The National Register. — London, England, 1820-12-11 00:00:00

\— 00-vyy, z o „ ational UT+ _ I~' i Our Sting, Conatitution, aub No 1,285.—V0L. XIII.] MEMOIR OF THE RIGHT lIGN. EARL GREY. (From the London Magazine.) " To sloths the naked, feed the hungry, wipe The geiltleu tear from lone ailliction's eye ; To raise hie merit, set the altering light Of Virtue highly to view ; to nourish arts, Direct the thunder of an injured state, Slake a whole 'lotto.. people dog for Joy, Dims hams kind; mid tbro' the downward depth • Of More times to spread that better son Which lights up British souls; pith deeds like these Ills dusting fair career unbounded shines." Tbonspeon's Liberty. " Amid the faithlessness of Princes, the holt° w-heartedness of courtiers and the insidious tricking. of patriots, it is a sweet consolation to turn the eye un a liberal-minded and consistent statesman, whose efforts bare been invariably di rected to save the liberties of his country from violation, and the sacred altar of its constitutisin from the open and covert acts of the despot or demagogue. There are few in dividuals in the annals of British history who have contri buted more to this glorious work, or who can boast a looger line of ancestry than Earl Grey. 1 4 The Hon.ClarlerGrey, the eldest son of Lord Grey de Howie, 'suborn in 1764; and by the intlueoce of his family sod the early promise of his future talents was returned a member for the county of Northumberland in 1783. " Mr. Grey was leo young for a seat its the House of Coin loons during the American war; but if we are to reason from analogy, notwithstaoding the delicate situation in which he *mild have been plated, there can be little doubt but that be world hare deprecated a cattiest, in the condemnation of which his political associates, as well as political enemies, have most cordially united. His father, together with Barre and Dunning, was attached to the Marquis of Lansdowne; but he himself appears to have looked up to no patron, although be has uniformly took the same side in politics, end voted along with Mr. Pox. He is one of that eloquent and intrepid party who maintained that Mr. Pitt had ob. moped his first official appointinent by singular and uncon means; and be was generally a strenuous oppeadienist during the administration of that Minister.— The latter gentleman very early discovered an ambition to become a war minister ; and his former dispute in Spain, Russia, France, Denmark, &c. fully entitled him to that ap pellation. In his bloodless contest with the first of these powers in lTh9, his opponent, not only condemned his origi aid precipitation, but objected that he bad entered into a eiesmentio• relative to which he had omitted to lay the ne w:our &Cements before the House. ! l ist the debate on the negotiation respecting the Falkland , Sslands, (Dec. 13, I 190,) Mr. Grey greatly distinguished Ainself, and evinced the possession of those legislative and rhetorical powers which have since been of such eminent service to his country. " In the spring of the succeeding year, a new war with Russia, appeared to be inevitable; on which a new opposition by Mr. Grey immediately ensued. In the course of his speech upon that occasion, Mr. Grey delivered maxims of the most enlightened policy, and of the must patriotic principles. It would have been well for sovereigns and their suldects, if these maxims bad governed the conduct uf Eu ropean cabinet, for the last twenty years. Instead of ex hausted treasuries, impoverished provinces, a demoralized pee*, and a degraded throne, we might now have seen states rich in the possession of naltireo bounties, trades, lux uties.a moral and intellectual governtueut,a loyal, a virtuous, and a happy peasantry. " His speech on this occasion gave rise to an important debate, and, although the question was lust on a division, (ayes 170, noes 253), yet it made a great and lasting impress sion on the people, while a majority of eighty affosded but a per trietuph to the minister. Nor is it necessary to add hire, that Pitt was obliged, at length, to relinquish the contest, and expose not only himself but the government to ridicule. " in May ITN we dud Mr. Grey taking the lead in n ha. Maas which, in the language of a great orator of the day, ' sited u lustre on the character and humanity of the nation.' We here allude to the melancholy situation of those wiseacre unable to satisfy the demands of importunate cre ditors, mid consequently subjected to the uperatton of a rigorous r ode of laws, 1u compliance with a previous iiin ice. be now moved for the appointment of a . eto Illqiiile into the present practice and effect of imprisonment for iteht, unfortu nateobserving, ' that it was desirable to distimAttis e unfortu nate debtor from the knavish one, to place g editor in that situation which afforded the fairest' 'llt ~ speediest means of compensation, and to ,regulate the j . tins of this country in such a manner as to prevent unnecessary hardship see restraint. Whether they considered theenctite of con lining for debt, men who had no menus Or discharging such debt, or, on the contrary, fraudulr iii debtors, abuse credi tors by no process could coMpel them to pay ; these car. eusastancee were 711011 C sufficient to con bb itt ie an inquiry into the state of the laws relating to debtor and creditor.' This motion being acceded, a committee, consisting of Mr. Grey, Mr. Pitt, Sir John Sinclair, Mr. Vansittart, Mr. Martin, the Attorney and Solicitor Generals, together with several gentlemen of the long robe, a as immediately appointed. ' It, 1192, Mr. Grey instituted au inquiry into the conduct of Ministers with regard to the recently threatened hostili ties with Russia, in which he made some very bold observa rlOna, and declared that they had subjected themselves to enmiuul proceedings by their vaccinating and ruinous mea sures. His °tam ration ti; the constitution of Britaiu, in the coarse of his oration, were equally remarkable for their truth, their energy, anti eloquence "ills pointed and puneiful remit, lis drew the fallowing menteret.le confesiimi from Mr. l'itt :—" All toilllnited fon. lidence is llllCOMiiilliilllllll : asd I hope the inglorious mo. meat will never arrive, a hen this house will abandon the privilege of examining, entlemuitig, and (octet hug the %Woe's. the eaccutiveinvcrament. It is the 'tensest pile MONDAY, DECEMBER li, 1820. •ilege you possess, and should never be relinquished." Nut witbstaadiag this concession, and the powerful arguments of Mr. Grey and Isis enlightened supporters, the motion for the production of papers was as usual lost, the majority for the Ministers being 225, whilst the minority numbered 120. " As the Minister had thus refaced the communication of certain documents, tending to criminate himself, it was de termined by the opposit" that they should proceed against him on the evidence already produced. Accordingly on Feb,29, Mr. Whitbread moved, that the house de take into consideration the papers on the table respecting the late armament with Russia; and in the support of this motion Mr. Grey drew a poignant and powerful character of the late Mr. Pitt, which is undoubtedly, though severely, just. " The ' Right lion. Gentleman had indeed been considera. My elected by the extrava. , ant praise bestowed upon him on former occasions, and as th e character of the late Earl of Chatham stood high, the present Minister deemed it neces sary to assume a dictatorial air that be might pass for a per son who could give the law to the ditfrrent powers of Europe. In cousequence of the incense BO lavishly bestowed upon him, he hail been prancing through every court on the continent, and after much gasconade nod bluster, met iu each nothing hut discomfiture and disgrace. The success of the Right Hon. Gentleman in the affairs of Holland had elated him in such a manner,that it came into his hest.: that he could parcel out kingdoms, and conduct negociations with the seine ease that he laid on tuxes, or supplied the want of arguments by the division of majorities in that house. His friends, and those who pretended to be his friends, flattered him into that belief. We heard no more of the olive branch, the language of which is usually followed by firmness, and in the end with substantial profits and well-earned applause. On the con trary, his partisans longed fur a war in which he might dis tinguish his talents in conducting the vessel of the commuu wealth through the thunder of cannon, with the same ease that lie conducted it in the gentle tide of peace: nay, lie seemed to wish fur it himself: his imagination was heated like that of Don Qui zone, a hen kindled into all the ardor of chivalry by reading books of romance—the laurels of his father faded in his eyes—lie out-licroded Herod , " A curious document, highly illustrative of the opinion formed of us by the Turks, in ushering our asssitance on their behalf, was stated by Mr. Grey to be the Grand Vizier's answer to our ambassador a—"fhe Grand Seignur wars for himself, and for himself makes peace. He can trust his own slaves, servants, and subjects; be knows their faith, has ex. perisneed their virtue, and can rely upon their fidelity —a virtue long Since banished your corner of Europe. If all other Christians tell truth, no reliance is to be had on Eng land; she bays and sells all mankind. The Ottomans have no connexion with your King or your country; we never sought for your advice, your tuterferenee, or your friendship; we have no minister, ito agency, no correspondence with you : for what reason offer ye 'then to mediate for us with Russia? Why seek ye to serve an empire of infidel., as you call us blumelmen? •We want not your friendship, aid, or media tion. Yoor Vizier, of whom yuu speak so highly, must have sonic project of deception In view, some oppressive. scheme to amuse your nation, who, as we are told, are cre dulous, servile, and adore only money. Avarice, we are informed is your chief characteristic—ye would buy and sell your God—money is your deity, and all things are commerce with your Minister and your nation. Come ye then to sell as to Russia)! No; let us bargain for ourselves, whet' fate has spun out the thread of our good fortune, &c.' The motion, however, shared the same fate of its predecessors, the Minister having a majority of IgB. " It bad hitherto been the grand object of Mr. Grey and his friends to attack Mr. Pitt on the unconstitutional man ner by which, according to them, he had lint crept into, and then maintained himself in power, as well as to expose his misgovernment exemplified in the waste of the public treason*, in consequesice of the ruinous and useless um:meats recurred so by him for no useful purposes whatsoever. A new held of accusation now opened itself, in consequence of the war meditated by the Cabinet against France; and it can;mt be doubted, but that had the minority remained firm and united in the same public principles on which they ori ginally combined, the Minister %VOW have been at their feet. lint some were undoubtedly actuated by the hopes. of place, power, and emolument, while others were teeny to,d seriously tilatrined t.t the situation of Frauee, the spread of republican principles, and the dangers incident to a re form Hon ev,r, on the sudden meeting of Pailininerd, (Thursday, 1)u c. 1792) a few were still found lists and resolved, 'emulous of their ancient opinions, aril excited rather than discouraged by the apprehension :of future Inis• fortunes, to ward a war which aas likely to br attended with the must disastrous cousequences. ActordinMy, Mr. Fox, comidering the speech Ili that of the Minister, declared his belies that every assertion iu it was false and unfounded. He deprecated the piusecution of mess for tiicir upiiiiinis 1 a* fiction*, oast opinions, were criminal; and remarked that no fears were exhibited by the Government s'inrin.; she march oi the Duke of Bromwich, in who,. iloicinnatiire and retrcat -he exulted and rejoiced, as that i etreat was a triumph to every triumph of liberty. " Mr. Sheridan asserted,' that on i lion had, or wa s likely to happen ; he condemned us illegal the assembling the grand inquest of the nation, for the purpose of pi e,t Ming a false bill against the people. and charged udnuuuuatiou with scheme* which they dared nut to avow iu a manful manner.' " Mr. Grey supported the amendment %bleb had been prepare d by Mr. Fox, • to reject the whole ut toe siddress, excepting such part as protes,ed an attachment to h.. Mit jesty and the comtutution,' Ile at the time time • depre cated the conduct Id the Government in hole nt their ndministrati 111 l , but particidai ly in the 111C.1,U1 c of bib% the Parliament, a hit le had ear lied an alai iii tin 011 0 ;110M the t tawdry, for wine a irked patinae of %timidly 11 grie. %antes are complain: dof rein' :e and idea of sedition would h. &mandated. For tors Furp.iate Piing Jtitl• the had in the course of last year given notice of his intentioe to move u reform io Parliament, in which itacntion he con tinued, and should embrace the first opportunity of perform ing.' Mr. Wyndham end Mr. Burke seized this opportunity to express their opinions freely ; and us they were now con sidered as having abandoned the Opposition for ever, the one was soon after nomiuuted Secretary et War, and tin: other received alpensiun on lives, which produced upwards of 25,0001. sterling. - A few days after this, Mr. Grey accused the ministers " of having abused the act of parliament, and deceived the public, iu making use of the word insurrections for the purpose of calling oust the militia, and eonve 33 i 33 g the le gislature : whereas the real design was to catch the im pulse of national loyalty, and to draw the house into meesures which, on cool reflection, they would find cause to repent of." Although Mr. Grey and his associates condemned the war, yet that gentleman professed on more than one opts. Aim, that neither he nor his immediate friends deeured it proper to deny any aid that could strengthen the hands of Goverunient. They, however, opposed, and that strenu ously, a number of subsidiary treaties, particularly the one entered into with Sardinia, when communicated to the House, in 1194. On that occasion he asserted, that the uegueiation was not only iniquitous and unjust, bust absurd and impolitic. ' question now before us is, (said lie) not whether the 200,0001. had been given as a hire, or as a boon, to animate those effeminate Sardinians in defence of their owls territory ; but whether a treaty, which went to such ass extravagant length as that now be fore them, was such as either expediency or sound policy could dictate to any set of men employed in the service of their country.' " It would occupy a whole volume to detail the speeches of Mr. Grey up to the period when he was called to the peerage. Scarcely any debate had taken piece, subse quently to Isis appearance in pnblic life, in which he had not borne a distinguished part. Throughout the whole of the late war he testified his uniform disapprobation to the measures of Mr. Pitt, and helped by his eloquence. as well as his habits of business, to render a small minority respectable. As one of• the managers of the impeachmeut against Mr. Hastings, he added greatly to his former reputation; and, with a filial piety truly commesidabie, he defended his father, with equal zeel and eloquence, against the accusations relative to his conduct lu the West Indies. " He had always been a strenuous advocate for a re form in parliament, as necessary to restore the vigonr of the constitution, and prevent the degrading practices; of corruption. Su correct, however, has been his conduct on all occasions, that the voice of slander lies never pie. sowed to blast the character of Earl Grey; and he must be ackuowledged, both in public and private life, to have acted with ass uniformity seldom to be surpassed, more especially in these degenerate times, and amidst those temptntiosia which have been so liberally held out for the eneonragement of political obliquity. lu 1506, in consequence of the death of Mr. Pitt, Mr. Grey a n d his friends came into power. Lord Grenville suc ceeded Mr. Pitt as First Lord of the Treasury; Lord Iteory Petty as Chancellor of the Etchequet• ; Mr. Fox was Secre tary to the Foreign Department ; nod Mr. Grey First Lord of the Admiralty. Tile untimely and lamented death of the philosophic and patriotic Fox, caused a considerable alter. anon in the ministry: Lord Hoe ick (NI r. Grey) succeeding him its Secretary of State for ['amigo Affairs. 'file unbar.. tunate and sudden terminetion of this ministry is too well known to call fur ally detail from us; suitire it to :ay the speech of Lord Howick, elucidating and defending the con. duct of himself and friends 111 introducing the Catholic Question, Was as nervous, clear, and eunvia•nn„ an appeal, as was ever made to the British Parliama tit. Since that period, his Lordship has constantly opposed the unconstitu tional and impolitic measure's of the succeeding :si!ministra tion ; the elm!, of which have been founded and citified on upon the principles of Mr. Pet. to the mouth of N ovemhra „ NET, Lote Hoe io"le succeeded by the deal la of his fath.o, to the family estate and titles. lie had led to the ;altar, nn 15th Nov. 1191, the atonable and eminently iiitelrgent datsehter of Wilainan Brebazon Lord Polisoiab, °sea . 4 1 • of the greatest Whig families in Ireland; ;rod will/ have pi onlited him oath sak tams and five daughters. The Spanish Patriot hits reached Plymouth front Cadiz, whence she sailed on the 17th ult., bringing much later accounts than those received through any other channel. The yellow fever having com pletely subsided at Cadiz and its neighbourhood, the Governor issued a Proclamation on the 1.2t1i, announcing the tact. re I)cum was sung in ;dl the churches on the following day, which u•as observed as a holiday by all the inhabitants. The Spanish Patriot has brought titan bills of health, but all vessels are still compelled to peahen' quarantine on reaching this country. The information from N 1.1.• drid and the North of Spain by this arrival is more recent than that acquired by way of . France. Cleopatra's Needle.—This celebrated monument of antiquity has been presented to his Majesty George IV. by the Paella of Egypt, and is expteted to arrive shortly from Alexandria. It is intended to be set up in Waterloo Place, opposite l arlton Palace. The weight M . th:• 'Aaiun i.. abont .200 tons, the diameter at the pedestal seven feet. This msa.nif•.cent column was °Lt.:lined through the ini'l•i -ener aS. Briggs, E,s4 the British Resident at Grand Cairo, with the PA, }. s ;;: pt. , i I t( e ° i 4i ' 4 l; 1: t4 " • • `ft, ' ' • \