، A. C. 1706. The Earl heritance, they were nevertheless made here Elective, he took to be divesting them of their Peerage; becaufe not being fure of being always elected to every Parliament of Great Britain they confequently muft lofe, when left out, the Benefit of Sitting in Parliament, what was ever deemed an infeparable Right of the Peerage; That the reft of the Nobility of Scotland, to the Number of above 100, were thereby manifeftly injured; and that for his part he wonderd very much, how the Scots came to accept of fuch unreafonable conditions; or how their Lordships could entertain the Thoughts of permitting fuch Peers by Election to fit among them. The Lords N -m, Nb and G--- •y &c. vévery much enforc'd this Topick, adding, That as one might very well fuppofe, that thofe Scots Peers would be fuch as were addicted to the Kirk, it might prove of a dangerous Confequence to the "Church of England. The Earl of wn reply'd That tho' they were all never fo much of the Kirk Party, yet there was no reafon to fear, speech. of W-n'i but they would alfo be very well difpofed for the Church of England, and ftand up in its Defence on all Occafions; fince there were even fome fitting amongst their Lordships who would venture their 'Lives for the Church of England, and yet openly 6 declared themfelves to be at the fame time Occafional Conformists. The Lord Hm very right-The Lord ly judging he was hinted at by that Noble Peer, Hm's ftood up to inform the Houfe, what he understood Speech a by an Occafional Conformist; in which Explanation bout Epifhe appear'd fomewhat gravell'd: For after having copacy and made a long Encomium on the Epifcopal Order, Presbytery which he took to be the best and most conformable to primitive Christianity, he gave no lefs Commendation to all the Proteftant Churches abroad, and to the Kirk of Scotland itfelf, in Particular; which, he faid, was a true Proteftant Church. and The Bp. of B after begging The Pardon for troubling their Lordships on this Ace Bhop of Bh count; and faving that if he fpoke any thing out and W-s's of the Way, he was under their Correction, de- Speech aclared, that for his Part, he was altogether against cant the this Union, which he could wifh with all his Heart, Un.on. had been compleated an hundred Years ago; be G g cauft. 6 A. C. caufe, faid he, all the Ferment and Discord. which 1705. are likely to enfue upon it, would by this time have had their Courfe; That he could no better compare it, than to the mixing together strong Liquors, of a contrary Nature, in one and the fame Veffel, which would go nigh being burft a funder, by their furious Fermentation; That as their Bench was always reckoned the Dead-Weight of the Houfe, fo thofe 16 Peers being admitted to fit therein, would more effectually make it fo; especially in any Future Debates relating to the Church, towards which they could no ways be fuppofed to 'be well affected; and therefore he was humbly of Opinion, that fome Provifion might be made for debarring them of their Vote in any Church Matter that should hereafter come in Agitation. The Lords H-x S-rs and others, made very pertinent Answers to thofe Objections, after which the Debate ended in a general Divifion of the House The 20th there being 71 Contents for the 22d Article a21ft 22d. gainst 22 not Contents. After the reading the last 23d. 24th. Article the Earl of A-n moved that the Judges and 25th Opinion might be asked, what Laws would be reArticles appeal'd by this Union, and what would remain in proved Force, but that Motion was rejected. · Then the Earl of Nm ftood up and begg'd The Earl of their Lordships Pardon for having troubled them Nm' almoft to every Article, urging they were fuch Speech. material Objections occurring to his thoughts, as in Confcience he thought himself obliged to lay 'before the Houfe; That as Sir John Maynard made this Compliment to the late King, at the Revolution, That having buried, upon Account of his great Age, all his Contemporaries in Weftminster-Hall, he was afraid, if his Majesty had not come, in that very Juncture of Time, he might have likewife out-liv'd the very Laws themselves; So, if this Union did pafs, as he had no reafon to doubt, but it would moft certainly país, he might with as much Reafon, and as juftly affirm, he had out-lived all the Laws and the very Conftitution of England; Concluding with a Prayer to God, to avert the dire Effects which might propably enfue from fuch an Incorporating Union. The A. C. Three Days after, the Bishop of Sarum repor- 1706, ted to the House of Lords, the Refolutions of their Grand Committee, for approving the Articles of* Feb. 27. Union, which were agreed to by a great Majority; The Treaty but feveral Peers made and entred the following of Union Protests. Diffentient. Die Jovis, 27th Febr. 1706. I Diffent to every one, of the 25 Refolutions. Granvil. I Diffent to every one of the 25 Refolutions. Haversham. Diffent to the four laft Refolutions, having not been prefent at the paing the others. Geo.Bath and Wells. IDiffent to every one of the 25 Refolutions. Stawell. To the Ninth Refolution. . 6 "Because we humbly conceive the Sum of 48000l. to be charged on the Kingdom of Scotland, Land Tax, is not proportiona as the Quota of Scotland, for a ble to the 4s. Aid granted by the Parliament of England; but if by reafon of the prefent Circumftances of the Kingdom, it might have been thought it was not able to bear a greater Proportion, at this time, yet we cannot but think it unequal to this Kingdom, that it should be agreed, that when ever the 4s. Aid fhall be enacted by the Parliament of Great-Britain, to IDiffent to every one of2be raised on Land in England, the 25 Refolutions. S that the 48000 /. now raised North and Grey, Rochester, approved by the House of Lord's. But feveral Peers enter their Pro tefts. A. C. 1706. . 6 Diffentient. To the 15th Refolution. 'Because we humbly conceive nothing could have 'been more equal on this head of the Treaty, than that neither of the Kingdoms fhould have been burthened with the Debts of the other, con'tracted before the Union, and if that Propofal 'which we find once made in the Minutes of the . Treaty, had taken Place, there would have been an Occafion to have imploy'd the Revenues of the Kingdom of Scotland towards the Payment of the Debts of England, thofe Revenues might have been frictly appropriated to the Debts of the Kingdom, and to any other ufes within themselves as fhould have been judged requifite, and there would have been no need of an Equivalent of very near 400000l. to be raised on England, within this Year, for the Purchase of thofe Revenues in Scotland, which however it may prove to be but a reafonable Bargain, upon a ftrict Calculation, there does not feem to have been a NeIceflity juft now to have raised fo great a Sum, when this Kingdom is already burthen'd with fo vaft Ones, for neceffary Charges of the War. Rochester, North and Grey, Guilford, Leigh. 6 Diffentient. To the 22d Refolution. 'Because we humbly conceive, in the firft place, "That the Number of 16 Peers of Scotland, is too great a Proportion to be added to the Peers of England, who very rarely confift in more than 100 attending Lords, in any one Seflion of Parliament, and for that Reafon we humbly apprehend fuch a number as 16, may have a very great Sway in the Refolutions of this Houfe,of which the Confequence I cannot now be foreseen. 6 In the 2d place, we conceive the Lords of Scotland, who by Vertue of this Treaty, are to fit in this Houfe, being not qualified as the Peers of England, are, muft fuffer a Dimunition of their Dignity to fit here on fo different Foundations; their Right of Sitting here, depending entirely on an Election, and 6 and that, from time to time, during the Continu- A. C. ance of one Parliament only; and, at the fame time, 1706. we are humbly of Opinion, that the Peers of England, who fit here by Creation from the Crown, and have a Right of fo doing in themfelves or their 'Heirs, by that Creation for ever, may find it an Alteration in their Conftitution, to have Lords 'added to their Number, to Sit and Vote in all Matters brought before a Parliament, who have not the 'fame (Right) of their Seats in Parliament, as the 'Peers of England have. Buckingham, North and Grey, We diffent to the Refolu- ' 6 Abingdon, Leigh, North and Grey, Refolution On the 22d. of February, upon Mr. Bromley's Motion the Commons ordered, "That it be an Inftruction to the Committee of the whole Houfe, to whom, the Bill for an Union between the Two Kingdoms favour of England and Scotland was committed, That they of the Unimight receive a Claufe that the two Univerfities of verfities of this Kingdom may continue for ever, as they now England. are by Law Eftablish'd. Then a Motion being made, and the Queition put, 'That it be an Inftruction to the faid Committee, that they might receive a Claufe to make the like Provifion, that the Sub"jects of this Kingdom fhall be for ever free of any Oath, Teft or Subfcription within this Kingdom, contrary to, or inconfiftent with the true Proteftant Religion, Government, Worship and Difcipline of the Church of England, as now by Law Eftablished, as is already provided for the Subjects of Scotland, with Refpect to their Presbyterian Government; It paffed in the Negative. The fame day Sir R Mn moved, That a Claufe fhould be inferted in the faid Bill, in 2 G & 3 Favour |