statement of the various circumstances
that have hitherto come to my know-
ledge in relation to an event, which,
a few weeks ago, awakened, in this
place, so much surprise: the precog-
nition which was carried on by the
law officers of the county into certain
parts of my conduct as Chaplain to
this University. There are many, I
believe, who think that this commu-
nication has been too long withheld;
that it ought to have been made while
that extraordinary proceeding was yet
recent; and before those sentiments,
which were then so general and
strong, of contempt for its obvious
folly, and indignation against its ap-
parent malignity, had suffered any
abatement by the lapse of time and
the occurrence of other interesting
events. I am very sensible that in
consequence of this delay, the appeal
which I am going to make, will be
heard with a less lively interest than
it would have been, had it followed
more closely upon the transactions to
which it refers; but the delay has
been unavoidable. The wrong done
by the precognition, in the ignominy
and injury which it inflicted or threat-
ened, was a wrong committed not
against me only, but against the re-
spectable University to which I be-
long. I was sensible, therefore, that
in seeking redress for that wrong it
became me to consult the feelings and
to be guided by the judgment of the
other members of that body: I felt it
incumbent on me to accommodate
myself, at least in a certain degree,

VOL. X.

9 F

[Vol.

to the line of conduct which
should adopt, and, of course; to
frain from bringing forward su
view of the case as that which
now to give, till I were first
that my doing so could not int
with the prosecution and suc
any other mode of proceeding

dignity of the University, or
calculated to maintain its rep
and interests.

It is but a very few days
determination of the Facult
College has removed the
thus laid upon me, and left
liberty of addressing myself
this channel to the public
the conclusion of my corres
with you, I shall have an of
of stating and defending t
mination; in the mean ti
it my duty to say, that the
tardiness with which the F
arrived at it, is not to be
any want of sensibility on
to the gross injury whic
tained in consequence
absurd and groundless c
had been made against th
and of the inconsiderate
which the precognition in
conducted. For by atte
dates of the proceeding
sequent statement, it wil
the matter was, without d
under the solemn disc
Members of the Facult
cited in them a very gen
sentiment of indignation
then adopted, and h
steadily prosecuted t
which they flattered t
might be able at on
my character, and to
the unworthy autho
aspersions that had be

it.

It is chiefly from 1

they

eh a
I am

sure,

erfere cess of

which e to the better putation

since a y of the restraint me full through Before pondence >portunity hat determe I feel ‣ apparent iculty have ascribed to their part, h they susboth of the harges that eir chaplain, manner in to them was ading to the s in the sub d be seen tha elay, brough ussion of th 7, that it e eral and live 1, and that th ive ever sin he means hemselves th ce to vindic

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Marc fiscal ceivi

that suffer Iceedi for th at the meeti which by the be ins ninute alty 1

er, rep NANI opy o

402

Proceedings against Professor Mylne, on the Charge of Sedition.

tracted from the records of the Faculty of the College, from the letters, and other authentic documents now to be exhibited, that the public are requested to form their opinion. A very short and simple narrative will be sufficient to exhibit the order and connection of the facts and circumstances to which these documents refer.

every thing I had said upon my examination, as exactly the same with my declaration as my memory would enable me to make it: and this account, under the above denomination, the Faculty were pleased to admit into their records, as furnishing them with some satisfactory means of discovering from the style and train of the interwhat had been the nature of those of rogations that had been put to me, fences with which I had been charged. I shall not, however, extract from the record this recollected account of my examination: the Lord Advocate has since supplied me with a copy of the declaration itself. This, which is the only part of the precognition which I have been allowed to see, has been since inserted in the Records of the Faculty. The following is its tenour:

The first meeting of the Faculty
apon this business was held on Mon-
lay the 3d of April, the earliest day
fter the precognition on which a
meeting could have been conveniently
eld. I have much pleasure in re-
arking, that the interest which had
en excited in my colleagues, by the
traordinary proceedings of the law
icers, was evident in the unusually
I attendance on that occasion; every
mber of the Faculty being present,
ept Professor Young, who had
n unexpectedly called to Edin-
gh. At that meeting, as the mi-
's bear, I represented to the Fa-
V, "that a precognition had been
n in the course of the preceding
, on some parts of my conduct
aplain, on Sunday the 26th of
h, by the sheriff and procurator
of Lanarkshire, and that, con-
ig both my own character and
of the College, to be in danger of
ing in consequence of that pro-
g, I now applied to the Faculty
eir direction and assistance." I
same time" exhibited to the
g the substance of a declaration
I had emitted when examined
: Sheriff, which was ordered to
serted into the record." The
: further states, that "the Fa-
aving deliberated on the mat-
resented to them by Mr. Mylne,
MOUSLY agreed to transmit a
f the substance of Mr. Mylne's
tion to the Lord Advocate,
anied by the following repre-
n which they appointed the
al to subscribe in their name."
regard to the first of the pa-
entioned in this minute, and
is denominated the substance
eclaration, it is proper to men-
at in consequence of the re-
he Sheriff to allow me a copy
leclaration I had dictated in
to his interrogatories, and
had authenticated by my sig.
thought it adviseable to draw
recollection, an account of

(Copy)

Declaration before Sheriff, 31st March,

1815.

of Moral Philosophy in the University of Appeared Mr. James Mylne, Professor Glasgow; who, being examined, declares that he is Chaplain of the said University; that he preached on Sunday, the 26th March current, in said Chapel; that he had heard that morning, and with very deep concern and grief, the unfortunate news of the day from France; that the the service began, was the 107th-several psalm given out that day, and with which verses at the beginning-being the psalm course of his official duty in the chape! ; to which he had regularly come in the that in the concluding prayer, when speaking of public matters, the Declarant, impressed with deep regret at the dark and gloomy prospects to the nations of Europe, and reverence for that Being who can guide the furious passions of wicked men, can render them subservient to the gracious purposes of his government, and can overpassions; that he prayed, that the governcome and restrain the excesses of such meats of Europe, by the wisdom and justice of their administration, might every where engage the attachment and fidelity of their subjects; and that the subjects every where might distinguish themselves by the corresponding virtues of loyalty and patriotism: that we, in particular, in this country might be fully sensible of the value of our precious, civil and political pridown inviolate to the latest posterity. That vileges, and that they might be handed the service of that forenoon was concluded by singing a part of the 26th Scripture Translation; that he read the 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th verses, of which he thinks the three last were sung by the congregs

tion. That he chose these verses, as peculiarly appropriate to the subject on which he had just lectured, which was the 11th chapter of the Acts, from the beginning to the 19th verse-the passage to which he had come in the course of his regular lecture through that book. In this passage, the apostle Peter states to the other apostles, his account of the first instance in which a heathen had been admitted by baptism into the Church of Christ, and whose admission had been sanctioned by his being made to share in the influences of the divine spirit. That considering this instance as the prelude of the full admission of all heathen nations, to the privileges and blessings of the gospel, he regarded the passage which was sung, and which is the versification of a prophecy, intimating that important and rejoicing event, as peculiarly suitable to the subject of the lecture, and in harmony with those pious sentiments which the contemplation of it ought to excite in every Christian congregation. That it was not without feelings of the deepest indignation, mingled with no small degree of contempt, that the Declarant heard yesterday from Mr. Andrew Alexander, that his choice of that passage on that occasion had been so perversely and absurdly misrepresented, as to be regarded as an application of language, referring to the Blessed Saviour of the world, to Buonaparte, whom he had long regarded with sentiments of the deepest abhorrence and detestation, not only as the disturber of the peace and happiness of nations, but as the greatest enemy to the civil and political liberties of mankind. That the Declarant considers the very suspicion of his being capable of such an abominable and blasphemous perversion of the solemn language of scripture, as an injury of a very deep nature: an injury committed not only against himself, as a minister of the gospel, but also against the University of which he is a member : whose character must severely suffer in the estimation of mankind, if it were possible to imagine that they employed as their chaplain, one who could be capable of such an unpardonable atrocity.

Interrogated, Declares that yesterday, about two o'clock, Mr. Alexander informed him, that he had that day been examined verbally as to what had taken place in the chapel on Sunday. That Mr. Alexander again called upon the Declarant in the evening, and informed him that he had received a message to attend and be again examined. Mr. Alexander appeared to be very uneasy on the subject. That the Declarant told him most certainly to go as he had been desired, and to answer all questions that might be put to him and all this he declares to be truth. (Signed)

JAMES MYLNE.
R. HAMILTON.

The representation inserted in the above minute is as follows:

Glasgow College, 3d April, 1815. MY LORD,

The Faculty of Glasgow College presume that your Lordship is not unacquainted with a precognition which was taken here last week, respecting the conduct of divine service in the College Chapel, on Sunday, the 26th March. From that transaction, it appears that Mr. Mylne, Professor of Moral Philosophy, who as College Chaplain officiated on that day, has been suspected, probably accused, of crimes of a very heinous nature; of Sedition, if not of High Treason; of a profane abuse of the most solemn duties of religion; of a blasphemous perversion of Holy Scripture; for that in his prayers, and particu larly in the Psalms which he appointed to be sung, he expressed his exultation in the successful progress of Buonaparte to the French capital; an event the intelli gence of which had reached Glasgow on the morning of that day; and that he had impiously applied to Buonaparte, language solely appropriated by revelation to the Saviour of the world.

The Faculty rejoice in the confident assurance, that these allegations are totally false and groundless; and so they are persuaded your lordship will find them to be from the declarations of those who have been examined. Yet still the facts that such suspicions had been entertained by the law officers of the country, that such accusations had been laid before them, and that certain measures had in conse

quence been taken, cannot fail to produce on the public mind, effects highly injurions not only to the individual immediately concerned, but to the interests also and reputation of a University which hitherto has held a respectable place in general estimation. What confidence can hereafter be placed in a body of men, who could not only employ as their chaplain a man capable of such atrocities, but who could permit that man to remain among them undisturbed, unchallenged, unnoticed, after the notorious and public commission of them for four full days, and until the chief magistrate of the county had come from a distance for their investigation?

The Faculty feel themselves called upon by the most imperious motives, by the consideration of every thing that they owe to their interest, to their reputation, to their usefulness, to search to the bottom this alarming matter. And surely they do not presume too far either on your lordship's connection with and friendship for the University, or on your well known zeal and integrity in the discharge of your official duties as his majesty's advocate; when they assure themselves that you

will