been better protected from the enemy's cruisers. The ad miral having justified his own conduct, they commanded the lords of the admiralty to produce copies of all the letters and orders which had been sent to the admiral: they ordered Russel to lay before them his answers, and the commissioners of the transports, victuallers, and office of ordnance to deliver in an account of their proceedings. Then they presented addresses to the king and queen, acknowledging the favour of God in restoring him to his people; congratulating him upon his deliverance from the snares of his open and secret enemies; and assuring him they would, according to his majesty's desire in his most gracious speech, be always ready to advise and assist him. in the support of his government. The queen was thanked for her gracious and prudent administration during his majesty's absence: they congratulated her on their signal deliverance from a bold and cruel design formed for their destruction, as well as on the glorious victory which her fleet had gained; and they assured her that the grateful sense they had of their happiness under her government, should always be manifested in constant returns of duty and obedience.

§ VI. After this formal compliment, the house, instead of proceeding to the supplies, insisted upon perusing the treaties, public accounts, and estimates, that they might be in a condition to advise, as well as to assist his majesty. Being indulged with those papers, they passed a previous vote, that a supply should be given; then they began to concert their articles of advice. Some of the members loudly complained of partiality to foreign generals, and particularly reflected upon the insolence of count Solmes, and his misconduct at Steenkerke. After some warm altercation, the house resolved one article of their advice should be, That his majesty would be pleased to fill up the vacancies that should happen among the general officers, with such only as were natives of his dominions, and that the commander in chief of the English should be an Eng lishman. Their next resolution implied, That many of the great affairs of the government having been for some time past unsuccessfully managed, the house should advise his majesty to prevent such mischiefs for the future, by em

ploying men of knowledge, ability, and integrity. Individual members inveighed bitterly against cabinet councils as a novelty in the British system of government, by which the privy council was jostled out of its province. They complained that all the grievances of the nation proceeded from the vitious principles of the ministry: they observed that he who opposed the establishment, could not be expected to support it with zeal. The earl of Nottingham was mentioned by name, and the house resolved that his majesty should be advised to employ in his counsels such persons only whose principles obliged them to support his rights against the late king, and all other pretenders. Marlborough's interest still predominated among the commons. His friend Russel acquitted himself to the satisfaction of the house, and shifted the blame of the miscarriage upon his enemy the earl of Nottingham, by declaring that twenty days elapsed between his first letter to that nobleman and his lordship's answer. The earl's friends, of whom there was a great number in the house, espoused his cause with great vigour, and even recriminated upon Russel; so that a very violent debate ensued. Both parties agreed that there had been mismanagement in the scheme of a descent. It was moved, that one cause of the miscarriage was the want of giving timely and necessary orders, by those to whom the management of the affair was committed. The house divided, and it was carried in the affirmative by one voice only. At the next sitting of the committee, sir Richard Temple proposed they should consider how to pay the forces abroad, by means of English manufactures, without exporting money. They resolved that the house should be moved to appoint a committee to take this expedient in consideration. Sir Francis Winnington was immediately called upon to leave the chair, and the speaker resumed his place. All that had been done was now void, as no report had been made; and the com/mittee was dissolved. The house however, revived it, and appointed a day for its sitting; but before it could resume its deliberations, admiral Russel moved for its being adjourned and all its purposes were defeated.

§ VII. The court agents had by this time interposed and secured a majority by the infamous arts of corruption,

The commons no longer insisted upon their points of advice. Their whole attention was now centered in the article of assistance. They granted about two millions for the maintenance of three-and-thirty thousand seamen, the building of some additional ships of war, and the finishing of Plymouth dock and seven hundred and fifty thousand. pounds to supply the deficiency of the quarterly poll. The estimates of the land service were not discussed without tedious debates, and warm disputes. The ministry demanded fifty-four thousand men, twenty thousand of whom should be kept at home for the defence of the nation, while the rest should serve abroad in the allied army. Many members declared their aversion to a foreign war, in which the nation had no immediate concern, and so little prospect of success. Others agreed that the allies should be assisted on the continent with a proportion of British forces; but that the nation should act as an auxiliary, not as a principal, and pay no more than what the people would cheerfully contribute to the general expense. These reflections, however, produced no other effect than that of prolonging the debate. Ministerial influence had surmounted all opposition. The house voted the number of men demanded. Such was their servile complaisance, that when they examined the treaties by which the English and Dutch contracted equally with the German princes, and found that, notwithstanding these treaties, Britain bore twothirds of the expense, they overlooked this flagrant instance of partiality, and enabled the king to pay the proportion. Nay, their maxims were so much altered, that, instead of prosecuting their resentment against foreign generals, they assented to a motion that the prince of Wirtemberg, the major generals Tetteau and La Forest, who commanded the Danish troops in the pay of the states general, should be indulged with such an addition to their appointments as would make up the difference between the pay of England and that of Holland. Finally, they voted above two millions for the subsistence of the land forces, and for defraying extraordinary expenses attending the war upon the continent, including subsidies to the electors of Saxony and Hanover.

§ VIII. The house of lords meanwhile, was not free from animosity and contention. The Marlborough faction exerted themselves with great vivacity. They affirmed, it was the province of their house to advise the sovereign: like the commons they insisted upon the king's having asked their advice, because he had mentioned that word in his speech, though he never dreamed that they would catch at it with such eagerness. They moved that the task of digesting the articles of advice should be undertaken by a joint committee of both houses; but all the dependents of the court, including the whole bench of bishops, except Watson of St. Davids, were marshalled to oppose this motion, which was rejected by a majority of twelve and this victory was followed with a protest of the vanquished.< Notwithstanding this defeat, they prosecuted their scheme of giving advice; and, after much wrangling and declamation, the house agreed in an address or remonstrance, advising and beseeching his majesty, that the commanding officer of the British forces should be an Englishman: that English officers might take rank of those in the confederate armies, who did not belong to crowned heads: that the twenty thousand men to be left for the defence of the kingdom should be all English, and commanded by an English general: that the practice of pressing men for the fleet should be remedied: that such officers as were guilty of this practice should be cashiered and punished: and, lastly that no foreigners should sit at the board of ordnance. This address was presented to the king, who received it coldly, and said he would take it into consideration.

IX. Then the lords resolved to inquire into the miscarriage of the proposed descent, and called for all the papers relating to that affair: but the aim of the majority was not so much to rectify the errors of the government as to screen Nottingham, and censure Russel. That nobleman produced his own book of entries, together with the whole correspondence between him and the admiral, whom he verbally charged with having contributed to the miscarriage of the expedition. This affair was referred to a committee. Sir John Ashby was examined. The house directed the earl to draw up the substance of his charge; and these

papers were afterwards delivered to a committee of the commons, at a conference by the lord president, and the rest of the committee above. They were offered for the inspection of the commons, as they concerned some members of that house, by whom they might be informed more fully of the particulars they contained. At another conference, which the commons demanded, their committee declared, in the name of the house, that they had read and well considered the papers which their lordships had sent them, and which they now returned: that, finding Mr. Russel, one of their members, often mentioned in the said papers, they had unanimously resolved, that admiral Russel, in his command of the fleets, during the last summer's expedition, had behaved with fidelity, courage, and conduct. The lords, irritated at this declaration, and disappointed in their resentment against Russel, desired a free conference between the committees of both houses. The earl of Rochester told the commons, he was commanded by the house of lords to inform them, that their lordships looked upon the late vote and proceedings of the lower house, in returning their papers, to be irregular and unparliamentary, as they had not communicated to their lordships the lights they had received, and the reasons upon which their vote was founded. A paper to the same purport was delivered to colonel Granville, who promised to present it to the commons, and make a faithful report of what his lordship. had said. Thus the conference ended, and the inquiry was

discontinued.

§ X. The lower house seemed to be as much exasperated against the earl of Nottingham as the lords were incensed at Russel. A motion was made that his majesty should be advised to appoint such commissioners of the board of admiralty as were of known experience in maritime affairs. Although this was overruled, they voted an address to the king, praying, that for the future, all orders for the management of the fleet might pass through the hands of the said commissioners; a protest by implication against the conduct of the secretary. The consideration of ways and means was the next object that engrossed the attention of the lower house. They resolved that a rate of four shillings in the pound, for one year, should be charged