Report of the trial of Madeleine Smith : before the High Court of Justiciary at Edinburgh, June 30th to July 9th, 1857, for the alleged poisoning of Pierre Émile l'Angelier / by Alexander Forbes Irvine, advocate.

  • Madeleine Smith
Date:
1857
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the trial of Madeleine Smith : before the High Court of Justiciary at Edinburgh, June 30th to July 9th, 1857, for the alleged poisoning of Pierre Émile l'Angelier / by Alexander Forbes Irvine, advocate. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

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    Court an occurrence of a very unusual form and kind. There has been put into my hands this morning a printed letter, which ap- pears to be in the course of circulation, and which I will take the liberty of reading. [The letter, which was read, was dated from the Scotch Thistle office, High Street, Edinburgh, 30th June, and inti- mated that a full rejDort w^ould be given of the trial, and of all the letters hetioeen the prisoner and UAngelier. The circular was signed Jas. Cunningham.] After reading this cuxular, the Dean said— Your Lordship is of course aware that up to this moment the num- ber of letters which have been put in evidence is extremely small, but that the number of letters which have been produced in this case is very large indeed; and your Lordship is also aware that a very con- siderable number of these letters have been printed for the use of counsel on both sides. I am farther informed that the letters which are printed, and which amount to upwards of 100, are in the course of being set in type in this newspaper office, with a view to their being published to-morrow. It remains quite doubtful up to this moment how many of these letters may be used in evidence. They are truly of the most highly confidential character, and quite unfit for publication; and I am sure I may say of my learned friend, the Lord Advocate, that he will not use one of them that is not essential to his case. Now, in these circumstances, it appears to me that the proposed publication is a gross breach of public decorum, and at the same time a most improper misuse of materials which, somehow or other, I do not know how, have found their way into the hands of this printer. I am very much disposed to leave this matter in the hands of your Lordship, but I must at the same time take the liberty of urging that some proceedings should be taken for the purpose of preventing this proposed publication. The Lord Ax>vocate said—If the circular to which my learned friend refers had fallen into my hands, I should have taken precisely the course which he has done. How these letters should have got into the hands of any person unconnected with the prosecution or defence, I am unable to say. I know that the strictest orders have been given that no copies of the letters printed by the Crown, and communicated by them to the defence, should be given to any per- son whatever. I have every reason to think that these orders have been most carefully obeyed. I, however, thoroughly agree with my learned friend as to the extremely gross impropriety of the proposed publication, and I am perfectly ready to co-operate with him in any proceedings which may be necessary. The Lord Justice-Clerk saicl, the Court thought that they should order the immediate attendance of the person who signed this circular. It was important to ascertain whether the publication was to be limited to the letters used in evidence, or whether the printers had a copy of all the others, and where they had got that copy ; be- cause the publication of documents of such a character, and indeed of any documents which were tlie property of the Crown, and part
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