In the mean time Mr. D'Anvers, in his CRAFTSMAN of Saturday Dec. 9. No. 75. thought fit to apologize for his late Allegories, Allufions and Innuendoes, and, in particular, to clear up the Meaning of one of his Papers,pretending, that the Charge he brought under the Allegory of ROCHE was levell'd against Knez Menzikoff, the difgraced Ruffian Prime Minister; For which he accounts as follows, viz.

'

If it should be afked (as very likely it will, in this inquifitive Age) why I concern my felf fo much in the Affairs of fuch a diftant Kingdom as Majcovy, I answer, that I look upon a Plunderer of his Country to be, by many Degrees, worfe than a Pyrate; He becomes, in fome Refpects, an Enemy to all Mankind, and it is every Body's Bufiness, in whatever Country he happens to appear, to endeavour to deftroy Him.

It is therefore Matter of great Satisfaction to me, that all my Correfpondents from thofe Parts agree that my Writings first gave the voUNG MONARCH a true Impreffion of that HAUGHTY MINISTER, and animated others to attack him; fo that I may fay, like that facetious old Knight, Sir John Falstaff (with fome fmall Allowance for human Vanity, natural to both of us) that I not only have Wit my felf, but am likewife the Occafion that Wit is in other Men.

As it is pretty evident from many of my Writings, that I have been conftantly and ftrenuously pufhing at the Knez for fome Months paft, fo I flatter myself that this fingle Fable of the Roches, has had more Effect than all the Reft; which my Correfpondents from the North affure me proved the Coup de Grace, and • made an End of Him; it being very remarkable that He did not continue in Power above a Fortnight after that Paper was published.

At the fame time, the CRAFTSMAN promised to publi in his next Saturday's Paper, Mr. Franklyn's Cafe, or an Explanation of the CRAFTSMAN No. 31. proving fully, clearly, and demonftratively, That it is not a Libel: But upon that Day (Dec. 16.) he ask'd Pardon of his Readers, for difappointing them in their Expectations of the Defence of the faid CRAFTSMAN; Mr. Franklyn having been advised, That any fuch Vindication of himself, or the Paper, whilst the Caufe is

Hhhh 2

depending

depending, might be deemed contrary to fome Forms of Law, and give Offence to the Court; which they should ever be very cau- · rious of doing.

Hereupon a Gentleman addrefs'd the following LetTER to the CRAFTSMAN, viz.

Mr. D'ANVERS,

Congratulate you, with all my Heart, upon your late explanatory Journal, which gives me Hopes, that for the future, you will quite abandon your fabulous Way of Writing, and begin to pay fome Regard to Truth: For tho' Allegories, Allufions, and Fables, may, as you obferve, have been highly entertaining to a Phænician, a Chaldæan, an Egyptian, or a Græcian Reader, yet, give me leave to tell you, nothing can recommend your Labours to Englishmen, like the plain Truth.

I have often experienced how much one of your allegorical Papers have puzzled the honeft Heads of our Club and Coffee Houfe; whenever you have thought fit to declaim against what you call a Prime Minifter, that had opprefs'd a People with heavy Taxes, and instead of applying them to the Service of the Publick, had artfully got them paid into his own Coffers, they fill fufpected that you would be understood to be fpeaking of our own Country, (though in Fact, we knew no fuch Creature here as a Prime Minifter) when you, all the while, meant only to expofe the Wickedness of the Prime Minifter of Ruffia, as you yourself have at length acknowledg'd in your last Journal.

I am not at all difpofed to defend the Knez Menzikoff; neither am I enough acquainted with the Conftitution of Muscovy, or with the Courfe of the Ruffian Exchequer, to determine whether you, and your Brother Lawyer, Jogozinsky, are well grounded in your Charge against that Knez; but I know the Conftitution of our Country, and the Courfe of our Exchequer cannot poffibly admit of fuch Practices.

No Prime Minifter can lay any Tax upon us: It is our peculiar Felicity that we can only be taxed by our own Reprefentatives in Parliament.

Whatever Taxes are thus laid upon us, muft first have been voted neceffary for the Service of the Pub lick, and our own Reprefentatives are the only Jud

ges

ges of thofe Neceffities, and proportion the Taxes to

them.

Again, these Taxes are by our own Representatives appropriated to the very Services for which they were voted, and are collected and received by Officers, who give great Security for their Fidelity; and muft by them be paid into the King's Exchequer, and not to a Prime Minister; and the Officers of the Exchequer, who have the Care of thefe Monies, are likewife bound to the King in Bonds, with great Penalties and able Sureties, for their truly accompting for the fame, and well difcharging the Duties of their respective Offices.

Here what you call a Prime Minifter may as well pre tend to pocket a whole County, as any of the Publick Money raised in it, unless one can be so abfurd as to fuppofe, that the Perfons who themselves are charged with the Publick Money, will give it to a Prime Minifter, and afterwards anfwer it out of their own

Eftates.

Here your Prime Minifter does no more than prefide in directing in what Proportions, and in what Times, these Taxes fhall be iffued from the Exchequer, for the feveral Branches of the Publick Service to which they ftand appropriated by Act of Parliament; and even thefe Directions and Orders are all recorded, and, with the Receipts of the Parties to whom the Money is iffued, become Vouchers to the Officers of the Exchequer for their iffuing fuch Money; and the feveral Perfons who thus receive any of the Publick Money, are again charg'd with it upon Record,and can never be difcharged but by the true Expenditure of that Money in thofe Services for which it was raifed, which muft also appear by another Record of the Exchequer.

Thus, by our Conftitution, no Prime Minifter can touch one Farthing of the Taxes raifed for the Service of the Nation, which of Neceffity muft all pafs through the Hands of fubordinate Minifters, in their refpective Departments, against whofe Misbehaviour or Embez zelments no human Policy can frame better Checks and Defences, than are to be found in the admirable Oeconomy of our Exchequer.

And

And as our Publick Money is fo well guarded by our Laws against any of our Minifters ; fo, on the other hand a Minifter here is, by the fame Laws, protected against every arbitrary Attack upon his Perfon, his Honour, or his Fortune; and as he cannot take any Tax to himself, fo he is not in Danger of being conver· ted (as you wittily exprefs it) into a Tax himself, a la mode de Mofcovie.

Whenever therefore you fhall be again difpofed to talk of any Minifter, as of a Plunderer of the Publick, I hope none of your English Readers will fo far mifunderstand you, (whatever Foreigners may do) as to make the Application to our own Country; but will have the Patience not to attempt to understand you at all, till you fhall be at Leifure to explain yourself, by fhewing that you pointed your Satire against fome Minifter of the Czar of Ruffia, or of the Great Mogul. I am &c.

Pipe Office, Gray's-Inn,

Dec. II. 1727.

On Thursday the 7th of December at the Seffions at the Old Baily, came on the Trirls of Mr. Richard Savage (natural Son to the late Earl Rivers) Mr. James Gregory, and Mr. William Marchand, for Killing Mr. Sinclair, at Robinson's Coffee Houfe, at Charing-Crofs; and after a full Hearing, from Eleven in the Morning till after 7 in the Evening, the Jury brought in their Verdi&, That Richard Savage and James Gregory were guilty of Wilful Murder, and William Marchand guilty of Manflaughter only. The next Day, at the fame Place, Mr. : Henry Willcox, was capitally convicted of robbing Anne Mac Mafters of her Pocket, a Diamond Ring, and above Seven Pounds in Money in Leicester-Fields.

On Monday the 11th Mr. Savage, Mr. Gregory, and Mr: Wilcox, receiv'd Sentence of Death; and Mr. Marchand was allow'd the Benefit of Clergy, and burnt in the Hand: Mr. SAVAGE, previoufly to the paffing Sentence upon him, addrefs'd himself to the Court in the following manner

It

*Mr. Savage, Mr. Gregory, and Mr. Wilcox, fentenc'd to Death.

T is now, My Lord, too late, to offer any Mr. Savage's thing by way of Defence, or Vindica- Speech to the tion; nor can we expect ought from your Court. Lord hips,in this Court,but the Sentence which the Law requires you as Judges, • to pronounce against Men in our calamitous Condition. But we are alfo perfuaded, that as meer Men, and out of this Seat of rigorous Juftice, you are fufceptive of the render Paffions, and too humane, not to commiferate the unhappy Situation of thofe, whom the Law, fometimes, perhaps exacts from you to pronounce upon. No doubt you diftinguish between Offences, which arife out of Premeditation, and a Difpofition habituated to Vice or Immorality, and Tranfgreffions, which are the unhappy and unforeseen Effects of a cafual Abfence of Reason, and fudden Impulfe of Paffion: We therefore hope you will contri bute all you can to an Extenfion of that Mercy, which the Gentlemen of the Jury have been pleafed to fhew Mr. Marchand, who (allowing Facts as fworn against · us by the Evidence) has led us into this our Calamity. I hope this will not be conftru'd, as if we mean to reflect upon that Gentleman, or remove any thing 'from us upon him, or that we repine the more at our Fate because he has no Participation of it: No my Lord! For my part, I declare, nothing could more foften my Grief, than to be without any • Companion in fo great a Misfortune.

On Wednesday the 20th of December, the Hon. Mr. Baron Thompson, Recorder of this City, made his Report of the Malefactors under Sentence of Death to the King in Council And it appearing, That the unfortunate Death of Mr. Sinclair happen'd in a fudden

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