for the safety of the government, especially by a person who had received signal favours from the crown. Upon this

Lord Molesworth stood up, and said, Mr. Speaker, Is it come to this, that every man who has a place must do all the drudgery that is enjoined him? This may be true of some underlings; but I don't believe it, I am sure it is false, of king George: he commands his servants nothing, but what is according to the laws, and for the good of his subjects. Then

Mr. Craggs being somewhat nettled at this, said, That he was ready to give satisfaction to any man that should question him, either in that House or out of it. This expression gave no small offence; and thereupon the

Lord Molesworth replied, That he had the honour to be a member of that House upwards of thirty years, and never before now knew any man bold enough to challenge the whole House of Commons, and all England besides: That for his part, though past sixty, he would answer whatever Mr. Craggs had to say within the House, and hoped there were young members enough, that would not be afraid to look him in the face out of the House. Upon this

Mr. Craggs seeing the House in a great ferment, got up again, and said, That by giving satisfaction, he meant clearing his conduct.

Sir Joseph Jekyll added, That he was as zealous as any man for the service of the king and his government: but he was of opinion, that the doing justice to the nation, and punishing those who had brought it into the present calamitous condition, was the most effectual way both to serve the king, and at the same time to discharge their duty to their injured country: concluding, however, that he did not oppose the bringing in of the Bill inquire into the Proceedings of the South-Sca question, which was thereupon ordered to be brought in.

Debate on the Bill for restraining the South Sea Directors from going out of the Kingdom.] After this, according to the order of the day, the Commons were to go into a grand Committee to take into farther Consideration the

A COMMITTEE OF SECRECY appointed to inHouse debated in what manner they should Directors.] As soon as this was over, the proceed in the intended Inquiry, whether in a Grand or a Select Committee. After long disputes on both sides, it was resolved, nem. con. "That a Committee of thirteen, to be chosen by ballotting, be appointed to inquire into all the Proceedings relating to the Execution of the South-Sea Act." This done, the lord Hinch

present State of the Public Credit of this king-ingbroke represented: That it was to be feared,

dom: But

that before the Bill ordered to be brought in Sir Joseph Jekyll resuming his Speech, represented, That before they proceeded any directors of the South-Sea Company, was gone against the sub-governor, deputy-governor, and farther, they ought to secure the Persons and through both Houses, the most criminal Estates of those they had reason to look upon amongst them might withdraw themselves out as the Authors of the public misfortunes; and of the kingdom; and therefore his lordship therefore he moved, "That leave be given to bring in a Bill to restrain the sub-governor, de-moved, that they might be immediately ordered puty-governor, directors, treasurer, under-treasurer, cashier, secretary, and accountant of the South-Sea Company, from going out of this kingdom for the space of one year, and until the end of the next session of parliament; and for discovering their estates and effects, and for preventing the transporting or alienating the same." He was seconded by

Mr. Horatio Walpole, who gave some instances both of the unfair methods by which the South-Sea Directors, and their officers, had got immense riches, and of their pride and insolence.

Serjeant Pengelly, sir Robert Raymond, sir Philip Yorke, Mr. Spencer Cowper, and Mr. Jefferies, having likewise supported sir Joseph Jekyll's motion, it was carried nem. con, and ordered, That the said Bill be brought in accordingly. Upon this

Mr. Shippen expressed his great satisfaction, to see a British House of Commons resume their pristine vigour and spirit, and act with so great unanimity for the public good. He owned the necessity of securing the persons and estates of the South-Sea Directors, and their officers: but said, That, in his opinion, there were some men in great stations, whom, in time, he would not be afraid to name, who were no less guilty than the Directors.

shewed the inconveniences that might ensue into custody But Mr. Lechmere, having thereupon, that motion was dropt.-Accordingly, on the 11th, serjeant Mead reported the Names of the Committee appointed to inquire into all the Proceedings relating to the Execu tion of the South-Sea Act, viz. Mr. Thomas Broderick, Mr. Hutcheson, sir Joseph Jekyll, Mr. Wortley, sir Thomas Pengelly, Mr. William Clayton, Mr. Jefferies, lord Molesworth, col. Strangeways, Mr. Sloper, Mr. Lechmere, general Ross, and hon. Mr. Dixie Windsor. These persons, or any five of them, were to report their proceedings from time to time to the House, and to have power to send for persons, and Papers which had been laid before the papers, and records; and the several Books House by the South-Sea Company, were referred to the said Committee,

The Commons take into Consideration the Proposals from the South-Sea Company, for ingrafting nine Millions of their Stock into the East-India Company, and nine more into the Bank.] Jan. 5. In a grand Committee, the Commons took into consideration the Proposals laid before the said Committee by the South-Sea Company, for ingrafting nine millions of their stock into the East-India Company, and the like sum into the Bank of Eng

against the Sub-Governor, Deputy-Governor, and Directors of the South Sea Company, was ordered to be engrossed; after which it was ordered, that the committee, appointed to inquire into all the proceedings relating thereto, be a Committee of Secrecy.

Jan. 19. The engrossed Bill against the South Sea Directors was read the third time, passed, nem. con. and sent up to the Lords*.

the

All

managers were indiscriminately involved in the same guilt; the very name of a director was synonymous with every species of fraud and villany. Petitions from counties, cities, and boroughs, in all parts of the kingdom, were presented to the House, crying for justice due to an injured nation against the villainy of these pecalators, and the sufferers looked up for indemnification from the confiscation of their property, or for vengeance in the punishment of their guilt. All those, who like Walpole opposed extreme severity and indiscriminate punishment, were exposed to repeated insults and virulent invectives; they were devoted, both in anonymous letters and public writings, to the speedy vengeance of a much injured people." Coxe's Walpole.

land, as also the Proposals of the East-India | The Bill against the South Sea Directors Company and the Bank, for taking in the said passes the Commons.] Jan. 16. The Bill Stock, and after some debate, it was resolved, by 173 voices against 130, that an Ingraftment of part of the capital of the South-Sea Company into the capitals of the Bank of England and the East-India Company, pursuant to the several Proposals of the said Companies, will contribute very much to the restoring and establishing public credit. Mr. Speaker having resumed the Chair, the Court Party moved, that Mr. Farrer, the chairman of the grand Committee, should the next day report the said Re-pany was forgotten; and the frenzy of stocksolution; but this motion was strenuously op-jobbing was not taken into consideration. posed, and the question being put thereupon, it passed in the negative by a majority of 153 votes against 140; after which it was ordered, that the said Report be received on the 10th. Jan. 10. The Sul -Governor of the South-Sea Company presented to the House several States and Accounts that had been called for, and then sir Joseph Jekyll presented to the Hot use a Bill, To restrain the Sub-Governor, Deputy-Governor, Directors, Treasurers, &c. of the South-Sea Company, from going out of this • kingdom,' &c. which was read the first, and ordered to be read a second time the next morning. After this, Mr. Farrer reported from the Committee of the whole Ilouse, the Resolution above-mentioned, about the Ingraftment of nine Millions of South-Sea Stock, upon the respective Stocks of the Bank and East-India Company; and a motion being made that the said Resolution be re-committed, it occasioned a warın debate, that lasted five hours. Mr. Sloper, Mr. Clayton, sir Joseph Jekyll, and some others, represented, That the project before them was more like to prove a dangerous palliative, than an effectual remedy to the present distemper; and being founded on injustice, would rather farther hurt than restore publicquires the delivery of an inventory of their credit. Mr. Hutcheson urged, That this scheme estates reall and personall uppon oath; and seemed to be calculated with the same view as enacts, That if they shall falsifie therein the former, the ill effects of which they intended (being convict) shall suffer as fellons, withto remedy, and raised several other objections out benefitt of clergy; there is a clause to the new Scheme, and insinuated, that if the for encouragement of discoverers, and others, Resolution in question were recommitted, he such as may make the bill more effectumight propose something better for the restor-all. They had the assurance to petition to ing of public credit. Mr. Robert Walpole answered all objections, and being strongly supported by Mr. Craggs, sir Robert Raymond, sir Philip Yorke, and by several other members; the question was put upon the motion for recommitting the Resolution about the Ingraft-justice, for that noe criminal (how great soever) ment, which was carried in the negative, by 207 voices against 134. Then the House agreed to the said Resolution, and a Bill was ordered to be brought in thereupon.*

During the period in which this scheme was carrying through both Houses of Parliament, the loudest and most violent clamours were excited as well against the directors, as against the ministers, who had promoted the South-Sea act, which was considered as the sole cause of the national distress. The general infatuation in favour of the South-Sea Com

"Jan. 19. You see by the votes the Bill against the Directors reported and ordered to bee engrosed, I believe 'twas this day read a third time, and carryed to the Lords. Itt prohibits their going out of the kingdom for a year, and to the end of the next session of parliament, requiring their entring into recognizance of 100,000l. with two suretyes in 25,000l. each, for performance of the above condition; itt re

bee heard by councill against the Bill, which was rejected with the utmost indignation, although supported by some of our great men (which by the way was very ill relisht) not only in favour of the directors, butt on account of

ought to be condemned, unheard, To which 'twas answered, that this Bill did nott condemne, the chiefe end being onely to secure their standing a tryall, and preventing alienation of their estates sill such times as their tryall was over. 'Twas then sayd, even thus mach would bee inflicting a great punishment, unheard; to which 'twas reply'd, that surely gentlemen had nott read over the Papers and Accounts delivered at the bar by themselves, for that by these the most nottorious breach of trust (against the tennor and purport of the South Sea act, as well as against their own by lawes) were confessed,

The Earl of Sunderland finding himself, and The Lord Stanhope said, "That the Estates the other lords of the Treasury, thus attacked, of the criminals, whether Directors or not Di-spoke in his own and their vindication; and rectors, ought to be confiscated to make good the public losses."

Protest against the said Resolution.] Jan. 10. The Report from the above Committee being read, it was resolved, That the House do agree with the Committee in the above Resolution.

"Dissentient."

"1. Because the Act of the last session of parliament for enabling the South-Sea Company to increase their capital stock (upon which act the legality of the Constitution in question must wholly depend) hath vested the Directors and managers, to be appointed by the Commissioners of the Treasury, with such trusts and powers, and required such things to be done by them, as, we conceive, could not be intrusted to the Directors of the South-Sea Company to execute, according to the true intent and meaning of the said Act.

Directors of the South Sea Company were, of all others, the most unfit for such a trust, and consequently not such persons as are expressly required by the said act.

"And we cannot agree, that the said Constitution is precedented.

"1. Because the precedents produced are all in time before the passing the act of parliament, on which the present question did arise; and therefore, in our opinion, can be of no weight in determining any question that dependeth on the construction of the said act, unless such precedents had been founded on some former act or acts of parliament, the same, in all material points, with the act abovementioned; which it appears to us, neither the said Charter, nor Commissions or Appointments produced as precedents were.

"2. All the cases relied on as precedents (except the last) are, as we conceive, widely differing from the case in question; that marked No. 1. is dated before the erection of the South Sea Company, and therefore did not, nor could confer any powers on the Directors of the Company, which was not then in being, but is directed to the members of other corporations, divers great officers, and very many other persons, in order to the erecting the South Sea Company; the five following from No. 2 to No. 6, included, are indeed to impower the Directors of the South Sea Company, but it is

"2. Because we conceive it to be inconsistent with the said Act, that the Directors and Managers appointed by the Commissioners of the Treasury (who by the Act are intrusted to ascertain what Annuities shall be taken in, and what debts paid off by the said Company; what additions, in respect thereof, shall be made to the capital stock of the said Company; how much is to be paid by the said Company into the Exchequer for the use of the public; what new allowance is to be made to the same corporation for charges of management; to enter into books the prices to be agreed on between the Company on the one part, and the proprie-only to take subscriptions of tallies, orders, detors of the Public Debts on the other part; to adjust the accounts of the Debts and Annuities taken in by the Company; and to certify and transmit duplicates of the accounts so adjusted, among others, to the Directors of the South-Sea Company) should be the Directors of the South-Sea Company, and they only.

"3. Because the said Directors of the Company appear to us plainly to be concerned in interest, so as to incline them to execute the said powers or trusts partially for the Company, anless restrained by a great degree of honesty; and if there should be any mistake by them committed, wilfully or otherwise, to the advantage of the Company and disadvantage of the said proprietors, in any matters intrusted to the said Directors and Managers, we do not find any provision in the said act to rectify the same, nor conceive how it can be done, unless by application to, and by consent of the said Directors and Managers, who are the Directors of the South Sea Company, and no other, which, we think, could never be the meaning of the act, but that the intent thereof must be, that the said trusts of Directors and Managers should have been executed by impartial and indifferent persons.

"4. We conceive, that the said act expressly requires the commissioners of the treasury, to appoint fit persons to be Directors and Managers for executing the powers and trusts above specified; and therefore, if the abovementioned reasons did not sufficiently prove the Constitution in question not to be agreeable to the said act, yet it seeins very clear to us, that the

bentures, and the like government securities, and to compute the interest due thereon, in order to the admitting the proprietors into the company at the rates stated in the acts of parliament, to which the charter and commissions relate; but none of them impower the Directors of the South Sea Company, to enter, adjust, or certify, or to do any matter relating to contracts to be made, where to the company was to be made a party, as in the present case.

"3. And as to the said last case, cited as a precedent, marked No. 7, which comes the nearest to the present, the Directors of the South Sea Company being thereby appointed Directors and Managers (which they are not by any of the former) to execute all the powers given to Directors and Managers by the act of the fifth of his present majesty, for redeeming the fund appropriated for the payment of the lottery tickets, yet neither by that appointment, or the act referred to, had the Directors of the South Sea Company any authority to do any thing in relation to contracts or bargains to be made, wherein the company was to be made a party; and therefore not to be compared in the present case.

"4. But if the said last and only precedent, not before taken notice of, had been a precedent in point, yet it bearing date no longer ago than the 4th of May, 1719, and being signed by four of the five commissioners of the Treasury, who have signed the appointment which it is brought to justify, and having passed under silence, no occasion having happened to draw the validity thereof into question, it

could be, as we conceive, of no authority to support the said last appointment when it was drawn in question, and ordered to be consider ed by the committee of the whole House appointed to inquire into the causes of the late unhappy turn of affairs, which has so much affected the public credit at home.

"For the aforesaid reasons, and lest it might be deemed to be a prejudging of a matter, that may possibly be brought judicially before us. Wharton, Compton, Litchfield, Abingdon, Bingley, North and Grey, Weston, Cowper, Gower, Bathurst, Guildford, Scarsdale, Ayles ford, Strafford, St. John de Bletsho.

The Directors of the South Sea Company amined by the Lords.] The same day, it was ordered by the Lords, That all the Directors of the South Sea Company, as are not members of the House of Commons, together with the Treasurer, Under Treasurer, Accountant General, and Secretary, of the said Company, do attend this House on Thursday next,

Jan. 24. The Lords, in a grand committee, examined Mr. Joye, Deputy Governor, who made a very ingenuous confession of several important matters.

Upon a motion made by lord Stanhope, sir William Chapman, Mr. Houlditch, Mr. Hawes, Mr. Gibbon, and Mr. Chester, five of the Directors, after being examined, were ordered into the custody of the black rod.

House of Parliament, during such time as the late Bill relating to the South Sea Company was depending last year in parliament, was a notorious and dangerous corruption."

Jan. 26. The Lords examined Mr. Astell and sir Harcourt Masters, who made very ingenuous and large discoveries, and named several persons both in the administration, and in the House of Commons, to whom large sums, in South Sea stock, had been given for ex-procuring the passing of the South Sea Act. After which, upon a motion made by the earl Stanhope, and seconded by the lord Townshend and earl Cowper, their lordships unanimously resolved, "That the taking in of stock, the transferring of stock to the South Sea Company, the giving credit for the same without a valuable consideration actually paid, or Jan. 16. The Lords ordered, That the judges sufficiently secured; or the purchasing stock, do forthwith prepare, and bring in, a Bill, to by any Director or Agent of the South Sea incapacitate the Sub Governor, Deputy Go- Company, for the use or benefit of any person vernor, and Directors, of the South Sea Com-in the administration, or any member of either pany, from holding or exercising any oflice longer than to the time of the next election of Directors of the said Company; and that provision be made in such Bill, to incapacitate the said Sub Governor, Deputy Governor, and 1 Directors, from bearing any office in the East India Company, or the Bank of England. | Jan. 21. A Petition of the Sub Governor, Deputy Governor, and the Directors of the South Sea Company, being read, praying to be heard by their counsel, as to the Bill brought up from the Commons, for restraining the petitioners from going out of the kingdom, &c. the said Bill was read a second time, and committed to a committee of the whole House for Monday. Then it being proposed, That the intent of the Bill being to prevent the petitioners from withdrawing their persons and effects, for making satisfaction and for punishing them for the notorious breach of trust, which they have already appeared guilty of, or which they do not deny or excuse in their Petition, that therefore the Petition be rejected; and the question being put upon the said proposition, it was resolved in the affirmative.

After this it was ordered, That the Brokers do lay before the House an account of all the stock and subscriptions bought or sold by them, for any of the officers of the Treasury or Exchequer, or any in trust for them, or any of them, to the best of their knowledge and belief, since Michaelmas, 1719. By this account it appearing that large quantities of South Sea Stock had been transferred to the use of Mr. Aislabie, one of the Lords of the Treasury, the duke of Wharton said, He hoped some great men would produce some good fruit, else they would break out into blotches, that would stick upon them, like the leprosy of Naaman the Syrian on Gehasi.

Jan. 31. The Lords, in a grand committee, examined Mr. Waller, son-in-law to Mr. Aislabie, and Mr. Astell, severally, in relation to a great quantity of South Sea stock which appeared to have been transferred to, and nego ciated by the said Mr. Waller, who pretended not to have kept Minutes of what he had done io Exchange-alley. This some Lords looked upon as prevarication, and the said Examination being over, their lordships resolved, "That the Directors of the South Sea Company, having ordered great quantities of stock to be bought for the service of the Company, when stock was at very high prices, under pretence of keeping up the price of stock; and at the same time several of the Directors, and other Officers belonging to the Company, having, in a clandestine mauner, sold their own stock to the Company, such Directors and Officers were thereby guilty of a notorious fraud and breach of trust; and their so doing was one great cause of the unhappy turn of affairs that has so much affected the Public Credit."