HISTORY OF EUROPE. 



117 



after which, on the suggestion of 

 the chancellor of the exchequer, a 

 iDOtion was put, in the exact terms 

 of the precedent in ^Mr. Hastings's 

 impeachment. The motion ^vas 

 then agreed to, and the committee 

 of impeachment ordered to prepare 

 and bring in the bill. 



On July the lOth, in the house 

 of lords, the order for the third 

 reading of 'trotter's indejinity bill 

 being moved, 



The Lord Chancellor rose, and 

 stated the amendments he intended 

 to propose in the bill. These gene- 

 rally tended to correct the wording 

 and phraseology in ditferent parts 

 of the bill : first, with respect to the 

 mode ofcxpressing the impeachment 

 of Lord Melville: secondly, whothc 

 persons were intended to be indem- 

 nified, &c. His lordship then put 

 several cases to prove the necessity 

 of these amendments. He then 

 proposed amendments to the above 

 effect, and lastly, to leave out the 

 words, " and civil suits." 



After an elaborate debate, it was 

 agreed that this bill do pass, subject 

 to the opinion of the judges. 



On the question for the third 

 reading of the bill for granting ad- 

 ditional compensation to the Athol 

 family, 



The Marquis of Buckingham 

 ros^to oppose it. He went into a 

 variety of arguments and detail, to 

 prove that there was no such thing 

 as sovereignty belonging to the 

 lords of the Isle of Man, nor had 

 it ever existed. In the whole of the 

 original transaction, there was an 

 anxious wish to do juftice. If the 

 present case was an appeal to libe- 

 rality, the policy of the case should 

 always be considered ; but he con- 

 sidered it to be impossible to esti- 

 mate the compensation according to 



any standard or criterion whatever. 

 He then stated a few more observa- 

 tions respecting the money to be 

 paid at the exclietpier, for which 

 the public officer was rendered re- 

 sponsible ; ho begged to repeat, be- 

 fore he sat down, that in nothing he 

 had said, had he intanded any disre- 

 spect to the noble family who were 

 the present claimants. 



The ErfI of Westmoreland con- 

 sidered that the transfer was alto- ■ 

 gether compulsory on the part of 

 the Athol family, so that, if the terms 

 were not fair at that time, the pre- 

 sent duke had a right to compensa. 

 tion. 



The Lord Chancellor said, he was 

 one of those to whom the claim had 

 been originally referred, and he had 

 coincided in the general opinion of 

 the crown lawyers, that the compen- 

 sation was fully adequate. Upon 

 the whole, he considered that it 

 would be a most alarming precedent, 

 now to open a transaction that had 

 been closed so long as forty years 

 ago. 



After a few observations from the 

 earls of SnflTolk and Carlisle, the 

 dukes of Xorfolk and Clarence, and 

 a few amendments proposed, which 

 were negatived, the bill was read a 

 third time and passed, after a divi- 

 sion of tsventy-lour against five. ' 



A verbal protest against the bill 

 was then entered on the journals of 

 the house, (for which see the Ap- 

 pendix.) 



On the same day, in the house 

 of commons, Mr. Whitbread brought 

 in a bill to' prevent the proceedings 

 in the impeachment of Lord Mel- 

 ville from being affected by any 

 prorogation or dissolution of par- 

 liament ; which bill was read a first 

 and second time, committed, and 

 the report brought up. 

 1 3 Upon 



