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the feelings of his royal father, than the knowledge, that the government of his son and representative had exhibited the sovereign power of the realm in a state of degradation, of "curtailed authority and diminished energy; a state, hurtful in "practice to the prosperity and good government of his people, "and injurious in its precedent to the security of the monarch, "and the rights of his family.

"Upon that part of the plan, which regards the king's real "and personal property, the Prince feels himself compelled "to remark, that it was not necessary for Mr. Pitt, nor proper "to suggest to the Prince, the restraint he proposes against the "Prince's granting away the king's real and personal property. "The Prince does not conceive, that, during the king's life, "he is by law entitled to make any such grant; and he is sure, "that he has never shewn the smallest inclination to possess "any such power. But it remains with Mr. Pitt to consider "the eventual interests of the royal family, and to provide a proper and natural security against the mismanagement of "them by others.

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"The Prince has discharged an indispensable duty, in thus "giving his free opinion on the plan submitted to his con"sideration.

"His conviction of the evils, which may arise to the king's "interests, to the peace and happiness of the royal family, and "to the safety and welfare of the nation, from the government "of the country remaining longer in its present maimed and "debilitated state, outweighs in the Prince's mind every other "consideration, and will determine him to undertake the pain"ful trust imposed upon him by the present melancholy neces"sity (which of all the king's subjects he deplores the most) "in full confidence, that the affection and loyalty to the king, "the experienced attachment to the House of Brunswick, and "the generosity which has always distinguished this nation, "will carry him through the many difficulties, inseparable from "this most critical situation, with comfort to himself, with "honour to the king, and with advantage to the public. Carleton House, Jan. 2d, 1789. (Signed) G. P."

On the 6th of January Mr. Pitt having given notice, that he should on that day propose to the house the restrictions, within which the exercise of the regal power should be granted to the regent, Mr. Loveden, the member for Abingdon, rose as soon as the order of the day was moved, and observed, that before the house proceeded to settle the terms of the regency, he conceived that they ought to know exactly the present state of his majesty's health, what the degree of alteration, which it had undergone since his majesty's physicians were last examined. This was the more necessary, as reports had gone abroad

of a very contradictory kind, and the authority of the different physicians who attended his majesty had been made use of to give sanction to those reports. He therefore moved," That the phy"sicians, who had attended his majesty should be again examined, 66 to inform the house whether any alteration or amendment had "taken place in the state of the king's health, and if the present symptoms were such, as to give reason to hope for his majesty's speedy recovery.

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This motion gave rise to a warm debate, which was managed not with the most perfect temper and moderation on either side of the house. After much altercation it was agreed, that a new committee should be appointed, and that the physicians should be examined.

The committee sat till the 13th of January, when the report was brought up, ordered to be printed, and to be taken into consideration in a committee of the whole house on the state of the nation upon the 16th of January, 1789.

On that day Mr. Pitt, after expressing his satisfaction at having consented to the motion for re-examining the physicians, the event of which had justified his former opinion respecting the probability of his majesty's recovery, proceeded to open the business, which was then to be the subject of their deliberations. The subject divided itself into three distinct heads: 1st, The nature of the king's illness. 2dly, The principles, upon which the two houses were authorized to act on this occasion. And 3dly, The application of those principles to the measures, which he should propose for remedying the present defect in the personal exercise of the royal authority.

It had been determined, that the right to provide for the deficiency in the executive government devolved on the two houses of parliament; but there was abundant reason to hope, that the occasion would be temporary and short. What they had to provide for, therefore, was no more than an interval, and if unfortunately, his majesty's illness should be protracted, they might leave it to parliament to do what at present was clearly unnecessary; to consider of a more permanent plan of government. They were to provide only for the present necessity, and not to exceed it; they were also to provide against any embarrassment in the resumption of the royal authority, whenever God, in his providence, should enable the rightful holder again to exercise it. They were therefore to grant such powers, and none other, as were requisite to carry on the government of the country with energy and effect.

Upon these principles he should propose to invest the Prince of Wales with the whole royal authority, to be exercised in the name and on the behalf of the king, subject to such limitations and restrictions only as should be provided. He observed in

the Succession Act of Queen Anne, and in the regency acts of George the Second and George the Third, the exercise of all the royal prerogatives were granted in a fuller manner than he intended to propose: but on the other hand, the regent, in all those cases, was fettered with a council, the consent of a majority of which was necessary to authorize his acts. Under the present circumstances he thought it more advisable to leave the regent entirely free in the choice of his political servants; but at the same time this required some limitation of the authority, with which he was to be invested.

The first restriction he meant to propose was, that the authority of the regent should not extend to the creating any peer, except such of the royal issue as should have attained the age of twenty-one. There were three grounds, he conceived, upon which this branch of the prerogative was intrusted by the constitution to the crown, none of which were applicable to the present case. First, It was designed to enable the king to counteract the designs of any factious cabal in the House of Lords, which might have acquired a predominant influence in their deliberations. But was it at all probable that the govern ment of his royal highness should be obstructed by any such cabal? He, for one, was ready to declare, that he should give no opposition to any administration the regent should chuse to form, so long as their measures were compatible with the prosperity of the kingdom. On the other hand, he said, such a number of peers might be created, as would considerably embarrass his majesty's government on the event of his being restored to health. Secondly, This power was vested in the crown, to enable the sovereign to reward eminent merit, and thereby to invite others to the same laudable exertions in the public service. But was it, he said, to be supposed that for want of such an incentive for a few months, the country was likely to be deprived of the service of men of merit. If his majesty. recovered, as they all hoped, and had reason to expect he would, the power of creating peers might be exercised by the rightful holder of the prerogative; but if, unfortunately, his majesty should grow worse, and be pronounced not likely to recover for a long time, parliament would have it in its power to take off the restriction, and vest the regent with a power, which though not at present, he was ready to admit might in time become necessary to the carrying on of a powerful government. Thirdly, This power was designed to provide for the fluctuation of wealth and property in the country, that by raising men of great landed interest to the peerage, that branch of the legislature should be always placed upon its true and proper basis. But surely it would not be contended, that it was necessary to provide in a temporary plan for exigencies, which could only arise from

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the lapse of considerable periods of time. For all these reasons taken together he should therefore propose, that the regents should be restrained from the exercise of that part of the prerogative of the crown.

The next restriction he should propose was, that the regent should not grant any pension or place for life, or in reversion, other than such place as is, from its nature, to be holden for life, or during good behaviour. This restriction, he said, flowed from the same principle, which supported the former; it would prevent his majesty from being put on a worse footing, should he recover, than he was before his illness; and it could not be said, that the power restrained by this limitation was necessary to a regent.

The next was, to restrain the regent from exercising any power over the personal property of the king. Mr. Pitt on this occasion observed, that he scarcely thought it necessary to pass this resolution, as it was not probable, that his royal highness should interfere with his majesty's personal property in his lifetime, but as they were acting upon parliamentary principles, he thought it his duty to submit it to the committee.

The last resolution would be for entrusting the care of the royal person during his majesty's illness, where of course all men would be unanimous in agreeing that the royal person ought to be placed, in the guardianship of the queen; and with this trust his intention was, to propose to put the whole of his majesty's household under her authority, investing her with full powers to dismiss and appoint, as she should think proper. Without being invested with this control, he imagined that the queen could not discharge the important trust committed to her care. These officers were, for the most part, in actual attendance upon his majesty's person, and he did not see how they could be put under the control of the regent, while the care of his majesty, upon whom they were to attend, was trusted to another person.

The lords of the bed chamber, indeed, might not be thought necessary now, when their attendance could not be required; but, on the other hand, a generous and liberal nation would not have it said, that in the moment of the king's illness they had grown so œconomical, that they would not bear the expence of supporting, till his recovery, those officers who formed part of his majesty's royal state; it would be no pleasant thing to his majesty to be told, should he, on his recovery, call for some one of those lords who used to be about his person, that they had been dismissed, that the nation might save the expence attending their offices.

Lastly, he should propose, that a council should be named to assist the queen with their advice, whenever she should re

quire it: but who should not have any power of control, but barly that of giving advice, and of satisfying themselves daily of the state of the king's health: and that they, or some others, should be appointed to manage the real and personal estate of the king, with this restriction, not to alienate, or to dispose of any part of it, except by lease.

Mr. Pitt then moved the first of the five resolutions* which he successively brought before the house: they were warmly contested in their progress through the commons as well as they were in passing through the lords: the divisions upon them or the different amendinents proposed kept the same proportion throughout: in the lords a very strong protest was

The form of the resolution was as follows:

"Resolved, That for the purpose of providing for the exercise of the royal authority, during the continuance of his majesty's illness, in such manner, "and to such extent, as the present circumstances and the urgent concerns of "the nation appear to require, it is expedient that his Royal Highness the "Prince of Wales, being resident within the realm, shall be empowered to ex"ercise and administer the royal authority, according to the laws and consti"tution of Great Britain, in the name and on the behalf of his majesty, and "under the style and title of regent of the kingdom; and to use, execute, and "perform, in the name and on the behalf of his majesty, all authorities, prerogatives, acts of government, and administration of the same, which belong to "the king of this realm to use, execute and perform, according to the laws "thereof, subject to such limitations and exceptions as shall be provided.

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"Resolved, That the power, so to be given to his Royal Highness the Prince "of Wales, shall not extend to the granting of any rank or dignity of the peerage of the realm to any person whatever, except to his majesty's royal issue "who shall have obtained the full age of twenty-one years.

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Resolved, That the said powers should not extend to the granting in re"version, of any office whatever, or to the granting of any office, salary, or "pension, for any other term than during his majesty's pleasure, except such "offices as are by law required to be granted for life, or during good beha

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"Resolved, That the said powers should not extend to the granting of any "part of his majesty's real or personal estate, except so far as relates to the "renewal of leases.

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"Resolved, That the care of his majesty's royal person, during the continu"ance of his majesty's illness, should be committed to the queen's most excellent najesty; and that her majesty should have power to remove from, and to nominate and appoint such persons as she shall think proper, to the "several offices in his majesty's household; and to dispose, order and manage "all other matters and things relating to the care of his majesty's royal person, during the time aforesaid: and that, for the better enabling her ma jesty to discharge this important trust, it is also expedient that a council "should be appointed, to advise and assist her majesty in the several matters "aforesaid. And with power from time to time, as they may see cause, to "examine upon oath, the physicians and others attending his majesty's per"son, touching the state of his majesty's health, and all matters relative "thereto."

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†The form of the protest will apprize the reader of the general grounds, upon which the friends of the Prince opposed the resolutions, and as it may be matter of historical curiosity to know how the different members voted on this important occasion, a correct list of the majority and minority and of those who did not vote, may be seen in the Appendix, No. LXXIX.

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