m of Great Britain
and Ireland, and I humbly conceive, nothing that is here charged has
reference to any funds and government-securities, except the funds and
government-securities of that part of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, called England.

My Lords, I am aware of the extent to which the decisions pronounced on
this subject have carried the doctrine, with respect to conspiracy; but
I conceive it will not be found there is any adjudged case which goes so
far as to reach this transaction, taking it as an abstract proposition,
that the conspiracy was, to raise the price of the government funds of
this country. Unless your Lordships can pronounce that the raising the
price of the government funds of this country is a crime of itself, a
conspiracy to raise the price of those funds cannot be a crime by
itself; but in order to make it a crime, it is necessary to state some
particular circumstance which gives it a criminal character.--I conceive
nobody will be found to argue, that the raising the price of the public
funds, without some side object, must be mischievous to the country, and
therefore a crime; so far from that being the case, I conceive the
higher the prices at which the government funds can be kept, except in
particular cases, the better for the country, because it is upholding
the credit of the country.

_Mr. Justice Le Blanc._ It is stated, that they were to be raised on a
particular day.

_Lord Ellenborough._ By false reports and rumours.

_Mr. Serjeant Best._ An intention of doing that on a particular day, may
be either a meritorious or a criminal action; but what I submit to your
Lordships, is, that of itself, it is neither the one nor the other; it
is therefore necessary to put on the record something which shall bring
the fact within the purview of the law. It is not stated upon this
record, that the defendants were possessed of any funds, that they were
desirous of selling those funds, and that therefore they meditated a
fraud on the particular persons to whom they should sell their funds, by
raising the price;--it is merely stated, that the object was to raise
the price of the funds, which I submit to your Lordships may be
commendable or criminal.

One can conceive many circumstances in which this might be stated to be
a public mischief, and some such circumstances were stated by my learned
friend, who very ably opened this prosecution upon the trial. If the
public funds were r