try; but he was afraid that it had rather been produced by the mifconduct of the king's minifters, and the fituation to which they had reduced the country. The refources of the country had been highly talked of, and they deferved to be fo, for they had lafted longer than even the most fanguine could have hoped; but that was no reafon why they fhould laft for ever, and especially fince they had exhibited fuch fatal fymptoms of rapid decay.

His grace, after making feveral remarks upon the fubject, contended for the neceffity of appointig a felect committee in order to inquire into the causes of the prefent embarrailments. His grace had an objection to a fecret committee, because he was of opinion, that in order to restore the confidence of the nation, the greatest publicity ought to be given to its proceedings. Befides, it was very well known that the house dele. gated a confiderable portion of its power to a fecret committee.

Having made thefe obfervations, his grace concluded by saying, that if the finances of the country were in a state of embarraffiment, it certainly was their duty to inquire into the cause of that embarraff. ment. His grace therefore moved, "That a felect committee of fifteen peers be appointed to inquire into the causes for iffuing the order of council of the 26th of February laft."

Lord Grenville faid, if he agreed to the motion of the noble duke, he begged it might not be inferred that he acquiefced in the conclufon he had drawn. The noble duke had thrown out an infinuation, that the country was come to an end of its resources. He must politively deny the aertion; he

was confident the refources of the country would be found upon inquiry to be unimpaired. He would therefore venture to state it as his opinion, that he was fanguine in the hopes of its being confirmed by the refult of an inquiry, that the prefent difficulties had arifen not from any decay of actual refources, but merely from a temporary deficiency of circulating medium, which was often mistaken for a deficiency of property. He differed from the noble duke, not on the propriety of an inquiry, but in the diftinétion he made be tween a fecret and a felect committee. However, he was of opinion that a fecret committee was preferable. He therefore moved, as an amendment, that for felett, the word fecret fhould be fubftituted.

The duke of Norfolk faid, he had no objection to a fecret committee, if it was openly appointed; but objected to the mode of choofing a committee by ballot, becaufe it was well known that fuch committees were compofed of the minifter's friends. In the laft committee there were no fewer than three cabinet minifters, who were the very perfons who figned the order of council in queffion, and two of whom were near relations of the minifter.

The carl of Guildford objected to the committee being fecret. He faid, as the inquiry was meant to reftore the public confidence, he was clearly of opinion, that the utmoft publicity fhould be given to it.

The duke of Bedford and lord Grenville feverally explained themfelves; after which a fecret committee was ordered to be chofen.

Lord Grenville then moved, "That the committee be chofen by ballot."

The duke of Bedford faid, he could

could not allow the prefent motion to be carried without expreffing his strongest and most decided diffent. He knew how our ancestors conducted ballots for committees; but he knew that, as they were now managed, the committees were not fairly chofen. In the laft committee there were no lefs than three cabinet-minifters, and the other fix were peers who had uniformly voted with the minifters fince the beginning of the war. When he faid this, he did not 'mean to throw the smallest reflection on any individual member: but he must be excufed if he thought they were not the most proper perfons for judging of the meafures of minifters; for, fuppofing they were bad, which they certainly might be, was it to be expected, that either they would be very rigorous in their inquiries or fevere in their cenfures? If there was any man who would defend the mode of choofing com'mittees by ballot, let him look into the glaffes and fee the lifts they contained. One would think, at leaft they would have been written, to fave the appearance, in different hands; inftead of that, they might fee twenty lifts containing the fame names, and all written by the fame hand. And And of what were the lifts compofed? of the cabinet-minifters. What, appoint men to be judges of their own acts! Were not minifters afhamed of fuch conduct? to appoint a committee to inquire into the caufes of the country being reduced to this dreadful ftate; and by the very men who had been the authors of all its calamities? His grace concluded by a folemn invocation to the house not to add infult to injury, by mocking an oppreted and deluded people with

holding out to them a confidence which they could not infpire, dr a redrefs which they never intended to grant.

The earl of Fauconberg rofe, and declared he never had witnetfed fuch an attack made upon him, as that which their lord fhips had heard from the noble duke. He had no hesitation to avow, that he put one of the lifts complained of into the balloting-glafs, and he gloried in it!!! Was he to be denied the privilege of exercifing his own judgment and the right of free agency, because he differed in opinion with the noble duke relative to the conduct of minifters. He was perfuaded it was the first object of minifters to extricate us from our fituation, and he hoped and trufted they would fpeedily fucceed. But if noble lords came down to the houfe day after day, and endeavoured to perfuade the people they were ruined if they ftated grievances that did not exift; and magnified those that did, they certainly were doing ferious injury to the country. Could any men have more intereft in the falvation of the country than minifters ? Were they not bound by every tie, both as public men and individuals, to fave their country. His lordfhip concluded by begging that their lordships would all cordially unite their efforts for the prefervation of the country; and if they did, he should not defpair of fuccefs.

The earl of Guildford faid, the noble earl had either mifunderfood or mifreprefented the noble duke, when he stated the obfervations that his grace had made as a reflection upon the perfons who had named the committee, or those who had been chofen to be of it.

His grace had not faid any thing

but

but what he muft coincide with relative to the committee. It was inconfiftent to call it an impartial committee of inquiry, when the prefident of the council and the chancellor of the duchy of Lancafter were chofen to examine and inquire into the conduct of the fecretary of state-in fhort, every man of common sense muft fee that it was no inquiry. The ballot propofed by the noble duke was certainly for a purpose necessary for the country to know and be fatisfied upon the causes of that exigency. He was confident the greateft caufe of the prefent exigencies was the war, and the total want of œconomy in every depart ment of government. thefe he thought were points that required and ought to be part of the inquiry gone into by the committee of that houfe. The inquiry propofed by the noble duke went to this plain queftion, upon which the house and the country had a right to a fatisfactory anfwerwhether the embarraffed and alarming state of the country was owing to unavoidable misfortunes, or to the mifmanagement and incapacity of minifters?

Lord Grenville, in reply, obferved, that the committee to be ballotted for was not to inquire into their conduct, but into the fituation of the bank of England. The noble earl had stated that our prefent exigencies ought to be afcribed to the mifconduct of minifters. It would, however, be but fair to acknowledge that minifters have had to conduct a conteft totally unparalleled in the annals of civilifed fociety; that they were endeavouring to defend the country from thofe evils to which fome of the countries of Europe were now a prey. His lordship called upon the house to confider the

important objects that were at ftake, and, whenever any reverfe of fortune happened, not to afcribe it to the mifconduct of minifters, but the nature of the conteft they had to maintain.

The duke of Bedford made a fhort reply relative to the choofing of a committee, which he faid ought not to be compofed of the relations and friends of the minifter. His grace concluded by faying, that, after four years' experience, he found it was of very little confequence what was faid within those walls, except it was fanctioned by minifterial fupport.

Lord Darnley faid, he thought the inquiry fhould be impartially made, and the committee not appointed by ballot.

In this fentiment the duke of Norfolk agreed; after which the queftion was put on the duke of Bedford's motion. Non contents Contents

Majority

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39

The duke of Norfolk afterwards moved,

"That it be an inftruction to the committee to inquire into and report on the amount of fpecie advanced by the bank to the lords commiffioners of the treasury, fince the 12th July, 1796."

The duke of Montrofe faid a few words relative to the report.

The duke of Bedford faid, he had omitted one remark, namely, that, though members of a fecret committee were bound not to divulge the proceedings of their inquiry, yet when called upon they were at liberty to affign the caufes which had induced them to agree in the report made to the house.

On the 28th of April, the earl of Chatham brought up the report of the committee of fecrecy, which