TRIAL, &c

DECLARATION.

Michaelmas Term, in the Thirty-eighth Year of King George the Third.

to wit.

}

Middlesex, JOHN WILLIAMS complains of Robert Faulder being in the custody of the Marshal of the Marshalsea of our Sovereign Lord the now King, before the King himself, of a plea of trespass on the case. For that WHEREAS the said John NOW IS, AND FROM THE TIME OF HIS NATIVITY HITHERTO HATH BEEN A PERSON OF UPRIGHT AND MORAL CONDUCT AND BEHAVIOUR, and as an upright and moral person, hath, during all the time aforesaid, behaved himself; and always until the publishing of the false, scandalous, malicious, and defamatory libels hereafter mentioned to have been published by the said Robert, had

been holden and reputed to be a person of good name, fame, credit, and unsullied character and reputation amongst all his neighbours, and other good and worthy subjects of this realm, AND NEVER WAS GUILTY, NOR UNTIL THE TIME OF THE PUBLISHING OF THE FALSE AND DEFAMATORY LIBELS HEREINAFTER MENTIONED, HAD BEEN SUSPECTED OF BEING GUILTY OF ANY THING INDECENT, OBSCENE, IMMORAL, OR UNBECOMING, OR OF TRADUCING, CENSURING, OR CALUMNIATING THE INNOCENT AND THE VIRTUOUS; by means of all which premises the said John, before, and at the time of the publishing of the false, scandalous, malicious, and defamatory libels hereinafter mentioned, had deservedly obtained, acquired, and gotten to himself, and then enjoyed, the good opinion, credit, and esteem of all persons any ways acquainted with him, and of other good and worthy subjects of this realm.

AND WHEREAS ALSO, the said John, long before, and at the time of the publishing of the libels hereinafter mentioned, did use, exercise, follow, and carry on the profession of an author, and in the way of such his PROFESSION, had composed and pub

lished divers and very many books, poems, and other publications, and had thereby obtained, and acquired to himself, and then enjoyed GREAT PUBLIC FAME, CELEBRITY, ADMIRATION, AND APPLAUSE,

in his said profession of an author, and the compositions and publications of the said John, were, in consequence thereof, IN SUCH GENERAL REPUTE AND ESTEEM, AND IN SO GREAT REQUEST, that he, the said John, at the time of the publication of the several false, scandalous, and defamatory libels hereinafter mentioned to have been published by the said Robert, was, in the way of his said PROFESSION, daily and HONESTLY acquiring divers and VERY GREAT GAINS, PROFITS, AND EMOLUMENTS, TO HIS VERY COMFORTABLE SUPPORT, AND TO. THE GREAT INCREASE OF HIS RICHES.

And the said John further saith, long before, and at the time of the publication of the several false, scandalous, and defamatory libels hereinafter mentioned; he, the said John, was generally and publicly known, as well by the name of ANTHONY PASQUIN, as by the name of JOHN WILLIAMS, many of his MOST ADMIRED COMPOSITIONS having been published under the name of Anthony Pasquin.

Yet, nevertheless, the said Robert, well knowing all and singular the premises, but GREATLY ENVYING the happy state and condition of the said John, and contriving and maliciously intending to prejudice, degrade, and damnify the said John, not only in his aforesaid good name, credit, character, and reputation, and to bring him into great and public scandal, infamy, and disgrace amongst all his neighbours, and other good and worthy subjects of this realm; and to cause it to be believed and suspected, that the said John was a person of loose, indecent, shameless, profligate, infamous, and immoral manners, conduct, and behaviour, and a traducer, calumniator, and destroyer of the reputations of divers innocent, virtuous, and worthy subjects of this realm, but also to degrade, depreciate, vilify, prejudice, injure, and damnify him, the said John, in the way of his aforesaid PROFESSION of an author, and to bring the compositions and publications of the said John into public disesteem, disregard, and disrepute, and to cause it to be believed that the productions of the said John as an author or composer were INSIGNIFICANT, TRIFLING, DULL, LICENTIOUS, AND IMMORAL, and that the said John was a venal and

prostituted author, who bartered his abilities to the service of any person or cause, from pecuniary motives, and otherwise to injure and damnify him, heretofore, to wit, on the first day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety-seven, at Westminster aforesaid, in the said county of Middlesex, he, the said Robert, falsely, wickedly, wrongfully, unjustly, and maliciously, published a certain book entitled, THE 'BAVIAD, AND MEVIAD." containing therein, amongst other things, a false, scandalous, defamatory, and malicious libel of and concerning the said John in the way of his said PROFESSION of an author, in substance, and to the effect following: that

is to say,

"Some love the verse that like Maria's flows,

"No rubs to stagger, and no sense to pose:

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"Which read, and read, you raise your eyes in doubt,

"And gravely wonder what it is about.

"These fancy Bell's Poetics only sweet,

"And intercept his hawkers in the street;

"There, smoking hot, inhale Mit Yenda's strains, "And the rank fume of TONY PASQUIN's brains."

"I have too much respect for my reader to affront "him with any specimens of this man's" (meaning