time he must have left the house, as
witnesses were produced to prove that,
precisely as the clock struck eleven, he entered
the Globe and Dolphin inn, where he
remained for a quarter of an hour, and then
proceeded to his lodgings at a Mr.
Barefoot's, and was in bed before twelve o'clock.
He explained why he did not remain at
Mistress Stout's: His brother, Mr. William
Cowper, who usually also went that circuit,
always kept engaged at Mr. Barefoot's, rooms
which the traverser was in the habit of
sharing. On the occasion in question, his
brother William happening to have no business
at Hertford, was not going there. He
himself having met his brother on the
previous Friday, told him of his own design to
stop at Mrs. Stout's, and begged William,
for that reason, to write word to Mr. Bare-
foot that he might let the lodgings if he
could. This, William Cowper had said he
would do; but Spencer, after having called at
Mistress Stout's on his coming into Hertford,
went forward directly to Mr. Barefoot's to
ask whether the lodgings had been let, and
then found that no letter had been written.
The rooms, consequently, were retained for
him: which being the case, he considered
himself bound to pay for them, and thought
it best to occupy them rather than occasion
Mrs. Stout any needless trouble.

Mr. and Mrs. Barefoot, their maid-servant,
and a gentleman who happened to be
present, by their evidence assured these facts.
Spencer admitted he might have said, on
leaving Mrs. Stout's house, after dinner, that
he would return again that evening, as in fact
he did return to supper; but he positively
denied having said that he would sleep there,
for the reasons stated.

On the part of the other three traversers,
the object of their visit to Hertford was
satisfactorily explained. It was proved that
there was law business in which they were
engaged. It was testified by some friends of
theirs that they had been at the Globe and
Dolphin from eight o'clock in the evening
until eleven, when they were escorted by
their friends to Guney's, and left there at the
door of their lodging at the time when they
themselves stated that they had returned to
bed. It was strongly denied, on the part of
Marson, that he made use of the expression,
"Mistress Stout's courting days are over;"
but, it was admitted that they all had merry
and careless conversation on the subject of
the gentlewoman. It was proved by two or
three witnesses that the three traversers and
several other gentlemen of Clifford's Inn had
met on Sunday, the twelfth, at the Old
Devil's Inn, when the conversation turned on
Stevens and Rogers having to attend the
Lord Chief Justice out of town; and upon a
certain Mr. Marshall, who had courted
Mistress Stout of Hertford; whereupon, one of
the company had said, "If you go there, pray
ask after Marshall's mistress, and bring us
some account of her." Either Marson or
Stevens thereto replied he would "do his
best and enquire all about the
gentlewoman."

Mr. Spencer Cowper then reverted to his
own particular case, expressing himself as
being most thankful to his enemies, that in
their endeavours to clear the character of
Mistress Sarah Stout, they had done the same
for him. But, to convince the jury she had
murdered herself, he was obliged to reject
this benefit for himself, so far as it went, and
(though most unwillingly) to trespass on the
character of the deceased gentlewoman, not
on his own account alone, but in defence of
the lives of the other three traversers.

Then, as to the admission of Sarah Walker,
on her cross-examination, "That the deceased
had been of a melancholy and desponding
state of mind for some time previous to her
death," he proceeded to show why she was
so, and thence to deduce the natural
consequence—suicide.

He then went on to state, that three or
four years previously he had introduced Mr.
Marshall (the gentleman before alluded to) to
Mistress Stout, and that from her manner and
apparent reception of that gentleman's
attentions, he had every reason to think she
was favouring them, with a view to
marriage. But one evening, when the three
were out walking in company with another
lady, and he, Mr. Cowper, was apart with
Mistress Stout, while Marshall and the other
lady were before them, Miss Stout suddenly
observed to him, "She did not imagine he
had been so dull." That he, being curious to
know to what she alluded, she replied, "in
fancying that she intended to accept Mr.
Marshall's addresses." That he thereupon
asked her, if such was not her intention,
why she encouraged his attentions; to which
she replied, she did it to divert the
observation of the world, and to cover their own
intimacy; in corroboration of which statement
he produced Mr. Marshall, who stated
that on being introduced by Mr. Cowper to
Miss Stout, she had afforded him many
opportunities of improving his acquaintance
with her, and evidently favoured his attentions;
but at length, upon his pressing his
suit, she gave him a decided refusal, without
any seeming reason.

Mr. Cowper then proceeded to read the
letters which, he stated, he had received from
Miss Stout, at the same time declaring that
nothing but the duty he felt he owed to the
other traversers would ever have induced
him to give them publicity.

They were two letters, which, if genuine,
were fatal to the character of the deceased.
The last of them, Mr. William Cowper
declared that his brother had shown to him at
the time when he requested him to write to
the Barefoots to let the lodgings, and he
afterwards having reflected that, considering
the state of affairs, it would be better