Mr. HOPKINS acquainted the Houfe, that he had a peti- Mr. Hoption to present from John Roberts, Efq. complaining of an un- kins. due election for a Member to ferve in Parliament for the city of London. The petition was then read, fetting forth, that the Right Hon. Frederick Bull, Efq. and thofe that conducted his election, had made ufe of illegal means to procure a majority of votes; that the sheriffs had refused to admit perfons to vote for Mr. Roberts, and fuffered feveral to poll for Mr. Bull, who were not qualified, and praying the House to take it into confideration, and grant their petitioner relief. Mr. BULL then arofe, and after making a fhort apology for Mr. Bull. the House receiving any trouble on his account, acquainted them, that he had not made ufe of any illegal means, neither had any perfon, to his knowledge, made use of any for him; that he did not wifh to hold a feat in that Honorable Affembly by any unfair proceedings, but heartily confented to the legality of his feat being debated in that grand council of the nation, confcious that both Mr. Roberts and himself would receive equal juftice. Mr. HOPKINS faid, that Mr. Roberts did not offer his petition out of any ambition or pride to have a feat in that Honorable Affembly, but thought it his duty in behalf of 2481 Liverymen, who had given him there full fuffrages; likewife to detect and expofe any violation of fo great a bleffing as the freedom of election. He then made the following motions: That next Monday three weeks, the 14th of February (here a general laugh-Mr. Hopkins enquiring the reason, was informed that instead of its being the 14th of February, it would be the 21ft) be appointed for debating this petition. (After the Alderman was fet right in regard to the day, the motion was agreed to.) He next moved, That the SPEAKER do iffue his warrant or warrants for such persons, papers, and records to be brought before that House as the parties should think fit. Mr. Hop kins, Mr. SAWBRIDGE got up, and in a very masterly man- Mr. Sawner explained the nature of elections for the city of London, bridge. and defired a particular Act of Parliament for that purpose might be read. (Here an Act made in the 11th of George the First was read, refpecting election for the city of London in particular.) He faid, Mr. Roberts had demanded a fcrutiny, whichthe Lord Mayor, confcious of his uprightness, had granted; that Mr. Roberts, before the fcrutiny was finished, declined carrying it on, which, in his opinion, was the fame as declining to ftand candidate; that, for his part, he wifhed Mr. Roberts had carried on his fcrutiny, as then there would have been no occafion to trouble the House, for he could not have had the leaft pretenfions to the feat; that he thought the peVOL. VII. E tition 2 Mr. Charles M. T tition was only to create trouble, and therefore he moved that it might not be referred to a Committee. Mr. CHARLES FOX replied to Mr. Sawbridge in a very warm manner, and said, that after leave was given to bring in the petition, it did not lay in the breaft of the House to refuse its going into a Committee; he arraigned the conduct of Parliament in a very ftrong manner; faid that an Honorable Gentleman last year promised to make, this feffions, a motion for making the Act refpecting undue elections perpetual; he wifhed he would, as he longed to hear that question debated; that at present there was a number of mock ceremonies used in the Houfe in referring matters to Committees, which he fhould like to fee properly explained; that many who had benefited by thofe Committees were for them, and others, who thought they had been injured, were greatly against them (he hinted particularly at the conduct of the Committee appointed to enquire into the Shoreham election). Mr. T. TOWNSHEND faid, in a very masterly manner, Townshend that the Honorable Member (Mr. C. Fox) had been guilty of many indecencies to the Houfe; that he had, indeed, chofe a place to speak in which had formerly belonged to thofe ap pointed to confider of undue elections; that fome of his predeceffors had been concerned in thofe Committees, and he imagined the Honorable Gentleman thought fuch places hereditary; that, for his part, whenever the Honorable Member should move to make it perpetual, he fhould give his confent, as Minifters had preached concerning it, and Judges had thought proper to recommend it. Mr. Rigby. Mr. RIGBY got up, and efpoufed Mr. C. Fox's fide; he faid, that the Houfe, he understood, had received a petition concerning the Worcester election, charging feveral of the freemen with accepting bribes, which, if they could be proved, he hoped the Houfe would disfranchise the fame, as they did the borough of Shoreham; and, if they fhould go on disfranchising all places that had accepted of bribes, poffibly the city of London would not escape, and they would have work enough to do; that a general election was drawing nigh, and feveral monied men from the Eaft Indies, whom we now call Nabobs, would go down to our boroughs, which were called the rotten part of the Conftitution, with 50 or 60,000l. in their hands; that many of the freemen could not withstand fuch temptation; that, for himself, he had been twenty-one years in Parliament, and it had never coft him a fhilling, which he believed no Member, of the foundest part, could fay. Mr.Onflow Mr. ONSLOW faid, Mr. Sawbridge had told us that Mr. Roberts declined carrying on the fcrutiny, but had forgot to inform us the reafon why he declined it, which was being refufed counsel, and that he thought Mr. Roberts had a very juft right to petition. SIR JOSEPH MAWBEY faid, that Mr. Roberts began his Sir Jofeph fcrutiny without counsel, and did not give notice to the Lord Mawbey. Mayor of his intention of having counfel, until a day or two before the Sheriffs were obliged to return a Member, therefore thought he had no right to petition. Mr. SAWBRIDGE then rofe, and defired to fet Mr. C. Mr. SawFox right, who had misunderstood him, for he did not fay the bridge. House had no right to confider whether the petition fhould go to the Committee or not, but that it was his opinion the petition ought not to have been received at all. to. The motions of Mr. Hopkins were again read, and agreed LORDBARRINGTON moved the Committee, that eighteen Lord Barthousand and twenty-four men be employed for guards and rington. garrifons within Great Britain for the year 1774, and fifteen thoufand in Minorca, Gibraltar, the Ceded Iflands, and North America, during the fame period; and that the charge of the fame, including the half-pay to officers, &c. was 1,376,000l. These refolutions being agreed to, Sir Charles Cocks moved, That 284,000l. including an additional expence of feveral enumerated articles, amounting to 26,000l. be the charge of the ordnance for the year 1774. LORD BARRINGTON faid, that he was glad to inform Lord Barthe House, that the expences this year were not fo much as the rington, laft by 10041. The estimates for the ordnance greatly exceeded any before granted, which Sir Charles Cocks explained by the number of ordnance ftores that had been expended on the fhipping, repairs done to the Foundry at Woolwich, the fire in the Tower, great demands from Gibraltar, &c. [The House at this time was in great confufion, upon which Mr. Sawbridge arofe, and faid he was forry to fee the House fo inattentive, when millions were voting away for-God knows what!] Mr. T. TOWNSHEND faid, he was forry to fee every year Mr. T. our demands increase; that the peace establishment for fea-Townshend men was increased from fixteen to feventeen thousand, and he thought fome ftop fhould be put to fuch proceedings; that Mr. Grenville, while in Adminiftration, had made it his bufinefs to enquire what thofe fupplies were for, and if any were fuperfluous to deny them; but we, as the Honorable Gentleman (Mr. Sawbridge) had faid, were always inattentive at the time we were granting fupplies, without ever examining what they were for; that great fums were annually granted for protecting E 2 what Mr. Van. Mr. Dowdefwell. Mr. Rofe what we called atchievements gained in the last war, and which were of no fervice to us, a parcel of forts two of three hundred miles diftant from each other, scarce able to defend themfelves against the Indians, and of no manner of importance." Mr.Prefcot. Mr. Fuller. Mr. VAN faid, that great fums were likewife expended to protect the Boftonians, &c. who by their conduct did not deferve protection; that instead of keeping troops there at a vast expence, we might only fend them over able officers, and teach them to fight; that they were numerous enough to defend themselves against an enemy, but not strong enough to rebel against us. Mr. DOWDESWELL fpoke much in favour of the adminiftration of Mr. Pelham; faid that our keeping up a large armament now was no ftroke of good policy; that at the commencement of the laft war we had not near the force we have now, yet we proved fuccessful; and he would venture to prophefy, that let a war break out when it would, we should lofe at first, let our strength be ever fo great, as it lay in the breaft of the enemy to attack which place they thought the weakeft. He faid we were in no fituation to go to war; that publick credit was very low; that Mr. Pelham did not load the fubjects with taxes on the eve of a war, but, on the contrary, reduced the intereft of the national debt one per cent. and concluded with faying, he thought we should foon have more debt than the State would be able to pay. The fupply was agreed to. January 27. The House in Committee on the Act which regulates the importation of Corn to and from the Colonies, and the Islands of Guernfey and Jersey, Mr. ROSE FULLER made a motion for leave to export a quantity of wheat, flour, biscuit, and starch made of wheat, not exceeding two thousand quarters, to the Sugar Colonies, and an unlimited quantity of barley, rye, oats, beans, pease, &c. A gentleman made an objection, faying, our harveft last year was but bad, and we could not fpare any to the Colonies, for the demands from Guernsey and Jersey were very great. Mr. PRESCOT faid, he thought the Colonies had a claim in preference to Guernsey and Jerfey, as the former were debarred from having any fuftenance but by way of Great Britain, which the latter was not; that Guernsey and Jersey did not confume the quantity that was exported there, but fmuggled great part of it over to France. Mr. FULLER faid, that as the Colonies bought most of their victuals, drink, cloathing, and working utenfils of us, he thought it was hard to deny them a morfel of bread. Mr. 29 Mr. VAN defired, that if two thoufand quarters of wheat, Mr. Van. flour, and biscuit, were to be exported, that Bristol, Liverpool, and other feaports, might be allowed to fupply a part, and not the port of London engrofs the whole demand. Mr. PRESCOT objected, faying, that if leave was given Mr. Prefe for them to fupply any, before we could look round us, they cot. would export treble the quantity allowed. GOVERNOR POWNAL ftated the whole of the corn G. Pownal. bufinefs in a very masterly manner. He faid, that by our neglect in not fupplying the Colonies, it had given rise to a corn market being established in North America, by which we had loft a trade of half a million per ann. and a trade by which North America had fince gained annually 600,000l. that we need be in no fear of granting leave for the Colonies having a limited quantity of our grain, as they could buy it much. cheaper from North America; that he had compared our prices of wheat, flour, and bifcuit, for the laft three years with theirs, and found they could afford to fell for nine fhillings what we fold for twelve fhillings, and they had a granary fufficient to fupply all Europe; that if we exported any flour to the Colonies, it was a great chance ifit was not made from the wheat which we had imported from North America; that though they had prayed leave to import two thoufand quarters, by the accounts which lay upon the table, it appeared they feldom did import more than fix hundred, which could never hurt us; that it was true, whenever there appears a fcarcity of grain in the Colonies, North America was fure to raise their market to an enormous height, and thereby greatly distress the West Indies; that in this cafe, allowing a limited exportation would be of service, as it would be a curb upon the avarice and cruelty of the North Americans; that to be fure our wheat demanded the closest attention, but he could almost wish to fee the price of beans fo high, that it would not be worth the millers and bakers while to mix that flour with wheaten; that in regard to our barley and rye, he should say but little, but our oats demanded a ferious confideration, as the confumption at home was great, and, in his opinion, we could not spare any, at least the quantity allowed to be exported should be limited, as well as the wheat; as for the iflands of Guernsey and Jerfey, they had ample provifion of every thing but bifcuit, which was a very material article, as it was much wanted in fitting out our fleets for the fishery. Mr. COOPER made a motion for an addition and amend- Mr.Cooper. ment to Mr. Fuller's motion, which was to allow the islands of Guernsey and Jerfey biscuit, and the island of Alderney all forts of grain, The motions were all agreed to. January |