EDWD. WISE.
_P.S._--I promised to write to Ld. Cadogan who went to Town yesterday, but as the Post is this instant going, must beg you to acquaint his Lordship all is safe.
[Addressed]
To John Sharpe Esq. Solicitor to the Treasury at his Chambers in Lincolns Inn, London.
X. MR. SHARPE TO MR. WISE.
(State Papers, Dom. (George II.) Bundle 117, No. 90.)
Dear Sir,--I beg leave to trouble you with another Lre I have reced from Lord Macclesfield by last night"s Post, and which shews pretty plainly that the threatning Lre I gave you yesterday was wrote and sent by Cranstoun and that there is great Reason to believe that Cranstoun is lying concealed either here in London or in the North--I beg you will lay the enclosed before his Grace with my most dutifull Respects--and believe me to be with the most real truth and esteem,
Dr Sir, Your most obliged and ever faithfull hble Servt.,
JN. SHARPE.
Friday morning, 6th Decr., 1751.
XI. EXAMINATION OF FRANCIS GROPPTTY.
(State Papers, Dom. (George II.), Bundle 118, No. 22.)
The Examination upon Oath of Francis Gropptty of Mount Street, in the Parish of St. George Hanover Square taken this 3rd Day of Febry 1752.
The Examt says that upon the First Day of September last he was sent for by the Revd. Mr. Home to his lodgings in the Haymarket, who told the Examt. that a Gentleman of his, Mr. Homes, acquaintance, was going to Calais, & as he spoke no French, desired the Examt. to go with him.
The Examt. asked who it was, & after some hesitation Mr. Home told him it was Capt. Cranston Bror. to Lord Cranston who was accused of having sent poison to a Miss Blandy, who was suspected to have poison"d her Father; but that he was inocent, & only wanted to get out of the way till his Tryal came on, when he would surrender himself.
The Examt. says he made an objection to going & told Mr. Home, that as he had expectations, from the Recommendations of Lord Home[19] and Sir Walter Blacket, to the Duke of Grafton, of being made one of the King"s Messengers he was afraid it might hurt him, but Mr. Home a.s.sured him that he could not be brought into the least trouble, and added that he would oblige him, Mr. Home, Ld. Home & all the family & that for his satisfaction he would give him a note to Capt. Alexander Hamilton, who would a.s.sure him of the same.
That the Examt. went to Capt. Hamilton, who told him that he knew where Capt. Cranston was & that if the Examt. would see him safe at Calais, he would very much oblige Lord Cranston, Ld. Home & all the Family. The Examt. asked Capt. Hamilton if there had been any proceedings against Capt. Cranston or if any orders were given to stop him at Dover? Capt. Hamilton said he would enquire, & the next day Sepr. 2nd told the Examt. he had enquired & that there had not been any proceedings against Capt. Cranston nor were there any Orders to stop him at Dover.
The Examt. says that he lived with Lord Home several years & now does business for him; that he was willing to oblige his Lordship & not doubting from the a.s.surances of Mr. Home yt he was doing a right thing, consented to go to Calais with Capt. Cranston.
That upon the said 2nd of September Capt. Hamilton brought Capt.
Cranston to the Examt"s. House; that Capt. Cranston said he had been rob"d in his way to town of his Money & Portmanteau & seem"d in great distress. That the Examt. by the Direction of Capt. Hamilton bought for Capt. Cranston such necessaries as he wanted & Capt. Hamilton went to Lord Ancrum[20] to borrow Twenty pounds to defray the expence of the Journey & repay the Examt. the money he had expended. That upon his return he told Capt. Cranston that Lord Ancrum wd not lend him the money; says, that Capt. Cranston cried very much & said for G.o.d"s sake dear Hamilton get Money somewhere & get me abroad.
That the Examt. seeing the great distress both of Capt. Hamilton & Capt. Cranston, said that if ten Guineas wd. be of service he wd. lend Capt. Hamilton that sum, which he accordingly did & took Capt.
Hamilton"s Note of Hand, which is still unsatisfied.
That he set out with Capt. Cranston in a Post Chaise for Dover, where they arrived the next morning Sept. 3rd about 9 o"clock.
That they went to bed at the Post House about 4 o"clock in the afternoon in the same room, & about half an hour afterwards the Capt.
of the Packet came into the Room & said he was informed they were going to Calais & desired they would go with him, which they agreed to & the next morning went with him to Calais & paid a Guinea for their pa.s.sage.--Says they had no discourse at all with the Capt. of the Packet during the Pa.s.sage.
The Examt. says he took Lodgings & agreed for Board for Capt. Cranston at Calais at the Rate of Fifty Livres a Month & upon the 6th Sept.
returned in the same Packet to Dover. That upon his pa.s.sage back the Capt. of the Packet said he believed the person who went with the Examt. to Calais was very glad to be landed, for that he seemed very uneasy; The Examt. answered may be so, & no other discourse happened upon the subject.
That the Capt. of the Packet observed that he thought he had seen the Examt. at Harwych, the Examt. said very likely for that he had pa.s.sed from thence to Holland with his master Lord Home during the War.
The Examt. absolutely denies that he pa.s.sed or attempted to pa.s.s for a King"s Messenger, or that he mentioned the name of his Grace the Duke of Newcastle, nor was his Grace"s name mentioned; nor did any Discourse what so ever pa.s.s about Messengers.
That upon his return to London he waited upon Mr. Home to acquaint him that he had landed Capt. Cranston safe at Calais. Mr. Home expressed himself very much obliged & a.s.sured the Examt. he would represent to his Brother & Lord Cranston the trouble he had had, & did not doubt but they would be equally obliged & reward him very well. The Examt.
said he did not expect any reward, that what he had done was out of grat.i.tude to Lord Home & his family & was very glad he had had it in his power to oblige them: & the Examt. said the same to Capt. Hamilton & never kept it a secret from any body, but talked of his having gone over with Capt. Cranston in common discourse & before anybody.
That the Examt. made out an Acct. of the Expences he had been at & delivered it to Capt. Hamilton, which amounted, with the money lent, to eighteen pounds, for which sum Capt. Hamilton gave him a Bill of exchange upon Ld. Cranston, which Bill the Examt. sent to Scotland to Lord Cranston, who having kept it near six weeks return"d it unpaid; and the Examt. has not yet recd. the money.
And lastly the Examt. says that he arrived in England with his Master at the end of the late War, & has not been out of England since that time except to Calais with Capt. Cranston as aforesaid.
FRANCIS GROPPTTY
this 3rd Feb., 1752.
Taken upon Oath; before L. Stanhope.
APPENDIX III.
A LETTER FROM A CLERGYMAN TO MISS MARY BLANDY, NOW A PRISONER IN OXFORD CASTLE; WITH HER ANSWER THERETO. AS ALSO MISS BLANDY"S OWN NARRATIVE OF THE CRIME FOR WHICH SHE IS CONDEMNED TO DIE.
(No. 3 of Bibliography, Appendix XII.)
(The original copy of this letter, in Miss Blandy"s own handwriting, for the satisfaction of the public, is left with the publisher.)
March 14, 1752.
Reader,--Condemn no person rashly. Thou has already, perhaps, pa.s.sed sentence upon this unfortunate. But remember, that G.o.d alone knows the secrets of the heart; and that circ.u.mstances spring many times from motives which it is impossible for man to discover.
The following letter was written to this unhappy lady by a clergyman,[21]
after her receiving sentence of death.
A LETTER TO MISS BLANDY.
March 7, 1752.
Dear Miss,--Had it been at my own option, I never would have chose to be the least concerned in your unhappy affair; but since divine providence, without my own seeking, has thought fit to order it otherwise, I shall, from obligations of compa.s.sion and humanity, offer some things to your serious consideration. Your power of receiving benefit from my advice, is but of short duration; may G.o.d grant that you may rightly use this. That you believe in G.o.d, in the immortal nature of the soul, in Jesus Christ, and in a future state of rewards and punishments, I am willing to persuade myself. As to the unworthy man who has tempted you to your ruin, I have good grounds to believe him to be an infidel. If he has communicated such principles to you, to render you more capable of executing his wicked purposes, your persisting therein will ruin your poor soul for ever. The moment you enter into that awful state of separation, you will be eternally convinced of your error. The very devils believe a G.o.d, and tremble.
You will, perhaps, express surprise at my entertaining a doubt of this nature. What? You that have been so constant at public worship, that have so frequently partic.i.p.ated of the most sacred rite of the Christian religion, to be thought an infidel? Alas! Miss, externals are but the husks of piety; they are easy to the hypocrite. The body may bow down in the house of G.o.d, yet the soul do homage to Belial.