Your Majesty's goodness and justice, in pity for my miseries, which this delay so severely aggravates, and in justice to my innocence and character, to urge the Commissioners to an early communication of their advice. To save Your Majesty and the Commissioners all unnecessary trouble, as well as to obviate all probability of farther delay, I have directed a duplicate of this Letter to be prepared, and have sent one copy of it through the Lord-Chancellor, and another through Colonel Taylor, to Your Majesty. I am, Sire, With every sentiment of gratitude and loyalty, Montague-House, Dec. 8, 1806. C. P. The Lord Chancellor has the honour to present his most humble duty to the Princess of Wales, and to transmit to Her Royal Highness, the accompanying Message from the King; which Her Royal Highness will observe, he has His Majesty's commands to communicate to Her Royal Highness. The Lord Chancellor would have done himself the honour to have waited personally upon Her Royal Highness, and have delivered it himself; but he considered the sending it sealed, as more respectful and acceptable to Her Royal Highness. The Lord Chancellor received the original paper from the King yesterday, and made the copy now sent in his own hand. January Twenty-eighth, 1807. To Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales. The King having referred to his confidential servants the proceedings and papers relative to the written declarations, which had been before His Majesty, respecting the conduct of the Princess of Wales, has been apprised by them, that after the fullest consideration of the examinations taken on that subject, and of the observations and affidavits brought forward by the Princess of Wales's legal advisers, they agree in the opinions submitted to His Majesty in the original Report of the four Lords, by whom His Majesty directed that the matter should in the first instance be inquired into; and that, in the present stage of the business, upon a mature and deliberate view of this most important subject in all its parts and bearings, it is their opinion, that the facts of this case do not warrant their advising that any farther step should be taken in the business by His Majesty's Government, or any other proceedings instituted upon it, except only such as His Majesty's lawservants may, on reference to them, think fit to recommend for the prosecution of Lady Douglas, on those parts of her depositions which may appear to them to be justly liable thereto. In this situation, His Majesty is advised, that it is no longer necessary for him to decline receiving the Princess into His Royal Presence. The King sees, with great satisfaction, the agreement of his confidential servants, in the decided opinion expressed by the four Lords upon the falsehood of the accusations of pregnancy and delivery, brought forward against the Princess by Lady Douglas. On the other matters produced in the course of the Inquiry, the King is advised that none of the facts or allegations stated in preliminary examinations, carried on in the absence of the parties interested, can be considered as legally, or conclussvely established. But in those examinations, and even in the answer drawn in the name of the Princess by her legal advisers, there have appeared circumstances of conduct on the part of the Princess, which His Majesty never could regard but with serious concern. The elevated rank which the Princess holds in this country, and the relation in which the Princess stands to His Majesty and the Royal Family, must always deeply involve both the interests of the state, and the personal feelings of His Majesty, in the propriety and correctness of her conduct. And His Majesty cannot therefore forbear to express, in the conclusion of the business, his desire and expectation, that such a conduct may in future be observed by the Princess, as may fully justify those marks of paternal regard and affection, which the King always wishes to shew to every part of His Royal Family. His Majesty has directed that this message should be transmitted to the Princess of Wales by his Lord Chancellor, and that copies of the proceedings, which had taken place on the subject, should also be communicated to his dearly beloved Son, The Prince of Wales. Montague-House, January 29th, 1807. SIRE, I hasten to acknowledge the receipt of the paper, which, by Your Majesty's direction, was transmitted to me by the Lord Chancellor, and to express the unfeigned happiness which I have derived from one part of it; I mean that which informs me that Your Majesty's confidential servants have, at length, thought proper to communicate to Your Majesty their advice, "that it is no longer necessary for Your "Majesty to decline receiving me into your Royal presence." And I, therefore, humbly hope, that Your Majesty will be graciously pleased to receive, with favour, the communication of my intention to avail myself, with Your Majesty's permission, of that advice, for the purpose of waiting upon Your Majesty on Monday next, if that day should not be inconvenient; when I hope again to have the happiness of throwing myself, in filial duty and affection, at Your Majesty's feet. Your Majesty will easily conceive, that I reluctantly name so distant a day as Monday, but I do not feel myself sufficiently recovered from the measles, to venture upon so long a drive at an earlier day. Feeling, however, very anxious to receive again as soon as possible, that blessing, of which I have been so long deprived, if that day should happen to be, in any degree, inconvenient, I humbly entreat and implore Your Majesty's most gracious and paternal goodness, to name some other day, as early as possible, for that purpose. I am, &c, C. P. Windsor Castle, January 29th, 1807. The King has this moment received the Princess of Wales's letter, in which she intimates her intention of coming to Windsor on Monday next; and His Majesty, wishing not to put the Princess to the inconvenience of coming to this place, so immediately after her illness, hastens to acquaint her, that he shall prefer to receive her in London, upon a day subsequent to the ensuing week, which will also better suit His Majesty, and of which he will not fail to apprize the Princess. GEORGE. R. To the Princess of Wales. (Signed) Windsor Castle, February 10, 1807. As the Princess of Wales may have been led to expect, from the King's letter to her, that he would fix an early day for seeing her, His Majesty thinks it right to acquaint her, that the Prince of Wales, upon receiving the several documents, which the King directed his cabinet to transmit to him, made a formal communication to him, of his intention to put them into the hands of his lawyers; accompanied by a request, that His Majesty would suspend any farther steps in the bu ́siness, until the Prince of Wales should be enabled to submit to him, the statement which he proposed to make. The King therefore considers it incumbent upon him to defer naming a day to the Princess of Wales, until the farther result of the Prince's intention shall have been made known to him. To the Princess of Wales. (Signed) GEORGE. R. SIRE, Montague House, February 12th, 1807. I RECEIVED yesterday, and with inexpressible pain, Your Majesty's last communication. The duty of stating, in a representation to Your Majesty, the various grounds, upon which I feel the hardship of my case, and upon which I confidently think, that, upon a review of it, Your Majesty will be disposed to recal your last determination, is a duty I owe to myself: and I cannot forbear, at a moment when I acknowledge Your Majesty's letter, to announce to Your Majesty, that I propose to execute that duty without delay. After having suffered the punishment of banishment from Your Majesty's presence, for seven months, pending an Inquiry, which Your Majesty had directed, into my conduct, affecting both my life and my honour;-after that Inquiry had at length terminated in the advice of Your Majesty's confidential and sworn servants, that there was no longer any reason for Your Majesty's declining to receive me ;-after Your Majesty's gracious communication, which led me to rest assured that Your Majesty would appoint an early day to receive me;—if after all this, by a renewed application on the part of The Prince of Wales, upon whose cmmunication the first Inquiry had been directed, I now find that punishment, which had been inflicted, pending a seven month's Inquiry before the determination, should, contrary to the opinion of Your Ma'jesty's servants, be continued after that determination, to await the result of some new proceeding, to be suggested by the lawyers of the Prince of Wales; it is impossible that I can fail to assert to Your Majesty, with the effect due to truth, that I am, in the consciousness of my innocence, and with a strong sense of my unmerited suffering, Your Majesty's most dutiful, and most affectionate, C. P. TO THE RIGHT HON. LORD-CHIEF-JUSTICE ELLENBOROUGH. MY LORD, You are much deceived if you imagine that the scrutiny into the conduct of public characters is directed by a spirit of malevolence or insubordination: however pride or petulance may interpret or receive it, the inference is unjust. With such, indeed, the system of passive obedience and non-resistance is a first principle, superseding every other the most just and natural; and each attempt in defence of privilege or the assertion of right becomes an offence of the deepest die, of the blackest and worst complexion. In arbitrary Governments this principle is law; where all privilege is on the side of power; but here, as yet, it is not so received.-With us, the Law is held a public property, and not a private convenience; and those who are the medium of its power are responsible for its administration.-The connection is indivisible between the interests of the State and of the People, the splendour and reputation of the one being only advanced by the prosperity and happiness of the other. Were we slaves, My Lord, no matter who might give law, or who might execute; our province would be obedience, and tyrant Rulers might live secure. But Your Lordship will nor dare to call us slaves, nor will we believe ourselves to be so while the faintest trace of the Constitution remains to us. Wherefore, My Lord, as the Law is our shield as well as guide, and every individual, acting under its influence, in whatever capacity, civil or religious, from the highest Minister of State to the humblest office in the community, is amenable for its due observance, who shall question the privilege of scrutinizing into the conduct of Public Characters, or call that scrutiny a daring innovation, an obtrusive liberty, a licentious calumniating spirit of insubordination ?-Is it meant to be inferred, that Public Characters, because of their dignified stations, the honours and distinctions which partial favour, more than merit, may have bestowed, is it to be inferred that such shall stand beyond the reach of public scrutiny, veiled by the dazzling splendour of their high estate, and sheltered by the power which they may have dared to abuse? I wish to speak with reverence of authority, to act with due obedience to its control, to live with confidence in its integrity; but such reliance, submission, and regard, must ever exist provisionally, to be guided and governed by desert.-If men misuse their power, or are incapable or unworthy to retain it, shall it be calumny to tell them so, even in those who suffer by their incompetence or their oppression ?It is not with the office but the officer the evil rests; not with the authority, but with him who knows not how to use it. Prove that no abuse exists, and the world will subscribe to the charge of calumny in those who censure Public Characters. But that there is abuse, much vile and scandalous abuse, among the highest ranks of office, is a glaring fact, and Your Lordship knows it, unless your anxiety to uphold the impeccability of power has clouded your perception, and rendered alone a stranger to what is clear to all the world beside. you It is not, therefore, a love of detraction merely that instigates the inquiry into the actions or the merits of public men; but a principle of security alone, of self-preservation, to observe and guard against encroaching evils.-Call it not calumny, then, My Lord, it is a recreant term it never can deserve, a profanation of the boasted liberty we are stated to enjoy. But, not content with such an appellation, you ge on to say, that they are fire-brands who use it; that it is a prevalent fashion to cry down indiscriminately the reputation of Public Characters, and make them subject to the ordeal of public opinion. To this we answer, that he who does his duty faithfully, performs his office rightfully, and bears his power with equity and moderation, need fear no scrutiny; calumny cannot wound him, malice can never injure or provoke him :-investigation to such a man is the medium of triumph, of honour, and gratulation:—a thing to smile at rather than denounce. But can there not be investigation without calumny? - Can we not look power in the face, without the imputation of wishing to destroy it t Let slander meet its punishment, let it abide the peril; but do not let us confound liberty with licentiousness.-Fire-brands, My Lord! it is those who would light up the torch of persecution, of tyranny, and oppression, prevent the wholesome practice of the law, dry up the fountain of mercy in the State, and make the sword of justice a devouring flame; these are the "fire-brands" we have to dread, and which nothing but the ardour of liberty can hope to extinguish. What if the breath of calumny were common as the wind, blowing on all alike, the dignity of virtue would be nothing lessened; like the proud oak it would stand erect, and mock the efforts of the storm :-Guilt alone would tremble, shrink, and turn pale, at every blast ;—and crý➡ these slanders will undo us all.'-When power is attacked, it is the event which stamps the character of the deed;-if prosperous, it is vir tue, patriotism, public spirit ;-if unsuccessful, it is slander, calumny, |