44] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1812. 



the successes which had attended 

 the present administration, moved 

 an amendment on the motion, 

 which was, in effect, an omission 

 of all its substance, and the substi- 

 tution of an expression of perfect 

 satisfaction with the conduct of 

 affairs since the commencement of 

 the regency. 



Lord Darnley rising to speak 

 against the amendment was inter- 

 rupted on the ground of irregu- 

 larity in alluding to a document, 

 the letters, not properly before the 

 house ; and a debate arose on this 

 point of order, which terminated 

 in Lord Darnley's asserting his 

 right to consider them as authen- 

 tic. His lordship then proceeded, 

 and plainly alluded to certain secret 

 advisers who had influenced the 

 Regent to continue the same mi- 

 nisters who had served his father, 

 and whose continuance implied 

 destruction to the hopes of the ca- 

 tholics, and consequently, destruc- 

 tion to the country. 



He was followed by several 

 other lords, in whose speeches the 

 catholic question was the leading 

 topic ; but the most interesting 

 was that of Lord Grey, in which 

 he stated the points which had iii- 

 duced himself and Lord Grenville 

 to decline an union with the pre- 

 sent ministers. He began with 

 acknowledging that the motion 

 appeared to him substantially in- 

 tended to produce a change in the 

 administration. Of this adminis- 

 tration it might be said that it was 

 formed on the express principle of 

 resistance to the catholic claims. 

 This was the principle loudly pro- 

 claimed by the person at the head 

 of it, from the moment when 

 he quitted the bar to take a share 

 in political life, up to the present 



instant ; and where he led, the 

 rest were obliged to follow. The 

 noble lord then dwelt at some 

 length on this topic, and showed 

 how necessary ultimate concessions 

 to the catholics had been considered 

 by the greatest political characters. 

 He would not state what the opinion 

 of the Prince Regent on this head 

 might be at the present moment, 

 having only that of his responsible 

 advisers to look to ; but he could 

 not help saying that a very general 

 hope was entertained by the catho- 

 lics that his Royal Highness was fa- 

 vourable to their claims, and that a 

 new sera would by the course of 

 nature arrive, when bigotry and 

 oppression should no longer oppose 

 them. Though it was impossible 

 for his noble friend and himself to 

 unite with men who differed with 

 them in so fundamental a point, 

 did it follow that there were no 

 others with whom they could co- 

 alesce? or if both parties were 

 put out of the question, were there 

 not others to form an administra- 

 tion without them ? If the address 

 should be carried, and the Regent 

 could find others of whom he 

 might form a cabinet, holding the 

 same opinions on the catholic ques- 

 tion with himself, they should 

 have his warm support. 



Adverting to the questions at 

 issue between this country and 

 America, his lordship said, that if 

 it was imputed to him that he 

 was disposed to give up one single 

 rii^ht, or to abandon any principle 

 connected with our essential mari- 

 time interests, the imputation was 

 most false and groundless. He 

 would go as far in support of those 

 interests as any man, although he 

 should still deem it necessary to 

 weigh the true value of those dis- 

 puted 



