This affecting and gracious fpeech having been anfwered, as foon as forms would admit, by a joint addrefs from both houfes, well adapted to exprefs those fentiments, which it deferved, and those fenfations which the occafion of it had fo juftly excited, the lords, being the house in which it was propereft fuch a bill should take its rife, as it did not relate to any tax, and their lordships could befides command the immediate affiftance of the judges, fo neceffary in an affair of that importance, ordered a bill to be brought in, in conformity to his majefty's fpeech; and, when paffed their houfe, fent it to the commons, who, being early apprized of the lords being 'before-hand with them, in taking up the affair, deferred all confideration of the matter, till they fhould hear from their lordships.

One would be apt to imagine, that it being ufual with, if not the business of the fervants of the crown to move affairs of this nature, and the fecretaries of ftate, the most immediate fervants of the crown, being both in the upper houfe, this bill would not only have been brought into that houfe, but have paffed it likewife in fuch a form, as might do juftice to that wifdom and goodness, manifested by his majesty on every occafion, in which the happiness of his people was concerned. But fo far from it, no person, by this bill, in the form it had paffed the houfe of lords, could be named guardian and regent except the queen, or fome one perfon of the royal family defcended from the late king, whofe ufual refidence, at the time of paffing this act, fhould have

been, and from thenceforth, until fuch nomination, thould continue to be in Great Britain; nor any of his majefly's family appointed of the council of regency, along with the great officers of ftate, except his majefty's brothers, and his uncle the duke of Cumberland; nor any perfon permitted to be named by his majefty to fucceed them in cafe of death, that was not a natural born fubject of the realm: by which claufes, the princefs of Wales was not only fet afide as guardian or regent, but even, as not being born in the British dominions, though naturalized by act of parliament, utterly excluded from the council of regency, though next to the queen the must be allowed the perfon, whom it was most natural for his majesty to with invested with thefe trufts, as one to whom, next to their own mother, the lives and fafety of his children could not fail of being dearest: not to mention her inability to fucceed to the throne, and which, therefore, in lefs virtuous times, and in a lefs virtuous family than the prefent royal family of Great Britain, might be an equal motive to the naming of her.

Notwithstanding these facrifices made of his majesty's moft tender feelings, the bill fent down by the houfe of lords had fcarcely been read in the houte of commous, when a motion was made to addrefs his majefty, that out of his tender and paternal regard for his people, he would be graciously pleafed to name the perfon or perfons, whom in his royal wisdom he fhould think fit to propofe to the confideration of parliament for the execution of the high trufts of guardian and re

gent,

gent, the house apprehending it not warranted by precedent, nor agreeable to the principles of the free conftitution of Great Britain, to veft fuch trufts in any perfon or perfons, not particularly named and approved of in par. liament.

Not only this motion, as placing the affair in a very wrong light, paffed in the negative by a very great majority; but, as it were, to make his majefty's family fome amends for the many infults of fered to it by one, who had belonged to that houfe, and by many of the unthinking people reprefented by it, the princefs dowager of Wales was named next after the queen as one of the perfons, whom his majefty might appoint to the guardian fhip of his fucceffors under age, and to the regency of his realms. This, however, did not pafs without fuch a debate, as rendered it improper to infift upon any further amendment; fo that, whatever defire the friends of the royal family might have to fecure to the princess of Wales a feat in the council of regency, or at least a door to it, they thought it most expedient not to propofe it at prefent. The bill, therefore, without any other amendment, was returned to the house of lords; and, that amendment being ap proved by their lordships, received the royal affent on the 15th of May 1765,

Whilft this important affair was under the confideration of the legiflature, the journeymen filkweavers of London, re inforced by thofe of all the other trades more immediately depending upon that branch, conceiving them.

felves greatly injured by the too free ufe of French and other wrought filks, affembled by beat of drum, with their wives and children, to the amount of many thoufands, in Spital fields, and Moor-fields, in order to petition for redress by a total prohibition of that article; and from thence, directed by leaders, and arrayed under fuch colours as might not only contribute to keep them together, but remind themselves and acquaint the public with the suppofed caufes of that diftrefs, which their pallid looks and emaciated carcafes made fufficiently evident, marched feveral ways, fome through the city, others through St. George's fields, and a third party through Holborn and St. Gils's, or the new north roads made between the eaft and weft ends of the town, to St. James's and Westminster Hall; and not only furrounded the palace and the two houfes of parliament, but by their numbers, in fome measure, obftructed the communication between them. even ftopt feveral of the members in their chairs and coaches; and, though it was only to befeech them in the humbleft terms to pity their wretched condition, so unufual a ftep, confidering the reports fpread of the weavers of the inland towns and their dependents in trade coming up to join their diftreffed brethren in London, could not fail of creating the most alarming apprehenfions for the public tranquillity. For had this once happened, or had thefe af fiicted members, instead of seeking redrefs from the head, taken upon them to redress themselves, there is no telling how far the

They

flame

flame might have spread, or what ravages it might have made before it could be extinguished. But, providentially, their rage, which was prevented from breaking out into greater outrages by a mild yet fteady exertion of the civil power, affifted by the military, as part of that conftitutional force, called the pe comitatus, after fpending itself in befetting the houfe of a nobleman, fufpected of favouring the wear of French

goods, and of having delivered his fentiments concerning them with uncommon harfhness, and in breaking the windows of fome houfes accufed of felling French filks, was finally appeafed, without further mifchief, by a feafonable fubfcription for their prefent relief, and an affociation amongst the principal filk mercers to recall all the orders they had given for foreign manufactures.

on the mind of the K. Their impolitic conduct New miniftry recom

ILL thofe events happened, of which we have spoken in the laft chapter, no miniftry, perhaps, ever ftood higher than the laft in the good graces and confidence of their monarch; one of them, it is to be prefumed, was even confidered as a confeffor in the cause of injured majefty, on account of the profecution and perfecution he had fuffered for his extraordinary warmth in detecting and bringing to juftice the authors, printers, and publishers of the North Briton. But as, on the one hand, the different fate, which the regency bill met with in the house of commons, to what it had in the house of peers, (where fuch a bill might have expected better fuccefs, were it only on account of both the fecretaries of state fitting in that house) feemed to indicate, that

their zeal for the honour of the royal family was greatly abated, or that perfonal refentment had a greater thare in their proceedings against the above injurious paper than difinterested loyalty; fo, on the other hand, it was impoffible, that, in the courfe of the debates in council occafioned by the alarming commotions amongst the journeymen filk weavers, it should not appear, that, whatever they themselves might take to be the caufes of their diftrefs, it was more owing to a want of the ufual call for the work of their looms from the British colonies, on account of the late injudicious restraints and taxes laid on the colony trade, than any extraordinary importation of French or other foreign filks.

It is, therefore, no way furprizing, that, there thus appearing

fome

fome want of zeal to defend the honour of the R. family, and fome want of wisdom to promote the commercial interefts of the people, in the conduct of thofe fervants of the crown, in whom fuch virtues might be fuppofed moft eminently to refide, H. M. fhould begin to treat them with a fudden coolness, which the long funthine of favour that had preceded it could not but render extremely mortifying. But it is very furpriz ing, that, however mortifying fuch coolness must have been, it could engage them to take a ftep the very reverse of what their fituation feemed to require, For, whether they thought the K's coolness to them proceeded from the nobleman ftill fufpected of enjoying the private confidence of H. M. notwithstanding his retirement from court, and therefore were willing to fhew their refentment against him; or whether they imagined it must terminate in their own difmiffion, and were defirous of recovering before-hand the good graces of the people by a blow at the object of their averfion, they contrived to have that nobleman's brother turned out of a very ho nourable and lucrative employment, enjoyed by him in his own country, and in the difcharge of which he had not given the leaft room to complaint.

But it was impoffible this ftep fhould not be confidered by the K. as an affront put upon himself; and it was, at the fame time, very poffible, that the people of England might think their welfare fo very little promoted by turning a Scotchman out of employment in Scotland, about the interior police and government of which

they never vouchfafed to give themfelves the leaft frouble, as not to thank the authors of his difgrace; and it happened accordingly. The K's coolness changed to resentment, and the people's averfion turned to contempt.

But, defirous as the K. might be to remove them, and the people to fee them removed, it was no easy matter to do it, as, how well foever H. M. might be affected to the rest of the miniftry, they fhared fo much in the odium attending the heads, that poffibly none of thote noblemen or gentlemen, who were then thought fittest to fill these important trufts, might be willing to accept of them, unlefs all the inferior offices were cleared at the fame time. Nay, one nobleman, when tried, went ftill farther. He infifted, it is faid, not only on fuch a thorough riddance, but on the filling of them with his own friends, under a pretence of guarding fo well against the fecret influence of L. B. over the members of the council, that, whatever that nobleman happened ftill to retain over the fupreme head, it might not be fufficient to obftru&t any of his meafures for the welfare of the public. But these were terms, that, if it was rather prefumptuous in his lordship to offer, it would have been equally weak in the K. to accept; and therefore it cannot be very furpriting, if they were peremptorily rejected. Mr. P. whatever his thoughts might have been, is reported to have been much more decent, or rather complaifant, in his expreffions. At the fame time, that he pleaded the bad state of his health, as an excufe for

not

not accepting that employment, which he had before filled with fuch honour and advantage to the nation, he declared, that, did his health permit him to accept of it, it would not be agreeable to him, unlefs he could have lord B. as his colleague.

But, happily for the nation, thefe negotiations, if we may give that name to tranfa&tions between a fovereign and his fubjects, were carried on by a royal perfonage, who, as, on the one hand, he could not be suspected of any par. tiality for the favourite of the monarch, or the idol of the people, and therefore was certainly the fittest perfon to act in an affair in which the monarch's eafe and the people's happiness were fo much concerned: fo, on the other hand, by his tried affection for both, and his uncommon knowledge of men and things, was beft qualified, in cafe his interpofitionhad not the defired iffue, to recommend to his majefty fuch other noblemen and gentlemen, as, though. new in office, and not far gone in years, might, by joining to the rectitude of their intentions and the greatnefs of their abilities the confi dence of both prince and people, more than replace, under a patriot king, and a free confiitution, the veterans they fucceeded.

Accordingly, at his royal highnefs's recommendation, the duke of Grafton and the right honour able Mr. Conway, brother to the earl of Hertford, one of thofe members of the houfe of com mons, who, at the clofe of the last feffion, had been deprived of all their employments, were appointed fecretaries of ftate, and the mar. quis of Rockingham first lord, and

Mr. Dowdefwell chancellor and under treasurer of the exchequer, three places heretofore united in the perfon of the right honourable Mr. George Grenville; and almost all the other great officers of state were filled with new men, except that of lord privy feal, which was wifely conferred on the duke of Newcastle, as a place of ease fuitable to his years, and yet of honour and confidence, the things of which his grace ever appeared most ambitious, fufficient to reward his early and conftant fervices to the royal family, and in them to the British dominions.

The approbation, with which the public received thefe nominations, proved anfwerable to the mott fanguine expectations of his royal highnefs, particularly that of the M. of R. on account of his lordship's great intereft in the public welfare, in quality of one of the greatest land holders in England; and still more the manner, in which he has ever acquitted himself of the duties of that important relation, which, the lefs they have been infifted upon by political, moral, or even religious writers, the more they require the afliftance of illuftrious examples to recommend and enforce the due obfervance of them.

Much, therefore, as the people might be pleafed to fee themselves thus rid of minifters, by whom they had confidered themselves as not a little aggrieved in point of liberty, and hurt in that of property, that pleasure was greatly heightened by feeing them fucceeded by men, from whom they might expect not only redrefs, but improvement in both thefe refpects. The chiefs of the new miniftry, instead of en

croaching