Commercial Intercourfe held out by the Irish Propofitions. XV. Meeting of Parliament. XVI. The Plan of Fortifications fuggefted by the Duke of Richmond submitted to the Houfe of Commons. XVII. Ably oppofed by Mr. Sheridan. XVIII. Loft by the Speaker's cafting Vote. XIX. Mr. Pitt's Propojal of a Sinking Fund for the Liquidation of the National Debt. XX. An Amendment fuggefted by Mr. Fox-adopted by Mr. Pitt.-Bill paffed. XXI. The Civil Lift in Arrears-discharged by the Commons. XXII. Mr. Burke commences his Charges against Warren Haftings— the Difficulties he had to encounter in this Bufinefs, ftated. XXIII. Mr. Hastings delivers his Defence at the Bar of the Commons-Prorogation of Parliament. XXIV. An Attempt to affainate the King by Margaret Nicholson. XXV. Treaty of Commerce with France figned. XXVI. A Convention figned with Spain refpecting the British Settlements on the Mofquito Shore, and the Coast of Honduras. XXVII. Meeting of Parliament-Confideration of the French Commercial Treaty. XXVIII. Violently oppofed finally passed. XXIX. Embarrassed Situation of the Prince of Wales. XXX. A Circumftance of peculiar Delicacy rumored relative to his Royal Highness-its fuppofed Effects on the King. XXXI. Alderman Newnham gives Notice to the House of a Motion on the Subject of the Prince of Wales's Debts. XXXII. Mr. Newnham's intended Motion withdrawn, and the Prince's Debts difcharged by parliamentary Grant. XXXIII. The Subject of Mr. Haftings's Impeachment refumed by the Commons-Charge respecting the Begum Princess of Oude affirmed. XXXIV. The remaining Charges affirmed. XXXV. Mr. Haftings impeached at the Bar of the Lords. XXXVI. Parliament prorogued. XXXVII. The interference of the Courts of London and Berlin in the Affairs of Holland-fubfidiary Treaty with Heffe. XXXVIII. Meeting of Parliament. XXXIX. Remarks on the King's Speech. XL. Treaties of Amity and Alliance concluded between the Courts of London, Berlin and the Hague. XLI. The Eaft India Declaratory Act-vigorously oppofed-finally paffed. XLII. The commencement of Mr. Haftings's Trial in Westminster Hall.

XLIII. A Bill to regulate the Transportation of Slaves from Africa to the West Indies introduced and paffed. XLIV. Prorogation of Parliament. XLV. The King goes to Cheltenham-bis Return-bis Indifpofition-the two Houfes meet-Difputes on the Mode of establishing a Regency. XLVI. Mr. Pitt appears the Advocate of popular Rights-Mr. Fox the Defender of Prerogative. XLVII. The Subject of the Regency debated in the House of Lords. XLVIII. Refolutions declaratory of the Right of Parliament to fupply the Defect occafioned by the Interruption of the royal Authority-pass the Commons. XLIX. Another Refolution paffed, empowering the Chancellor to affix the Great Seal to a Bill for limiting the Power of the Regent. L. The Death of Mr. Cornwall Speaker of the House of Commons. LI. Mr. Pitt writes to the Prince of Wales on the Subject of the Regency-the Prince's Anfwer. LII. Notification of the King's Recovery. LIII. Parliament regularly opened. LIV. The Shop Tax repealed. LV. A Motion for the Repeal of the Teft and Corporation Acts. LVI. The Abolition of the African Slave Trade moved by Mr. Wilberforce. LVII. The Prorogation of Parliament.

1. Tliament and its re-affembling, proved a period of

'HE fhort interval between the prorogation of par

profound national tranquillity, in which no event occurred of fufficient importance to demand particular attention. The people of England, highly gratified with the recent change which had taken place, feemed to repofe with unbounded confidence in the wifdom and integrity of the prefent administration. The young premier had indeed become the idol of the public, and the moft fanguine hopes were indulged, that under his aufpices, Britain would foon refume her rank and dignity among the nations, and rife to a state of profperity and fplendor fuperior to the brightest æra of her former greatness.

1785. II. Such appeared to be the temper of the public mind, and fuch the flattering hopes of the nation, when the parliament of Great Britain affembled for its fecond feffion on the twenty-fifth of January 1785. The meafure on this occafion, chiefly recommended in the speech

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from the throne, was the adjustment of such points in the commercial intercourfe between this country and Ireland, as were not yet finally arranged. The addrefs of thanks being carried unanimously, the first business which engaged the attention of the house of commons, was the ftate of the Westminster fcrutiny; and fuch was the violent and malignant spirit with which its continuance was defended, that this wretched burlefque on English jurifprudence was at last dignified by the appellation of the COURT OF SCRUTINY. This court had now exifted for a period of eight months, and only two parishes out of feventeen had been fcrutinized; fo that there remained no probability, by this mode of procedure, of deciding the question of return during the exiftence of the prefent parliament. The high bailiff had no power to fummon witnefles, to impofe an oath, or to commit for contempt; and in confequence of this miferable imbecility, both court and counsel were exposed to the low and farcaftic buffoonery of the common vulgar,

III. Mr. Pitt, however, to the utter aftonishment of the public, condefcended to vindicate the proceedings of this judicature, and the meanness and malignity of the attempt led Mr. Fox with honeft and indignant warmth to remark," that he well remembered the day when he congratulated the house on the acquifition of Mr. Pitt's fplendid abilities: it had been his pride to fight in conjunction with him the battles of the conftitution: he had been ever ready to recognize in the right honorable gentle man a formidable rival, who would leave him far behind in the purfuit of glory: but he had never expected that this rival would become his perfecutor. He thought he had poffeffed an elevation of mind wholly incompatible with folow and grovelling a paffion. He confidered the prefent measure with regard to Westminster, as a fuccedaneum to expulfion. The cafe of the Middlefex election, fo much reprobated, had at least the merit of being more manly; for the procedure now adopted accomplished the fame end of expulfion, without daring to exhibit any charge against the perfon expelled."

IV. The

IV. The motion of Mr. Welbore Ellis, "that the high bailiff do attend at the bar of this houfe, was at length negatived, February 9th. by 174, to 135 voices. This being but a flender majority, the motion of Mr. Ellis was renewed by colonel Fitzpatric and rejected by a majority of only nine: and was finally repeated by. Mr. Alderman Sawbridge on the third of March, and carried in the affirmative, ayes 162, noes 124. Thus did the house, by a decifion truly honorable to themfelves, and highly fatisfactory to the nation, leave the minister, and the veteran phalanx of courtiers and king's friends, in one of the moft difgraceful minorities ever known in the British house of commons: and thus abruptly terminated this fcandalous fcrutiny, and the high bailiff next day made a return of lord Hood and Mr, Fox.

V. As the late proceedings in parliament on the bufinefs of the scrutiny were viewed even by the minister's friends with inexpreffible regret and aftonishment, it was fortunate for Mr. Pitt that the public attention was quickly transferred to a fubject of high national importance, namely reform in the commons house of parliament. In fupporting this measure, which of all others has long been deemed by the wifeft and best of men, the most eflential to the true honor and lasting interefls of Britain, he discovered a conduct more worthy of his talents, ftation, and character, and which tended to revive all the former flattering prepoffeffions in his favor. On this occafion, all thofe puerile refentments, the offspring of the meaner paffions, were extinguished, and he shone forth at once the patriot and ftatefman.

VI. The plan of reform was brought forward by Mr. Pitt on the 18th of April, and in his introductory speech, "He rofe," he faid "with hopes infinitely more fanguine than he had ventured to entertain at any former period. There never was a moment when the minds of men were more enlightened on this interefting topic, or more prepared for its difcuffion. He declared

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his prefent plan of reform to be perfectly coincident with the fpirit of thofe changes which had taken place in the exercife of the elective franchife from the earliest ages, : and not in the leaft allied to the fpirit of innovation. So far back as the reign of Edward the first, before which the component orders of the reprefentative body could not be diftinctly traced, the franchife of election had been conftantly fluctuating. As one borough decayed and another flourished, the firft was abolished and the fecond invefted with the right. Even the reprefentation of the counties had not been uniform. "King James the first in his first proclamation for calling a parliament, directed that the sheriffs fhould not call upon fuch boroughs as were decayed and ruined to fend inembers to parliament. For this difcretion, as vested in the crown, he was certainly no advocate; but he wished to establish a permanent rule to operate like the difcretion out of which the constitution had sprung. He wished," he faid, "to bring forward a plan that should be complete, gradual, and permanent; a plan that not only corrected the inequalities of the prefent fyftem, but which would be competent to preferve the purity it reftored, and give to the conftitution not only confiftency, but if poffible immortality. It was his defign that the actual number of the houfe of commons fhould be preferved inviolate. His immediate object was to felect a certain number of the decayed and rotten boroughs, the right of representation attached to thirty-fix of which, fhould be transferred to the counties, in fuch proportions as the wildom of parliament might prescribe; and that all unneceffary harshness might be avoided, he recommended the appropriation of a fund of one million to be applied to the purchafing the franchise of such boroughs, on their voluntary application to parliament. When this was effected, he proposed to extend the bill to the purchafing the franchife of other boroughs, befides the original thirty-fix; and to transfer the right of returning members to large towns, hitherto unreprefented, upon their petitioning parliament to be indulged with this privi,

lege,"