Star.
London, England, 1821-01-24 00:00:00

Mr. WETHERELL then stated, that he would4,to-
morrow, move for the Papers he had already enu-
meratdJ; and several others which he named.

ADDRESS TO HIS MAJESTY.
The SPEAKER having read the King's Speech,
(for which see Lords),
Mr. G. BANKES rose and spoke as follows t—
" Ma. SPEAKER—Sir, in proposing an Address to
his Majesty of acknowledgment for the gracious
Speech which we heard some hours ago, and which
you have at last had an opportunity of reading to
us, I shall not trouble you with any expressions of
conscious insufficiency, because lam aware they are
a very' poor excuse for the presumption of a volun-
tary undertaking, and because Ido not apprehend
anything very difficult in returning a suitable acknow-
ledgment for gracious intimations and assurances
every way calculated to inspire a dutiful and affec-
tionate feeling. As one of his Majesty's many, many
loyal Subjects, I propose, Sir, that we approach his
Throne, to assure him of the fidelity of a nation
which is sound at heart—a nation not so intoxicated
by the splendour of unparalleled triumphs, nor so
lulled to apathy by the security of a profound peace,
as to visit with ingratitude the promoter of those
triumphs, and the procurer of this honourable repose.
In a nation in which all are free, folly must have her
freedom, and mischief will mark her for its tool :
folly will discharge her debts of gratitude by deny-
isig their amount—by forgetting the danger from
which she has been delivered, though ever when in
petil herself the loudest to complain, and the fore-
most to despair. The spirit of mischief can have no
account of gratitude to settle with the peace-maker ;
it is a spirit obnoxious to repose ; inavar and tumult
it can be content to hope all evil to the good order
which it hates ; but in peace;.it must counsel and con-
trive it ; it is then that it is seen walking restless
through the dry places of the land, instigating the
owner of each poor and barren plot, not to cultivate and
improve, but to curse the little portion•he i 5 heir to.—
It was this same r spirit that could heretofore with
mischievous exaggeration deck out the avowed im-
placable enemy of its country with irresistible might,
with infallible sagacity, and inexhaustible resources,
and with prophetic fervor could foretel the stability
of all that he should set up, and the ruin of all he
should denounce ; the same spirit that .could boldly
excuse and justify. all his crimes, or more boldly
could deny tnem. When baffled in its every hope,
belied by every prophecy, this bankrupt firm of im-
pudent invention has still new fictions ready for new
credulity, new idols for folly's worship, and honour-
able attributes for every new disturber of the public
quiet.. If it he true, that each several nation has a
peculiar national character belonging to its inhabit-
ants, the 'King, who finds himself at the head of a
frank, a gallant, and a generous. People, can wish to
exchange the subcts of his Government for no others
on the face of the earth; in their valour he is re-
nowoed abroad—in their honourable allegiance he is
secure at home; but there are circumstances that will
invariably work a' change in every national character,
and perhaps the strongest changes are the most gene-
rous and the best. Such is the circumstance of great
national success in war—this will infuse an ardour—
a zeal for enterprise—a restless desire of still finding
something to oppose, and something to defend-4 chi-
valry that will delight in the mimic circumstance of
war, the polished armour and the nodding plume—a
chivalry that will combat imaginary oppressors, that
will liberate convicted culprits, and commission them
to carry their chains and their innocence to the in-
spii ing genius of its romantic history! Such draw-
backi to national successes, in the wild enthusiasm
they inspire, it may be well for a Prince, on his own
personal, account, to estimate before he voluntarily
engages in a war; in defensive warfare, however, he
can have no option, and where, upon first assuming
the reins of Government, he finds the kingdoms of
:his rule already engaged up to the very crisis of a
contest, no alternative remaining but between perse-
verance in much peril, or submission in lowest de-
gradation, he has then only to select whether he will
choose to reign over a broken-hearted, humbled
people, who will never infringe his prerogatives, nor
.question his rights, nor obstruct his functions, nor
presume to insult his person, or whether, dismissing
all selfish consideration, at the risk of the throne he
sits on, unappalled by the fate of his neighbour
Kings, then captive, or in exile, unintimidated
by those at home whose patriotic prudence would
suggest more cautious counsels—(Hear, hear)—
whether he will, disdaining all compromise of national
dinity, rouse the ardour of his empire, and dare to
rely upon it? If he shall have pursued this course,
and if in doing so he shall have saved for his king-
doms everything, and their honour, it is no small
drawback that shall cancel the gratification of his
bosom ; and could he, at a moment when popular
ardour is misled, regret the deliverance he has worked
and the laurels he has planted, he might perhaps de-
serve that those whose deliverance he has worked
should withhold from him their gratitude and affec-
tion. The partial abuses of benefits conferred will
not check the further efforts of beneficent minds ;if
they did so, all national improvement must stand
still, the illiterate must remain without instruction,
because those who had hitherto abused their ignorance
are now poisoning the new springs of their knowledge.
Unhappily, this wick,edness hairs not spared us—it is,
Sir,, the unkindest cat of all; that benevolent,
Christian, good-will towards man, which had spared
neither toil nor cost, by education, to enlighten, and
by enlightening to improve, is doomed to suffer, like
the wounded bird of the Poet, who
• Saw his own feather on the fatal dart,
And wing'd the shaft which quiver'd in his heart:
IP:en was the pang, but keener still to feel,
He nut s'd the lunioo which impell'd the steel :'
As one who can share a pride in the intellectual im.
proverneat of his fellow-subjects: who can admire
the *al which excite's, and the liberality which pro-
motes it ; who can appreciate the laborious, research
which renovates pious endowments, leng since sleep-
ing with their. founders; as one who. can pay the
humble tribute of his praise for all that has been
done and is doing in this cause, I. cannot hut deeply
share their mortification who deplore the base per.,
version of such noble purposes. It is no new thing,

indeed, for slander to arraign all that is high and
holy.; birt the tongue of slander, however venomous,
can inflict no wound, can effect no puncture in the
character that is sound and whole; it is the pen of
the libeller, against which innocence is no shield ;
hand at a time when the evil eye of discontent not
only envies its neighbours goods, but covets its
neighbour's character, we have, Sir, to dread and to
repel one general levelling system, both of property
and of good name. . The barrier of the Constitution
will net fall down at the first giddy shout of the
multitude, the high tribunals which are its bulwarks
will yet stand, though treason deny their authority,
and con ,ciotis guilt their justice ; blasphemy may rail
at the holy place, and hypocrisy defile it with her
pageants long, long before the dome will totter ; but
the ruin must come at last, if the remedy be not fitly
interposed. When the league of what is base and
false, profligate and malicious, shall unite honour
and integrity to oppose it, the evil then works its own
cure, and the remedy is near at hand ; we know its effi-
'cacy, we have proved it scarce a twelvemonth since.
In the shews and processions of the year which has.
just expired, who but must have called. to mind the
like exhibitions of the twelvemonth which preceded
it ? The music, the march, and the banner ; the
Meeting, the Resolution, and Address; those first'
were the very prototypes of these last arrays; the
same in their real origin, and in their real object,
differing only in their method of pursuing it; the
first pursued its'object by denouncing the Aristo-
cracy, the second by denouncing the Crown; the
Aristocracy was then true to itself; the Represen-
tatives of the People were then faithful, and if the
highest duties of fidelity be now as well fulfilled, the
country is yet safe. It we turn our eyes from the
cares of domestic solicitude and look abroad, the
whole world is to us a scene of calm, of tranquillity ;
our flag flies on every sea, our besy industry plies
in every port ; our merchants are the rulers of king-
doms, our character everywhere high, and our credit
everywhere firm. If this honour, if this power, if
this peace have been worth winning, we might, Sir,
think them worth enjoying ; but there is a con-
sistency in the perverseness of those who refuse to
enjoy the fruits of measures which they have so
loudly and indiscriminately condemned—( Hear).
11 the ill-humour which has for twenty long years
and more so actively despaired of the public weal,
would at last confine the limit of its despondency to
its own particular views and its own private ends,
content might then rest at home, and in its easy scat
enjoy the fire-side it has defended ; but when the
shout of clamour is heard from without that well-
known cry, which so loudly informed our enemies of
the exhaustion of our resources and the futility of our
resistance—that same cry which so loudly demanded
a Reform, since confessed by its chiefest advocates
to be impracticable or inexpedient—that same cry
which so formidably opposed any protection to our
Agricultural Interest, under which protection alone
daily labour is now eating its daily bread ; as often
as this cry of ill-omen is raised and is reiterated, ac-
tivity must become a duty, and the supineness of lop
ialty is a cowardice at least. It is said that there are
some, and there are some who have said it them-
selves, that on looking hack to the popular demands
which they have sanctioned with their names, and
supported with their abilities, they. are now con-
vinced that youthful ardour had led them to over-
step the line of expediency and prudence. It might
be well if those whose second and better thoughts
lead them to this conclusion, would apply their ma-
tured judgment to the consideration of the future
as well as of the past, and would view in pros.
pect the expediency of those measures to which
they may now be lending the weight of their
names, and of their stations, and of their characters.
It might be well if they would remember that the
strong assertion is received into ready ears, which
are shut against tire subsequent explanation; and
that there are some evils, easily inflicted, for which
retractation is nu redress. The breach of that con-
fidence which ought to subsist, and which has sub-
sisted between the several orders of society living
under this happy Constitution, must be an evil be-
yond redress; this confidence was our strength in
battle, our union in effort, our hope, and our protec-
tion. He who dissolves it breaks our talisman, the
only witchcrqft we have used, to make of a little island
a great nation ! Sir, as a greavnation, taking a chief
place among the chiefest powers of the earth, we
have new functions to attend to, and a new degree
of vigilance to exercise. The greatness we have so
hardly earned we never shall willingly descend from;
we shall bequeath it to posterity as we won it ;
.It is a greatness which is no empty name. This great-
ness is the vigour of our commerce, and the credit
of our mercantile good faith. We have no covetous
craving to satisfy, either of riches or of territory_
the treasury of Europe was at our feet when our
bayonets mounted
.guard at Paris; we parted the spoil
amongst the rightful claimants, keeping for onrsAves
nothing but the satisfaction of having done so.
Irani a Nation which has so acted, no well.consti-
tuted Government will fear aggression, nor will pro-
yoke it; and we have the satisfaction of knowing,
that his Majesty receives from foreign Powers the
assurance of a continuance of their friendly disposi..
lions. Whilst we lament that unfortunate circum-
stances affecting the Commercial credit of Ireland,
have impeded the receipts of the l'ublic Revenue in
that part of the United Kingdom, we turn with pt.;
culiar pleasure to the consolatory balance (Their
couragement to our Manufactures by the recent ith-
provemeut of our trade; and it is with satisfaction
we hear that his Majesty has been enabled to make
some further reduction in his Military Establishment.
Sir, in adverting to the proposed provision for the
Queen, 1 imagine it will he sufficient that, on the pre.
sent occasion, we express our humble acquiescence in
his Majesty's recommendation ; and, without pre-
suming to suggest what line of conduct may best
become others, t am satisfied it will best become, me
to avoid the utterance of a single word which might
provoke premature discussion, and unnecessarily dis-
turb the unanimity of our this night's vote, It is
in the sincere hope and expectation of an unanimous
concurrence that I propose an Address consistent
with the sentiments 4 bare declared, and with the
,feelings I entertain of loyalty to the Throne, and of
ardent love for our Constitution as it stands, and as:
it has so long good.' •
Mr. BROWN, the seconder of the Address, then
Lose.' Ilk began . in. ill toga of voice quite inaudible,
and it was only at intervals that he could be under-

stood. At first he laboured under considerable em-
barrassment, but was encouraged by the lionse, and
enabled to proceed, though not with perfect Confi-
dence. He said, that eventful times had been lately
witnessed, in which destructive principles had as-
sumed new shapes, and menaced everythi.,,, valu-
able with ruin. He hoped such scenes s..urd never
be renewed. •He could almost wish that they were
obliterated from our history, if it were not that their
remembrance might have a salutary influence on two
sets of men—one of whom forgot their duty to their
country in the heated activity of party, and the other
passively submitted to the developement of principles
at variance with all its interests. He could not ima-
gine on what grounds any opposition could be made
to the present Address. There was one national
topic introduced in it, which was of so much interest,
that, though he might be accused of going out of the
course in mentioning it, he could not retrain from doing
so. By some strange infatuation, the business of Ire-
land, in that House, was received either with total cold-
ness, or, at most, decided after very short consulta-
tions. That country had seffered much—and what
had been her conduct during the late proceedings. ?
It had been most quiet and orderly. Not even the
most furious demagogue had raised his voice to ap.
plaud the scenes that were acting in this country—
(Hear, hear).—The most distant attempt had not yet
been made to introduce to that country the new doc-
trine—that of allowing to female manners in the
United Kingdom the same license and latitude that
,were permitted in foreign lands—(Laughter and
groans).—lt was not necessary for him w quote
va-
rious authors to shrew that national debauchery and
national ruin went hand in hand—( Hear, kcal ).—He
would pursue this subject no further. He sincerely
hoped Ministers would adopt a course of measures
beneficial for the country, and worthy of the great
glories they had achieved for the nation by the firm-
ness and vigour of their councils.
Mr. CURWEN regretted that the mover and se-
conder of the Address, had not followed the exam-
ple of the Speech ; and abstained from topics that
were likely to create irritation. He himself had often
lamented that Ministers were so little acquainted
with the state of the country, and bad made no allu-
sion in the Speech to the distress of the agricultural
part of the community. That distress had been
borne with the utmost patience ; and, amidst all their
privations, the greatest loyalty had been displayed
by that body of mien. He was unable to account
for the allusions made by the mover and seconder
to former •discnssions in that house. Though he
wished for the removal of the present Ministers, yet
he looked more to measures than to men ; at the same
time, he was convinced there was a general convic-
tion in the country of the incompetence of the pre-
sent Ministers to conduct the machinery of public
aft' Ors. None 'could imagine that men so ignorant
of the state of the country could apply a remedy to
the evils they had caused. Something efficient was
necessary to be done relative to the condition of the.
labouring poor, ani the Poor-rates at the present
day were equal to the whole expendittne of the coun-
try 25 years ago. The danger was to be looked man-
fully in the face, and the patriotism of the countrt
was sufficient fcr its deliverance, if assisted by an en-
lightened Government.
Mr. TIERNEY expresses'. hi; satiLllction at being
able to assent to the Address, without troubling the
House with an Amendment, a piece of respect due
to the Crown, uoless a contrary course was called for
by imperious necessity. He heard, v. ith much satis-
faction, that the communications from foreign Powers
had been of a pacific nature, as he was convinced
that the whole of the prosperity of the country de-
pended upon the continuance of peace. The next
sentence, however, was of a somewhat contradictory
character, as it expressed regret for the state of Italy.
It was the duty of Ministers to prevent aggression
of the great upon the speller or weaker Powers.—
He (Mr. Tierney) was surprised that England should
send a Minister to a Congress that claimed the right
of calling for. the attendance of Sovereigns. He
must also state his opinion, that it would not have
been too much on the part of the King, at the close
of the last Session, to have expressed his satisfaction
with the proceedings of Parliament. But it bad been
the policy, because it was the interest, of his Majes-
ty's Ministers to stifle all discussion—(Hear).—
On the subject of the reductions that were stated to
have taken place, he could say nothing till the parti..
culars should be before the House, But he was asto-
nished to hear the statement, that the Revenue had
been improved since the former year. That improve..
meet had arisen from the circumstance that three
millions of new taxes had come into operation on the
sth of January. It was also to be noticed, that
though new taxes had been' imposed to the amount
of .0,200,0tX), the accession of Revenue had been
only 12,200,(XXJ.' Ile had' heard that improvements
had taken place. In some particular Manufacturing.
Districts, but-he was afraicrthe improvement had not
been general:-=On the. subject Of a provision for the
Queen, he believed the usual dourse to Le for the
Crown to recommend the grant of a specific sum in
the.case of any of the branchei of the Royal Family,
and he hoped that such a course would, still be
adopted by the Chancellor- of the Exchequer.: more
gracious communication nrriht certainly have heel
made, and an end-plit to the questiou•that had agi-
tated the country for the last nine *months—(llec,).
From the tetras emplosjed, lie was afraid more was
meant than met the ear. Heargreed ssith hisllonour-
able Friend (Jr. Cloven) :that some notice ought to
have been takenv of the Agriclilturat distreis. lie was
happy at the satisfaction' fclt 'lsy his Majesty at the
different Addresses that had been matte to him ; bet
he war, at the same time, confident th'at no satisfac-
tion could have been felt by any other man, as' the
Addreises related to the King only; and dilnot say
a word of his Minister's. He was happy that the
Speech contained nothing on the subject cf B!a3.
pherny, Sedition, or the abuse of the FreedOin of the
Press, In fact, the only blasphemy its the country
was indignation at the conduct of Ministers, and a
wish ,to get rid of them—( Hear, hear).—Fgr the last
two months Ministerthad been employed in getting
up those Addresses, and Wherever they could, by
means of Sheriffs, they had endeas'ourad to prevent
open discussion. The conduct of some of chase Sl.e-
riffs had been most outrageous. He was happy that
the House had been relieved from the discussion t f
certain topics by the manner in which the Speeca
had been framed. ol'tr.

Lord CASTLEREAGH thought the subject had
been fairly met by the Right Hon. Gentleman; and
had been happily undeceived as to his fears of a most
formidable deoate. when the Right Hon. Gentleman
had goaded the Learned Gentleman to make his mo-
tion. It could be no reproach to a Speech from the
Throne, that it was well calculated to prevent de-

bate. He must at the same time deny that there was
any intention to disguise the fact of the agricultural
distress, though that distress could not have arisen
from the state of the laws. The continuance of peace
• was tint more anxiously desired by the Right Hon.
Gentleman than it was by himself. At the same time,
this country was not to dictate to foreign Powers
• what line of conduct they were to adopt, nor attempt
to regulate the whole of the Continent. It was not
to be inferred, that because a British Minister at-
tended a foreign Congress, he was to be regarded
as a party ro all that might take place there. But
on this subject he would reserve himself for further
infnrmation at a future time. With respect to the
Revenue, that of the present year had exceeded that
of the former, independently of the new Taxes.-1
Had it not been for a deficiency of 1:600,000 in the
_ .

Irish Revenue, and a similar deficiency in the Cus-
toms at home, there would have been an increase of
• A:1,000,000 upon the old Taxes. On the subject of
a provision for the Queen, the only complaint was,
that Ministers had not proposed a specific sum. But
the word arrangement could only refer to a pecuniary
grant—( Hear, hear)—and the usual course in grants
to the Royal Family was, a recommendation on the'
p.trt of the Crown. As it was usual for the House
to aJjourn over the next Monday and Tuesday, he
would being the subject forward on Wednesday. Par-
liament had not been prorogued from any wish on
the part of Ministers to shun discussion; but it had
been the general understanding, that, if the Bill be-
fore
the Lords should not come down to that Houie,.
that then no farther business would be entered upon.
He via. hap. y that the period for discussion had
arrived, and for discussion with gravity and dignity.
The 110:.se knew that no Ministereould shew his face,
if he had lost the confidence of the country ; and
neither he nor his colleages wished to remain in
office, if they had lost the confidence of the King,
the Country. or the House.--(Hear, hear, from both
sides of the House)—and as long as they possessed
that confidence, no taunts should induce them to
shrink from their duty. At present, all was amicable
betwixt the Right Honourable Gentleman and him-
self; but :he question woul.l come on whether the
present Ministers or the Right Honourable Gentle-
man and hisfiiends shoul..l guide the Councils of the
country. He should brin. the question before the
Ilouse, and as to the result he telt neither unbecoming
confidence nor unbecoming distrust—( Hear, hear).
Lord FOLKESTONE felt no surprise whatever
at the confidence of support in that House which the
Noble Lord had anticipated. He feared the country
had very iittle (lope of seeing the termination of the
power of the Noble Lord—( Hear, hear). Then: was
no sort of doubt whatever, that as long as the Noble
Lord sat in that place, and used the influence with
Ilicn tile Government provided him, constituted as
the house was, that he would long continue to enjoy
the support of Parliament !—(Hear, hear). He dared
to say that the Noble Lord, or one of his Right Hon.
Fiieuds, could shew them in black and white upon
what foundation that confidence was reposed !
(Laughter). But if the Noble Lord thought that in
addition to the confidence of his Sovereign and of
those persons upon whose support, for weighty rea-
sons, lie could rely, he enjoyed the confidence
of the: independent part of the community, he
was very much niisteken—(Cries of Hear, hear).—
Not a single Meeting had taken place at which the
conduct of the Noble Lord and his Colleagues had
not met with the most decided reproof. That Loyal
Addresses to the Crown had been procured and in-
serted in the Gazette was most true; but among all
those Addresses, fabricated as tjjey had been by the
profes cd supporters of his Majesty's Government,
not one of them had ventured to express a favourable
opinion of his Majesty's Ministers. Some of those
Addresses contained expressions which, in his humble
opinion, demanded the utmost reprehension ; and
here he could not but remark on what he conceived
to be the impropriety of a person taking upon him-
seql, as the Secretary of State did, to select particular
Addresses to be presented to his Sovereign, because
he considered them more affectionate, more dutiful,
or more loyal than others ; he disapproved of this
sort of proceeding as unconstitutional and unfair. It
only gave his Majesty one view of the question, and
deprived him of the opportunity of knowing anything
of the other. The Noble Lord had selected one Ad-
dress among others which had recently been inserted
in the Gazette, which, had it appeared in any other
l'aper, would have called down severe indignation.
It was an Address which had come from a set of
Clergymen in Scotland, and which among other
things, inveighed against the " unconstitutional
speeches which appeared to have been delivered in
both Houses of Parliament;" and then adverted in
strong terms to the conduct of that House in parti-
cular, on the late extraordinary prorogation. It was
an Address containing those sentiments, which the
Noble Lord had taken upon himself to select to be
sent up to the Crown ; and it was lepguage of this
sort, applied to the Constituted Authorities of the
State that he had thought proper to publish, and
then complained of the licentiousness of the Press !
With respect to some other parts. of the Noble Lord's
speech, he differed altogether. He apprehended
that the Speech from the Throne, at the com-
mencement of a Session of Parliament, ought to
give a general account of the state of the country.
The general state of the country, upon which they
were called to deliberate, and the amelioration of
which became their first duty, ought to be distinctly
stated ; but he knew perfectly well, that of late years
it had become the practice to make the Speech ex-
press as little as possible, in order to avoid debate
and opposition. All this arose from an innovation
which had taken place many years ago, he believed
in the reign of Queen Anne, previous to which time'
the House was permitted to Consider the Speech
three or four days before they adopted an Address.
He thought that plan much more consistent with
common sense than that now adopted, where the
Answer was but an echo of the Speech. The Noble
Lord next adverted to the manner in which the
House had beta dismissed at the end of the last

Session of Parliament. At a time whets a ferment
existed in the public mind, when both Houses were
sitting, and a call of that House ordered, they were
brought up before the House of Lords for the pur-
-1 pose of being dismissed, without a single word of
thanks for the liberal supply which they had granted,
and for which it had been the invariable practice, On
all occasions, for the Crown to express itself gratified.
This conduct was unparalleled, and, in his opinion
demanded, on the part of his Majesty's Ministers,
a satisfactory explanation—( Hear, hear).—He would
not hesitate to say that a very large majority of the
House had been taken by surprise, and that this
prorogation had been most improper—(Hear).—
The Noble Lord next observed, that it was a great
omission in the Speech from the Throne not to have
alluded to the Agricultural distresseses, and to the
ocher distresses under which the country was labour-
ing. The Noble Lord (Castlereagh) had talked of the
great improvement in the Revenue ; but he would
ask, what prospect was there of the distresess of the
country subsiding, or what remedy he was prepared
to apply to their amelioration? Everybody knew
that the weight of taxation was almost insupportable ;
and although he had a great respect for the opinion
of his Honourable Priend (Mr. Curwen), he was still
persuaded that the return to Cash Payments, without
nn alteration in the standard of gold, could be pro-
ductive of no real benefit. The Speech, he thought,
ought to have contained, not alone a statement of the
evils which existed, but also a specification of the
remedies which' were applied to those evils. Some-
thing also should have been said on the measures to
be adopted respecting the Queen—a subject on which,
1 for the last few months, so much dissatisfaction had.
prevailed—( Hear, hear).—His Majesty's Ministers,
however; seemed determined to pursue the same un-
gracious course until they drove the country to dis-
traction—(Hear, hear).
Mr. WODEHOUSE said, that the A ddresses to
which alhrsion had been made, had arisen from a
firm persuasion among a large portion of the com-
munity, that a mischievous exertion had been made
to disseminate through the country the principles of
blasphemy and sedition. He deprecated with great
warmth the insinuation that they had arisen from a
servile dependence on a wicked Government ; on the
contrary, they had their origin in the brightest feature'
of this country's freedom—namely, the freedom of
an open and candid expression of public opinion.—
The authors of these Addresses had been reviled by
all manner of scurrilous epithets. They had been
called 4, dogs"— " dunghill dogs"—:(Much laughter);
And they had also been termed 4, Hole-and-corner
men," as if the place in which a Declaration was made,
and not the Declaration itself, constituted its charac-
ter. In his opinion, if an expression of opinion were
necessary, it made no difference whether it was ac-
companied by acclamations or applause—(Weer).
cord FOLKESTONE denied that he had made
use of the epithets to which the Honourable Gentle-
man had alluded. He did not object to the Ad-
dresses themselves, but to the secret manner in which
they bad been got up, and the species of influence
which had been used to obtain them—(Cries of Q•fes-
tion, Question).
Mr. B. BATHURST rose to vindicate his Noble
relative (Lord Sidmouth), from the imputation which
had been cast upon him by the Noble Lord who had
just sat down ; but, from die contusion which pre-
vailed in the House, he was utterly inaudible in the
Gallery, lie was understood to contend, chat the
selections of the Addresses for presentation to the
King weie founded in the strictest policy, and to deny
that in this selection any unfair or improper pre-
ference had been given.
Mr. WARRE did not deem the explanation of the
Right Honourable Gentleman satisfactory, and com-
mented with severity on the introduction into the
Gazette of an Address which was a direct libel on
that House, and which, if published under any other
circumstances, would have subjected alie offending
parties to the indignation of the house itself.
The question fur the adoption of the Address was
then put and carried unanimously; and the Address
was ordered to be presented by the whole House.