480

- PONSONBY. Clonmell's grounds, was productive of a new fiat, issued on the affidavit of the chief justice himself, before a puisne judge of his own court, Sir Samuel Bradstreet, and Mr. Magee, unable or unwilling to find farther bail, was lodged in Newgate to abide the issue of his trial. An action at the suit of Mr. Daly the manager, came on first for trial. Mr. Ponsonby, with a most able veteran lawyer, and member of parliament, Mr. Arthur O'Neile, was coun s e l for Magee. But, notwithstanding the host o f precedents and eminent law authorities adduced by both gentle men, decisively i n favour o f their client, the chief justice, b y his simple ipse dirit, overruled every thing. The advo cates o f Magee then declined offering further authorities, and a verdict was obtained for the plaintiff. Several other actions were still pending; Magee was driven t o distrac tion, and almost t o ruin. But Mr. Ponsonby, convinced that Lord Clonmell had acted partially, oppressively, and i n gross abuse o f his judicial authority, brought forward the subject i n parliament, and moved for impeaching his lordship a t the bar o f the House o f Lords. On the night o f Mr. Ponsonby's motion, h e introduced i t b y observing, that h e should not support i t merely b y arguments o f his own, but from the very words o f the ablest law authorities and constitutional writers that had ever existed; and he brought with him for the purpose, a formidable collection o f books, selected from his library, with apposite and pointed quotations, which h e introduced into his speech; and concluded a n unanswerable mass o f argument, by moving for the impeachment. Mr. Curran, who had been counsel for the plaintiff on the trial, supported the motion o f Mr. Ponsonby. He said, that a s h e had been accidentally retained a s counsel against Mr. Magee o n the trial, h e was bound t o use his best exertions for the cause o f his client;-and had the fortune t o succeed with the court and jury i n obtaining a verdict. But h e begged, that the House would consider him now, not a s acting the part o f a n advocate i n a court o f law, where h e had spoken with his brief i n one hand, l