public that the letter signed A. B. relative to the Duke of Rutland, is not written by the author of Junius.”* I sometimes change my signature, but could have no reason to change the paper, especially for one that does not circulate half so much as yours. C. For the future, open all letters to me, and don't send them, unless of importance. I can give you light about Veridicus†. No. 14. Sunday, December 10, 1769. I WOULD wish the paper (No. 2) might be advertised for Tuesday. By way of intelligence you may inform the public that Mr. De La Fontaine, for his secret services in the Alley, is appointed Barrack-master to the Savoy. I hope Vaughan has got his papers again. No. 15. SIR, December 12, 1769. Του may tell Mr. Vaughan that I did not receive his letter till last night, and have not had time to look into the paper annexed. I cannot at present understand what use I can make of it. It certainly shall not be an ungenerous one to him. If he or his counsel know how to act, I have saved him already, and really without intending it. The facts are all literally true. Mr. Hine's place is customer at the port of Exeter. Colonel Burgoyne received 4000l. for it. To mend the matter, the money was raised by contribution, and the subscribers quartered upon Mr. Hine. Among the rest, one Dr. Brook, a physician at Exeter, has 100l. a year out of Miscellaneous Letter, No. 61, and note* appended to it. Note to Private Letter, No. 6. The paper here referred to is the letter of Junius, No. 34, vol. i. p. 250. The ensuing intelligence was published verbally in the Public Advertiser of the next day, Dec. 11. the salary. I think you might give these particulars in your own way to the public*. As to yourself, I am convinced the ministry will not venture to attack you. They dare not submit to such an inquiry. If they do, show no fear, but tell them plainly you will justify, and subpoená Mr. Hine, Burgoyne, and Bradshaw of the Treasury-that will silence them at once. As to the House of Commons there may be more danger. But even there I am fully satisfied the ministry will exert themselves to quash such an inquiry, and on the other side, you will have friends :-but they have been so grossly abused on all sides, that they will hardly begin with you. Tell Vaughan his paper shall be returned. I am now meditating a capital, and I hope a final, piece; you shall hear of it shortly †. No. 16. December 19, 1769. FOR material affection, for God's sake read maternal; it is in the sixth paragraph. The rest is excellently done. SIR, No. 17. December 26, 1769. WITH the inclosed alterations I should think our paper might appear §. As to embowelling, do whatever you think proper, provided you leave it intelligible to vulgar capacities; but would not it be the shortest way at once to print it in an anonymous pamphlet ? judge for yourself. I enter sincerely into the anxiety of your situation. At the same time I am The facts were given to the public by Junius himself in Letter 34, vol. i. ante, and are indeed touched upon more than once in his subsequent letters. He refers to the Letter to the King, Junius, No. 35, vol. i. p. 255. This paper is supposed to have been totally suppressed, the alterations introduced into it not having perhaps satisfied the printer of his safety in publishing it, as the signal of a private communication from him to the author appeared in the P. A. of the next day. strongly inclined to think that you will not be called upon*. They cannot do it without subjecting Hine's affair to an inquiry, which would be worse than death to the minister. As it is, they are more seriously stabbed with this last stroke than all the rest. At any rate, stand firm (I mean with all the humble appearances of contrition). If you trim or faulter, you will lose friends without gaining others. Vaughan has done right in publishing his letter. It defends him more effectually than all his nonsense. I believe I shall give him a lift, for I really think he has been punished infinitely beyond his merits. I doubt much whether I shall ever have the pleasure of knowing you; but if things take the turn I expect, you shall know me by my works. C. (Private.) No. 18. SIR, January 12, 1770. I DESIRED Vaughan not to write to me until I gave him notice. He must therefore blame himself, if the detention of his papers has been inconvenient to him. Pray tell him this, and that he shall have them in a day or two. I shall also keep my promise to him; but to do it immediately would be useless to him, and unadvisable with respect to myself. I believe you may banish your fears. The information ‡ will only be for a misdemeanour, and I am advised that no jury, especially in these times, will find it. I suspect the channel through which you have your intelligence. It will be carried on coldly. You must not write to me again; but be assured I will never desert you. I received your letters regularly, but it was impossible to answer them sooner. You shall hear from me again shortly. The printer was threatened by the minister with a prosecution for publishing the letter of Junius, No. 33, vol. i. 249, and the Court of King's Bench was actually moved on his behalf; but probably for the reason men. tioned above, the threat was never executed. + See Junius, No. 33, vol. i. p. 249, note, and Letter 36. The information was for publishing the Letter to the King, Junius, No. 35, for the particulars of which see the author's Preface, and note appended to it, vol. i. p. 94. No. 19. (Private.) SIR, Beginning of February, 1770. WHEN you consider to what excessive enmities I may be exposed, you will not wonder at my caution. I really have not known how to procure your last. If it be not of any great moment I would wish you to recall it. If it be, give me a hint. If your affair should come to a trial *, and you should be found guilty, you will then let me know what expense falls particularly on yourself; for I understand you are engaged with other proprietors. Some way or other you shall be But seriously and bona fide, I think it is reimbursed. impossible. No. 20. C. About February 14, 1770+. I HAVE carefully perused the information. and ill drawn, that I am pursuaded Mr. De Grey could not have had a hand in it. Their inserting the whole, proves they had no strong passages to fix on. I still think it will not be tried. If it should, it is not possible for a jury to find you guilty. * For the trial referred to, see Appendix, vol. i. p. 471. The copy of the information was procured in Hilary Term, 1770, and the trial took place June 13 following. The costs to the printer in defending himself, though ultimately successful, amounted to about 1207., a somewhat heavy fine for a person not found guilty. + It appears that this and the preceding note were undated when received, and that Woodfall, or his editor, inserted the dates as near as they could ascertain or conjecture. Junius seems not to have had any fixed rule; sometimes the day is mentioned, sometimes the day of the month, and frequently both. Some, both of his private and public letters, appear to have been sent without date, and the day of the publication, or of receiving them, to have been inserted by the printer. These irregularities preclude or obscure any nice criticism founded on the dates of Junius's Letters.-ED. The information here referred to is that noticed in the note to the preceding letter. No. 21. Saturday, March 17, 1770. TO-MORROW before twelve you shall have a Junius, it will be absolutely necessary that it should be published on Monday. Would it be possible to give notice of it to-night or tomorrow, by a dispersing a few handbills? Pray do whatever you think will answer this purpose best, for now is the crisis *. C. No. 22. Sunday, March 18, 1770. THIS letter is written wide, and I suppose will not fill two columns. For God's sake let it appear to-morrow. I hope you received my note of yesterday. Lord Chatham is determined to go to the Hall to support the Westminster remonstrance f. I have no doubt that we shall conquer them at last. The letter referred to is Junius, No. 37. C. † Agreed upon at a general meeting of the electors of the city and liberty of Westminster, assembled in Westminster Hall, March 28, 1770, in consequence of their petition to his Majesty, requesting him to dissolve the Parliament which had expelled Mr. Wilkes, having been rejected. The following is a copy of the remonstrance :— "The humble address, remonstrance, and petition of the electors of the city and liberty of Westminster, assembled in Westminster Hall the 28th day of March, 1770. "We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the electors of the city and liberty of Westminster, having already presented our humble, but ineffectual, application to the throne, find ourselves, by the misconduct of your Majesty's ministers, in confederacy with many of our representatives, reduced to the necessity of again breaking in by our complaints upon your Majesty's repose, or of acquiescing under grievances so NEW and so EXORBITANT, that none but those who patiently submit to them can deserve to suffer them. "By the same secret and unhappy influence to which all our grievances have been originally owing, the redress of those grievances has been now prevented; and the grievances themselves have been repeatedly confirmed; with this additional circumstance of aggravation, that while the invaders of our rights remain the directors of your Majesty's councils, the defenders of those rights have been dismissed from your Majesty's service-your Majesty having been advised by your ministers to remove from his employment for his vote in Parliament, the highest officer of the law; because his principles |