THE

POLITICAL REGISTER,

For AUGUST, 1769.

NUMBER XXIX.

For the POLITICAL REGISTER. THE FAVOURITE unmasked, or the History of the lofing Game as it has been playing at a certain C— from the Year. 1763, to the prefent Time.

T

HE wheel of politics in its revolutions naturally brings about a fimilarity of circumftances and events happening at diftant periods, which would often pass unnoticed by the generality of mankind, if the mirrour of comparison was not occafionally held up to public view. This cbfervation is no where better verified than in the history of Great Bri tain. We are apt to read with inattention, to admire the narrative indeed, of remarkable tranfactions as they pafs in review before us, but we feldom take the pains properly to investigate characters, to develope the fprings of political tranfactions, or having difcovered them, to apply them home to the present moment. A little more reflection, and a clofer attention to the most important events in the political. history of this nation would foon convince us, that as in the animal, the vegetable and the moral, fo in the political world, the fame caufes will ever be productive of the fame effects. And as certainly as the feafons of the year return; as the earth produces annually the fame kinds of fruits and herbs, which change not their specie, as animals engender, and Vol. V.

I

bring

bring forth their kind with little or no variation in the fixed laws of nature; and as virtue and vice alternately prevail and ftamp the character of the times with induftry, temperance and sobriety, or with diffipation, riot and profligacy of manners; fo will the fame political characters rife up in the present, as were marked and diftinguished in the fame country in former times, the fame parties will rife again on the political stage, and perform the fame hiftorical pieces with little or no variation, except in the dramatis perfona. One set of actors die off, and another take up their parts, and as to the hero of the piece, all the difference is, that in the last century it was Charles the fecond, and to day it is George the third, who receives this benediction at the clofe of the regal tableWHOM GOD PRESERVE-Amen, fays the writer of this effay, and may the fame benediction alight on all his illuftrious family. In the days of the eafy, good natured Charles, the fubject was aggrieved, the freeholders of most of the counties in England presented petitions to the king, the livery of London did the fame. The lord mayor, the aldermen, and the recorder of the city of London, were rated and rebuked at the council board, and a lord chief justice North advised and framed the following proclamation, which was deemed a master stroke, as it formed a very nice diftinction or what may be called a hair-line of partition in politics, between the matter and the manner. For fays the chief juftice in council, "The proclamation fhould by no means prohibit the petitioning his majesty in any cafe, much lefs in case of the parliament. But it might take notice of certain ill defigning people, who upon the fpecious pretence of petitioning, went about in a feditious and tumultuous manner, gathering hands to certain papers purporting to be, &c. and then forbid all fuch tumultuous and feditious proceedings, enjoining all magiftrates to punish the offenders. And his lordship faid further, that fuch a proclamation, though not directly against the thing, but the manner only, would be a great encourage. ment to, and fupport his majesty's friends; and it was of great use to furnish them with apt words, and proper distinctions to work withal." Who that will be at the pains of examining the writings of Creon, and feveral other minifterial fcribblers in our news papers, will not be ftruck with the fimilitude and cry out, that the nice distinctions advifed by lord chief juftice North, are now playing off in full force against the freeholders of Middlefex, and the livery of London, in the lucubrations of these tools of a defpicable adminiftration. Weymouth perhaps is in want of a precedent, or perhaps the chief juftice does not ap

prove of the expedient-But as ftatesmen often alter their opinions, it is more than poffible that if the fpirit of petitioning circulates, we shall have a proclamation; it may not be amifs therefore to fpare Mr. Wood his under-fecretary the trouble of drawing one, (to whose lot it would certainly fall, for he who cannot write a polite accurate card to a chief magiftrate, will not furely prefume to write again on public bufinefs) by inferting the original by lord chief juftice North. His Majefty's Proclamation against tumultuous Petitions.

"CHARLES REX

Whereas his majesty has been informed that divers evil difpofed perfons at this time endeavour, in feveral parts of this kingdom, to frame petitions to his majefty for fpecious ends and purposes relating to the public, and thereupon to collect and procure to the fame the hands or fubfcriptions of multitudes of his majesty's fabjects, which proceedings are contrary to the common and known laws of this land, for that they tend to promote difcontents among the peo ple, and to raise fedition and rebellion. His majesty confidering the evil confequences that may happen if fuch offences fhould go unpunifhed, and left that any one of his good fubjects fhould be inveigled by plaufible pretences, or should through inadvertency and ignorance, be engaged to a breach of the laws, in any of the particulars aforefaid, his majefty therefore hath thought fit (by the advice of his privy council) to declare and make the fame known by this his royal proclamation, and doth hereby ftrictly charge and command all and every of his loving fubjects, of what rank or degree foever, that they prefume not to agitate or promote any fuch fubfcriptions, nor in any wife join in any petition in that manner to be preferred to his majefty, upon peril of the utmoft rigour of the law that may be inflicted for the fame. And his majefty doth farther command all magiftrates and other officers, to whom it fhall appertain, to take effectual care that all fuch offenders against the laws be profecuted and punished according to their demerits. Given, &c. December 12, 1679."

It is very remarkable that at this period, the lord mayor was a zealous fupporter of what was then ftiled the faction, and the recorder, Sir George Jefferies, was as ftrenuous an advocate for the court party, and was accordingly employed by the miniftry to procure a number of merchants to go up with an addrefs to the king. "In their addrefs they "declared this way of petitioning to be the method of 1641, "and intended to bring his majefty to the block, as his father <s was brought, all which doings they abhorred. This ad"drefs

I 2

"drefs being moft graciously received by the king, the "train took, and the frolic went all over England, fo as "there was scarce an affizes, or confiderable town, that "did not fend up their addrefs of abhorrence, whereby in"stead of being importuned by factious affronts, the "king was diverted by great variety of loyal profeffions, "and entire reliances upon him, and other dutiful ex"preffions." And at the fame time care was taken under the fhadow of the proclamation to fignify the king's high displeasure at the petitions, and his determination not to receive them. And thus by intimidation on one hand, and bribery on the other, the affair of petitioning for the fitting of the parliament was dropped. But as the ministry thought proper to quiet the minds of the people, the parliament was convened, and no fooner fat, but they took into confideration, all the proceedings relative to the petitions and the addreffes of abhorrence, and came to the following refolutions. 1. That the people have an undoubted right to petition. 2. That to traduce petitioning, as tumultuous or feditious, is betraying the liberty of the fubject, and tends to the introducing of arbitrary power, this refolution was directly levelled at the proclamation. 3. It was refolved to appoint a committee to enquire after thefe offences. An impeachment in confequence was moved for in the house against lord chief justice North, for drawing up the proclamation, but it was fo over-ruled by the court party, that it came to nothing, but the recorder Jefferies was reprimanded at the bar of the house on his knees, and was obliged to refign his office, for having procured the addrefs of abhorrence from fome of the citizens, and the fteward of Weftminster who had been very active in carrying up an address of abhorrence, thinking to efcape with a flight reprimand, owned in his place, for he was a member of the house, That he did promote and carry up that abhorrence, but he knew at the time, he was in the wrong, only he thought it would pleafe the king; and then he asked pardon of the house; but notwithstanding this fubmiffion, fo greatly incenfed was the parliament against these addreffers, that he was firft reprimanded, and then expelled.

It is a pity our comparison will not hold good in every inftance: the late addreffes were as infamous in their tendency, and as bafely procured as the addreffes of abhorrence, and for a time, they flopped the proceedings of the friends of liberty, by preventing the inftructions intended to be given to the reprefentatives of the people during the

fitting