PART William Pulteney, Efq; was appointed one of III. the privy council: a new commiffion iffued, ap pointing the Earl of Wilmington, Sir John Rush1742. out, Samuel Sandys, George Compton, and Philip Gybbon, Efqs; lords of the treasury: foon after, the Right Honourable Daniel, Earl of Winchelsea and Northampton; John Cockburne, Efq; Lord Archibald Hamilton; Lord Baltimore; Philip Cavendish, Efq; George Lee, Doctor of Laws; and John Morley Trevor, Efq; were appointed lords of the admiralty: the Duke of Marlborough was made colonel of the fecond regiments of foot guards Thomas Matthews, Efq; was made vice admiral of the red; Edward Vernon, Efq; vice admiral of the white; Nicholas Haddock, Efq; vice admiral of the blue; Sir Chaloner Ogle, Knt rear admiral of the red; and Richard Leftock, Efq; rear admi ral of the white his majefty alfo made a promotion in his army of two lieutenant-generals, three major-generals, and eight brigadiers.

His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales efteeming Sir Robert Walpole as a bar between the king and the affections of his people, between the king and foreign powers, and between the king and himself, ftood in the front of the op: pofition, and for fome years had abfented from his majesty but as the firft happy effect of the change in the miniftry, his royal highnefs waited on his majesty at St James's, attended by a great concourfe of nobility, and other perfons of diftinction, was received in the most gracious and affectionate manner, and a guard was immediately ordered to attend his royal highnes At Charlton House.

THE whole nation loudly teftified their joy and approbation of this change in the govern

ment;

ment; they expected the national honour to be CHAP. retrieved; and addreffes, from every part, were I. fent to their reprefentatives in parliament, expreffing their fatisfaction on fo feasonable an 1742.. event, and strongly recommending to them a pursuit of measures, conducive to the restoring and maintaining the antient conftitution, and to concur in making the ftricteft enquiry into the, cause of paft mifmanagements.

As the whigs, who had confederated in the oppofition, never intended to continue an alli ance with the tories, any further than the removal of the minifter, and an alteration in his fyftem of politics; they endeavoured to keep that party from the lead in the government, and to prevent them from engroffing any material fhare in the administration. As the choice of thofe already preferred, had fallen principally upon the whigs, it adminiftred matter of great: jealousy to, and was an ill omen for the tories, who expected nothing less than to be admitted. into a coalition of power; and though his majefty had already supplied the principal minifte rial posts, with perfons who had long been moft confided in by the people, the tories had very juft fufpicions they were to be deferted by thefe gentlemen in power, and that none, or only a few, of the tories would be permitted to prefide in the government.

THE parliament met, pursuant to their adjournment, on the 18th of February; and, on the ft of March, a motion was made in the houfe of commons "For the repealing of the

feptennial act, and reftoring triennial parlia"ments; " which met with violent oppofitions, and after a long debate was rejected; though moft of the members had been inftructed by

PART their conftituents, frenuously to infift on this as III. a preliminary to the grant of any fupplies.

IT was now very evident, that the tories had 1742. hitherto been only fubfervient in affifting their confederated whigs, to remove Sir Robert Wal pole, and pave the way to their advancement ; from which the tories were not only generally excluded, but had the mortification to perceive they could not avail themselves. This created a party against the new miniftry, whofe influence was already to firmly established, that his grace the Duke of Argyle, difgufted at their conduct, on the roth of March, refigned all his employs ments; and was fucceeded by the Duke of Mon tagu as mafter of the ordnance.

THE public were at this time unanimous for an enquiry into the adminiftration of Sir Robert Walpole; the crime they imputed to him wast that of applying not only all the favours of the crown, but even the public money towards gaine ing a corrupt influence at elections and in parlia ment; and according to their deluded fenti ments, he was to make an attohement, by no lefs a facrifice than he lofs of his life, his eftate, his honour, and the utter ruin of his pofterity: this was the voice of the undifcerning multitude; and had he not been defended in the manner which he was, fuch a fentence, in the rage of that time, had been in all probability his fate: though the laws muft have been more tortured to have reached him capitally, than he had ftrained his power to maintain himfelf. Among the wifer part of mankind, few were in their hearts inclined to this extremity; though fome, by the fatal attraction of party, might have violently, and indifcreetly, wifhed to have feen that punishment inflicted on the minifter, they muft, when

the

the ferment had fubfided, have afterwards hear- CHAP. tily lamented for the man. But though the 1. more moderate in the fenate, were difinclined to take any fevere revenge on a mistaken man, who 1742. had trefpaffed upon the power in his hands, yet they were willing to concur fo far, as to deprive him of any poffibility of exerting the fame again : to do this, must be by detecting and expofing the mifmanagement of the former adminiftration, by a public enquiry into the conduct of the minifter. In this they gratified the voice of the nation; but, at the fame time, determined to protect and preferve him from the rage and violence to which he was expofed. This enquiry was alfo the more neceffary, as it would be in vain for the parliament to attempt to retrieve their loft honour, by pursuing new measures, if they did not first cenfure the authors of the old: vain muft be their attempt to gain allies, and to convince them that they were in earneft in the profecution of the war against their enemies abroad, unless they firft called those to an account, that had been their fecret abettors and encouragers at home.

ACCORDINGLY, on the 9th of March, the Lord Viscount Limerick moved the house of commons, "That a committee might be ap pointed to enquire into the conduct of affairs

at home and abroad, for the last twenty years; but feveral of the members, who were otherwise inclined to have favoured the motion, opposed it, because they apprehended it to be too extenfive as to time, and too extenfive as to matter; and that an inquiry for fo long a time back, was thought to be without precedent; and, if allow ed, would be fuch a precedent, as might be of dangerous confequence in future times: another

objection

PART objection was alfo ftarted to the motion, as it III. comprehended all foreign as well as domeftic af

fairs, which muft of course have brought all the 1742. papers relating to the foreign negociations before the committee, and thereby endanger the difcovery of fome of the most important fecrets of the government to its enemies, which might be of the most fatal confequence, now the nation was engaged in one war, and in great likelihood of being foon obliged to engage in another and these reasons having great weight in the house, the motion, after a long debate, was rejected, by a majority of two. Not difcouraged with this difappointment, the fame nobleman on the 23d, made another motion, "That a committee be "appointed, to enquire into the conduct of Ro

:

bert Earl of Orford, during the laft ten years of his being firft commiffioner of the treasury, ❝ and chancellor and under treasurer of his majefty's exchequer:" which was carried in the affirmative, by a majority of feven: and the house refolved, "That a committee of fecrecy, in number twenty-one, should be chosen by 66 balloting."

THE Committee being chofe, and the house having ordered "That they fhould have power "to fend for perfons, papers, and records, and "to examine, in the moft folemn manner, fuch "perfons as they thought proper, upon the fub

ject matter of their inquiry;" they proceeded to bufinefs: and, upon the 13th of April, the Lord Limerick, their chairman, reported to the house, "That the committee met with great " obstructions in their inquiry;" for having ordered Nicholas Paxton, Efq; follicitor to the treasury, Gwynn Vaughan, Efq; and Mr Scrope, fecretary to the treasury; before them, for an examination,