cole) looked at her Royal Highness, she caught his eye, and saw that Appendix (A.) No. 5 he noticed the manner in which they were sitting together, they appeared both a little confused." R. Bidgood says also, in his deposition* on the 6th of June, (for he was examined twice) " that it was early in 1802 that he first observed Sir Sidney Smith come to Montague House. He used to stay very late at night; he had seen him early in the morning there; about ten or eleven o'clock. He was at Sir John Douglas's and was in the habit, as well as Sir John and Lady Douglas, of dining or having luncheon, or supping there every day. He saw Sir Sidney Smith one day in 1802 in the Blue Room, about 11 o'clock in the morning, which was full two hours before they expected ever to see company. He asked the servants why they did not let him know Sir Sidney Smith was there; the footmen told him that they had let no person in. There was a private door to the Park, by which he might have come in if he had a key to it, and have got into the Blue Room without any of the servants perceiving him. And in his second deposition, taken on the 3rd of July, he says he lived at Montague House when Sir Sidney came. Her (the Princess's) manner with him appeared very familiar; she appeared very attentive to him, but he did not suspect any thing further. Mrs. Lisle says that the Princess at one time appeared to like Sir John and Lady Douglas. "I have seen Sir Sidney Smith there very late in the evening, but not alone with the Princess. I * Appendix (A.) No. 4. have no reason to suspect he had a key of the Park gate; I never heard of any body being found wandering about at Blackheath." Fanny Lloyd does not mention Sir Sidney Smith in her deposition. Upon the whole of this evidence then, which is the whole that respects Sir Sidney Smith, in any of these depositions (except some particular pas-. sages in Cole's evidence which are so important as to require very particular and distinct statement) I would request your Majesty to understand. that, with respect, to the fact of Sir Sidney Smith's visiting frequently at Montague House, both with Sir John and Lady Douglas, and without them; with respect to his being frequently there, at luncheon, dinner, and supper; and staying with the rest of the company till twelve, one o'clock, or even sometimes later, if these are some of the facts" which must give occasion to unfavourable "interpretations, and must be credited till they are contradicted;" they are facts, which I never can contradict, for they are perfectly true. And I trust it will imply the confession of no guilt, to admit that Sir Sidney Smith's conversation, his account of the various and extraordinary events, and heroic achievements in which he had been concerned, amused and interested me; and the circumstance of his living so much with his friends, Sir John and Lady Douglas, in my neighbourhood on Blackheath, gave the opportunity of his increasing his acquaintance with me. 66 |