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they had , besides , emoluments and occasional supplies , which enabled , them to 1 i ve in a state of splendor equal to their rank . This , however , was not thought sufficient , and a plan was forined far i ncreasi ng it to a very large amount ; which , in the present distressed state of the nation , seemed far to exceed the bounds of decency and
propriety . Before this plan was submitted to parliament , the minister had a meeting of the principal members of the oligarchy , before whom it was laid , and on whom reliance was placed for their concurrence , and such support as should secure its progress through the House of Commons . It is evident ,
that they were thunderstruck at the proposal ; but what passed in the private chamber is- ' not known , and it can be Inferred only by future proceedings . The project was brought into the House of Commons , where it was opposed by some ofthe principal " adherents' of tile ministry j but it was not -declared that they had
expressed their dissent at the private meeting * . This forms an extraordinary feature in this transactiony for it seems strange that they should not" have imparted their disapprobation to the minister ; or If they had done it , that he should persevere in a measure which could not fee carried but by their
concurrence . Be this as it may , the House and tlie people were astonished at this refractory spirit , as well as the perseverance of the minister in opposition to it . An animated debate took place , in which the extravagance of the minister ' s proposal was set forth in glowing * colours $ an appeal
was forcibly made to the state of the country , and thb impropriety bf adding such additional burdens was expatiated upon with great energy . An inquiry wa * called for into the income of the princes , and hints thrown out of their sufficiency for the expected 1 change of their situations . The contest was carried on with vigour , and it ended in a division , in which the minister
was in a minority . ' Thus baffled in his first measure , he was obliged to be content with what he could get , and there he had the mortification to encounter another difficulty . For , when the disposition seemed evident to increase the incomes of the princes by six thousand a year in case of their marriage , it was
urged , that the Duke of Cumberland , already married , should be placed on the same fooling- This was unfortunate , for it was renewing the history of the ill success of a himilur application on bis mar * riage ; and this question was decided against
the minister , by the House refusing to add to the jtttcome € > f the puke ,, but allowingthe six . thouband a year to be paid to bis wife in ease of her surviving him . This case could not occur without many observations , which may be matter of future
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history . The lady expressed £ er tf * &ftk * in a very handsome manner to the ; Ho « wi for the ; giants ; arid the Duke has stilt an income , 'which woiikT be the envy <* f ; tfcet . princes of Germany in his rank of life . , ;
The debate did not pa « s over without many ludicrous allusions , by wfcieli- Mr . Canning excited the laughter of the House . As usual , be did no good , but rather harm to his cause ; for his mode of speaking could not possibly bring over the wavering , and it could not be gratifying to ftis ^ wn ,
party to see their measure exposed to the jokes which his . witticisms excited . Among them it was started , that one of the dukes had bent bis thoughts to matrimony merely for the good of the nation , and that wiltiiout the allowance , we should be deprived of
the benefit which mig ht he expected from a connexion of this kind 3 and it seems that the nation is now really in that state . A marriage , however , of otte of the jroyal dukes is said to be on the tapis , and one of the princesses has given her hiand to a prince of Germany .
Ju the debate also were allusions made to the royal establishment at Windsor , and the wealth supposed to be possessed by the heads of the MRoyal Family . If fljis is really so considerable as some persons imagine , it should seem that the princes might very fairly be expected to derive as other
children some assistance from that quarter . The head cannot , from unhappy circumstances , enjoy the splendor appropriated to his rank ; and where can the superfluity be so well placed as with his children ? These , with similar remarks , made the debate very interesting . ^ v
But the defeat of the minister gave occasion for the use of a very fallacious argument . It was urged , that the Commons of England had manifested their power , and that they were not to be overawed , as was frequently insinuated , by ministerial influence * The error lies in the use of the term . Commons . The ini-i
nister was not beat by the opposition , that might arise from the disapprobation of the people of the first extravagant proposal , but from that of the oligarchy : for it must be kept constantly in view , that the votes of the House depend on the combination of
three elements;—the power of t $ e crown , the power of the people , and the , power of the oligarchy , oftentimes designated by the appellation of the boroughniongers . In this combination , if the power ot the
people is represented by { thirty , that of the crown may be by forty , that of the oligarchy by a hundred and ten . The oligarchy cannot , from its nature , be cyer unanimous : the crown must naturally have
great away with it v and several of its members ^ wijl take the popular side . In , this question , it ; was o&tural t }? at those members whows teats depended on the people , afcoiitd
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£ 86 iS 5 fa ^ 1 ^ ^^ ft / w ^ y ^ i& ?^
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), April 2, 1818, page 286, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2475/page/62/
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