100

HISTOHY OP EXGLAND.

CHAP.

XVI.

iGyu.

Proceed-

ings

against

Torring-

ton.

The bill went up to thePeers; but thePeerswere not inclinedto pass it without considerable amendments; and such amend-ments there was not time to make. Numerous heirs at law, re-versioners, and creditors implored theUpperliouse to introducesuch provisoes as might secure the innocent against all dangerof being involved in the punishment of the guilty. Some peti-tioners asked to be heard by counsel. The King had made allhis arrangements for a voyage to the Hague; and the daybeyond which he could not postpone his departure drew near.The bill w r as therefore, happily for the honour of English legis-lation, consigned to that dark repository in which the abortivestatutes of many generations sleep a sleep rarely disturbed bythe historian or the antiquary.*

Another question, which slightly and but slightly discom-posed the tranquillity of this short session, arose out of thedisastrous and disgraceful battle of Beachy Head. Torringtonhad, immediately after that battle, been sent to the Tow’er,and had ever since remained there. A technical difficulty hadarisen about the mode of bringinghim to trial. There wasnoLordHighAdmiral; and whether the Commissioners of the Admiraltywere competent to execute martial law was a point which tosome jurists appeared not perfectly clear. The majority of the‘udges held that the Commissioners were competent; but, forthe purpose of removing all doubt, a bill was brought into theUpper House; and to this bill several Lords offered an opposi-tion which seems to have been most unreasonable. The pro-posedlaw, theysaid, was a retrospective penal law, and there-fore objectionable. If they used this argument in good faith,they were ignorant of the very rudiments of the science of legis-

* Burnet, ii. 67. See the Journals of both Houses, particularly theCommons’ Journals of the X9th of December and the Lords’ Journals of the80th of December and the 1st of January. The bill itself will be found inthe archives of the House of Lords.