The Sun.
London, England, 1827-05-03 00:00:00

that Lord Liverpool's Government had been of a con-
trary opinion, he would never have been a member of it.
He had not the vanity to suppose that that Administration
would have suffered by hie refusal to take a part in it,
no such opinion as this ever entered his head,—but,
as an honest man, be would have refused on prin-
ciple, and he must say, that he always understood the
principle of that Government to have been as he had
stated it. With respect to the place which he held
in the present Administration, instead of looking upon
it as an honour to be coveted, lie should have con-
sidered it as a calamity to be dreaded, if, by adopting any,
means in his power, he could have kept together the ele-
ments of the late Administration, which were now unhap-
pily separated. His Noble and Learned Friend had said
that they had been the victims of the basest calumnies. My
Lords (added the Noble Viscount) whatever may be the
calumny or misrepresentation which they have endured, 1
can declare, with the utmost sincerity, it finds no respon-
sive feeling in my mind. It is unnecessary for me to de-
clare, that of any such attacks I can be neither a patron
nor a partisan. When it is added (as it has been added)
that, in the attacks which are complained of, the press has
been under the influence of the Government, I take leave,
my Lords, in a-manner the most distinct and unqualified, to
.deny the amertion.—(Hear, hear.)—l will go farther than
this, and add, that, from what I know of the character of
the public presss and the connection subsisting between it
and the Government, I have no hesitation in expressing
my opinion, that the press is an engine too powerful and
independent to be made use of in the way alluded to.; even
if the Government were disposed, which it is not, to make
the attempt.—(Hear, and a laugh from the Opposition
Benches.)—Noble Lords may laugh ; but if they were
again sitting at this side of the House—l say, if they were
here, and had to settle the question of influence—l will add
of independence—with the press, they would soon ascer-
tain their error, and find it an instrument too powerful to
be so readily controulled. As to conspiracy among his
Hon. Friends, he was far from imputing any thing of the
kind to them. He would not cast such an imputation upon
them; nay, he could mat cast such au imputation upon
them, even if there existed circumstances which attached
the most powerful suspicion to them. Many of the dif-
ficulties which bad arisen had their origin from want of
more communication. He really believed that if there had
been more communication, much of what he called the
mischief that had taken place might have been prevented.
When his Right Hon. Friend told him of his having re-
ceived his Majesty's commission, he (Viscount Goderich)
said he would certainly fulfil his Majesty's commands, and
remain ; and he made this answer to the communication,
because he felt that for the last 15 years the Catholic
question had been left perfectly open in the adminiss
tracion; while at the same time, in periods of no or-
dinary distress and difficulty, the Ministers of the
Crown had been in the possession of the confidence of
the King, of both Houses of Parliament, and, he thought
he might safely add, of the country.—(Cheers.)—lt
was true that this Administration had been deprived
of its leader ; but then he saw no reason to doubt that if
the rest remained unite), they might continue to effect the
same object, and it was for this reason that, without wait-
ing to ask himself the question, he had undoubtedly not
hesitated for a moment to say that his services were at the
command of his Majesty.—(Cheers. )—He felt that he
should have been acting the basest and the shabbiest part,
if he had made his decision accoi ding to that of others, as
their reasons could not possibly apply to his case. It was
morally impossible that the circumstance of the head of
the Administration, being a friend to Catholic Emancipa-
tion, could form any, even the slightest, objection with
him. If the Government at present was not constituted
in a manner altogether satisfactory, it was not the fault of
him and his Hon. and Noble Friends. The object of Mr.
Canning was, to keep the elements of the late Ministry
together, but they had fallen away, and that without any
act of his (Mr. Canning's.) What kind of situation was
he then placed in ? What was he to say to his Majesty ?
Was he to say, " I will run away and leave you in such a
predicament as no Sovereign was ever placed in before?"
—He (Mr. Canning) was very well aware that others had
said they would not undertake to form an Administration
of a contrary nature, and he (Viscount Goderich) did
not know on what ground his Honourable Friend could
have said—" We will not make any effort to enable
your Majesty to carry on the Government as nearly as
possible in the same way." The last fifteen years had
furnished an unequivocal proof that the people were
prepared to support a Government founded • on the princi-
ples on which this bad been formed. His Noble Friend
(Lord Mansfield), who had last addressed their Lord-
ships, had expressed his sentiments with some degree of
asperity; but, at the same time, with some degree of ob •
scurity. His Noble Friend had said that it had been as-
serted that the coalition was unnatural and unprecedented ;
that be could not agree with that opinion. He thought
that it was neither unnatural nor unprecedented ; but he
had some doubts whether it -vas quite sudden. His Noble
Friend had assigned as a reason, that he had long watched
with suspicion the conciliation of parties opposed to them
and the concurrence of those parties with certain measures,
thereby insinuating that some petty intrigues had been car-
ried on, which he (Viscount Goderich) was sure had never
existed. He knew perfectly well what the Noble Earl
alluded to. The measures in which these parties had con-
curred were certain measures relating to the internal policy
of the country;' and he begged leave to offer himself to his
Noble Friend as the individual to whom they were princi-
pally to be attributed. If these measures were wrong let
him be blamed, let the steps which he had taken be re-
traced, but let not the blame be thrown on others. From
the moment in which the cessation of war allowed him to
turn his attention more fully to domestic affairs, and gave
him an opportunity of dealing with these subjects, he had
applied what had been ignorantly called the introduction of
innovations, but which was in point of fact only bringing
back that policy of the country which the war bad neces-
sarily broken in upon, and which, notwithstanding the de-
nunciations of his Noble Friend, had received the sanction
of the greatest men, and, he believed, would be found to
be practically beneficial to the country in the highest
degree.—(Cheers.)—But, whoever brought these mea-
sures about, be must be allowed to state to their Lord-
ships that his Majesty's Government was not divided upon
them.—(Cries of " hear.")----Every member of that Go-
vernment was responsible for them, and he therefore felt
very little uneasiness at the manner in which his Noble
Friend had treated them. He was afraid that he had tres-
passed too long upon their Lordships.—(Loud cheers.)—
He felt that he had expressed himself with too much
warmth, and with less self-possession than he ought ; but
he would venture to say, that when his duty called him
to take a part in the business of that House, in discharge of
his duty as Secretary of State, he should not despair of
obtaining their Lords/lips' confidence, because he relied upon
the justice and the candour of their Lordships.—(Cheers.)
He was not placed there from any motives of_personal am-
bition. He need not perhaps have said so ; but he felt it a
relief to his own mind to state, that if he had acted upon his
own motives—motives altogether ok a personal nature—
he should never have been there. (The Noble Viscount
was much affected, and their Lordships evidently entered
into his feelings.) He should therefore throw himself upon
the indulgence of their Lordships, declaring that he aimed
at nothing but the honour of his King and the good of
his country.—(Loud cheers.)
The Earl of MANSFIELD and the Duke of WELLINGTON
explained ; but it was impossible to hear what fell from
their Lordships.
Earl BATHURST then rose, but, from the position in
which his Lordship stood, and the tone in which he spoke,
his observations were very indistinct. We understood his
Lordship to say, that when he found that Lord Wellington,
Lord Eldon, and Mr. Peel had retired, be retired also. It
was true that in Lord Liverpool'sAd ministration each member
of the Cabinet was at liberty to take what part be pleased
upon the Catholic Question, but that as a Government
they should be neuter. He had understood, and if he were
misinformed the Noble Duke would correct him, that when
Mr. Canning proposed that a Government purely Protest-
ant should be formed, both Mr. Peel and the Duke of Wel-
lington objected. For his own part, he must' gay that when,
by a severe 'visitation of Providence, the country was de-
prived of Lord Liverpool—when by that event the country
was also deprived of the Duke of Wellington, of Lord Eldon,
and of Mr. Peel, there appeared to him such a blank formed
as would not be filled up in a manner that would justify
him in remaining in office. With respect to those who re- ,
mained, he did not wish to speak disparagingly of any of
them; and with respect to the Chancellor of the Duchy of
Lancaster, he should ever retain a lively sense of his services
as Chancellor of Exchequer during the war. As to the
resignations, he had to declare that there had been no con-
cert respecting them, however singular a coincidence might
have happened in their being sent in.
The Earl of WESTMORLAND said, that subject had
been so fully answered by his Noble Friend who had just sat
down, that it was not necessary for him to trouble their
Lordships with many observations. As the grounds upon
which he acted were abort and clear, he would beg leave
plainly and strictly to state them. Before he did so, how-
ever, he had a few short words in answer to certain
charges which had been made against the late Members of
his Majesty's Government. They had been first charged
with caballing against the formation of the new Govern-
ment, and st"ndlYtwiTh an attempt to invade the exercise
of his Majesty.. ,
• , . Neither of these charges
were which was the most serious of
tb • • sse3.
_sass spent in support of the

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.1
1,11 ._

King's prerogative against those who had devoted their
lives to attacking it.—(Hear, and laughter.)—But first, as
to the charge of caballing ; now, that was an imputation
which could be hardly met any other way than by a flat
contradiction, and an assertion that no such cabal had
existed. Indeed, when he saw what had been effected, he
almost regretted the non-existence of some such cabal,
for if there had been any, the unexpected occurrence,
which was only known when the blow that it levelled had
been shuck, would not prcbably have happened. Every
man of the late Government had, in retiring, acted from
the impulse of his own feelings, and certainly without the
least attempt at forming any cabal. The next, and, as he
had said, the most serious charge against them, was, that
they had attempted to overrule his Majesty in the exercise
of his prerogative. But, first, he would ask, what was
the prerogative which they had attacked ? That it was
the King's prerogative to appoint his own Ministers, no
man could ever doubt ; he had never yet, in fact, beard it
contradicted. At the same time, he certainly did remem-
ber when a charge had been brought against a Right Hon,
Gentleman for having made such an attempt. Did, how-
ever, the law of the prerogative ever go to the extent of in-
sisting upon any Minister's services without his own con-
sent? If his Majesty were to fix upon any man,
would he be bound to support a reformist, and a de-
mocrat ?—(A laugh, and hear.)—Was that any part
of the King's prerogative? He desired again to know
what there was unconstitutional in a man's retiring
from office, when he could no longer hold it without a
sacrifice of principle ? And if every one of those who now
arraigned them h&d, in their turn, refused office under
similar circumstances, where was the consistency in circu-
lating such a charge ? When Mr. Fox and the Duke of
Portland, and other eminent men had refused to join Lord
Melbourne's Administration, were they considered as hav-
ing attacked the King's prerogative? It was, in fact, the
invariable practice of public men to decline office when dif-
ferences of opinion arose between them. When Lord
Wellesley was directed sty his Majesty to form an Adminis-
tration, in the year 1912, Lord Liverpool had refused to
serve under him, partly because he disapproved of certain
parts of the Noble Marquis's public conduct, but principally
because of their difference of opinion upon the Catholic
question. When Mr. Canning had himself at various
times refused to take office, where he (Lord Westmore-
land) asked, was there a breach of the prerogative ? Was
there in 1809, when he quitted office with Lord London-
derry ? Was thc.-e in 1920, when he again retired ? He
had always considered that it was permitted to public
men either to accept or recede from office, according
ae they thought their services could be rendered use-
ful to the public. Having relieved himself and those
who had aeted with him on the late occasion, from
the two charges which had been brought against them,
he should shortly state the grounds of his conduct.
The first letter which he bad received upon the subject of
the Administration, was for a re-construction of Lord Li-
verpool's government, to which he most readily gave his
acquiescence ; but he thought it likewise proper he should
know how matters stood respecting the policy of the new
government, and who were the parties charged with office
under it. And upon these points he confessed that his
mind was left in the same state of blindness as the Noble
Duke near him ; for he had not learned from the letter
which was transmitted to him, nor from his recollection of
the previous practice, that the King's nomination of any
man to form an Administration must be understood as
ipso facto making that man the chief of it. Certain he
was, that it was not so considered when Lord Liverpool
and the Learned Lord near him were appointed to form
the Government of the year 1807. He thought that.upon
a reference to the correspondence of that (lay, it would be
seen that Mr. Canning had himself asked the very same
question of Lord Liverpool, who told him that the chief and
every other part of the Administration was open to arrange-
ment. The answer to the letter which he had received on
the.late occasion, which letter did not state who was to be
the chief, was of a conditional, not a positive nature. His
reply was simply this—that if the chief of the new Ad-
ministration were to possess the same principles as Lord
Liverpool, that he should be happy to give him his best
support ; but if the reverse were the case, he should not do
so. He knew the differences which prevailed respecting
the Catholic Question, into the merits of which he was
not now about to enter, further than to say, that be his
opinion right or wrong, his sincere belief Was, that by
yielding it they would cause great public mischief and mis-
fortune. And with the prospect of a Cabinet favourable to
the measure he could not connect himself, for then he knew
his solitary vote could be of no service, with the whole weight
of the Government working against him. Again he de-
clared there had been no cabal, and that the resignations
had been accidentally coincident, and the very first he had
known of the extent of their occurrence was on the evening
when it took place, and by a communication from the great
man himself. He had served his Majesty many and many
a year, and no man was more proud of it than he was, while
under the guidance of the late Administration ; but he had
resigned office when he found he could not longer be of any
use to his King and country.

Lord ?WEL VILLE said, that although it had been stated
all the late Ministers were engaged in the supposed cabal,
and implicated in the same alleged conspiracy, yet some
kind of difference had been made in his individual case.
Now, for himself, he could declare, upon his honour, that
since Lord Liverpool's illness he had not had the slightest
communication upon this business with any of his col-
leagues. All he could tell was this, that his Right Hon.
Friend (Mr. Huskisson) had called upon him on the Wed-
nesday (if we understood the Noble Lord correctly), to say,
that Mr. Canning had then received His Majesty's com-
mands to form a new Administration, upon the principles
of Lord Liverpool's, bottomed upon the same Cabinet, and
comprehending the same individuals. His answer was,
that he should be happy to serve with such an Administra-
tion, provided no pledge was required from him upon the
Catholic Question, and that he was left to the exercise of
his own discretion and judgment on that subject. But it
was not until the next day lie had received a communica-
tion from Mr. Canning. to whom he then stated that he
had remained in total ignorance of what was doing respect-
ing the Administration until Mr. Huskisson had informed
him on the preceding day. His Right Hon. Friend (Mr.
Canning) then told him what had occurred, and he cer-
tainly left him (Lord Melville) under the impression that
he would have been able to form such an Administration
as he had described. Was there any thing like caballing
in his conduct with regard to this business ? It was on
the day after that he bad heard of the resignations of Mr.
Peel, the Noble Duke, and the Lord Chancellor. Indeed,
he had understood from Mr. Canning, who had expressed
at the time the greatest regret for the circumstance,
that Mr. Peel would not remain in office under the
new change. It could not have been expected that
he was to embark in a new Government, without
knowing the Members of which it was to he com-
posed and without knowing its character and stability. It
was precisely upon that ground he stood. He estimated
highly the talents of his Right Hon. Friend ('ilr. Canning)
but he confessed he did not think he could form an efficient
Government, such as the exigency of the country required,
if stripped of his old associates. He had stated his opinion
that he would not be an adequate substitute (and he stated
it without meaning to convey the slightest offence) to carry
on the same prudent, able, and useful superintendence
which Lord Liverpool had, and that the remaining portion
of the Government would, notwithstanding the splendid
talents of his Right Hon. Friend, he unequal to the task
of governing this country. It had been very pr yerly said
that this was not the place to review any thing which had
passed in the interior of his Majesty's Government, but he
could not conceal the opinion which he had formed and
acted upon respecting the late change in the Government.
He had had for twenty years the honour of being per-
mitted to approach his Majesty, and at his age, perhaps,
he ought rather to have retired than remained in office.—
His only wish now was to ascertain whether lie had not a
right to see his way through the proceedings of the new Ad-
ministration, and whether there was any impropriety in his
expressing a disinclination to act with what he feared would
prove to be a weak Administration. He had retired with
those among whom he had been long accustomed to act,
and he was not conscious of having done any more than he
had a fair perfect right to do in the guidance of his own
conduct. —( Hear. )
The Marquis of CAMDEN said, that he knew nothing
of the transactions which formed the subject-matter of the
present discussion, except what he had collected from the
statements (which were sufficiently varied and abundant)
in the newspapers. These statements, and the explana-
tions of the Noble Lords in this House, constituted all the
knowledge that he possessed upon the question ; and from
that knowledge he should say, that so far from matter hav-
ing gone wrong from any cabal, it appeared to him a mat-
ter of surprise that there had been's.) little communication
between the Members of the late Administration. It ap-
peared to him that there was not even that ordinary and
common intercourse which ought to subsist between Mem-
bers of the same Government. If such an intercourse had
subsisted, much of what occurred might have been
averted; as it resulted, in a great degree, in his opinion,
from a 'want of full and perfect understanding between the
parties. The Noble Marquis concluded by expressing his
satisfaction at the explanations afforded by the Noble
Lords far their grounds of retirement from Administration.
_ _

The Marquis of LONDONDERRY was anxious to
protest against himself and his Illustrious Friend (the
Duke of Wellington) being run down by insinuations of
having 'acted ungratefully or disrespectfully towards their

Sovereign. His resignation of the situation (Lord of the
Bedchamber) which he had the honour to hold, was re-
solved upon as soon as he had heard of the appointment of
the present First Lord of the Treasury. His opinion of
that individual was not formed, for the first time, on the
late occasion. So long ago as 1822, when he had the ho-
nour of being Ambassador at Vienna, he predicted to his
Noble Fi iend, the Duke of Wellington, and stated to him
his conviction, that, if that individual, after the death of
his lamented brother, was appo;nted Secretary for Foreign
Affairs, a few years would not elapse before he would show
that he would not be satisfied, but that he would force
himself to the head of his Majesty's Councils. That
Right Hon. Gentleman on several, but particularly on a
recent occasion, had realised that conviction by the extra-
ordinary speech which he had made on the affairs of Por-
tugal. The principles advanced in which speech amoun-
ted, in his opinion, to a departure from those diplomatic
relations, and political principles, which were considered
to constitute the principles of Lord Liverpool's Govern-
ment, and from which he was confident that his lamented
brother (had he lived)—than whom no man was actuated
with a more ardent and devoted love for his country—
would not have departed. Hehad observed, indeed, for some
time back, that new principles were creeping into the
Government, which he could not conscientiously support
as a Peer of Parliament, and he therefore resigned the si-
tuation which he had the honour to bold under his Ma-
jesty. He would again invite any person to read the speech
of the present First Lord of the Treasury on the affairs
of Portugal, and ask him, if the infatuated enterprize which
that Right Hon. Gentleman had recommended to Parlia-
ment, was not in diametrical opposition to all the principles
of foreign alliance or diplomatic relations, on which this
country had invariably acted. As to support such mea-
sures would be, in his opinion, to aim at the subversion of
all those principles which his lamented brother maintained,
and which he believed to lie deep in the interests of his
country, he determined no longer to support Government.
Another part of the conduct of the present First Lord of
the Treasury, to which the attention of the country was
attracted, was his correspondence with his illustrious Friend
the Duke of Wellington, which placed him in that situa-
tion in which he was compelled to retire from the command
of the army—a retirement which went to the heart of the
army that he commanded, and by which he was beloved.
The House would surely bear in mind, that his illustrious
Friend ought not to be slighted such au occasion, when
it was recollected what respect and honour was instilled
into the o.ind of the cca]iitry when the command of the
army was entrusted to the illustrious Commander. He
would take the liberty of reading to the House the man-
ner in which his Majesty was graciously pleased to intro-
duce the mention of his name in the General Order of his
appointment :

GQ The King feels, that, under the present afflicting cir-
cumstances, his Majesty cannot more effectually supply the
loss which the nation and the army have sustained, than by
appointing to the Chief Command of his Majesty's Forces
Field-Marshal his Grace the Duke of Wellington, the great
and distinguished General who has so often led the armies
of the nation to victory and glory, and whose high military
renown is blended with the history of Europe.
" By his Majesty's command,
" HENRY TORRENS."

Such was the honourable mention made of him by his
Sovereign ; and if the service of his country should again
require the exercise of the great abilities of that illustrious
General, with what grace could the First Lord of the
Treasury call upon him to unsheath his sword after, in
consequence of the treatment which he had received, being
unable, consistently with his high character, to maintain
that pinnacle to which his Sovereign had raised him—to
which his great services entitled him—and in which the
wishes of the country would gladly continue him. Then
as to the Catholic Question, although others may be dis-
posed to compromise it, yet he was not He owned he
was at a loss to account for the conduct of the Noble Mar-
quis (Lansdown), who, after having opposed Lord Liver-
pool's Administration for a long time, now marched across
the House, as it was understood, to support that very Go-
vernment to which he had been thus long opposed. But let
them not mistake themselves—let them not suppose that by
going over they can advance the Catholic Questim., to
which they declare themselves pledged. They know they
cannot—they know they dare not bring forward that ques-
tion now 'Or do they not really require it, or will they
be satisfied to take the will for the deed ? Let not the Ca-
tholics expect relief through such means. The Noble
Lord next adverted to the speech of a Right Hon. Gentle-
man
(Mr. Peel), in another Hciuse last night, which he
designated as candid, manly, and independent ; and he de-
dared that, although anxious as he was for the measure of
Catholic Emancipation, yet he would prefer that the au-
thor of that speech, although on the principle of Catholic
exclusion, were Prime Minister, rather than that the pre-
sent Prime Minister held that office, inasmuch as he pre-
ferred consistency to inconsistency,and honesty to dishonesty.
He regretted sincerely that the country had the misfortune
to lose that Minister ; and if the friends of Emancipation
were to see him Prime Minister, even on the principle of
the exclusion of the Catholics, they would at least know
the difficulties opposed to them, and would be relieved from
excited and defeated hopes, to which they were now sub-
jected, without any fair prospect of their definite termina-
tion. Among the extraordinary features which charac-
terised the present Administration, he could not forbear
observing, that on the side of the new Government were
found, for the first time, united, persons who had for-
merly been invariably opposed : there were found on the
side of the Minister one Hon. Gentleman (Sir F. Burdett)
who was considered the Man of the People, and another
Gentleman, of great legal ability, who had been heard in
that House as the advocate of the late Queen; but these
Gentlemen, forsooth, were seen supporting the Govern-
' ment of Lord Liverpool. He had now spoken his senti-
ments plainly and freely; he was no orator, but lie hoped
he was a man of sense.—(A laugh.)—He would not go to
a bookseller to print his speech. He was thankful for the
attention with which his observations had been heard; he
was induced to extend them, from the sense he had en-
tertained of the treatment of his Illustrious Friend the
Duke of Wellington, who was endeared to the army,
I and to himself (Lord L.), from having been associated
with them in perils and in dangers, of which his Noble
Friend did not condescend to think, .yet his country
should be grateful for them and for his services,
unequalled by those of any of her former com-
manders. With respect to another Noble Friend of his,
the Marquess of Anglesea, he was glad to see him in an
honourable situation, although he regretted that the place
he occupied was at the expence of the retirement of the
Noble Duke ; and he regretted still more, that the Noble
Marquess had not endeavoured to reconcile that Noble
Duke hack to that place over which he presided so effi-
ciently, and from which he retired to the sorrow of the
whole army.—(Hear, hear.)
The Marquess of LANSDOWN said, that he should
have contented himself with list;:ning to the explanations
of those Noble Lords who had retired from Government,
and of those also who had been appointed to the new Ad-
ministration, had it not been that be and those with whom
he acted were so personally alluded to, as to render it impe-
rative on him to address a few observations to the House.
With respect to the Noble Duke late at the head of the
army, although he concurred with his Noble Friend (Lord
L.) in the expression of regret at the retirement of that
Noble Duke from the command of the army, yet he could
not help it. It was not for a moment to be supposed
that he was dismissed from that situation. But, at the
same time, it could not be disputed for a moment that lie
had an undoubted right to resign if he thought proper to
exercise that right. He thought proper willingly and
readily of his own accord to exercise that right, and it was
surely most unfair to visit on others the adoption of that
course which the Noble Duke had himself preferred to
take.—(Hear.)—With respect to the charge and imputation
of conspiracy, for his part, he was of opinion there was no
ground for such an imputation ; on the contrary, he felt
great surprise at the almost total absence of communication
which subsisted among the Members of the Administra-
tion, according to the explanations of the Noble Lords
themselves.—(Hear, hear. )—lndeed, from the slight inter-
course that subsisted among them, no person would sup-
pose that they were engaged in arrangements on the result
of which depended the future fate of England. It was,
indeed, in his opinion, a reproach, that there was
not a fuller and more perfect understanding between
all parties, whereby much inconvenience might be
avoided. With respect to an imputed coalition be-
tween those with whom he was accustomed to act
and the First Lord at the head of the Treasury, he could
only say, that the idea of such a coalition was absurd, as he
never had been even on such terms of acquaintance with
that Right lion. Gentleman as their respective situations
in society might render probable; and there never had
been the slightest approximation towards a coalition be-
fore the commencement of the proceedings of the last fort-
night. He would ask, however, what was the accusa-
,tion—if accusation it could he call.d—which the Noble
Marquis and the Noble Earl had brought against him, and
those persons who had lately been placed in opposition to
his Majesty's Government. The Noble Earl did not say,
for he could not say, that the disposition they now display-
ed to support the Government, as it existed, arose from
any secret intrigue or reprehensible machination upon the
part of the one side or the other. The plain and simple
reason of those proceedings which had taken place during
the last few days was to be found hi that approximation
upon great questions of policy which had been taking place

for several years, between a portion of his Majesty's Go-
vernment and those with whom he generally acted. When
therefore, the Noble Marquis who last addressed the House
(Lord Londonderry) expressed his surprise in seeing him
support a Governthent which professed to act upon some
undefined principle neither explained nor understood, he
must take leave to ask that Noble Marquis to look back
to the proceedings of the last few years, as some ex-
planation of the motives which influenced that sup-
port. When he recollected that only three years be-
fore he had used his feeble endeavours to impress
upon the House the necessity, in the present state of Eu-
ropean politics—a state which must, for a great number of
years, continue to influence the destinies of the country ;
when, he repeated, he had unsuccessfully endeavoured to
impress upon the House the necessity of this country's re-
cognising the independence of these States in South Ame-
rica which were then freeing themselves from their bon-
dage, and casting aside the fetters which had been rivetted
upon them for centuries, and when he saw a skilful hand
had succeeded in smoothing the difficulties which stood in
the way of that recognition and that connection—when he
saw a wide field opened for commercial speculation, and the
exertion of national industry ; did the Noble Marquis sup-
pose, that any difference as to minor points of policy could
prevent him from feeling that the individual who-had suc-
ceeded in conferring such important benefits upon the
country had thereby laid the ground of a strong claim upon
his advocacy and support?—(Hear, hear, hear.)—Could,
he would ask, the Noble Marquis fail to recognise the ef-
fect of his own humble sentiments upon subjects which he
saw about to be carried into effect, and even then pro-
ducing the mos. beneficial results to every class of the com-
munity ?—He thought, at the same time, that the Noble
Marquis and others would do well to recollect the con-
sequences which flowed from the recognition of the
Spanish Colonies, and allow themselves to consider in
what state the Shipping and the Commercial Interests
of the country would have been now had the opportu-
nity which then presented itself to the Right Hon. Gen-
tleman now at the head of the Government been then un-
happily neglected. Without the benefits which have flow-
ed into the country from that and other effects of a more
liberal and enlightened policy, he had no hesitation in say-
ing that the time was fast approaching, when the indepen-
dense of the country must have been sacrificed, and the
advantages for which they had been contending for cen-
turies wholly obliterated. He came then to another topic
touched upon by the No;,le Marquess—the foreign policy
of the country; and in speaking of that, he felt himself
hound to allude most particularly to a question upon which
he thought there was (if there could ever be upon any
great public question) an universal concurrence of senti-
ment ; be meant- that exercise of the power of the country
which the Noble Marquess had designated as the infatuated
expedition to Portugal. Who, be would ask, had ever
before supposed that the expedition to that country was
one to be justified and defended upon every prineiple of
public honour, er national policy ? It proceeded upon the
principle of recognising the independence of nations ; it
proceeded upon a right without which the independence
of nations could not exist in Europe; it proceeded upon
the right of every nation to choose its own Government,
and to be its own judge of the nature of the institutions
which it proposed to adopt—(Hear, hear, hear!)—it pro-
ceeded upon the principle, that no nation ought to be strip-
ped of its privileges by the power of any other, without
its own consent ; and that although different nations might
consider different forms of Government as suited to differ-
ent situations, yet when those institutions were adopted,
no foreign power was to be permitted to overturn them.
—(Hear, hear!)—What, then, did the Noble Marquess
think was inconsistent in his support of those who main-
tained these principles ? Did he think that because those
with whom he had the honour to think and to act had al-
ways advocated the cause of South American independence,
and the recognition of that independence, he was therefore
to oppose those who advocated the same principles? Did
he suppose that because he had always advocated the prin-
ciples of free trade, and confidently predicted, in the in-
stance of the silk trade and others with which he had more
immediately connected hintself,:the beneficial results to the
country from the adoption of those principles—did lie sup-
pose that, when be saw those principles adopted,. and these
benefits produced, he was ..callednponto refuse his confi-
dence and support to th'at portion of hisMajestyie Govern-
ment which had Succeeded in accottesibirig those objects
he considered to sei;defiiiabli.-?-=-'llle,Voble Marquis
then alluded to theTraise which:4had -.l:iten bestowed upon
the late Secretary for the , Home: Deparyeent (Mr., Peel),
a Gentleman whom it had pleasq the Noble Lord (Lord
lese'b agt Londonderry) to e as e very rac of all honour,
and the essence of all candour and sincerity, from the simple
circumstance of his Idyll Jr-refused to ''sit in a Cabinet
the head of which had professed- himself favourable to
Catholic Emancipation, . :He confessed ,that the Noble
Marquis had founded upon ' this a very strange argument,,and
the more strange as he avoWed himself to be an advocate
for chat Emancipation. The Noble Marquis- bad eulogised
the conduct of the Right :11IonA'Gentlemart in-withdraw-
ing from a Cabinet favourable to the Catholics. .-.But was
that Right Hon. Gentleman,,,who had gone on for years
supporting all the measures of the Government, even its
deviations from that ancient policy ofthe country which the
Noble Marquis so much applanded,lo he made the subject
of praise because he had thought At to withdraw himself
from the situation he held in the Government the moment
he found it disposed to lama. Catholic emancipation ?
He felt as much as any man the value of the services that
Right Honourable Gentleman had rendered the country.
He regretted as much as any man that the Right
Honourable Gentleman had thought fit to withdraw him-
self from the situation in which he had been able to accom-
plish such important alterations, but lie could not agree
with the Noble 'Marquis in considering that secession as
entitled to the commendations which lie had bestowed upon
it. Looking, therefore, either at the foreign or the do-
mestic policy pursued by his Majesty's Government, he
felt himself equally bound to give it his support. That
support, however, was net given to persons, but to things
—not to the men by whom measures were to be executed,
but to the prospects which those measures held out of realis-
ing his objects, and thereby adding strength to the consti-
tutional institutions of the country. In alluding, how-
ever, to the Catholic question, he did not hesitate to
say, that whether on this side of the House or on the
other—whether in or out of office, in whatever situation he
might be placed—he never could be rendered incapable of
stating fairly and openly his opinions upon that question, or
of bringing it forward at any time, or under any circum-
stances which he might consider the most advantageous, or
the most likely to advance its ultimate triumph ; and he
would add, that leaving himself, as he repeated, at full
liberty to choose that time, he never could be induced to
move the question in that House, unless under such a com-
bination of circumstances as he might conceive to he likely
to insure the success of the cause he advocated, and pro-
mote, at the same time, the tranquillity of the empire—
(Cneers.)—Whenever that time should come—he did not
at that moment venture to say when—but whenever it did
come, he hoped so to pursue his course as to aid, not to in-
jure, the cause he espoused—(Cheers.)—The Noble Mar-
quess concluded by observing, that having thus stated the
reasons which induced baits to support his Majey's Govern •
ment, he had only to add, that when he saw his Majesty
issuing his commands to the Right Hon. Gent. to form
an Administration, and when his Majesty at the same
time commanded that Right Hon. Gentleman to propose
to him to take a part in the support of that Government,
lie felt it his duty—coinciding as he did with that Govern-
ment in opinions—to bow with submission to those com-
mands, and to obey them.—(Cheers.)—{We feel obliged
to say, that from the confusion below the Bar, and from
the Noble Marquis lowering his tone of voice at the end of
his sentences, we have }peen forced to omit many observa-
tions, which must else have been mere matter of con-
jecture.]
Lord ELLENBOROUGH commenced by observing,
that he differed from the Noble Marquis who had last ad-
dressed their Lordships upon mans important points. He
was prepared to admit that many practical benefits had
flowed from the measures adopted by Mr. Canning, but lie
differed from some Noble Lords as to the quantity of credit
due to Mr. Canning for those benefits. Upon the question
of Foreign Policy, however, he was prepared to chew
there had been no benefit from his councils, because Mr.
Canning was incapable of inspiring that confidence in the
minds of those foreigners with whom he negociated which
could alone enable him to render his measures effectual
in accomplishing his ohject.—(Hear, from Lord London-
derry.)—Let the House only look to the commencement
of the revolution in the Peninsula of Spain. Every at-
tempt was ineffectually made by this country to .prevent
any foreign Power from interfering in the internal regula-
tions of that country; and while Lord Londonderry conti-
nued to uphold the interests of this country among
foreigners, those efforts were successful. What had been
the effect of the efforts of this country since that time it
was unnecessary for him to say. The power of a nation
in the eyes of foreigners could only be upheld in two ways
—by confidence in its power and in those who directed that
power, or by force. If they lost confidence, they could
only resort to force to maintain their position ; arid if
force could not be conveniently used, the result was not to
be mistaken. ,Some persons said there had been a great
change in the domestic policy of the country since Mr.
Canning became a Member of the Government. Tkat was
not the fact.—(Hear.)—All the changes in favour of free
trade, all the consequences of the recognition of the inde-
pendence of the Spanish Colonies, were attributed to the

efforts of Mr. Canning ; but it was forgotten that the
plans and views upon the subject of free trade had been
developed long before that Gentleman became connected
with the Government. A Noble Lord, who had taken his
seat in that House for the first time (Lord Goderich),
stated distinctly, that the measures upon that subject had
been in contemplation for years ; and it was notorious that
the whole of the system upon which the Government sub-
sequently proceeded was laid down in an exposé of Mr.
Wallace, then at the head of the Board of Trade.—(Hear,
hear.)—The plan and the groundwork of the edifice were
left by the architect, but he (Lord E.) was compelled to
say that the person who took the credit of his conceptions,
and who was said to have carried them into effect,
had not been distinguished by that prudence and cir-
cumspection which distinguished the founder of the
building.—(Hear, hear.)—Then as to the recognition of
the South• American States, of which so much had been
said ; he recollected very well the motion which had been
alluded to, for the purpose of pressing forward the recog-
nition ; but they knew now, although they did not know
then, that the late Marquis of Londonderry and his Ma-
jesty's Government had long contemplated such a recogni-
tion ; and it was distinctly intimated by that Noble Lord
to the Ministers of the Powers assembled at Aix-la-
Chapelle, that such a course would be taken by England
at no very distant period. Where, then, was the merit
due to the late Foreign Secretary for this exclusive boon
conferred upon English commerce?—(Hear, hear.)—lf,
therefore, the policy of the country for the last four
years was the same as at present, and as it had been
before, he could not see that Noble Lords had any
reason for giving to the Government a support now which
they had refused to it before. He must at the same
time declare, that the events of the last fourteen days
had left to the country a much less portion of ability for
the performance of the various duties of the State than
it had ever possessed before.—(Hear, hear, from Lord Lon-
donderry and others, with cries of " No," from several
Noble Lords on the ministerial benches). He repeated,
there was less of that talent fit for governiw,
Who, for instance, could be said to replace it, the Govern-
ment the extensive knowledge, the profound, statesmanlike
views of Lord Liverpool ? A Nobleman who, to all the
talents which fitted him above all others for his high situa-
tion, joined a degree of candour and upright integrity never
before seen in any department of the State. In the Home
Department, the country had lost the unblemished virtues,
and the valuable services of a Right Honourable Gen-
tleman, whose place could not possibly be filled at present
by any man of equal merit, and whose place must be
filled for many years by a man of equal talent, before he
could acquire that extensive experience and intimate
knowledge of the public service which enabled Mr. Peel
to render so many services to the country. They had
lost, too, the Noble Duke who presided so worthily over
that department which his services and his experience en-
titled him to manage; but it was not alone as a military
servant that the country must deplore his lose. In losing him
the nation had lost a great moral support in its councils
(cries of " hear, hear,")—a moral support, which few were
ably truly to appreciate ; for that Noble Person was the
last remaining link of that chain which connected the
country in bonds of amity with Sovereign Powers, or
which inspired that degree of confidence in our councils
necessary to command respect and obedience.—(Hear,
hear. )—No man, therefore, could doubt that the country
had lost much of the ability which had hitherto regulated
its destinies. He came now to the question upon which
so much had been said—the question of Catholic Emanci-
pation. With the most uncompromising feeling of hosti-
lity to the Administration of the country as at present
constituted, he still maintained his entire devotion to the
cause of the Catholics ; and, however that hostility might
be shown, or however strongly he might feel it neces-
sary to declare it, be never could, under any circum-
stances, allow their support of that question to be detri-
mental to their power, or use their opinions in favour of
it as a ground for displacing them.—(Hear.)—He con-
fessed, however, that he could not possibly comprehend
the argument of the Right Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Can-
ning), when he said he had advised his Majesty to form an
Administration decidedly hostile to those claims which he
so warmly advocated. If, as it was to he gathered from
his speech, the Right Hon. Gentleman thought that an
Administration of that kind would entail so many calami-
ties upon the country, and prove in itself a source of so
much evil that it must necessarily fall to pieces to make
way for him and his colleagues—he confessed he could not
comprehend how an advice of that kind, which must pro-
duce so much calamity, was reconcilable with that oath
which the Right Honourable Gentleman bound himself to
fulfil when he was called upon to take part in his
Majesty's Councils.—(Hear, hear.)—Still less could lie
comprehend how the Noble Marquess (Lord Lansdown)
and his friends could, with confidence, join an Adrninisti a-
tion of which that Right Honourable Gentleman was to be
the head. When he was told still further, however, that the
Catholic Question was not to be mentioned by that Admi-
nistration, unless there was a moral prospect of carrying it,
he could not help feeling that the Question was abandoned
—that the support which had been hitherto afforded
it was withdrawn, and that it stood now upon much
worse grounds than when its opponents were at the head
of the Government. How was that Question advanced
but by discussion—continued discussion ?—and if they
were to be told that it was not to be discussed unless its
supporters or proposers were confident of having a majority
in both Houses of Parliament, then he would say that it
never would be discussed at all, and that it must be con-
sidered as literally abandoned by its present supporters.—
(Hear, hear, from Lord Londonderry.) How much more
favourable would it have been, with the view of forward-
ing the interests of the Catholics, if it had been known
that the influence of the First Lord of the Treasury would
have been exerted in the attainment of the object they were
seeking ? As the Administration was at present consti-
tuted, he would say, as a friend to the Catholics, that he
considered its formation to have been the most deadly event
to the success of the Catholic cause. If, however, hespoke as
a Protestant advocate, he should declare that he could have no
confidence in an Administration in which the First Lord
of the Treasury kept back the discussion of a question till
he himself thought success was certain—a line of conduct
which might be compared to laying a mine under the feet
of his opponents, to blow them into the air when he
wffi pleased.ce He
under
an thoughtAdm thatinistr noati noonhsoourabl e man
constituted; caonudl di
ftake
Noble Marquis (Lansdown) did entertain an idea of asso-
ciating himself with the Noble Lords who sat beneath him,
he could only do so on the express belief that by doing so
he should further the success of the Catholic cause. He Was
happy that what he bad said in the early part of the even-
ing had drawn from some' Noble Lords the full—the satis-
factory explanation, which they had heard to-night. He was
sure that no one would think he had put those questions
with any unfriendly view. On the contrary, he had done
so with the best intentions, supposing, as he did, that it
was impossible they could have been guilty of such conduct
as had been imputed to them. _ _

The Marquis of ANGLESEA then rose and spoke nearly
as follows :—" ofy Lords--A Noble Marquis, a gallant
friend of mine, (for so I will call him notwithstanding the
very uncourteous al'-sion he has made to me,) seems to
require an explanation of my conduct—to receive an ac-
count of the circumstances that have placed me in the
situation in which I now am. If my Nob!, and Gallant
Friend had not very unaccountably avoided me ever since
I have been in London, I could in three minutes have satis-
fied his curiosity, and relieved his mind from the strange
delusion under which he has spoken and acted, and thus
saved your Lordships' time. Being called upon, however,
for an explanation, I will not hesitate to give it, and
shall have the less scruple in giving it, as my story is
simple and short, and may therefore be comprised in a very
.few words. My Lords, I have long given my support
generally to the measures of the late Administration, I have
done so upon principle, I have done so from a perfect con-
fidence in the great talents, f us the real political integrity
of its members, from a sincere friendship and regard for
many of them, and from an admiration, amounting almost
to veneration of some. But, my Lords, in supporting
their measures, I neverfor a moment lost my independence ;
I remained unshackled, unfettered, upon every political
question—l was not committed upon a single subject, I
remained free as the air I was breathing, when, far in the
country, and little expecting to exchange that air for a
political atmosphere, I received a summons—a call was
made upon me, from whence a call never was, and never
can be, made in vain—l was called to attend the Council
of my Sovereign—to support the Throne. Let it not be
imagined, my Lords, that in snaking use of this expression
I mean to say that I thought the Throne was attacked—
that the Throne was in danger. No, my Lords, I know
full well that the Crown never can have more able, loyal,
trusty supporters, than were the Members of the late Ad-
ministration. But, my Lords, the Throne was not the
less left unsupported for the moment, a breach at least had
been made in the defence by the late secession, and I was
called upon to fill an important military post. Conscious
of my own inability, I nefertheless obeyed the call, and
brought with me no recommendation but an ardent zeal
for the public good—an anxious desire to render every ser-
vice my feeble assistance could give ; as long as those
services may be considered useful I will give them with all
the energy of which I am capable. The very moment any
arrangement can be made that may be considered more
conducive to the public service, at that moment, and with-
out the slightest previous notice, I shall be ready to retire
with the same good humour, and with much more joy,

than I accepted the office I hold. My Lords, in respect to
the insinuations thrown out by my Noble and Gallant Friend,
that I had been assisting in drawing the stool from under the •
feet of the Gallant and Illustrious Duke, under whom it
has been my greatest pride and pleasure to serve, and with ~
whom I have ever been upon terms of the most agreeable
and friendly intercourse, I will not condescend to say one
single word in my defence. Of this lam quite certain,
that the Gallant Dnke knows me to be incapable of such
conduct. In point of fact, if I chose to enter into ex-
planation, I might show that the very reverse of what
has been imputed to me is the real fact; and the day may,
perhaps, come, when my friend, the Noble and Gallant
Marquis, may feel remorse at having thus wantonly out-
raged the feelings of an old friend and companion in arms.
Lord LONDONDERRY explained.
The Earl cf. WINCHELSEA should not feel that he
did justice to his own feelings if he did not say a few words
upon this subject. He thought there never had been an '
era in our history like the present since the time of the
constitutional revolution, so complete had been the change
in every respect. A coalition, it seemed, had been formed
of parties that had long been opposed to each other ; and
in this preposterous coalition, as he must call it, some one
or other of the parties must have compromised his previous
political opinions. The Noble Earl then contrasted
the disinterestedness of the Noble Lords and Gentlemen
who had resigned their places with the conduct of those
now in office, and especially of the Right Honourable Pre-
mier ; and observed, that whoever considered the career •
which that Right Hon. Gentleman had pursued, must be
convinced that ambition and the love of place had been
the pivots of his political life. He believed that none of
the supporters of that Right Hon. Gentleman, who were
now present, could explain truly what were his sentiments
upon the great questions of the Government.
The petition was then laid on the table, and the House
adjourned at a Quarter-past Ten o'clock.

HOUSE OF COMMONS, WEDNESDAY, MAY 2.
NENE OUTFALL BILL.
Lord WILLIAM RUSSELL last night moved to add
the names of two Members to the Committee on this Bill ;
but his motion was, on the proposition of Mr. Calcraft,
adjourned to this night. His Lordship now moved the
Order of the Day for the adjourned debate upon his mo-
tion ; and upon its being read, he proposed that the names
of Lord Milton and Lord John Russell should be added to
the Committee upon the Nene Out-fall Bill.
Mr. POYNTZ said, he must oppose the motion. The
House had, in the course of this Session, passed a Resolu-
tion regarding the manner in which Committees on Private
Bills should be elected, and he thought that Resolution
ought not to be made waste paper by motions of this sort,
to add names to Committees already famed. He was sure 1,
there was no man who had a greater respect for the names
of Lords Milton and Russell than he had, but he did not
think that personal merit alone was sufficient to justify the
infraction of a very proper Resolution. The Marquess of
Tavistock, before the Holidays, bad given notice that he
should move to add six names to this Committee. Four of
these were of the Noble House of Russell, and the other
two were Lord W. Bentinck and Lord Milton. Since
then the numbers had been reduced to three, and now again
to two. He repeated, he had no objections to the persons
proposed, but he had to the principle of the addition ; and
if the motion was persevered in, lie would not let it pass
without a division.

Mr. LITTLETON was also opposed to the motion. He •
felt himself much interested in this question, on account of
the part he had taken in bringing these Resolutions into
existence. He concurred with his Honourable Friend who
had just sat down, that they must be mere waste paper un-
less they were acted on. He admitted that a case might
arise, in which it would be advisable to increase the original
List of the Committee; but then it ought not to be done
without the consent of both parties concerned. In the pre-
sent instance, one of the parties objected, and he did not
think any strong reason existed to make the proposed ad-
dition.
If the Noble Lords who were now proposed had
any interest in the question which would be discussed in •
the Committee, that was, of itself, the strongest reason . •
why they should not be added to it. If it was the pleasure
of the House to destroy the balance they had so recently
erected, let them do it, not by one petty addition, but, once '
for all, by a decided act—let'them avow they had aban-
doned the system which the Resolutions had established.
A MEMBER, whose name we could not learn, said,
that if the motion went to a division he should oppose it.
Lord FRANCIS OSBORNE said he should support the
motion, becabse he thought that the Noble Lords ought .
to have the opportunity of affording the Committee every
information, if by its decision their property was to be die-
posed •.'
of.
Mr. HUME agreed with the Honourable Member oppo-
site (Mr. Poyntz), as to the personal fitness of the two
Noble Lords now proposed, and was glad that the present
opposition had been made to men to whom there was no
personal objection, as an opportunity was thus afforded the
House to mark, in the strongest manner, their sense of the
propriety of the Resolutions.

Sir R. WILSON (who spoke frotn the third Ministerial '
Bench) said, he agreed with Mr. Hume that it was a
question of principle and not of personal character. He •
trusted the Noble Lord would not press the question to a '
division. •
Lord J. RUSSELL and Lord MILTON both declared
they were not interested in the question.
After a few words from Mr. MABERLY and Mr.
BRIGHT, the motion was negatived without a division.
SCOTCH MAGISTRATES.
Mr. HUME presented a petition, signed by 4000 of the
Inhabitants of Dundee, against vesting in the Magistrates of
their Borough the power of imposing a tax upon beer, ac-
cording to the provisions of a Bill which the Magistrates
were now pressing through the House. He should move
to bring up the petition, and he hoped the Committee
would take it into their consideration, and would put an end
to that power of taxation which was proposed to be vested
in a body of irresponsible men like the Scotch Magistrates.
If money was wanted in the Borough, the power of raising
it ought only to be granted to responsible men.
The petition was brought up and laid upon the table.
RECIPROCITY DUTIES.—DISTRESS
General PHIPPS presented a petition from the Trades-
men and Artizans of Scarborough, against the Reciprocity
Duties Bill.—Ordered to lie on the table.
Sir R. FERGUSON presented a petition from the Ship-
owners of Kirkaldy, complaining of distress.

CATHOLIC CLAIMS.
The Marquis of CHANDOS said, that he had been en-
trusted
with a petition from Olney, Buckinghamshire,
against further concession to the Roman Catholics ; and
he could not refuse to avail himself of the present occasion •
of stating, that if any thing like consistency existed among
the present Ministers, they mast unite themselves in order
to carry the Catholic Question. He, for one, was deter-
mined to do all in his power to defeat the object, and could
place no confidence in the impartiality of a Government
which had a Roman Catholic advocate at its head be was
satisfied that the new Cabinet would do its utmost to pro-
cure concession. In the meantime, it remained for the
people of England also to act. In the county to which he
(Lord Chandos) belonged, the feeling against the Roman
Catholics was strong and general. Much alarm prevailed
on this subject, and the dislike of the Roman Catholic Ad-
ministration was by no means confined to narrow limits
throughout the country—(Hear, hear).—He had no doubt
that petitions would be poured in, not only to both Housea
of Parliament, but laid at the foot of the Throne, against
the continuance of such a Government. He would never
consent to such an innovation on the Constitution es the
admission of Catholics to office : the breach would be irre-
e to deplore
oorfet h
tohs ee
rwho
melancholy assisted in e"'
aundertakingrab l e;andwould now if
have
suc-
cess. He had been anxious to declare his sentiments, and
he entreated the country to come forward in a manner an
decisive as to drive the question of emancipation for ever
out of the doors of Parliament.—(Hear.)—Though
humble individual, be trusted his voice would be heard,
and his call obeyed. Never, as long as be lived, would he
quietly consent to Catholic emancipation.—(Hear, hear.)
On the question that the petition be brought up, •
Mr. HUME wished to make one or two remarks. He
doubted much the assertion of the Noble_Lord regarding
the general alarM and distrust of the Government, merely
because it had at the head of it an individual wire had sup-
ported the claims of the Roman Catholics. If the Noble
Lord and his friends were a criterion of the state of the
public mind, certainly the terror and dissatisfaction were
great, but did not threaten any very disastrous conse-
quences. He (Mr. Hume) hoped that there was sufficient
generosity and spirit among the people of England to pre-
vent them from refusing, at this time of day, an equal par,
ticipation of rights, merely on the score of religious differ-,
ences. He had too high an opinion of the great masa of
the people not to be persuaded, that even if the supposed
dislike existed at all it would not shortly be overcame-
Whatever change had occurred in the Government, the
opinion last night deelared by the First Lord of the Trea-
sury was no doubt correct; and if so, the peril was not in
any respect increased. It was, besides, happily not in the
power of any First Minister of the Crown to change the
Constitution of the country. Whatever the Right Hon.
Gentleman in his wisdom might determine, whenever he
might again bring forward the subject, he (Mr. Hume)
wished him success ; and he hoped, that in choosing hie
time, the Prime Minister would duly consult What was