XXIL 1787. declined, saying only "that the house would judge BOOK for themselves of what had passed." On this Mr. Sheridan was provoked to declare, "that if Mr. Rolle persisted in his refusal, or otherwise to put the matter into such a state of enquiry as should satisfy him, the house ought to come to a resolu tion, that it was seditious and disloyal to propagate reports injurious to the character of the prince." " Mr. Pitt now properly interposed, and protested against so flagrant an attack on the freedom of speech and deliberation in that house. And it must be confessed that Mr. Rolle was so far justified as the voice of the public could justify him, in retaining his doubts; for a general and firm persuasion still prevailed of a secret marriage between the prince and Mrs. Fitzherbert: though no one presumed to call in question the honor of Mr. Fox in the declarations made by him in the prince's name, for which he undoubtedly had, or thought he had, sufficient authority, and which operated to the perfect apparent conviction of the house of commons; though, to complete the mystery and perplexity of the business, it was subsequently reported and believed that a temporary coolness at least had taken place between the prince and Mr. Fox from the æra of this debate, and as the consequence of that warmth of indignation which carried Mr. Fox inadvertently beyond the strict limits of his commission. BOOK XXII. 1787. In this stage of the business an interview, at the desire of the king, took place between the prince of Wales and Mr. Pitt, at Carlton House; and the prince was informed, "that if the intended motion were withdrawn, every thing might be settled to his royal highness's satisfaction." This being acceded to, a message was delivered by the minister from the king to the house, stating his majesty's great concern, "that from the accounts of the prince of Wales it had appeared that he had incurred a debt to a large amount, which, painful as it was to him to propose any addition to the burdens of his people, he was induced, by his paternal affection to the prince, to desire the assistance of parliament to discharge on the well-grounded expectation, nevertheless, of the prince's avoiding to contract any similar debt in future; with a view to which, the king had directed a sum of ten thousand pounds to be paid out of the civil list, in addition to his former allowance." On the very next day after the accounts referred to in the royal message were laid before the house, and of which the dignified generosity of the house suffered not the inspection, an address was voted to the king, to request him to direct the sum of one hundred and sixty-one thousand pounds to be paid out of the civil list for the full discharge of the debts of the prince of Wales, and the farther sum of twenty thousand pounds to XXII. 1787. complete the repairs of Carlton House. It may BOOK be remarked, in dismissing this subject, that the sum of fifty thousand pounds had been already actually expended on Carlton House; so that, if the prince had enjoyed a revenue equal to that of the late king when prince of Wales, there would have accrued in the four years elapsed since his majority a very considerable saving, notwithstanding that extraordinary expence; and thus the complaints of extravagance do not appear to rest upon a very solid foundation. The subject of Mr. Hastings's impeachment had been resumed early in the present session, and had occupied a large proportion of it. The primary charge respecting the Rohilla war, brought forward by Mr. Burke towards the conclusion of the session of 1786, had made a deep impression upon the house and although Mr. Hastings had been acquitted of the charge, it was upon grounds on which it was impossible to rest his future defence. The conduct of Mr. Pitt had been hitherto indecisive and mysterious; but the part taken by Mr. Jenkinson, and the party of which he was considered as the head, left no room for doubt as to the secret inclination of the court; and although Mr. Pitt, on the Benares charge, stated by Mr. Fox, had voted against Mr. Hastings, he expressly declared that he did not, upon that account, consider himself as committed to a final vote of impeach XXII. 1787. BOOK ment. The grand question therefore still remained doubtful, when on the 7th of February, 1787, Mr. Sheridan opened the third charge respecting against Mr. the Begum princesses of Oude, with an eloquence Hastings respecting and energy which were perhaps never surpassed, Charge the Begums of Oude. and which, in their consequences, proved entirely decisive. The substance of this, as of the other principal charges, has already been recorded in the regular narration of Indian transactions. A slight extract or two from Mr. Sheridan's speech may serve to excite a faint idea of the transcendant ability with which this charge was enforced.-Mr. Sheridan said, "that the conduct of Mr. Hastings respecting the nabob and Begums of Oude comprehended in it every species of human offence. He had been guilty of rapacity at once violent and insatiable, of treachery cool and premeditated, of oppression unprovoked, of barbarity wanton and unmanly, So long since as the year 1775, the Begum princess, widow of Sujah ul Dowla, had written to Mr. Hastings in the following moving terms:- If it is your pleasure that the mother of the late nabob, that myself, his other women, and his infant chil dren, should be reduced to a state of dishonor and distress, we must submit. But if, on the contrary, you call to mind the friendship of the late blessed nabob, you will exert yourself effectually in favor of us who are helpless.' Inflamed by XXII. 1787. disappointment at Benares, he hastened to the BOOK fortress of Chunar, to put in execution the atroci. ous design of instigating the nabob, son of this princess, to parricide and plunder. No sooner had Mr. Hastings determined to invade the substance of justice, than he resolved to avail himself of her judicial forms, and dispatched a messenger for the chief-justice of India to assist him in perpetrating the violence he had meditated. Without a moment's pause, or the shadow of process insti tuted, sentence was pronounced. And thus, at the same time that the sword of government was converted to an assassin's dagger, the pure ermine of justice was stained and soiled with the basest contamination. It was clear to demonstration, that the Begums were not concerned in the insurrection of Benares. No, their treasures were their treason. If (said this eloquent speaker) the mind of Mr. Hastings were susceptible of superstition, he might image the proud spirit of Sujah ul Dowla looking down upon the ruin and devastation of his family; beholding the palace which he had adorned with the spoils of the devoted Rohillas, plundered by his base and perfidious ally; and viewing the man whom on his death-bed he had constituted the guardian of his wife, his mother, and his family, forcibly exposing those dear relations, the objects of his solemn trust, to the rigor of the merciless seasons, or the violence of the |