Sea company, which rendered it impossible to relieve some but at the expense of others. Several wholesome resolutions were taken, and presented with an address to the king, explaining the motives of their proceedings. On the twenty-ninth day of July, the parliament was prorogued for two days only. Then his majesty going to the house. of peers, declared that he had called them together again so suddenly, that they might resume the consideration of the state of public credit. The commons immediately prepared a bill upon the resolutions they had taken. The whole capital stock, at the end of the year one thousand seven hundred and twenty, amounted to about thirty-seven millions eight hundred thousand pounds. The stock allotted to all the proprietors did not exceed twenty-four millions five hundred thousand pounds: the remaining capital stock belonging to the company in their corporate capacity. It was the profit arising from the execution of the South Sea scheme; and out of this the bill enacted, that seven millions should be paid to the public. The present act likewise directed several additions to be made to the stock of the proprietors, out of that possessed by the company in their own right: it made a particular distribution of stock, amounting to two millions two hundred thousand pounds; and upon remitting five millions of the seven to be paid to the public, annihilated two millions of their capital. It was enacted, that after these distributions, the remaining capital stock should be divided among all the proprietors. This dividend amounted to thirty-three pounds six shillings and eight-pence per cent. and deprived the company of eight millions nine hundred thousand pounds. They had lent above eleven millions on stock unredeemed; of which the parliament discharged all the debtors, upon their paying ten per cent. Upon this article the company's loss exceeded six million nine hundred thousand pounds; for many debtors refused to make any payment. The proprietors of the stock loudly complained of their being deprived of two millions; and the parliament in the sequel, revived that sum which had been annihilated. While this affair was in agitation, petitions from counties, cities, and boroughs, in all parts of the kingdom, were presented to the house, crying for justice against the villany of the direc tors. Pamphlets and papers were daily published on the same subject; so that the whole nation was exasperated to the highest pitch of resentment. Nevertheless, by the wise and vigorous resolutions of the parliament, the South Sea company was soon in a condition to fulfil their engagements with the public: the ferment of the people subsided; and the credit of the nation was restored. 1729. 279 BOOK II. CHAP. III. I. Bill against atheism and immorality postponed. § II. Session closed. § III. Alliance between Great Britain, France, and Spain. § IV. Plague at Marseilles. § V. Debates in the House of Lords about Mr. Law the projector. VI. Sentiments of some Lords touching the war with Spain. § VII. Petition of the Quakers. The Parliament dissolved. VIII. Rumours of a conspiracy. The Bishop of Rochester is committed to the Tower. IX. New Parliament. § X. Declaration of the Pretender. § XI Report of the Secret Committee. § XII. Bill of pains and penalties against the Bishop of Rochester. § XIII. Who is deprived, and driven into perpetual exile. § XIV. Proceedings against those concerned in the lottery at Harburgh. § XV. Affairs of the Continent. § XVI. Clamours in Ireland on account of Wood's coinage. XVII. Death of the Duke § of Orleans. XVIII. An act for lessening the public debts. § XIX. Philip, King of Spain, abdicates the throne. XX. Abuses in chancery. § XXI. Trial of the Earl of Macclesfield. § XXII. Debates about the debts of the civil list. § XXIII. A bill in favour of the late Lord Bolingbroke. XXIV. Treaty of alliance between the Courts of Vienna and Madrid. § XXV. Treaty of Hanover. § XXVI. Approved in Parliament. § XXVII. Riots in Scotland on account of the malt tax. § XXVIII. A small squadron sent to the Baltic. XXIX. Admiral Hosier's expedition to the West Indies. § XXX. Disgrace of the Duke de Ripperda. $ XXXI. Substance of the King's speech to Parliament. XXXII. Debate in the House of Lords upon the approaching rupture with the Emperor and Spain. $ XXXIII. Memorial of Mr. Palms, the Imperial Resident at London. § XXXIV. Conventions with Sweden and Hesse Cassel. § XXXV. Vote of credit. 6 XXXVI. Siege of Gibraltar by the Spaniards. § XXXVII. Preliminaries of peace. § XXXVIII. Death and character of George I. King of Great Britain. § I. DURING the infatuation produced by this infamous scheme, luxury, vice, and profligacy, increased to a shocking degree of extravagance. The adventurers, intoxicated by their imaginary wealth, pampered themselves with the rarest dainties, and the most expensive wines that could be imported: they purchased the most sumptuous furniture, equipage, and apparel, though without taste or discernment: they indulged their criminal passions to the most scandalous excess their discourse was the language of pride, insolence, and the most ridiculous ostentation: they affected to scoff at religion and morality; and even to set heaven at defiance. The earl of Nottingham complained in the house of lords of the growth of atheism, profaneness, and immorality; and a bill was brought in for suppressing blasphemy and profaneness. It contained several articles seemingly calculated to restrain the liberty granted to nonconformists by the laws of the last session; for that reason it met with violent opposition. It was supported by the archbishop of Canterbury, the earl of Nottingham, lord Bathurst and Trevor, the bishops of London, Winchester, and Litchfield and Coventry. One of these said, he verily believed the present calamity occasioned by the South Sea project was a judgment of God on the blasphemy and profaneness of the nation. Lord Onslow replied, " that noble peer must then "be a great sinner, for he has lost considerably by the "South Sea scheme." The duke of Wharton, who had rendered himself famous by his wit and profligacy, said he was not insensible of the common opinion of the town concerning himself, and gladly seized this opportunity of vindicating his character, by declaring he was far from being a patron of blasphemy, or an enemy to religion. On the other hand, he could not but oppose the bill, because he conceived it to be repugnant to the holy scripture. Then pulling an old family bible from his pocket, he quoted several passages from the epistles of St. Peter and St. Paul; concluding with a desire that the bill might be thrown out. The earl of Peterborough declared, that though he was for a parliamentary king, yet he did not desire to have a parliamentary god, or a parliamentary religion; and, should the house declare for one of this kind, he would go to Rome, and endeavour to be chosen a cardinal; for he had rather sit in the conclave than with their lordships upon those terms. After a vehement debate, the bill was postponed to a long day, by a considerable majority. § II. The season was far advanced before the supplies were granted and at length they were not voted with that cheerfulness and good humour which the majority had hitherto manifested on such occassions. On the sixteenth day of June, the king sent a message to the house of commons, importing, that he had agreed to pay a subsidy to the crown of Sweden, and he hoped they would enable him to make good his engagements. The leaders of the opposition took fire at this intimation. They desired to know whether this subsidy, amounting to seventy-two thousand pounds, was to be paid to Sweden over and above the expence of maintaining a strong squadron in the Baltic? lord Molesworth observed that, by our late conduct, we were become the allies of the whole world, and the bubbles of all our allies for we were obliged to pay them well for their assistance. He affirmed that the treaties which had been made with Sweden, at different times, were inconsistent and contradictory that our late engagements with that crown were contrary to the treaties subsisting with Denmark, and directly opposite to the measures formerly concerted with the czar of Muscovy. He said, that in order to engage the czar to yield what he had gained in the course of the war, the king of Prussia ought to give up Stetin, and the elector of Hanover restore Bremen and Verden: that, after all, England had no business to intermeddle with the affairs of the empire: that we reaped little or no advantage by our trade to the Baltic, but that of procuring naval stores; he owned that hemp was a very necessary commodity, particularly at this juncture; but he insisted, that if due encouragement VOL. II N n : |