He had said, 'twas his Business to find out Tickets; what he meant by it, I could not persuade him to own clearly. Some, who had known him very well, did not scruple to say, that this was not the first Time of his transgressing in this Way, and that he had been a bad Fellow: But he was determined to say the contrary, and was so far from owning any other Case of this Kind, that he would not take upon himself the whole Scene of Iniquity perpetrated in this vile Scheme, but persisted to the last in declaringwhat he made his Defence upon his Trial.

Upon several Examinations, which I had of him, he still would have it, that William Brockman< no role > was the Man that betray'd him into this wicked Affair. He said he owed him Money, and that he had frequently ask'd him for it; but that the last Time of asking, he proposed the Thing to him, as the Means whereby he might pay himself. Brockman, he said, had search'd the Books, and found William Bennet< no role > vacant, as it is called in their technical Terms, i.e. dead, and he told Young, that he was the real Executor of his Will, which he had provided for the Purpose, and that if he would go to the Commons and prove it, he might receive the Money, and pay himself; and tho' he was advised of it, that this did not agree with the Account he had formerly given, yet he insisted upon it to be, as he said. He would not confess the forging of the Will, nor signing it; but his Conscience charged him Home, and with Respect to his taking the Oath that he was James< no role > , Brother of William Bennet< no role > , he had great Uneasiness in his Mind, and lamented very much the having thus forsworn himself.

This seemed very much to intimate his thorough Knowledge of the whole Affair, though he never would say that he did the Whole. It was certainly a very vile and iniquitous Affair, and there is too much Reason to believe that it was not done without his Consent, and therefore his Punishment was highly deserved; for had not the poor Father been to be found, he might have had his wicked Purpose serv'd, to the great Injury and Prejudice of his grey Hairs. And besides,

His ill Behaviour while under Sentence of Death, was a strong Presumption he was not that innocent Man he would have appeared to be; for he pretended Sickness, in order to have an Opportunity, while others were at Chapel, to saw off his Irons, which he did, and to use other Means towards making an Escape; which he owned to be the Invention of his own wicked Imaginations, and had persuaded one more to be concerned with him. It was very lucky they were detected in this their Villainy before others came into it, which, no Doubt, they would have done, if Opportunity had been permitted. But they were nipped in the Bud, and all Hopes of any Thing of that Kind cut off; though indeed it was at best but a forlorn Hope; yet, as no one knows what a great Fire so small Sparks might have kindled, and what Mischief might have rose from it, the Discovery may be said to be very fortuitous and providential.

If he was not the wicked Contriver of the whole Forgery, he was the main Instrument by which the Cheat was to be brought about, and without his Privity and Consent to the Whole, it is scarce credible how he could have entered into any Share of it. He was much uneasy and troubled in his Mind to the last, and declared himself heartily sorry for what he had done; but for what worldly Reasons I know not, he seems not to have declar'd the whole Truth of the Affair; which he was the more pressed to do, that such bad Practices might in some Measure be exposed, and Impositions of this Nature be guarded against for the future; which every Discovery of this Nature may tend to do,