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The Trial of Leisler "Gentlemen," be commenced, “I humbly conceive I am not holden to make my plea on the indictment until the power be determined whereby such things have been acted. My own power was valid until the arrival of Governor Sloughter, and he has proclaimed his power merely to govern — not to deter mine concerning the power exercised by us before him.” He ended his desperate and hopeless argument against the right of the court to try him for treason with the words: —— “The King would accuse me for giving plain ofaway an act myofright, my own, and Ifor cannot by plead com—
their fellow-prisoners.
In fact, there
was no little indication that Governor Sloughter could be bribed even in so serious a matter as a state trial for
high treason. Leisler persisted in refusing to plead guilty or not guilty. He was put in irons in the court room and remanded to await his trial. The case was reached for its final determination on April 17. A few months before Leisler had been the supreme power in the colony. Of his own authority he had summoned a con gress of representatives of New York, Massachusetts, Plymouth, Connecticut
ing I empower the jury to make them judges of fact; and how can twelve men of one county judge the government of
the whole province?" The Court, of course, immediately overruled Leisler's objections and stated
and Maryland—a forerunner of the Continental Congress. The court cryer called loudly for silence; the justices filed solemnly to their places; and a tense, strained still ness rested over the court room. The
that what he had said amounted "to no plea in law or fact." A motion for judgment was made by the King's counsel, —but this was denied and the Court offered Leisler the
attorney for Leisler, Mr. Tudor, was
privilege of having counsel.
“If it please your honors, I move that judgment be passed upon the prisoners
This was
as unusual as it was puzzling. Prisoners accused of political crimes in England were allowed no counsel, nor could they compel
the attendance of witnesses.
sitting near the prisoners; but there was nothing to suggest the possibility of a defense. The King's counsel arose.
at the bar, accused according to all due
form of law, of the crimes of high treason, felony and murder."
Therefore this concession of the Court in the Leisler trial was entirely inex plicable. The cases were rushed through, the ten prisoners each having a separate trial and being either acquitted or con demned in thirteen half-day sessions. One after another Leisler's associates
“Have you anything to say," de manded Dudley, addressing Leisler and
were found guilty of treason or murder or else acquitted.
chief justice.
A queer part of the proceeding was the acquittal of Leisler's two chief sup porters, Edsall and Delanoy, when coupled with the fact that these two
speaking with measured emphasis and significant intensity, “that until the
men had considerably more wealth than
Sentence of death was passed upon
Milborne, "why the sentence of death should not pass upon you?" Leisler, the man who had held firm
the governmental authority in New York when it seemed most on the point of collapsing, arose slowly and faced the “We conceive, your Honor," he said,
King determine the power by which we acted, we will not answer!"
