grain, it is expedient to adopt fuch meafures as might be practicable, for diminishing the confumption thereof during the continuance of the pr fent preffure, and for introducing the ufe of fuch articles, as might be conveniently fubftituted in the place thereof.

In confequence of the high price of grain, and the evils arifing therefrom, we, the undersigned, agree, that, until the tenth day of October next, we will not confume, nor permit to be confumed, in any week, within our refpective families, more wheaten bread than in the proportion of one quartern loaf for each of the individuals of whom our faid families may be compofed; and allo that, during the faid period, we will difcontinue, and caule to be difcontinued, within our faid families, all paftry." "Refolved, that a meflage be fent to the houfe of commons to acquaint them, that this houfe has come to the faid refolution and agreement." A meflage to this purpose was accordingly, on the next day, fent to the commons, who ordered "That the faid refolution and agreement be referred to the confideration of the whole houfe; to whom it was referred to confider farther of the report which was made by the committee appointed to confider of the moft effectual means of remedying any inconveniences that might arife from the deficiency of the laft crop of grin."

In tre houfe of lords, on the twenty-feventh of February, the earl of Darley role to confirm and illuftrate his pofition, on the twentieth, that the icarcity of grain was greatly exaggerated, and that the alarm, that had been given on that fubject, was not only unfounded, but highly

His

detrimental to the public. lordfhip, after producing a variety of authorities, from gentlemen farmers, ftewards, and furveyors of eftates, and others, faid, that having, as he trufted, on the most uncontrovertible evidence, proved that his former ftatement was neither made lightly, nor without foundation, he now felt it his duty clearly and firongly to exprefs his difapprobation of the exaggerated statements of diftrefs and approaching famine, which had been conveyed to the public by the report of the committee of the house of commons, on their falfe founded opinion on that report, which, though calculated to do infinite mischief, refted upon no better evidence, if it deferved that name, than that of Mr. Arthur Young, and Mr.Claude Scott; for, however refpectable, thefe gentlemen might be, their bare opinion, for it was no more, and not on oath, was a miferable foundation for fuch an alarm as had been created in the country. Inftead of proclaiming to the affrighted people of this country, that the flock of corn, at prefent on hand, was not fufficient to fupport them till the next harveft, without, at the fame time, being able to point out to 'them, any effectual means of obviating the evil, it would have been more confiftent with bumanity, as well as wildom, to have remained filent, at leaft, till fuch a remedy could be found. What their for hips had done, muft inevitably increase the evil, inafiuch as it must tempt all perfons, who had corn in their poffeffion, to withhold it from market, in hopes of a better price, which, they had been told, they hail to much reafon to expect. But if the great alarm, which had been raifed, was not, as he

trufted

trafted he had proved, founded on fact, but if, on the contrary, the de. ficiencies of the crop of the laft year was neither fo great, nor the furplus of that of the preceeding year fo inconfiderable as had been stated; if, on the contrary, there was reafonable ground to believe that there was wheat enough in hand to fupply the country till next harveft, it was difficult to exprefs, in terms fufficiently ftrong, his opinion of thole who lightly, and without fufficient proof, brought forward to public view the hideous fpectre of famine, which they fancied to be approaching, and by founding their boafted trumpet of alarm, proclaim to the people of England, that, as much as they might now fuffer by the high price of bread, they muft foon expect to fuffer much more, and probably have none to eat.

The corn and bread committee of the house of commons, on the fixth of March, stated to the house, that fince their laft report, they had received additional information re

fpecting the deficiency of the late crops of grain in many parts of the Country, particularly in Scotland; the refult of which had impressed them with the propriety of fuggefting fuch methods as appeared to them to be most effectual for dimimihing the confumption of corn, for encouraging the importation from abroad, and for bringing into extenfive afe,fuch fubftitutes as might fapply the place of it. The points to which they called the attention of the houfe were thefe: firft, the expediency of giving a bounty to encourage the importation of corn from the Mediterranean and America: fecond, the propriety of individuals reducing the confumption of four in their families; third,

the propriety of fubjecting millers to fome new regulations: fourth, the adoption of a new table of affize: fifth, the encouragement of the ufe of rice and Indian corn: fixth, the encouragement of the growth of potatoes and other ufeful vegetables: feventh, the expediency of procuring a confiderable fupply of food from the fi heries: eighth, the expediency of flopping the diftilleries. It was refolved, by the houfe, to grant bounties on the importation of grain, not only from America and the Mediterranean, but, on the fuggeftion of Mr. Samuel Thornton, from the Baltic; to compel millers to grind the forts of flour neceflary for making brown bread, at a reasonable rate; to grant bounties to our fisheries; and to take off the duty on the importation of Swedish herrings; and to ftop, for a limited time, the distilleries. The miller was to take out an annual licence, which was to be obtained for a fall tum of money, and infpectors were to be appointed. He was to be bound to grind corn without delay. The price of grinding corn was to be regulated by the juices. By this bill the poor would be protected, and fecured from much impofition, which, in a great variety of inftances, had taken place, to their great oppreffion. The refolutions of the house of commons, on these four points, of encouragement to the importation of grain, and fith, regulating mills and ftopping diftilleries were quickly pafled into laws. As to the refolution for regulating the price and affize of bread, from which little was to be expected towards the relief of the prefent preflure, it was thought proper, after due confideration, to defer that matter to [K 4] a time

ministration could have affembled it pro re nata, if it had not been fitting. And the measures, necessary for the public tranquillity and wellbeing, might have been adopted, in due time, without the convention of parliament: yet it was not till February, 1800, that any thing was attempted for the relief of the prefent, or the prevention of a greater preffure.

As it became the bufinefs of parliament, early in the prefent feffion, to confider of means for preferving the people from famine, fo an incident happened that reminded government of the vigilance neceffary against the introduction of peftilence. In the end of 1799, three fhips arrived in the ports of this country, from Mogadore, on the coaft of Africa, with what are called foul bills of health, which left that place when the plague raged there with the greatest violence. The goods of thofe fhips being found, on inquiry, to be particularly fufceptible of infection, as well as put on board under the moft fufpicious circumftances, his majefty thought proper, by the advice of his privy council, to order the hips and cargoes to be deftroyed, in conformity to what had been the ufage in former inftances of the fame nature. This incident, with the meatures by which it had been followed, was communicated, by a meffage, to the houfe of commons, on the eleventh of February; and his majefty recommended it to the houfe to confider whether any, and what allowance should be made to the parties, for the loffes they might have fuftained in confequence of the deftruction of the fhips and cargoes. Mr. Pitt moved that the matter fhould be referred to the confideration of a felect committee:

obferving that a minute and critical inquiry fhould be made into the motives which induced thofe fhips to fail under fo fufpicious a character: and that, after examining the invoices, fuch reparation fhould be made to the owners, if nothing appeared to criminate their conduct or intentions, as the juftice of the houfe fhould think proper and adequate. The utmost care should, at the fame time, be employed to inquire into the motives which prompted fuch hazardous speculations.

Sir W. Pulteney faid, he was credibly informed that no plague raged at Mogadore when the goods were fhipped, nor was there any reafon to believe that any danger could poffibly arife from them. But he would not, on that account, refift the propofed inquiry on the contrary, he approved of it, as it would lead to a difcovery whether there were fufficient reafons for deftroying the fhips and goods, and that with fuch precipitation.

Mr. Pitt affured the worthy baronet, that his information was erroneous, both with regard to the hafte with which he fuppofed the fhips to have been deftroyed, and to the reafons for believing that there was no well-grounded apprehenfion of a plague having exifted at the place alluded to. The matter in queftion had been the fubject of a long and repeated inquiry, and the most eminent of the faculty had given it as their opinion that the precaution fhould be ufed that had been reforted to: that the danger of a contagion being fpread from the opening and expofing of thofe goods to the air appeared to be imminent in the extreme; for it was well known that two perfons, who had been employed

employed in putting the cargo on board, died before the fucceeding day. He was happy, however, to afsure the house that no danger of any kind was now to be apprehended from the circumfiance. The thanks of the houfe were then voted to this metlage, and a fele&t committee was ordered to report the fame, with their opinions thereon, to the houfe. In confequence of a report from that committee, the houfe of commons, in a committee of fupply, on the twenty-third of May, granted, for the fatisfaction of parties who had fuffered lofs, by the deftruction of the three hips from Mogadore, the fum of 41,400. The fubfequent appearance of the plague, at Cadiz, and other parts of Spain, renders it almoft certain, that the precaution of fhips and cargoes, from Mogadare, performing quarantine, was not unneceflary. There are few infiances in which the vigilance, prudence, and juftice of government have been more apparent than in the whole of its conduct in that bufinels.

There was another danger which threated the British nation, not fo great, certainly, as famine or peliifence, but which, in the opinion of not a few of the legiflators, called loudly for timely prevention. This was the increase of popery, likely to enfue from the continuance, or admiflion of new members into monaftic focieties in England. On the motion of fir H. Mildmay, the houfe of commons, on the twentyfecond of May, refolved itfell into a committee of the whole houfe, to confider of an act made in the thirty-first year of the reign of his pre

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fent majefty, intituled "An Act to relieve, upon Conditions, and under Reftrictions, the Perfons therein defcribed, from certain penalties and Dilabilities, to which Papifis, or Perfons profeffing the popifh Religion, were by Law fubject." Sir H. Mildmay, after expreffing, in the firongeft terms, his extreme fatisfaction in the bounty and indulgence that had been thewn by this country to the French emigrants, doing juftice to the moft regular and peaceable demeanor of that unfortunate clafs of men, and what he termed, not unhappily, their most unafaming and mofl unobtrusive gratitude; and, alfo, after difclaiming the contracted and odious spirit of religious intolerance, obferved, that, as he conceived, it could never be the intention of government to encourage the re-eftablishment of monaftic inftitutions in this proteftant country. However it might be to our honour to have fuffered thofe individuals, who had previously bound themselves to a monaftic life, to difcharge, in this country, thofe vows, from which, in their mind, no human power could release them, fuch indulgence ought to expire with the life of the prefent incumbents. We ought not, in his opinion, to fuffer the vacancies, which might happen to rife in fuch communities, to be filled up by fubjects of this country, actually fince their refidence here, but fhould, on all grounds, carefully guard against the admiflion of any new members into thofe focieties, whofe firft obligation, on entering into them, was fubverfive of thole laws and liberties, which the wildom and policy of our anceitors leng fince intro

duced