The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-05-20 00:00:00

Lin we' MIS. PEKURrib,

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“Il*he 44iilt Hoot)arable Spencer Pereerral. his Makity's late •
Chaneelear of the Exceetaier. nod 41.c414141 son or the late rad
of •Egainiit. in the kingdom et helmet. mut 11 *en Levet raid
'Johan& in Eueltndi by Goliatfue Compel 1. 'ate( t" Lewd
N orthatapt•in, was berried his father's he ~e in Aud'ey.ssplare,
November 1,179 e. lie sees nettled after his wide 9,e wet..
the eighth and 'late Earl of N•sreireripteit; amt.'''. hi. tether
rersitolerdAdilinheittirLireinel6o:lniPiwopfrie:'itiel 4..itiliekAdmiralty.
9e
the Premier,
h s utr durind.
shlp doithttess entersaloed well.foulatteal liop:s, ,that his inns
might aspire fat the highest ottice. lit the Stale.
lie died Maws
ever, of a par laic alfretiedi, when li-. of whoin we now treats
was oily eight years of age. air. re eeyal was hiotlehe "P at
Ciarltito, in Kent, where his father had a house, and where
his family, b-comma acquaitited with that of the late General
Sir 'Cuisines Wilson, obe lewd of the NI sas..r ; two of theta hates
si..ce married a r0up1....f hip levelly .la:teeters. Al a proper
age he wa. removed to Harrow School, wheilee he rep eyed to
Trinity College, Cambrelee, where he obetimet the dearer of
/tl. A. whiehshortened theroad to the bar, foe 'hillier he wet
now Isaisteniol,•, having been entered of Linctdoes Inn, of which
he wits then .i bet/cher. 14e cies meared his career by ;tr emor....
nyiiix the Juegei throneh the Midland Circuit • ebut It has been
s.:itt, s hat his practi..e was never very r 'tredve. either there or
in IVestininster.hall tie war however. culled:red ns a risiag
mete sent this was SHIM rearlert:d evident, for ,he was appeiiited
Counsel its the •A il asi rid 1 y t mid in 1799, he obtained a silk geese.
but wdliotit a (intent et precedency. lli4 own. Duiveisity elm
paid Ides n high compliment, by hie nominetion of one of its
Savo Counsel. From the period, his prefeesionnt preferments
were viva; far in 18,11, he succeteled Sir William thmet, the •
present aster of the hilts, in Solir444lr, and X 18!l.; became
A itoraley-Gmeral, ha the place of Sir Edward Gottr, no* bor.'
Lllealowoogh, and Chief Justice; the lutteentire he held
until Mr. lox and Loud Grenville clime into power, In Dili.
Mr. Perceval, long 'before tais (August lit, 179d1 bad paid
his homage lit the shrine of wedlock, by au emote we believe*
singularly pi-Damietta, with Miss Jane Wasn't+. the youngest
daughter of Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson, of Charlton, in the
county of Kent, by whom he has had twelve childreo. With
this lady he had got acqu tinted early in life, by the country
seats of the two families Imppeoine to be in the same pari-h, us
bat been already intimated. eleanwhile, Mr. Pere...vat, partly
propelled by. ha own ambition, ant partly hy ter spirit sit his
eriAmel egsimittioe, hail determined an a public Parliamentary
'life. 'rise war with Fratire was congenial to his own wishes, es
well as those of his family ; and on tee circuit he had already
eheemeseee eseggea; by Ills wen; hake stwirangement of sowite.alt
those prosecution-, hysomitas rsf which an Administration that
had ceased to be loved, succeeded ti rendering itself feared.--
With Mr. Pitt,' Me believe, be was hot slightly acquainted; we
have been inflamed, indeed, that rife. Perceval, who ereatle
niliairel his eloquence, and generally seated Minted' in the gal-
lery, when he spoke, lira% recommended himself to the melee of
that celebrated orator, by menus of a political pamphlet. At
length no event occurred, la conseqttence of which tie himself
toed an oppottunity of entering the political tirene, nod exhibit-
ing his prostess in St. Stephen's Cheque. to consequence cif tare
demise of Isis maternal enter, April 7; 1704, a vacancy for the
representation of the Borough of Northampton took plate, ns
hi. first cousin, laird Compton, by succeeding to the Eterldare,
of 4 nitric vacated his seat.
I As Fie inductee of Castle Ashby hart, durlog the last reetry,
been very considerable with the Corporation of the neighbour-
log Boron-h, the present Earl of Northeinplon eueceedlid his
father its Recorder, while 116 friend and relative, Mr. Yowled,
who had been aomiuuted Deputyßecnrder, was elan returned
of the Menthes's, In cuosequettee of the Dew writ issued on
this UCCUSIOD.
,
It bai been usual Willi asplrinr Men to tonne • •C their public
career by acting with the t)pponiiion, and attracting the notice
of the public lev means at a set speech. Neither of these oc-
curred on the present occasien; fer we Wad Mr. Percent ri.iiale,
we believe for the first time, June 8, 1197. at st very critical
perind, for thee. sprees purpose of saying a few words in sup=
pert et' Mr. Pitt. the Premier of that dny, who, in consequence
of the cotnuedi inset the Norte &c. had briteght la a Bill " fur
the better prevention and punishment of all trnlterees *swages
to excite sedititiou awl mutiny In his Mujesty's service." On
this occasion he suggested a mode for avoiding delay, nod also
for conciliatior the opinions of sill parties, by denousimiting the
*deuce felony, but within the benefit 6f clergy; he also pros.
meted, Met there should be a discretionary' pewee, either of
traloportatiim ur imprisuomeue both of which eineudmeuts Wee
['dewed.
• From this period, Mr. Percesal aeitears to Wive paid n par-.
gleele, ',umlaute to matter: of teenier ; and to have spoked ale
most on every subject connected dab tett revetutr, proticalarlg
in December, liees when he defended Mr. Pitt's new sehetot
fur c• Ileetitig the ussceed taste.
Sono after this, the sualect of this 111ernolr attnieed the first
growl step iu his profe...i or, baying hero appoialleal Solicitor-
Genera/ at the age of thirty-nine. lo 11.02 lie became Amatory,
General, which he held during n periee of Shire years and ten
months. He was a iltelalititto ittivocilit.• for the Union with lre-
und ~ arid. A. seer, ;see, weinifiy de:4mile* 44.. wilds of 14r
prebait war with rro,tce. 111 1507, be taipo.eal tie (Pilots . f
the Catholics, owl guise his vote ae•ainst tee inipeaclinent of '
I that public delinqacte, Viscoent Melville.
By the death sit Mi. Pee tool change of Ailmlnistretinn, be
I lost Ms shellfire' of Attorney-General. Mr. Foe and his party,
i however, ewe hat the peculiarity a tech they mid before gam.
ed, in cosixqueme of thew apostacy, end the public voice co.
I ineided with the new•Oppositiim. in which Mr. retreval emus
, pied a compiciestatt metes,. lees Administratien, flowerer, was
[oat of Ilene iteration, for it extern:4 may during. a yeort at the
1 evpinoton of Which peri••d he Isteamett a seat in die Cmhinei.
mid • the office of Chancellor of she Exchequer. Tae part
which Mr. Pewees' sod' hi. colleagues had now to act was,
however, deletet in the extreme. The late Administretein hod
been new •ved by the King, on account of their fevi•uridg the
views of the (:athelles, which wit• sonetientel by the enlieht-
ened part of the nu i oi. To subvert all these ti..ws. a new
Pesti:anent breeine necessary, and the cry iti " Ni. Popery"
was teseentled from ouw end of the Empire to the flitter. On
'kW occasion, he thus addressed his Constititents at North:tinge
ton, that he e was called upon to give up hi.. professioa, to make
a stood for the religious estublhhinetti of the country." The
attack on Coeteilingest and the Dani.li fleet, the people of which
nation were lit a lerfeet state of neutrally with all Europe,
was the first unenstiftahle measure in which Mr. Pi•rceval, as
Prime Minister, was concerned. litre thousands of innocent
individuals were 'Min, and their fl •et brought to England, for
the truly chrirlian purpose of preventing their Wise attacked,
robbed, aid murdered by Fearee.
Asa el Mister of fiantoce it would be grins inewliee to deny,
that some few of his pinta itave been attended with beartietal
convenneneeN and us these we shall here menthe) two. lit the
first place. he has matte n saving, trifling indeed of itself, as it
amounts only to 6/1,01101 per annum. is the avaliagemeet of the
Public Debi; hut this is likely to be productive tat fa °mewled
consequeitees. lii the next place, by eimeling helices of stunk.
ill the three per cents. above thirty-Ate years of Lev. to put-
chase annuities aerie; their ow* lives, by which certain clawes
of the conatoweity will nut mils be greatly benefited. but re-
demption of stack tom great lammed will Mule he Woolard for
the public. Nor ought it to be omitted in this piece, that Loth
Ibis Gentlentah and Mr. Cumin& tire retitled to ;nark tapper
Nation, la respect to their eimdttet. so fur as convents the Abo-
lition of the Slave Tiede. Oil that occasion they slued aloof
o from their ciallengites and ;ethernet', and declared themeeiveg
roost fully and unetielieseadly against that inktenttu week. lbs
relinquietioe his bituatigis at the bar. Mr. Pei coral t•hirpriell the
°dice of Chauciller of the Duchv of Lawrolers by wee of
csanapeteetimi for (be lots of his professional emolitineets. nom
hie several others he d-rived yearly varsity:leaf site thousand
• Hondo iodic MO bee* said, that the_ emoluments uf his (Oa-
, 1)1 ,
t I e#* are excessive.
It is our ditty now to advert to the most cataidennes e.vente
during his panted atter/. 'Tae :assistance we b..ve nfrordett to •
Spaiu, has, as yat, eaV wasted the blood aud treasure of the
country ; and tee expedition to..Walcherea was one of the must
I 111-advised wheners ever projectedby any hi iniel:.•rt It cost the
t-mintry millions of latency, and theasenee of lives, withatet are .
• cemPliskiag one opted 4410.110 d in view.— ts a man of busi-
' ems Mr. peeteval we:saebl
ae, qsgiefieesel ready at starlit* SI
flOSWerieg Obeections. Asap orator, lee•was lueet, perspicu-
ous, and conclusive; wittene eta's:sone the Foist-natn ,t-
-h-
umour of Lord,North, 4hr areenuenattlse decisnin of Mr. Fox,
or the bold wad cotanheadinteloquene? of his friend (She Pht ;
but yet he found melon id engage and to wield the Ibeisa cf
Cotemons. Mr. reversed Wm never a popular main. The Or-
dun in Council, which putAprriod to oer
stmdeswith America,
and threw thousands 01 industrions taameacturers out of iinploy-
meat, fur which be Was so retinas an advocate, must :fur ever
stamp him a wretched p.d•tieb*. He always voted air abut a
Reform in Parliament, a4criati the t:leirns of the Catholics, turd
against time Abolition of eseleis l'Lleesand Pensions.
Happy should webe, if ,we could say that he possewed all the
good qaalities of (#adolphini tine of die most Hillstrom of his
predetwasers. It-in to that Nobleman, who detested Vette ,
find refused the Garter, ahat the nations-hiring the reigr.s of V,,i
William and Otteen Anne, was indebted for the order and re -
larity of the public reline*. It was he who introduced the •
present comparatively low in'ereet of molter . It was he 711 s;
Mtbmigh the favourite fAr four successive Sovereigns, emit--
• "
itveliked the intend 6,r ths Peopff. 4. .• • ,
• • tin Ids eiecuir lie was niir,sed to Mr. Serj-tant v-tysllol4
wad 0101 distinguished hirnselfoli the trial of Georee tbarteis,•de
'kettles in. A ortbnetptemehires for forgery, .agaieetes lion! tau
set
WAS felotio'.....lli fi,Vtitt .
‘..A C.
t Hit brother, Lind Arden. in 1757, warded pegegjetie g,,‘,,
embed) Wilson, the elder daughter.

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