The Statesman.
London, England, 1809-12-14 00:00:00

TN STATF,S VAN.

these sentiments he trusted the Court would ben,
Mm out, by giving their votes unanimously lot
the Address.

Sir CHARLES PRICE, although he differed
with the general sentiments of the Address, and al.
though it was carried only by a majority of one
voice, would nut on tte present occasion, oppose.its being sent up to his IWajesty ; and he was led
to this decision from a respect for the dignity' of
the Court. He was Wild to say, that there was'
not a more loyal man in his Majesty's dominions
than himself, nor no man more anxious for the
public welfare ; yet he could not help now assert.
tag the same opinion of the Addessr which he had
given ou a former day. It .was such. an eine at
could not elicit from hint one tittleof approbation;
in fact it was as disrespectfal an Address as could
possibly be sent to his Mtiesty ; bat if it woe the
desire of the Court that is should go, he would
not oppose their incliliations. He trusted, hoives
ver, that if it was presented, it would receive the
same efoct, and be attended with the same cons*.
quences to its promoters, as the verdict in the
Corer, of Ring's Bench on Monday last. (Some
eeurevers here took place 'below Nye Bar.) Ile
'cared not, he said, what might be the feelings be.
low the bar, and hoped what be had said fright go
forth to dee country, in order that a proper con.
ception of the feelings and proceedings of that
Court might be universally disseminated, and
condemnation, if deserved, be, placed where it
ought.
• Mr. LUCAS said, there had been a vast deal of
!natter crammed into the Address, wholly irrele-
vant to the subject towards which it was more par-
ticularly avowed to be directed ; namely, the late
Expedition to Walcheren. Ile alluded to the con.
denotation, and calling in question the conduct of
brave General without due inquiry. He would
&pixel to the Court, whether the part he adverted
to wee not inconsistent with a proper regard for
justice and impartiality, and inconsistent with that
liberality which had been at all times professed and
maintained by the _Corporation of London. There
was no difference of opinion, he said, at the last
Court, as to the expediency of inquiry ; the only
object for contention was, as to the mode and
time of inquiry. It was urged them, that the
Address should be in a ore respectful laiguage, if
presented at all ; bat it was still more strongly
contended, that it would be more prudent, as well
as more consistent with the dignity of the city of
London, to wait for the op sting of Parliament ;
hod it proper measures for the relief of the come.
try were not then adopted, every one was ready
to coincide its the necessity for an Address. Those
were still his.septiments, pad ouder .tbese impees.
iioni ho had attached his name to the requisition.
Re concluded by expressing an ardent wish that
the Address might undergo a re-consideration,
prior to its being sent up to his Majesty.
Mr. MAWMAN said, [(there was a precedent
for the reconsideration of an Addriss under such
circumstances as the present, be was must deci-
dedly of opinion that the Address in qu..stion
tetptired reconsideration. Ile b.lieved there did
exist such a precedent, and he hoped before the
Address was presented it would undergo a close
is.isies. He was led to this wish triple per.
cowing that the Address, instead of beisg con_
breed to its avowed object., that of inqiiry, it went
on, •in the most anqualifiol manner, to find
fault with Ministers, mid also wit!' one of our
most admired Commanders. He submitted, there.
fore, that there was something extremely incon-
sistent and unjust in giving judgment before in.
cpiry ; and 'toiler these circumstances he thought
it his duty to move Per the reconsideration of the
Address.

Mr. WAITIIMAN was of the same opinion
with the Gentleman who sat near him, and who
had given the most convincing reasons in favour of
the Amendment. Ile saw that there was a par.
ticularly pointed opposition to every measure •iri-
ginatin4 with lii,nself, met that iron a particular
Grotlesnan. According to his off n feelings, he
was conseioes of his attachment to toe House of
Brunswick ; but that h no Gentlemen should im.
pute In hill illative,' .if disloyalty was not to be
wondesed at. It was of far greater cotisequence,
how. 'ter, that the proceedings, the solemnly de-
cided proceedings of this Court, should nut be
trifled with. The Gentleman was not satisfied
with personal vilification, but sought to bring
dishonour on the whole body to %%hick he tr.!. i
longed. When the subject of the Address was
debated on the list Court day, he (Mr. Waith.
man) had gone at large into the subject. lie
entered fully into -the question; 'flier° was no
part of the Address that did not pass through
the most rigorous ordeal of discussion ; and after
so mature a considerotion of the whole merits of
the subject, ba did nut think it necessary now
to resume it. A Gentleman bad made a par-
ticular refection on the manner in which
a certaiu General Officer had besot spokes of.
He would still persist in his former laugtme
concerning that Officer. llts would still think
that a General, who rashly and inconsiderately,
without provisions and all the other requisites fur
the support and equipment of an army, phauld
run headlong into the heart of an almost hostile
country, and with the certainty of meeting a
powerful enemy ; yes, be would still think, that
such a general was guilty of the most gross mis-
conduct. He had the same Opinion of the Inca-
pacity of Lord Chatham ; and so loudly did
events proclaim this incapaCith that he was con..
vinced, no possible circumstance
,yet untold or •
unknown to the country, could alter this opinion.
After discessint the subkct so variously end so
maturely., (continued Mr. Waithman), after sifting
the question with the most assiduous and arduous
attention, from twelve o'clock in the day tiil siz
at night, after votithz an Address to his Majesty,
iii the name of the Common Conned of tbu Ciky
of London, are a host of opponents, who, after '
a regular summons, did nut think h worth while
to attend, who thought a piestion of au meth
nsualeist too paltry in consequunce to arrest their
atteniimi, tied to command their preiscrice....are
'ewe men now, for what purpose and throligh what
yes we ail know, to comedown to the Common
mei', with a retpiisitiou iu their hands and to
. on you to rescind times resolutions, and to

~per..

--T----

~.' --~

abllndon that Address, which you in pia wis-
d.nn and your patriotism thiluglit fit' to .adopt I
I have been, my Lord Mayor, fur the last fifteen
years in an honourable minority—this is stalest
thn first time I have.succeeitert in pergola ling the
inajorit, of this Court to agree with me in pond.
Eat liodusehts, Ito open tlii.ir eyes to the ruin that
WAWA, and stall continees to fall' on 6iir un-
liappy conntry.; and yet, even its this solitary in.
stance °rumens, am 1 to he opposed by an bi-
de...tint, an angels. riles hostility ? This has never
been my' practice—When beaten, I have been
silent; contented with having deserved success if
I could not ensure it. I remember to !Me
brought the question of Pitt's moneioent before
you, because I thought it a disgraceful business ;
and. I fought the battle of the people against the
dentraCtors, but the eontracters were too strong, I
was beaten.-. 1 was silent... I retired...l had d re.
spect for the solvent decisions, and fur the dig.
city of this Court, which my seese of duty would
not soff..r me todisturb or to insiolt. If decisions of
1 this Court are to be thus trilled with, it would be
better not to meet at all. E telt day that we as.
seuble, the same ground is to- be walked over
again—the sane arguments used ; in fact, there
never could be a decision of any stability.—
' And why all thib trouble? To accommodate
a set of Gentlemen, who will not by attenance
endeavour to do their duty. Daring the lut
discussion there was no opposition to the Address
on the broad ground of its merits. Every Gen.
denten seemed to feel the disgrace which it de-
scribed, and the disasters which it recited. Bet
there was opposition on one point, and that an
essential one indeed, which went to overturn the
very right of petition itself. In the usual cry we
were called en not to petitions-4 Inquiry would
come—it was an insult to his 31fdesty to petition.'
For fifteen yeah' have 1 been in this Court ; I
have witnessed the failure of twenty expeditions.
I have called, repeatedly called for petitions, for
inquiry, but 'twat is says an insult to his :Ha.
jelly!, After the holiness of tb. Heller, it was on
/*sat. After all our other disasters and des.
grams, it was still an insult to the Throne, to
petition. What is this, my Lail Mayor, but
wilfully and basely fore4uing our inherited right ;
our best right, that of proclaiming our wrones,
end seeking for redress ? It is yielding villtnously
and with a smile too, one of the greatest Lulwarks
of our Constitution—the nth/ of petitioning alto-
gether. I was, indeed, extremely astonished by
the lamentable want of information ovine eel by a
Guntleinan opposite (order) in his reflections on
the eonduct of Parlia.nents with respect to the
right of petition. I would ask that Gentleman,
who established this very right ? Were they not
the tithers of our Constitution, the promoters of
the Revolution, the men nit° altered the sucres.
'ion of the Crown from the House of Stewart to
ILI llouse of Brunswick ? What did Parliament
think of tile right of potititm-in the reign of James
11. I in whose reign, and not in that of George
IL wu might, without any force or fancy, ima.
sine ourselves to live, if we were to juke by the
vile language, which some Genileinen hold. Tile
language which we hear hum the opposers of pc.
Idiots now, is precisely the same which was used
by the opposers of petition in the thee of James
11. There is a hapoy coincidence of sentiment
amongst the friends of arbitrary power in both pe.
nods; but there is this grand difference between
'he two epochs, that thou they petitioned fur Par.
!lament to meet, and now tat: mee ing of Portia.
meat only renders our evils the greater. But to
return. What did the Parliament in the time of
hates 11. think of the right of petition ? Did
they express any abhorrence at the exercise of
this right ? Did they, like Gentlemen of the pre.
sent day, declare that i, would subvert the Con.
dilation? No, my Lord Mayor, it was their
opinion that the exercise of this right, instead of
tending to destroy, gave new strength to the
Con titution, and trey accordingly decreed that
whocr, r questioned the undoubted right of the
People of England to peti.iim the Throne, was
as enemy to his King and Country. 'They
west farther, my Lord, and I wish Gentlemen
would never lose sight of this circumstance. It
was the custom fur the Douse of Commons at
this period not to (sitter their votes to be printed.
But what did they on this occasion? They or.
dersd that this vote should be printed as an
eternal testimony of their opinion of. so interest.
ing a right. At the. Revolution this right was cf.
factually established, and instead of declaring it
a violation of the Cooosti:ution (as some Gentle.
sea would seem to think it nuts), it wu on the
contrary declared, that as hoever should oppose it,
would violate the Constitution itself. No point
in our Constitution ur history can he clearer (luau
this. lam ashamed of the degeneracy which
in practice or language could now be base I
enough to deny it." Mr. iVaithman nest adverted !
to the objection made agsinst the supposed disre.. i
spect con‘ained in the Address. But he challenged I
Gentlemen to produce auy Address recorded in
this Court more respectful to his Majesty. Ile
erred them to bring forward any. He would
.apiii take the liberty of adverting to the bolsi-
i11'6% of Minorca, when an Address was presented
to George 11. Lord Chathatu was then Minis.
ter (and it might be presumed, that he at least
was at great a Minister as Mr. Perceval), and
Lord Chatham advised his Sovereign to declare in
his Speech, the great satisfaction he derived from
this instance of regard from the city of London,
ito declare how deeply he felt the anxiety of the
people fur the honour of the Crown. Iliad Gen-'
limes any fair ground of opposition at all tens.
We. One Gentleman said there was precedent fur
this peueecding.—W bat sort of precedent ? What
was the usage of the Common Council in such
proceedings ? They hutructed their Sheriffs to
Irsit on his Majesty, to know whets he would be
pixieish plAsed to receive their Address. Thu
Sheller always waited on his Majesty after the Ad.
dress Was voted. Was it right then that one Address
*build be 'outland another be s .10 Thu King Gees
allay for reiraiwing.them ; hut, in the meautinie, an-
other Address is substituted for the one which he
allowed the Sheriffs to deliver. Would it not be
better even to do wrung sometimes, than to per.
sit such a dangerous precedent ? Gentlemen

1;;SMolim:

wished to sneak in with a milk and water Ad-
dress, instead of the dignified one which was sot-
!
ed. lie was not querulous. lie stood solely on
the broad grtitend of his public duty. He guar.
ruled with no-tess. He pursued n,, man with an
voivenerseed, dirty senneity. This was nut, hover.
Ter, the case with his Particular °meow:its. They
tri•ated him unfairly. Their conduct now towards
him was the same as when he first moved an Ad-
dress, which was on the accession to office of the
late Administration. These Geotlemen never act
with dignity, either in prosperity or adversity. In
prosperity they give way to unmanly triumph ;
in adversity they are sire to desert their post,—
I When beaten they run away, hoping " to fight
I another day." 1 his ii their coiedect now ; they
I left one Gentleman to watch the progress of the
' Committee, who were appointed to draw up the
Address. When any expression annoyed the de.
licacy of this Gentleman's nerves, he was to make
a report of the violence and the turbulence or the
Committee, and this report was to serve the bet.
ten few with a pretext for rallying again after
their retreat, and producing a new requisition for
thereschseling of the Address which they themselves
had deserted. • It was laughable, hots ever, to hestr
the particular part of the Address to which
the tealchmen had elejecfeel. Iles objection
was to the words at crisis, which lee moved
should be left out! This was negatived,
and the Gentleman then thought it Jewett to
declare, that he would make no more obser-
vations, as he was sure they would- scot be at.
tended to. He (Mr. W.) called on the Con.
mon Council to protect their Committee from
this slander. To protect their own dignity, which
was involved ies that of the Coinnsittee which
they appointed; and be himself beggi-d their pro.
tection, fur be too, among the*.eest, conceived
himself insulted. He wookl not thank a certain
Alderman (Price) for the sentiments he lead utter.
eel; they were net only degrading but mischievates.
He was astonished that Gentlemen who plead •el ies-
firmity and old age es an excuse for not calling
IVarit Meetingt; whom he had not seem in that
Court C for more than twelve !Holub% (Order).—
Ile was astonished, fie said, to 5... e settle a 14 hir.v of
the old and the infirm (Order); such a show• of
Aldermen on this occasion. llc was afraid that
it was not to the violence of their patriotism, that
the Court owed their presence. An Honourable
Baronet had accused him of making round and
broad assertions. He did make round assertions'
—lilt they were tree. ll.' ensile round asser-
tions concerning Christ's Hospital --hut were
they proved to be fthe ? He was toll to be sure
that they were false by the Hun. Baronet, but
what was the judgment of the country now re.
sieving the lion. Baronet's assertions, and his 2
it was -Ccroplaineil, that he indulge:l in !WM. i
•nality ; but had he no right to complain of those
who imputed impure motives to his public con_ I
dust ? iill was personal to G:•ietleinen as pub.
Ilie men, and not (Aber wise. Ifte invaded the
!sanctuary of no maa's priva.e. character, he
envied no man his contract, beet he ft-genteel that
sontracturs should nut boast of indt:peodence.
Let the contractor bare the wages of his bartered
integrity ; but let him not dare, unbluseiingly, to
vaunt of independence !Afore honest mee. He !
would still he the determined pu!elicen say cefsuch
men --clever wetted 'he find an ass in a lions'.l
skin, that he should not tear him out of it.—
(Hera Sir Charles Price smiled eanlemptnoasty.)
—There was one point more which lee would
urge. Did all the property, ell the character,
and all the understanding belong to Geed:lnce
opposite ? If they thought so, he was prepared
lo deny it. Had they nicer feelings ? Had the)
2 greater respect fur his Majesty, aced for the
Constitution ? He would tell them that, though
he might be inferior In property, he was nut in
honest independence to any man. And, perhaps,
he would that. day he joined in sentiment by a
maj,rity of the property and talent of that assent-
,bly. Mr.lVaithman these produced a book, dgcla.
ratory of tlee rights of the commute Council,
conceived in very strong terms, from which he
read some extracts, sod cominentell on theta as
tee read them. This book was printed by order
of the Livery, but was now out of priest. He
hoped the Common Council would not long
suffer it to remain so. Ile then contended that
it was a duty they owes) to the army and the
country, to present the Address in the form in
which it was first voted. lie teak occasion to
pay a haaelsome tribute to the bravery of our
troops, whose spirit would be brAten, and. whose.
breasts would not be so cheerfully bared to the
bayonet of the enemy, If the couutry did not
show .a lively interest in their preservatioet from
useless and inglorious slaughter. It was the,
duty of the country not only to feel but also to
proclaim their fexlings, now that they hail fallen
frogs degradation to degradation, now that titer
had become-the scoff of Europe. He hoped 11e7
would go up to the Throne iii the temperate but
bold language of the Address. That they would
call lousily fur inquiry into the conduct of his
Msjesty's present advisers. That they might nut
leave au opportunity of managing and dragooning
the Parliament into an approbation of their es.:a.
sures. If the Parliament was made of Imre Eng-
lish stud', it would nut be so dragooned ; and he
indulged even a deirairin4 hope that Parliament
would yet think of doing its duty.
Mr. DIXON said, be would decline answer.
ing the topics urged by the Gentleman who spoke
last, almost all of whose observations, nine out
of ten of the Members present heard repeatedly.
over and over again. Fur his own part he dill
not wish to cultivate popularity with persons
of the description to whom the Honourable Mew.
ber addressed himself, sad who would put every
man on the back who uttered similar setitimeoto.
The question before the Court lay in a nutshell ;
it was comply this—whether or suit the Cuter'
would wish to hear read shat Address, se hie!! was
to go forth as the• drelaratioe of their sentiments to
his likaaty. If the Address was, as the lion.
Member had declared, jrerfecily respeetfill to his
Majesty, and perfectly consistent with theel:coriem
which the Court owed to itself"; if it was sack as
na loyal man could object to in any part, hoes
thou could the reading at it be opposed ? Manv

..~.,..R

Member.' who were now present, and who 1W
heard the Address rein!, acre of a di:fenet
',pinion ; an.l he thon4ht di it a gr,at many bolter.,
Mho were not pew nit ',pun the former urra.ion,
and hail 11411 heart it read. 'plea at how to hate
an oftiortliaity of hearing that whirl! they *err
eJII.II on hi subscribe. The thin 4 ter :Linty was
out without perms:cut. Evo.-y Manlier of the
Court e.biticitled in the propriety of ingiiry ; and
the only 'Abjection Nat to 'some pit.s of the lati-
guage in which the Corporation ware airntit to
citercise.their right of petition. to seine dee: bration,
highly disrespectful to the lion.be of Con.oont,
and to those censures conseyekl to bis MAjt,ry
upon the coin:net of his ateliers:, Lord 11%1;14:-
ton, antecedent to the very iiigni,y ninth the
Address implored, and which was to asc:ittai I whe-
ther that Noble Lord's conduct really ilatrve4
censure Or nut.

Mr. JACKS contended that there were words
in the Address that were bight,- improper, and
that must be considered by any i-nnartial man as
disrespectful to the Sovereign. There was in teed
1 a whole paragraph in thy Address that was derv.
I gatory to the character of the Watts° of Comme::s,
Anil such as they could ai•it be warranted ma annals'.
ciple to send up to the Throne. 113 C worthy lien,.
I ber had staled, that th, Address was such as wapiti
do honour to the Court ; dud if so, why not lit
1 • them hear it ? That there slsould be an &hire's was
now atlnsitted on all hands, and if the Address nes
i 5.10 as it ought to be, he was sure that no °bk.
turn would be made to it. Bait the Addresq, he was
as;ureJ was very different, anal such as would re.
lU:et ignominy and disKratee on the Court. Them
was a pass.sge in•it that interfered with the pre.
rogative of the Crown, and blamed his Mjesty
fur conferring a peerage on LnrJ Wellington.—
: [The Honourable Member here rapt with some
interruption, as wandering from the cpuesti.m.]
Mr.WAITIIMAN said, he was rem!, fnr one to
illit, of some latitude on a qu -slit), of this nature,
nod thoeght the worthy Gentleman sheuld be
hard.

J:\ CKS in contineation contended that that
Court hail no right to interfere with toe preroga.
tire of the Crown. The Petitions that had be' n
quitted, he wetted, were of no authority at the
present inomeut. The periods at whit+ they had
I).•en tent up, were marked by domestic dig.
tractions, or or a partieuliarly gloomy aspect ; and
because the Court had. (mee dome wrong. that was
no reason why they slionld repeat it. This ar4u.
went of the worthy Member put him mind of
the pleading of a certain hottest Counsellor in the
Cuer of King's Bench'', hehalf of therr.nter of a
freckly news') iper (The Whig), who, in est..tiia-
tion of the offence of his client, Oilfired the A !-
I dresses and Petitions of the Gil, of L•tiof in, as
containing much more uneouvitetional I t411*!.2
than any thing advanced in that pap •r (A 1. 'orb)
l He couteatteil tha the prece !..:it th it rt,d heen
I alluded to was csact.y in point. The A J'lr. ss
tia comi:ig. of ow la.:. A dminne r rim; wits
reed before a 'lobe-pm' Meeting of th • Court,
and taken into farmer cousiderati in, which feu
all they etre:ended fur tot this 'occasion
Ile !tweeted that the 11 monrible Gentle•win was
alts lys so much disposed to finite a gloomy via of
thu country. For his ewn part, he saw no occ.i_
sion for desprintleney. L q us look a: our late
natal victories; let us look at the ioarttime riwer
and greatne-s of the country; let es .it rho
commerce and larounic iv lahonr of the country ;
let them louk at the quill y of produce imp*. ted,
at fie namber of the sanoloyed, and the prim-
p ivy and increase of the Colonies, sod they
*ould be convinced that there never W.o. a peri id
Ciai called more loudly for exultation and triumph.
Wear ! heat !) Thu produce of last year was
more than that of any two preeilloig years, and
was it proper to say iu such eircentstances that
the present crisis was awful, or that the country
was hastening to its ruin? lie here pleaded the
privilege of reading sonic quotations from a late
publication, in which it was staled Nat the pro-
durtive labour of the country was greater, and
that the tonimeree of the country was more rt.
pensive than at any former peri id of ear
ky.
He admitted that we had heel' engaged in an es.
pensive war, but 'notwithstanding that disadvaa-
ta4e, the country had increased in lipukaciN of
which the present price of labour, of every des.
cription, and the increased rent of houses, ems a
convincing proof. The wars is which we had ea.
gaged might be fruitless as to their immediate ob.
ject,' bet every thing shewed that the prosperity of
the country, and the trailing capital of the corn.
merciel cummunity had be. in the mean time aug.
twitted to an astonishing and isticsa.lilled degree.
Mr. CllRlSTOtilt EH. toted fur. the
reading of the Aild.ess at ad est lots : but it uoa
quite impossible that he could uzrre (ii seen a re_
presentation to his M 'jest, as it contained, of tba,
awful crisis, aoif calamitous situation of this
country and its attain, in direct contradiction to
another aJdress, rt.e,tilly votell to hey Majesty
I. port the urea: 'on of the J Nike cimgratylmisig
Its Alajetty sipon the lilo,sings and prosperititi
this country enjoyed ender his auspicious reign,
and thankirig him fur tlie entities concerii he had
•hewn for liappineas of his peop:e.
Mr. CA UTIIOIIN siippored Adlress, and
94 WI big name had been psi blistqd a, utie of I
ts lie hail opposed it on a former clay, although la
was not preirot at its discussion.
Mr. 1111F13T.E thuligA that to Rennie a nee,:
discussion upon ain •tvoir.: airca.ly toseel aud,
. finally settled by the Cu.'.. t, would tic ei/111 I' art to
all established order of proceeiliu4. ant .•
daat for endless dewy ussions and tune ert tin
If Member. though 4 after tine untie for
the discussion of gues.illis, to ab,k tit ittesti:•••'
from their duty, and wi.hhuld their vote
had nu right vu come on a dowcorii.
complain of th•ir lien ignoraii-•,•
jects, and to est! for Ilt•W

pole of rewinding and t'
been killed by Alembws who '
their place Would such a
moment tolerated in the Unitsu
thon;h the rate err a nteasitre
by a ntalurity of one, in thi
ipenk-r ? Ccrtaioly isot.
',Uhl lead to eud:ess del.