The New Hampshire Gazette And Historical Chronicle

LONDON.

Letter from BRITAIN, now in Confinement in Reading to a Second Noble Lord.

To Lord ----

As the late Fire at Portsmouth Dock engrosses the public Attention, I hope you will absolve me from my Promise of Secrecy made to the Under Secretaries when at Reading, and give me leave to lay the whole State of the above Fire before the Public: which I intend to do in a Series of Letters to my Friends in America, and to be published in the public Papers. I hope your Lordship will not deny me this Request as it is but reasonable that I should have some hearing to clear myself from the false Reports that have been propagated by the Ministry. They have declared, 'that I want a Sum of Money and my Liberty out of Prison, which induced me to declare myself concerned in the above Fire.' This you know, my Lord, is false. When I solicited a Pardon, I was then at Liberty in London: and in my Letter to the Lord Mayor I informed him, 'that I want no Fee or Reward whatever but his Majesty's Pardon.' In the said Letter I owned being concerned in setting Fire to Portsmouth Dock Yard, and the Writer of a seditious Letter sent to the Lord Mayor, dated June 13. where he is expressly called a Blockhead, his Person and Dignity then said to be in Danger, and plainly told that the Government of the Empire will be given to one more worthy of it before Lady Day the 25th, 1772.' I owned myself a Party concerned in attempting his Majesty's Life, and these were the Crimes I wanted a Pardon for. Now, his Majesty's Pardon to me is only conditional; in the Gazette for July 3 last it says, 'His Majesty is hereby pleased to promise his most gracious Pardon to the Writer of the said Letter for the Offences therein mentioned, provided Information shall be given to one of the principal Secretaries of State, upon which the Resties concerned may be apprehended and brought to Justice.' Now my Lord, as I said before, this Pardon is only conditional; therefore if my Information is not sufficient to bring the Parties concerned to Justice, why do you forgive me the other Offences? If a poor Printer only print the Truth, you are ready to devour him. Pray what will you do now? Nothing my Lord! You dare not! I do not crave your Favour, but once more DARE you to bring me to a Trial. You know you had Information sufficient, provided you had exerted yourself as a Minister ought to have done. It is not the Post you are in that is to be despised for the Neglect, but the Man who fills that Post. There is a Clerk in one of your Offices (I told the under Secretaries) who gave the French Intelligence on your secret Councils; his Name is ---- ----. Will you deny that you have not Information enough to secure that Clerk? I do not doubt but you will. You know, my Lord, I desired you to confront me with Count Guignes long before he left England. If I was in the wrong why did not you do it? You have been called upon to publish my Deposition; why don't you? Your Secretaries were so careful to keep it from the Public, that they would not let the Mayor of Reading see the least Title of it. Nay, moreover, you have debarred me the use of Pen and Ink, and I do not doubt but as soon as you read this Letter, but my Keeper will have Orders from you to shut me up in a Dungeon; but if you do order it, the Public will soon be apprised of it; and they may judge of your Conduct as they think proper.

Before I take Leave of your Lordship, permit me to return you my most humble Thanks for the Pains you have taken in propagating a Report that I am Insane; and as a Proof of my Gratitude, I assure your Lordship, that I will prove some of your chief Friends Traitors to their King and Country; and the Public may be assured, that Tower-hill will be found a more necessary Place than Bedlam.

I am my Lord, your Lordship's

Most obedient humble Servant,

Reading, Sept. 14

JONATHAN BRITAIN.

A Correspondent supposes the Letter from Britain to a second Lord to be written by an Irishman, as he makes him write a Lie when he says he is debarred the Use of Pen and Paper.