ect thyself, thou monumental brass,
High as the serpent of thy metal made,
While nations stand secure beneath thy shade.
--ABSALOM AND ACHITOPHEL.

The morning which Charles had spent in visiting the Tower, had been very
differently employed by those unhappy individuals, whom their bad fate,
and the singular temper of the times, had made the innocent tenants of
that state prison, and who had received official notice that they were
to stand their trial in the Court of Queen's Bench at Westminster, on
the seventh succeeding day. The stout old Cavalier at first only railed
at the officer for spoiling his breakfast with the news, but evinced
great feeling when he was told that Julian was to be put under the same
indictment.

We intend to dwell only very generally on the nature of their trial,
which corresponded, in the outline, with almost all those which took
place during the prevalence of the Popish Plot. That is, one or two
infamous and perjured evidences, whose profession of common informers
had become frightfully lucrative, made oath to the prisoners having
expressed themselves interested in the great confederacy of the
Catholics. A number of others brought forward facts or suspicions,
affecting the character of the parties as honest Protestants and good
subjects; and betwixt the direct and presumptive evidence, enough was
usually extracted for justifying, to a corrupted court and perjured
jury, the fatal verdict of Guilty.

The fury of the people had, however, now begun to pass away, exhausted
even by its own violence. The English nation differ from all others,
indeed even from those of the sister kingdoms, in being very easily
sated with punishment, even when they suppose it most merited. Other
nations are like the tamed tiger, which, when once its native appetite
for slaughter is indulged in one instance, rushes on in promiscuous
ravages. But the English public have always rather resembled what is
told of the sleuth-dog, which, eager, fierce, and clamorous in pursuit
of his prey, desists from it so soon as blood is sprinkled upon his
path.

Men's minds were now beginning to cool--the character of the witnesses
was more closely sifted--their testimonies did not in all cases
tally--and a wholesome suspicion began to be entertained of men, who
would never say they had made a full discovery of all they knew, but
avowedly reserved some points of evidence