inadequate to the fees, or other emoluments arifing therefrom; or by the reduction of fuch falaries, or other allowances and profits as may appear to be unreafonable; that the fame may be applied to leffen the prefent ruinous expenditure, and to enable us to carry on the prefent war against the House of Bourbon, with that decifion and vigour, which can alone refult from national zeal, confidence, and unanimity. ture. The fovereign was indeed endowed with great and high prerogatives, and an extenfive natural intereft; but these were very properly placed in his hands, not only to afford due weight to government, but to enable him to reward and to affix the attachment, fidelity, zeal, and to call out the active fervices, of those perfons, who were appointed to dif charge the feveral functions of the ftate. The proper application of thefe powers, afforded the highest incentives to fidelity, to the utmoft exertion of every faculty for the advancement of the public interests, and to the most gallant and noble military fervices. The noble earl took a wide scope both as to argument and matter, in the fupport of his motion; difplaying much and various information, and giving proofs of the induftry as well as ability for which he is diftinguifh- But a fatal fyftem, he said, of ed. The great point, he faid, to undue influence, no lefs perniwhich all his wishes tended, and cious to the crown, than ruinous to effect which his motion was to the nation, had most unhapchiefly framed, was to annihilate pily, in this reign, been adopted, the undue influence, operating and fubftituted in the place of upon both houses of parliament, that wholesome and conftitutional and to eftablifh a conftitutional power. On this head he expapower, inftead of an unconstitutional influence. The latter was the curfe and bane, and would, if not timely eradicated, prove the deftruction of this country; the former, whether defcribed under the name of prerogative, or patronage, or the natural influence of the crown, grew out of the nature of the conflitution, and was accordingly congenial to it. That folid, natural, conftitutional power, which, in this limited government, formed an effential part of the inherent rights and appendages of royalty, afforded a neceffary poize in the balance of the conftitution, which fecured the independency of the crown, from being weighed down by the two other branches of the legifla tiated long and with great feverity. He faid that in confequence of that fystem, every thing which could excite a generous emulation in public virtue and fervice, was funk and loft in the gulph of influence. The gallant veteran, the man of high honour and inflexible integrity, was not only fure of being laid by and neglected, but thought himself happy, if he did not experience repeated mortifications and infults, and could even preferve his character and honour inviolate, from thofe atrocious attempts to which both were liable. On the other hand, the unworthy, the fervile, the bafe, and the incapable, were those only who rejoiced and triumphed; it was their fummer [G] 3 and and feafon of joy; the means which led to their preferment and favour, being perfectly congenial to the bafenefs of their own nature, redoubled their enjoyment; whilft the internal conviction, that they could not have arrived at thefe diftinctions under any other poffible fyftem of government, afforded a new zeft to the relish of their fituation. To annihilate this influence, and to restore to the crown its conftitutional power, he declared, were the objects he had in view, and whofe attainment formed his moft earnest with. But as long as a heedlefs, prodigal minifter, was allowed to difpofe annually, without check, control, account, or restraint, of twenty millions of the public money (which was about the rate of our prefent expenditure), every hope, every attempt of that fort, would be futile and ridiculous. He took a wide circuit through the measures and motives that led to the conduct and the confequences of the American war, in order thereby to trace and develope, in all its ftages, that influence, and its unhappy effects, which he fo ftrongly charged and condemned. In this courfe, he flated a number of deceptions and impofitions, by which, he faid, minifters had led parliament and the nation, step by step, into that ruinous conteft, until they were fo far involved that there was not a poffibility of retreating. He likewife entered into a long, and ably-conducted detail, relative to the ftate, amount, and mode of contracting of our public debts, the high rate of intereft at which we were compelled to borrow, and the fhameful waste of money which, he endeavoured to fhew, prevailed in every part of the expenditure. He fupported his motion on the ground of precedent by fhewing, that commiffions of accounts had almoft been regularly paffed, from the fecond year after the revolution, through the reign of King William and Queen Anne, and the first year of George the Firft, from which time they were dif continued. And, that although all thefe acts did not answer every thing which might have been expected from them, they were, however, the caufe of detecting and reforming many flagrant abufes, which had crept into the expenditure of the public money; the recalling of improper grants made by the crown; the difcovering of feveral notorious frauds; and of bringing home corruption, particularly in the reign of King William, to feveral members of the other house. The Earl of Coventry feconded the motion, and gave several Ariking inftances from his own knowledge of the diftreffes of the people, the fall of rents, the extraordinary decrease in the value of land, and the failure of farmers, even upon old tenures. He concluded, that one ray of hope broke in to cheer us, in the midst of our public calamities, which was, that a great majority of the nation, and of men of every party and defcription, feemed to be of opinion, that nothing less than a general reform could fave this country; a change of miniftry, and an conomical expenditure of the public money, was the general cry; and be trufted, that if the the people were fincere, firm, and true to themselves, the falvation of this country might yet be effected. to The lords in adminiftration, or office, oppofed the motion more particularly upon the two follow ing grounds, which afforded objections to it, they contended, that were totally infurmountable. The first was the impropriety, and even the incompetency, of one houfe of parliament to come any refolution, which went eventually to bind and conclude the proceedings of the other. That houfe had no more power or authority over the other, than the other had over that. It would therefore be in the highest degree abfurd and nugatory, to refolve or vote a matter, which when refolved or voted, could carry no efficacy whatever without their own walls. The other ftrong ground of objection was, the impropriety of the interference of that houfe, and indeed its total incompetency, with refpect to the inftituting in the first inftance of any enquiry, or the attempting to exercife any power of control or reform, in relation to the public expenditure. That was a bufinefs folely appertaining to the other houfe. It was an exclufive inherent privilege, which they never would part with upon any account, directly or indirectly; neither by compofition, compromife, or compact. The care and ma nagement of the public purfe, and the confequent control of the public expenditure, had for a long feries of years, and even of ages, been in the exclufive poffeffion of Both houfes had their peculiar rights and privi the commons. leges. Time, ufage, and acquiefcence, had given the lords an exclufive power in matters of judicature; the claim of originating money bills, by the other house, had the fame authority to fupport it. If the lords controverted their rights in public matters, the commons would, probably, difpute in turn the power of judicature in the laft refort exercised by the peers. They obferved, that contefts between both houfes ought, at all times and on all occafions, to be carefully provided against and prevented; but much more fo in feafons of great difficulty, fuch as the prefent confeffedly was, when harmony and mutual confidence were become indifpenfibly neceffary to the carrying on of public bufinefs, and to the fafety of the state. That fuch difputes had arifen in the beginning of Queen Anne's reign, which produced great heats and difagreements within doors, and much diffatisfaction and difcontent without; infomuch that the queen found herfelf under a neceffity of diffolving her parliament, in order to prevent matters from being carried to extremity. They reprefented the accountant bills which had been paffed in the reigns of William and Anne, as originating merely in, and being fupported only by faction. Infifted, that they were found to anfwer no good purpose whatever ; and to have proved nugatory as to the attainment of any fubftantial or defirable object. And that accordingly, foon after the acceffion of the houfe of Hanover, when that illuftrious family came to be firmly established on the throne; [G] 4 when when faction, tumult, and fedition stated, that the minifter, and every were crushed; and the continual fluctuation of councils which perplexed and distracted the two preceding reigns, had given way to fteadiness and ftability: an end was then defervedly and wifely put, to the continuance or renewal of that, at least, ineffective law, which it had for fome time boen the fashion to pass annually, for examining, controlling, and ftating the public accounts of the kingdom. was A great law lord, highly eminent for his acutenefs, learning, and ability, ftrongly contended, that the propofed or intended reformation implied in the motion, fo far as it related to contracts, and the improper expenditure of the public money, was wholly unneceffary, as the powers already in being, were fully competent to the attainment of redrefs, without any new ones being created for that purpose. In fupport of this affertion he cited a cafe within his own knowledge, which happened many years fince, when he attorney-general, at which time he profecuted a governor to conviction, who had been guilty of fome fraud with refpect to the cloathing of a regiment, Whatever bargain or contract, he faid, was made with government, the Jaw fuppofed it to be a bona fide tranfaction, and that the crown had full value, and an equitable equivalent; and the law, in every fuch tranfaction, gave a power of redrefs, either by punishing the perfon who fhould be detected in defrauding the public, or by allowing the contractor only fuch a fum, as his fervices or his commodity deferved. - He farther other perfon acting under the crown, were already, in fact, as refponfible for the expenditure of every part of the public money which paffed through their hands, as it was poffible for the law to render them. They were amenable both to the crown and parliament; to the firft in his majesty's courts of law, and to the latter, in their inquisito. rial capacity. Nothing excited fo much indignation on that fide, as that paffage in the motion, which rendered the lords in office, and all thofe who enjoyed any emolument or penfion under the crown, incapable of being members of the propofed committee. But it was more particularly refented, and that with no common degree of warmth, by a noble carl lately come into adminiftration. He declared it was a libel on the whole body of the peerage, as it fuppofed, that fuch of their lordfhips as enjoyed places under go, vernment were, from that cir cumstance, liable to be warped from their duty, and to give corrupt opinions on a queftion, which it was maintained in argument was intended, and would effect, the falvation of their country. It was, he would maintain, a general and direct libel upon that houfe, and a particular libel upon every noble lord who ftood in the defcribed predicament. It was a libel on himself as an individual; and he affirmed, from his own knowledge, that it was falle and unfounded. Some other lords who were in the fame predicament, and who likewife objected to that exclufion in the motion, did not go fo far in their refentment; and were fatisfied to affert their own independence and integrity, notwithftanding any favours they owed to the crown. A noble earl in particular, who had lately been at the head of a commiffion abroad, of the highest truft, and of, perhaps, the greateft poffible importance, and who was then at the head of an office of honour and dignity at home, fpoke highly, in the beginning of the debate, in favour of the principle on which the prefent motion was founded. And while he gave his own fulleft approbation to the principle, declared the attempt to be fo truly meritorious, as highly to deferve the attention of every noble lord prefent. He only lamented that the paffage in queftion, fhould, at this most critical and perilous crifis, exclude any noble lord, from rendering every service he was capable of to his country; and thought it extremely ill judged, at fuch a feafon, to cut off the committee from the affiftance of fome of the first characters and ableft men in the kingdom. From this circumstance, although he moft cordially approved of the object which the motion pointed to, he found himself in the difagreeable predicament of not being permitted to give a vote either way; but if this objection were removed, the propofition should meet with his molt hearty affent, The fubject of the county meetings, petitions, and affocia tions, was the means of introducing much warmth of language and fentiment, feverity of tricture, and bitterness of obfervation and reply, in the courfe of the debate. A noble lord newly come into adminiftration, having charged the motion with the feveral defects of informality, abfurdity, and inefficacy, with refpect to its avowed object, paffed feveral fevere ftrictures on the fuppofed motives and intentions, which led to its being brought forward at the prefent time. He affirmed, that it was meant to combine the motion with the petitions now before, and daily prefenting to the other houfe; that as the petitions themfelves had been promoted by the most unjustifiable and improper means, fo the motion was certainly intended to bear a relation to them, in order to embarrafs government, and throw an odium on his majesty's confidential advisers. That, if the motion operated at all, it could be only in that way. The petitions and their contents were in general created; and when they feemed to arife fpontaneouf ly, and from fentiment, which he believed to be the cafe in very few inttances, they were founded in no better than abfurd, impracticable notions of public reformation, and fpecious theories, calculated to mislead the nation, as being directed to objects, either unattainable, or which, if attained, must undermine the conftitution, and finally lead to public confufion. That the motion would produce effects fimilar to the county petitions if agreed to; it would embroil both houfes, impede public bulinefs, and tend to anarchy and confufion. A noble earl, who had likewife lately come into office, hav ing endeavoured to fhew the informality, impracticability, and libellous tendency of the motion, proceeded to reprobate, in highly |