from wishing to establish any unconstitutional precedent, he neither fought nor wished any powers to be vefted in the crown or its minifters which were capable of being employed to bad or oppreffive purposes." He therefore agreed to receive the amendments proposed; the principal of which were in fubftance: 1. That the clause empowering his majefty to confine such persons as might be apprehended under this act in any part of his dominions, fhould be modified by the infertion of the words, "within the realm;" and 2dly, That an additional clause or provifo be inferted, "that nothing in this act shall be construed to extend to perfons refident in Great Britain.' These conceffions gave extreme offence to the leaders of the high prerogative party, who had zealously defended the bill in its original state, and who now exclaimed," that they were deferted by the minifter in a manner which feemed calculated to difgrace the whole measure, to confirm all the charges and furmises of their adversaries, and to fix all the odium upon them." And it was indeed fufficiently evident, from the whole conduct of the bufinefs, that the minifter, on this as on other occafions, was not admitted into the inmost receffes of the royal cabinet.

"

On the 9th of April, 1777, a meffage was delivered by the minifter from the king, in which his majefty expreffed his concern in acquainting

the

the house with the difficulties he labored under from the debts incurred by expences of the civil government, amounting on the 5th of January preceding to upwards of 600,000l. And the house on this meffage refolving itself into a committee of supply, the minifter moved, "That the fum of 618,000l. be granted, to enable his majesty to discharge the debts of the civil government; and that the sum of 100,000l. per annum, over and above the fum of 800,000l. be granted as a farther provifion for the fame." This gave rife to a vehement debate. It was affirmed to be a measure of the groffeft impropriety and indecency to bring forward fuch a demand in fuch a season of national distress and calamity; when burdens are accumulated upon burdens, to tell a people already sinking under their load, that the grandeur of the crown is not fufficiently fupported, and that an increase of taxes is neceffary in order to increase its fplendor! But even this plea, however inadequate to the juftification of minifters, was far remote from the truth. It was notorious that the debt had been incurred in carrying on and fupporting a fyftem of corruption; in obtaining that baneful and unbounded influence which had swept every thing before it; which had brought the nation to the brink of deftruction,

and

and had deprived us in a very great measure of all the benefits derived from a limited government. The harsh and stern voice of prerogative was indeed no longer heard; but the danger was much greater from the filent progrefs of a malady, which, though flower, was far more certain. They faid, that the debts of the crown had been not many years fince difcharged without account, to the amount of more than half a million. What is the confequence? Another and larger demand is made, and a vaft annual increafe afked, without even the wretched fecurity of minifterial promife, that new debts will not be contracted, and new augmentations demanded. They obferved, that, on a comparison of the expenditure of the last eight years, with a fimilar period terminating the reign of the late king, the excess of the article of penfions would be found to amount to 213,000l. and that the increase in the article of fecret fervice was yet more enormous. In two lines only, the fums of 171,000l. and 114,000l. were charged for fecret fervices, iffued under the direction of the fecretaries of the Treaftry. That money should be entrufted to the fecretaries of ftate, for the purpose of procuring foreign intelligence, must doubtless be acknowledged neceffary; but that the fubordinate officers of the Treafury, who can have

no

no public connection beyond their own office, fhould be the avowed irrefponfible agents for the unlimited difpofal of the public money, was indeed alarming, and left no room for doubt as to its design or application. Above half a million was stated under the head of the Board of Works, though no one could conjecture in what palace, park, garden, or royal work of any kind, the money had been expended; nor were any vouchers produced by which the house could form a judgment of the propriety of any branch of the expenditure. It appeared only upon the whole, that under every head the expence was infinitely increafed, while the external fplendor of royalty was in the fame proportion diminished. The accounts laid upon the table stated the annual allowance for the privy purse to be raised from 48,000/. in the late reign to 60,000l.; and, what was much more extraordinary, it appeared that the queen's privy purfe was fixed at 50,000!. although queen Anne, reigning as fovereign in her own right, had contented herself with an allowance of 20,000/-even out of this moderate fum, as the duchefs of Marlborough informs us, "faving money; for, though very charitable, fhe was never expenfive, made no foolish buildings, nor bought one jewel in the whole course of her reign." -Such nevertheless was the unlimited complaifance of parliament, that the demands of the

minifter

minifter were granted almoft without the formality of a divifion*.

The oppofition in the houfe of lords was equally unavailing. The bill was, however, accompanied with a ftrong proteft; but the most remarkable circumftance attending it was the fpeech made by the fpeaker of the houfe of commons to his majefty, on prefenting it a few days afterwards for the royal affent. “In a time, SIRE," faid he, "of public diftrefs, full of difficulty and danger, their conftituents laboring under burdens almoft too heavy to be borne, your faithful commons, poftponing all other business, have not only granted to your majesty a large present supply, but also a very great additional revenue, great beyond example, great beyond your majesty's highest expence; but all this, SIRE, they have done in the well-grounded confidence, that you will apply wifely what they have granted liberally." The countenance of the king plainly indicated how little acceptable was this unexpected liberty. On the return of the speaker and the attendant members, the

*When we fee," fays a humorous writer, "the print of GARAGANTUA, that has a mouth as large as an oven, and swallows at one meal twelve hundred pounds of bread, twenty oxen, a hundred sheep, fix hundred fowls, fifteen hundred hares, two thousand quails, a thousand barrels of wine, fix thousand peaches, &c. &c. &c. who does not say: THAT is the mouth of a KING."

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