The Statesman.
London, England, 1812-11-26 00:00:00

TM. STAT

HISTORY of the
ISE OPPOSITIWS.ON mid of tla
EXC LA

Were it not known, that snob is the depraved
state of our Representation, as almost to preclude
the possibility of amending the House of Commons
at a Geueral Election, an opinion might be formed
from the nature of the returns, that the country ap-
proved of war, and of its tax-engendering and de-
vastating consequences, which now aMict this unhap-
py land ; for, with the exception of Nottingham,
Coventry, and Great Grimsby, scarcely an addi-
tional town has been found to reject the advocates
of corruption, and supply their places with men who
will study their country's good. A respectable Mi-
nority will, however, be formed ; and, to their la-
bours it is that the country has to look for its salva-
tion, if salvation is still within oar reach. A short
history of the rise of the Minority in the House of
Commons may be acceptable to oar Readers.
The adage, " that good sometimes springs out of
evil," was in this instance verified ; in the assump-
tion of authority by GEORGE 111., at the commence-
ment of his long and di'astrous reign, which laid
the foundation of a. constitutional opposition in the
two Houses of Parliament,—and that spirit for poli-
tical discussion which now exists in the. country, and
which must save it, if its political death is not
already pronounced. sgusting favourite,
Lord BUTE (who was a ding* Teen to Scotland it-
self, in the most degrading state of Scottish politics),
assumed the authority., of dictating even to so-
vereignty itself, and found the tempest of public
opinion bearing hard against him, when he, in 1762,
compromised the-luterest'and glory of England, by
making a peace with France, on highly disadvan-
tageous
terms, for the purpose of having the honour
of being a peace-maker. This attempt to engross!
the nation's good-will by surprise, at the expense of ;
its honour, aroused the indignation of the OREIT,
not the late, Mr. PITT, and other eminent patriots;
and in March, 1763, the Dukes of DEVONSHIRE,
BOLTON, and PORTLAND; Marquis of ROCKINGHAM;
Earls TEMPE*, CORMWALLIR, ALBEMARLE, AMI•
lIAMGWICIEJL,f. and BESROROUGHI ; Lords
SiSNLEIL, SONDES, GRANTHAM, and ViLuarei; Mr.
IPe7T, Mr. 3. GRENVILLE, and Sricatonoc SAVILLE,
dined together with the Duke of Newcasme, at his
house; and, along with many others, who joised
them afterwards, formed a determination to oppose
the favourile and his minions, at the risk of their
lives and fortunes. Two divisions which had taken
place on the oth and 10th of the preceding Decem-
ber, in the House of Commons, against giving up
to the enemy the Havatinah, Martinique, Guade-
loupe, St. Lucia, Pondicherry, Gone, &c. gave
rise to 'this union ; the Minorities consisting of 63
oach day, among whom were the immortal BECK.
FORD and Sir Roamer Lseanolie, for the City of
London; and, though they failed in their immediate
object, they laid the foundation of au opposition that
has often put corruption to the blush.
Two objects, which the Favourite shortly after
brought forward, gave these public-spirited men 'an
opportunity of shewing their attachment to the li-
berties of their country ; the first was the corrupt
manner in, which he negoctated a loan of 3,500,0001.
for the service of the year 1783 ; and the other the
extension of the Excise Laws, in laying a tax upon ci-
der and perry. These subjects were taken up by Mr.
Wt Liu, la such a manner, as brought upon him.the
vengeful hostilities of tho Court, which ended io his
triumphs and the total abandonment of General War-
rants. The second subjedt leads us into a short his
tory of the Excise Laws, so hateful and oppressive,
which tiny be both. instructive and entertaining to
many of . oar Readers. . •
The Excise was a project sent from Italy to King
JAMES, in the year 1618, as a phut that would com-
pletely supply his revenue,and support his scheme of
arbitrary power. That modern Solomon was en-
raptured with the plan ; but his Privy Council pre-
vailed on him to drop it. CHARLES I. took it up in
the year 1828 ; and, when he issued his Commission
of Excise, he secretly engaged a number of foreign
troops,• to enable him to carry it iuto execution.—
Beth plans were alike hateful to Englishmen.—
The 'first• being brought forward, the Parliament
openly opposed it ; and voted, "'That all those who
were friendly to the Excise were enemies to the
State, and no true friends to England." The King
was forced to give up the measure ; and the Parliament
soon after Impeached the Duke of BUCKINGHAM for
Excirbeg then.--Would to Gon we had such a. Par-
liament now ! But the Ministers have learnt the art
of compelling the people to pay for enslaving them-

selves ! After the troubles broke out into open hos-
tilities between CHARLES and the Parliament, the
latter, in 1643, imposed a tax in the shape of Ex-
cise ; but the people were so uneasy ender it, that
the Judges were instructed, in 1845, to pro-
mise them, when on their circuits, that the
tax should be taken off as soon as the urgency
of the times was over. Soon, after this, the Court
of Wards and Liveries was abolished, and the Ex-
else was restrained to victuallers. Some attempts
were made by CaosswEr.t to extend the Excise; •but
even the sternness of his soul was obliged to give
way to thee honest indignation of Englishmen: he
ins compelled to relinquish the plan At the Amato-
*ration; in 1060,w time when Englishmen retrograded
a century in peikties, is well as-in morality, and that
,patriotism was s9st in dissipation, it wagproposed to
give the Crown,the Excise, restrained to vidualtero,
• in lien ,of the Coui of Ward, and Liveries, and

Ktitght services. The King,. however, was deter-
mined to haft§ the old feudal Court restored, as well
as Knights' services, and to seize on the Excise too,
which he did, under certain. limitations. The temper
of Englishmen, after thii .time, began to resume its
native tone; and whatever attempts were made to
extend the Excise Laws, duringa space of 103 years,
I met.with a resistance which befitted Englishmen to
make. Even the artful and corrupting Sir ROBERT
WALPOLE was obliged to give up the scheme. But
when GsoaGE 111. holed the reius of power, under
ithe dictum of a Scotch parasite, the nature of Eng.
4 lishmen seemed t 6 be changed ; they then submitted
Ito an extension of the Excise Laws, which has been
the forertinnetkof a system of taxation, to which our
lancestors would never have submitted w!dle a drop
1. of blood hadirickled in their veins. It must, how-
ever, be remembered, that the Favourite hurried the
ciderand perry bill through the legislature with an un-
unparalleled haste; insomuch that the country had not
time te petition against it in its progress. The City of
London, however,set an example worthy of themselves,
for the Livery met in Guildhall, on the 22d of March,
1763, and unanimously voted Petitions against it to
; three branches of the Legislature, one of which wai
presented to the Lords by Lord TEMPLE, on the se-
cond reading of the Bill. It was, however, passed by a
majority of 83, including eleven proxies, to 49. And
it is not a little remarkable, that this was the first
Money Bill on which the Lords were ever known to
divide.

The discontent created in the country by an ex-
tension of the Excise Laws, gave fresh strength and
importance to the newly regulated Opposition ; and
thoogliold Bun tried, by every means which a
Court favourite, with the nation's-purse in his hands,
could make use of to divide them, he failed ; and he
was obliged to retire from office to avoid th.,ir pa-
triotic reproaches, which he did on the Bth of April,
1763. As a specimen of what the country had to
expect from the young MOnarch, in point of fruga.-
114, he suffered Lord Bun, a few days before his re-
signation, to appoint one brother, four biothers-in-
law, one sister, and three of his Scotch friends to
places under Government, the joint annual salaries
of which amounted to MOOS thousand two hundred
and thirty pounds.
It was found, however, in order to keep the op-
position together, that it was necessary to form an
association, in which they could meet and discuss the
politics of the day ; accordingly, in the year 1761, a
tavern, in Albemarle-street, kept by a Mr. WILD-
MAN, was fixed upon as the place of Meeting. And
at the commencement the names of the leading Mem-
bers of this association, sincedenominated the WHIG
CLue, will be read at the present day with peculiar
interest. They are as follow :

Dukes of Devoabbire, Newcastle, Bolton, Grafton, and Port-
land; Marquis of Rockingham; Earls Temple, Cornwallis,
Albemarle, Ashbaraham, Scarborough, Besborough, Cork;
Clanbrassil:and Chariernont ; Viscounts Torrington, Middleton,
Allen, and Puwerscourt; Lords Ncre, F.dgecumbe, Aberga-
venny, Furtescae, nage, Walpole; Gionthlm, Ravensworth,
alunson, Sondes, G. Cavendish, F. Cavendish, J. Cavendish,
Villiers,E. Remind: ,Paulet, and Grey; Baronets Sirs G.Saville,
W. Meredith, 11. Mainwaring, A. Abdy, G. Yonge, Marma-
dyke Wyvill, G. Colebrooke, C. Armitage. Ales. Gilman, E.
Deeging, J. Gibbons, Remick Clayton, F. Vincent, E. Wal-
pole, C. Saunders, G. Warren, K. 13. W. Beauchamp Proctor,
W. Baker, and O. Methuen; Right Hon. H. B. Legge, and
Right Hon. J. Oreaville ; the whole amounting to 149.
From this time this association increased, both in
number and respectability, till the fatal defection
which took place in consequence of the French Re-
volution. Pensions dirw away the avaricious,
and fear the timid : the former are too worth-
less for their loss to be lamented ; and many of the
,latter saw their error, and are returned to their
duty ; either as Members of the Whig Club, or by
joining other patriotic Societies, whose object was
oonstitutional reformation. A union of such So-
cieties• Would shake corruption to its base; and
raise the country's drooping head once more above
the horizon of despair. Then let. us hope that the
day is not far distant, when patriotism and self-de-
fence will do that which the paltry passions of a few
Individuals have hitherto prevented being accom-
plished.

. -
RUSSIAN Sou:m—Peter the Greet, at an inter-
view with the Kings of Denmark and Poland, hear.
lug them boast of the superiority of their ioldiers, in-
stead of disputing the point with them, proposed an
expiriment, which was immediately assented to, and
which was, to order a grenadier to jump out of a third
floor window. The King of Denmark tried the expe-
riment on one of his bravest and most loyal soldiers,
who, on hi* knee, refused compliance. The King of
Poland waved the trial altegether, conceiving it to be
hopeless, when Peter ordered one of but soldiers, the
least promising that could be picked o, to descend
the window. The soldier merely crossed himself,
touched his hat according to form, boldly marched
to the window, and had already one of his legs out,
when the Emperor stopped him, and told him he was
-sittisfied. The Kings were astonished, and each made
the soldier a present of a hundred ducats, requesting
Peter io•promote him to the rank of Officer. The
Czar answered that he would do so to oblige them,
but not to reward the soldier; for all his soldiers
would do as much. •
doadittes IsteinsT.—An Inquest was held on
Monday afternoon, at the Sick Hospital, belonging
to the parish of St: Pancras, at Camden-town, be-
fore Gtottoa Honosos, Esq. Coroner for the Mid-
dlesex DivisPin; on view of the body of an elderly
men, who was foind' in a dying state, on Saturday
morning last, in a keldgtoar the Hope. end Anchor
public-house, neer'fle!Pthiciiti Church, When he was
immediateireoitveyed Who Nos 1, where he soonafteeedlids otpited, By the vitsolool
4 GPI