The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1809-05-12 00:00:00

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two Ministers teak itonor. to proem's, the return'of
a Member to Parlitioneot. He hod said that
private confide:ice must haft. been broken through,
that social intercourse • Must hare been vio-
lated. He was certeinly of opinion, that it was
not the ease. However, if it was,. the eircina-
stance of prodmiirg 'an exeeptionahle witness
•to prove.. the • charge, would not have the ef-_
feet of defeating the charge altogether. end it was
often necessary to resort tosuch instruments. It
liras said that they Afraid emir stand up to
vindicate the characters of pulahe men from
fl
the imputations thrown upon them. Why were they
• not called ups to atinal forwent for that purpose et
tits timt of the Hampshire petition,ltild support"-
the characters of public Mee, and the L'enstitution
of the country? It oilfield, that there ens no pre-
cedent, bat there were preeedivits'even in the most
corrupt times, in the times of Walpole, which, ••
.compared with the preseat pun: age, was corruption
in excess. A Committee was appoinied tie inquire
into the Miisisters conduct for the laat two years..—
.He did nut itirivrstand what his Hem Friend
meant •by wisleog to separate the question of
Lord Castlereagh front the other.; he was for tempe-
rate reform, the reform which Burns approved. He
did not think that an piecemeal should, be exclud-
ed from the House, lint there were pensioners *hum
he would wish to see out of it. Nattier could he
agree with those who exercised no elusive in public
men. The advocates of corruption were the real
advocates of Bonaparte ; they had proinoted his
cause in all other countries, mid unless counter-
acted in this, would have a similar result. For
those reasons he would utopia the motion of the
Hon. Gent. ; in 41, ing which, he acted according
to the dictates of his conscience. •
Mr. B. BATHURST conceived the Hon. Baronet's
opinion relative to the vote given by the House
upon the conduct of the Duke of York to be ill-
founded, and thought that when the Hon. Hamlet
desired Members tar lay their hands upon their
hearts and declare whether corruption existed or
not ; he should hove considered the judgment
passed by that House upon the Sheriffs of
Middlesex, and have recollected the votes of the
millers of Isleworth. That irregulasitirs were
found to exist, could not be denied ; he thought
they should be calmly arid dispassionately stated to
the public; but the way in which they• were
blazoned forth. seemed calculated to lead to a Re-
volution. As means were laid on the table to
prevent such practices is those complained of in
futare, it would be better to pass the present mat-
ter over. To spread discontent farther than it al-
.reatly existed, was wrong; and as the Honte had it
in their power, he thought they ought to cheek it.
Mr. WHITIIKEAD and Mr. flaeltiella explained.
Lord Cottiastis conceived that a necessity for
Reform existed, and that the present tnode. of oh-
to. • g seats in Porliasoent was injurious to the
country. The principal reason why lie wished for
Reform was, that ling Majesty's Ministers might
be enabled to act wills the satiation of the people,
and thought that the money lavished upon pieces
and pension* was of minor con adenoma. .

Mr. Possum said, that he never listened to a
debate in which arguments were thrown away
upon subjects so wholly unconnected with the mat-
ter sander discussion.—Parliamentary Reform had
nothing to do with the coustrisetioci of the House,
neither had the opinions express.d at public meet-•
ings. The charge before the Haulm was, that two
Members of the Administration hail procured thro'
pecuniary meal's a sent for a gentlemen, to whom
they afterwards attempted to dictate how to vote,
and they were now required to institute an inquiry
to ascertain the fact. As to the question of Par-
liamentary Reform, he vroald carefully avoid giv-
iag his opinion till it Caine fairly before the Howie;
it was not one of a trifling nature, hut of the
most serious importance. He iueant to tontine
himself to the question itsi!lf, and should agree
with his Hoonureble I.inid before
Whether the charge was well or ill Imiud-
ed he would not pretend to say, but this he
knew, the Hoo. Gentleman was iii the House, and
was induced to go out, which was a presumptive
proof against the parties acstsed, bin it was his
wish that the subject should not be inquired into.
Th. allegation that Ministers of the Crown were
known to assist Members to a seat by pecuniary
means was not eontined to Ministers of the
Crown alone; all were I.oplieateJ; it hail been
so since the Revolution, and could tie, • as a
man of honour, tale the present opporsostip, to
run down his political adversary? To ooe es(
persons implicated, he felt the greatest political
untiputhy, lie was the destroyer of the 'Govern-
went of his country ; but the more be llelt that
antipathy, the inure guarded lie was over his feel-
ings; he had voted against him the Qthir night,
and so he would, upon the same grounds, on ahy
other, He did not, however, choose to vote for the
inquiry, because 10,00 e others had dune the same
as those implicated, Soli lie knew not why the
weight should fall upon them. When abuse was
found to exist, it was proper it should be checked,
add a bill had been brought in for that purpose ;
but was it lit to Wert an indivielual to make him a
victim ? It hail, however, been mid by an lion.
Baronet that this Bill had excited the risibility of
every sensible man who had heard it; hut perhaps
the Hon. Baronet would not allow any man to be
sensible unless he did laugh at it. which savoured
much of tyranny, but he thought the Bill of good
practical eftect. As to the corrupt purchase of
seats, it frequently happened that those who !hur-
dle:led acted as uprightly as any other ; but the
question now was, whether the sales had not Krowa
to a scandalous effect, and become a degradation
to the countrv? Admitting that to be the case, it
was surely a great inpistiee to stlect one resaou for
• victim, while many oilier person* were guilty of
the alone crime, many perhaps upon his aide of the
(louse. It might be thought he was arguing for
his friends or himself, hut lie could assure the
-Houser, he never expended a single shilling to eifect
his return to Falisimetit.
Lord rotaxerosim • said, that the Honourable
Gentleioris who had just sat down, had called the
attention of the li.nr,e to subject. uuronnected
with the question ; but the vote lie should give
would be different from that of that Honourable
Gentlemen. He would be glad to know from the
Rigid Honourable Gentlemen opposite, since so
much good was to he derived from their Bill, how
it was that it had been so loog before they