This article examines the hitherto undeciphered shorthand notes of George (later Sir George) Treby, an opposition MP and lawyer and the chairman of the house of commons committee of secrecy investigating the Popish Plot (1678–81). These shorthand memoranda, draft letters and marginalia not only open up a glimpse into the secret proceedings of this mysterious committee, composed of the leading opponents of Charles II and the duke of York in the lower house, but shed new light on how Whig MPs such as Treby viewed, and justified, the prosecution of a plot now widely accepted as a convenient political fiction. This new evidence allows us to re-evaluate the allegations of Tory propagandists that Whig investigators deliberately suppressed and distorted evidence, suborning and coercing witnesses to further their oppositional agenda. Treby's shorthand annotations paint a more complicated picture of a lawyer selecting evidence but also painstakingly verifying facts and genuinely concerned about both a ‘popish plot’ (broadly defined) and obstruction and witness-tampering on the part of the court.

中文翻译：

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下议院保密委员会内部：乔治·特雷比的速记和流行情节

本文考察了乔治（后来的乔治爵士）特雷比（George Treby）迄今为止尚未破译的速记，他是反对派议员和律师，也是下议院调查波普斯阴谋（1678-81 年）秘密委员会主席。这些速记备忘录、信件草稿和附注不仅让我们得以一窥这个由查理二世的主要反对者和下议院约克公爵组成的神秘委员会的秘密程序，而且还揭示了辉格党议员如何正如特雷比所看到并证明的那样，起诉现在被广泛接受为一种方便的政治小说。这一新证据使我们能够重新评估托利党宣传员的指控，即辉格党调查人员故意压制和歪曲证据，贿赂和胁迫证人推进他们的反对议程。特雷比'