The Sun.
London, England, 1806-01-28 00:00:00

PUBLIC 114 ARK OF RESPBGT

TOTHE MEMORY OF
THE LATE RIGHT HON. WILLIAM PITT.

Mr. HENRY LASCELLES rose, pursuant to
his notice, and addressed the House to the following
effeet-:—lt is my anxious wish, Sir, in conclueting-
the melancholy business of which I gave notice on
Friday, to endeavour, as much as possible, to pre-
vent a revival of those political differences which
existed during the whole illustrious career of the dis-
tinguished Person on whose memory it is the ob-
jett of my Motion to.confer some signal mark of na-
tr9iiatrespeti. I am desirous, that without involving
Cm consideration of such topics, •an opportunity

should be At/ !ad of bestowlog on the manory of
so great a man such a distinmishedlributt as w*lid
be conformable with the feelings of this Home, 'and
of the Nation, for I am' sure these feelings are ge-
neral, and Ate honourable to the community, as to
the reputation of the party that is the obje& of it.
'With this view, Sir, I shall studiously abstain from
enumerating the various events that have formed the
great and leading features. of his brilliant Admini-
stration, and 814 therefore avoid entering into a'
consideration of these subje&s, which might lead to
a discussion foreign to the objeCt of my Motion.
I do sincerely avow my feelings of regret, feelings
which must operate on the mind of every Inan
who values the interests of his country, and whiCh
are generally diffused through all classeS of the
community for the loss of a man so illustrious, so
eminently distinguished, and so ,disibterested, and
whose constant and unwearied efforts were ever di-
reited to promote and advance the interests of his
country, whose transcendant talents and singular abi-
lities had uniformly acquired him the admiration of
his Country, and of Europe. (Hear, hear, hear !)
HaVing stated thus much, I shall be satisfied in this
• instance, with submitting my Motion to the. House,
which is literally the Same with the precedent that
took place in the glorious instance, of his illustrious
father (Lord CHATHAM). I am sure. that no man
will deny that the son was as great a man as the fa-
ther. I have adopted the very words of the prece-
dent in the case of Lord CHATHAM, and abstain
from any further obServations, because it would be
matter of regret to me to offer any thing to the
House that might give tise to any difference of opi-
nion on a subje& on which unanimity is so desirable.
I have, however, one word to address to those Gen-
tlemen who are of opinion that I should delay my
Motion till after the discussion, of another Motion
for: an Inquiry respe&ing some part of the Admini-
stration of the much lamented obje& of thy Motion.
If we look to the twenty years, during which that
illustrious Personage had guided the Administration
of his Country, every measure of which had received
the unqualified approbation of tliat'Country, we shall
not discover any reason' for such delay.—BeSides-,-
feelhig as I do Dray
_the subje&, and persuaded, as I
am, that the feelings ,of the House and of the
Country are in unison with mine, it would ill
come me to put off the Motion of which I gave no~
tire, on the ground of a • bare possibility that some
errors might be discovered in Treaties which have:
not yet been laid before the House. Having said
thus much to account for my condu&, I think I
sliould do wrong in not proceeding with my Motion.
I shall conclude, Sir, with moving, . •
" That an humble Address be presented to His
MAJESTY, that, he would be graciously pleased to
dire& that the 'remains of the late Right Hon. WM.
PITT be inierred at the public expence, and that a
Monument be ereEted to his memory, in the Colle-
•giate Church of St. Petec, Westminster, with an in-
.scripticn expressive of the irreparable loss the Nation
has sustained by the death of so excellent a States-
man."

The Marquis at TITCHRIZLD seconded the
Motion. He had opposed the measures of the Right
-Hon. Gentleman, during a great part of his political
career,-but was not, however, disposed to refuse any
cm,sistent mark of respect, as a tribute to the inte-
grity of his charaFter, and his rare and transcendent
talents. He would not be understood, in voting for ,
this Motion, to mean any condemnation of the line
of conduct{ he had himself pursued, whilst opposing
the measures of the Right Hon. Gentleman, now,
unfortunately, no more. He had since aeled with
that Right Hon. Gentleman, but though ranked
amongst his political friends, he had not enjoyed his
private friendship. In the support he gave to- the
preseht Motion, he was actuated solely by his ad-
miration of his virtues and extraordinary talents,
which might be justly appreciated without the ad-
.,vantage of familiar or friendly intercourse. He
thought the House called upon to pay some signal
mark of its respect, in this instance, by perpetuating
the memory of a•Member so 'able, so eminent, so
distinguished, and disinterested (loud cry of hear !.)
On the Motion being put from the. Chair,
Lord FOLKSTONE, with regret, found, that
though he felt as sincerely as any Gentleman for the
occasion which had given rise to the Motion before
the House, he could not, consistently with his sense:
of public duty, assent to it. He alloWed the Hon.
Gentleman who had brought it forward every credit
for the manner in which he introduced it (hear !
hear!), and should follow the example he had given
in abstaining from the discussion of any topics that
might lead to the revival Of past differences. The
Hon. Gentleman bad stated, that the merits of the
' Right Hon. Gentleman were' such as to deserve
some signal mark of the respect of that House ; on
this point he differed with the Honourable Gentle-
man, and, Without entering into the consideration of
these, he should barely state the ground of his, opi-
nion to be, the result of a comparative view-of what
had-been the situation of the Country when the Right
Hen. Gentleman had first come into office, and what
it is at present: -On this ground, therefore, if he
should be followed by any other Gentlemen, that
.might think with he should feel it his duty to
divide the House 'Upon the `Motion:'
Lo q LOFTUS was .so completely convinced
of-the great and brilliant talents of the lamented
ot,..jet-i of the Motion, that he could net•content him-
self wiffi giving-a silent vote on the. occasion. He
most heartily concurred in the Motion.
Mr. HAIVKINS -BROWN had had the honour
' of a seat in that House- during the whole period in
which the Right Hon. Gentleman, whose memory
was now proposed to be honoured with some signal
mark of the approbation of the House, had presided
in the administration of affairs. During the whole
of that period he had supported all the measures
brought forward by that Right Hon. Gentleman, as
best calculated to promote -the essential interests of
the Country. It was difficult for him to point out
any instance in preference of the eminent services
rendered by him to the State. -He had raised the
public credit in an unexampled degree, of which
the Home would be satisfied on his stating a single
case. The Public Funds, when the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman came into office, when the Country was in a
state of profound Peace, without an Enemy in Eu-
rope to apprehend, were not so high as at present,
atier all the horrors of the French Revolution, and
• - while the Couirry 'is engaged in a desperate and ex-
pensive contest. He should not detain the House

. .
'Unger from Ore-question, for which their felings
seemed to be impatient. Evely Gentleman would
suggest to himself a criterion of the transcendent
merits of -this great man ;• but; fOr his own 'part, he
should, without entering frarther into the subjeet,
content himself with the case he bad pointed out,
and conclude with applying to that great, that emi-
nent, that admirable Statesman, what had been,said
of Augustus 'Ozsar, " that be had found Rome built
of wood, and bad left it built of marble."
.Mr. TULEY ADDIWGTON considered the
present question •as arising out of the long series of
services which had been performed by the illustri-
ous object of the Motion, during a great part of his
public life. To the extent of those services, and the
distinguished and exalted talents by which they
were performed, he most readily assented, because
he had every opportunity of witnessing the former,
and estimating the latter. As to any other subjects
that might be objects of inquiry or discussion, he
did not think they had any reference to the present
Motion. But in saying this he did not wish to be.
understood to mean thereby any drawback from
the siner.e satisfaction he felt in giving his entire
assent to the Motion.

Mr. IVM. SMITH felt how unpleasant a situa-
tionany-Gentleinan would be placed in who shotild
oppose a Motion brought forward and seconded in
the same manner as the one then under discussion.
But he alsb felt, that consistently with his sense of
public duty he could not:accede to it ; .and, -painful
as the performance of such a duty most be, he
could not ShrihkfrorriTthe task. The performance
of his duty in the present instance was the more
paint it to'him, as he extremely regretted the loss
of the eminent and distinguished person who was
the objea of the Motion. No Gentleman who had
opposed that Right-Hon. Gentleman's measures, nor
any friend who deplored him, could More sincerely
regret his loss, ..He too had had the . honour of a
seat in that House during nearly the whole of the
time that Right Hon. Gentleman had been in office.
He had, during that tune, frequently witnessed the
exercise of his great talents and transcendent pow-
ers, which he had often contemplated with admira-
tion and awe. - He felt one ground of obje&ion to
the Motion on public principles. .In the Motion
the Right Hon. Gentleman was represented as an
excellent Sthesman; If he were called upon to
vote thanks .(thanks unfortunately could notnow be,
isoted)--=if he were called upon to vote some :mark
of respea to his memory for his disinterestedness as
a Statesman, he should readily concur ; but when
he was to vote this mark -of respea to the Right
Hon. Gentleman as an. excellent Statesman, he
thought himself bound to consider whether that
character' belonged to his measures and administra
tion. With a view to such estimate, he knew. of no
criterion but a consideration of the state of the Coun-
try at the time he came into office, of his conduEt
whilst in office, and, of the preqent state of the
Country. However, this would occupy too -much
of the time of the House. EVery Gentleman would
make the comparison. in his own Mind, and .deduCe
a result for himself. The result in his mind-was,
he confessed, unfiwoUrable to the Right Hon. Oen-
tleman. But be.had another
.objeCtion,_ of a More
private nature, to the Motion, and which applied
particularly to himself. He had 'been placed in the
situation which• he filled in that House by, the
frages of a-large body of men; who certainly did nut.
consider the Right Hon. Gentleman an excellent
Statesman. They had eleaed him because' they
'thought his principles honest, and that he would op:-
pose 'that Gentleman's measures. How could he
.then return to his constituents after such.an appro-
bation of the Right Hon.. Gentleman's Widotri as a
Statesman, which so directly contradiaed his 'ort-ner:
.opposition to his administration ? He-believed the
Hon. Member who had brought forward the Mo-
tion to have been aauated by the purest motives;
,and'he was sure every Gentleman sincerely regretted
the'loss ; but on the principles he had stated, he
felt it an imperious, tho' a painful duty, to oppose
the Motion. .
Mr.PYTCHES had hoped that the supporters of
the Right Hon. Gentleman who was the objeet of
'the Motion, and his abettors, would have appeared
on this occasion with becoming silence and desola-
tion (a loud laugh, and some symptoms of murmurs).
1 He had, as much as any man, admired the ableness
of that Right Hon. Gentleman's elocution, and the
,eleCtricity of his reasoning (a laugh, and loud cough-
ing). He was not, however, in despair respeaing
the emanation of some sparks from his genius. He
was in hopes that the House would produce as emi-
nent talents, when lie contemplated the large spread-
ing shrubbery of genius which was shooting up so
many heads.—(Lond and general laughing and cough-
ing, and the Hon. Member ceased).
Sir. ROBERT BUXTON had not expe&ed that
any debate would have taken place' on this subject,
but rather that the Gentlemen on the other side
would have readily concurred in any mark of respea,
to the memory of that much-lamented and very
. eminent Personage, that all sides of the House would
have agreed that he had been a truly great man, and
have acceded to the proposed tribute to his memory.
But he had been disappointed. The reputation of
that illustrious ornament of his Country, however,
would not depend upon the extent of the majority
by which this, or any such Motion might be car-
ried ; his-fame would go down to the latest pbst&-
rity cotineaed with the history of his times, attested
by the Records of Parliament, and immortalized by
that Constitution which he had saved. His remains
may crumble to dust in his grave, but his reputatiOn,
will live in the admiration of a grateful posterity.
Marquis. DOUGLAS. felt k painful to be obliged
by a sense of duty.to oppose this motion for a mark
of 'respea to the memory of the Right Hon. Gentle-
man who was the objea Of the motion. lithe Gen-
tleman who had brought forward-this motion had left
his ashes in peace, they would have left the House
in the situation in which it ought to remain. He
was ready to assent to every thing that had been
said of the great and eminent talents of the Right
Hon. Gentleman, and to admit that the House ought
to be grateful for his services on many occasions.—
. The success, however, of measures alone could en-
. title them to such distinCtion as was now claimed.
It was not sufficient that a man should have talents
and eminent public virtues, his. measures Should be
successful, for it was the result that would decide.,—
With regard to the form of the motion, he objected
also to that. The comparison that was instituted, be 7
tween the Right Hon. Gentleman and his illustrious
fattier, did not appear to him just, because the dif-

4erend hetWeen the twe persons was. vac -y
He, toe, could drag comparisons, but he shOura
forbear dwelling an 'such topics. tie s'iould ask,
howev,4i;, what was the Sifuriticn of the Country
with a view to its internal strength and external rela-
tions after the seven-years' war, and whether the
present state of the Country could be compared with
it There was another circumstance to which also
he might advert. The public . had not yet rested
from paying the laSt tribute of respea 'to the memo-
ry of the immortal Nelson. Would, he asked, •the
-same crowds have followed the bier of that illustrious
hero if he had-lost a British Fleet ? If not, it was
evident that'suceess should crown the effort in order
to entitle the individual to any mark of national gra:.
titude. He had done his duty in opposing-the mea-
sures of the Right Hon. Gentleman, but he should
hat 'now disturb his ashes, over which he would walk
with veneration. 'lle could, if he were dispoSed,
take a review of the situation of our finances ; he
could even advert to a transa&ion of the last Session;
wherein a Noble 'Lord now suffering under the cen-
sure of the House had been proteEted by the Right
Hon. Gentleman— (some slight disapprobation).--,
In obedience to his sense of duty he felt him Self
bound to oppose the motion.
A MEMBER who spoke under the Gallery, 'but
whose name we could not learn, expressed his . sur-
prise that any opposition should'have been made to
the motion ; and declared that, in his opinion, the
last five months of Mr. Pitt's Administration formed
the mast brilliant period of his whole political
.
career.

Lord TEMPLE (ik a Mite' ihai indicated inncit
and sincere feeling) rose to express in a few Words
the grounds upon which he assented' to the motion.
It might be supposed, he observed, froin the close
connexion by blood which he had with the eminent
person who was the objeLa of the motion, -that he
would have sat in silence till the House had decided
on the question. But. as he had lately differed "on
several public measures with that respected person,
he thought himself bound to state the reasons
_that
induced him to vote for the motion. In doing sO
was. influepced: by the knowledge of the transcend-
ant talents, and the purity and disinterestedness with
which he had discharged the duties of the office His
Majesty had committed to his charge. Impressed
with these sentiments he could support the motion ;
and in doing so he bogged to state, that he re-
presented the feelings of every member of hie
family.

IVINDHAM.—PainfuI as be should feel it
to make any objeaiouto the motion, couldnot, eon.
• sistently with his duty, omit to state the grounds
upon which he felt that he could not assent to it.
It would be desirous that; .unanimity-should prevail
on such a subjeaeif that unanimity did not involve
a violation of principle and duty. Nothing could be
more satiSfadory thail a nampliahee with the tnjunEtion
which some of the Gentlemen who had spoken had
recommended, namely, that all party-feelings; all
past differenkeis and .animosities, should beforgottea.
Nothing conld•be easier to him than to bury all ani-
mosity,because he felt none. No man could feel more
• sensibly than biMSelf every sentiment of admiration
fix the rare qualities of the Right Hon. Gentleman
than He_ felt this admiration of his re-
splendent
:talents in every instance,'hnd came. to the
present, discussion with that impression which must
be produced by the death of a great and eminent 111Ril:
Bin if even this were. a question of feeling, it might
even then be necessary to observe- how far it might
be proper to share the distresses of others, o to in-
cinlge theirs at the expellee of others. It-was right
for them to examine how far they could indulge,
their generosity- at the 'expellee of their public
• duties, . The duty they were then to perform .was
one of the most iMportant they could have to exer-
cise, namely, the adjudication of 'the greatest re-
' wards that could bebestowed upon an individual. He
begged to examine,for he wished Gentlemen to under,
stand what was the nature of the proceedings in which
they were engaged, upon what grounds it was they
were to assent to the present Motion. Was •it meant
to be said, that all exalted transcendent talents were
to be so rewarded ; or, was it meant to be laid down,
that such talents only,when long directed to the pub-
► lic service, were proper objets of these diStinaions
or were such talents so direeled officially, only to be.
rewarded ? or was the prospea of the distinetion to
be extended to talents generally and perseveringly
directed to the public service, without the claims of
official situation? If high talents generally, that hate
been long -direaed to the public service, be fit ob-
jeds of such rewards, then there had been many
persons both in this and the other House; that had
most eminently merited them by long,"pfle(tual, and
unwearied application of resplendent talents to the
service of their country. If it was meant to say,
that great talents officially exerted, only Were tit ob-
jcdts of such rewards, the, position was false,
and to assent to it would be better to their fe&n-
ings than their duty. The event that had gives
rise to the present Motion he sincerely lamented,
and he was equally inclined to regret the impossibi-
lity.he felt of acceding to it, because, by the line he
should pursue, he should be obliged to contraditi
the wishes of those With whom he was anxious on
all occasions to concur. in the opposition he felt to
the present Motion, he was inclined to annex. n con-
dition to the possession of great talents that they
should lie exerted for the great benefit of the Conn-
. try. It Might not be amiss to take a nearer view of
this subject, and this would explain the nature of
his feelings. ReWards, like those now proposed,
were alwayS conferred for great Naval and Mi-
litary Services, and almost exclusively so. Why t
Did not the .Statesman who direaed their operations,
and laid the plans upon which they a&, as welt
as :provided the means that enabled them to tri-
umph, require as great abilities for the perform-
ance of his office; as they in the execution'of their
enterprises?
.Why should not he then 'beentitied to
the same honours ? Because their exploitstame home
to the feelings -of every man. He that routs the
armies of the Enemy, and he that destroys their
fleets, makes his way directly to the hearts of every
man. A very memorable instance had lately been
seen; in the instance of the tribute of national geati-
:tude that had been paid to the memory of ihe
mortal Nelson. Every person in the community,
from the highest' to the lowest, from the richest to
the poorest, from the 1-IIGIst exalted to the most hum-
ble, 'vied with each other in willing homage. to such
transcendent Merits. There was no heiVit that did
not Vibrate with the most lively m6t:s.i.s. • No man
'euuld.wistake. But it was not to serve the interest_

• .4
.0f parr, F. No.man' could contradit themerits that
'ere rev arcs d, and therefre it is, that according
tg t he. pr, die of all countries, such services are most
parsiculesly clistinguished. And this led to another
isonsiden tito; namely, that unanimity is necessary.
And how was‘that to be hdped for, after a long pos
litical.life ?.ixpept the single instance that had been
stated as a precedent, not an instance of this kind
was to be met with in the .FlistoryOf' this Country;
and yet many men had distinguished themselves.by
long, faithful, able, and meritorious services. Look
at another case :—the .exercise of, great and trans-
eendent talents, long direated to the service of the
Country, are more deserving out of office than in
office. The possession of a high and important
office is a -powerful incitement to zeal, activity;
and exertion. The presumptibn, if any, must
therefore be .favourable to talents out of 'office
-without such incitement. He would ask, then,
whether any individual had -ever possessed more un-
limited-and transcendent talents; or had more perse-
Veringly, .or successfully, directed those talents to
the service of his Country, than an individual,
'who must be in the reeolleation of them all, and
to. whom no, such honours had been granted'? he
meant the late Mr. Burke. What man had ever
more sublime talents, or unbounded knowledge and' •
' capacity, where charaater for wisdom, disinter-
estedness, and political virtue, ever stood higher?
! ffear !)—Liere were various parts of his
political cohduat, opon which, as in the present in-
stance, some hifficulties might have prevailed ; and
te begged to know why those, who think it neces-
Aary now to grant these honours, did not consent to
grant them then I)id they mean to say that there
was any difference in the:circumstance of being iii or
'Out of office ? If the- indiViduals were compared,
they would be found to have the same abilities, the ,
same long devotion to the service of their Country.
He begged of the Gentlemen who supported this .
Motion to analyse their opinion, and then to judge
of.the motives of those who opposed 'therm They
objeated in the former instance that the grant was
not desirable because it could not be carried with
unanimity ; and what, he asked, was such a_ grant
without unanimity ? The objection was, thatthey
could not comply without a fear of implicating them-
selves in all the political opinions of the party ho-
'floured, if they should consent to vote the obje& of
the present Motion an excellent Statesman. He had
disagreed with that Right Honotirable Gentleman,
when the French Revolution had broken up the
European system, and had separated irom his earliest
connexions. Whether he had been right or wrong in
-so doing, was not now of any consequence, though
Ire could not omit stating, under a due consideration,
that he still thought he acted right under the cir-
cumstances. What he thought of those circum-
stances now was no matter .o be dwelt upon. It
sn4D isbi however, be urged against him, thac.he had
• •
agreed with the Right Hon. Gentleman since the
'French Revolution, and ought not to Oppose the Mo- ;
tion. This he should meet by dividing the 'Whole of ,
.the Right Hon. Gentleman's political life into two
periods : one antecedent to the. French Revolution,,
the other subsequent to it, and abide by either. flit
here he deprecated being placed in a situation of
declaring any opinion that may be contradiatory to
,the opinions of those ScOnnexions for which he
'lad the most ..sincere resped: With every re-
spea for the talents, and • every • admiraiion for
the abilities of the Right HOnourable Gentleman,
11 he were asked whether they had been use-
fully employed for the Country, he should, say 'No,
not even in that part of his administration that had
occurred since the French Revolution. He had not
condu&ed that great cause' like a great man. He
had not concluded it like a skilful Minister, with a
view to its express objeds.—(A. ay
_of question !
question !)—lt was not his fault that he touched
lapon those topics, but the fault of those who had,
brought forward the Motion. His opposition' sio it
rested on broad grounds. This Was not d time for
entering into any inquiry, when the lamented indi-
vidual was clad in his shroud. Bat these honours,
•if granted, would be contrary to hikorical truth, at
such an unexampled and dangerous period, to pass
a vote of such unqualified approbation on twenty
years of administration, that had brought the Coun-
try to such a perilous state. If they agreed to the
Motion, they should give up the faith of History,
which would no longer present a magazine -of
useful knowledge—a store-house of pradical truth
and experience. He had stated the principles
upon which he should vote to be, that he did
' not think the whole of the Right Honourable
- Gentleman's administration useffil for the Coun-
try, and so thinking, he could not avoid declaring.
it, and voting accordingly. But when Gentle-
men rested their ,support of the Motion on the pros-.
perity of the Country, he could not help hxclaiming,
God have mercy on us, if our. present state were
prosperity! If we were to ,go in this state, he did
not know how long it may last. When lie compared
the state of the Country now with what it had been
twenty years since, he saw no reason to rejoice: He
thought, for these reasons, that the rewards. ought
• to be withheld, as only great merit, accompanied by
success,. was entitled to them. No such rewards
had been decreed to the immortal Nelson, and ano-
ther gallant Officer, not now a Member of the House,
Cir Thomas Troubridge, for their conduct at Tene-
rife, where they displayed the greatest heroism and
devotion to their Country's cause, because success
bad not crowned their enterprise. He called upon
the House not to mislead those of the present day,
by agreeing to vote these honours, or to weaken the
truth of history. • For his own part he should oppose
the Motion, as if he were to do otherwise he should
never cease to reproach himself for it.
Mr. R. RYDER could riot refrain from expressing
the utmost astonishment at what he had just heard.
The Right Hon. .Gentleman, at the most critical pe-
riod of Mr. Pitt's Administration, had been in onion
with him ; lie had been a sharer in his councils ; he
bad fought hand and hand with him those battles
Which saved the Constitution, and, indeed, by the
successful issue of which, in that Hon. Gentleman's
own opinion, the_Constitution had been preserved ;
and now, forgetting all former friendship, forgetting
those considerations which ought peculiarly to have
• influenced him, he took a part in this discussion
Which he honestly believed no man in the House
Could possibly anticipate from him. The Right Hon.
Gentleman had shewn a degree. of Spartan virtue,
• whicls, he confessed, excited his adMiration ; he had
evinced an heroic disregard of
:every natural and
every moral feelings; but for the sake of the happi-

\k\

teas ofthe world, he trusted that this' Condo& would
operate rather as a warning to oth*rs than nn example
to be followed.. The Right Hon. Gentleman affealed
to doubt the meaning of the proposition before the
House. For himself, lie thought that it had been
sufficiently explained. It left the question of the
condo& of Administration during the last.six months
completely untouched for the future consideration of
the House. It was not the stupendous ability of the
illustrious 'character whom he so deeply lamented
it was not the purity of his moral charmer; it was
not the confidence whies4 he, enjoyed both in Parlia-
ment and in the Country at large; it was not even
the space which he occupied in the:age of the world,
that was the inducement to.the present Motion ; it
was the use, the practical benefit which this nation
had derived from him : the question was, whether,
on a revisal of his whole life and charaaer, he was
not amply entitled to the honour which it was DOW'
proposed to pay to his memory ?
Mr. G. PONSONI3Y felt most sensibly the dis-
advantage under which any man laboured whO rope
for the purpose of opposing a Motion which sprung
froth the most generous feelings. However Gentle-
men may live in difference on general and ,political
subjects; all 'must wish that the animosities proceed-
ing froin such differences might be buried in the
grave. Were this a question as to the private, elm-
rafter, the moral virtues, or the good intentions of
Mr. Pitt, he should not hesitate in giving it his
hearty concurrence ; but the question was,• whether
the House of Commons, by its vote, should sanc-
tion and immortalize, as far as a vote of that House
could immortalie, Mr. Pitt's 'system of AdminiStra-
tion. 'So far from entertaining any wish that that*
system should be- immortalized, it • was his most
ardent .desire that it should be interred with the
chief impeller pf it. It was by no means LiS in-
iention to scrutinize the particular parts of Mr.
.Pitt's .conduet : this would be an ungracious task:
But when the House were,. called upon to vote
the highest honours that were , in their power
to bestow, as Representatives of the People, they
were bound first .to feel a- conviction, that the
system of Administration and Government, to the
head of which those honours were to be assign-
ed, had been, on the whole, a beneficial syStem.
,He did not deiign to enter minutely "into the
situation of England on the day when Mr. Pitt en-
tered on office, and contrast it with its situation on
the day of his death ; but this .he would say, th 4 .
-Europe, and even England, stood in very different
.relative situations towards France at the commence-
ment and at the conclusion of -Mr. Pitt's Admini-
stration. If we took a retrospeCtive view of the His-
tory of Great Britain, and fixed our attention more
particularly on those periods in which her glory
shone with peculiar lustre, we should find, that tho
very persons and things which had been the most
intimately connected with that glory, bad been
the greatest sufferers during *the administration of
.Mr. Pitt. The Prince of Orange, from whose fa;
mily this Country had received the security of her
liberties in 088, had been expelled from Holland;
'and the Brunswick Family, to whom this Country
.was indebted for: her preSent line of Monarchs, had,
through the,ssme means, irrecoverably lost Hanover.
If a desire to serve the Country were assiened as a
'sufficient
reason for coining, to the proposed Vote,
:.he.adrisitted that he had no doubt such a desire ope-
rated strongly in Mr. Pitt's mind ; it was not the
failure, in intention, but too fsilure of judgement, that
' he condemned. Taleasts, however brilliant, after
the death of tile possessor of them, do not entitle his
'remains to public honours unless he has been suc-
That this is an acknowledged position, may
,be easily seep by a reference' to ttie history of the
•Contitry. What man ever poisesSed greater talent
than Lord SOMERS ? As a Statesman and a Lawyer
no one hadscontributed more to raise the glory, and
to fix the laws andliberti6s, of his country ; yet af-
terhis death no public honours had been decreed to
him. Lord GODOLPHIN was one of the greatest
Statesmen this nation ever produced, and his admi-
nistration had conduced more perhaps than any other
to diminish•the power of France; yet to his memory
no public honours had been voted. 'Of the merits
ofArchbishop TILLOTSON it was difficult to speak
in terms sufficiently encomiastic. This pious and
venerable Prelate, although many years at the head
of the Chorch, did not, at his decease, leave money
enough to 'defray the expellees of his funeral ; yet
.the Country, although (if he might be allowed the
expression) he was unable to bury himself, did not
'think
proper to bury him. , That private virtues alone
Wereinsurficient in their claim to public honours,
.was,evioced in Mr. PELHAM, who had likewise the
merit of considerably redncing the public debt, and
/et, notwithstanding he died in possession of office;
his death' was succeeded by no Motion of a nature
similar to the•present: Private virtues, good inten-
tions, and splendid talents, were therefore indisputa-
bly pot eilaugh. 'With regard to the illus7trious Lord
ChamaSi, to Whose memory those houours had
been assigned, he had certainly rendered to the
-Country the most brilliant and solid services. It was
not his wish to enter into any invidious comparisons,
but he would just ask the House to recollect what
was the relative situation of Great Britain and France
at the conclusion of the. Peace of 1763, and com-
pare it with their relative. situations at the Peace of
Amiens, or with their probable relative situation at
the period when Peace might be once more expected.
Unless success had rendered all men unanimous in
• their opinion of a Minister, no House of Parliament
was justified in rendering to his memory the honours
now demanded. He could not but think that the
.Hon. Gentleman who brought 'forward this Motion
had, in the warmth 'of his feelings, done so without
refle6tion. He had forgot that during such a long
Administration as that of Mr. PITT'S, great dif-
ferences of opinion must necessarily exist, and that
the men who had honourably and conscientiously
opposed the system on which he acted, could not
possibly be expected to give their votes for immor-
talizing that system. For himself, if be were to
vote in favour of the present Motion, he should di-
really contradiEt every vote that he had given for
many years. For these reasons he felt himself under tiara
painful necessity of refusing his assent to the Motion.
. ROSE was aware, that at no time was he en-
titled to occupy much of the attention of the House;
his feelings on the present occasion incapacitated him
still more from trespassing long on their time. He con-
fessed be had entertained a hope, that the Resolution
proposed by his Honourable Friend would have been,
adopted without difficulty, and with unanimity.—
When, in the year 177.0, a similar Resolution bad

'been proposed, with respea to they ustrious Lora
Chatham, it was assented to by the ekiSting Admi-
nistration, notwithstanding that Noble Lnid tad been
'tine of their trt:est violent opponents, and had re-
viled them in. the strongest terms, accusing them
of the grossest weakness, and the basest treachery.
-Great Statesmen might certainly differ on questions
of great importance, but :Or his Own part, he should
consider Mr. Pitt entitled to the appellation of an
excellent Statesman, eyed did he believe that he had
been guilty of occasional errors. The Noble Lard
had stated as a ground of his opposition, that Mr. Pitt
bad, found the Country in a prosperous state, and had
left it in -a ruinous one. Without -any wish to pro-
voke.a diseussiOn-on this point, he would ask, at the
time that Mr. Pitt came. into office, what was the
situation of the Country ? He found it at the end of a
most ruinous War, its Commerce annihilated, its
Navy considerably impaired. What were:the con-
sequences of his efforts ? .During the period of his
administration, our resources had. been doubled, our
manufadures had been doubled, our- seamen had
been doubled; our shipping had been doubled. The
funds, at the period alluded to, were much lower
than they are now, after .thirteen years war. The
revenue was then barely equalAo theinterest of the
debt, and. the national expenditure was annually in-
creasing that.debt. The contrast in this particular was
too obvious to demand illustration. That Mr. Pitt
had --imposed. great burdens was., very true ; that he
had discovered extraordinary resources was as true.
The question was not, whether the present War had
been well or ill 'concluded.; he was sorry to hear, this
mentioned on the other side, because he earnestly
desired i!)n this • Motion unanimity. His Hotionr-
' able :Friend. had taken his .Resolation as he found
it recorded on the Journals of the house. He
bad not altered an iota of the terms id which
the similar ,otte on the death of Lord Chatham,
which was acceded to by the Administration of that
day, had been conceived. He could not, therefore,
with justice be accused of purposely bringingefor-
ward any thing in which Gentlemen opposite might
find it diffieult to acquiesce.: .With respell. to the
illustrious charaaer who was the lamented object of
~the presentMotiou, he would only say of him, that
he had e)ihausted his. life in serving his Couotry to
the best of his great abilities, for it was no exagger-
ation to say, that the. gallant Admiral who had lately
closed' his brilliant career, by filling in the arms of
victory, did noz more decidedly lose his life in the
service of his Country than Mt. Pitt; his anxiety
far his Country had destrOyed him It was Well known
to those who were in the room ‘'hen that great man
expired, that the last words he uttered Were,- ".0h !
my Country." The Motion before the Hotise bound
no Gentleman to. an approbation of any pirticular
ad of Mr. Pitt's -AdinthiAntion; much leSs to the
measures of the last six months. It -Went_ Only, to
assert what was admitted in every corner of Eng-
land and Europe, that Mr. Pitt- was, an excellent
Statesman, and that his loss was irreparable-It> the
Country.
Mr. FOX declared, that sae aici not -Fee ollea ever
having risen in that House with more painftil.sea4a-
tiOns than at .the present moment. Before he en-
tered on an explanation- of the motives that induced
him to give the vote, on the present question which
it-was his intention to. do, he should say something
on what was hinted about party considerations. In
OPposing the 'present Motion, he .cerfiiiill—did
aside all party considerations—he even.aded contrary
to all party considerations. He did not mean to
undervalue party considerations ; 'be -had- always
thought that what was called party, well,dndersTOO-A,
was the best mode of serving the Country ; but he
contended; that on this occasion all party consi-
derations concurred in tempting him to refrain from
the step which he should nevertheless adopt. .It
must be evident to the House, that in the present
situation of domestic affairs, it was his interest to
conciliate those who were immediately connea
ed with the great man whom he most sincerely
lamented—motives of personal respea for those
to whom he alluded combined to render the
task he had prescribed to himself irksome. In
a party view it was peculiarly irksome, because
existing circumstances rendered it highly probable,
that, -for the remainder of his political life, he
should be inseparaoly connected with those whose
opinions he should this night oppose. With
regard to the object., of the present Motion (Mr.
Pitt) he had been called, and he felt it an honour to
be so called, his rival ; but he. declared, that, during
the whole course of their long political difference,
he was not sensible of having once opposed him on
any personal motive. He was most ready to, allow,
that Mr. Pitt was certainly a great man, and for
many of his qualities he had the highest .respect.
He would not now enter into any particular state-
ments of the consequences of his odious ; but from
the establishment of the Sinking Fund, for in:-
-stance, the Country had derived considerable benefit.
Indeed, before his political animosity to Air. Pitt
was extinguished by death, he had asserted in that
House, that with respea to purity of charaaer in
pecuniary concerns he believed no Minister ever
deserved greater praise. He was extremely sorry to
hear that the circumstances in which Mr. Pitt died
,fully proved this. He had been Minister for twenty
years without extravagance, and with the means
of obtaining great pecuniary advantages. There.,
verse, however, was the case, and nothing could
more clearly evince his pure and disinterested motives.
Jr. was remarkable that during the whole of that
time, the Wardenship of the Cinque Ports (he wished
that he could say that of the way in which, according
to the reports of the day, it had been since given)
was entitled to as much praise. Every motive of pri-
vate feeling, he repeated, concurred with. his disposi-
tion to conciliate those whom he respedled, by voting
on the other side of the question. He might gain the
applause of :...odour and generosity by so doing—
be might gain advantages in a party view of the sub-
jeet. All this he sacrificed, without any apparent
-compensation. There were cases in which,,, under
any circumstances, however distressing,. or hOWever
seductive, a man must inflexibly do his duty ; and
in his conscience, he belieVed this to be one of those
cases. if, in consequence of what he had before
mentioned of Mr. Perfs private Whirs, his rela.
fiat's had been left in a situation of embarrassment,
and it had been proposed to remove this incon-
venience, such a MuLion he would cheerfully
have seconded and supported-; but when called
on to vote such distinguished honours, he could
not forget, that 1215 duty was not to be com-
plimented
.away. 01 4.11., the important trusts

that betotiged to the Honed, he knew hot dt
sacred than the Powc;e,'of deer etng
pi ltc honeurs. He'cOuld poi 'be induced, even by
the guarded Manner in .which the Honourable 'Gen-
tleman introduced his Motion for granting them in,
I the preseht instance, 'to accede to it. Piablic ho-
nours shOuld tatily, be voted frimit fiar precedents and
for fatureexample. On this pocnt he Telt 'it ittineceie.
-.
nary to add One word to what 'had fallen fruhe the
'Honourable Gentleman near him. For Isis, own
part, he thought ethiese hoheurs shOuld be chiefly
confined, to 'military merit, ',and 'that they should
never. be paid to the hitt-on-dilate. 'No one would
pretend to say that . Mr. Pitt bud not rendered
sonic services to the Country ; but it was his
general system that was to be considered. When
we. look at the inscription on the tomb of Chat"-
ham, we feel that the increase of the power of.
Great Britain, and the reduaitin of her rivals during
that illustrious man's Administration, fully justify it;
but every one who has the slightest political perspi-
cuity must be convinced, that at the present moment
the prospects of Great Britain are seriously alarming:
The cases, therefore, are not parallel. They Avilt
not admit of comparison.. At the time when public
honours were decreed to the. memory of Lord
Chatham, there was a complete unanimity of opi-
nion on his merits. He should betray his trust
werelie in any case to vote public honours without
ample grounds for so doing; yet there were cases in
which seek a vote would be produilive of less inju-
rious eifeas than in others. In this present case, hd
was not inclined -to look at any particular aote but,
be would maintain, as he had always maintained,
that there had been an unfortunate system of Uo-.
vernment throughdat the present reign, which
might' truly be. elhiraelerizel''as the cause of all
the misfortunes that 'had accompanied it., When
we consider the various and 'extraordinary losses
that -the Country had experienced elis waseevi-
dent. If, on
.the death of Lord Guildthrd, with all
his affedion for him, and for his son, who was now
also -no more ; if such a Motion as the present had
been made, he should haVe felt it his duty to op-
pose it. What that system to which he alluded was
owing, it-would be irrelevant here to discuSse it had
been generally productive of the most lamentable
consequences. Unfortunately, Mr. Pitt, by the
lustreof his brilliant and splendid talents, veitel in
some degree that odious deformity \tibia woald
otherwise have been 'conspicuous.. Whatever desire
he might feehto commit to oblivion all recolleaions
Of political animosities between himself and Mr.
Pitt, he could , not, .consistently • with :his duty as
a MeMber -of that House, give publiietestimony,
by giving public honours, to the memory of a man
whose political system and principles bad everrap-
pcared to him in the most unfavourable Mr.
Fox said -he repeated it ; he defied any. Man. so to
Misrepresent or pervert the sentiments which-he had
expressed,- as to suppose that they proceeded' from
any motives of private policy, prudent or dire Ct. He
was heartily:sorry .that the• Haim Gentleman had not
delayed- his. Motion. • He certainly could not expe6t
that the Hon. Gentleman ,would.hve consulted him
on the subjea ; but had be consulted fthoie with
whom Mr. Pitt Aras connected' in blood end affee-
tionS, he was. convinced that a way might have been
-struck out of paying-a just tribute to his memory
-without Violation of the :feelings ofeany one. This
,was; however, now too" late. As the Motion steeLl,
be felt himself compelled by duty, and by ditty-alone,
to give it hisenost.decided negative.
•Leed .CASTLEREAG'ITI observed, that he, should
trouble the House very shortly, as he would cau-
tiously abstain from touching on any of those untie-
pessary subje&s which had been introduced into the
Debate. He gave full credit to the .honourable
Gentleman who had just sat down, for the manner
to which he had stated his objeCtions to the proposed
Motioe ; he had certainly expressed himself not
with the intemperate warmth ofa :hostile adyersary,
but with the calm moderation of a generous rival.
He was. likewise fully sensible of the value of the
support of the Noble Lord opposite. Were the
ground on which the present Motion rested a minute
examination of the different measures of the illustri-
ous character who was -the objea of it, he knew no
man more qualified to enter- into this examination
than he who was close to him in blood and closer to
him in affe&ion. But it was not oe these- general
grOunds that the Motion rested ;- it was on the intui-
tive feeling in the House and-in the Nation, that that
great charaCter had been eminently serviceable to his
Country. If this feeling did not already exist in the
hearts of those who heard him, it was impossible,
in such a discussion as the present, to argue it into
them. .Such a task would he hopeless, even were
it undertaken by an individual much, less humble
and partial than himself. The Hon. Gentleman had
asserted, that it was not safe -to trust the House
with the power of conferring such honours, except
on military merit ; thiS would be true, if such ho-
nours* were frequently conferred, . or, if they were
conferred, except in cases where the splendour of the
character unquestionably deserved them, of which
cases this was one. • He •perfealy agreed with the-
' Hon. Gentleman, ' that rif they could be perverted
into a gratuity for past privateservices,,or an induce-
ment to fueure, the fldjudication of them ought not
to be hazarded with the Fitlse. For the.. gallant
Admiral, who had. lately.B distinguished himself so
brilliantly, and whose loss. the Country, had to de-
Ohre, he felt great admiration ; admiration perhaps
not so warm as that by which he was inspired on the
recolleCtion of his lamented Friend Mr. Pitt, because
perhaps he had not equal means of acquaintance and
intimacy with the Noble Viscount he alluded to • but
admiration certainly as sincere.---7Heregretted, diere-
fore,. extremely, that the charaaers of these two
great men had.been placed in competitioe-He. com-
parison unnecessary and Unfair, on account of the
very dissimilar points by which they were marked.
He could 'not agree with the -Honourable Gentleman,
that any part of the traesaaions of the life of his lae
mented.friend deserved the epithet of unfortunate.
With regard to the recent events on the Continent,
no man deplored them more deeply than himself. He
deprecated the idea, that any individual who voted for
th e Motion of to-night pledged himself to acquiesce in
-the propiety of the transaaions which had led to 'those
events. Those important transactions, and the great
sacrifices which the Countryhad made during them,
must undergo a full and complete examination.-=-
This, however, he could not refrain from declaring,
that as far as he. knew of those transAio-es, the
condua of Mr.- Pitt on the occasion, v..as one of the
mast splendid efferts that ever emaeatedefiem the