make the confideration of an answer from His Majesty to fupercede all other bufinefs. He then ftated the various delays that had been thrown in the way of public bufinefs; when it was expected that the navy eftimates would have been brought forward on Wednesday laft, a noble Lord moved to adjourn. This day, when the fame bufinefs was again expected, the fame noble Lord moved to adjourn; and on Monday, the confideration of the King's speech would be brought forward, ftill to put off the bufinefs of the fupply; where would this end? Gentlemen were defirous to be thought ready to grant the fupply, but that readinefs was to be found only in their lips, not in their actions.

Mr. Powys faid, he was one of those who thought delaying Mr. Powys, was not refusing a fupply; and, whatever might be thought of his conduct, he would vote for the adjournment; for he did not think that any business should be brought on, until the House fhould have come to fome refolution upon His Majefty's answer. For his part, he was ready at that moment to deliver his opinion of that anfwer; but as the House had thought proper to put off the confideration of it to Monday, he would reserve himself for that day. An, honourable Baronet had faid, that the franchises of the freeholders of Suffex were affected by the queftion which was to decide upon the right of a noble Lord to a feat in that House; but a far more momentous queftion was now to be agitated; a queftion which would affect the rights and privileges of all the freeholders of England, whofe rights were attacked in the perfons of their reprefentatives. Another honourable Baronet wifhed that the Houfe might take into confideration the fituation of perfons who defervedly had forfeited their liberty, and were confined by law but a far more important queftion awaited the decifion of the Houfewhether the people of England, who now enjoy liberty, shall be deprived of it by prerogative, or maintained in the enjoyment of it by the efforts of their representatives?

Lord Maitland obferved, that though the queftion relative Lord Mait to the office of Conftable of the Tower ftood for Tuesday, land. he found himself obliged to poftpone it for some time longer, until he fhould move for fome more papers on the subject; for within the last two days he had discovered, that though the Constable of the Tower was faid to have been paid by warrant from the War Office, very confiderable fums paffed from the civil lift, through the hands of that officer.

VOL. XIII.

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Mr.

Mr. Steele.

Lord Maitland.

Mr. Sheridan.

Mr. Alderman Townfend.

Earl Nugent

Ld. North.

Mr. Steele faid he thought, that as he had already affured the House that the prefent Conftable of the Tower would not vote, until the queftion relative to his right to vote fhould have been decided, the views of the noble Lord would' have been fufficiently answered, as by that time probably the present conteft might be at an end. When he said that the Conftable of the Tower was paid by warrant from the War Office, he meant that he received his falary through that channel, and not that money might not alfo pass through his hands from other quarters. He concluded, by feverely cenfuring the late adjournment.

Lord Maitland, with much warmth, defired to know by what right the honourable member spoke of the views of a member of Parliament, who was on his duty in that House: it very ill became any member, connected with Adminiftration, to afcribe finifter views to men, merely because their proceedings did not appear friendly to Administration.

Mr. Sheridan faid, that the late adjournment had not been propofed without the knowledge of a worthy Alderman of the city of London, much in the intereft and confidence of the prefent Minifter; and that gentleman, on being asked, faid he had no objection to the adjournment.

and

Mr. Alderman Townfend faid, he was the magiftrate alluded to; that he had been confulted on the occafion; his answer was, that he cared not if the House adjourned never to meet again.

Earl Nugent condemned the adjournment, because it threw a delay in the way of public bufinefs. He mentioned a report he had heard of a fhort Mutiny bill, but he hoped no fuch meafure was ferioufly in contemplation, for it was unprecedented in the annals of this country. He charged the majority of the House as refponfible for all the confequences of delay, and wifhed that gentlemen, laying afide all party animofity and punctilio, would heartily unite for the good of their country; the union-flag had been reared, but hitherto he was forry to find few had rallied to it.

Lord North faid a fhort mutiny act was not more unprecedented, than a fhort memory; if the noble Lord had a good memory he might have recollected, that in the very laft feffion two fhort mutiny acts had paffed; and that the prefent act, which would expire on the 25th of March, was in fact the third that paffed laft feffion. He thought a diffolution of Parliament would produce moft ferious confequences, which he was defirous to avert, by paffing a short mutiny bill; he

wifhed

wifhed that this Parliament might not foon be diffolved; and he wished it for this as well as for many other reasons, that the people of England might have time to make themselves acquainted with and understand the nature of the contest in which their reprefentatives are at prefent engaged with the prerogative of the Crown, for he was convinced that the people would foon underftand it; and he was as fully convinced that when they did understand it they would fupport their representatives. He had been told once that the borough of Banbury, which he had the honour to represent, had condemned his conduct by fending up an addrefs of thanks for the difmiffion of the late Minifters, but he had the confolation to fay that not one of his conftituents had figned the addrefs. The noble Lord afcribed to the majority all the bad confequences that the delay of public bufinefs might produce: but he knew very well that the right honourable gentleman on the floor (Mr. Pitt) might prevent all these confequences in twenty-four hours, by a refignation. How the majority could have been maintained, if not by principles of regard for the Conftitution, he could not tell; for it was well known what very laudable endeavours had been used by threats to fome, and by promifes of honours and emoluments to others, to ease the majority of many of the members who compofe it. It was imagined, he prefumed, that a majority ought neceffarily to attend upon a Minifter, without any regard to principle and to honour; fo that a majority having fupported one Administration, it ought of courfe to be handed over as a kind of heir-loome to the fucceeding Ministry. And the majority of the present Houfe of Commons having had the prefumption to break through this opinion, and the audacity to act with freedom, with firmnefs, and with confiftence, was juftly ftiled a faction; a fet of rebels who had the temerity to raise their voice against the Minifter, and carry a complaint against him to the foot of the Throne. When fuch a majority appeared against an Administration, it was abfolutely neceffary that either the Parliament should be diffolved, or the Miniftry difmiffed; for he might fay with truth-Mors Conradi vita Coroli-Vita Conradi mors Caroli: but as he said before, he wished the Parliament might not be foon diffolved, and he would not hesitate to say, that the Parliament and the people would foon be one. He wished for union as earneftly as any man, (though by the bye if there was no union, he would have fome chance of getting again into office; whereas he had resolved to take himself out

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of

The hon.

fham.

of the way, in cafe an union fhould not be otherwife found practicable) for he knew that union alone could be the falvation of the country. But the dignity of the House, and its weight in the Conftitution muft not be facrificed. He had been a witnefs to a circumftance on Wednesday laft, the like of which he had never feen before; he had seen a mem ber of that Houfe hiffed within the very walls of the palace, while attending his duty, in carrying up the address of the House: he had often heard of popular huzzaing and hiffing in the streets, of which by the bye in no circumftance did he ever approve, and which, he compared to that war in Paris in the time of the great Condé, called la guerre des pots de chambre; but he never remembered to have heard that even a common councilman had been hiffed, or infulted under the roof of Majefty, where he had seen a member of that House infulted by contemptuous behaviour and hiffes. He did not mean to fay that Minifters encouraged fuch infults; but gentlemen would eafily fee how petty officers, and the moft infignificant perfons about the Court can catch the manners of their fuperiors, when they find that it is fashionable to run down. the Houfe of Commons, and fink their confequence in the country.

The Honourable Charles Marfham faid he would vote for Char, Mar- the adjournment; but he would not have it understood that he meant to refufe the fupply; he knew it was the wish of the people that the fupplies fhould be voted; he wished therefore the Minifter would propofe the loan, and bring forward his fupplies, and he affured him, that on that head, whatever might be his opinion of his conduct in other respects, he fhould have his fupport.

Mr. Fox.

Mr. Fox begged the Houfe would remember, that though the majority had been once already charged with having refufed the fupply, merely becaufe it had been poftponed, the charge was refuted by the fubfequent grant of it: the majority thought it improper, in the firft moment after an ungracious anfwer from the King, to vote the fupply, until a measure had been previously taken by the Houfe, to secure its own honour. By this precedent, he intended to regulate his future conduct; and when the House should on Monday have agreed to fome previous meafure, that might fecure its own honour and confequence, he would then vote the fupply, without even waiting to know what would be the effect of that measure.

Mr.

den.

Mr. Loveden obferved he had, in right of himself and fa- Mr. Love. mily, the misfortune to be a great public creditor, and was of courfe an enemy to procraftination. But whatever became

of that property, he trufted another kind of property would remain to him, which would give him a conftitutional right to enjoy a feat in the Houfe, as long as he wifhed to continue it, and fupport his independence there. That having unhappily been prevented from attending his duty when the refolutions were agitated, which fome gentlemen thought a regard for the honour of the Houfe required them to fupport; and as he never had enlifted under the banners of party, and would give his reasons for fupporting the prefent Minifters, in preference to thofe who had recently been. difmiffed, he hoped a country gentleman might pretend to fome knowledge of the conftitution of that government under which he lived, and might exprefs fome concern for the good of his country, without intruding on the particular department of fome gentlemen, who arrogated to themselves all conftitutional knowledge, who were zealous and moft difinterested advocates for the public good, and who thought their claims to public favour, founded in their warm profes fions for the public weal, fuperior to thofe of others who had done real benefit to the ftate. He did not diftruft the attention of the House to sentiments which flowed in unadorned language fpontaneoufly from his heart, notwithstanding it was frequently amuted, and its judgement mifled by fine fpeeches, abounding with the choiceft flowers of rhetoric, which rivalled the antient oratory of Greece and Rome. Mr. Loveden faid, the happy form of government under which we lived had ever claimed univerfal admiration, and justly received the hiftorian's penegyric through every age and nation. That it was their indifpenfable duty, who felt and enjoyed its bleffings, to refift with all their might the fmalleft attempt to injure or introduce an innovation in that fyftem which even foreigners looked up to with veneration. That it was their care, their facred charge, to deliver down to their pofterity that ineftimable bleffing which had defcended to them from the virtue of their ancefters. That the welfare of their country and the happiness of its fubjects ever had depended. upon the due exercife of the function adapted by the Conftitution to the three component parts of the Legislature, King, Lords, and Commons. That our liberties were in danger, when either branch ftepped beyond its natural bounds, for then it muft invade the privileges of another.

That