ing communicated. At the same time, no one could be more anxious than he, for an amicable accommodation. If other propositions had been made to her Majesty, which did not wear even the appearance of an acknowledgment of guilt-which, as a woman of honour, and of unimpeached character and conduct, she might safe ly accept-which would not have been discreditable to a government to offer, and to which in justice the Queen might have yielded he would have been the first to have given his humble advice that her Majesty should rather go a step too far than not go far enough to lend herself to an honourable but a private and amicable adjustment. His reason was thisthat from the beginning to the end of these distressing transactions it had been his most fervent wish, and upon that principle his conduct had been built, that if it were possible for her Majesty, consistently with her innocence, her honour, and her safety, to submit to a private compromise rather than provoke a public discussion, she should give her consent. In this question the interest of the Royal Family was most deeply concerned, and the interests of the constitution were implicated in proportion; the peace, the tranquillity, the very morals of the nation, were involved; we were on the brink of a precipice, or rather we were not yet quite so near the edge as to afford a clear view of all its dangers; and if those who counselled the Crown did not know, they ought to know, that when once the line was passed, retreat was impossible, and discussion inevitable. For God's sake-for the sake of the country-for the sake of those whose memories might mislead them, whose confidence might betray, or whose blindness might beguile them-for the sake of the wives and daughters of all who loved decency,

morality, and who recollected when, but a few years since, the opening of a newspaper was regarded with fear and disgust by the father of every modest and well-conducted familyhe called upon the House to pauseonly to pause, to ascertain if it were yet possible to escape from this threatened calamity.

The King was anxious for this inquiry; the Queen, conscious of innocence, and concerned for the vindication of her honour, was equally so; and they were seconded by a party in the public actuated by a diseased and greedy appetite for scandal. Considering himself as a member of the House, however, he would not hesitate even to go against her Majesty's wishes. As her servant, he would not disobey her commands, and where her honour was at stake, he would do his utmost to defend it; but in the humble performance of his duty, he felt called upon here even to thwart her Majesty's inclination, and he would tell her, "Madam, if negociation yet be possible, rather go too far, and throw yourself upon your country and upon Parliament for your vindication, than not go far enough; if yet it be possible to avert the ruin which this course, if persisted in, will bring upon the nation, do your utmost to postpone the calamity." If he might advise those who stood in a similar situation with regard to the King, he would say to them, "Act like honest men, and disregard all consequences-tender that counsel to your Sovereign which the case demands, and do not fear that Parliament will abandon you, or the country desert you; even party will not disgrace itself to the lowest level to which corrupt and unprincipled factionists can descend, by taking advantage of your faithful and fearless discharge of a noble and disinterested duty." He did not believe that six

or eight months would terminate the threatened investigation. The character of the witnesses must be thoroughly examined, and it would be proved to be such, that if testimony like theirs were believed, he would undertake to convict any man of any offence. Mr Brougham insisted that the Queen had every reason to complain of her treatment abroad. It was said, that though the foreign ministers were not to acknowledge her as Queen, they were to shew her all sorts of civilities. Yet after all, to what did these boasted civilities amountcivilities to the Queen of EnglandQueen whether we will or no-nay, Queen whether she herself will or no; what every merchant, trader, dealer, and chapman, or even gentleman's servant could obtain, was to be lavished upon her, while every title of respect due to her elevated station was to be rigorously withheld. And could they wonder that any person, but more especially a woman, and still more especially this woman, born a Princess, niece to Frederick of Prussia, niece to George III., daughter to the heroic Duke of Brunswick, and consort to his present Majesty, the first Sovereign of Europe; could they wonder that this exalted female should feel acutely when the ministers of her own country ventured to treat her with indignity? He would give one instance of the treatment which she had experienced. The Hanoverian instrument, Baron Ompteda, who had been most graciously and hospitably received by the Queen, when she was Princess of Wales-who had insinuated himself into her confidence, who had partaken largely of her liberality, who had passed several months at a time under her roof-this man (not indeed the envoy of Hanover to this country, but to the Holy See) was discovered, not merely spying into her actions, bribing strangers

to watch her, and even bribing her own servants, but it was found out that he employed a smith to pick the locks of her writing-desk, in order to examine any papers that might be in her possession. Unluckily for him, that which he found proved that he had been on a false scent, and demonstrated the innocence, instead of the guilt, of the illustrious personage.

He admitted, indeed, that such conduct had not been sanctioned by Count Munster, Ompteda's employer. Baron Reding, however, the present minister at Rome, as soon as he heard of the non-insertion of her Majesty's name in the Liturgy, had procured the removal of the guard of honour that had been appointed to attend her. Nay, he would not give her the title of Queen, or even of Princess, but called her sometimes Caroline of Brunswick, at other times Caroline of England-a title which never, at any time of her life, belonged to her. Mr Brougham concluded, by demanding, on the part of the Queen, a speedy and open trial; while, from himself, he besought the Commons to save the country from those calamities to which such an inquiry must give rise.

Mr Canning now rose, and made a speech which caused a peculiar sensation both in the House and the public, in consequence of the peculiar tone which it assumed. This eminent statesman, in one of the many revolutions of the political wheel, had been thrown into an intimate connexion with the Queen, while she was yet Princess of Wales; and these public ties were understood to have been combined with a peculiar degree of personal intimacy and confidence. The connection was not dissolved even when a change of situation had placed Mr Canning in a less friendly attitude towards her Majesty ; and it was supposed, that, even as Minister of the

King, his influence had been powerful in inclining her to the step of taking up her residence on the Continent. This original friendly intercourse having thus continued without interruption, it was probably with peculiar pain that Mr Canning found himself in a position so hostile as that which necessarily arose from the proceedings now in progress. In a crisis thus delicate, Mr Canning endeavoured to steer a difficult course-he sought to maintain his place as minister, and to support the views of his colleagues, without abating of that friendly and flattering tone which he was wont to use towards the distinguished individual whose iews and claims he was now called upon to oppose. This course, as is usual with middle and temporizing measures, especially in such an inflamed state of men's minds, entirely failed. Without softening the opposite party, it was supposed to have given deep offence in a high quarter, whose views Mr Canning was supposed, by his situation, bound implicitly to second.

Mr Canning began with declaring he never rose to deliver his sentiments on a subject of so much delicacy and interest, as that now before the House. He was prepared to say, not only that ministers did not come to the country-not only that they did not come to Parliament-not only that they had not sought this occasion-not only that they deprecated it with all their hearts-but that they had interposed every possible expedient to prevent a calamity, which they would with all their power and all their means have averted. He must declare, individually for himself, that in all the discussions which had preceded the unfortunate crisis to which they had now arrived, he had looked to the whole case with as much anxiety, solicitude, and pain, as if it had arisen from a difference between the dearest friends

he had, and that he was equally connected with both the parties between whom that difference had occurred. On the one side, to the sovereign whom he served, he owed the duty of a privy counsellor ; on the other side, to the illustrious personage who was the remaining party to this discussion, he owed, and he gave, unabated esteem, regard, and affection. And next to the extremity which was nearest his heart-that this inquiry could be avoided-he cherished the hope that she would come out of the trial superior to the accusation. Mr Tierney had often pressed ministers with a dilemma, or figure of speech, plausible in argument, but most fallacious in human affairs. He had said, " Either the Queen is innocent, and ought to be fully acquitted; or she is guilty, and ought not to receive a shilling of the public money." Ministers, however, he conceived, were fully justified in their eager desire to seize every means of avoiding any discussion whatever. The sum of 50,000l. had been that fixed by the marriage treaty as her jointure; it had been voted to her, by Parliament, as Princess of Wales, in contemplation of her permanent separation from her husband. With regard to her Majesty's titles, there was no design to take any of them away; but in a letter which had since been published, the phrase that she should lay down all claim to the title and dignity of Queen of England, was made use of. The real proposal, however, was, "that she should use some other name than that of Queen." Gentlemen seemed to confound the phrases, but they were widely different and distinct. It had never been understood, that the Emperor of Russia, when travelling through Germany under the title of Count-he recollected not what Count

had renounced the title of Emperor. When goaded by charges of un

could have made him a party to it. If any sacrifice on his part could have prevented this painful discussion, he would willingly have retired into the most insignificant situation. Ministers had, to the very last moment, entertained hopes of being able to bring the negociation with her Majesty to a favourable conclusion; those hopes had unfortunately been frustrated, and the cup of expectation dashed from their lips at the very moment when they were ready to enjoy it. One course only was then left for them to adopt, and that was the course which they had adopted.

Mr Brougham, admitting himself as the author of the propositions alluded to by Mr Canning, declared, that he had no expectation of their being kept secret; and at the same time he denied having ever been, in any shape, the agent of ministers. At the desire of the Queen, he had, in July last, made a proposal to Lord Liver pool; but this proposal differed very materially from that afterwards made to her Majesty by Lord Hutchinson. It had been intimated, that she might be willing to remain abroad incognito; but this was very different from being called upon to renounce the title and honours of Queen. The propositions first made had been tendered with aggravations he could not call them modifications-which rendered it impossible to accept them.

Mr Tierney made a pretty long and rather desultory speech, censuring, in all respects, the conduct of ministers, and thinking that all concerned in the late negociation had got themselves into a piteous plight.

Mr Wilberforce now came forward with a proposition tending to avert the discussion with which the House was threatened. He was sure that there was not a man in the House who was not desirous of preventing the inves

tigation from proceeding further, if it were possible; because, if the step then recommended to them was once taken, retreat would be found impossible af ter it. If he saw a spirit in the House likely to accede to such a suggestion, he would propose an adjournment of this question for a day or two, in order to see whether, through the instrumentality of common friends, some compromise might not take place between the two parties. On every account, such a measure would be desirable; and, amongst others, on account of the public morals, which would not receive any taint from the disgusting details which the papers then on the table of the House in all probability contained.

Mr F. Burton strongly seconded a motion, which, he said, if carried, would carry with it the blessings of the country. He was supported by Mr Wynn, Mr Stuart Wortley, and a crowd of other members.

Lord Castlereagh, though it was his conviction that little could be expected from delays, was ready to bow to the wisdom of those who entertained a different opinion. Without wishing to enter at present into any discussion, he could not help expressing his strong disapprobation of much of what had been said. To what the Sovereign must have felt as a man, and he must have felt most deeply, he would not advert; but the course which his Majesty had adopted was, to take the advice of Parliament as to what was fit to be done for the honour and for the dignity of the Crown. He should have been guilty of disobedience to the orders of his Majesty, if he had attempted to mix any opinion or statement of his own with the impulse which had governed his Majesty in the execution of a duty due to the public; and it was impossible to avoid stating, that in the discharge of such