founded. Mr. Fox farther added, that the Prince had authorized him to declare, that as a peer of parliament, his royal highness was ready in the other house, to submit to any the most pointed questions that could be put to him upon the subject, or to afford the King or his ministers the fullest assurances of the utter falsehood of the fact in question. With respect to the alarming consequences, talked of as likely to be the effect of a parliamentary discussion of the Prince's situ ation, Mr. Fox declared, that he saw no reason whatever to dread them.

Mr. Pitt now rose, and observed, that Mr. Newnham had mistaken the nature of his objection to the intended motion. His opposition, he said, was pointed at every proposal which should originate such a subject in that house; so that in fact the form in which it was done could have very little weight

in his consideration. Mr. Fox, he observed, had proceeded a little too far, in having charged him with dealing insinuations and innuendos, merely because he had stated that disagreeable topics would be found to mingle in the discussion of the subject. Mr. Pitt added, that it little became Mr. Fox at the same time to throw out hints and insinuations, evidently calculated and intended to fall somewhere, and upon some person, whom, though he had not mentioned, he seemed to think the house would be able to discover. Such expressions, he was convinced, no member could expect him to answer. Mr. Fox had not pointed his charge against any individual, nor should he point it for him.

Mr. Rolle, who was evidently alluded to in the latter part of Mr. Pitt's speech, now rose, and acknowledged, that the subject, upon which Mr. Fox

had spoken, was the matter to which he referred, as affecting both church and state. That matter had been stated and discussed in the newspapers all over the kingdom, and it had made an impression on him, and upon almost all ranks of men in the country, who loved and venerated the constitution. Mr. Fox had said, that it was impossible to have happened.

They all

knew, that there were certain laws and acts of parliament which forbade it; but though it could not be done under the formal sanction of law, there were ways in which it might have taken place. Those laws in the minds of some persons might be satisfactorily evaded, and yet the fact might be equally productive of the most alarming consequences. It ought, therefore, for the satisfaction of those who had their fears on the subject, to be fully cleared up.

Mr. Fox replied to the last speaker with great animation. He did not, he said, deny the calumny in question, merely with regard to the effect of certain existing laws, but he denied it in toto, in point of fact as well as law. The fact, he affirmed, not only never could have happened legally, but never did happen any way, and had from the beginning been a base and malicious falsehood. Mr. Rolle rose again, and asked whether, in what he had said, Mr. Fox had spoken from direct authority. Mr. Fox declared that he had spoken from direct authority.

Mr. Rolle making no reply to this, Mr. Sheridan rose, and observed, that the honourable gentleman, after having put a pointed question and received an immediate answer, was bound in honour and fairness, either to declare that he was satisfied, or to take some

means of putting the matter into such a state of inquiry as should satisfy him. To remain silent, or to declare (which was the only answer which could be extorted from Mr. Rolle) that the house would judge for themselves of what had passed, was neither manly nor candid. If therefore he did not chuse to say he was satisfied, Mr. Sheridan thought that the house ought to come to a resolution, that it was seditious and disloyal to propagate reports injurious to the character of the Prince, and thus by their interposition to discountenance the report.

The argument of Mr. Sheridan was enforced in a brief speech by Mr. Grey, then a young but promising member of the House of Commons. Mr. Pitt affected to consider the language of Mr. Sheridan as the most direct attack upon the freedom of de