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  • Nov. 1, 1798
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The Freemasons' Magazine, Nov. 1, 1798: Page 48

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    Article MEMOIR AND TRIAL OF THE CELEBRATED THEOBALD WOLFE TONE, ← Page 5 of 7 →
Page 48

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Memoir And Trial Of The Celebrated Theobald Wolfe Tone,

have the honour to serve . From the papers which I yesterday delivered to the Brigade Major , it will be seen that I am as regularl y breveted an officer in the French service , as any who now hear me ha ' ve been in the British service ; and it will also be seen that' I have not sought or obtained my commission as a protection against the consequences of" coming to this cotuiti y in a hostile character . '

J UDGE ADVOCATE — ' The acceptance of a commission in the French serviceamounts to a positive proof of the charge against you ; but I supoose its production is merel y intended to show that you are an officer of France . ' Here the papers alluded to wete produced , which were a brevet and letter of service , signed b y the President of the Directory , and the Minister of War , by which it appeared that the prisoner was Chef de Brigade . The President having asked why those papers applied to the prisoner the sirname of Smith well of

as as Tone ? he replied , that he went to France from America , and it having been necessary that he should have a passport , he took the first he could get , which ran in the name of Smith ; and , on arriving in France , he was necessarily registered by that name ; indeed , he said , it " was very common with French soldiers to have what they term a mm du guerre < I know ( satd Mr . Tone ) that I reap no protection from producino- my com * mission , and as I can have no doubt of the decision of the Court , the sooner the Lord Lieutenant ' of the sentence

s approbation can be obtained the better . I could wish , if" possible , that my fate were determined in an hour . ' To this the President replied , ' That the Court would immediately proceed to a consideration and judgment of the case , and would make no de ' ay in transmitting- the result to his Excellency . ' < Mr . Tone having then thanked the Court for the attention with which lie nac been heard , was remanded to the Prcvot , and the Court was cloved of all but the members .

Throughout the whole of the proceedings the prisoner preserved the greatest fortitude and collection of mind and manner 5 indeed at first he appeared -1 htte agitated , but it was a defection of nerve , not courage ; but , in a very little time he was perfectly assured . He was dressed in the French uniform smtei , to his rank , bemga long blue coat , buttoning half way down thef-onf the cape and cuffs scarlet , richly embroidered , and on each shoulder a very 11 c 1 epaulethis pantaloons were blue with embroidered bands at the

; , knee and the tops of his half boots were also laced ; he wore a large cocked bat with the tri-coloured cockade . A member ot parliament bore , in his place in cue House , the following testimony to the character and disposition of Theobald Wolfe 7 one : ' In boyhood he was the companion of my howm—in manhood he was my friend ; and whatever political errors his enthusiasm may Have ed him mto , a greater genius or a better heart no man ever possessed ' ' -las ! that they should have led him to a scaffold l '

About five o ' clock m the morning of November i ; fh Tone rrnile -in at empt upon his hie . 'Hie sentinels who were placed at his door , hearino- an ¦¦ usual bustle , entered the room : on seeing them he hid his head underlie > -d-c othes , and tucked them tight about him . The sentinels , however see-; g a bloody razor on the floor , conjectured he had been doing himself some 0 ence , and accordingly dragged the bed-clothes from his head , and found t at he had cut his throatThey immediatelcalled for assistance

. y , and in a -Jort tunc a surgeon was procured , who found that the wound was not mortal . e had cut the flesh between the jaw and the neck , and left onl y a small wound he witul-pipe I he wound was stitched together , and he was continued co , tin } , 1 could not lMr " , P ' " P ° '"t ° * any conversation he had , ( for he C f ;' ble t 0 co , nverse ) subsequent to this attempt ; we heard pen-rally " •^ ue had expi essed his sorrow that the attempt had failed . Previous to hi'

“The Freemasons' Magazine: 1798-11-01, Page 48” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 25 May 2025, django:8000/periodicals/fmm/issues/fmm_01111798/page/48/.
  • List
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Title Category Page
Untitled Article 1
LONDON: Article 1
TO CORRESPONDENTS, &c. Article 2
PRICES OF BINDING PER VOLUME. Article 2
Untitled Article 3
THE LIFE OF OF THE RIGHT HONOURABLE BARON NELSON OF THE NILE, &c. &c. &c. Article 4
ON RELIGION, MORALITY, AND GOVERNMENT. Article 6
OBSERVATIONS ON THE CAUSE OF OUR LATE NAVAL VICTORIES. Article 7
REVIEW OF THE THEATRICAL POWERS OF THE LATE MR. JOHN PALMER. Article 10
MONODY. Article 11
THE LIFE OF BISHOP WARBURTON. Article 16
CURIOUS ACCOUNT GIVEN BY THE DUMB PHILOSOPHER. Article 19
THE LIFE OF PRINCE POTEMKIN. Article 25
OPTIMISM: A DREAM. Article 32
THE MIRROR OF THESPIS. Article 34
NARRATIVE OF THE EXPEDITION OF BUONAPARTE. Article 38
MEMOIR AND TRIAL OF THE CELEBRATED THEOBALD WOLFE TONE, Article 44
THE FREEMASONS' REPOSITORY. Article 51
SCIENTIFIC INTELLIGENCE. Article 55
REVIEW OF NEW PUBLICATIONS . Article 58
POETRY. Article 64
BRITISH PARLIAMENT. Article 66
PARLIAMENT OF IRELAND. Article 69
MONTHLY CHRONICLE. Article 73
OBITUARY. Article 74
Untitled Article 78
LONDON: Article 78
TO CORRESPONDENTS, &c. Article 79
PRICES OF BINDING PER VOLUME. Article 79
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Page 48

Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Memoir And Trial Of The Celebrated Theobald Wolfe Tone,

have the honour to serve . From the papers which I yesterday delivered to the Brigade Major , it will be seen that I am as regularl y breveted an officer in the French service , as any who now hear me ha ' ve been in the British service ; and it will also be seen that' I have not sought or obtained my commission as a protection against the consequences of" coming to this cotuiti y in a hostile character . '

J UDGE ADVOCATE — ' The acceptance of a commission in the French serviceamounts to a positive proof of the charge against you ; but I supoose its production is merel y intended to show that you are an officer of France . ' Here the papers alluded to wete produced , which were a brevet and letter of service , signed b y the President of the Directory , and the Minister of War , by which it appeared that the prisoner was Chef de Brigade . The President having asked why those papers applied to the prisoner the sirname of Smith well of

as as Tone ? he replied , that he went to France from America , and it having been necessary that he should have a passport , he took the first he could get , which ran in the name of Smith ; and , on arriving in France , he was necessarily registered by that name ; indeed , he said , it " was very common with French soldiers to have what they term a mm du guerre < I know ( satd Mr . Tone ) that I reap no protection from producino- my com * mission , and as I can have no doubt of the decision of the Court , the sooner the Lord Lieutenant ' of the sentence

s approbation can be obtained the better . I could wish , if" possible , that my fate were determined in an hour . ' To this the President replied , ' That the Court would immediately proceed to a consideration and judgment of the case , and would make no de ' ay in transmitting- the result to his Excellency . ' < Mr . Tone having then thanked the Court for the attention with which lie nac been heard , was remanded to the Prcvot , and the Court was cloved of all but the members .

Throughout the whole of the proceedings the prisoner preserved the greatest fortitude and collection of mind and manner 5 indeed at first he appeared -1 htte agitated , but it was a defection of nerve , not courage ; but , in a very little time he was perfectly assured . He was dressed in the French uniform smtei , to his rank , bemga long blue coat , buttoning half way down thef-onf the cape and cuffs scarlet , richly embroidered , and on each shoulder a very 11 c 1 epaulethis pantaloons were blue with embroidered bands at the

; , knee and the tops of his half boots were also laced ; he wore a large cocked bat with the tri-coloured cockade . A member ot parliament bore , in his place in cue House , the following testimony to the character and disposition of Theobald Wolfe 7 one : ' In boyhood he was the companion of my howm—in manhood he was my friend ; and whatever political errors his enthusiasm may Have ed him mto , a greater genius or a better heart no man ever possessed ' ' -las ! that they should have led him to a scaffold l '

About five o ' clock m the morning of November i ; fh Tone rrnile -in at empt upon his hie . 'Hie sentinels who were placed at his door , hearino- an ¦¦ usual bustle , entered the room : on seeing them he hid his head underlie > -d-c othes , and tucked them tight about him . The sentinels , however see-; g a bloody razor on the floor , conjectured he had been doing himself some 0 ence , and accordingly dragged the bed-clothes from his head , and found t at he had cut his throatThey immediatelcalled for assistance

. y , and in a -Jort tunc a surgeon was procured , who found that the wound was not mortal . e had cut the flesh between the jaw and the neck , and left onl y a small wound he witul-pipe I he wound was stitched together , and he was continued co , tin } , 1 could not lMr " , P ' " P ° '"t ° * any conversation he had , ( for he C f ;' ble t 0 co , nverse ) subsequent to this attempt ; we heard pen-rally " •^ ue had expi essed his sorrow that the attempt had failed . Previous to hi'

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