40] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1812. 



such a person sitting in that 

 jjlace. 



Mr. Abercromby stated, that 

 there were three great classes of 

 cases upon which that house liad 

 frequently been called upon to ex- 

 ercise its right of expulsion : 1. 

 cases of contempt of the house it- 

 self : 2. breaches of public trust : 

 in both tiiese the house exercised 

 its jurisdiction upon sound and so- 

 lid principles : 3. when persons had 

 been found guilty and punished 

 for gross offences. In these last 

 cases, the house paid that respect 

 to the sentence of the laws, and to 

 the laws themselves, as to deem 

 such persons unfit to sit in tliat 

 house. He then endeavoured to 

 shew, tliat the present case was 

 widely different : that the record of 

 conviction was incomplete, and 

 that if a special verdict liad been 

 taken, there would have been no 

 conviction. As to the mere im- 

 morality of the act, he tiiought that 

 principle might be carried to a dan- 

 gerous extent, and that it would 

 be very difficult to draw the line 

 and determine what sort of breach 

 of trust should render a member 

 liable to expulsion, and wliat not. 



The Attorney General confessed 

 tli^t the subject was attended with 

 ajgooddeal of difficulty. Of the 

 cases of expulsion whicli had been 

 quoted by different members, that 

 of the directors of the Charitable 

 Corporation came the nearest ; and 

 if the house had proceeded upon it, 

 not as a misapplication of the pub- 

 lie money, but as an art of gross 

 dishonesty, the act committed by 

 Mr. Walsh was at least cfjually dis- 

 honest. 



Several other membei's spoke on 

 the different sides of the question, 

 whichwas discussed widimuch tem- 



per and impartiality. The general 

 sense of the house was however 

 clearly for the expulsion of one who 

 had proved himself so unworthy a 

 member, as was manifested by the 

 division, on which Mr. Bankes's 

 motion was carried by 101 against 

 16, though some very respectable 

 names appeared in the minority. 



The gold coin and bank note 

 bill, which had excited so much 

 discussion in the last session of 

 parliament, was again introduced 

 to the notice of the House of 

 Commons, on March 17th, by a 

 motion from the Chancellor of the 

 Exchequer, for its continuation, 

 with certain amendments. After 

 a few preliminary observations on 

 the course which he meant to 

 adopt, which was that of proposing 

 that the bill should be read twice 

 before the hohdays and printed, 

 and a day be appointed after the 

 recess, in order that gentlemen from 

 Ireland might be present at the 

 discussion of the various provisions, 

 he moved *' That leave be granted 

 to brmg Ml a bill to continue and 

 amend an act of the last session of 

 parliament, lor making more ef- 

 fectual provision for preventing 

 the current gold coin of the realm 

 from being })aid or accepted for a 

 greater value than the current va- 

 lue of such coin ; for prevent- 

 ing any note or bill of the governor 

 and company of the Bank of 

 England from being received for 

 any smaller sum than the sum 

 therein specified ; and for staying 

 proceeding upon a distress by ten- 

 der of such notes ; and to extend 

 the same to Ireland." 



Lord Tolkstone rose in this ear- 

 1)' stage of the business to observe 

 upon the confident manner in 

 which the right hon. gentleman 



had 



