The debate on that fubject in the houfe of lords was diftinguished by two memorable circumftances, a fpeech made by the duke of YORK, and a fort of folemn oath or wish expressed by the chancellor. The duke, after a modeft introduction, faid "that no claim of right had been made on the part of the prince; and he was confident that his royal highness understood too well the facred principles which feated the houfe of Brunfwick on the throne of Great Britain, ever to affume or exercife any power, be his claim what it might, not derived from the will of the people, expreffed by their representatives, and their lordships in parliament assembled. It was upon this ground, that he must be permitted to hope, that the wisdom and moderation of all confiderate men, at a moment when temper and unanimity were fo peculiarly neceffary, on account of the dreadful calamity which every description of persons must, in common, lament, but which he more particularly felt, would make them wish to avoid pressing a decifion, which certainly was not neceffary to the great object expected from parliament, and which, in the difcuffion, muft be most painful to a family already fufficiently agitated and afflicted. Such," his royal highness obferved in conclufion, "were the fentiments of an honeft heart, equally influenced by duty and affection to his royal father, and by attachment to the constitutional rights of his subjects; and he was confident, that, if his royal brother were to address them, in his place, as peer of the realm, these were the fentiments which he would diftinctly avow." This fpeech was received with applause, which it certainly deserved. But Mr. BURKE afterwards wrote another for the duke, on an occasion that admitted of a still greater display of the powers of eloquence. We fhall infert, in its proper place, a faithful copy of it; though we are unacquainted with the reafon why

why it was not spoken by his royal highness. It is, indeed, much longer than the former one, and would of course require more pains and application to get it by heart: but we are inclined to think that fome ftronger motive prevented the duke from engaging in the task, as he furely would otherwife have reconciled himself to any effort of the memory, in order to repeat with exactness the dictates of fo great a mafter.

The lord chancellor, fenfible of the impreffion which the duke of YORK's fpeech must have made upon his hearers, very artfully endeavoured to divert their attention from the prince to the afflicted fovereign. "He was fure," he said, "that the mode they were inclined to adopt would give the utmost pleasure to his royal highness: for his own part, he was ready to bind himself by any words or phrases, however strong, not to vote for any question which took any other direction than the straight path of the public good: as foon as the report from the committee fhould come before them, they would be enabled to fee what step ought farther to be taken, with a view of restoring vigour and efficacy to the executive government, and, above all things, of preferving the rights of the king entire, fo that when divine, Providence fhould permit his majesty to recover from his present malady, he might not find himself in a worse fituation than he was in before his infirmity: he could not avoid taking notice of the eloquent and energetic manner in which a noble viscount. [lord STORMONT] had, in their last debate, expreffed his feelings on the melancholy occafion---feelings rendered more poignant from the noble viscount's having been in habits of perfonally receiving various marks of kindness from the fuffering fovereign: his own forrow was aggravated from the fame circumftance: his debt. of gratitude alfo to the king was ample for the many favors

which his majesty had graciously conferred on him; and which, when he forgot, might God forget him!" This strain of fentimental canting, and another extraordinary burst of the pathetic in a fubfequent debate, when the chancellor defcanted on the cruelty of ftripping the king of any mark of royalty, of any part of the fplendor of his household, and leaving him

"Deserted in his utmoft need

"By those his former bounty fed,"

were made the fubject of Mr. BURKE's ridicule in the lower houfe. The theatrical tears which were fhed on thofe occafions, "were not," he obferved, "the tears of patriots for dying laws,---but of lords for their expiring places: the iron tears, which flowed down PLUTO's cheek, rather refembled the difmal bubbling of the Styx, than the gentle murmuring ftreams of Aganippe: in fact, they were tears for his majesty's bread: yet thofe, who fhed them, would stick by the king's loaf as long as a fingle cut of it reinained: they would fasten on the hard cruft, and would gnaw it, while two crumbs of it held together; and, what was more extraordinary, they would proudly declare at the time, that it was the honour of the fervice and the dignity of their offices which they regarded, and that, as to the emoluments, they did not value the money three skips of a loufe." In addition to these farcafms, we fhall alfo find a strong allufion to the fame circumftance in the second speech which Mr. BURKE wrote for the duke of YORK.

After the committee of the houfe of commons made their report on the fubject of precedents, Mr. PITT propofed two refolutions entirely of a declaratory nature, the firft affirming that the perfonal exercife of the royal authority was interrupted; and

the fecond, that it was the duty of the two houses of parlia-
ment to provide the means of fupplying that defect. These
were agreed to, in spite of the most animated opposition, by a
majority of 268 against 204; and were foon after followed by a
third refolution, declaring it to be neceffary, for the purpose of
fupplying the prefent defect, and maintaining entire the consti-
tutional authority of the king, that the two houfes fhould de-
termine on the means by which the royal affent might be given:
to the bill, which they might adopt for conftituting a regency..
Mr. BURKE attacked this refolution with the combined force of
argument and ridicule.
"I confider myfelf," faid he, "as
fully justified in afferting, that Great Britain is governed by an
hereditary monarchy: it is fo by the written, and by the un-
written law: it is fo by the very effence of our excellent confti-
tution: it is our own inheritance: it is our powerful barrier, our
ftrong rampart against the ambition of mankind: it holds out
an excellent leffon to the most aspiring: it says, thus far fhalt
thou go, and no farther. Yet we are taught by the chancellor
of the exchequer, that election alone constitutes the right of the
prince of WALES to affume the, executive government during,
the king's incapacity. This is faying, in other words, that any
individual has in the present inftance as good a right to the
throne as the houfe of Hanover. Is it poffible for fuch mon-
ftrous opinions to be entertained? But at the prefent crisis,
there is fomething very ungenerous in perfifting in fuch fenti-
ments. If we fight against the crown, let us fight against it
fairly: when the monarch is feated on the throne, then the
conteft may be fair, and we act manfully; but what is to be
done, when the crown is in a deliquium? We are to take a man.
with a large brow and a big wig: he is a fit perfon: trust none

of the royal family, for they will all rob the crown, because they are the relatives of the fovereign; and, in order to fix a proper and legal fanction upon our proceedings, we will give a fictitious affent to our own acts. This is called the royal affent, without any intimation to the royal perfon of any fuch affent, or to the illuftrious perfonage who is to act for him! This is a glaring falsehood, a palpable abfurdity. I do not approve of any robbery, houfe-breaking, highway-robbery, or any other felony: yet each of them is lefs inexcufable than law-forgery. The great feal is. to be affixed to a commiffion robbing the executive power of its. due function: a certain compofition of wax and copper is to reprefent the monarch: this is a fpecies of abfurd metaphyfics and. abfurd mechanics---a fiction fo prepofterous, that I do not fee how it is poffible to treat it otherwife than with contempt and ridicule but the great effect, which this abfurdity is to have, makes it ferious and important. I difclaim all allegiance---I renounce all obedience and loyalty to a king so chofen, and a crown fo formed---I have given my allegiance already to the house of Hanover, to poffefs the power given by the conftitution. I worfhip the Gods of our glorious conftitution; but I will not worship PRIAPUS! * I have the pleasure to coincide with the idea of my right honourable friend, [Mr. Fox] concerning the right of the prince of WALES.. If the king be blind, dumb, lethagic, or apoplectic, there must be fome person who is perfect, or else to whom do we owe our allegiance? Gentlemen on the other fide feem to value themselves, like antiquaries, who have a HOMER without a head; and the conftitution is thus made a Museum!"

Mr. BURKE's ftrictures, though very pointed, were of no avail. against the strength of a majority; yet that did not hinder him,, in other debates on the fame topic, from again and again expofing

to