attention to a variety of papers which he had brought before, them, and which, when properly understood, would be found to be highly important, and to bear immediately upon the important fubject of the propofed Union. He hoped other Noble Lords would take the trouble to examine them, and affift him in endeavouring to make them properly understood by the Houfe, who would then fee to what an extent of advantage the measure would prove to the fifter kingdom, the intereft of which he had from official fituation at a former period in that country, and from long continued habits of correfpondence and intimacy, which he had the honour to enjoy with the great, leading, and most intelligent men in that country for many years, been able to become tolerably well acquainted with.

The question being put, was carried in favour of the folutions, without a divifion.

Lord Grenville then moved, that their Lordships be fummoned for Thurfday, April 4, when he would move the Addrefs. Adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
Tuesday, March 19.

Mr. Alderman Curtis brought up the Bill for regulating the Rate of Porterage of Parcels, to be taken by Innkeepers and other Perfons in the Cities of London and Westminster, and the Borough of Southwark, and places adjacent.-Read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time.

Mr. Tierney prefented a Petition from the Owners of certain wharfs on the Thames against the Wet Dock Bills. The Committee on the ftate of the Herring Fisheries was put off to the 8th of April.

On bringing up the report of the Newfoundland Convoy Bill,

Mr. Baftard moved, that the Bill be amended by leaving out the claufe which prevents veffels failing from St. John's without convoy.

Mr. Rofe oppofed the amendment; which was negatived without a divifion. The report was agreed to, and the Bill ordered to be read a third time on the 20th.

Upon reading the Order of the Day upon Mr. William Williams's Divorce Bill,

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, to make way for public bufinefs, moved that this Bill be committed to-morrowwhich was afterwards ordered accordingly.

Mr. Dickenfon prefented a Petition from Lord Penrhyn

and

and others, Planters and Weft India Merchants, against the Bill now before the Houfe, for confining within certain limits the traffic in Negroes on the coast of Africa, and praying that the Bill might not pafs into a law.

The Petition being read, and a motion being made, that it be laid on the table, and that the Petitioners be heard by Counsel on the fecond reading of the Bill,

The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved, that all the words of this motion, after the words lie on the table, be left out, for the purpose, he faid, of afterwards moving that this Petition be rejected, on account of its containing an affertion in favour of the Slave Trade, of which the House had on its Journals a recorded refutation already. He confidered this Petition as an attack on the honour of the House.

This produced a debate, in which the general queftion of the continuance, or gradual abolition of the Slave Trade, was difcuffed.

Mr. H. Thornton, Mr. Hobhoufe, Sir W. Dolben, Lord Belgrave, Mr. I. H. Browne, the Mafter of the Roils, and Mr. Canning, agreed with the Chancellor of the Exche

quer.

Sir W. Young, Mr. Dickenson, Lord Sheffield, Colonel Gafcoigne, Mr. Dent, Mr. Barham, and Mr. Sewel, fpoke on the other fide.

The Gentlemen who fupported the amendment argued on the ground that the prayer to be heard by Counsel was a mere artifice to create unneceffary delay; that it was not a fubject for legal argument; and that the Petition itself was an infult to the Houfe, as containing averments contrary to its recorded decifions.-In prefling thefe arguments,

Mr. W. Smith faid there were fome men fo wedded to their own intereft, they would fend the whole House to the D for a penny.

Mr. Peele, who fpoke at fome length, faid he was very forry to fee Gentlemen fo far forget themselves as to ufe fuch language, and hoped the debate would be confined within the bounds of good manners.

Mr. Dickenson propofed to have the names of the Petitioners read as evidence of their great refpectability. Lord Penrhyn, Mr. Hart, &c. ftood at the head of the lift.The House then divided on Mr. Pitt's amendment.

Ayes 38-Noes

16.

22.Majority During the abfence of ftrangers, we understand that Mr. Dickenson withdrew his Petition, and that a fecond divifion

No. 30.

took place on the fame ground, on a fimilar Petition prefented by Mr. Sewel. The numbers were, in favour of the amendment for refufing to hear Counfel 32, against it 12. On the gallery doors being opened, we found

Mr. Dent on his legs oppofing the queftion for the fecond reading of the Bill above referred to. He was proceeding to ftate the contents of a letter which he received from Liverpool, demonstrating the vaft emolument which this nation at large derived from the Slave Trade, when

Colonel Gafcoigne faid, that he should be forry if his Hon. Friend threw away his arguments upon fo thin a House; he therefore moved that the House be counted. There not being 40 Members prefent, the Houfe was, of course, adjourned.

HOUSE OF LORDS.
Wednesday, March 20.

THE Income Amended Bill was read a third time and paffed.

The Scots Small Note Bill, as amended by their Lordships, was returned from the Commons, to receive the Royal Affent.

The Linen Bounty and Provifional Cavalry Bills, were reported, with amendments. These were read a third time. The Land Tax Redemption Act to amend the former Bill, was read the third time.

A meffage from the Commons informed the Houfe the Volunteer Corps Exemption Bill had been brought down on Monday by mistake.

Lord Kenyon having communicated the meffage to the Houfe, it was agreed that the proceedings which had since taken place on it fhould be vacated; after which it was brought down again from the Commons in its proper form, read a first time, and ordered to be printed.

Adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.
Wednesday, March 20.

Mr. Ricketts's Divorce Bill was read a firft time.

Mr. W. Williams's Divorce Bill went through a Committee of the whole Houfe; after which

The Mafter of the Rolls obferved, that as this was a Bill which came to that House from the Lords, and as the Houfe had made no amendment in it, and as it was to the advan tage of the party to avoid any delay, he fhould move, that this Bill be now read a third time.-Read a third time accordingly.

Sir W. Scott brought up a Bill for amending certain defects in the Law refpecting offences committed on the high feas-Read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time this day fortnight.

The Bill for permitting fhips to fail from Newfoundland without convoy, was read a third time and paffed.

The Committees on the two Wet Dock Bills, obtained leave to fit, notwithstanding any adjournment of the House. A meffage from the Lords informed the Houfe, that their Lordships had agreed to feveral Bills without any amendment, and had paffed feveral others, to which they defired the concurrence of the Houfe; and that their Lordships had agreed to the Bill for explaining and amending the Land Tax Bill. And alfo to the Bill for explaining and amending the Cavalry Bill without any amendment; and also that they had agreed to the Bill explaining and amending the Income Bill with amendments, to which they defired the concurrence of the Houfe.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved, that these amendments be now taken into confideration. He observed, that these amendments were nothing more than was neceffary to rectify an error in a statement in the Bill. The Bill had at firft in it, the 25th of March, as the day for returning the Affeffment; fince which, the 5th of April had been substituted. In the course of the Bill, and a few lines below this amendment, the words which referred to the 25th of March were accidentally left to ftand, inftead of being ftruck out, as they ought to be; and this amendment by the Lords was only to rectify that literal error, and therefore did not come within the rule of objection which the Houfe took to any amendment made by the Lords in any money bill.

The Speaker faid, that the purport of this amendment was only to effect the real intention of the House of Commons, and what the House itself must have done, had it not have occurred to the other Houfe to correct the error. Under thefe circumftances, the privilege of the Houfe was not touched. There were precedents for the acquiefcence of the House in fuch an amendment as this. Care, however, fhould be taken to enter on the Journals the reason why the House acquiefced in this amendment.-Amendment agreed to.

COLD BATH FIELDS PRISON.

Sir F. Burdett faid, he rose to mention a circumftance relative to this prifon. A letter had been fent from Col. Defpard to the Committee appointed by the Houfe to examine 7L 2

into

into the state of it, defiring they might examine him and fome others. An anfwer was fent to him by Mr. Wilberforce, in a letter which was delivered to him by the Governor; who, after having done fo, went to where Duffin, one of the prifoners was, and taking hold of him faid-"You D'd rafcal, you have been making communications," upon which he threw him down upon the ground, and took from him a pocket book containing fome promiffory notes and memorandums relating to the prifon. After ftating this fact, he would juft move that it be an instruction to the Committee to vifit the prifon of Cold Bath Fields, in order to take the examinations of perfons confined there.

The Specker obferved, that the Honourable Baronet was, perhaps, not aware that the Committee had power to move from place to place. The motion fhould be by way of inftruction to the Committee.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer confidered the motion unneceflary and improper, as the Committee had already a power given them by the Houfe to vifit the prifon and becaufe, if any inftruction was to be given by the House, it fhould be more fpecifically ftated than it was poflible at prefent to do, from the Honourable Baronet having only barely mentioned a fact, without bringing any evidence to support it.

Sir Francis Burdett faid, he was no way tenacious about his motion, his only object was, that the fact which he mentioned might be known; and that the Committee might go to the prifon, which he did not know they had the power of doing. There were fome things connected with this fubject which particularly affected himself, and on which he hoped foon to have an opportunity of justifying himself; by which means the public would be enabled to judge of the whole bufinefs. So far from his having been acquainted with any of the prifoners in the Cold Bath Field prifon, he could only then fay, that he never fpoke to one of them.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that this was not the time, nor was the Honourable Baronet the person to make any comment on this cafe, and leaft of all fhould he undertake to fay what may hereafter appear upon this matter. That fhould be deferred until after the Committee fhall have made a report. As to the motion before the Houfe, he muft obferve, that he did not fay whether it would be fit for the Committee to vifit the prifon, but that they had the power of doing fo.

Sir William Young faid, that the idea of vifiting the pri

fon