ings of parliament and the fpeeches of the members have been published without interruption or moleftation. So dangerous is it to bring undefined privileges or prerogatives into contest, where a difpofition prevails to dispute all doubtful affumptions of authority.

It did not tend to diminish the public discontents that a bill was brought into parliament at this period, "for enabling certain persons to enclose and embank part of the river Thames adjoining Durham Yard, &c. it being confidered as an invasion of the property claimed by the city of London in the foil or bed of the river. But whatever might be the motives in which this bill originated, or whatever indemnification the city of London might be entitled to expect as proprietors of the foil, certain it is that the magnificent and ftupendous pile of buildings constructed in virtue of this act, under the appellation of the Adelphi, will remain to future times a noble monument of architectural genius and utility; and will be confidered as reflecting honor on the reign of George III. when the vaft fums expended in fubfidies, penfions, and extravagant grants to the crown are configned to indignation or oblivion.

Soon after the rifing of parliament the city of London prefented another petition and remonftrance to the king, in which they complain of this bill as a violation of their chartered rights, of the arbitrary imprisonment of their chief magiftrate, of the enormity of erafing a judicial record in order to stop the course of juftice; and again urge, on these accounts, as well as upon the grounds formerly ftated, the immediate diffolution of the parliament, and the removal from his majesty's perfon and councils, for ever, of the present wicked and defpotic minifters. But this petition, however vehement and intemperate in its language, excited neither alarm nor very peculiar attention. The storm had in a great measure spent its rage; and, though the waves ftill fluctuated with apparent violence, the danger of ministerial shipwreck was past. The king, in answer to this petition,

coldly

coldly expreffed his readiness to redress the real grievances of his fubjects; but he was forry to find that a part of them renewed requests which he had repeatedly refused to comply with.

In the speech from the throne at the termination of the sesfion May 8 (1771), his majesty congratulated the parliament on the prospect of a permanent continuance of peace, and earnestly exhorted them to difcourage and fupprefs all groundless fufpicions and domestic disturbances, in order that the national happiness might be rendered complete. His majesty declared, "that he had no other object, and could have no other interest than to reign in the hearts of a free and happy people." Certainly, if this could by an high ftretch of courtly complaifance be supposed" the only object" of his majesty's reign, it must at least be allowed that he had hitherto been peculiarly unfortunate in the choice of those means and ministers which he had employed in the attainment of it.

During the recefs of parliament died the earl of Halifax, a nobleman generous, liberal, and accomplished; but as a minister unpopular and unfortunate. He was one of the few whigs who enjoyed any share of court favor during the prefent reign; but tory maxims were unhappily predominant, and his ambition induced him to acquiefce and temporize. Nevertheless he filled the high office of lord lieutenant of Ireland, to which he was appointed on the return of the duke of Bedford in 1761, with diftinguished ability and applause. The earl of Suffolk fucceeded the earl of Halifax as fecretary of ftate for the northern department, and the duke of Grafton accepted the vacant poft of lord privy feal.

The fummer and autumnal months rolled away in a fort of fullen languor, and, no circumstances of a nature peculiarly urgent arifing, the parliament was not convened till January 21, 1772, when the feffion was opened with a speech from the throne, in which his majesty confidently announced the continuance of peace from the repeated affurances he

had

had received of the amicable difpofition of the powers on the continent. It occafioned therefore great furprise, when in a few days a demand was made on the part of the adminiftration for twenty-five thousand seamen to be employed in the fervice of the current year, under the pretext of the neceffity of our maintaining a fuperior force, both in the Eaft and West Indies, to the French, who had lately fent confiderable reinforcements to those diftant quarters. It was said in reply, "that this was in fact a war establishment in the midst of peace-that if fo great an augmentation was in present circumftances thought neceffary, it was impoffible to fay when it could with propriety be diminished-that the apprehenfion of an attack from France was futile and ridiculous, and that the naval force of that power employed in actual service was totally inadequate to any hoftile attempt-that the prefent motion would add 500,000l. to the public expence-and that, bending under the weight of an enormous public debt, it behoved us to adopt effectual measures for its reduction; instead of which our peace establishment was every year increafing, and was now nearly double what it had been at the acceffion of king George I." Such however was the inefoppofition to those urged by

ficacy of these arguments, in the minifters of the crown, that the motion was carried without a divifion.

Soon after the meeting of parliament (February 8, 1772) died her royal highness Augusta princefs dowager of Wales, in the fifty-third year of her age-a princefs poffeffed of many virtues, perfonal and relative, and, till the acceffion of the prefent fovereign, greatly beloved and efteemed by the English nation: but, in the latter years of her life, it too plainly appeared that the extenfive influence the poffeffed over the mind of the king her fon was exercised in a manner very pernicious to the nation. It might appear harsh to doubt the general rectitude of her intentions; but unhappily, bred up in the defpotifm of German courts, the attained not to juft ideas of the fpirit of the English constitution, or the

genius of the people, with whom her name became at length the continual theme of reproach and obloquy.

A remarkable bill was about this period introduced into parliament, for "making more effectual provifion to guard the defcendants of the late king, GEORGE II. from marrying without the approbation of his majesty, his heirs and fucceffors, first had and obtained." This bill had its origin in the marriage lately contracted by the duke of Cumberland, fecond brother to the king, with Mrs. Horton, relict of colonel Horton, and daughter of lord Irnham. It had been alfo long univerfally believed that the duke of Glocefter, elder brother to the king, was privately married to the countefs of Waldegrave, which marriage the duke now openly avowed. By the provifions of this new and very extraordinary act, the marriages contracted by the royal family from this time are declared null and void, unless the previous approbation of his majefty be obtained; but in cafe the parties shall have attained the age of twenty-five years, and give notice to the privy council of their intention of marriage, fuch marriage shall be held good in law, unless the parliament fhall within the space of twelve months declare its disapprobation of the fame.

This bill excited great diffatisfaction, and it did not pass without confiderable difficulty. Two very animated protests against it, figned by eighteen peers, display with great precifion and energy the reasons employed in opposition to the bill. "The defcendants of GEORGE II." it is affirmed, "may in time comprehend a very numerous description of people; and it would be an intolerable grievance, that the marriage of so many subjects, dispersed among the various ranks of civil life, fhould be fubject to the restraints of this act. It seems indecent to the royal family, to suppose that they arrive later at the age of discretion than others, and abfurd to allow them to be capable of governing a kingdom at an age when they are not to be trusted in the choice of a

wife. It feems," say their lordships, "to be a mere act of power, having neither the force nor obligation of law, and contrary to the inherent rights of human nature, to difable a man from contracting marriage, perhaps for life; and it is pregnant with civil difcord and confufion, as having a natural tendency at fome future period to produce a disputed title to the crown-and all this for ends wholly difproportionate to fuch extraordinary efforts, as the main purposes of the bill might have been answered without creating that perpetuity of restraint, which they think themselves in confcience bound to oppofc."

In the courfe of the feffion, a petition was prefented to the house of commons of an interesting nature, and, from the fingular importance of its object, demanded peculiar attention. This was a petition figned by fome hundreds of the clergy of the established church, humbly praying to be relieved from the obligation of fubfcribing the thirty-nine articles of faith as imposed by law. "Your petitioners," fay they, "apprehend themfelves to have certain rights and privileges which they hold of GOD alone-of this kind is the exercise of their own reafon and judgment. They conceive they are alfo warranted, by thofe original principles of reformation from popery on which the church of England is constituted, to judge, in fearching the fcriptures, each man for himself, what may or may not be proved thereby. They find themfelves, however, in a great measure precluded the enjoyment of this invaluable privilege, by the laws relative to fubfcription, whereby your petitioners are required to acknowledge certain articles and confeffions of faith and doctrine, drawn up by fallible men, to be all and every one of them agreeable to the faid fcriptures. Your petitioners therefore pray that they may be relieved from fuch an impofition upon their judgment, and be restored to their undoubted right, as proteftants, of interpreting fcripture for themfelves, without being bound by any human explanations thereof-Holy fcripture alone being acknowledged certain and fufficient for fal

vation."