gaged me on the side of physicians, so, in some measure, a sense of gratitude for a faculty, to which I owe the comforts of life, and perhaps life itself; having received from it unspeakable ease in the two inveterate distempers of the spleen and the gout. the Crown, accusing the patentee of fraud and deceit, asserting that the terms of the patent were infringed, both in the quantity and quality of the coin; that the circulation of the halfpence would be highly prejudicial to the revenue, destructive of the commerce, and of most dangerous consequences to the rights and properties of the subjects. The Commons, with an absurdity and effrontery hardly credible, declared, that, even had the terms of the patent been complied with, the nation would have suffered a loss of at least one hundred and fifty per cent! and indeed the whole clamour rested on partial or ignorant representations. It was not at that time expected, or dwelt on as a matter of speculative propriety, that the weight of the copper coin should be adequate to its circulating value. The assertion, that Wood had carried on notorious frauds and deceits in the coinages, as advanced by Swift, and that the intrinsic was not equal to one-eighth of the nominal value, was proved to be false, by an assay made at the mint, under Sir Isaac Newton and his two associates, men of no less honour and capacity, the result of which was, that, in weight, goodness, and fineness, it rather exceeded than fell short of the conditions of the patent. "But the clamour, however unjust, was raised and became general; and it was a necessary act of prudence not to increase the ferment by forcing upon a nation what was considered as unjust and fraudulent. Lord Carteret, who succeeded the Duke of Grafton in the office of Lord-lieutenant, failed no less than his predecessor, in all his endeavours to obtain the introduction of the copper money. The patent was surrendered, and tranquillity restored. Wood, as an indemnification for the loss he had sustained, received pensions to the amount of 3000l. a-year, for eight years. "Such is the public history of Wood's patent; and it is difficult to conceive by what means, or by what intrigues, this simple transaction, calculated for the benefit of Ireland, and in which not a single right was infringed, or a single grievance inflicted, could be so misunderstood and perverted, as to create a general ferment, and nearly to overthrow the administration of Townshend and Walpole. The secret history of this event, which the documents under my inspection enable me to give, will assist in tracing the motives and causes which gave rise to the disturbances, and finally occasioned the surrender of the patent. "The emoluments arising from the disposal of the patent for supplying Ireland with copper coin, were given by Sunderland to the Duchess of Kendal, who sold it to Wood. Sunderland had warmly recommended it to his friend, the Duke of Bolton, who was at that time Lord-lieutenant; but he met with so much difficulty in his attempts to countenance and support the project under-hand, that he had neither courage nor inclination to propose a scheme which he foresaw would greatly embarrass his administration. On his death, the Duke of Grafton was promoted to that high office, at the recommendation of Walpole; he consented to bring it forward, and was promised the support of the King's friends in Ireland. Walpole, on succeeding Sunderland at the head of the treasury, instantly saw and appreciated the difficulties in which this transaction would involve him; and with as much frankness as his situation at that time would permit, remonstrated against the grant, as likely to become unpopular; but being unwilling to offend the Duchess of Kendal, the extent of whose influence over the King he had unfortunately experienced, reluctantly submitted to what he could not prevent, and employed every means in his power to remedy the abuses and obviate the difficulties. He took the advice of the Attorney and Solicitor-general, obtained the ratification of the Lord-Chancellor of England, and, by proper assays at the mint, secured the execution of the terms stipulated by the patent, which at length passed the usual forms, and was sent to the Lord-lieutenant, for the purpose of being put in execution. "When the Duke of Grafton returned to Ireland, in August 1723, things were in a state very different from that in which they had been erroneously represented to him by the English cabinet. He found a ferment rising in the nation; a general aversion to the pa tent; and a most decided opposition from those who, as he had reason to believe, had promised their warmest support. The character and conduct of the Duke of Grafton were not calculated to conciliate parties, or to restore union and harmony in a country like Ireland, distracted with troubles, and abounding with persons disaffected to the English government. He was a nobleman of high honour and disinterested probity, but proud and imperious, fretful and choleric, and highly conscious of his dignified situation. Though by no means deficient in abilities, yet he did not possess sufficient skill and address to guide the helm of state in a difficult period: He was well characterised by his friend, Walpole, as a fair-weather pilot, that did not know how to act when the first storm arose."-CoxE's Memoirs of Walpole, London, 1800, 8vo, vol. I. p. 377. The general disaffection to this ill-judged measure, was, according to Mr Coxe, greatly exasperated by the dislike expressed by Lord Middleton, Chancellor of Ireland, his brother Thomas Broderick, and his son Alan Broderick. This family possessed great weight among the Whigs of Ireland, having been uniformly attached to Revolution principles, in the support of which they had displayed great firmness, talents, and address, upon some very trying occasions. The Brodericks had, however, become inimical to the predominating influence of Sir Robert Walpole; and it would appear, that their animosity to that minister induced them to add their weight to the scale of opposition to Wood's patent. Lord Carteret, who was then intriguing for Walpole's removal, and for succeeding him as prime minister, had the good fortune to unite this powerful family under his standard. "An unfortunate misunderstanding had taken place between the Duke of Grafton and Middleton, who, in the capacity of one of the Lords-justices, had directed the administration of affairs, and, conscious of his influence in the two Houses of Parliament, expected to retain the same power on the arrival of the new Lord-lieutenant. The Duke of Grafton, however, was by no means inclined to place implicit confidence in the Chancellor, who had shewn so many instances of an intractable temper and hostility to Walpole. He courted the opposite party in the cabinet, and particularly consulted his competitor for authority, William Conolly, Speaker of the House of Commons, by whom he was almost implicitly directed. On his arrival in Ireland, in 1728, he was offended at the Chancellor for disrespectful behaviour, and bitterly complained to the Archbishop of Dublin, who, being inimical to Wood's patent, did not conceal, or perhaps exaggerated, the dissatisfaction of the Lord-lieutenant. The conduct of Lord Middleton in Parliament was so offensive to the Duke of Grafton, that he connived at the passing of a vote of censure in the House of Lords, for delays of justice occasioned by his absence from Ireland. This insult, solely ascribed by Lord Middleton to the Duke of Grafton, increased the misunderstanding; and the Duke peremptorily insisted on his exclusion from the number of Lords-justices during his absence. "These jealousies, fomented by Carteret, laid the foundation of a successful opposition to the introduction of Wood's coinage, which opposition was aided by the concurrence of indiscreet and unpopular proceedings. "Great discredit was thrown upon the measure, by a report industriously circulated, that the profits of the patent were to be shared between Wood and the Duchess of Kendal. This fact was insidiously communicated by Carteret to Alan Broderick, second son of Lord Middleton, during his visit at Hanover, transmitted by him to his friends in Dublin, and soon made public by various allusions of Swift in his writings and political ballads, in one of which he says: When late a feminine magician, "The indiscretion of Wood, and of his friends in Ireland, was also detrimental to his cause. They exaggerated the quantity of coin to be issued, and the gains which would accrue to the patentee, and made repeated boasts of his power and influence in the English cabinet. Wood himself offended the Privy-council by observing, that if a proclamation was necessary, he could have it, or anything that was wanting to enforce the currency of his coin, and that the complaints and remonstrances were not against him, but against the King and ministry for making the grant. "The misconduct of government was still greater. The patent was passed without formally consulting either the Lord-lieutenant or Privy-council, and its contents were concealed in Ireland. By these means exaggerated rumours of its evil tendency were diffused, which were universally credited, and not found to be false until their wide circulation had made a deep impression on the public mind, which it was impossible to efface. The Lord-lieutenant landed on the 13th of August. Assuming the reins of government, he publicly declared that he was perfectly unconcerned in the event; that the patent was passed before he was made acquainted that it was in agitation; and that he had no instructions about it from the King or the ministry. On the 18th of September an address was presented from both Houses, requesting information concerning the patent. In his answer, returned the 14th, he declared that he had neither the patent, nor any copy, even any paper which would give them any satisfaction; but on the 16th, when the House was actually assembled, with a view to make A simile on our want of silver, and the only way to remedy it. |