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

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 hamskind; 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.
14 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.
!list 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