IRISH BUSINESS

JOSEPH STACPOOLE was well known in the Irish circles that met at the Grecian Coffee House. Middle Temple admitted him on 15 May 1767 and, five days later, Anthony Dwyer and Samuel Coppock signed his bonds (see Figure 2.10). The following year, Stacpoole acted as principal surety for two students from Clare, George Stacpoole (presumably a relation) and Stephen Rice, both of whom had Coppock sign their bonds as joint surety. On 15 May 1771, Stacpoole paid £4 for a certificate showing that he had sat his eight terms, but he stayed in London and on 29 May 1772 was called to the English Bar. The next day he signed the Dubliner Samuel Brady's bond and on 31 January 1775, he and Thomas Simons acted as sureties for George Powell of King's County.

Six months later, on the night of 17 August 1775, another Irishman named John Parker and a few of his companions were sitting around a table at the Bull Inn, Southwark, when Stacpoole burst into the room brandishing a rifle. A scuffle ensued, the rifle went off wounding Parker in the stomach and Stacpoole hurried out to call for a doctor. Parker survived and later brought charges against Stacpoole for attempted murder. The trial took place in 1777 and Stacpoole acted as his own counsel. One of the witnesses George Clive, a banker of London and MP, told the jury:

Clive's evidence shows that Stacpoole represented Irish landowners who wanted to mortgage their estates and the large sums of money involved explain why Stacpoole chose to practice law in London rather than Ireland. Irish landowners required hard cash for a number of reasons, though more often than not, they needed to settle debts. Gambling and extravagance led many down this road, but the management of substantial estates also meant that marriage indentures needed to be settled, annuities had to be raised and bills for a range of goods and services had to be paid.