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the last ten days? There had been an indecent hurry in carrying through bufinefs. [Here there was a cry of No! No!] Mr. Grey repeated, that in his opinion there had been an indecent hurry in the conduct of public bufinefs. What was the reason that the last page of their order book was fo crowded, that they could fea, cely read the orders, of the day? There was bufinefs after bufinefs, and the Houfe had fat almost till 12 o'clock at night for the laft ten days. This way of doing business might be very convenient to Minifters, but what was convenient to them, was difadvantageous to the public, and he hoped they would not be able to carry their defigns into effect. They ought to call on His Majesty to confider well whether this war was proper and expedient, He hoped, after having given an indefinite vote, by which His Majefty's Minifters might involve thhe country in a war the moment after Parliament was prorogued, that they themfelves would feriously confider the fubject. The vote they had given pledged them to make good the expence of any preparation. Was their vote given for the purpofe of negotiation only or was it a vote, which, if that negotiation was unfortunate and unfuccefsful, was to enable His Majesty's Minifters to carry on a war? If the vote was merely to enable Adminiftration to carry on an armed negotiation, in what fituation would they find themfelves, if that negoti ation fhould turn out to be unfuccefsful? Would they justify themselves in affembling Parliament to grant a fresh fupply? He only wished to put it to the candour of gentlemen, and of Mini flers, whether, if fitting a fhort time longer would enable them to know the fuccefs or failure of the negotiation, they ought not to continue to fit till that event was known? The claim to confidence was made only to give them the means of carrying on an armed negotiation. Mr. Grey faid, the fituation of the country was exactly this: the country was engaged in an armed negotiation for the purpofe of obtaining certain objects which they knew not. If thofe objects were withheld, he supposed the armament would infift on them by force; and if fuch were the cafe, that Houfe had a right to information, before they confented that the country fhould be involved in a war. On that ground, he said, hefhould move,

"That an humble addrefs be prefented to His Majefty, to exprefs the deep concern his faithful Commons felt at being called upon for a promise to make good the expence of new preparations for war, after having been fo recently obliged to impofe on their conftituents additional taxes on account of the late armament against Spain.

"Humbly to reprefent to His Majesty, that in the answer which they gave to His Majefty's most gracious message, his

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faithful Commons, acted on by a firm reliance that His Majefty's paternal care and regard for the welfare of his people, would not fuffer him, by a caúfeless interference in the difputes of other countries, to endanger the peace and tranquillity of this.

That no inquiry was made into the particular circumftances which had induced His Majefty to arm, and a promife of support was given, as indefinite as the object for which it was demanded.

"That fince that period two months have elapfed. The preparations for war are ftill continued. The expence for which His Majefty's faithful Commons muft hereafter provide is daily increafing. No information as to its cause or object has yet been given; and if Parliament fhould now be prorogued, His Majefty's faithful Commons will be placed in the difagreeable, and hitherto unprecedented, fituation of returning to their conftituents, after having fubjected them, by a vote of this Houfe, to new bardens, the extent of which they cannot limit, and the juftice or neceffity of which they cannot explain.

"For these renfons, and others, which the circumftances of the times may fuggeft, His Majesty's faithful Commons humbly implore His Majelly not to prorogue the Parliament, till His Majefty fhall have it in his power to communicate to them fome diftinct information relative to the cause of the prefent armament: in order, that if actual hoftilities fhould take place, and it fhould be neceffary for His Majesty to incur any farther expence, his faithful Commons may have an opportunity of exercising their hitherto undifputed privilege, and difcharging their most important duty, in confidering the extent and propriety of the fame, as well as of affifting His Majefty by their advice, to form a juft judgement both as to the expediency of past measures, and the policy of future Councils; and they humbly beg leave to affure His Majesty, that they will chearfully forego the private benefits and comforts of an early recefs, to full a duty highly neceffary to the public fatisfaction, and of the utmost importance to the policy, if not to the falvation of the State."

Mr. Fox and Mr. Sheridan both rofe to fecond the motion.

Mr. Mr. Bragge rose to oppofe it. He faid that he did not with Bragge. to advert to privileges that certainly belonged to the House, but confidering the difcuffion to be an excrefcence of former debates, he rofe to fupport the confiftency of the House; and he did not think it would be neceffary to take up much of the time of the Houfe, to perfuade them to preferve their own consistency in refifting the motion. A fimilar motion, though

introduced with a view to a different object, had been lately before them, and the Houfe had thought proper to reject it, and to reject it without a divifion. In fo doing, Mr. Bragge thought the Houfe had afked with propriety, becaufe it would have been to have advised the King to let the exercise of his undoubted prerogative depend altogether upon the will of a prifoner upon trial before Parliament, as Mr. Haftings might have made his defence long or fhort as he had thought proper. Having therefore rejected that motion, confiliency required that they should reject the prefent; fince the event, for the arrival of which the addrets prayed His Majefty to fufpend the exercife of his prerogative of proroguing Parliament, was perfectly uncertain and indefinite. But, Mr. Bragge faid, it was not merely on the ground of confiftency that he refted his argument against the motion; he had no objection to examine the motion itfelf, and try it by its merits. The honourable gentleman had complained of the order book being crowded, but he forgot that fo many questions fimilar to that under difcuffion had of late been agitated, and that if thofe queftions had not been brought forward, the book probably would not have been fo crowded with orders.

The fubftance of the addrefs then moved, was to defire his Majefty not to prorogue Parliament till he fhould have it in his power to communicate the event of the prefent negociation. He thought it was the undoubted privilege of the Houfe to interfere with His Majefty's prerogative, fo far as to advise him as to the exercife of it, in refpect to the proroguing of Parliament; yet it must be admitted that fuch a privilege ought never to be enforced by the House, but in matters of great importance, and when it could be done with precifion. In the prefent inftance, Mr. Bragge faid, it was easy to prove that it was not a cafe of that defcription; and first, with regard to precifion, the termination of the negotiation was a matter which His Majefty had it not in his power to answer for, because it depended not only upon His Majefty, but upon almost all the crowned heads in Europe. With regard to the great importance of the cafe. certainly going to war was a very important matter, but ftill its importance did not prefs fo peculiarly as to warrant the motion. No one doubted that it was the prerogative of His Majefty to engage this country in war, but as yet it was not clear that the prefent negotiation would end in hoftilities; on the contrary, there was reafon to believe that it would be brought to a pacific conclufion.

The honourable gentleman, Mr. Bragge obferved, thought that the House was indefinitely pledged to fupport a war; fo far from it, the vote the Houfe had given, when they fent up an address in answer to the meffage, was to enable His VOL. XXIX. Majefty

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Majesty to arm. They ftill had the purfe in their hands, as no money was yet voted for a war. Mr. Bragge reasoned upon this, and remarked, that the honourable gentleman had faid, the fituation of the negotiation was what the right honourable Chancellor of the Exchequer dared not explain. He agreed with the honourable gentleman, that the right honourable Chancellor of the Exchequer dared not explain what the fituation of the negotiation was; he dared not do what an honeft man dared not do, defert his duty, and aban don the intereft of his country. Mr. Bragge faid, when he looked back upon the conduct of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, faw how he had conducted himself through the emergency of affairs, and that he had obtaine, even from his adverfary, a confeffion that he was a fortunate Minifter, his friends had a fair right to impute that to his wifdom, his integrity, and his abilities, which his enemies afcribed merely to his good fortune. With regard to the privilege of the Houfe to requeft the King not to exercile his prerogative of proroguing the Parliament, he admitted that the Houle had fuch a privilege, but repeated his affertion, that it ought never to be appealed to but in very extraordinary and important cafes, and where it could be done with precifion. Mr. Bragge added a few more obfervations, and concluded with giving his negative to the motion.

Mr. Whitbread junior, faid, he fhould fpeak on the fubje& very shortly, but in a different manner from the honourable gentleman who had just fat down; and fince he faw the Minifter was determined to perfift in his contemptuous filence, for it was a filence, contemptuous to that Houfe, he thould thank his honourable friend for having brought forward his motion, which afforded him an opportunity of expreffing his indignation at the conduct of the political Procruftes of the times, who fitted his patients to the fize of his bed, and not his bed to the fize of his patients, but lopped off or added juft as fuited his own purpofes. Mr. Whitbread thought a feffion ought to be adapted to the quantity of bufinefs that was to be gone through; and when it was all difpofed of, then and then only could the feffion be properly confidered as to have been brought to its termination. With regard to his honourable friend's having brought fo many queftions forward as he had done upon fimilar grounds with the prefent, which the honourable gentleman feemed to impute to him as a matter of blame, his honourable friend, and thofe who had fupported hin, deferved the thanks of their country for having agitated thofe queftions. That they had been neceffary, was obvious from a view of the fact; and that the difcuffion had refcued the country from an expen five, and perhaps a bloody war, was, he believed, by no

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means to be difputed. Two months ago an armament was fitted out, an armament to enable His Majefty to negotiate with greater effect, and were they not at that moment in the very fituation in which they food at firft? From the indecent hurry, (for indecent as his honourable friend had termed it, it certainly was) in which His Majefty's Minifters had precipitated the bufinefs within the last ten days, it did appear moft incontrovertibly, that thofe Minifters wanted to get rid of Parliament, which would be a spy upon their actions. They ought not, then, patiently to bear to be told, that if they had not brought on thofe questions, bufinefs would have gone on regularly and quietly.

The answer fet up by the other fide of the House had been, the often repeated claim of confidence; but he must ever think, Mr. Whitbread faid, that confidence, thus blindly given, was a difgrace to thofe who beflowed it, and a dereliction of their duty to their conftituents. With regard to that House not having given an indefinite vote, when they paffed the vote in confequence of His Majefty's meffage, he muft always confider that which was not finite and limited as indefinite; and clearly of that defcription was the vote in queftion, which might lead to the worst confequences. After expatiating upon this, Mr. Whbread faid, if he were in a different fituation, a fituation which he flattered himself he never should be found in, viz. that of having given the Minifter his confidence, and upon Parliament's being prorogued, his conftituents fhould ask him what was the object and extent of the vote he had in their name given; he defired to know what anfwer he could make? If he faid, he really knew nothing of the matter; would not his conftituents fay, did you vote without knowing for what? did you not afk the Minifter the queftion? did you fleep upon the poft we put you upon to watch over and guard our interefts? Then would they fay, we muft pronounce you unfit to be any longer our reprefentative, fince you are either ignorant or corrupt.

Mr. Bragge faid a few words in explanation, to which Mr. Whitbread made a fhort reply, by way of explanation.

Mr. Jekyll congratulated the Houfe on the extraordinary Mr. definition of confiftency which they had just heard from his Jekyll. honourable and learned friend. His honourable friend had endeavoured to prove the confiftency of the House by an example which was totally diftinct and different from that to which he wished to apply the fame line of conduct; for what analogy could there be between a motion for an addrefs not to prorogue Parliament in favour of Mr. Haftings, and a motion to addrefs the Crown not to prorogue, on a ground fo important as that of the prefent motion? But

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