the finest gentleman of his time. His magnificence, his taste, his talents, his classical learning, his high spirit, the grace and urbanity of his manners, were admitted by his enemiese His eulogists, unhappily, could not pretend that his morals had escaped untainted from the wide-spread contagion of that age. Though an enemy of Popery and of arbitrary power, he had been averse to extreme courses, had been willing, when the Exclusion Bill was lost, to agree to a compromise, and had never been concerned in the illegal and imprudent schemes which had brought discredit on the Whig party. But, though regretting part of the conduct of his friends, he had not, on that account, failed to perform zealously the most arduous and perilous duties of friendship. He had stood near Russell at the bar, had parted from him on the sad morning of the execution with close embraces and with many bitter tears, nay, had offered to manage an escape at the hazard of his own life. This great nobleman now proposed that a day should be fixed for considering the royal speech. It was contended, on the other side, that the Lords, by voting thanks for the speech, had precluded themselves from complaining of it. But this objection was treated with contempt by Halifax. "Such thanks," he said, with the sarcastic pleasantry in which he excelled, "imply no approbation. We are thankful whenever our gracious sovereign deigns to speak to us. Especially thankful are we when, as on the present occasion, he speaks out, and gives us fair warning of what we are to suffer." Doctor Henry Compton, Bishop of London, spoke strongly for the motion. Though not gifted with eminent abilities, nor deeply versed in the learning of his profession, he was always heard by the House with respect; for he was one of the few clergymen who could, in that age, boast of noble blood. His own loyalty, and the loyalty of his family, had been signally proved. His father, the second Earl of Northampton, had fought bravely for King Charles the First, and, surrounded by the parliamentary soldiers, had fallen, sword in hand, refusing to give or take quarter. The bishop himself, before he was ordained, had borne arms in the Life Guards; and, though he generally -did his best to preserve the gravity and sobriety befitting a prel **Burnet, i. 560; Funeral Sermon of the Duke of Devonshire, preached by Kennet, 1708; Travels of Cosmo III. in England.gon ng + Bramston's Memoirs. Burnet is incorrect both as to the time when this remark was made and as to the person who made ito mois VOL. II. 3 ate, some flashes of his military, spirit would, to the last, occa sionally break forth. He had been intrusted with the, religious: education of the two princesses, and had acquitted himself of or that important duty in a manner which had satisfied all good t Protestants, and had secured to him considerable influence over the minds of his pupils, especially of the Lady Anne." He now declared that he was empowered to speak the senses of his brethren, and that, in their opinion and in his own, the whole civil and ecclesiastical constitution of the realm was in danger. One of the most remarkable speeches of that day, was made by a young man, whose eccentric career was destined to amaze Europe. This was Charles Mordaunt, Viscount : Mor daunt, widely renowned, many years later, as Earl of Peterborough. Already he had given abundant proofs of his courage, of his capacity, and of that strange unsoundness of mind which made his courage and capacity almost useless to his country. Already he had distinguished himself as a wit and a scholar, as a soldier and a sailor. He had even set his heart on rivalling Bourdaloue and Bossuet. Though ante avowed freethinker, he had sate up all night at sea, to compose sermons, and had with great difficulty been preventede from edifying the crew of a man of war with his pious oratory.t He now addressed the House of Peers, for the first time, with characteristic - eloquence, sprightliness, and audacity. . He blamed the Commons for not having taken a bolder line. "They have been afraid," he said, "to speak out. They have talked of apprehensions and jealousies. What have ap prehension and jealousy to do here? Apprehension and jealousy are the feelings with which we regard future and un-.. certain evils. The evil which we are considering is neitherfuture nor uncertain. A standing army exists. It is officered: by Papists. We have no foreign enemy. There is no rebellion in the land. For what, then, is this force maintained, except for the purpose of subverting our laws and establishing that arbitrary power which is so justly. abhorred by Englishmen?"f $ * Wood, Ath. Ox.; Gooch's Funeral Sermon on Bishop Compton. + Teonge's Diary. Barillon has given the best account of this debate. I will ex tract his report of Mordaunt's speech. "Milord Mordaunt, quoique jeune, parla avec éloquence et force. Il dit que la question n'étoit pas réduite, comme la Chambré des Communes le prétendoit, à guérir Jeffrey's spoke against the motion in the coarse and savageb style of which he was a master; but he soon found that it was not quite so easy to browbeat the proud and powerful barons of England in their own hall, as to intimidate barristers whose bread depended on his favor, or prisoners whose necks were at his mercy.A man whose life has been passed in attacking and domineering, whatever may be his talents and courage, generally makes a mean figure when he is vigorously assailed; for, being unaccustomed to stand on the defensive, he becomes confused; and the knowledge that all those whom he has in sultedmare enjoying his confusion confuses him still more. Jeffreys was now, for the first time since he had becomes arc great man, encountered on equal terms by adversaries whos did not fear him. To the general delight, he passed at oncesh from the extreme of insolence to the extreme of meanness, and could not refrain from weeping with rage and vexation." Nothing indeed was wanting to his humiliation; for the House was crowded by about a hundred peers, a larger number than had voted even on the great day of the Exclusion Bill. The king, too, was present. His brother had been in the habit of attending the sittings of the Lords for amusement, and used often to say that a debate was as entertaining as a comedy. James came, not to be diverted, but in the hope that his presence might impose some restraint on the discussion. He was disappointed. The sense of the House was so strongly manifested that, after a closing speech, of great keenness, from Halifax, the courtiers did not venture to divide. An early day was fixed for taking the royal speech into consideration; and i it was ordered that every peer who was not at a distance from Westminster should be in his place. 1 1. des jalousies et défiances, qui avoient lieu dans les choses incertaines; mais que ce qui se passoit ne l'étoit pas, qu'il y avoit une armée sur pied qui subsistoit, et qui étoit remplie d'officiers Catholiques, qui ne pouvoit être conservée que pour le renversement des loix, et que la subistance de l'armée, quand il n'y a aucune guerre ni au dedans ni au dehors, étoit l'établissement du gouvernement arbitraire, pour lequel les Anglois ont une aversion si bien fondée." * He was very easily moved to tears. "He could not," says the author of the Panegyric, "refrain from weeping on bold affronts." And again: "They talk of his hectoring and proud carriage; what could be more humble than for a man in his great post to cry and sob?" In the answer to the Panegyric it is said that "his having no ri command of his tears spoiled him for a hypocrite." + Lords' Journals, Nov. 19, 1685; Barillon, Nov. 23 0978 BITE Dutch Despatch, On the following morning the king came down, in his robes to the House of Lords. The usher of the black rod summoned the Commons to the bar; and the chancellor announced that the parliament was prorogued to the tenth of February. The members who had voted against the court were dismissed from the public service. Charles Fox quitted the pay office. The Bishop of London ceased to be dean of the chapel royal, and his name was struck out of the list of privy councillors. The effect of the prorogation was to put an end to a legal proceeding of the highest importance. Thomas Grey, Earl of Stamford, sprung from one of the most illustrious houses of England, had been recently arrested and committed, close prisoner to the Tower on a charge of high treason. He was accused of having been concerned in the Rye House plot. A true bill had been found against him by the grand jury of the city of London, and had been removed into the House of Lords, the only court before which a peer of the realm can, during a session of parliament, be arraigned for any offence higher than a misdemeanor. The first of December had been fixed for the trial; and orders had been given that Westminster Hall should be fitted up with seats and hangings. In conse quence of the prorogation, the hearing of the cause was postponed for an indefinite period; and Stamford soon regained his liberty.t Three other Whigs of great eminence were in confinement when the session closed, Charles Gerard, Lord Gerard of Brandon, eldest.s son of the Earl of Macclesfield, John Hamp den, grandson of the great leader of the Long Parliament, and Henry Booth, Lord Delamere. Gerard and Hampden were accused of having taken part in the Rye House plot; Dela mere of having abetted the western insurrection. It was not the intention of the government to put either Gerard or Hampden to death. Grey had stipulated for their Nov. 38; Luttrell's Diary, Nov. 19; Burnet, i. 665. The closing speech of Halifax is mentioned by the Nuncio in his despatch of Nov. 18. Adda, about a month later, bears strong testimony to Halifax's powers. Da questo uomo che ha gran credito nel parlamento, e grande eloquenza, non si possono attendere che fiere contradizioni, e nel partito Regio non vi è un uomo da contrapporsi." Dec. 1 *Lords' and Commons' Journals, Nov. 20, 1685. + Lords' Journals, Nov. 11, 17, 18, 1685. lives before he consented to become a witness against them.* But there was a still stronger reason for sparing them. They were heirs to large property; but their fathers were still living. The court could, therefore, get little in the way of forfeiture, and might get much in the way of ransom. Gerard was tried, and, from the very scanty accounts which have come down to us, seems to have defended himself with great spirit and force. He boasted of the exertions and sacrifices made by his family in the cause of Charles the First, and proved Rumsey, the witness who had murdered Russell by telling one story, and Cornish by telling another, to be utterly undeserving of credit. The jury, with some hesitation, found a verdict of guilty. After long imprisonment, Gerard was suffered to redeem himself.t Hampden had inherited the political opinions and a large share of the talents of his grandfather, but had degenerated from the uprightness and the courage by which his grandfather had been distinguished. It appears that the prisoner was, with cruel cunning, long kept in an agony of suspense, in order that his family might be induced to pay largely for mercy. His spirit sank under the terrors of death. When brought to the bar of the Old Bailey he not only pleaded guilty, but disgraced the illustrious name which he bore by abject submissions and entreaties. He protested that he had not been privy to the design of assassination; but he owned that he had meditated rebellion, professed deep repentance for his offence, implored the intercession of the judges, and vowed that, if the royal clemency were extended to him, his whole life should be passed in evincing his gratitude for such goodness. The Whigs were furious at his pusillanimity, and loudly declared him to be far more deserving of blame than Grey, who, even in turning king's evidence, had preserved a certain decorum. Hampden's life was spared; but his family paid several thousand pounds to the chancellor. Some courtiers, of less note, succeeded in extorting smaller sums. The unhappy man had spirit enough to feel keenly the degradation to which he had stooped. He survived the day of his ignominy several years. He lived to see his party triumphant, to be once more an important member of it, to rise high in the state, and to make his persecutors tremble in their turn. But his prosperity was imbittered by one insupportable recollection. * Burnet, i. 646. + Bramston's Memoirs; Luttrell's Diary. |