Gentlemen of the House of

Commons,

I thank you in his majesty's name, for the fupplies which you granted at the beginning of this Teffion; they fhall be faithfully applied to the fupport of his majesty's eftablishments, and to the advancement of the public fervice: But, although I have expectations, that the act for amending and explaining a claufe in the act of tonnage and poundage, will be productive of fome addition to his majefty's revenue, I think it my duty to inform you, that the arrears which had been incurred upon his majelty's eftablishments civil and military, before the time of your meeting, made it neceffary to bcrrow one hundred thousand pounds, immediately after the act was paffed which gave authority for that purpofe; and, that fum not proving fufficient, I have, fome time fince, been obliged to order the further fum of one hundred thoufand pounds to be raifed, being the remainder of the credit entrusted to me by that act.

So early a demand for the whole loan, gives me reafon to apprehend that, unless there should be a confiderable increase in his majefty's revenue, a ftill greater arrear will accrue, before the ufual time of your meeting in another feffion.

I do therefore most earnestly recommend it to you, to take it into your ferious confideration(between this and the next feffion of parliament) what will be the beft method of making provifion for fuch deficiencies as arife upon the prefent duties, fo as to guard against any farther increase of the national debt.

The additional duties given for the fupport of government, in aid of his majefty's hereditary revenue, are nearly the fame which were granted in the year 1727, at the late king's acceffion. Had they been folely applied to that purpofe, they would have been fully fufficient, and no debt or arrear would have been contracted or incurred; but the large expence occafioned by the many premiums, now payable under different heads, muft neceffarily continue to increase both; it will therefore be true policy, and worthy of your wifdom, to give particular attention to this object, and, by prudent regulations, to form and establish fuch a fyftem, as will beft obviate any further inconvenience, and moft effectually promote every great national purpose.

My Lords, and Gentlemen, It gives me great pleasure to obferve, that the tumults and outrages of the lower ranks of people, which unhappily disturbed fome of the northern counties in this kingdom, have now subsided. I flatter myself, that thefe deluded perfons are fully convinced of the atrocioufness of their attempts, and of the impoffibility of effecting any of the purposes intended by them. I would however recommend it to fuch gentlemen, whofe weight and influence lie particularly in those parts, to have a watchful eye over their behaviour, and to exert themfelves, with the other civil magi ftrates, in enforcing a due obe dience to the laws; and I doubt not that, by their authority on one hand, and by their juftice and no, deration on the other, a thorough reformation

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reformation will be effected, and the difpofitions of the people reclaimed to peace and good order.

It gives me great concern to fee the afliftance of the military power fo frequently called for; nothing can be more worthy of your ferious reflection, than to render that refource unneceffary by a judicious improvement of your police, and providing for the due execution of the laws.

His majefty gave it in exprefs command to me, to make your intereft and profperity the great objects of my adminiftration; and my own inclinations incited me to a ftrict and zealous performance of that duty. I have, upon every occafion, endeavoured, to the utmost of my power, to promote the public fervice; and I feel the most perfect fatisfaction in now repeating to you my acknowledgments for the very honourable manner in which (after a refidence of near five years amongst you) you have declared your entire approbation of my conduct. Be affured, that I fhall always entertain the moft ardent withes for your welfare and Thall make a faithful reprefentation to his majesty, of your loyalty and attachment to his royal perfon and government.

ift, Because we think the declaratory principle in the preamble of the Lill, to be without foundation in law (in the extent there stated), to be unneceflary for the avowed purposes of the bill, and likely to be attended with very dangerous confequences, as that preamble does affert, "that we are fenfible "that marriages in the royal fa"mily are of the high.eft impos¬ "tance to the state, and that there

fore the kings of this realm have "ever been entrusted with the care and approbation thereof."

The maxim here laid down, "that because marriages of the royal family are of the highest im portance to the state, they are there fore entrusted to the kings of this realm;" is founded on a doctrine abfurd and unconstitutional; but which hereafter will have the force of a parliamentary declaration of law, the immediate tendency of which is to create as many prero gatives in the crown, as there are matters of importance in the state, and indeed to extend them in a

manner as vague and exceptionable as had ever been done in the worst

and moft defpotic periods in the hiftory of this nation; and we ap prehend that fome future, and even

more

more dangerous ufe may be made of this preamble, as it is much more extenfive than is neceffary for any purpose avowed in the bill. 2dly, Because this declaratory preamble feems to justify the words which his majesty has been advised (we think very improperly) to ufe in his meffage to his parliament, whereby a prerogative is affumed in an extent for which nine of his judges in their unanimous opinion, delivered to this houfe, do not find any authority.

3dly, Because the term Royal Family being general, and not qualified by the exception of "the iffue of princeffes married into foreign families," feems to carry (very idly as we apprehend) the royal prerogative beyond the jurif diction of the crown of Great Britain; can therefore, as applied in the preamble, be warranted by no law, and is indeed contrary to common fenfe.

4thly, Becaufe, if this parliamentary declaration of law can operate in any degree, as a retrofpect (an operation against which we have no fecurity by any thing contained in the bill), it is pernicious and unju; if it can have no fuch retrofpect (as was afferted in argument by the friends of the bill), it is then at best frivolous and unne ceffary.

5thly, Because the enacting part of the bill has an inconvenient and impolitic extent, namely, to all defcendants of George the Second. In courfe of time that defcription may become very general, and compre hend a great number of people; and we conceive it would be an intoler able grievance, that the marriages of fo many fubjects, perhaps difperfed among the various ranks of

civil life, fhould be fubject to the reftrictions of this act, especially as it has been afferted in argument, and endeavoured to be maintained by the authority of the grand opinion given by the judges in the year 1717, that the care and ap probation of the marriage includes the education and cuftody of the perfon. We fear that this extenfive power would come in time to make. many of the first families in the kingdom totally dependant on the crown, and we therefore lament that the endeavours fo earnestly ufed in the committee, in fome degree to limit the generality of that defcription, were not fuffered to take effect.

6thly, Becaufe, as the line is too large, with regard to the defcription of the royal family, fo we think that the time of nonage for that family is alfo improperly extended. We conceive that the age of twenty-one years is that limit, which the laws of this country, and the fpirit of the conftitution, have with great wildom given to minority. It feems indecent to the royal family to fuppofe they will not be arrived at the age of difcretion as foon as the lowest fubject of the realm; and we cannot conceive but they may be as capable of chufing a wife at the age of twenty-one, as of being entrusted with the regency of the kingdom, of which by law they are at that age capable. We alfo conceive that the deferring their age of majority as to marriage till twenty-fix, is impolitic and dangerous, as it may tend to drive them into a diforderly courfe of life, which, ought the more to be guarded against in men of high rank, as the influence of their ex

ample

We conceive the right of confer ring a difcretionary power of prohibiting all marriages (whether vefted in the crown alone, as intended by the meffage, or in the manner now enacted by the bill) to be above the reach of any legiflature, as contrary to the original inherent rights of human nature, which as they are not derived from, or held under civil laws, by no civil laws whatsoever can be taken away. We freely allow that the legiflature has a power of prefcribing rules to marriage, as well as to every other fpecies of contracts; but there is an effential and eternal difference, between regulating the mode in which a right may be enjoyed, and establishing a principle which may tend entirely to annihilate that right. To difable a man during his whole life, from contracting marriage, or, what is tantamount, to make his power

of contracting fuch marriage dependant neither on his own choice, nor upon any fixed rule of law, but on the arbitrary will of any man, or fet of men, is exceeding the power permitted by the divine providence to human legiflatures: it is directly against the earliest command, given by God to mankind, contrary to the right of domeftic fociety and comfort, and to the defire of lawful pofterity, the first and best of the inftincts planted in us by the author of our nature, and utterly incompatible with all religion, natural and revealed, and therefore a mere act of power, having neither the nature nor obligation of law.

8thly, Because we conceive this bill to be pregnant with civil difcord and confufion; it has a natural tendency to produce a difputed title to the crown. If thofe who may be affected by it, are in power, they will eafily procure a repeal of this act, and the confirmation of a marriage made contrary to it: and if they are not, it will at leaft be the fource of the most dangerous party that can exift in any country, a party attached to a pretender to the crown, whofe claim, he may affert, has been fet afide by no other authority than that of an act, to which the legiflature was not competent, as being contrary to the common rights of mankind. Such a claim, fupported as it may be, by peculiar hardship in the cafe, muft, as we conceive, at no very remote period, create great mif chief and confufion.

Laftly, Because this bill, which reforts to fuch harsh and unusual methods, at the fame time provides for it's own purpose very uncertainly and very imperfectly, for it fecures no remedy against the improper