and it was not till the close of the third adjournment, (December 13th,) that they acknowledged the continued and hopeless indisposition of the king, and moved that committees be appointed to examine the physicians. These examinations tended to the same conclusion as that before 1810. the privy council; the physicians all expressing confident hopes of the king's

recovery.

On Thursday the 20th of December, the chancellor of the exchequer rose, in a committee of the house, and, after pathetically lamenting the calamity which in the person of the sovereign had befallen the English nation, proposed three distinct propositions.

I. That it is the opinion of this house, that his majesty is prevented by indisposition from coming to his parliament, and from attending to public business, and that the personal exercise of the royal authrority is thereby for the present interrupted.

II. That it is the opinion of this house, that it is the right and duty of the lords, spiritual and temporal, and commons of Great Britain, now assembled, and lawfully, fully, and freely representing all the estates of the people of this realm, to provide the means of supplying the defect of the personal exercise of the royal authority, arising from his majesty's indisposition, in such a manner, as the exigency of the case may appear to require.

III. Resolved that for this purpose, and for maintaining entire the constitutional authority of the king, it is necessary that the lords spiritual and temporal, and commons of Great Britain, should determine on the means whereby the royal assent may be given in parliament to such bill as may be passed by the two houses of parliament, respecting the exercise of the powers and authorities of the crown, in the name and on behalf of the king, during the continuance of his present in disposition.

On the third resolution being proposed, Mr. Ponsonby stated his opinion that the mode of proceeding by address was preferable to that suggested by Mr. Perceval;

VOL. II.

and, after a brilliant and animated speech, he moved that an humble address be presented to his royal highness the prince of Wales, requesting that his royal highness will be pleased to take upon him during the indisposition of the king and no longer, the government of the realin and adminis ter the same in the name and in behalf of his majesty, under the style and title of regent of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

The house divided on the last resolution, ayes 269,-noes 157, majority 112. The report of the committee was brought up on the next evening, and another debate took place upon the resolutions. Lord William Russel moved the previous question, and 14 persons voted with him against 98.

On Monday, December 31st, Mr. Perceval in a committee said:-The house having been just informed, that the resolutions recently passed, have been assented to by the other house, it becomes necessary for me, in proceeding to the business of this day, to repeat what I have before stated, that in pursuance of the object of adhering as closely as the change of circumstances will permit, to the proceeding adopted in 1788, it is the intention of his majesty's servants, to propose the transference of the executive authority, to his royal highness the prince of Wales, accompanied with certain specified exceptions.-These exceptions are, however, only to be operative for a limited time. They extend to the granting peerages, pensions, and places for life, except such as are by their nature held during life, for the period of twelve months. The care of his majesty's person, it is considered, ought to be entrusted to the queen, assisted by a council. Entertaining these views, I shall conclude with subuting this resolution to the house,"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 urgent concerns of the nation appear to require, it is expedient that his royal highness the prince of Wales, being resident within the realm,

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shall be empowered to exercise and administer the royal authority, according to the laws and constitution 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 behalf of his majesty, all authorities, prerogatives, acts of government, and the 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." In reviewing the history of this government, it is of moment to remark, that in no instance, has any regency been appointed with the full and uncontroled powers of sovereignty. The limitations have differed materially in their nature and extent, at different periods, but some limitations have been always provided, and the principles on which they were founded, appears always to have to have been clearly understood. Nor do I believe that they were ever viewed in the light of an assault on the royal prerogatives, or as involving the degradation of the monarchy. We have thus only to consider, not the general principle, of the justice and propriety of restrictions, but simply, whether the particular restrictions now proposed are such as, in the exercise of a sound discretion, appear to us to be expedient and just. After all that has been said of the dangerous consequences attending the occasional curtailment or suspension, of. the attributes and prerogatives of the crown; or the blow aimed at the foundation of kingly authority, by withholding, even for a short period, any of its powers, I will take the liberty to ask, whether, in the case of a minority, which might expire in six weeks, it could be deemed advisable to confer on the regent, the whole sovereign authority; or if any mischief could possibly be anticipated from restraining his exercise of the higher and more important functions of the executive ? The time that must necessarily elapse before the bill for appointing a regency, can be carried through all its stages, may, perhaps, render the period of the duration of the

regency of no greater length. Here, then, the same principle is directly applicable, and the general propriety of some restrictions is completely established. It is pos sible that some may think they should continue for a longer, and others for a shorter time. With respect to the appointment of a council, I conceive, that in time of war, considerable objections may be raised to it, whatever may be urged in its favor at a period of tranquillity.

We have been told that the king can do no wrong, and that on the same principle we are to presume that the regent can do no wrong; but have the gentlemen who stated this considered, that a regent may be ill-advised? Is it not possible that evil counsellors may surround the person of the regent as well as the person of the king? Is it not possible that the regent may be advised to take such measures as may throw great difficulties in the way of a resumption of the royal authority by his majesty, in the case of his recovery? We have been told at great length of the infirmities of his majesty, of his advanced age, and of the retired life which his infirmities compel him to lead ;-We have been told this, and we have been also told, that should his majesty recover from the calamity with which he is at present afflicted, his people would not reap the same advantages from that recovery, as they did on a former occasion, when he recovered in the vigor of his age, to the full possession of his faculties. Acting upon principles like this, perhaps the 'regent may be advised not to listen to reports of his majesty's recovery. (Hear!) Surely then the parliament ought to take all this into their consideration; and if they do not take this into their consideration, they will not discharge their duty to their country. (Hear!) This is not reflecting on the individual who is to fill the office of regent.-The house must take into their consideration that they are not legislating for the present emergency alone, but for succeeding ages.-In giving the power of the crown to the regent, it is the duty of the house to mark by their manner of bestowing that power, that it is not his

own but a trust, that it is not his own but the king's. In a state of war I am willing to entrust the regent with all the power necessary for waging external war; but I contend that nothing should be given him to prevent the return of that power to the king on his recovery-I therefore move, as one of the resolutions to be adopted, "That it is the opinion of this committee, that the power to be given to his royal highness George prince of Wales, as regent of Great Britain and Ireland, shall not extend to the creating of any peers for Great Britain and Ireland, except to those persons who may distinguish themselves for the brilliant services rendered by them to their country in the army or navy-and as another of the resolutions to be adopted, that it is the opinion of this committee, that his royal highness George prince of Wales during the period of his regency, shall not have the power to grant any places, pensions, or reversions for life, except to such persons to whom it is indispensably necessary that they should be granted for the proper administration of the business of the nation.--With respect to the granting of pensions, the nouse would do well to consider that his majesty has no power to grant them for more than his own life, and it would be singular indeed if the regent were to have powers in this respect beyond those possessed by the king-that he should have power to grant pensions beyond the period of his regency.-With respect to his majesty's private property, the house will take into consideration, that since 1688 several alterations have taken place on this subject, and that his majesty was empowered by act of parliament to purchase land, and to vest it in a certain manner, as he should think fit. I therefore propose, That trustees should be appointed for the management of that property during the period of his majesty's indisposition.

As it is extremely probable that so much time will be consumed in the discussion of the four first resolutions, as to leave little time for the consideration of the fifth resolution, if agreeable to the house, I will not at present bring forward that resolu

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tion, but leave it for a future occasion:[A strong wish from the opposition benches being expressed to have this resolution also read, Mr. Perceval thought proper to comply with it.]-I move, in the fifth place then, That it appears to this committee, that the care of his majesty's royal person, during the continuance of his majesty's illness, should be committed to the queen's most excellent majesty; 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 majesty 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 person, touching the state of his majesty's health, and all matters relative thereto."

I believe that no difference of opinion will be found to prevail with regard to the propriety of entrusting her majesty with the care of the royal person; but as various opinions might be entertained with respect to the mode of management proposed for the royal household, I think it proper to state to the house, that to be consistent, it is necessary, as there are restrictions on the exercise of all the other branches of the executive, there ought also to be restrictions on this. I am aware that if this resolution respecting the management of his majesty's household were intended to be a permanent provision; that if it were to extend through the whole period of his majesty's indisposition, what ever that period might be, it would be liable to many objections; but we are to consider that the care of his majesty, and of the different palaces, and royal establishments, are only proposed to be entrusted to the queen for a short period, after which, the subject will again come under the consideration of parliament. If any part of the proceedings in 1788 should be followed

crown ought not to strengthen the hands of any other person than the prince regent. A regency, as was well known, was the period when factions of all kinds were sure to prevail the most. Was it the duty of the committee to weaken the arm of the executive at a period when it ought to be strongest? He would, therefore, put it to the committee, if it was not their duty so to legislate on the present occasion, as to prevent the danger to be apprehended from these factions and parties, and so as to prevent the undue diminution of the influence of the crown. He therefore moved, that the resolutions be amended, and that all that part, after they begin to state the limitations and restrictions on the prince regent, should be omitted, with exception of the provisions for entrusting the care of his majesty to the queen, and respecting the disposal of his majesty's private property.

Mr. Canning, after some preliminary observations on parliamentary precedent, proceeded to an impartial and unprejudiced view of the question itself. In taking that view, the house would look to it with reference to three considerations-First, What they were now assembled to do? Secondly, What steps were advisable to take for the purpose of effecting the object which had brought them together? And thirdly, In what situation they at that time stood? With respect to the first, there was little difficulty, as all agreed that the best way to do, what they then met to do, was to appoint a regent, and that that regent should be the illustrious personage nearest to the throne. With respect to that personage, he (Mr. Canning) entertained none of those apprehensions which such a system of precaution in restricting his powers as regent seemed to imply. He entertained none of those apprehensions, certainly rather shadowed out than expressed by his right honorable friend, that the illustrious personage in question, or any other regent so appointed, could be capable of considering himself in any other light than that of a trustee. (Hear, hear!) As to the steps which have been and yet are to be taken, they had

found, and entered the record of the executive government being in acknowledged deficiency. Called upon by the necessity created by such deficiency, they had assumed, asserted, and recorded their right of supplying and remedying that deficit in the exercise of the royal functions. What those functions were they could not but know. They knew that by the constitution they were essentially necessary to the carrying on of the government ac cording to the constitution. They knew also, that the means, by which the executive government of that realm was carried on within the course of the constitution, were to be found chiefly in the responsibility of responsible ministers. Such certainly were the integral essential means of carrying on the government with safety and honor. But was he to be told that such were never to be aided or set off by the relief of those milder, more amiable, and more grateful influences, which were meant to be the inseparable attendants upon all power judiciously regulated and wisely administered. No power, wherever lodged, or however granted, should be made subject to those limitations only; which, while they limit it to the discharge of arduous and unpopular duties, restrain it from the gratification of the noblest propensities of our nature-the justice to warn by punishment, and the generosity to incite by reward.

The system of restriction with respect to the grant of pecrages, not only withheld from the executive a great portion of its necessary power, but in a measure degraded the value of the little that it granted. The achievements of military heroism had in view the most splendid objects of au ambition the most exalted and refined, they were animated by the warmest zeal, and influenced by the purest motives: one anxious and ever ruling principle of identifying their personal fame with the glory of their country. Should lord Wellington crown a campaign, in the course of which he has evinced those talents which were not thought by many to be amongst the crowd of his great military qualities, (Hear! hear !)—should he crown that