I am

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and stable government, in that most and was at great pains to impress the important crisis of public affairs, house with a belief, that he did was impressed with the deepest re. really entertain the profoundest gret at the change which had lately reverence for God and religion, taken place in his majesty's cóun. and for all professors of the Chris. cils; and that this regret was lately tian protestant faith.

No inan increased by the causes to which the whatever, said his lordship, can be changes had been ascribed ; it being more religious than I am. the opinion of that house, that it sure that I need not except, evrn was contrary to the first duties of the worthy and pious prelates in the responsible ministers of the king, whose presence I make this solemn to restrain themselves by any pledge, and public declaration. I glory in expressed or implied, from submit the opportunity of making it. ting to his majesty, faithfully and Would to God that my life could be truely, any advice, which in their

as pure as my faith! ile looked judgment, the course of circumstan- forward to the time when all the na. ces might render necessary for the tions of the earth should be collec. honour of his majesty's crown, and ted under the benign shade of the the welfare of his majesty's domi. Gospel. It was this anticipation nions. The principal arguments that had restrained him from going pro and con, in the debate that en. the full length of catholic expecta. sued, were of course the same with tion. The Roman-catholic faith, those urged in that Mr. he considered as a gross superstition, Bránd's motion in the house of com. the result of the darkness of former mons.

The motion was supported ages, but now falling into a visible by the earl of Hardwick, lord Er- and wholesome decline. He had skine, the earl of Jersey, lord Kin. never, therefore, thought to encou. naird, the earl of Lauderdale, lord rage the re-establishment of it, but Holland, lord Grenville, the earl rather wished that inconveniences of Darnley, the earl of Moira, should be felt, though no injustice and the duke of Norfolk.

suffered by its professors. Lord opposed by the earl of Aberdeen, E. by another distinction, justified lord Harrowby, the earl of Selkirk, the late ministry in abandoning a lord Borringdon, lord Sidmouth, measure, though introduced on a lord Mulgrave, the earl of Limerick, principle of both expediency and the earl of Westmoreland, lord duty, yet keeping their places. Hawkesbury, and the lord chancel. There was a plain difference, he lor, (lord Eldon.) Lord Erskine

Lord Erskine said, between the strongest er. in the course of a long and eloquent pediency, and imperious necessity. speech, gave an historical account On the first branch of the motion, of the circumstances that led to the having been himself an humble mem. demand and the refusal of pledges, ber of the opinion it supported, he and took occasion to explain his own would be silent. He not only, how. sentiments with regard to catholic ever, subscribed to the second, but emancipation, as it was called, and, returned his thanks to the noble on the subject of religion in general.' marquis for having introduced it to He said a great deal of his own edu. the house. Lord Harrowby, in the cation,and general maxim's and views, course of a long and animated VoL, XLIX.

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speech,

It was

speech, said, that a mutual confi. 'not to counsel. Lord Mulgrare dence between the sovereign and his said, that if William III. or George servants, appeared so indispensable 1. had said to any of the ministers to the good conduci of the public employed by them, “ I have no ob. business; that when once there was jections to your principles in geneso sittle confidence on either side, ral, except that I think you are at. that the ministers were reduced to tached to the house of Stuart; and demand a pledge from the king, therefore unless you give me a or the king from his ministers, there pledge in writing, I will not employ was little other option than either you as my ministers," he apprefor him to dismiss them, or for them hended there would have been noim. to resign.

Lord Boringdon con- propriety in ministers signing such a sidering that the motion included pledge. The earl of Limerick re. an inculpation of the king for the probated the practice of governing exercise of an undoubted perogative, Ireland by a faction, and recomcould by no means asseni to it, and mended not to discourage loyalty therefore concluded a speech against or to practise on the people for party it, hy moving, that the house do purposes. The question being uni. now adjvurn. Lord Sidmouth said, versally called for, at seven o'clock that neither the dispatch of the 9th in the morning, the house divided February to the lord lieutenant, on the motion of lord Boringdon, nor the reasoning on which it was that the house do now adjourn. recommended, was calculated to Contents

171 convey to his majesty's mind, a Not contents

90 knowledge of its extensive import : nay, and that the wonder would

Majority 81 have been, if it had been understood The same subject, or rather subby his majesty, in any other than in a jects, the circumstances that led to limited sense.

The earl of lauder. the removal of the late ministers dale,from a retrospective view of the from their places, and the conseparliamentary conduct of the leading quences that might be apprehended members of the present cabinet, to follow, the responsiblity of the concluded, that either there was no advisers of the crown, and the ca. principle of cement or union among tholic claims, the ground.work, as them, or that they had agreed to it were, of the whole, were again give up every doctrine and opinion introduced into the house of com. to which they were most sacredly mons, April 15. The first branch pledged. The present ministers, of the marquis of Stafford's motion he said, had come into office in di. in the house 'of peers, it will be re. rect violation of the principles of collected, was not included in Mr. the constitution; and unless the Brand's, in the house of commons. house marked that act with its disap. The honourable W. H. Lyttleton, probation, the constitution would after stating the reasons why hé be lost. Lord Holland observed thought it necessary that the house that sir William Temple had told the should express its approbation of king, that he doubted whether it were the conduct of the late ministers, not a contradiction to suppose that moved the resolution, “ That that he caught make counsellors that were house considering a firm and efi. 2

cient administration as indispensa. tended for the support of a system bly necessary, in the present impor- of national education, to have been tant crisis of public affairs, had seen perverted for purposes of personal with the deepest regret, the late aggrandizement, and for the furtherchange in his majesty's councils.” ance of the most criminal views. The This motion was seconded by Mr. evils of the misapplication were lae Hibbert, and farther supported by mentably felt in the decline and des the honourable John W. Ward, gradation of those establishments Mr. Macdonald, Mr. Tighe, Mr. for the uses of which those funds Roscoe, Sir J.Newport, Mr. Tiers were originally appropriated. Funds ney, lord Howick, earl Percy, so appropriated, were absorbed in and Mr. Windham. It was oppo. private expenditure, calculated on sed by Mr. Milnes, who concluded as parts of the family estate, and his speech by moving the order of bequeathed to the descendants as the day, Mr. H. Browne, Mr. Ro. parts of the patrimonial inheri. binson, Mr. Gore, Mr. Bankes, tance.*-Of these charges lord Cas. lord Castlereagh, Mr. Bathurst, tlereagh did not take any notice.tħe chanceller of the exchequer, and The master of the rolls observed the master of the rolls. Among the that many ministers had been dis. most impressive speeches in support missed from office, without any of the motion was that of sir John cause assigned, but that never unNewport, among the most convin. til now had a minister come to parcing on the other side, was that of liament to complain of his sove. the master of the rolls. Sir John reign. Lord Somers was removed Newport, among a variety of re. without the shadow of a complaint; marks, observed, that when the late did he demand an investigation of administration directed their atten. the cause ? When the celebrated tion to an amelioration of the sys. Whig administration was removed tem of education in Ireland, the by queen Anne, did they breathe a first act of necessity was, to enquire whisper against their royal mistress into the state of those funds, in either house of parliament? In which were grossly misapplied. 1757, the dismissal of Mr. Pitt, and This charge of gross misapplication Mr. Legge, produced a great fer. he stated, not either without suffi. ment. But was any thing said cient grounds of justification, or about that dismissal in parliament? with inclination to avoid the If a minister were to secure to him. responsibility of his statement. He self the right of enquiry into the spoke it in the face of the noble lord cause of his removal, he would ap. opposite (Castlereagh). He char. proximate his situation to that of ged hina with having known aud a judge, or any other officer for suffered those funds which were in life. Of a change in administration,

* These animadversions are also, with singular propriety, applicable to the existing abuses in the antient and most nobly endowed university of St. Andrew's ; the present chancellor of which is lord Melville. Into those abuses it was understood, the late administration intended, had it been continued, to institute an enquiry. They were not more indifferent to office and emolument than other men. But it was certainly a fortunate circumstance for the public, that they resica, in . part, their claim to acceptation and popularity, on the correction of public abuses.

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might appear to him to be essential a confidential adviser of a man whom to his interests. He could not help that house had declared to have been thinking, that this was a matter of guilty of a gross violation of the law; more importance to the king than to a person against whom certain reso. any of his subjects. That the king lutions had been entered on the could do no wrong, he understood journals of that house a person who to be a maxim in which the security had been brought to trial; who had of the public, and that of the honour been acquitted indeed, but so acand dignity of the crown, were quitted, that not any of his numeunited, and on which both these rous and powerful friends had ever points materially depended. For yet attempted to make a motion for by this sort of pledge, the whole rescinding those resolutions from the nature of the responsibility of state journals; one who had indeed been affairs would be taken away. There acquitted by a majority of his peers, would be no security against the but who could not return to that house, most traitorous intentions of irre. without reading, from the association sponsible advisers. For ministers of ideas in the countenances of those would not be answerable, and could who sat near and opposite to him, the not be answerable for advice which words which they-and there were they did not give. And they could 52 of them had uttered of him ; not give that which they stood " Guilty upon my honour.” The pledged to withhold. This matter king might call to his councils whom was the more alarming, that in the he pleased, but that act must be opinion of the chancellor of the done by advice, and the adviser exchequer, there were cases wherein must be responsible.

If it was his majesty acted without any advice allowable for ministers to exclude whatever*. - It had been said, that themselves from giving advice on one the present motion tended to bring subject, they might go on with exhis majesty to the bar of that house. clusions till they left themselves no

There was no desire whatever to in. duty to exercise. It was, however, volve his majesty in any censure of the greatest importance to his for what had been done. Nor had majesty, that the doctrine of respon. the present motion any such ten. sible advisers should be strictly dency. On the contrary, it had a maintained. History had unfolded direct tendency to protect the king, the evils resulting from the preva, by supporting the maxim that he lence of a contrary principle. It could do no wrong; which could had been asserted by the, mover of never be done by allowing any of the previous question, that ministers his ministers to enter into a pledge had not entered into any pledge, not to offer him advice on any given that they would not give his majesty subject. Unquestionably his majesty any advice on the subject of the might call any man in the kingdom catbolics. Now as the late ministers to his councils, or he might make were dismissed because they refused

* The words of Mr. Perceval referred to, and quoted by sir S. Romilly were,

this p'edge, either the pledge on the by whom he had been advised to part of the present ministers was demand the pledge alluded to in the implied, or they had deceived his debate, or to dismiss his late minimajesty : for it was not pretended sters, and that the answer to such that his majesty had any objection address should be, that his majesty to his late ministers, except the had no adrisers in either case; what difference of opinion which occurred would follow? why, that blame would on this subject.

fall on a quarter to which according Mr. Bathurst admitted that there to the constitution, no blame ought was no act of the crown without to be imputed.

to be imputed. Thus, by this responsibility, generally speaking: motion, the maxim that the king but yet there were some exceptions could do no wrong, essential to the to that proposition, and among the constitution, because essential to first to be admitted, was that where the power and importance of the his majesty had no advisers. Such monarchy, might be exploded. was the case when he had removed Sir Patrick Murray, in his first his ministers ; and unless the ex. speech in parliament, fully agreed ception to responsibility was to be in the just and constitutional sen. allowed in that case, the king's pre. timents which the house had just rogative of choosing his own mini. heard.—But before he proceeded to sters must be nugatory. But, it animadvert on the motion before the was stated, the proposition before house, he thought it necessary to the house was a truism. That was advert to the remarks of an honour. admitted. But was there any ne. able and learned gentleman respectcessity for that house to come to any ing a subject, which he had chosen public resolution in support of that to bring into consideration, although truism ? Although the right of the not at all connected with the mo. noble lord to explain his conduct in tion.—The honourable baronet conthe transaction which led to the tended that it was not necessary to present motion might be admitted, move the resolutions of that house still the propriety of making that ex. respecting the noble lord referred planation a ground of a parliament. to (Melville), after he had been acary proceeding, might be consistently quitted at the tribunal before which denied. For himself, he could not he was tried, any more than it would but regret, that a question of this be to propose expunging an informa. nature should be bmitted the ion at law from the record, after house, because it evidently involved the subject of that information had the discussion of the conduct of the been acquitted. But what, it had king, whose name could not, con. been said, or insinuated, signified sistently with the practice of the an acquittal, where so many of the house, be introduced on any such judges voted for conviction? What, occasion. - So much for the necessity however would those gentlemen say, of the motion. It was also to be if in the case of an opposite issue, considered, what consequenees were the converse of the proposition were likely to flow from its adoption. taken? Suppose the majority of Suppose, as one of the consequ es, lords had voted for the conviction of his majesty should be called on by lord M., and a number equal to the an address of that house, to state, minority on that occasion, had vated

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