The Sun.
London, England, 1820-06-08 00:00:00

characters of illustrious that minor
considerations must yield. He must again recur
to this nupleasant subject, deprecating as he did
the individual and the office. To go as he did,
and sit prying into the most secret acirons of do-
mestic life in a foreign rountry—seeking -for in-
formation among the. filthy wine honses—ioining
iu familiar confabulations with
.the bareemen of
the lake, porters, cast-off servants of mistresses
—those detestable characters who, to the credit
of Courts of Law, scarcely ever sheaved their
faces within them without having them stamped
with infamy—to sit, he repeated, writing down
all the tittle-tattle of these reprobate characters.
Before this lie had thought better of human na-
ture, more of the merits of professional, honour.
—(1-lear !)--In saying this he was saying what
he felt at the degradation of a professional bro-
ther. Such low offices, he acknowledged, must
he performed; but then let them be done by hands
that cook) not be sullied by any species of base-
ness. Let no man dip a finger in such filth who
was not born to degrade !he human species. lint
it appeared that all that this Committee could do
amounted to nothing. According to the Noble
Lord, it, could not bring iu a Bill of Attainder
against her Majesty, nor otherwise injure her ;
because in its capacity it could not adopt any ape-
s ific measure its the matter. This entire harmless-
ness of the Committee, however, he denied. The
Report of a Committee of that House was no in-
different matter. He would put it to any one man
present, how he would like a body, consisting of
21 persons, appointed to investigate into his,cha-
. racter, in the appointment of whom he had no
voice, and between whom and himself there were
irremediable differences. How then, he would
put it to that nua\n—for he only supposed in the
case the feelings of a man—how would he like, that
before that Committee, selected by the servants of
his antagonist, his. conduct for six long years
should be canvassed, his conduct too passed at the
distance of 1200 miles, without receiving a tittle
of evidenCe from him, without his being per-
mitted either to know the nature of the evidence
adduced against him, and of course without the
power of refuting it ? flaying considered these
objections, how would he like this Committee
thus composed, and thus inquiring as it were in
thrkness, to record their verdict ? Putting him in
the same situation in Which her Majesty was be-
fore, what of his earthly goods would he not give to
escape the garbled exposition of iris . character
which would in consequence ensue ? If the Commi-
ttee should only turn out their Report, couched in
the mildest terms of affirmation which it was its the
power of die Noble Lord's oily rhetoric to trame;
(laughter)—so long as it only said yes to the charge,
that man's character• would be for ever blasted.
An appeal, it was true, as was stated, might
be made to open trial. But it was also to be con-
sidered, that in the interim the evidence might
he lost, the individual might suffer greatly front
illness, or he might die.—and'k.rts.it not a
titration for a mall of honour that bis memory
might be blighted, whilst •might not have an
opportunity to restore it ? Even if he. did live,
Ire must go to trial with an immeasurable weight
of prejudice against him., It was in vain to liken
this Tribunal to a Grand Jury. If Ministers
thought her Majesty guilty on the Report of the
Commissioo, let them act upon that assurance.—
He strongly deprecated the coarse of Ministers
on this. occasion ; they wished by the appoint-
ment of the Committee to screen themselves be-
hind names better than their own—to seek
shelter from the public gaze—to cover themselves
up from the public eye. But they had of their
own responsibility come down to the House with
'this Message, and they ought•to face it as men,
and as all Ministers should do. By going into an
inquiry in the manner of a Secret Committee, no
one could know that this inquiry was iu fact
going on, the very, existence of it even•could not
be known, He would just as lief take the opi-
nion of 'Ministers as of such a Committee, with
this.single distinction, that the verdict r of the one
would leave no_stain upon the character of this
unfortunate Personage, whilst the other would un-
doubtedly leave a very sleep one. (Hear !) This was
the broad ground on which he viewed the question
Ile visited every one to consider whether he
would like, not his whole character, but even any
peculiarity of his character, to be judged by•sneh
a tribunal ; and as he would answer for himself,
so he might answer for the Qeeeo.- -The elements
arid whole tormatioo of the tribunel constituted in
his mind''sili, unpardonable objection. With re-
gard to the precedents, he moSt confess he was
astonished to find them mentioned' as deserving
any weight. The practice of proceeding by green
bags lie was aware had before been resorted to
in cases of High Treason and Seditious Bills ;
but he might say, that. front his peculiar way of
thinking on that subject, lie did not think the
better of this proceeding on account of 'the pre-
cedents afforded in those cases. Bat throwing
those out of view, he came to the precedents, of
Bishop Atterbury and Sir Thomas Rumbold. The
elkrge against the latter person came, to be sure,
out of a Secret Committee,' but 'then it was to be
remembered that it art:se incidentally—the Se-
cret Committee sat upon subjects C01111CC:rd with
East India Affairs, awl_ the subject of the charge
came out unexpe.ctedly ; and then the whole mat-
ter was finally investigated at the Bar of the
House, and witnesses regularly examined. He
did not know what any accused person could wish
better than this. Then with respect to the case
of Bishop Atterbury, there was also this striking
difference, that there the Committee bad the
power to examine witnesses,—(Lord Castlereagh
here intimated that the present Committee would
also have the power of examining witnesses.)—
Well then, it appeared they were to he all Owed to
examine witnesses, in the absenee of the party ac-
cused, without her Majesty knowing any thing of
t hem, who theywere or theisattireof their testimony,
rand in the absence of liar Majesty's professional
advisers. He would now come to the observations
of the Noble Lord with respect to the proposal
made by Government to the Illustrious Personage
in question. The Noble Lord's arguments were
correct in a constitutional point of view, as to the
right of Government to make that offer, doing it
merely under the expectation that Parliament
would afterwards sanction it'. Whether the
offer was to be viewed in the light of a bribe
or nor, was not the question, 'Athu offensive

part of the proposal was, that 50,0001. should
be given to her, not only on condition that she
should live out of the country, which was in
itself a most exceptionable proposition, but what
appeared to hint infinitely worse, notwithstand-
ing the special pleading of the Noble Livid
that a renunciation of title was not a renuncia-
ation of rights. But this part of the proposal be
looked upon as neither more nor less than calling
upon the Queen to say, that, if she was not
guilty. 'she was at least nor altogether•innocent.
The Noble Lord said, the Qetten could not be
called upon to renounce her regal rights, as it was
not in her power to do so without the consent of
Parliament: This, in point of fact, was the case ;
but why then should she be celled on to give up
the exercise of them ? 'She was to renounce the
title and style of Queen, which, said the Noble
Lord, MRS doing no more than WAS ordinarily done
by persons of rank when travelling abroad, who
usually went under assumed names. But, he he-
lieved, it would be found, that where a Royal
Personage concealed their real name and rank un-
der a feigned name, it was always the name of
one of the branches of the same family ; and it
was well known, at any rate, that this was done
solely with a view to the convenience of the
party, and was only done pro impure. ale
express condition in the proposal to her Majesty
was, that she should not only abandon her own
title, but that she should not take !het of any
ether branch of the family. Observe again the
difference between a person of knout: doing this
as a matter of convenienee, and for a season
only, and of a person taking such a step for the
sake of getting 50,0001. and adopting it for ever.
Such had been the proposition made to her- Nits-
jesty. Strongly impressed as he was with the
absolute necessity of some amicable settlement
being come to, he had felt himself under the
painful necessity of advising her Majesty not
to accede to the terms proposed to her. The
Honourable and Learned Gentleman here com-
plained Of the injury which had been done
both 'to himself and his Illustrious Client,
-by the erroneous statements which bad got
into the Daily Papers of the part he performed in
the negociation at St. Omer's. He would only
state one specimen, and leave the House to judge
of its' injurious effects. In one of the,Daily Prints
it had been stated, that after her Majesty had ex-
pressed her indignatiou at the proposition made
to her, he (Mr. 'B.) counselled her Majesty not
to accept the proposal. If the word after were
to be erased, and the word before
,tut in its place,
the case would he rightly stated. He had. anti-
cipated her Majesty ie counselling her rejection,
.+'l° was however extremely ready to expeess,
her indignation. The Royal Personage its
question had since confirmed the truth of
ttee staternent he now made. He had the
more reason to complain of the error, as its
another' public Journal (The Morning Post),
it bad been repeated, and most unwarrantable
liberty taken with the mimes of Lord Hutchinson
and himself, inasmuch as an argonomt was built
upon this statement, that the Qaean's cause must
have been a bad one, or be (Mr. B ) would not
have advised her to accept the proposal. Ile cer-
tainly bad counselled her Majesty's rejection of it
with great pain, because he had hoped to have put
an end to the present question by an arrangement.
He might add, that if other propositions had hem
offered to her Majesty, which as a woman of ho-
nour she could have accepted, end which it
would not have been inconsistent with the honour
of Government to have offered, nor with justice
for her to accept, lie should have counselled
her to accept it ; always giving. the preference
to an honourably private arrangement
all others whatsoever. Who should presume
to say where the inquiry was to stop when wive
gone into 1 They who counselled the CrOwn upois
this occasion, if they did roit •t: mit w, .oughtato
know that a certain line since 'reseed, every tiling
must be told---not merely hotv.the Ilium loos Pere
sonage had been treated by Foreign Powers, and
British Ministers at Foreign all the
private anecdotes and trauseictioos of certain Il-
lustrious Personages would be involved,' and
must be disclosed and hiid open to the public
eye. In that case. we might be exposed to see
such another Session as .occurred eleven years
ago, when all interest in the ordinary topics
of gossip or of politics Were completely swal-
lowed' tip in the subject which then engrossed
all attention, the liiiserie transactions of one
Most Mush-rises Individual —(Hear. hear !)
He must be a nrisn of miraculous sagacity, and he
did net think ihe Noble Lord '(Castlereagh) that
man, who could foretel what consequences might
ensue fienn the coeflictiug interests of two pries,
atter this question were once entered upon. He
maintained that he must be a held man who would
heedlessly plunge the country into an inquiry of
this kind, if there was a possibility of putting a
stop to it.---(Cheers front both sides of the
House.)--He most'earnestly eotreated the House,
for the sake of all -the'parties—for the sake--of
the 'people=-for the ' sake"of their wives and
daughters, that we might
.not 'again be placed
in such a 'state that it was impossible to take up
a Newspaper which did not contain something
dangerous to morality. In the name of Heaven
he implored them to wait fin. a little to see if it
were not possible to do something to put ae end,
to this matter.—(Cheerq—lle was booed to
obey the command's of the Queen, which were
peremptory, tie challenge' this inquiry ; yet, be
would even venture. to Thwart her wishes, if it ap-
peared to him that there was yet any road open to
negociation. kie eras' convinced that if the in-
quiry were to be gone into, it %Stout& not he of
that shott duration anticipated by that Noble Lord.
The Queen, in common justice, tntorriee allowed
to send her green bag down to ebeeseme Cotn
miriee. She must be allowed tits bringoeithesses
to refute those brought against.bere--andees the
would probably have to ko to Milatelo.fi?itif
the time must be greatly lengthened; tort holyt
the Milan Board had sat' for 10 months, 'to hod
matter of accusation, which might not requi:ii
ten days to blow boo air, yet it would be cede
cessary to inquire into character, menner of lifee!
&c. or the w iinesses. One of the principal
witnesses to be brought forward, was re s'er-'
yam who was discharged from her - MajestYl.
loinsehold for the crime of felony—'-(Hear
, and the peasant who was the witness of it was at

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