Memoirs hf the Life bf the Right Hon. fVm. Piit. 



B25 



capacities for iirandeur and liappiiiHss 

 of any on the t'iwc i)f the earth, should 

 be confounded witli the mass of those 

 whose liberties wei-e subverti^d and 

 lost. He spoke witli great severity of 

 the corrupt influence which caused a 

 perseverance in the American war, con- 

 trary to the sense of the people; and, 

 after commending in terms equally 

 sirousr, the honourable and patriotic 

 manner in wliich the king's govern- 

 ment was now conducted, he called 

 upon the house to seize the favoiiralilc 

 opportunity of restoring the purity of 

 ■election. He contended that the pre- 

 sent state of the FIous-! of Commons 

 was totally diiYcrent from its original 

 construction ; aud that, as there ceased 

 to l)e the connection designed by our 

 ancestors between the representatives 

 and their constituents, to correct tiiat 

 abuse would be, not an inuovaiion, but 

 a recovery of the constitution. lie did 

 not at tliat time mean to discuss what 

 would be the best species of reform, 

 but only to propose the appointment of 

 a committee for tlie purpose of investi- 

 gating the subject, aud reporting their 

 opinion of the plan which ought to be 

 adopted, and of the most proper me- 

 thod of carrying it into execution. He 

 stated some facts and circumstances to 

 prove that members v.'ere clioseu by 

 l>oroughs, which had no one quality of 

 representation, no population, no trade, 

 no sliare in the general interests of the 

 country, no stake to entitle them to 

 that distinction, but were either under 

 the commaud of the treasury, or of some 

 great and powerful individual ; or else 

 the electors sold their votes to such per- 

 sons as would purchase them at the 

 liigliest price; it was well known, he 

 said, that by means of such borougiis 

 tlic nabob of Arcot had seven or eiglit 

 members in the House of Commons, 

 wliich led him to argue upon the im- 

 propriety and danger of a foreign in- 

 fluence being allov.'ed to creep into oiu' 

 national councils. The corruption of 

 which he complained was the natural 

 elVect of the wide limits of our empire, 

 and of the broad and great scale upon 

 which its operations were conducted ; 

 " it had grovrn with our growth, and 

 strengthened with our strength;" but, 

 uuhappily, it had not decayed with our 

 (hrcay, nor diminished with our de- 

 crease; it still existed in its full force, 

 and had supported a late administra- 

 tion iigainst all the conserpienccs of a 

 mischievous system and adismcmbered 

 em|>ire. To prevent the recurrence 



aud exteution of this evil, lie was 

 anxious to establish a more solid and 

 equal representation, by reviving tiie 

 true constitutional coimexiou between 

 parliament and the people ; and there- 

 fore he moved, " That a committee be 

 appointed to examine into the present 

 state of the representation of the Com- 

 mons of Great Britain in parliaujeat, to 

 report the same to the house, and like- 

 wise what steps in theii- opinion it may 

 ba ])roper for parliament to take con- 

 cerning the same." 



Mr, Sawbridge, in seconding the nm- 

 tion, spoke of Mr. Pitt's speedi, as 

 displaying " that great aud astoulshing 

 ability, for wliich he was so justly dis- 

 tinguished."* The motion, however, 

 altiiough supported by Mr. Fox ami 

 several other persons in ofiice, was lost 

 i)v a majority of 20, the mimbers being 

 161 and 141. 



ATTEMPTS TO FORM A COALITION OF 

 THE PITT AND FOX PARTIES. 



The unanimous adoption of Mr. Gros- 

 venor's motion by the House of Com- 

 mons ou the 2d of Februaiy, was con- 

 sidered as an eucouragemeut to the 

 gentlemen who met at the St. Albau's 

 Tavern, to renew their endeavours to 

 accomplish an union of parties. Several 

 meetings were lield, and some of the 

 members, as a committee, liad inter- 

 vlev.-s with Mr. Pitt, iind witli Mr. Fox 

 aud the Duke of Portland, ou tlie sub- 

 ject. But the same difficulty as before 

 occurred, namely, that Mr. Pitt refused 

 to resign, for the piupose of uegociat- 

 ing ; and the Duke of Portland and Mr. 

 Fox refused to uegociate till Mr. Pitt 



* Mr. Fox iu addressing' the elactors of 

 Westmiuster ou the ITthof July in this year, 

 said " A motion for parliamentary reform 

 was made in the House of Coiuinons, by a 

 young man of the most signal abilities, and 

 ■whose public coiiduct had so entirely con- 

 curred with your own sentiments and 

 wtslies, that you expressed a desire for him 

 to become one of your representatives iu 

 parliament. ThehSuourable author of this 

 motion (I mean Mr. William Pitt)suppoitc(i 

 it in the house with all that ability wbicU 

 characterizes hin;, and with all that finn- 

 ness, integrity, and dignity, which I be- 

 lieve to be no less iu the unmber of his ex- 

 cellencies." It is to be observi^d, that this 

 declaration was made after Mr. Fox had 

 resigned the seals as secretary of state, and 

 after Mr. Pitt was appointed chancellor of 

 the exchequer ; that is, after the little con- 

 nexion, which had subsisted between Mr. 

 Fox and IMr. Pitt had ceased ; and on that 

 account it may be considered as more ho- 

 nourable to boll). 



hud 



