\ 
1807] 
tent of this meafure. I ftate the fatts as 
they occurred. My object is to ftate the 
cafe literally as it arofe. The cabinet mi- 
nifters I have alluded to, deciared that they 
were not, in the firft inftance, aware of the 
full extent of the meafure, and tu that ex- 
tent they ftrongly exprefled their objection; 
but the difpatch had been previoufly trani- 
mitted to the-Duke of Bedtord. 
It has been ftated by fome perfons who have 
animadverted upon this tranfaction ; that Mi- 
nifters were not warranted in bringing forward 
a public meafure without previoufly obtaining 
the confent of his Majefty. But this extrava- 
gant propofition fearcely deferves ferious no- 
tice. According to any rational publication 
on the fubjeQ@, the duty of a Miniter appears 
tobe two told. He may aét in a double capa- 
city upon different occafions—namely, as a 
Minifter, and as an individual member of par- 
liament. There was no Minifter who had 
not afted fo occafionally. If-indeed it were 
culpable to purfue the courfe, fome extrava- 
gant writers now mabntain, Mr. Pitt's con- 
duct upon the Slave {rade and Parliamentary 
Reform, would have been highly cenfurable 
—for that diftinguifhed ftatelman, in both 
thefe inftances, brought forward the propofi- 
tions as an individual member of pariiament. 
The conftitutional dittin@ion which, in 
concurrence with my colleagues, I take be- 
tween the cuty of a Minifter in the one cafe 
and the other, is tuis--that when a Minifter 
brings forward any motion as a meafure of go- 
yernment which has undergone any difcutiion 
in the Cabinet, he violates his duty, unlefs 
fuch meafure fhall have received the fanction 
of that authority. I fhould of courfe feel my- 
felf very culpable, if I attempted to bring for- 
ward any meafure in Parliament as a minifte- 
rial meafure, unlefs 1 had previoully thbmit- 
ted that meature to the confideration of the 
King, and obtained his Majefty’s confent to its 
adoption. It was therefore 1 laid before his 
Majefty all the particulars with regard to the 
meafure refpe€ting the Catholics,- and waited 
to obtain his Majefty’s approbation beicre | 
attempted to fubmit the confideration of that 
meafure to this Houfe. 
The fecond difpach which I have ftated to 
have been fent to the Duke of Bedford on the 
12th of February was drawn up by me, in cop- 
fequence of the indifpofition of Lord Spencer 5 
and in this it will be recollected Mr. Eliot 
was authorized to give a decided anfwer to 
Mr. O’Connor. ‘That difpatch 1 fent to 
Windfor on Monday for his viajefy’s eppro- 
bation, and on Tuefday following it was re- 
turned without any objection or comment 
whatever, as I have already ftated. But what 
ferved more diftinétly to imprefs my mind 
with an opinion ohis Majefty’s complete ac- 
wiefcence in the meafure is this, that.1 had 
the honour of feeing him on the Thurfday 
following, and he expreffed not even a hint of 
any objection toit. [L immediately forward- 
ed she difpatch I had written tothe Duke of 
State of Public Affairs'in March. 231 
Bedford, and on the following day ftated in 
this Houfe my intention to propofe a claufe 
inthe Mutiny Bill, to anfwer the purpofe 
which I had underftood his Miajefty to have 
fan&tioned. After fome further confideration 
however, it was fuggefted that in point of 
form it would not be correét to ingraft fuch a 
claufe on the Mutiny Bill.. In confequence 
of this fuggeftion it was determined to make 
the claufe the fubjeét of a feparate bill. On 
the Wednefday following the adoption of this 
determination: after the bill was brought in 
and read a fir time, T attended at St. James’s, 
and after fome converfation with his Majefty 
about my own office, his Majetty aiked me 
what was the bufinefs in the Hlonfe that even- 
ing? LT anfwered. among other things, amo- 
tion for the fecond reading of this bill, which 
had been made a feparate bill, mentioning 
the confiderations I have ftated to the Houiee 
His Majefty afked, whether the bill was the 
fame as the a& of the Irifh Parliament? i 
ftated the difference to be what I communicat~ 
ed to his Majety fome days before in the dif- 
patch addrefled to the Duke of Bedford, and 
repeated the reafons which appeared to me to 
juftity that difference; and here I muft ac- 
knowledge that his Majefty did exprefs his 
difapprobation of the meafure. Gentlemen 
may rely that 1] fhall frankly ftate all the 
faéts; but although kis Mayefty did not ex- 
prefs his difapprobation, fill 1 did not cone 
ceive the conient withdrawn he had originally 
given to the introduction of this meafure, and 
Twas very naturaliy the lefs inclined to think 
fo from this circumtiance, that Lord Gren- 
‘ville had an audience of his Majefty after I left 
him, and his Majefty mentioned not une word 
upon the fubject to my noble sriend.——Upon 
the following day alfo I faw his Majefty, but 
heard nothing further of his objection, nor did 
for the whole of the weelx, although I had 
frequent opportunities of hearing from, and 
fome converiations with the king. In conie- 
quence of an unfortunate event which occur- 
red in my family, I was tor fome days abfent 
from bufinefS and this Houfe, and that -ab~ 
fence produced a poftponement of the order 
for the fecond reading of this bill. During 
this period [ had not feen his Majefty, but I 
underitood that he bad communicated to 
Lord Grenville his decided objection tu the 
meafure referred to, and that his Majefty con- 
ceived the extent of it to be far beyond that 
to which he had orginally given his affent. 
From that circumftance I was led to fufpect 
that [ had mifunderftvuod his Majefty 5 1 ac- 
cordingly demanded an audience, in order to 
ufe my endeavours tor the purpofe of fatis‘y- 
ing his Majeity’s mind upon the fubjeét, bat 
my endeavours had not the effect of removing 
his “ajefty’s objections, and [ had the regret 
to find chat [ had mitunderftood his Majefty, 
or that he had completely mifunderftood me, 
However, from an anxious with to avaid gtv- 
ing any pain to his Majelty’s feelings, I en- 
deavoured, in concert with my colleagues, fo 
to 
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ws 
Seep So ee 
