and succesfully detected Aston in a sale of lottery tickets presumed to be received as the wages of judicial prostitution in the memorable trials about Wilkes and Junius.
This internal evidence of guilt was proclaimed by a manly pamphlet and believed by every reader. Prudence awed the legal but valorous knight into silence, and justly exhibits him to posterity, as an official tyrant and corrupt judge. Thus at the distance of a century, two Englishmen of the same name stain the King's Inn roll, and merit the contempt or detestation of the legal body in both kingdoms.
In 1765, a new Chief Justice for the Common Pleas was sent from England, who, by authentic report, was as great an original as ever issued from a legal cell. Heaven help poor Ireland if the great seal were committed to him, or its parliament and peerage guided by such a character. The resources of trade and manufacture, financial, geographic, naval and military situation were to him alike unknown. He was however a tolerably skilful common lawyer, and a blunt, honest, undesigning many but it would be a libel upon truth to call him a statesman.
The reader will excuse two anecdotes illustrative of that character: having taken a house and dined with most of his brethren he was much surprised at his admission to chambers, and instantly told the attending members that as he was a bachelor, his house should be immediately disposed of, for the chambers were even more agreeable to him; nor was his disappointment inconsiderable, when convinced that such accommodation existed only by King's Inn's intendment, and Irish fiction of law.
On the death of Lord Bowes, the great seal was committed to persons who were not professional men, court duty was therefore performed alternately by the judges. In his turn, having completely disposed of all interlocutories and motions which were offered, he gravely rose and hoped that the auditory were pleased with his mode of doing business; adding, if the choice should fall upon me, do you not think, gentlemen, that I will make a good chancellor. The novelty of this affecting address provoked a
