They
signed a paper particularizing their charge, and offered to refer
the question to a tribunal of gentlemen, with the Duke of
Wellington or Lord Wharncliffe to preside. Would a little
coterie, who lived by gambling, have made this offer? Or would
Lord de Ros have refused it if he had been the intended victim of
a conspiracy? Lord Henry Bentinck signed the paper, appeared as
a witness, and took quite as active a part in the proceedings as
any of the four, except Mr Cumming, who undertook the sole legal
liability by admitting the publication of the paper.
[36] The Times of February 11 and 13, 1837.
'The evidence was overwhelming. Suspicions had long been rife;
and on no less than ten or twelve occasions the marked packs had
been examined in the presence of unimpeachable witnesses, and
sealed up. These packs were produced at the trial. Several
witnesses swore to the trick called sauter la coupe. It was the
late Sir William Ingilby who swore that he had seen Lord de Ros
perform it from 50 to 100 times; and when asked why he did not at
once denounce him, he replied that if he had done so before his
Lordship began to get blown upon, he should have had no
alternative between the window and the door.
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