come he had incurred a debt, he ftill confidered 60,000l. as fully fufficient. Did that Hon. Gentleman confider that his Highness's eftablishment fhould be raifed more than double, by 5000l. a year, on account of his marriage?-Was it reafonable, and did the expence incurred by the Princefs amount to more than that of the Prince? He found that the Princess was to receive 50,000l. a year on the Prince's death; which was, in his mind, fully adequate to hold her court alone. But could the Hon. Gentleman imagine that the neceffary additional retinue and expenditure, whilft married, fhould be greater for the Princefs than when her husband's establishment gave her advantages in common? No, faid Mr. Sheridan, there is no juft fcale; there is nothing proportionate, regular, or confiftent. The additional income is 65,000l. which exceeds her jointure by 15,000l. There is nothing fair or candidthe miferable manoeuvre is obvious; the real caufe of the increafe of 25,0col. per annum, over what would otherwise be thought adequate, arifes from his Majefty's meffage, which mentions that his fon is involved in debt; and this being given to extricate him, the whole is now to be quoted as a precedent for eftablishment merely-fuppofing it to be a just income, and barely fufficient for the fplendour of an Heir Apparent. The Right Hon. Gentleman has faid, that he could not in justice, policy, and propriety, fuggeft any other mode for the payment of thefe debts, than by an appropriation of his Royal Highness's income; but he would fhew the Houfe, that he had a plan, which being in his mind adviseable, he would not forfake, until he had the fenfe of the House, that it was lefs beneficial or juft. An Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Powys) had said, that he fhould not have been much furprised, if the Chancellor of the Exchequer had refufed to bring forward this bufinefs at all-that was very tenderly faying that he should give up his office. Thefe compliances were expected; and he fhould indeed be furprifed, if that Right Hon. Gentleman had refused to bring forward any meafure propofed: If he had not, he muft quit his place, and in fo doing, he could not even fupport his own confiftency. Did not that Right Hon. Gentleman advife the marriage? Was not the whole train of eftablishment in the Government Gazette? And does the Hon. Gentleman fuppofe, that he would have been juflifiable in refufing to bring forward the measure, after being one of the leaders in the marriage? No, the error was, that he had advised the Prince to contract the marriage at all, or incur new expences, without knowing whether the Parliament would pay his debts, on which depended every comfort he could hope for in marriage. The Chancellor of the Exchequer

would

would have acted the part of an honeft minifter, if he had faid candidly to the King," Unless your Majefty will give some example that you are willing to bear fome part in the payment of thefe debts, I cannot, nay I dare not in juftice to my own character and the nation, propofe the liquidation of them to the House of Commons." There had, Mr. Sheridan faid, been little delicacy obferved towards the Prince, of meaning or expreffion, in treating this bufinefs; and upon a right view of the matter, there should be as little delicacy used in telling truth to the Throne as to the Prince. That his Majefty ought to contribute was the opinion of that Houfe; and if they felt it fo in heart and mind, why not boldly speak it out? it was much better than to have a lurking fentiment of disapprobation in their bofoms. Why fhrink from a conftitutional duty, and not tell his Majefty how he ought to act on this occafion? From the fuggeftion of his Hon. Friend (Mr. Grey) the Prince had fent a meffage to that House, which was univerfally allowed to do him great credit; he thought, with the adage, "better late than never." Why may not his Majefty adopt a conduct of a fimilar nature, and make a communication to the House of fome gracious intention towards the Prince? He would thereby conciliate the affections of the people, and do himself infinite honour. If there was any thing bafe and incorrigible in the Prince; if he had done fuch acts of repeated dishonour, that the Houfe of Commons and the nation withdrew all confidence from him; if they had neither future dependence nor hope; if he had fo acted as to turn his father's heart from him in hatred-then, and then alone, would the King be juftifiable-[Mr. Sheridan was here called loudly to order]-Then do I fay would his Majefty's minifters alone have been juftifiable in advifing his Majefty not to interfere in his behalf. If (faid Mr. Sheridan, in an impaffioned tone) a much-execrated and most deteftable band of Jacobins had wished to throw an odium on the Prince, and shake the foundation of the throne itfelf, they could not have done any thing more mischievous than not advifing his Majefty to take part in this measure. "Yes (faid Mr. Sheridan, pointing to minifters), I give you credit for it all; your interruption by a cry of order made me lodge the odium upon the proper shoulders." Mr. Sheridan faid, he would allow that his Royal Highness had been prodigal and extravagant; but were his errors (he would not call them vices) fo new and extraordinary, that they could find no excufe or lenity in the Royal breast, which was justly esteemed to be fraught with every virtue? A King justly dear to his fubjects for domestic virtues-[A cry of Order Order! from the Treafury Bench.] I hear (faid Mr. Sieri lan) VOL. III.

3 S

the

the Hon. Gentlemen cheering me, as though I fhould transfer my praises to his Majefty's minifters, as well as my cenfure. No, no, I can, with the late Lord Chatham, feparate the perfo nal character of the man from the vices of his Government, which arife from wicked and corrupt minifters. Let us examine, then (faid Mr. Sheridan), what has been the conduct of his Majesty's minifters on his Majefty's establishment and revenues fince he came to the Crown; on coming to the throne the nation gave his Majefty, on a bargain for the furrender of his hereditary dominions, 800,000l. per annum, for which, as adequate to all the purposes of the civil lift, his Majesty gave unfeigned acknowledgments; indeed the ftrongest expreflions of gratitude. However, there has been paid, if all the fums were increased to this day at compound interest, a furplus of near seven millions fterling; his debts have been paid three feveral times, and though in the fecond payment a legal arrangement was made, by the third payment, which was an application of 50,000l. a year from the civil lift, not only a folemn promise had been violated, but the law of the land was alfo violated. In the Prince of Wales however a breach of promise, on the nature of which he should fpeak more fully, was confidered criminal. The Duke of Portland had propofed in 1783, that the Prince's eftablishment fhould be 100,000l. a year, that is, 87,000l. a year in addition to the Dutchy of Cornwall. It was not therefore to be wondered at, that with an income not much more than half that fum, a young Prince, whofe character is not marked with a great degree of economy, fhould incur debt. But he could not, nor would he attempt to justify the principle, that because the House of Commons had thought proper to allow the Prince little more than half what was propofed by one of his Majefty's minifters, that he ought not therefore to live on it; this would be illogical and fallacious.

: Mr. Sheridan faid, as the Houfe was favourably inclined to hear him, he should ftate fome matter relating to thefe debts for public information, though it must be unpleasant to state fuch facts. Gentlemen knew that he had formerly been honoured by a confiderable degree of the Prince's confidence; this he was proud to state, because that confidence was founded upon a conviction in the Prince, that it was on his (Mr. Sheridan's) fide perfectly uninterested. The Prince knew that he would not directly nor indirectly accept of any favour whatsoever. He had not been much in the habit of talking of himself nor in his own praise, but he would affert then, that he ftood the most unobliged man by the Prince exiting. He could take to himself fome fhare of praife, by faying, that the Prince was indebted

3

indebted to him in the obligations of a true and faithful service, Whatever circumstances may have altered the Prince's fociety or political connexion, he would ftate in juftice, that his Royal Highnefs did not deferve the fevere and unkind animadverfions that he had met with, from his conduct, principles, or feelings for the Commons of Great Britain. He would now tate his Royal Highnefs's different eftablishments, and debts. From 1783 to 1787, he had 50,000l. per annum, at the end of which laft mentioned time, his debts were paid off, to the amount of 161,000l. of which 70 or 80,000l. was for repairs of Carleton Houfe. There was a fum of 80,000l. voted afterwards for these repairs; and it being thought, in fome time afterwards, that the fum voted was not applied to the repairs, an investigation took place, and it was found to be truly applied. At this time the Prince alfo received an additional 10,000l. per annum; fo that if the whole were calculated-50,000l. a year for four years-60,oool. for 8 years-together with the debt paid off, it would not be for the 12 years more than 72,000l. per annum for the whole expenditure. He would now come to the promife made in 1787, that no future debt fhould be incurred. He understood that a worthy Magiftrate had confidered that promife as not binding, because not formally delivered by the Prince himself; this he could not think, for if he could be more bound than by a direct promife, it would be by the cir cumftances which attended the promifc, fuch as it was. Had the Prince acted under a notion that he gave no direct promise, and received the money under any idea that he could quibble away the promife he did make, he would act in a fhameless and profligate manner; he would then have appeared to have given an incomplete engagement with a view to future prevarication. He would ftate to the Houfe how it really was, and leave them to draw what inference they pleafed :-When it was first fuggefted that a promise was to be made, he had advised the Prince not to engage himself by any fuch obligation, without knowing more fully the ftate of his circumftances altogether, and particularly becaufe he was without a man of bufinefs about him, who could regulate his future expenditure; for his individual part, he did not find himself inclined nor fit for the task. The man who may advise the outline of a great preparation, may not be fit for entering into the detail of it and carrying it into execution. He had made an order of payment and arrangement, which had been fent to his Majefty, and the Prince was then informed from the proper quarter, that fuch rangement would be fufficient, and it was by the Prince's friends ftrongly advifed to abftain from any promife. How then was he aftonished to find, in the meffage from the Throne, 3S2

that

that his Majefty had received the strongest affurances that no future debt should be incurred? And when he mentioned the circumftance to the Prince, he feemed furprised, and wanted him to go down the next day to the House, and retract the obligation; this he refufed to do. With refpect to the great and extravagant expences incurred at Carleton Houfe, he thought that great blame was to be imputed to minifters, who had it not inspected as a public work. In the arrangement which had been given in to his Majefty, it was confidered that his Majefty's Treafury was to be a check, and it was the duty of minifters to fee that arrangement executed.

He would next afk, whether minifters would pretend that the incurring of this large debt was a fecret to them. In 1791, there was a propofition from the Duke of Portland, Lord Fitzwilliam, and others, for paying the debts, and afterwards in 1792, for effecting a loan for that purpose. To wards the clofe of that year, he had advised the Prince to go into a perfect and complete retirement; and a Noble and Learned Lord (Thurlow), who would fcarcely be fufpected of Jacobinical principles, then gave the Prince most direct and valuable advice. He advifed him, as he valued his honour and character, to make no application to Parliament for the payment of thefe debts-to go into a complete retirement -to turn the key on Carleton Houfe-and to rally round the throne-to put confidence in his own family, and to abstain from all political connexions whatever, as that formed the true dignity of a Prince. Mr. Sheridan continued: He faid, that he had alfo with all his eloquence urged the fame arguments; it was not in his power to enter into the heart of man, but his Royal Highness feemed difpofed to go to the extreme distance of England, and live in feclufion and retirement. At this time there happened a great change in political affairs, which was indeed happily defcribed in a printed paper, figned, as it appeared, by Earl Fitzwilliam, moft richly illuftrative of the Duke of Portland's coalition, where miniftry is ftrengthened (if it could admit of fuch increafe) by an increafed degradation of character. Reading this paper muft give the philanthropist a pang for the honour of human nature. The Duke of Portland is there defcribed as poffefling half an office, half duties, whole falary, and no character; thefe, he faid, were not his words, they were in the letter publifhed to the world. At the time of this coalition, a Noble Lord (Loughborough) went to the Prince, to whisper his wholefome leffons in his ear-" What, Sire, give up your dignity, retire from the world-the Heir Apparent to the Throne of England retire from the world! No, no;

you