The Statesman.
London, England, 1809-10-06 00:00:00

titniad, of all those .whee'aupported 'tile vase.,
sire, had yet coadesceuded even- to -attempt *
aliswer his arguments, Or to disprotre ithe faits
which ho had asserted ; ores Member (Mr. Mew
mon) had talked a great length, aud.witta his cc-
tOstomed solubility on the subject or a Jmbike ;
for the due celebration of which be load contended
that a dinner is absolitely indispensable. " A din.
air," said that galtiensan, " is, ice fact, a first
principle." (a loud laugh.) That gentlemen, upon
this principle of his, might have hems expected
in have gone a little farther, and to have added,
that a dinner was not only a first principle, bast
as absolute and contlasive proof of loyalty. He
was at first somewhat surprised that the Gentle-
man had Mopped at his "first principle," but
his suipriao arised when the worthy Mettaber stn.
luckily let slip a confession which rendered the
first principle of a dinner being a proof of km-
ally, somewhat problematical, and therefore his
prudence was to be commended in stopping where he
" {f," says the Worthy Member, " those who
" eat the dinner are to pay for it, I know it
44 will be thinly athended"—nutwithstanding this
same "first prl*'lpte." [Loud laugh.] With
respect to the proposition before the Court, Mr.
Waithman assured his Lordship, and ell who
heard him, that until the moment they wore read,
he had Dever SOW, or eves heard of them. As to
the proposition of the. Worthy Member (Mr.
Jacks) for ttni lialiteroaiswa of Yrisonsers, it was a
suggestion which he had never heard until that
day—but it was a abased to which he unstilted
with all his heart and tout; and those who were
so rigorously attached to precedents, as to thick
that nothing could, with propriety, be adopted,
which had not bdoeis beso done, and who knew
slot how to originate even a measure of lui.
inanity. would have the consolation of a very
oossclosive precedent in support of the mea.
sure sow proposed—for when the illustrious
Kieg Edward the Third attained the fiftieth
year, not of his reign, bat of his age—that
happy period was celebrated strictly ass Jubilee
ought to be—the prison doers were thrown open
throughout the kingdoms —the liberation was uni.
Tarsal.-and amongst the many other acts of kind.
nest, and benignity, andjestice which marked the
epoch of that celebra awl—the confirmation in that
year of Magma Ghaeta, is not the least conspicu.
ous or interesting to thefricitds of freedom. Here,
therefore, was a splendid precedent in favour of
the ameadesent that had been proposed. He
hoped the worthy didernsan would with-
draw his motion, in order to make way fur
the amendment of the worthy Member, for
otherwise they might mutually defeat the object of
each other. For himself, he could have not the
smallest objection to either, and only wished that
one of them might make way fur the other. It
bad been said, that the Corporation was too poor
to insissl64 in even the act of benevolence said ha-
mangy that had been proposed—the lowness Of
the funds of the Corporation was, certainly, au
unanswerable argument against the *cling ef-
fects of an illumination, and a dinner; but be
really thought the adoption of the proposition, of
either the worthy Alderman, or the worthy
Member, would be highly to the credit of the
Court, and a lasting monument of the generosity,
homunnityi, and good sense of the Corporation of
the City of London. The relief of the finances of
decayed freemen would be a permanent effect of
their bounty, and so would the liberation of pri.
sont,rs frum durance ; there was great humanity
and benevolence in both propositions. But an
illumination and a dinner could have no beneficial
conseqnences; on the contrary, tho price of
bread and candles—necessafies, both already at so
high a price as to press most heavily on the poor,
would inevitably be raised still higher...said the
metropolis would present one universal scene of
disgusting riot and confusion. The vote which
had sanctioned the dinner, was poised in that
Court, in a moment of confusion, tumult, and
disorder, and was carried only by a very small
majority. Since that time there had been an oppor.
tunity for refection, and for ascertaining the sen-
timents of their constituents, which he hoped to find
had had the salutary effect of changing the opinions
of that trajority. The Members of thht Court
were the Representatives of the first City, and as
he believed not only of the first, but most ow.
lightened Corporation in the Sines dominions, or
perhaps- in the whole worlds and he trusted
that Gentlemen would duly reflect on the degra.
dation and contempt into which the ill-advised
decision of the last Court had brought the
Corporation. lie had beets told that it was in
j contemplation to call a Meeting of the Livery at
large, in the Common Hall, to take into consi.
iteration the conduct of that majority. For his
tm'in part he regarded that as a. very no.
cessary measure, and then it would at once be seen
what was the public sentiment respecting those
Members who, by a mere trick, had contineed to
bring forward a measure for the sole purpose of
protecting Ministers from the perils of the impen-
ding inquiry. It was a deep disgrace to that
Court to lead itself to these tricks. The Court
had lowered itself so much by these indiscreet re.
solutions, that inferior Corporations were thus
enabled to assume a tone of derided superiority;
and the East I.Mia Company had lately been plea-
sed to amnia' to itself the epithet of the greatest
Corporatism in theiVorld. Se far from being such,
that Company had private privikges to protect;
they had private views of profit, which might not
et all times be found consistent with the public
welfare; but the Corporation of the City
of London represented, or ought to represent,
the cilia's* of London. (hear, hear, hear) It
ought, therefore, to support its own dignity,
and that it never could do if its proceed.
ings were not marked by integrity. The
East India Company was not the only Cot,
poratlon that had sneered at the Court of Com-
mon Council, by seetuoing a septiviority over it ;
for the Governor and Company of the Bank of
England had doe* the nine thing. Ho meant sot
to speak with disrespect of that body ; but they
were a Corporation that had also private views,
private intermits, and pivots profit, asthma finny
if mot eves heal% is cost .Mess, to . tin. pahlio
welfare. Let tiny me leek elf die sloppo, a she