1 and abilities, and appeared really afraid of encountering a man of his unconquerable spirit. Those who wished farther to involve the house, asked, why that gentleman was allowed to triumph in his contumacy? was he above or below the law? Was it fear or contempt that dictated fuch a conduct? These farcafms occafioned an order to be iffued, that Mr. Wilkes should attend; but instead of obeying the fummons, that gentleman addreffed a letter to the Speaker, in which he obferved, "that in the order for his attendance, no notice was taken of his being a member of the house, and that he should attend in his place; which circumftance, he said, according to the fettled form, ought to have been mentioned. In the name of the freeholders of Middlesex he again demanded his feat in parliament, being ready to take the oaths prescribed by law, and to give in his qualification as knight of the fhire. When thus admitted to his feat, he would give the house an exact detail, which would neceffarily comprehend a full juftification of his conduct, relative to the late illegal proclamation; equally injurious to the honour of the crown, and the rights of the fubjects; and likewife the whole business of the printers. He had acted, he said, entirely from a sense of duty to the great city, whofe franchises he was fworn to maintain, and to his country, whose noble constitution he revered, and whofe liberties, at the price of his blood, to the last moment of his life, he would defend and support." This letter a member presented to the Speaker whilft the houfe was fitting; but the sense of the house being taken, it was neither received nor admitted to be read. Other orders were issued for his attendance, to which he paid no regard. At length, a few days before the recefs at Eafter, the house hit upon fuch an expedient to get rid of this business, as fully proved the deep dilemma into which they were plunged : plunged they iffued an order that he should attend on the eighth of April, and then adjourned to the ninth. So much had the idea of the dignity and importance of the houfe of Commons, from whence thefe proceedings originated, been loft in the conteft! Such members as from the firft had opposed these meafures, did not fail to utter the moft mortifying reproaches on the ignominious conclufion of this unfortunate bufinefs. They faid, every exertion which the house had made, in defence of their privileges, had only tended to lower the estimation in which their power was held by the world. Their commands were not obeyed, nor their punishments dreaded; for the people having converted them into marks of honour, they must be confidered as conferring rewards. The majority in the house, not only felt, but acknowledged the propriety of these remarks; but they were defirous of taking fome measures by which these confequences might be removed, and the power and privileges of the house of Commons established on a respectable bafis. Accordingly a special committee was chosen by ballot, for the purpose of afferting and maintaining their dignity, The result of such an appointment excited great expectations in the public, and nothing short of expulfion and difqualification was expected to fall on the imprisoned members, whilft the punishment which awaited Mr. Wilkes was more doubtfully augured. After the committee had fat a confiderable time, they reported to the house, the various cafes which appeared upon the journals, in which that houfe had exercifed the power of apprehenfion and imprisonment; and concluded with recommending to the house, that J. Miller fhould be taken into cuftody; which measure, however, the house did not think fit to adopt; and this long protracted and difgraceful contest was was finally given up. Not but many able speakers laboured to bring the houfe, to exercise the power of which it was poffeffed, of expelling its refractory members; and as it was an offence committed immediately against that legislative body, they urged the greater propriety of fuch a ftep in this inftance, even than in the late expulfion of Mr. Wilkes; who at that time, had not filled up the measure of his iniquity, by adding contempt of the authority of parliament to his other crimes; but the miniftry were unwilling to make fo bold a ufe of the precedent which had been fo very recently established; and it appeared to many, to be extremely doubtful, whether it would be in the power of government to make head against the clamour and difcontent which fuch a proceeding would excite; and as the leaft of two evils, the houfe of Commons was left to bear its difgrace, rather than the nation should be plunged into anarchy. The news-papers, from henceforth, threw off all restraint, and in the courfe of the next feffion, the daily proceedings of parliament were circumftantially related in the prints of the next morning; and whether the fentiments and expreffions of each member, were fairly given, or grofsly perverted, depending on the capacity or humour of the writer, for the houfe no longer fulminated against traducers. Towards the clofe of the feffion, a bill was brought in, to enable the Eaft India Company to raise and support a military force, for the defence and protection of their fettlements. Thereby that body was to be empowered to raise two thousand men, who were to be paid by the company, but the officers were to be appointed by the crown. This force was to be composed of fix hundred German proteftants, feven hundred Irish catholics, and feven hun dred dred were to be raised in England. Thefe troops were to be fubject to the military laws, during their continuance in England, and fourteen hundred of them were to be annually fent to the Eaft Indies. It farther empowered the company's officers to recruit with beat of drum, in the manner practised by the regular troops. Among the numerous inftances which the present age produces, of the departure of governments and inferior communities, from those principles upon which they were at first formed, the transformation of a body of merchants into sovereigns, virtually poffeffing a large, rich, and populous kingdom, is the moft fingular and remarkable. Fourteen years had not elapfed, fince their principal settlement in Bengal, became fubject to a barbarous enemy, and their governor, council, and chief officers, were driven, like an herd of cattle, into a noifome dungeon, miferably to perish. It then hung, nicely fufpended in the scales of fate, whether the company fhould poffefs a foot of land in those very territories, over which, in less than a twelve month afterwards, they gained a controlling power. The poffeffion of the territorial revenues of the provinces of Bengal, Bahar, and Oriffa, had opened fuch inviting profpects to ambitious and rapacious men, that the original mode of carrying on a beneficial traffic with the natives, by conciliating their good-will and confidence, was entirely loft, in an intemperate rage for conquest, and establishing the power of the fword in violation of juftice and humanity. The representations which the company's fervants in India, made of the ftate of affairs there, appeared to be fo congenial to the interefts of the proprietary, that the revenues of the country became an object as eagerly fought after as its manufactures: and, as grants extorted by force of E arms, arms, must be held by the fame means, a continual fupply of fresh troops from Europe was neceffary; the climate being much more fatal to the common men, than the enemies against whom they were led. The application, which the company now made to parliament, was supported by the weight of government. The imports of the company brought large fums directly into the exchequer; and the Afiatic wealth which centered in the nation, greatly increased every branch of the public revenue in the courfe of its circulation: and what government, now fubfifting on earth, would facrifice fuch important objects of finance, for the preservation of public virtue and the honour of the national character? Many weighty objections, however, were made to this bill that it was unconftitutional to keep an armed power in the kingdom, which was independent of parliament for its pay; that the introducing of foreign troops was contrary to the act of fettlement; and, that it was highly dan gerous to establish fuch a precedent. The replies made to thefe objections, were chiefly directed, to fhew the expediency of the measure, in order to remove the inconveniencies which the company laboured under. It was obferved, that a greater number of men were every year fent off at prefent, than was provided for by this act; but many were obtained in an indirect and unwarrantable manner: fuch were the arts practifed by the kidnappers, and the compulfions used in lock-up houfes; and that it was with a view to render these means of recruiting unneceffary, that the prefent plan was formed. Indeed, the idea of procuring German foldiers, was, after fome time dropped; and many reftrictions, as to the regulation of the troops, whilst in England, were propofed; but, after the bill had been twice read, |