1L4:] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1814. 



the usage of parliament, all or any 

 of the principal objects which 

 have employed the attention of the 

 Commons during the session, may 

 be fit matters to be mentioned in 

 such a speech. This opinion he 

 supported first by the rule laid 

 down in Mr. Hatsell's book almost 

 in the above words ; and then, by 

 reference to a number of recorded 

 instances of speeches made by 

 different Speakers. Of these there 

 -were two which came to the pre- 

 cise point of adverting to a bill 

 which had .been negatived : one, 

 was a speech of Speaker Onslow's 

 not delivered, indeed, on account 

 of a sudden indisposition of the 

 king, which prevented him from 

 coming in person to prorogue the 

 parliament, but left among his 

 papers endorsed in his own hand, 

 as intended to be spoken, in which 

 he animadverted upon the rejec- 

 tion by the Lords of some bills, 

 which after long debates had 

 passed the Commons. The other 

 was that of Mr. Foster, late Speaker 

 of the Irish House of Commons, 

 who, on presenting the money 

 bills, although no bill respecting 

 the Catholics was on that day 

 presented, had alluded to the re- 

 jection of a petition from the Ca- 

 tholic committee praying the elec- 

 tive franchise, and had so emphati- 

 cally stated the sentiments of the 

 House, on the necessity of a Pro- 

 testant parliament and ascendency, 

 as to receive its thanks. With 

 respect to the luanner in which he 

 had mentioned the subject, he 

 submitted to the House, that he 

 had stated their proceedings with 

 fairness and correctness, in proof 

 oF which he gave a kind of com- 

 mentary on the passage. He then 

 replied to the technical objection 



which had been made. That the 

 Speaker can know nothing of 

 what passes in a committee ; and 

 he concluded with thanking the 

 House for their indulgent hearing, 

 and asserting the purity of his 

 intention to execute what he re- 

 garded as his duty, with firmness 

 and fidelity. 



Mr. Whithread declared, that 

 after the right hon. gentleman's 

 speech he had the same opinion of 

 the subject as before, and still 

 thought that he had no authority 

 indirectly fijom precedent, or di- 

 rectly from the House, whose ser- 

 vant he had confessed himself to 

 be, to make the communication to 

 the throne, which he had done. 

 He adverted to the cases adduced 

 of Speakers Onslow and Foster ; 

 and having caused the speech of 

 the latter to be read, he shewed 

 that it did not in any manner 

 justify the conduct of the right 

 hon. gentleman. He remarked 

 upon what had been said of the 

 situation of the speaker in a com- 

 mittee of the House, and con- 

 tended that, in this case, when he 

 had resumed the chair, no report 

 having been made to him from 

 the committee, there was no pro- 

 ceeding before him on which he 

 had a right to act, when he de- 

 clared that the bill was defeated ; 

 and that the bill, at the time when 

 he made the statement, was ex- 

 isting and alive. He had no right 

 whatever to make the exposition 

 he had done, which Mr. W. 

 considered as a violation of duty 

 from beginning to end. As the 

 right hon. gentleman had ex- 

 pressed some dissatisfaction, be- 

 cause a direct resolution was not 

 moved upon him, he would now 

 submit one by way of amend- 



