SUSPENSION OF THE HABEAS CORPUS ACT.
On the 12th of May a royal message was delivered, referring to the seditious practices of democratic societies, and intimating the necessity of taking measures for baffling their dangerous designs. The message stated that seditious practices had been carried on by societies in London in correspondence with other societies, for the purpose of assembling a convention to represent the people, in defiance of and in opposition to parliament, and on principles subversive of our constitution, and calculated to introduce anarchy similar to that in France; that the papers of these societies had been seized, and would be laid before parliament; and that his majesty recommended them carefully to examine these papers, and to adopt such measures as might appear necessary. These papers were produced on the next day, and Pitt moved an address of thanks to the king, and proposed that the papers should be referred to a committee of secrecy, consisting of twenty-one persons, who should be chosen by ballot. This was agreed to, and on the 16th of May Pitt produced the report of this committee of secrecy. This report did not reveal anything very mysterious, for it merely contained the report of the two London societies from the year 1731, most of which had been already published, by the societies themselves, in the public papers. Yet Pitt, on the strength of this report, demanded the immediate suspension of the Habeas Corpus Act, as necessary to the salvation of the country. In this demand he was supported by Burke, who said that it was the best means of preventing the vast and imminent dangers with which we were menaced; and by Windham, who observed that if these evils could not be averted by the laws in being, other laws, more stringent, must be framed. The bill was carried, through all its stages, by overwhelming majorities, and it also passed the lords, though not without a strong-protest from the Duke of Bedford, and the Earls Stanhope, Lauderdale, and Albemarle. An address was moved in the upper house, on the 13th of June, by Lord Grenville, to assure the king of their lordships’ loyalty and determination to punish the participators in the conspiracy which had been laid before them, and to invest his majesty, if needful, with additional power for the suppression of attempts against government. This was warmly opposed by Lord Lauderdale; but the address was carried, and sent to the commons for their approval. Fox—after endeavouring to show that there was no ground for apprehension; that though seditious language might have been uttered, it would be imprudent to notice it;—moved to omit that part of the address which expressed the conviction that a conspiracy had been carried on against the constitution, but his amendment was rejected, and the house concurred in the address as sent down by the lords.