ing manner, until the monarchs began to know their own ftrength; and feeing the turbulent fpirit of their parliaments, at length they, by little and little, began to ftand upon their prerogatives, and at laft overthrew the parliaments throughout christendom, except here only with us.

"And indeed you would count it a great mifery, if you knew the fubjects in foreign countries as well as myself, to fee them look not like our nation, with flore of flesh on their backs, but like fo many ghofts, and not men; being nothing but skin and bones, with fome thin cover to their nakednefs, and wearing only wooden shoes on their feet; fo that they cannot eat meat, or wear good cloths, but they must pay and be taxed unto the king for it. This is a mifery beyond expreffion, and that which yet we are free from. Let us be careful, then, to preferve the king's good opi nion of parliaments, which bringeth this happiness to this nation, and makes us envied of all others, while there is this sweetness between his majesty and the commons, left we lose the repute of a free-born nation, by turbulency in parliament; for, in my opipion, the greatest and wifeft part of a parliament, are thofe that ufe the greatest filence, fo as it be not opiniative, or fullen, as now we are, by the lofs of of thefe our members that are committed.

"This good correfpondency being kept between the king and his people, will fo join their love and favour to his majesty with liking of parliaments, that his prerogative fhall be preferved entire to himself, without our trenching upon it; and also the privilege of the fubject (which is our happiness) inviolate, and both be maintained to the fupport of each other." P. 43.

The fpeech of the Earl of Strafford, on occafion of his laft defence before the house of lords A. D. 1615, is remarkable for its ftrong fenfe, clear reafoning, and unaffected pathos; but is already too well known to the public to require tranfcribing. It is inferted at p. 99 of volume i. and we give credit to Mr. Hazlitt for allowing of this unfortunate nobleman, that "whatever were his faults, he was a man of a fine understanding, and an heroic fpirit; and undoubtedly a great man;" fince we can difcover from many expreffions of this editor, that the fteady adherence to royalty by which the latter part of Lord Strafford's political career was diftinguished, is by no means a quality calculated to acquire his applaufe. We cannot, however, be equally complimentary to Mr. Hazlitt for the illuftrative note which he has prefixed to a speech of Mr. Whitlocke at p. 125; and which in our opinion exhi bits a moft egregious example of bad tafte in writing, and of being betrayed, by the defire of saying fine things, into the

That is, obftinately filent.

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perpetration of thofe identical faults, which the author at the very moment is holding up to cenfure. At the period at which this fpeech was delivered, he informs us, that facts and feelings went hand in hand; and "our ideas, not yet exorcifed and fqueezed and tortured out of their natural objects, inta a Jubtle effence of pure intellect, did not fly about like ghosts without a body, toffed up and down, or upborne only by the elegant forms of words, through the vacuum of abstract reafoning and fentimental refinement." "The understanding," he adds, "was invigorated and nourished with its natural and proper food, the knowledge of things without it; and was not left, Like an empty ftomach to prey upon itself, or starve on the meagre Jeraps of an artificial logic, or windy impertinence of ingenuity Jelf-begotten." He then proceeds to exclaim, "what a difference between the grave, clear, folid laborious flyle of the fpeech here given, and the crude metaphyfics, false glitter, and trifling witticifm of a modern legal oration!" And fubjoins this moft appropriate aphorifm, "The truth is, that the affectation of philofophy, and fine tafte, has fpailed every thing."

During the reign of Charles II. a better and lefs affected flyle of oratory prevailed. A fpeech of Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, the well-known author of the Rehear fal, delivered at a conference between the lords and commons in the year 1688, held in order to decide the limits of the judicial authority of the latter, is characterized by much good fenfe, and an eafy claffical ftyle. It is faid, with fome truth, by Mr. Hazlitt, that the Duke in this fpeech, feems chiefly anxious to avoid the imputation of knowing or caring more about the matter than became a gentleman and a wit. But it is admitted that, at the fame time, he talks very well about it; and as the fpeech contains fome pertinent remarks on a fubject which has of late been very keenly agitated, the privileges of parlia ment, fome readers will probably be glad to refer to it. (See vol. i. p. 169).

Very few fpeeches are given by Mr. Hazlitt of the reign of William III. and not a fingle one of the reign of Queen Anne, although both reigns, and particularly the latter, were characterized by the keennefs of parliamentary debate. Under the reign of Queen Anne, we are prefented with nothing but the fpeech of Lord Belhaven, in the Scotch convention, against the Union,' which is chiefly remarkable for its false predictions and whining declamation.

After the acceffion of the house of Brunswick, we find many eminent crators figuring in both houfes of parliament, and we have fpecimens of oratory very nearly resembling thofe of our own times. The critical ilate in which the na

tion was then placed by the frequent attempts that were made to re-eftablifh the excluded family on the throne, and the important events that were taking place on the great theatre of European politics, afforded the moft ample field for the difplay of oratorial talents. and were well fuited to roufe all the energies of public men. The most celebrated speakers of this period were Sir Robert Walpole, Mr. Shippen, Mr. H. Walpole, Mr. Pulteney, Mr. Sandys, Sir John St. Aubin, Lord Chesterfield, Mr. (afterwards Lord) Lyttelton, &c. &c. We fhould be happy to give fome fpecimens of the oratory of thefe celebrated ftatefmen, but are prevented by the limits within which this article must be circumfcribed. We fhall content ourselves, therefore, with inferting the following fhort speech of a man of equal, though fomewhat different celebrity, Sir Richard Steele, which is in defence of feptennial parliaments: and will be more apt to meet with attention from a certain clafs of readers, becaufe Sir Richard is characterized by Mr. Hazlitt as a moft furious whig.

"Mr. Speaker,

"It is evident that new chofen annual parliaments were never the custom or right of this kingdom; it remains therefore only to confider now that there is a law which makes parliaments meet, as of course, at such a stated time, whether the period of three years has answered the purposes intended by it? The preamble to the triennial act expreffes that it was introduced into the conftitution for the better union and agreement of the king and his people; but it has had a quite contrary effect: and experience has verified what a great man (meaning the late earl of Sunderland) faid of it when it was enacted: "That it had made a triennial king, a triennial miniftry, a triennial alliance." We feel this in all occur. rences of ftate; and they who look upon us from abroad behold the ftruggle in which we are neceffarily engaged from time to time under this law: ever fince it has been enacted the nation has been in a series of contentions. The first year of a triennial parliament has been spent in vindictive decifions, and animofities about the late elections; the fecond feffion has entered into bufinefs, but ra ther with a fpirit of contradiction to what the prevailing fet of men in former parliaments had brought to pafs, than of a difinterested zeal for the common good. The third feffion languifhed in the purfuit of what little was intended to be done in the fecond, and the approach of an enfuing election terrified the members into a fervile management, according as their refpective principals were difpofed towards the queftion before then in the houfe.

"Thus the ftate of England has been like that of a veffel in diftrefs at fea; the pilot and mariners have been wholly employed in keeping the fhip from finking; the art of navigation was ufelefs, and they never pretended to make fail. It is objected, That the

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alteration propofed is a breach of truft: The truft, fir, repofed in us is that of the public good, the king, lords, and commons, are the parties who exercise this truft; and when the king, lords, and commons exercife this truft by the measure of the common good, they difcharge themselves as well in the altering and repealing, as in the making or confirming laws. The period of time in this cafe is a fubordinate confideration, and thofe gentlemen who are against the alteration, fpeak in too pompous a ftyle when they tell us we are breaking into the conftitution. It has been farther objected, that all this is only giving great power to the minifters, who may make an arbitrary ufe of it. The minifters are indeed like other men, from the infirmity of human nature, liable to be made worfe by power and authority; but this act gives no addition to that authority itself, though it may poffibly prolong the exercise of it in them. They are neverthelefs refponfible for their actions to a parliament, and the mode of enjoying their offices is exactly the fame. Now when the thing is thus, and that the period of three years is found, from infallible experience, itfelf a period that can afford us no good, where shall we reft? The ills that are to be done against fingle perfons or communities, are done by surprise, and on a fudden; but good things are flow in their progrefs, and muft wait occafion. Deftruction is done with a blow, but refor mation is brought about by leifurely advances. All the mischiefs which can be wrought under the feptennial act, can be perpetrated under the triennial; but all the good which may be compaffed under the feptennial, cannnt be hoped for under the triennial. We may fear that the minifters may do us harm; but that is no reason why we should continue them under a difability of doing us good. For thefe confiderations I am unrefervedly for the bill." P. 266.

The whole of the fecond volume is occupied by the fpeeches that have been delivered during the prefent reign; and contains copious fpecimens of the eloquence of Lord Chatham, Lord Mansfield, Lord North, Colonel Barré, Mr. Burke, Mr. Fox, Mr. Wilkes, Mr. Dunning, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Sheridan, Mr. Grattan, Mr. Wilberforce, Mr. Windham, Mr. Grey, Mr. Erfkine, Mr. Canning, &c. From these we forbear to extract, as being much more familiar to the public than the parliamentary eloquence of former reigns. We cannot, however, refrain from giving one fhort fpecimen of the terfe and animated language of the immortal Chatham, and we felect the firft of thefe fpeeches which is here recorded when he was only William Pitt, member for Old Sarum *,

Thus began Chatham, in a borough which demagogues would now abolish.

and

and but little known to fame. It was delivered in the year 1786, on occafion of George II.'s meffage, announcing the marriage of the prince of Wales.

"Mr. Speaker,

"I am unable to offer any thing that has not been faid by the honourable perfons who made you the motion in a manner much more fuitable to the dignity and importance of this great occafion. But, fir, as I am really affected with the profpect of the bieflings to be derived to my country from this fo defirable and fo long defired meafure, the marriage of his royal highnefs the prince of Wales, I cannot forbear troubling you with a few words to ex. prefs my joy, and to mingle my humble offering, inconsiderable as it is, with this great oblation of thanks and congratulation to his majefty.

How great foever the joy of the public may be, and very great it certainly is, in receiving this benefit from his majefty, it must be inferior to that high fatisfaction which he himself enjoys in bestowing it. And if I may be allowed to fuppofe, that to a royal mind any thing can tranfcend the pleasure of gratifying the impatient wifhes of a loyal people, it can only be the paternal delight of tenderly indulging the moft dutiful application and most humble request of a fubmiffive, obedient fon, I mention, fir, his royal highness's having afked a marriage, because fomething is in juftice due to him for having asked what we are fo ftrongly bound by all the ties of duty and of gratitude to return his majesty our most humble acknowledgments for having granted.

"The marriage of a prince of Wales, fir, has at all times been a matter of the higheft importance to the public welfare, to present, and to future generations; but at no time has it been a more im. portant, a more dear confideration than at this day, if a character at once amiable and respectable can embellish and even dignify the elevated rank of a prince of Wales. Were it not a fort of prefumption to follow fo great a perfon through his hours of retire. ment, to view him in the milder light of domeftic life, we should find him bufied in the noble exercife of humanity, benevolence, and of every focial virtue. But, fir, how pleafing, how captiva. ting foever fuch a scene may be, yet, as it is a private one, I fear I fhould offend the delicacy of that virtue I fo ardently defire to do juftice to, fhould I offer it to the confideration of this house. But, fir, filial duty to his royal parents, a generous love for li berty, and a just reverence for the British conftitution, these are public virtues, and cannot efcape the applause and benedictions of the public. They are virtues, fir, which render his royal highness not only a noble ornament, but a firm fupport, if any could poffibly be neceffary, of that throne fo greatly filled by his royal father. "I have been led to fay thus much of his royal highnefs's cha racter, because it is the confideration of that character which, above