Mr. Fox confidered the two queftions of the meatures to be adopted, and the caufe of the prefent fituation, as infeparable. Till the house were apprised of what produced the order, they could not poffibly know how to apply the remedy. The chancellor of the exchequer, in reply, faid, that he confidered the motion and amendment as comprising three diftinct inquiries, though they were all retained in the amended motion; yet Mr. Sheridan had objected to that part of the motion which preffed the inquiry into the ftate of the bank, which the honourable gentleman (Mr. Fox) faid he was convinced was folid. When gentlemen extolled the folidity of the bank; and, next, imputed bankruptcy to it, an inquiry was rendered neceffary to eftablish its reputation. Mr. Fox explained. He had not made ufe of the word bankruptcy applicable to the state of the bank, but to government, to which he faid, that word had been long applicable. On the divifion, the General Walpole feconded the motion, and expreffed it as his opinion, that the best way to restore public credit was to give confidence to the people, which could only be done by a removal of those minifters whofe ruinous and illconcerted schemes had been the caufe of the prefent embarrassments. The order of council was faid to have been iffued upon the exigencies created by an unfounded alarm. He contended that the alarm had been created by ministers themselves. When the chancellor of the exchequer came to the house demanding additional aid to the emperor, he founded the alarm by afferting that he had pofitive infarmation that the French meditated an invafion of fome part of his majefty's dominions. What was still more ftrange, the proclamation iffued upon an occafion to which alarm had given rife, was figned by the greatest alarmifts in the kingdom-the lord chancellor, the fecretary of ftate, and the first lord of the admiralty; but was not figned by lord Fitzwilliam, who alone had acted confiftently with his principles. There was one argument for the motion which appear ed to be unanswerable; it was that in the transaction there were two parties, the bank and adminiftration. It was agreed on all hands, that no blame attached to the bank; it followed of courfe, therefore, that it must be with the minifters. It was upon this ground that he feconded the motion. Mr. Pitt oppofed the appointment of a feparate committee, upon the ground that the committee already appointed was competent to every purpofe of inquiry. Mr. Sheridan, on the contrary, fpoke in favour of the motion, and adverted to what had fallen from Mr. Mr. Pitt, who had treated the propofition of naming a committee at that time, as prepofterous. But gentlemen would recollect, that there was a time, when, in confequence of the unfortunate fituation of affairs (alluding to the time of introducing the regency-bill), the right honourable gentleman himself propofed a committee of inquiry, by nomination; for which he propofed that one member should be named by himself, and another member by another on the oppofite fide of the house, alternately, until the whole committee fhould be nominated; and in confequence of a difference of opinion upon that mode of proceeding, a divifion took place, which, to the beft of his recollection, was either 76 or 98 in the fupport of it. Why, faid Mr. Sheridan, did the minifter adopt this mode of proceeding at that time, and refufe it now? The reafon for the change was nice in the extreme, because it was convenient to prejudice and party feeling. The appointment of a committee by ballot had grown into difrepute, on account of the known fact that the minifter named all the members, and the notoriety of this jug. gle at that awful crifis rendered it expedient to accommodate the appearance of affairs to public prejudice. On a great queftion of revenue, when a committee by ballot was appointed, he (Mr. Sheridan) produced a lift of names influenced by government; and it afterwards appeared that the fifteen names which he produced were actually chofen. After fuch a notorious demonstration of collufion, he submitted to the houfe, whether any perfon there, or out of doors, could for a moment believe the appointment of a committee by ballot equitable and impartial But the minifter had faid, that the names of the committee already appointed were not yet known, and therefore no perfon could yet fay how far a truft ought, or ought not, to be repofed. Was the right honourable gentieman fure the names were not known? What would he fay if the name of every perfon fhould be read before the report was made? So notorious was the fact that government had previously chofen every member, that treafury lifts had been fewn in the lobby, and people had turned away with difguft from the proceedings. If the practice were fuch, the publicity of it ought to induce the houfe, not only to " reform itfelf altogether," but to adopt fome other mode of proceeding, which might at least affume the appearance of impartiality. He next proceeded to fupport what he had stated, by reading the lift of names appointed for this committee by ballot; and if the report fhould eventually fhew, that all, or the greater part, of the perfons therein named, were actually appointed, he hoped the house would give him fome credit for afferting the neceffity of another mode. The names which Mr. Sheridan read were as follows: Sir John Scott-a very refpectable name. Ifaac Hawkins Browne, efq.-a very proper person. C. Bragge, efq. He will entertain the committee with critical remarks. John W. Anderfon, efq. Thomas Grenville, efq. indeed. Sir John Mitford. John John Blackburne, efq. Thomas Berney Bramfton, efq. All very refpectable gentlemen. Upon this lift Mr. Sheridan obferved, that minifters in framing it had not preferved the rules of proportion; for his fide of the houfe were entitled to have five and a fraction. The fecretary at war rofe upon this occafion, and commented at confiderable length upon what had been afferted by Mr. Sheridan. The cant of fuperior purity, and the charge of corruption, was the manner in which the minority had generally thought proper to avenge themselves on the majority. This was the mode by which they endeavoured to impose upon the public. The faller number had no right to arrogate to themfelves the most perfect rectitude, and charge the majority with the very worst intentions. The charge of corruption against fuch a body as the houfe of commons, was in itfelf abfurd and ridiculous. The number who could be fuppofed to act merely from their interest must be very few. The house of commons did not differ from the country at large in this refpect. Mr. Grey faid, his honourable friend had been accufed by the fecretary at war of vilifying the house of commons, and degrading it in the public eftimation; but it fhould be recollected that the honourable fecretary himself had fome time before been the foremoft to arraign corruption, but was now become its abettor and defender. He had once ftrenuously opposed the measures of the prefent minifter, and had fpurned his "dirty filth and dowlafs;" but had fince contracted an intimate alli ance with him. Mr. Grey faid, with regard to himself, he wifhed his words to be remembered, should he ever attempt to deviate from his principles," that with the prefent ministry he would hold no communion, and if he thought his honourable friend (Mr. Fox) in office capable of maintaining the abufes at prefent prevailing, he would lofe his fupport." There was no falvation for the country, but by a complete inveftigation of the caufes by which it had been reduced to its prefent fituation. There could be no renovation of public credit, without a removal of the caufes which had effected its deftruction. To accomplish thefe objects, the most exact economy and the moft extensive retrenchments were required. The influence of the crown ought to be diminished, places which were not effential to the purposes of government fhould be abolished; and above all, and without which nothing could be effected, a reform in the reprefentation must be introduced. Mr. Wilberforce vindicated the dignity and confiftency of the ma-. jority of the house, from the afperfions thrown out against them by gentlemen who were in favour of the motion. The opinion of the public was held out as against the fenfe of the majority of the house, though the fact was directly oppofite. He recollected that fuch arguments were applied to him in 1783, and 84, in 90, and 96; yet when he returned to his conftituents, inftead of finding the fentiments of the people against him, the abfolute reverse was manifeft. From the beginning of the war much of the public calamity was owing to the conduct of oppofition, and to the conduct of those who had proceeded to lengths which the oppofition would not avow. The mafter of the rolls was for defer deferring the committee now propofed, till the report of the committee which was already appointed had been received; it would be then for the houfe to confider whether the report was fatisfactory; it would be abfurd that two committees fhould fit at the fame time and on the fame bufinefs. It would be equally useless and abfurd to appoint a committee that was to investigate and review all the measures fince the prefent minifters entered into adminiftration. This only could be the object of the present motion. Mr. Curwen faid, that if any lift whatever had been offered to him, he should have confidered it as the greateft of infults. It was the object of the ballot that all fhould exercife their own judgments without influence. He expreffed his want of confidence in the ability of Mr. Pitt to guide public affairs at the prefent momentous crifis. He had no hopes of energy while he governed. The country could only be faved by a man who had the magnanimity to deftroy the whole fyftem of minifters, and by a parliament that would receive no lifts. Dr. Laurence spoke at confiderable length in favour of the motion. Mr. Banks difcuffed the fubject with great impartiality; but was a gainst the motion, because he was not fure that the matter to be investigated by fuch a committee as was then asked for, would not branch out into a length that would defeat the object that was now in view, and in which difpatch was fo effential. He feared that the investigation by fuch a committee would require fo much time as to be injurious, perhaps fatal, to the object which the house had in view. Mr. Fox replied to the objec tions which had been made to his motion, in a forcible fpeech of confiderable length. "The minister," faid he," has feifed the cafh of the bank, and therefore it is that the public mind is agitated. This renders an inquiry into the conduЯ of the minifter as neceffary as an inquiry into the affairs of the bank. My banker may be a man of honour, and a folvent man from whom I want no further fecurity; but I want to be fecured against robbers who have entered his house, laid hold of all his cash, and then declared themselves his partners. I wish to know whether any man breathing had a doubt of the folidity of the bank before the minifter laid his rapacious hands upon the cafh there."-He acknowledged that there had lately been a great run upon the bank for cafh; but contended that it was the conduct of the minifter which caused it. He, together with his affociates, ftruck terror into the public mind by the rumours of invafion; and the order of council on Sunday, and the proclamation on Monday (Feb. 26th and 27th), finished what had been begun upon that matter. All this was the natural effect of the fyftem which the minifter had purfued in the courfe of the prefent war. Men were naturally terrified when thefe artifices were employed to work upon their imaginations. The effect of that terror, was the giving up to the minifter the management of all the interest of the stock of the public creditor. Mr. Fox then obferved, that no man had lefs apprehension of an invafion from the French than he had; he was fanguine as to the favourable refult, fhould fo defperate a measure be attempted. An invafion would certainly be a great evil to us; but he maintained, that, if the French fhould land in this country country as great a force as it was practicable for them to land, he hould think that the mischiefs they could do to the permanent interefts of this nation comparatively fmall, when put in the fcale oppofite to the mifchief which the proceedings of the laft two or three days would occafion. He faid, he had heard of negative fucceffes in this war; he did not wish to be an egotift, but thought he could fay without vanity that he had fome negative merit. He had not had the misfortune to counsel this odious, this ruinous war! He had not had the misfortune to lend affiftance to the deftruction of hundreds of thousands of his fellow creatures! -he had not had the misfortune to load his country with hundreds of millions of debt! he had not had the misfortune to fet his name to a proclamation manifefting to the world the bankruptcy of his country! Thefe were his negative merits; he claimed them as his due, and the minifter was welcome to defpife, while he enjoyed the comfortable reflections which arofe out of them. What would have been the feelings of this houfe (continued Mr. Fox), if ten years ago any man had faid, you think your finances very profperous; yet in the beginning of the year 1797 the chancellor of the exchequer will iffue a proclamation to prohibit the bank of England from paying any one man in money for a bank-note! Would you got have confidered fuch a man as a luna. tic?" An inquiry, he afferted, ought immediately to be entered into, to determine the caufes which have brought the nation into its prefent deplorable flate. If it fhould appear, which was greatly to be wified, that this condition was brought on by the mifconduct of the minifter, then the people would have the confolation to reflect, that their affairs might yet be in fome degree retrieved: but if it fhould turn out, as he trusted to God it would not, that the national affairs had been as well conducted as human prudence could conduct them, the people could expect nothing but inevitable, ruin. The only means of ascertaining this was to relinquish all confidence in the minifter, and inftitute an inquiry into that conduct which had brought on fo much calamity. Mr. Fox faid, he had feen by the management of these two debates that the minifter's object was to put off the inquiry into his conduct as long as he could, and alfo to fecure to himself a committee of his own friends, by whom he would be tried. The houfe divided; for the motion 67; against it 141. Mr. Sheridan then moved, "that Mr. Fox be added to the committee on the affairs of the bank, &c." on which the houfe divided: Immediately after the bank ftopt payment by the order of council, the minifter introduced a bill into the houfe of commons, to fufpend the law for preventing the bank iffuing notes under five pounds. This bill was read a fecond time on the first of March. It stated that thefe fall notes were to be made payable to bearer on demand. Mr. Grey, Mr. Fox, and Mr. Sheridan ftrongly contended that the proceedings of the house, by fanctioning the order of council, and pafing this bill nearly at the fame time, would appear to be abfurdly contradictory. For by the bill then before the houfe, these notes were to be payable on demand; whereas the other regula |