GENERAL HISTORY. 



[11 



that he thought a bill of indem- 

 nity necessary ; but not as grow- 

 ing out of the report of the secret 

 committee. He was ready to put 

 the necessity of an indemnity act 

 to the House as being naturally 

 and necessarily connected with 

 the former law. Much of the 

 information on which the govern- 

 ment had acted was necessarily 

 such as could not be disclosed 

 consistently with the safety of 

 individuals, and with good faith 

 towards them. He should dis- 

 tinctly avow, that a bill of in- 

 demnity was necessary after such 

 powers had been entrusted to a 

 government ; and this claim might 

 be strengthened by, though not 

 founded on, the report of a com- 

 mittee. The committee would 

 also show what the state of the 

 country was ; for though the 

 prosperity of our commerce, and 

 the vigilancy of the magistracy, 

 had put an end to the great mass 

 of danger, it would be a false 

 view to suppose that the danger 

 was at an end. 



The noble loi'd then moved, 

 " That the secret papers pre- 

 sented to the House by com- 

 mand of the Prince Regent on 

 the 3rd instant, be referred to a 

 committee." 



Mr. Tierney, after passing 

 some jocular strictures on lord 

 Castlereagh and his bag, said, 

 that the truth of the matter is 

 this : the ministers know, that by 

 their proceedings in the last year, 

 they have, during the last months, 

 been making out a prima facie 

 case against themselves in the 

 mind of every man in the coun- 

 try ; and now they want to have 

 a case made out for them, and 

 that, under the sanction of a 



committee of secrecy. Tlie noble 

 lord, with the candour of which 

 he gives such frequent examples, 

 says, he should have no objection 

 to a bill of indemnity. No one 

 will doubt, without this candour, 

 that he wishes for a bill of indem- 

 nity if he can get it ; and to this 

 end he proposes a committee, 

 chosen by ballot, to sit on the 

 papers in this bag. Why, this 

 was one of the coarsest juggles 

 which had ever been played off 

 upon mankind. How had the 

 secretary of state acted ? He had 

 not taken up a few persons, who, 

 by their influence, or by the ra- 

 rnifications of extensive connec- 

 tions might be dangerous, but he 

 had gone, as it were, with a drag 

 net through particular counties, 

 taking up whole classes of men. 

 He believed the secretary had 

 acted hastily, and in a manner 

 which he would not have done, if 

 it had not been a cabinet system 

 to take measures of vigour. 

 Alarm had been the daily bread 

 of the administration, and nothing 

 was to be done but to keep alive 

 the idea that danger was immi- 

 nent, and that insurrections hung 

 over our heads, but for measures 

 which had been extorted from the 

 parliament. They had now bet- 

 ter information than they had 

 last session. Tliey had not to 

 proceed upon hints in the dark, 

 or on the impression which might 

 be produced on any respectable 

 gentleman in the committee, but 

 on the result of long judicial pro- 

 ceedings. 



After some observations on 

 particular trials, in one of the 

 most noted of which, he said, 

 there was not a tittle of evidence 

 that any danger existed which 



could 



