Star.
London, England, 1804-04-17 00:00:00

•YL/IBVRY ILFCTION

Sir GEORGE COR'eiEWALL moved the Order of the Day
for the fecund reading of the Bill for the better Prevention of Bri-
bery and Corruption in the Borough of Ay eitury.
The quetlion being pit,
The Marquis of TITCHMELD role to oppofe the further pro-
ceedieg on the 11111; fiat, beeauft he did not think the advocates
of the Bill had na.de out a cafe fulEciently itrong to warrant the
adoption of loch a mosfure, which went to punier indifeinninetely
all the Electors of Ayklbury, for the alledged crime of only a por-
tion althea); and fondly, bemire the ch age was only dated to
be Etbftatitiated apinft a few, compared with the number who
Chimed the right of voting. Fur the prelent the Noble tvlarquis did
not (edit necedary toilet.: any farther arguments upon it, hut con-
cluded with moving an amendment, that Intl cad of the words' be
now mad," there be infested eke minis. this slay three montha"
SirIOHN NEWPORT waratly fupported the BM. He con-
tended it was a meafureakfohitely neetfin y to mark the juft indig-
nation of that Houle againft the god; and flagitious delinquency of
the Borough of Ayiefbury, and the infamous inftaiices of the molt
foul and atrocious corruption openly carried on with the Eleaors
of that Borough at the late Flettion, in defiance of the laws, in the
atoll flagrant prollitotion of eleCtloneering tea:tell:lea It appeared
from the reports of their Committee, to whole canfideration the
merits data Ekition had been referred, that three hooks in the
town had been opened for the palpable and avowed purpoks of hit-
t:wry and corruption; that upwards of two hundred oldie Elofturs
had received the bribes, not only done but of all the Candidates ;
that they Wed their names to an addrels, foheiting a Candidate,
whom they had never known or Peen, to (tend for their Borough, '
fbr no other purport than to mite the market, and enhance the
price of corruption; that ill the public room where thole men en-
tered for the purpoe of rtesi, 'mg thee {waste. there was a bowl of
rat one cud of the table, and a howl of guineas at another.
a
Moving mentioned a variety of other hill:then of 'a like name, he
laid it was inviable for Parliament to pars uummillied a rate of
huh foul corruption, ft; utterly awns ious to the fpirit of our Con-
*button and the purity of the Commons, without abandoning
both, and furniliting new and throng armnsents for reformers out
et doors ; when the belt and molt whold'unte Ipecies of ref rot was
already in the power of the Houle ilia, by choltiox in the hat in-
Ranee, and branding, by the ninth exen•pLary puninunent, every
het flagitious intlacce of corruption, as that which marked out the
)lernagh of Aylefbury, as a fit example to d net other lloraughi :runt
selling with loch hofenefs, and proftinotmt to bribery the cordiou-
dotal trait repofed in the electors: be therefore fupported the Bill
Mr HUM!' Polly agreed in the fentlments of the Hon. Baro-
net, as to the juitlee and neeetfity of exemplary punithment to he
perfons aftually gunned fads tool and flagitious corruption as that
which has been muted, and to this the law of the land was already
competent to the fall extent necellary,'f, far as utterly ilisiran-
chifing, and mai:tins by bevy penalties, the perfons who Ihould
be proved guilty thereof, and cgainft whom proCecutions were at
this moment carrying en. But he never could agree to mania) the
Innocent indiferimin wady with the guilty, in fubverfion to the mild,
jolt, and ceallautienal fpirit of our laws, as would he the inevi-
table tired of a Bill that mull • vemtually Ci.franehife the innocent,
honourable, honelt, and to.off ;Ain Phelan of Ayleibury and
thew poftwity, merely for the :nine, of the guilty.
lord OSSUISTONE, w hat ever might be his fentiments of the
Bill, underftood I; was the le ion to throw open parfaits in the
hundreds furroundies, the Eormgh of Ayldbury, which, in his

mind, fo far from remedying wujiti rather pmmote the evil com-
plained of, as it would kt In the rttits of eledion to a defcription
of perfors without property, and certainly mare mica to the terip-
tattoo of bribery than thole already charged with it; betide, he
did not think that Aylgifiiury was fo very fir.mlar. and infulated
casr, as to call for peculi distranchilemont (~r a Ipecac' of cor-
ruptions of which initancm were unhappily but too numeroui
ellewbere. If the Nr.file lewd would brirg forward any general
meakre for the more effectual prevention of bribery and conup-
don, and fpecilically declare any degree of fuck deiltopiency,
which &wild hereafter fubjett a borovg4 to ilisfranchifirsent, he
mould have no ohjecton to fupport it.
hit GEORGE COaNFAVAI.I. fpoke in fawner of the 11111, and
argued that the portio., of corrupted votes appeared to be as Iyt to
37, and (aid hr divide the Hook agaln the amehdricat.
Sir ROUERT BUXTON fupported the Ball, and
Mr. P. MOORE (poke agaiolt it. 14a contended that the law
was already (tailor/y(ll.one to punifh the dtLnquency of the
agalnli whom the sitarge could be en.dillfbed, adalnit
whom adlinna were this rinencnt In fult for penalties to the amount
oda million fterlioy.
Mr. FRANCIS (puke agaluft the Dill, acid Mr. Grenfell in
(apron of it.
The MASTER of t 1,.. ROLI.C, eruifidcrable kneel, and
with much ability, 0ppa...1 ..c is •. totally agalidt the
rbwiple or she hir.e eine for r..e of the guilty. It
vapid raying a itl,,y; ISt,: ~dead, to lee that no, e 0,..
may forfeit a franchlfe her the a.lt tut t; n.•uld be fay
ang a much Reneger to alledy, . a realm ity tortAt for the.
fault of a minority. The pr. audit of this:Ail did tot ev, n fiat, th,
pr ion oldie Aykdbury whether clbrct-t .ottb.., one
kali, or one third, who had inecri,i that f,.
fur width It was the purpe of this P.ll to
On this point the preindilr, left !h• !I iu! • to i•s trey:dia.
they might either mkt.. that th. • hi d "pm three fourth
.4 the Heelers, or a few slresdy was fug
ficiently arcing to r;:ra.h the ▪ y.nice. by heavy hoes and
utter disfraneSticenert..-6..: in his smut: I! would be an alarming
ntice indce I to tl.e I' ot te. ry fli.rotiyh In M.
that for the dt bop,.-en -t yr who thould fccr.tly
or openly fubrott t•i 1,-••••7•' Gr rotrurion, the lallar-mittla 11110-
ray Rena be dsprivid :1 the.• under an Arl of this fort.
-ssflais would lude..l '•., ,r put it into the hand, of the reformer.
out of doors to effr.-! !...r oven prlrporr,. anal by mere trick and
tnannimment, per-ire dtaranthilement of every llormayb in
she kingdom; and thua,at st were, hold out a premium to bt 'Dery
sad conniption.
Ebr r.% a! WAR (bake in rapport a the Dill, and
(.id the pr, Atight eptdi be tried to tate mire the Din would
bear when it rant,: nut of the f.:sionawr re.
Mr. Seerant 13 ES r Cupportsd the areumenti of the Malley co
the II
ato, the prefer,/ w.. the mi.P. in.propm (salon a'
vslistla Such a hail coral De muoducol, as If it woe poltik foe the

the aho

Hatife to adept it, its diredt tendency intild be to prejudge anion*
twig pemliug to the Amount of a million of money, and involve the
utter ruin of many families.
Sir WILLIAM YOUNG fupported the Bill, upon the princi-
ples of the Grenville Ads, which gave to Committees emanating
from that lioufe, the authority to propofe and recommend nu.,
fares for the punillirnent and future prevention of filch flagrant in-
ftanem of corruption, as thoie which juftitied the introduction of
the meafure before them.
. .

Mr. Serjeant BEST explained.
Mr. FOX, in a few words, exprelTed his opinion that there
was no fair neculity fur the Bill. He could fee no rearm why the
cafe of the Borough of A lethery (hoold be taken out of the general '
rule, and nut left to t`ie operation of the etilling laws to punith
bribery arid eorrm non.
Mr. W. SMITH gave his concurrence to the Bill, and contra-
dieted the Ratement of the Learned Serjeant, that the penalties
toot for amounted to any thing like a million, as be had repre-
rented .
The I loufe divided on the Marquis of Titchfield's amendment.
li Againtt it 69—For it 48—Majority at.
On the motion of Sir ROBIAT aux-roN, it was ordered,
that Counfel Mould be heard at the Bar on Wednefday neat, for
the Petitioners againft the Bill.
Several Members were added, CM motion, to the Committee on
the Corn Petitions.
Lord FOLKSTONE moved for " an Account of the Number
and Names of C-irains in the different Regiments of Militia. who
were not poffeilcd on • certain dry of the ufual qualifications." His
Lordihip alfo mowed for the produdlion of tome other papers.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEgiI obferved, tha
(rime of the papers moved (or by the Noble Lord, were on the
Fable, and that the others would be produced as form as poffible.
Mr. YORKE brought op a Bill for the more fpredlity fupplying
and facilitating the filling up of vacancies in the Militia.
Sir JOHN WROTTEiLEY hoped. that an indemnity to Offi-
cer, who had reeved. or were (erring, without qualifications,would
mike part of that Bill. They were by the e sifting Laws fubjedl to
a penalty of toot again( the exadtion of which he thought they
ihould be proeedted.
The Bill was read a firß time; and on the motion of Mr.
YORKE, ordered to be read a fecond time to-morrow.
Mr. DENT withdrew his notice of the motion refpedting the
Loyalty Loan, which flood for this day; and after fume comer-
(anon with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, chef= was renewed
by the Hon. Member for Tue(day fi'onight.

Ma. DRAKE'6 SUPPOSED COIRESPONDINCE.

Lord MORPETH raid, that he trolled the Houle
would excufe him for deviating a little from the
rules of debate and particularly as the fubjeet, upon
which he would occupy a (mall portion of its time,
was one in which the honour and chara!ter of the
country were materially involved. He alluded to the
foul imputation that had been endeavoured to be call
on the Government and its reprefentative, by a recent
publication in a French official paper. To the cir•
cumftances of that tranfa&ion, he thought it beneath
him to advert, as long as they had been confined to
the foul and malignant pages of the Moniteur ; and
while they only tended to demonitrate the rancour
-of the French Government, he thought it was the
bell and moil dignified courfe to treat them with
I (dent (corn. But the papers purporting to be a cor-
fpoodence between the Biitilh Envoy Extraordinary
at Munich, and a perfon refiding at Paris, have been
r officially Communicated by the French Minifter to
the different Ambaffad a s in that city, and the ho-
nour of the nation has been impeached upon unlub-
llantiated falls, improbable in their nature, unproved,
and, he confidently trolled, not to be,proved. 'Co
thofe communications acknowledgments bad been
made, of fome diverfity in their tenor, but moll of
them certainly adopting and fanetioning, in a greater
or leffer degree, the foul reproach that had been call
nn the Britilh charaaer ; and in the degraded (tate
in which the greater part of the Courts of Europe
was placed, the Reprefentative of the Conn of Raf-
fia was the only one of the Diplomatic Body who
did in his anfwer exprefs any doubt of the faCt.—
Some of the Ambaffadors to whom that communi-
cation was made did certainly go to very extraordi-
nary lengths in their replies to the French Minifter,
and fuels as he fhould hope wouldbe found to deferve
the =lure of the different powers they remelt:m.-
1-1 e particularly alluded to the anfwer of the Repre-
fentative of a Power who had flirting from the fame
)puree with ourfelves, v..ho!e language was the fame,
and whole interetis, he trotted, were not oppofed to
each other. (A !cud cry of Hear ! bran .' ) He was
furry to fee fentiments to derogatory from the honour
of the Britiffi charaCter, received with furls pliant

facility, by the ReWent of a Power that fhould have
knessn bow to appreciate our national character, in
a more friendly and favourable way. He had no
motion to make, but he thought it incumbent on
Minillers to tither difavow or exculpate Mr. Drake,
and to prove to Europe, and to the world, that they
have not 4. pointed the dagger of the aflaflin."
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCIIEQJT ER—
a Mr. Speaker, 1 rife to exprefs my unfeigned obli-
gations to the Noble Lord for affording to his Ma-
jelly's Minilllrs an opportunity of repelling the
foulcft and moll infamous charge that has ever pro.
ceeded from a Government claiming to be confidered
as part of the civ:li Lad world ; a charge the moll
unfounded and diabolical, urged by a Government
the moll fanguinary and tyrannical, for the foie
purpofe, I implicitly believe, of giving a colour to
the commilfion of crimes the molt heinous and atro-
cious that have ever ditgraced and blackened human
nature. As to the imputation that the author and
perpetrators of that foul clime have attempted to
throw on his Majefly's Government, it is almoll be-
neath their dignity to conderiend to refute it; but
I think it my duty to (late to this Houle, and to the
civilized world, that nn authority has been given,
that no inftruttions hive been traufmitted to the
Engin Minifier at the Court of Munich, to engage
in or undertake any thing that was not ftriAly con-
latent with the molt fcrupulous oblervance of the
rights of nation., and what perhap•, is paramount
to them, the duties of humanity. After having laid
thus much, I hope it will not I): expiAed of nit that
I fhould fay any thing mote in reply to tt at molt
Talk, fcandalous, and maligin,nt impotatir.n. As
to the correfpnndence to which Lord has
alluded, it is impoilible for me to cater upon that
lubjeß, until lonic commirnication Eill have been
received from the honourable per fou wi.n has beer.
fo infamoufly attacked in it—a Gentleman for whole
eh:trailer I, perhapw, th!•.k and am cer-
tainly as folicitous, as the Noble Lord or any ore io

Lhe kingdom can be. 1 f..irc rtka cnni;Jcr.ce, that

:he mote the p31:1

condua arc cl.piied

,nto, the m

tLc pt.v:iety i
,Le. (4, I !AVC tI

and thc

Otit grounds to fuppofe) moil impudent and infa
mous fabrication. As form as his Majcfty's Govern•
meat (hall have received the communications they
cape& from Mr. Drake, the Noble Lord may be af
lured they will not fail to adopt the molt effeitnal
matures for affertiiig and maintaining the honour of
the country. Ima again exprefs my obligations to
the Noble Lord, for affording me an opportunity of
difpelling the anxiety of the country upon a fubjeft,
the honour of its reprefentative, for which they en•
tcrtain all that laudable jcaloufy that befits a great
and high.minded nation."