ftore the third Eftate, and then the House might proceed regularly to pass bills, and propofe what limitations it thought pro per to the Regent, who would have a power of affenting or diffenting; and there would be no neceffity for reforting to that expedient which could not be called either Whig or Tory, which was a nondefcript, a monster in the conftitutionHe meant the measure of ordering the great feal to be put to a commiffion for empowering a perfon to give the King's affent to bills which he had never seen. Mr Courtenay seconded the amendment, which was negatived without a divifion. Mr Dempfter then propofed the other part of the amendment, which caufed a tedious and unimportant debate upon the propriety of its being put on the fe cond or the third refolution. The fpeak ers were, Mr Dempster, Mr Powys, Mr Pitt, Mr Fox, and Mr Burke. It was ended by Mr Dempfter's withdrawing it, for the purpose of putting it on the third refolution. The fecond refolution was then put, and carried without a divifion. The third and last resolution being put, "That for this purpose, and for the maintaining entire the conftitutional authority of the King, it is neceffary that the faid Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons of Great Britain, fhould determine on the means whereby the Royal affent may be given in parliament to fuch bill as may be paffed by the two Houfes of Parliament refpecting the exercife of the powers and authorities of the crown, in the name and on the behalf of the King, during the continuance of his Majefty's prefent indifpofition," Mr Dempster rofe to move to leave out the words after the word "Parliament," and to infert in their ftead the words of his motion by way of amendment. A fhort converfation took place on this, which was interrupted by the Hon. Mr Marfham, who fuggefted the improprie ty of the Houfe proceeding in the prefent important bufinefs at fo late an hour as ten o'clock, and hoped they would agree to adjourn the debate. Mr Pitt, Mr Fox, Mr Martin, and Sir Peter Burrel, fpoke upon the adjournment, and Mr Pitt having declared, that he was fo hoarse, that he was afraid he could not be heard, it was at length agreed to by both fides of the Houfe; they adjourned at a quarter after ten o'clock to Monday next. 22. The order of the day being read on the motion of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for refuming the confideration of the third refolution of the committee on the ftate of the nation, and of the amendment proposed by Mr Dempfter, Mr Burke rofe, and entered fully into the fubject of the refolution He con tended, when the two Houfes were deprived of the aid and co-operation of the third branch, they were incompetent to the exercise of any one act of legislation. -Being at present in this ftate, they were by no means juftified, as he conceived, in ufing the King's name to a commiffion for giving the Royal afsent to a proposed bill. In the vacancy now exifting, the rules of hereditary right ought to be reverted to; that hereditary right which had been found an effectual bulwark against the encroachments of ambition, and the intrigues of cabal. The perfon who ftood next in fucceffion, provided he were of full age, was as much intitled to the regency during the Sovereign's incapacity, as he was to the crown in case of a demise. If the royal affent was wanted, who had a right to give it during the King's inability, but the Heir-Apparent? Inftead, therefore of nominating a phantom of fovereignty, with black brows and a large wig, as a commiffioner to give the royal affent, the two Houfes ought to address the Prince of Wales to take the regal power upon him, and give the affent that was required. To give affent in his Majefty's name, by a commiffion, as if he were still capable of governing, would be a mean fraud, a low forgery, incon. fiftent with the true maxims of the con ftitution. If any fuch puppet, any fuch idol fhould be fet up, he would disclaim all allegiance to it. It ought to be a man, a living man, that should stand in the place of the monarch, not an idol erected by a state carpenter. After dwell ing on the impropriety of ufing the fiction of the King's name to the commiffion above referred to, he took notice of the propofal for limiting the authority of the future regent; a propofal for which one reafon affigned was, to prevent the effects of the ill advice to which his Royal Highness would be expofed from the party to whom he seemed at prefent attached. This idea of limitation would, in his opinion, be unjustifiable and unmanly-it would be taking an an advantage of his Majefty's unfortu. nate ftate, to attack and abridge the rights of his son, and savoured of a proscription which the Sylla of the day had meditated against the adverse party. Lord North maintained, that the two Houses without the third eftate of the realm, had not the smallest right to the privilege of legislation; and were therefore utterly incompetent to perform that which was now propofed as the fubject of the third refolution. He ftated his objections to this fcheme in a strong point of view. If the Lords and Commons, he said, fhould procure the Royal affent to any bill, by having the great feal to a commiffion, they would them felves reprefent the regal office. The commiffioner or commiffioners appointed by them would be used by them in a minifterial capacity, without right of difcretion; and would, in confequence, be very far from forming the third eftate, which alone could co-operate with the two others in enacting laws. The fupplying of the vacancy of the third branch in this mode, would be wholly inadequate to the purpofe, and repugnant to the fpirit of the conftitution. There ought neceffarily to be three fubftantial branches of the legislature to make any law-if any one, therefore, was inade quate and unfubftantial, as would manifeftly be the cafe with the commiffioners appointed by the two Houfes them felves, the refult of fuch a conjunction would be invalid. What would pafs for the three eftates would, in that cafe, be the Lords, the Commons, and a third branch, or rather phantom of a branch, created by them for the fpecial purpose of enacting a law. He stated, that in the cafe of the bill of rights, the two Houses had only declared and prepared fuch a bill, but had no power to enact it, nor did they enact it till the third eftate was added. The fame line of con duct ought to be now purfued. They ought not to think of enacting any thing like a law, till they had supplied, not with a mere tool or creature of their own, but with a fubftantial body, the vacancy in the executive department. His Lordship, after a fhort panegyric on the prefent conduct of the Prince, concluded by obferving on the ungracious appearance the proceedings of the House must have to his Highnefs, and by declaring himself for the amendment. Mr Fox replied to the arguments of Sir John Scott. He was very ftrenu oufly for the forms of the conftitution, as long as those forms operated as guards and as bulwarks to the constitution; but when they operated as deftructive to that they were meant to protect — to the fubftance of the conftitution, they then loft all his respect, all his regard. In alluding to the precedents, and particularly to that of the infancy of Henry VI. he said, he would, for the fake of argument, though he did not, in his opinion, confider that to be fimilar to the prefent unfortunate circumftance; if it was fo, it proved that the proper mode would be a commiffion under the great feal, to appoint the Prince to hold the Parliament for the King, and to use his difcretion in all parliamentary proceedings the fame as King, and not to give a blind, an implicit affent, to whatever might be agreed upon by the two Houfes. Whether, he said, the precedent of Henry VI. was brought or not, he was confident, that though it might not make fully in fupport of his opinion, that it was fundamentally contrary to the mode proposed by the other fide of the House. He contended for the right of a regent, to have the full parliamentary powers of prorogation, diffolution, convening, and diffenting; for without the power of diffent, no affent could be obtained, and without that power, the monarch or regent would be a mere cy→ pher. The precedents that were on the table, and the hiftory of the country, as far as he had confidered it, all tended to establish two material points; the firft of which was, that no one had been appointed to be regent, when an heir-apparent of full age was in the country. but fuch heir; and, fecondly, that fuch regent had never been appointed without the full powers of a sovereign with refpect to his parliament. He next adverted to the period of the Revolution, little of which, he said, was applicable to the prefent moment; he discriminated between the applicable and inappli cable parts, and thewed that the two Houfes then affembled had never ventu red to legislate, but had firft proceeded to render complete the legislature, and when it was complete, brought in bills to quiet the minds of the people. To follow the applicable parts of the Revolution, he said the House should immediately address his Royal Highness to af fume fume the government for his father, and that then the legislature being complete, a bill might be brought in to quiet the minds of the people. He allowed, that any measure they could adopt must be informal: if, however, the mode of addreffing the Prince fhould be adopted, it would be an informality juftified by the neceffity; but, if the mode which has been proposed, of putting the great feal to a commiffion, fhould be adopted, it would be an informality unjuftified by neceffity; the firft mode would enable the Prince to hold the parliament in the King's name, and give immediate pow er and vigour to the proceedings of that House; the other would render them a parliament miferably deficient and ineffective; it was a mode contrary to the vital spirit of the conftitution, it was ap. pointing an intermediate regent, for which no precedent could be adduced, and which, in fact, deftroyed the conftitution, by ereding the two Houfes into the legislature. He conjured the Houfe, if they conceived reftrictions to be neceffary, to let them be in the addrefs, and not to adopt a mode which would thake the corner-ftone, and fap the foundation of the conftitution. He lamented that his indifpofition prevented him from going fo far into the question as he wifhed. Mr Pitt next rofe, and after faying that the present debate lay in a very narrow compass, he took a general review of the arguments of Mr Fox, and stating the precedents of Henty VI. and of the Revolution, drew conclufions in favour of the power of the two Houfes to intruft with whom they pleased, on the fufpenfion of Royal authority, what portion might by them be deemed neceffary for carrying on the executive power with vigour. He juftified the King's name being made ufe of without his confent, when that use was directed by the col lected wisdom of parliament. He ridiculed the idea that the King's name could not be made use of without his confent, for, fays he, in whose name will the regent act? If in his own name he dethrones the King, and if in the name of the King, he muft exercise it without his confent. The Houfe, he faid, had refolved on their right, it was therefore their duty to proceed to fill up their deficiency with what powers they judged neceffary-they had the power then, and ought not to give up that power or any part of it. If a regent was appointed, it might be put out of their power to reftrain; they might be diffolved, or a great number of peers might be created to prevent those restrictions taking place; they ought therefore to difcufs while they had the power of difcuffing. As to limitations, it might at least be a doubtful queftion with the majority of that Houle, whether for the public fafety they were to give all or but a part. The Rt Hon Gentleman (Mr Fox) fays you are to limit what you do by the neceffity; you then have a right to put what powers you think proper into the hands of the regent-but you are defired to give all the powers, before you know whether it is your duty to give any. He confidered the true queftion to be, whether granting the full powers now, might not hereafter, when God fhould favour the country with his Majefty's recovery, be the means of diminishing the powers of the rightful poffeffor? Noticing what had heen faid of the improbability of the Prince's refufing bis affent when regent to any reftriction that might be offered, he said, the House were to confider who might be the advisers of his Royal Highnefs, and whether they might not perfuade him to give his diffent to any reftrictions propofed; it would then be too late, and the power of the House to exercise their duty would be loft. He concluded with fome fevere sarcasms on the versatility of Mr Fox, in deferting the principles he had fo long maintained. Mr Powys was against the resolution, and being doubtful of the amendment anfwering the defired effect, withdrew, and gave no vote. Mr Drake was against the resolution, and had doubts of the propriety of the amendment. Mr Sheridan contended, that the prefent queftion was directly connected with that of limitations. The Rt Hon. Gentleman's (Mr Pitt's) arguments went to prove, that if the House adopted the prefent resolution, that they would then be enabled, without the poffibility of difappointment, to make what reftrictions might be thought proper; but if they did not, that then the restrictions they might with to have made, might be impoffible for them to carry into execution. The Noble Lord (North), he said, had not merely faid, that it was not probable that his Royal Highness would on his being made regent diffolve the parliament, but that that it was nearly impoffible, for how was money to be obtained to carry on the government?-He faw but one reafon for the Rt Hon. Gentleman (Mr Pitt) wishing to limit the prerogative, as he knew by his own experience and conduct what was fubject to abufe, he knew that the prerogative of diffolving a parliament, and of pouring a number of Lords into the Houle might be abufed; fuch powers in the Prince he how ever did not believe would be misused. -There was no doubt, he said, but the first act of the Prince would be to limit the regency, limitations that would come with much better grace after the appointment, than previous to it. The Prince, he was confident, would not fo far forget the duty he owed to his country, and the refpect he held for his father, as to diffolve immediately his parliament; no perfon, he was confident, would argue fuch a thing as more than barely poffible, much less as probable. He conceived the motive of the Rt Hon. Gentleman to be, in plain English, an apprehenfion, that if he was not minifter, no reftriction whatever would be adopted. The House then divided, when the numbers were, For Mr Dempfter's a mendment 178, against it 251, majority for the minister's refolution, 73. The refolution then paffed without a divifion, and it was refolved that the three refolutions be communicated to the Lords in a conference. At half past twelve adjourned. Dec. 23. The Marquis of Worcester was ordered to carry the three refolutions to the Lords, who, attended by feveral members, went with the paper in his hand to the upper Houfe. In about a quarter of an hour he returned, and reported, that he had communicated the refolutions to their Lordships, and had requested a conference in the name of the Commons; and that their Lordships, had accordingly appointed the faid conference to be holden in the Painted Chamber. The following members were then nominated to form a committee to manage the faid conference, namely, Marq. of Worcester,[Secretary at War, Chancellor of the Marq. of Graham, Exchequer, Lord ApЛey, Lord Courtoun, Lord F. Campbell, Lord Advocate, Brook Watfon, Hon. Mr Elliott, These gentlemen now went into the Painted Chamber; and when the confe rence was concluded, they returned to the Houfe, when the Marquis of Worcefter made this report, viz. That they had maintained a conference with the Lords, which had been managed, on the part of their Lordships, by the Lord Prefident of the Council; and that their Lordships had agreed to take the abovementioned refolutions into confideration. The call of the House, which had been fixed for to-morrow, was poftponed till to-morrow fe'nnight, the 31ft inftant. The House then adjourned, at a quarter after four o'clock, till Monday next. In the House of Lords, Dec. 23. Lord Camden acquainted their Lordships, that the purpose of the conference was to take the prefent unhappy ftate of his Majefty into confideration, and to request their acquiefcence with fome refolutions which the Commons had thought proper to agree to on the occafion. The refolutions were then read; after which Lord Camden moved, "That a committee of the whole House be appointed for Friday next, to take into confideration the state of the nation: That the report of his Majefty's phyficians; the report of the committee to search for precedents; and the Refolutions of the House of Commonu, be referred to the faid committee." The Lord Chancellor then put Lord Camden's motions, which all paffed in the affirmative, and the House adjourned to Friday next. Accordingly, on the 26th their Lordfhips went into a committee, and took into confideration the above refolutions from the Commons. Upon the first refolution being put, Lord Rawdon propofed as an amendment, to add the words "and that the House do provide for fuch interruption by addreffing his Royal Highnefs the Prince of Wales to take upon himself the office of Regent, and as fuch to exercife the executive government during his Majefty's indifpofition, and no longer." After a long and very interesting debate, (the particulars of, which shall be given in our next), the question being called for, the Houfe divided on the amendment, Contents 66-Not-contents 99-Majority 33 againit the amendment. The refolutions were then carried, the House resumed, the report made, and ordered to be taken into confideration on Monday. Curious Curious hiftorical Anecdotes of the VALUE of MONEY and COMMODITIES, from the earliest Periods of the English History. THE English money, though the fame names do by no means correfpond with the fame quantity of precious metal as formerly, has not changed fo much as the money of moft other countries. From the time of William the Conque ror, the proportion between the pound, the fhilling, and the penny, feems to have been uniformly the fame as at prefent. Edward III. was the firft of our Kings that coined any gold; and no copper was coined by authority before James I. Thefe pieces were not called farthings, but farthing tokens, and all people were at liberty to take or refufe them. Before the time of Edward III. gold was exchanged, like any other commodity, by its weight; and before the time of James I. copper was ftamped by any one person who chofe to do it. In the year 712 and 727, an ewe and lamb were rated at 1§, Saxon money till a fortnight after Eafter. Between the years 900 and 1000, two hydes of land, each containing about 120 acres, were fold for 100 fhillings. In 1000, by King Ethelred's laws, a horfe was rated at 30s. a mare, or a colt of a year old, at 208. a mule, or young afs, at 128. an ox at 30s, a cow at 24d. a fwine at 8d. a sheep at 18. In 1043 a quarter of wheat was fold for 60d. Hence it is computed, that in the Saxon times there was ten times lefs money, in proportion to commodities, than at prefent. Their nominal species, therefore, being about three times higher than ours, the price of every thing, according to our prefent language, must be reckoned thirty times cheaper than it is now. In the reign of William the Conqueror, commodities were ten times cheaper than they are at prefent; from which we cannot help forming a very high idea of the wealth and power of that King: for his revenue was 400,000l. per annum, every pound being equal to that weight of filver, conlequently the whole may be ellimated at 1,200,000l. of the prefent computation; a fum which, confidering the different value of money between that period and the pretent, was equi valent to 12,000,000l, of modern eftima tion. The most neceffary commodities do from William the Conqueror to Rinot feem to have advanced their price chard I. The price of corn in the reign of Henry III. was near half the mean price in our times. Bishop Fleetwood has shown, that in the year 1240, which was in this reign, 41. 13s. 9d. was worth about sol. of our prefent money. About the latter end of this reign, Robert de Hay, rector of Souldern, agreed to receive 100s. to purchase to himself and fucceffor the annual rent of 5s. in full compen fation of an acre of corn. Butchers meat, in the time of the great fcarcity in the reign of Edward II. was, by a parliamentary ordinance, fold three times cheaper than our mean price at prefent; poultry fomewhat lower, becaufe being now confidered as a delicacy, it has risen beyond its proportion. The mean price of corn at this period was half the prefent value, and the mean price of cattle one eighth. In the next reign, which was that of Edward III. the moft neceffary commodities were in general about three or four times cheaper than they are at prefent. In thefe times, knights, who served on horseback in the army, had 2 s. aday, and a foot archer 6 d. which laft would now be equal to a crown a-day. This pay has continued nearly the fame nominally, (only that in the time of the commonwealth the pay of the horse was advanced to 2 s. 6d. and that of the foot Is. though it was reduced again at the reftoration), but foldiers were proportionably of a better rank formerly. In the time of Henry VI. corn was about half its prefent value, other com modities much cheaper. Bishop Fleetwood has determined, from a most accurate confideration of every circumftance, that 31. in this reign was equivalent to 281. or 3al. now. In the time of Henry VII. many commodities were three times as cheap here, and in all Europe, as they are at prefent, there having been a great increase of gold and filver in Europe fince his time, occafioned by the discovery of America. The commodities whose price has risen the moft fince before the time of Henry VII. are butchers meat, fowls, and fish, especially the latter. And the reason why corn was always much dearer in proportion to other eatables, according to their prices at prefent, is, that in early |