Star.
London, England, 1807-04-10 00:00:00

it now the duty (tithe Houfe to examine moft minutely
this extraordinary doctrine, and to adopt fuch refolu-
tions as &Auld teem mofl likely to avert the alarming
coafequences which mutt flow from its adoption.—
When the Miaifters of the Crown reftrain themfelves
by a written pledge to withhold from his Majefty, on
any ground or condition, fuch advice as they conceive
neceffary to the fecurity of his empire, the honour of
his Crown, and the welfare of his fubjeds, they not
only abandon, their own duty, but at in a manner
equally unmindful of the rightful prerogatives of the
Crown, and of the privileges of Parliament, and
contrary to the dodtrines laid down upon that rub-
jet by the firft conflitutional authorities. Such an
attempt was equally contrary to the law of the coun-
try, and fubverfive of the principles of the Conftitu
tion.. His Majefly might refift counfels, or change
his advifers ; but he could not limit the tight of his
Minifters to give their advice. If thofe Minifters,
whole duty it was to advife the Crown—who were
refponfible to the country for the advice they Ihould
give—and without which advice the Crown, in the
language and fpirit of the Conftitution, was never
fupprifed to ad, relinquiflted the right and the duty
to advife their Sovereign, where, he would alk, was
refponfibility to attach ? or what confidence could
that Houfe or the country feel in an Adminiftration
compofed of Inch men ? or what refponfibility could
the country expert from men,capable of Inch a con-
cha, and who only held out fallacious fecurities to a
deluded people ? To explain to the Houfe the known
right and duty of a Privy Councillor in advifing his
Sovereign, a right and a duty recognifed and Gip. I
ported by every principle of the Conititution, he felt
quite unneceffary : hot if any doubt whatever could
remain on the lubieEt, the very words of the old oath I
of a Privy Councillor, as laid dram by Lord Coke,
were decilive upon the point. By that oath, he.was
bound, truly to coiinfel the King in all matters
treated in eit Council, or by him as the King's Coun-
cillor ; and in all things that may be for the King's
honofir and behoof, and to the good of his realms
and fubjeds, without partiality or exceptions; nor
leaving, nor efcbewing, ti to do, for affection, love,
meed, doubt, or di cad of any perfon or perfons ; nor
for gift, meed, or promife, to promote, favour, or
kinder any matter treated or done in council ; and,
in general, to do all a good councillor ought to do,
unto his Sovereign Lord." Another feel; at of the
Privy Councillor'. oath folemnly bound him to keep ,
inviolably fecret the King's Councils, and never to.
divulge the fame without his Majefty's permiMon,
expiefred in writing. But how grofsly was this obli-
gation violated, in the late fhameful and garbled
pobiication of the fecrets of the Cabinet ? Whatever
might be his own feelings, and however they coin-
cided with the general fence of the country, on the
conduit and talents of his Majefty's late Minifiers,
firuld not now dilate upon thofe meafures which fo
eminently and fo honourably diftinguifhed their Ad-
miniftration ; nor would he detain the Houfe longer
at prefent, than by moving his Refolution, which was
to this effed
o. Malted, That it is fubverfive of the principles of the Con •
ftitution, for his Majefty's Minitters to reftrain themfelves by any
pledge to withhold at any time from his Majefty any advice which
they (hall, in their opinions and confcienees, belii:ve to be condu-
cive to the remit y of his realms, the honour of his Crown, and the
well being of all his fubjeds."
Mr. LAMBE rule to fecond the motion of his Ho
nourable Friend, from which at no time -could he
refute to withhold his fupport ; bin which at the
prefent moment he thought a queftion of vital im-
portance to the Conftitution; and had his fpeech even
been lefs clear, eloquent, and fatisfadory, he (Mr.
L.) should not have ventured to obtrude at length
upon the indulgence of the Houfe : for though the
lubjed was of the firft magnitude, yet he thought
the fpirit of the queltion lay within a very narrow
compafs. The rumours of an intended change of ,
Adminiftration, and which In much agitated the
public mind, be for one molt deeply lamented to
find realized ; more efpecially as their difinitial
was Paid to be in confequence of their declining to
abdic:lte a right, or rather a duty, fo important
oas that r f advifing their Sovereign in all public
matters to the belt of their judgment and con.
fcientes. `He was ferioufly concerned to fee removed
from the councils of their Sovereign, the men who
were fuch able props to the Conflitution, at a moment
when their let vices were fo neceffary: and lie thought
that the Houfe would be wanting to its own dignity,
if it deferred to exprefs its opinion upon loch a cub-
' jeet. He was glad, however, that the period of
adjournment gave the Houfe time to refied calmly
and deliberately upon the fubjed ; to imprefs them
with the neceffity of adopting time Refolution, ex-
-pre(E.,e ui their ItfitlMciits ; and he therefore trufted
the one now propofed by his Hon. Friend, would be
carried by a larger majority,and. be adopted in a more
docided manner, than any queftion which had ever
b.en brought before that Houfe. The Conliittrion of
this realm requires that the King, in exerting the
fundions of Government, fltould take the advice cf
the two great Councils of the nation, the Houfes of
.Lords and Commons. But the flow progrefs as well
as publicity of their deliberations would, in many in-
fiances, deftroy that fecrecy, and interfere with that
promptitude and difpatch, fo often neceffary to the
fuecefs of the meafttres of the Government. It had
been adopted as a principle coeval with the Conflito-
lion, that the right and duty of both Houfes to ad-
vile the Sovereign, might be deputed to a feta:lion
from the Members of both Hoofer, chofen by his
Majelly as his Privy Councillors, by whole advice
every at of the Government was fuppoled to be
guided ; and thus' as far as was pufGble in A human
inhibition, to give to the free Government of Eng-
land all the advantages of fecrecy and difpatch which
belong to an arbitrary monarchy. But what furety
did the country poffels, that this duty would be ho-
nettly performed by thole men who could reftrain
themfelves by a pledge to withhold their advice from
his Majesty, upon any occafion, however important
or inditpenfable to the fecurity of his Majefty's domi-
nions ? What fecurity had the country againft fuch