The Statesman.
London, England, 1810-01-26 00:00:00

.em its ancient privileges than freitt itt real ,cot‘
sequence in the State. Ile could not conceive a
more dignified act in the Sovereign of the country
than to receive upon his Throne the Address of
such an important city—and he could not dierceive
any thing inure foolish than to advise his Majesty
is entor Woo sting* 41gainst abe -privileges of
the city of London. He could not avoid recol.
lecting with what attention the City of London
had always been treated by every Sovereign, from
IVilliain the Conqueror dowii to ‘Villiam the
Third. The Convention Parliament had even re-
ceived its confirmation from the City of London.
An Act of Parliament had recognized the privi-
leges of the City of London, and enacted that
they should not be forfeited even by disuse--aril
yet his Majesty had now been advised to treat
with contempt the privileges of that great city,
which were sanctioned by antiquity, and respected
by all former Monarchs, and which was in every
point of view of the first importance to the country
at large. He trusted, however, that the different
counties of England would mike with the City of
London in this great question, which so materially
affected the privileges of the People, to make
known to the Sovereign their grievances and corn.
plaints by petitions and addresses. It was an ex.
traordinery thing, that in a country where the
Sovereign was nut permitted even to stop a foot.
path prising through a Royal park (as in the
case of Richmond 1)31k), his Ministers should as-
sume to themselves the power of obsteucting• the
high road which led th'c People to the Throne, and
bloating up every avenue by which the represen-
tations of his People could reach the hands of
their Sovereign. It could not be asserted, that it
would be Any fatigue to his Majesty to receive the
Addresses of the City, because it was nut expected
of him to give any answer at the time. All, that
!Vat asked %tots/ that the Petition might he placed
In his Royal hand. Itdid appear to him, that the•
insult which Ministers had advised his Majesty to
offer to the City of London was only a part of a
general system to treat with contempt all the pri.
vileges which belonged to the People, and all the
usages of respect which had hitherto been custom.
ary. lie could net avoid noticing that even sumo
slight had recently been shown to the Gentlemen
of that Assembly. It hul heel' customary for-
merly to have the Nine's Speech read the
.tsieelit before at the Cock-pit, and afterwards it
' was owl to send copies of it to the dif.
terent Member., that they might have suf..
6cient notice Of what was to be the subject of
discussion. This usage was now abandoned.--1.
There was another subject which he could not
forbear mentiouing. In the last Session he hail
brought before the consideration of that Assembly
a insist foul and scandalous job, respecting. the
gfeet to an individual, of certain lands in the WS.
mediate vicinity of Chelsea Hospital. He had
supposed, that, in consequence of 'the exposure,
Ministers intended to abandon it ; and he thought
that by not pressing the subject farther at that
time, ho had allowed Ministers a decent retreat
rfeenn what could not be considered otherwise than
era Most scandalous and disgusting job. He now
hetweter found that instead of abandoning it, Mi-
nisters had colifirmexl it previous to the opening V
Abe present Session. What did Nlinistura mean Ify
thisel Did. they imagine that they *maid by this'
Ws avoid 11: farther discussion ? If they did;
►tbiertiewiaurt geiriolely mistaken ; for he errs
taints shoistil refs it his deity again to bring that
question forward. • 111•Akrespect to the Speech
which had.been delivered iribis Majesty's name, it
appeared to him defective in Mareyepoluts, He
thutight that'a Speech- on the opening -*Tale.,
weld should be, as in former times it used dm a
review of the measures of Ins Majesty's Goveris.'
mint submitted to the consideration of Parliament:"
It sae: nut to be a mere milk and wider pro-
thirteen, pledging the Government to nothing, and
.milealated for no other object but to obtain a
mere unmeaning complimentary address without
opposition. How came it that the Speech men.
Owed nothing about India? pear, hear!]
Was it that we are to be told that we have nothing
to do with India, as it is governed by a Company,
or something else, for their own interests, and nut
.for the interests of this country ? We, however,
do Mad that disasters in India do affect this coun-
try ; and of the late events there, it must be al-
lowed that it was very distressing to hear that one
body of British troops was sent to attack and dc-
struy another party. Events of this nature end
magultude ought not to pen unnoticed in a Speech
at the beginning of a Session. lie would wish to
know, why was that recommendation of a grant
to the 'poorer Clergy tucked to the Speech. It
appeared to him to proceed from the same source
as the cry' of No Popery. [Hear, heart.] De
thought, however, that it would well become the
dignified sad wealthy Clergy to take care of their
.own poor; anal he would never consent to extort
A Single sixpence from the hard bends of honest
ro
rmustry for such a purpose, lir c.ouparison to
;fie cauipaige which our enemy has rcceasigjoso
+fueled, how contemptible wail the ceineaugnailkich.
4is r Ministers had 'coedits:tie! We Were told tli•tt
that most disastrous 42;xpeditioti to the Senoldt
wasintentled as a couptde-main; but it was Ma-
-o.lgcti in Such a loanner, that Bonaparte apprized
his *nicer commanding in 111433 c parts, of , Ur in.
tended coup-dc-main, no less than three months'
before the sailing of our Expedition. lie hail
lately read of the manatee in a hich the Noble Lord
who Oatmeal the Expedition occupied himself
about the time of its sailing, which might perhaps
make him forget the objects of it. The Noble
Lord (Lord Castlereagh) was most actively intent
opon preventing a certain individual from accom-
panying that Expedition, which individual (Mr.
Finnerty) might perhaps have given a true ac-
count of it. Now, amidst the important care of
preventing this individual from going to Walcheren,
the Noble Lord might have forgotten the purposes
for which he sent the army there. ludee,l, the
very transport in which that individual sailed, ap-
peered' te have .been forgotten, 'although it con.
tanned Wicket of great necessity to the meditated
attack (we believe that .either Mr. Congreve's
rockets or.the entrenching tools were here alluded
to) ; and it was said by somee that the ineetion of
011111n117 for titteea day' was 11 cousuquencu of

TH STATAMAN.

tbih forgetruluess. There was an insinuation in
•the'Speech that the Expedition to Wakheren had
in. Wirt succeeded but it could hardly be ex-
pected that the public should consider .it in any
other light than as a most complete, disastrclus,
and disgraceful failure. The Expedition to Spain
was as neatly destructiveto our army as that of
Holland. A dispute with America, of a very se.
nous stature, had been provoked by the impru-
dence of Ministers; and yet, notwithstanding all
these misfortunes, and the strange occurrences in
India, Ministers were supported with the same

(tcadiness as tf these measures had been prosper-
ous. He could feel no asperity in considering this
circumstance, as it only served to confirm that
opinion with which his mind was intimately and
strongly impressed, Of the necessity of a tote!
change of system ; and, as the only meani of
obtaining such a change, a Reform in the Itepre.
sentation of .the People. lie thought those Gen-
tlemen wrung who itopt short to compare the me.
rits of set of Ministers with another. It was

the whole system which was wrong, and which
ought to be altered. We ought to look beck to
the system established in 1793. The present
calamitous war, and the oppressive weight of
bur taxes, ought to be considered as only
the sequel and necessary consequence of that
war which, in 1793, was commenced in fully
and injustice. Parliament was then powerfully
warned of the ill consequences which would re-
salt to this country from plunging into that war;
and yet, in obedience to the will of the Minister of
that.day, it despised that warning. No imagina-
tion could, :however, then suppose, or no inn._

_ .. .
plictic warning could furetel the whole extent of
the mischief which the authors of that war Were'
bringing clown elicit' the country. However it
was the custom of that Assembly to extol the :ha.'
meter of the Minister of that day (Mi. Pitt), he
could never view him in any other light than as
the greatest curse whinh the country ever
knew, lie could not now, after fifteen years
experience in that room, unlearn in one mi-
nute all those terrible lessons which were im-
printed on his mind during the Administration of
Mr. Pitt. He could not therefore bear to Sit
silent, when he heard those who for many years
had, with great perseverance and ability, op-
posed the measures of that Minister, now, upon
every occasion, take an opportunity to extol his
memory. This oppressed and injured people have
even been forced to erect a monument to the me-
mory of their great enemy. It appeared to him,
however, that there was no occasion to have voted •
any particular monument to Mr. Pitt, as he had
himself—as by thefaults otitis Administration, he
had erected an eternal monumeat to his memory
1 in the ruins of Europe, and the misfortunes of
, his country. However he disapproved of this
sort of monument, there was another which lie •
would approve of, and would be ready to sub.
scribe for. He would not object to have a moue. •
1 ment of marble erected in the square before that
House, and un one side to have inscribed Magna •
Chart(' and the- Bill of Rights; and on the other
side to have inscribed the many violations of those
sacred laws and principles of the Constitution,
which had taken place withahe advice abd deriug
the Administration of Mr. Pitt. To the foot 0:
such a monument, he should wish it was the •
duty at the Speaker to conduct eery new
Member, before he took his seat in that House.
It was impoisible now to go into any part of
the country without hearing the loudest corn-.
plaints of the cruel and oppressive system of tax- •
salon which now prevails. A host of men, un-
der the name of Surveyors, Assessors, and- what
net, was now spread all over the country. They
Were men who had an interest in making the sys.
'Arm oppressive;• and however unjust their snr.
charges might appear to be, they were never pai.
nished ter that injustice and oppression. While
1 such things were-allowed to go on, it was rldicti.
lour to expect all men to be unaninaleas in supi
porting the present Government. Every man was
liable to penalties, which might be recovered by
a common informer, for neglectii9; to enter a
servant, or for not entering him
,by, the eight
name. He himself knew a gentleman aillooinit-
ted entering the natnt; of a servant for whets he
had paid, and Was consequently surcharged. He
appealed, and often attended on the appeal when
it could nut be heard, and at last-it was heard at
a time when it was impossible for him to attend,
and was consequently given against him. Ile knew
that farmers were assesaed over and over again for
dogs which they never kept, but it was better for
them to submit to the imposition than to lose so
much of their time as would be consumed in at.
tending again and evils at a place some miles dis-
tant (rdm their residence, to prosecute their.ap-,
peals. These evils were forcibly stated at Ilistaj
late meeting of Berkshire. Ho hoped the time::
would come when no goods:man would consent to
take the odious office of Cionmissioner under the
present system. The oppressive means by which '
their money was stiimant fromi the peckers of the
peaple were quite too bail 4 when it was considered
with what shameful prodigality these stims were
afterwards lavished and wasted. • The multitude
of acts which had beets (rained to regelate the col-
lection of this part of the revenue, had not made it
the less oppressive.
When he recollected the situation of this country
15 years ago,.and how upon each successive year
that situation was, beyond all comparison, wont)
than it had been in the year precedine, it called
forth the most painful sensations. Ile believed
there was nut a single Geutlesnau in the House
who would not, if it depended on him, most
gladly ezchauge the situation of the country at
present, for its situation at any former period.--
If this was the fact, and the situation of the court.
try was constautly growing worse and worse, this
regular deterioration Must lie to be traced to sa.rie
certain causes which.produced.that elf,ct. It was
the duty of every body to trace thoq, causes, when
it was observed that !to change of Mioisters pro-
duced any material cliange iii ilie fustueet of • the
country ; but that in all changes of Adminiora.
!ion, end whot•vvr were the men in other, w he-
thee wise or simple, still the some practicel ef.
fects followed from a perseverance in the told sys-
. teal. Haw Isdppy would we all conceive ourselves

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