indignant observations he had a doubt, a clause was inserted for few days ago drawn upon him. rendering an account of the apself. This much he found him- plication of the money to the self bound to say in order to avoid commissioners of the revenue ; further misconstruction ; but be- and it was provided, that if there fore he proceeded to notice the should be any surplus, it was details of the bill, he could not to go to the aid of the civil list. help adverting to the grounds The clause which gave to her upon which the noble earl who majesty 10,000l. for her own use, moved the bill had called upon was a further proof that the other their lordships to support it. The sum was exclusively designed noble earl had stated, that the for supporting his majesty's estadeath of her late most excellent blishment. He could come to no majesty would allow some reduc- conclusion on the subject, but tion in the expense of the esta- that the ministers of the crown, blishment provided for his ma- after strenuously opposing for a jesty ; for had it not been for the considerable time any reduction arrangement which subsisted in the establishment for the until her majesty's death, she king, and having at length found would have had an equitable that they must reduce it, had, claim to the enjoyment of her in order to avoid the appearance dower. When the noble earl of inconsistency, invented this made that statement, he heard it argument, that they might put with great surprise, for it was the forward the death of her majesty assumption of a perfectly new as a reason for the reduction, ground. Did the journals of par- although no reason had all along liament, or any of the acts which existed why this establishment had been adopted, afford any should not have been reduced. trace of such a principle ? On He now came to that part of the contrary, the act of the 52d the subject on which it was the of the king stated in the pre- most painful for himself to touch, amble, as the ground for passing but which it would be inconsiste it, the necessity of making fur- ent with his duty to overlookther regulations for the mainte- the grant of 10,0001. to the duke nance of his majesty's household, of York. He could not but and to enable the queen to meet think that ministers had acted the additional expenses to which most unwisely and injudiciously she might be exposed for that in thus dragging forward the object. The sum of 100,0001. duke of York to incur a consiwas then directed to be paid for derable degree of unpopularity in the maintenance of his majesty's consequence of their making such household ; and the details in a proposition at a period of great confirmation of the preamble public distress like the present. proved that it was the intention The noble earl then went through of the legislature to apply the the reasons by which this approwhole of that sum to expenses priation had been attempted to be connected with his majesty's per- justified; and he argued against son, To remove all possible the necessity of such a grant at

this period. In making these jesty's health would have been
objections, he said, he had per- most unbecoming and indelicate.
formed a painful, though a neces. He had a right, therefore, to say,
sary duty; but when a measure that last session was not the pro-
was brought forward which inter- per time for the reductions now
fered with his duty to the public, proposed.
he must oppose it, though con- He had now to follow the
nected with his royal highness's noble earl into another part of
name. He would now merely his speech, in which he accused
add, that when they came to him of changing his ground in
that clause of the bill which re- the defence of the establishment
ferred to the grant of 10,0001. at Windsor. The noble earl had
to the duke of York as custos, he said, that on the second reading
should move an amendment. of the present bill, he had stated

The Earl of Liverpool said a different reason for the ex-
that he would endeavour to follow penses incurred under the Re-
the noble earl into all his state- gency act, and in justification of
ments and arguments, and would the continuance of the Windsor
answer them in the same order. establishment, from what had
The noble earl had begun with been stated in the act itself, or
stating his concurrence in the re- had ever been employed in its
ductions of his majesty's house- defence—namely, that the esta-
hold, but had at the same time blishment was for the support of
brought a charge against the the queen's dignity, as well as
king's ministers for their tardi- that of his majesty; and that if
ness in opposing those reduc- provision had not been made for
tions when urged by himself and her in that way, as queen con-
his friends. Now, nothing could sort, she must have put the nation
be more anfounded than this to nearly as much expense by
latter accusation. From the providing the dower to which
year 1812, when the establish- she would have become entitled
ment was fixed by act of parlia- on the demise of his majesty.
ment, to the last session, the I, said the earl of Liverpool, am
subject was never brought for- prepared to support this position ;
ward. A bill was then introduced nor do I think that I am involved
by a right hon. friend of his in in any inconsistency. His lord-
the other House, which was ren- ship then, in a train of argument
dered necessary by the state of which we shall excuse ourselves
her late majesty's health, and from particularly discussing, went
then, for the first time, during through the whole ground of his
eight years of the continuance defence.
of the act of 1812, was any ob-

The conclusion of the noble jection made to its provisions. earl's (Grey) observations adIn the last session of parliament, verted to that clause of the bill it is true, objections to the Wind- which provided the grant of sor establishment had been 10,0001. to the custos. The earl pressed, but he felt, that reduc- of Liverpool, in encountering tion in the state of her late ma his

his antagonist, strongly con

tended

tended that the privy purse was grant which they had previously as much the king's private pro- voted. perty, as any of their lordships' After several lords had spoken estates were theirs, and ought on the occasion, and Earl Grey no more to be violated than the had made his concluding speech, property of his meanest subject. in which he declared himself He further said, that to meet unconvinced by the arguments contingencies, parliament had brought against him, the clause declared that the custos ought for granting to the duke of to have 10,000l. a year ; and the York 10,0001. a year was agreed question therefore was, whether to without a division ; and the in the teeth of an unanimous bill went through the committee resolution, they would resume the without any amendment.

CHAP.

CHAPTER III.

Ms. Tierney's Motion for a Committee on the

State of the Circulating Medium, and on the Continuance of the Bank Restriction. Lord Castlereagh's Motion for a Select Committee.

N the 2nd of February, Mr. upon that point. It had pressed

Tierney rose, in pursuance itself forward by its own weight, of a notice he had given, to pro- and was now looked to with pose to the House a resolution anxiety by all classes of society. for the appointment of a com- The first part of his motion mittee to inquire into the effects had been rather dictated by a produced on the exchanges with sense of fairness than by any foreign countries, and the state other consideration. For his of the circulating medium by the own part, he was ready frankly restriction on payments in cash to avow, that the principles laid by the Bank, and to report whe. down by the bullion committee, ther any and what reasons exist of which his late excellent friend, for continuing the same beyond Mr. Horner, had been chairman, the period now fixed by law for constituted his creed, and that its termination. It would be re. he had as yet heard or seen nocollected that, from time to time, thing to lead him to forsake it. ministers had promised that cash The question, indeed, had now payments should be resumed; become one of a totally different and from time to time the hopes nature : it was no longer one of of the country had been disap- exchanges on the transmission of pointed by renewed restrictions gold from one country to anowhich had now continued for ther, or on the dangers to which more than one and twenty years. the Bank might be exposed : the The preamble of the last bill only real point of decision was, stated that various unforeseen whether the old circulation ought circumstances rendered the con- or ought not to be restored to tinuance of the restriction neces. those limits to which legitimate sary, and the nation had been circulation was formerly confined within a few days informed that in this kingdom. The doctrine various other unforeseen circum. on this subject he had heard withstances made it expedient that out surprise, because it was a the issue of specie should be doctrine which had been foretold again postponed until the 20th not only by himself, but by of March 1820. Having already much wiser men : the House had spoken of the importance of the been warned, over and over question, he would not trouble again, not to proceed in such a the House with another word destructive system : it bad been

:

told, that if the restriction were to its legitimate state ; but unforprolonged, it would be impos- tunately, that hour had been so sible, without great hazard, tolong postponed, that those who, return to the point whence it had a few years ago, were merely started : and it now turned out, "contemptible, had grown bolder by the confession of all, that as they acquired wealth, and the habits of the patient had confident as they procured allies. been so vitiated, that he had not This introduced him to the perstrength to bear the only remedy son against whom their operations for his disorder. There existed had been carried on with too in this kingdom a strong money much success—the Chancellor of party, whose only object was, to the Exchequer. The right hon. avail themselves of their wealth gentleman (he said) had not to continue the present system, acted voluntarily, but upon comand whose ultimate view was, to pulsion : he had merely been an control the deliberations of the instrument with which others had legislature, and the acts of the worked their ends, while his own Bank itself. This party was come good understanding had been posed of persons of different de. cowed and subdued into subserscriptions. Some of them were viency by their machinations. men of the largest fortune, and His whole course of financemfor of the most undoubted integrity, system it was not—had rested who lent themselves to this object solely upon paper.

What was most conscientiously, thinking the country to think of a finance they were doing what was right. minister, who, year after year, The others were men of a differ- had done nothing but resort to ent description, and who might contrivances to glide over from be considered as the tail of the session to session without inparty. It was against this tail quiry. His object had been conthat his present motion was die stantly to hold out the expectarected; and he was this night tion that things would mend; declaring war with the whole that if the House would but wait body of gamblers, speculators in a little, it would find that the the funds, stock-jobbers, and all income and expenditure of the those who were living upon the country would balance each losses of the honest and indus- other in the mean time, the trious. In what he was doing he nation was to take his word for could have no possible view but the promised improvement; and the public good. He had taken while the sinking fund was cutting upon himself a duty not less off one portion of debt at one laborious than painful, but it was end, he was adding to it in equal a duty which he was bound to proportion at the other by experform for his country.

chequer bills. This course had Alluding to the money specu- now been pursued for several latists, Mr. Tierney said, that years, in a way very pleasant to their hour of extinction would the chancellor of the exchequer, arrive at the moment the circu- but very fatal to the country. If, lating medium was brought back then, it was of importance that

the