State Trials, Political and Social Volume II Part 8

BROWNE--My Lords, I was between the hours of one and two in the morning, on Sunday the 30th of October last, with my fellows and our chair, at the Buffler's Head Tavern at Charing-cross, and I heard some people at Locket's, at the Greyhound in the Strand, calling coach coach, a pretty while; but there were no coaches in the street, nor that came to them; when they could not get coaches then they called out for chairs; and we coming to the door with our chair, there were four other chairs there, and six gentlemen stood in the pa.s.sage; and then it was said, there was not chairs enough, and there wanted one more, and they stood discoursing; and the first man came into my chair, who was capt. Coote, and my lord of Warwick he got into another; When the door of the chair was shut up, we asked whither we should go; but my lord Mohun came and bid open the chair again; and we did so, and he returned into the house, and there was some discourse between them standing at the bar in the entry. Mr. Coote came out again and came into my chair, and my lord Mohun and my lord of Warwick went into two others; Mr.

Coote bid me carry him into Leicester fields, and to make all the haste I could; my lord of Warwick and my lord Mohun being in the next chairs, asked him, Whither are you a-going, and called out twice, and he said, To Leicester fields; pray do not, says my lord of Warwick, but come along with us, and let it alone till to-morrow; but he bid us go on; and as we were turning up St. Martin's Lane, by the Cross Keys tavern, my lord Mohun, and my lord Warwick called out to us to stop, and their chairs came up to the back door of the Cross Keys tavern, and there all the three chairs were set on a-breast in St. Martin's Lane, and while they were talking together, there came by three chairs on the other side of the way; and Mr. Coote bid us take up and make all the haste we could to get before them into Leicester fields, so taking up the chair again, Mr. Coote bid us make haste, and if we could go no faster, he swore, d.a.m.n him, he would run his sword in one of our bodies: There were two chairs before me, and my lord Mohun and my lord Warwick followed in two chairs after me; and when we came to the corner of Leicester fields, at Green street end, all the three chairs were set down a-breast again, and Mr. Coote put his hand in his pocket, and took out half a guinea to pay, and said he had no silver; and my lord of Warwick spoke to my lord Mohun, who took out three shillings out of his pocket, who said, there was for my lord Warwick, captain Coote, and himself; and when they were gone out, I took my box and my pipe, and filled my pipe, and took the lanthorn and lighted it, and by that time I had lighted my pipe, I heard a calling out, Chair, chair, again, towards the upper end of the square; so I took my chair, and there was one of the chairs that was not gone; and so we came up to the upper end of the fields, and they called to us to bring the chairs over the rails; we told them we did not know how to do that, for we should not be able to get them back again; at last we did get over the rails, and made up close to the place where we heard the noise, for we could see nothing, it being a very dark night; and when we came up close to them, by our lanthorn there were two gentlemen holding up Mr. Coote under their arms, and crying out, My dear Coote, My dear Coote!

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Pray, who were those two gentlemen?

BROWNE--I did not know them, one was in red cloaths, and the other had gold lace, and they would have had me have taken Mr.

Coote into my chair; but seeing him b.l.o.o.d.y, and not able to help himself, I said I would not spoil my chair, and so would not meddle with him; but they said they would make me any satisfaction for my chair, and desired me to take him in; but he gave himself a spring from them, and we found he was too heavy for us to lift over the rails, and all we could do could not make him sit in the chair, but the chair was broken with endeavouring to place him there; and they said if we would carry him to a surgeon's, they would give us 100 security; but we finding it impossible, the watch was called for, but n.o.body would come near, for they said it was out of their ward, and so they would not come anigh me; and I staid about half an hour with my chair broken, and afterwards I was laid hold upon, both I and my partner, and we were kept till next night eleven a-clock; and that is all the satisfaction that I have had for my chair and every thing.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Pray, my lord, I desire he may recollect himself; for we do apprehend it is very material, who it was that desired to take Mr. Coote into the chair.

BROWNE--I cannot tell who they were, it was so very dark I could only see their cloaths.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Did you see the earl of Warwick there?

BROWNE--No, Sir, he was not there; one of them, I tell you, had officers' cloaths on, red lined with blue, and the other had gold lace on; there was n.o.body there that held him up but them two.

MARQUIS OF NORMANBY--He says he saw two persons holding up Mr.

Coote; it would be very well to have that matter very well settled, who those two persons were; I desire to know how he is sure my lord of Warwick was not one of them two?

BROWNE--I know my lord of Warwick very well, and I am sure he was neither of the two.

DUKE OF LEEDS--I would know what light he had to discern it so well by, that he can be sure my lord of Warwick was not there; for he says it was a very dark night, and yet he describes the particular persons that held Mr. Coote up.

BROWNE--Yes, my lord, I am sure my lord of Warwick was none of them.

DUKE OF LEEDS--How could you distinguish in so dark a night, the colours of people's cloaths?

BROWNE--With the candle that I had lighted in my lanthorn.

DUKE OF LEEDS--He could not know any of the persons unless he held a lanthorn to their faces, or knew them very well before.

LORD HIGH STEWARD--My lord Warwick, will your lordship ask this witness any questions?

EARL OF WARWICK--My lord, I desire he may be asked, Whether I did not bid him stop at St. Martin's-lane end, and do all that I could to hinder Mr. Coote from going any further, but to go home?

BROWNE--The earl of Warwick, and my lord Mohun, as they turned up the lane, asked Mr. Coote, whither he was going? And when he said to Leicester-fields, they desired him to let it alone till to-morrow; and my lord Mohun said he should go home with him; but the other bid us go on, and said he would not go to his lodgings, but that they would make an end of it that night; still they called to him again, Dear Coote, let us speak a word with you; and as the chairs came to the back-door of the Cross-keys tavern, there they stood all of a breast, and they both of them spoke to him, and stood a pretty while there, and in the mean time three chairs pa.s.sed by on the other side; he commanded us to take up, and carry him away to Leicester-fields immediately, and overtake the other chairs, or he would run one of us into the body.

LORD HIGH STEWARD--Would your lordship ask him any more questions?

EARL OF WARWICK--No, my lord.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--My lord, I observe, he says they discoursed some time together while they stopped in St. Martin's-lane; I desire that he may be asked, Whether he can tell what that discourse was?

BROWNE--I could not well hear, they whispered together, but I could hear my lord Mohun, and my lord of Warwick, desire capt.

Coote to go home, and let the business alone till another time.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--I desire he may explain himself, what that business was that they would have put off till to-morrow.

BROWNE--I know not what it was; I heard of no anger betwixt them, but they were as good friends, for anything I know to the contrary, as ever they were in their lives or as ever I see any men.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Our next witness is William Crippes. [Who was sworn.]

LORD HIGH STEWARD--What do you ask this man, Mr. Attorney?

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Pray, will you give my lords here an account who you carried to Leicester-fields, the 29th or 30th of October, and what happened in your knowledge at that time?

CRIPPES--Captain Coote was the first man that went into the chair when we came to the Greyhound tavern; afterwards he came out again, and when we took him up the second time, he was the first man that set out; and he bid us carry him to Leicester-fields; and when we came to the corner of St.

Martin's-lane, we turned up that way; and my lord of Warwick, and my lord Mohun, called to us, being in chairs behind, to know whither we were going, and desired to speak with captain Coote; and he said he was going to Leicester-fields; and when they asked, what to do? He said, to end the business: they desired him to put it off till to-morrow; and while they were discoursing about it in St. Martin's-lane, there pa.s.sed by other three chairs, which, when captain Coote saw, he bid us take up and overtake them, and go faster, or he would run one of us into the body: so we went on, and at the lower end of Leicester-fields we set him down; and the other two gentlemen, my lord Warwick and my lord Mohun, were there set down, and went lovingly together, for any thing that I saw, up the pavement of the square, towards the upper end; and in a little time we heard a noise of calling for chairs towards the upper end, and when we came there with the chair, we were bid to lift over the chair within the rails; and when we said it was hard to be done, they insisted upon it, and we did come in; and when we came there we saw two gentlemen holding up captain Coote, and would have had us taken him into the chair; we saw there was a great deal of blood, but I never heard how it came, and they would have had us carried him to a French surgeon's, and proffered any money.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--My lord, I desire to know, who they were that desired him to be carried to the surgeon?

LORD HIGH STEWARD--You hear the question, what say you?

CRIPPES--I cannot tell, my lord; one of them had something of lace upon him, but it was so dark that I could hardly see my hand, and therefore I cannot tell who they were; and when there was an objection made, that the chairs would be spoiled, they said we need not question our chair, they would give us 100 security to answer any damages, if we would but carry him; so we endeavoured to put him into the chair, but could not; and so we called out to the watch, to have had some help; but they said it was none of their ward, and so they would not come to us; so the gentlemen went away, and we left them, and went and called a surgeon, who, when he came, said, he was a dead man, and we were secured till the next day.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Pray, my lord, I desire he may be asked, Were there not other chairs in that place at the time?

CRIPPES--There was one in the Field besides, and no more that I could see; they all went away but us two.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--What distance of time was there between their setting down in Leicester-fields, and their calling the chairs again?

CRIPPES--Not a quarter of an hour.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--What became of the three chairs that pa.s.sed by you in St. Martin's-lane?

CRIPPES--They got before us; but what became of them afterwards I cannot tell.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Did they come from the same place, the tavern in the Strand that you were at?

CRIPPES--Yes, I believe they did, my lord; for capt Coote bid us follow them, and threatened us if we did not make greater haste.

ATTORNEY--GENERAL--Do you know my lord of Warwick?

CRIPPES--Yes, he had whitish cloaths on; and none but he had such clothes on as those were.

LORD HIGH STEWARD--Will your lordship ask this witness any questions?

EARL OF WARWICK--My lord, I desire he may be asked, Whether I did not bid him stop? and, whether I did not say, they should not go to quarrel that night?

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--My lord, I desire to know of him, directly and downright, Whether my lord of Warwick was not one of them that held him when he was within the rails of the fields?

CRIPPES--No, he was not; he was neither of them; for the one of them was too big for him, and the other was too little for my lord Mohun.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Now we call the chairman that carried the earl of Warwick into Leicester-fields, James Crattle.

(He was sworn.)

ATTORNEY-GENERAL--Will you tell my lords what you know of any person that you carried the 29th or 30th of October last, from the Greyhound tavern in the Strand, and who it was, and whither you carried him?

CRATTLE--I was going along Charing-cross, between one and two in the morning, the 30th of October, last, and I heard a chair called for at Locket's at the Dog tavern; and thither I and my partner went, and we took up the gentleman, and carried him to Leicester-fields.