The noble Lord then prefented a petition, praying that the High Bailiff might be directed to go on with the feru-. tiny He moved that this petition be heard with the others.

After this, the order of the day was read for hearing of counfel on the petition of Mr. Fox, and counsel were called to the bar; they spoke, and afterwards examined witneffes.

June 3.

Mr. Sawbridge, who had given notice that he fhould on Mr. Saws this day move the House, on the fubject of a reform in the bridge. representation of the people, faid, that he understood it was their wish, that he fhould put it off for a few days, in order to finish the important business before them; in deference to the general wifh of the Houfe, he would readily poftpone his motion: he offered the undertaking to Mr. Chancellor Pitt; not, he faid, from compliment, for any infidious purpose, but from a conviction, that it would be in better hands, and that in fuch hands it would have the beft chance of fuccefs.

Lord North faid, that he willingly confented to poftpone- Ld. Nord ing the worthy magiftrate's motion; not that he wished the motion to be brought on upon Monday next, for he would neither deny his real objections to the motion, nor affect a zeal for it which he did not entertain; he would be very glad to fee it poftponed ad Calendas Græcas. If that, however, could no: be done, he hoped it would be deferred till Tuesday, as it was a general with previously to finish the difcuffion of the Weftminster election.

Mr. Chancellor Pitt faid, with a fmile, that he was Mr. Chans happy to fupport a propofition of the noble Lord, and cellor Pitte preffed for Tuesday in preference to Monday, for fear they should not be able to finish the bufinefs of the Weftminfter election that evening, though he hoped they should. He could not however agree with the noble Lord in wishing the motion poftponed ad Calendas Græcas. Let it be brought on whenever it might, he certainly must wish it fuccefs, which he did moft fincerely. With regard to the offer of putting the bufinefs into his hands, which the honourable gentleman had made in fo handsome a manner, and in a manner fo very flattering to him, he returned him his thanks, and gave him full credit for his fincerity, in VOL. XV.

K

respect

ཏི

Mr. Eden.

refpect to the having brought thè fubject forward thus early, from an idea that the circumftance would conduce to its fuccefs; but he must beg leave to fufpend accepting the offer, having great doubts whether this was the moment moft proper for bringing the fubject before Parliament with any hope of fuccefs, and ftill greater doubts, whether the precife motion, the honourable gentleman declared he meant to propofe, was that most likely to serve the cause, to which he looked with fincerity and zeal, in common with the honourable gentleman.

Mr. Eden took notice of the new coalition between the noble Lord and the right honourable gentleman, who were at length feen close to each other upon the fame bench, and fupporting jointly the fame point. [Lord North fat by accident on the Treafury Bench] It was, however, a coalition to which he could not accede; he did not think the choice of the two days very material, but wishing earnestly for the failure of the worthy magiftrate's motion, and wishing also to have that failure take place in a full House, he could not help expreffing a fear that the attendance of gentlemen would be thinner after the decifion of the Westminster election. His own attendance was always the fame; but he feared that this would be the case.

Mr. ChanMr. Chancellor Pitt earnestly deprecated fuch a fufpicion cellor Pitt. of Parliament; it feemed to imply that gentlemen attended from a party view, which was not the cafe on his fide of the Houfe: and he hoped, exclufive of party fpirit, there was public fpirit enough in the Houfe to prompt them to do their duty, and that gentlemen would equally attend on the great and important national questions to be afterwards brought forwards in Parliament.

Ld. North.

Ld.Mahon.

Mr. Burke.

Lord North replied, it was impoffible that there could be any party view blended in the Westminster business; it involved questions of the highest effential importance to the nation, and he did not know that the retaining an individual in his feat, or depriving him of it, could answer any poffible party view.

Mr, Burke rofe to fay a few words; upon which,

Lord Mahon called to order, and defired to know-what queftion was before the Houfe?

Mr. Burke rofe immediately, and ridiculed the noble Lord's impartiality, which had induced him to liften patiently to four or five fpeeches, without any question being before the Houle, but would not fuffer him to hear one of

his.

his. The old proverb, he obferved, held that "the last feather always broke the horfe's back;" the noble Lord, like a ftately camel, in like manner, had borne heavy burdens, but could not now bear the weight of his bunch on his back. With regard to being out of order, he begged leave to remark, that a difcourfe relative to the fettlement of another day for the confideration of business that had been ap pointed for the day on which the discourse was held, was by no means diforderly, but, on the contrary, might fave much time, and prevent difcourfe hereafter, that might be exceedingly diforderly. Having faid thus much, he would fay a word or two on the fubject of parliamentary reform, a fubject which ought undoubtedly either to be fairly met, and if a reform be really neceffary and practicable, that reform ought to be made at once, or the queftion fet at rest for ever. The keeping it as a political play-thing, to be taken up, or laid down juft as best might answer the purposes of ambition or convenience, was what could never be right, and what ought not by any means to be endured. This reform of Parliament was, he faid, a pretty subject for men out of office to handle; but he observed, that when they got into place, they did not choose to meddle with it, or rather they thought it wifer to extol it to the skies, to talk of its expediency, but always to find an excufe in regard to the time, declaring that the proper opportunity was not come. From all this he conjectured, that the fituation of a Minister was unpropitious to a parliamentary reform, and that to serve the Prerogative was a fitter and more convenient thing, under fuch circumstances, than to ferve the People. Hence the attempts, and, he was forry to say, the fuccefsful attempts, to obtain a fervile Parliament, to pour upon the Throne an inundation of addreffes, all exalting the Prerogative, and by the vileft and most miferable arts contriving to delude and deceive the People.

force,

Mr. Wilberforce called Mr. Burke to order, and faid, he Mr.Wilber was forry to interrupt the honourable gentleman, but he could not fit ftill and fee fo ill an ufe made of the Houfe's indulgence, without taking notice of it. There was no oueftion before the Houfe; and the honourable gentleman muft know, if he went on in that manner, replies, and thofe equally strong, would be made from that fide of the Houfe, in which cafe, in all probability, the Speaker would interpofe, and put a ftop to fo diforderly a debate; he thought it therefore much wifer, that it fhould be stopped, where it was, and before it proceeded into greater diforder.

K 2

The

- Mr.Huffey

Mr. Saw. bridge

The Speaker faid a few words; and Mr. Burke contented himself with obferving, that for aught the Houfe knew, he intended to move a queftion before he fat down.

Mr. Huffey faid, he had never before opened his lips in that Houfe on the fubject of parliamentary reform. He profeffed himself a fincere well-wisher to fuch a reform as fhould give the People a more complete reprefentation within those walls; but then he was not for precipitating any motion upon the fubject, merely with a view to embarrass the Minifter, and to throw him into a dilemma. He would not only defer it for a week or fo, but for the whole feffion. At the fame time, he wifhed not to have it poftponed ad Calendas Græcas; he wanted to know the opinion of the People upon it; he had not, as he remembered, heard any thing from them refpecting a reform lately. When they

afked for it, it would be fufficiently early to fet about; and whenever a reform was attempted, he fhould be of opinion that it ought to be made in a manner most agreeable to the wifes of the People.

Mr. Sawbridge faid, he had no wifh either to embarrass the Minifter, or to precipitate the fubject of a parliamentary reform, by bringing it forward as early as he proposed. His intended motion was not an ultimate measure; it was merely to inftitute a Committee, that an enquiry into the prefen tate of parliamentary reprefentation might be begun He did not mean to push the matter farther the prefent feffion; let it be set on foot in earnest, and he should be contented under the expectation of its being carried into effect. He declared he was fincerely of opinion, that bring ing a motion for the inftitution and appointment of fuch a Committee, forward thus early in the feffion, was feizing the opportunity most likely to prove propitious to the cause he fhould, therefore, make his motion on Tuesday.

The Houfe then proceeded to the farther examination of witneffes on the question of the Westminster election; and a divifion took place on a motion, "That the High Bailiff fhould be fuffered to bring evidence to the bar, that there 66 were many bad votes obtruded on the poll."

Ayes
Noes

180

81

The farther hearing was adjourned,

June

June 7.

A confiderable time was spent in receiving and difcuffing various election petitions. One from Hereford, against the Earl of Surrey, who was returned for three places, was, upon that account, ordered to be heard next after the double

returns.

1

The House proceeded again to the Westminster bufinefs. After witneffes were examined, the High Bailiff made his defence, and Mr. Fox's counfel replied; and the House having thus concluded the evidence and hearing of counsel, adjourned the farther confideration of the subject to the next day.

June 8.

As foon as the order of the day was read for the farther confideration of the Westminster election,

Mr. Welbore Ellis rofe: he observed that the counsel on all Mr. Welfides having closed their evidence and their arguments, it re- bore Ellis. mained now for the House to apply that evidence, and those arguments, and finally to determine what farther steps it might be neceffary to take, in order to bring the bufinels of the Westminster election to a conclufion. The queftion before the House was a plain queftion of law; and though gentlemen might endeavour to perplex it, yet it might be decided by any man who was converfant in the law of Parliaments. He then laid down this propofition as an undeniable maxim, that in the exercise of the ancient prerogatives of the Crown, derived from or coeval with the common law, the King (when he exercised them with found difcretion) was abfolute; for if in those points he was not abfolute, the very end for which these prerogatives had been entrusted to him by the constitution, would be defeated, to the great detriment of the People at large. Now, of all the prerogatives of the Crown, the highest and nobleft was that of calling Parliaments; the neceffity that Parliaments fhould meet, was fo obvious, that the wife framers of the conftitution had vefted in the King the abfolute prerogative of calling them; and ordering them to meet when and where it should appear to him most condu cive to the public good. But if his commands relative to election, and meeting of Parliament, were not abfolute, then might Sheriffs and other returning officers, by difobeying the commands of the Sovereign, fruftrate all his defigns for the Denefit of the State, and totally prevent the meeting of Parlia

ments i