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TRIAL OF COLONEL BURR. RICHMOND, Tuesday , May 26. Present the same judges as on yes terday. The grand jury were called, and adjourned over till the next day. On the motion made yesterday to commit colonel Burr on the charge of treason, the chief justice delivered the opinion of the court as follows: In considering the question which was argot and yesterday, it appears to be necessary to decide: First, ” Whether the court, sitting as a court, possesses the power to com mit any person charged with an offence against the U. S. Second, Ti this potyer he possessed, whether cirowurstanccs exist in this case yvhich ought to restrain its exer cise. The first point was not made in the arrangement, and would, if decided a gainst the attorney for the U. States, only change the mode of proceeding. If a doubt can exist respecting it, tint doubt arises from the omission in the laws of the United States, to invest their courts, sitting as courts, with the pow er in question. It is expressly given to every justice and judge, but not to a court. This objection was not made on the part of colonel Burr, and is now men tioned, not because it is believed to present any intrinsic difficulty, but to shew that it has been considered. This power is necessarily exercised by courts in discharge of their func tions, and.seems not to have been ex pressly given, because it is implied in the duties which a court must perform, and the judicial act contemplates it in this light. They have cognizance of all crimes against the United States; they are composed of the persons who can commit for those crimes; and it is obviously understood, by the legis lature, that the judges may exercise collectively the power which they pos sess individually, so fur us is necessary to enable them to retain a person char ged with an offence in order to receive tlie judgment which may finally he rendered in his case. The court say, this is obviously understood by the le gislature, because there is no clause expressly giving to the court, the pow er to bail or to commit a person, who appears in discharge of his recogniz ance, and against whom the attorney for the United States does not chuse to proceed, and yet the 33d sec. of the judicial act, evinces a clear under standing in the legislature, that the pow er to take bail, is in possession of the court. appear in conformity witlr his recognizance, and the court passes away without taking any order respecting him, he is discharged. A new recognizance, therefore, or a com mitment on the failure to enter into one, is in the nature of an original com mitment, and this power lias been uni formly exercised. It is believed to be a correct position that the power to commit for offences of which it has recognizance, is exer cised by every coui t of criminal ju risdiction, and that courts as well as in dividual magistrates are conservators of the peace. Were it otherwise the consequence would only be that it would become the duty of the judge to descend from the bench, and in his character as an indi vidual magistrate, to do that which the court is asked to do. If the court possesses the power, it is certainly its duty to hear the motion which has been made on the part of the United States, for in cases of the cha racter of that under consideration, its duty and its power are co-extensive with each other. It was observed when the motion was made, and the observation may now be repeated, that the arguments urged on the part of the accused rather prove the mot ion on the pan of the United States unnecessary, or that other inconveniences may result from it, than the want of a legal right to nuke it. Thcilrst is, tnattne grand jury be ing now in session ready to receive ai. indictment, the attorney lor the Unitec States ought to proceed by bill insteao of applying to the court, since the only purpose of a commitment is to bring the accused before the grand jury.— This statement contains an intrinsic error which destroys its operation.— The commitment is not made for the sole purpose of bringing the accused before a grand jury ; it is made for the purpose of subjecting him personally to the judgment of the law, and the grand jury is only the first step towards that judgment. If, as has Iteen argued, the commit ment was simply to detain the person until a grand jury could be obtained ; then its operation would cease on the assembling of a grand jury ; but such is not the fact. The order of commit ment retains its force w hile the jury is in session, and if the prosecutor does not proceed, the court is accustomed to retain a prisoner in confinement, or to renew his recognizance to a subse quent term. The arguments drawn from the ge neral policy of our laws, front the atten tion which should be bestowed on pro secutions, instituted by special order | of the executive, from the peculiar in j conveniences and hardships of this par ticular case, from the improper effects which inevitably result from this ex miination, are some of them subject For the consideration of those whomake the motion, rather than of the court, and others go to the circumspection with which the testimony in support of the motion ought to be weighed, ra ther than to the duty of hearing it. It lias been said that colonel Burr already stands charged with treason, therefore, a motion to commit him for the same offe nce is improper. But the fact is not so understood bv the court. The application to charge him with treason was rejected by the judge to whom it was made, because the testi mony offered in support of the charge did not furnish probable cause for the opinion, that the crime had been com mitted. After this rejection, colonel Burr stood so far as respected his le gal liability to have the charge repeat ed in precisely the same situation as if it had never been made. He appears in court now as if the crime of treason had never before been alledged against him. That it has been alledged, that the government has had time to col lect testimony for the establishment of the fact, that an immense croud of wit nesses are attending for the purpose, that the prosecutor in his own judg ment has testimony to support the in dictment, are circumstances which may have their influence on the motion fora commitment, or on a continuance, but which cannot deprive the attorney for the United States of the right to make his motion. If he was about to send up a bill to the grand jury, he might move that the person he design ed to accuse should be ordered into custody, and it would be in the discre tion of the court to grant or to reject the motion. The court perceives and regrets hat the result of this motion, may be publications unfavorable to the justice, ind to the right deeison of the case ; but if this consequence is to be pre vented, it must be by other means ban by refusing to hear the motion. No man feeling a correct sense of the importance which ought to be attach ed by all to a fair and impartial admin istration of justice, especially in cri minal prosecutions, can view without extreme solicitude, any attempt which may be made to prejudice the public judgment, and to try any person not by the laws of his country and the tes timony exhibited against him, but by public feelings, which may be, and of ten are, artificially excited against the innocent as well as the guilty. But the remedy for a practice not less dan gerous than it is criminal, is not to be obtained by suppressing motions, which either party may have a legal right to make. If it is die choice of the prosecutor on the part of the United States to pro ceed with his motion, it is the opinion of the court, that he may open his tes timony. Mr. Hay then rose and declared that he was fully sensible of the incon ve iiencies which might result from a public examination ol the witnesses at this stage of the prosecution ; that no thing but the necessity of taking this step, to secure the appearance of colo nel Burr to answer the charge, had in duced him to make the motion for commitment. He was w illing, there fore, il any arrangement could be made to attain the same end, and to obviate die inconveniencies mentioned by the court, that such arrangement should be made. He observed that he un derstoodfrom the counsel on the other side, that they were disposed to cooler w i'h him and the gentlemen who assis ted him, on the subject of adopting some such arrangement. He propo sed therefore, with the permission of* the court, to retire for a short time for the purpose of holding the conference proposed. The court having consented, the counsel on both sides retired together; and returning, after an absence of a few minutes, informed the court that they had not been able to come to an agreement, and wished further time to consider the course which it might be most advisable to pursue—to which the court accede and. The case of colonel Burr was there fore, without any further proceedings at present, adjourned until the next day. We are happy’ to say that the opin ion of the federal court, delivered by tlie chief Justice of the United States, on the question whether Mr. Hay’s motion to commit colonel Burr on a charge of treason should be heard, does great honor to tlie impartiality and intelligence of that tribunal. It meets with our entire and most cordial approbation, and we express this sen timent with the more pleasure, as we have been unjustly accused of malig nantly anticipating improper conduct in the court, and, in fact, of desiring that they should do wrong in order that their reputations might be injur ed. We did indeed sincerely pray “ that future events might not increase the suspicions entertained of the puri ty of the judges of the supreme court of the United States,” and it gives us great gratification to observe, that so far as the trial of Aaron Burr has pro gressed, it appears most probable that nothing w’ill occur to confirm those suspicions. We now hope that this interesting trial will be conducted by the chief justice in such a manner as will leave no doubts of his integrity and firmness, as none can be entertain ed of his great abilities and extensive knowledge of the law.— Fir. Argus. = - ■- snftm; FOR THE E VEAiXG LEDGER . O ! fay, (hall man, thro* high ambition’s views, Or too refined notions ot la lie pride, The maiden whom his heart holds dear refuse, Eecaule that fortune is to her denied. Because she cannot boall a lineage long, Os ancient nobles in her low defeent, When round her all the budding virtue? throng, And tv'ry grace to her pure ipirit’s lent. When still he knows her spotless, angel mind For him is with sincerest paflion warm’d, Say lhall he feel from her to part inclin’d, Altho’ he be with all her beauties charm'd ? Ah 1 no ; he sure is form’d of diff’rent mould, From the fair offspring of affeftion true, If to her miid, her gentle virtues cold, He don’t return that warmth of love that’s due. For me, content within my humble cot, Bleft with a such accomp ifh’d feeling wife, Tnrice happy would 1 deem my fort’nate lot, Aud spend in blifsfui hours my peaceful life. Should fortune frown, or friends my choice condemn, Beneath the mountain’s wild 1 would retire ; I’d fay, “ 1 chose her for myfelf, not theroj My conliaut happiness I did desire.” I’d toil from riling f the fun till night, That my beloved fair might never want, And ev’ry smile I’d view with great delight, Which Ihe to me for all my pains would grant. LTNCONNU. GLANCE AT EUROPE. M FROM THF. AURORA. Before the opening ot the next year, we veiv tuie to assert, the principles oj the urmtd veu. tratiiy oj 1780, will he acknowledged by ererj power in Europe but one—and those principles will be made the basis of a system, which gc close to the realization ot that idea of an fa. ropean republic , conceived by the celebrates Sully, and so anxiouly looked for by Henry iV of Fi ance. \\ e give this idea, as the consequence of the existing state of Euiope—and the impending, (or perhaps already accomplished) discomfiture of the modern Vandals. This city w T as much amused last w*eek by the industrious circulation of reports, that ihe erii tor of this paper had very recent ad\i< e from Europe—and accounts of terrible battles subsei quent to the affairs of Braunsberg. At the cojfee house it was even alledged ihat the pa pers containing those msrvelous accounts were ir f our hands. We neither received any such, nor did we give the lea.d. credit to the talcs that were circulated, tho’ they went to say that the Vandals were completely annihilated, and 60.000 killed or prison ers with their general Benningsen, g We had been speculating upon the news tjfl day before, in consequence of the consideration of the 65th and 66th bulletins; and had formed a judgment by our enquiries ; the scope of which we shall now offer to our readers as lea ding to the conclusion with which we began this article. We have not found in any one of the official bulletins of the French, a kicr*stated which has not been by subsequent informa tion and reverse has been the fact uniformly other side. Pei haps the effect of tb e vales is the cause of the dis, ferent character of the official reports. The Gauls appear to be satisfied with what they do and have done—the Vandals endeavor to supply by official gazettes their deficiences in the field. By the 65th and 66th bulletins we are put in the possession of the positions of the armies. The Russian head quarters continued at Kon. ingsberg; but they had carried their Cossacks and other light marauders, as far as Brrteu stein on the Alla ; this place is 30 miles south of Koningsberg and 20 south of Eylau ; and at the same distance (30 miles) east cf the Pas serage, and about 60 miies from the French head quarters, which continued at Osterotie, on the 17th of March. The advance of the French, however, wH east of the Passerage, under marshal Aey Hyj Gulstadt, that is seven miles from that river, and 25 miles S. W. of Bartenstein. Having the head quarters and the advanced posts, we have now to trace the lines of can tonment. The Russian front is marked by the course of Pregel river ; with some corps ad-j vunced south of the Pregel, but with two small] rivers Almonia and Sohucena in front, and’ their left covered by the lakes of Flat sand Spi riding, and thence by the Pysch river to Grod no ; which is a principal magazine. Eighty miles N. E. of Grodno is Wilna, an important place and depot. The French left, under Bernadotte, was at Braunsberg, within 35 miles of Koningsberg, and the legions under Soult and Davi ust stretched along behind the Passerage to Feib stadt and Deppen; where the line of the Pas serage is encroached upon, and the French po sitions advanced between the Passerage and Alla, which are not more than six to eight miles apart, and very favorable by nature for a strong defensive military position. The French line extends in chequered co lumns of cantonment along the numerous lakes, and occupy Seeberg, Alleustein, FreudenbergHi Munsterberg, Bergfiied, Buningen, Passen heim, and Ortcisberg. Here anew disposition has been unfolded. Massena, with the fifth legion, and another of the French infantry, has advanced south to the Oniula river, which has its rise in the same lakes as the Passerage and Alla, but runs south ; while the Passerage runs north, and the Aila north east. ‘Fhe Omuia falls into the Narew, a few miles above Pultbsk. But Massena’s head quarters is at Wilden berg in the forks of the Omuia ; within fifty miles of Grodno. The collection of force at this point gives a new and impressive character to the prospects of the war ; anci induces us to expect some very sudden and powerful enterprize ; for be sides the two legions of F’rench infantry, we find two other powerful bodies of troops. A Polish army of observation /is posted at Aeldenberg, which is only 25 miles in the rear of Massena; that is, west of his position on the Omuia. Besides these we find Murat (duke of Berg) _ in the same quarter. ‘Fhe conclusions whn h we draw from these circumstances we shall explain very simply. The intrepid character of Massena. The more than ordinary force directed to that point under him ; as the infantry cannot consist of less than 40 or 50.000 men. The Polish army are all cavalry. The whole cavalry of the grand army is un der Murat, and the younger Kelierman is his chief of the staff. The Polish corps being called an army, in dicates that it must be strong, say 40 or 50,000 men. Murat’s force cannot be much less—say Mas sena’s army, altogether, 120,000 men. Their position is within two short cavalry marches of Grodno; and that being an impor tant place in various views, we make no doubt that it must have been the first object of at tack.