DEATH OF THE DUKE OF ORLEANS.
In the month of October, England lost a worthy nobleman in the death of earl Cowper, who had twice discharged the office of lord-chancellor, with equal discernment and integrity. He was profoundly skilled in the laws of his country; in his apprehension quick and penetrating; in his judgment clear and determinate. He possessed a manly eloquence; his manner was agreeable, and his deportment graceful. This year was likewise remarkable for the death of the duke of Orleans, regent of France, who, since the decease of Louis XIV., had ruled that nation with the most absolute authority. He was a prince of taste and spirit, endowed with shining talents for empire, which he did not fail to display, even in the midst of effeminate pursuits and idle debauchery. From the infirm constitution of the infant king, he had conceived hopes of ascending the throne, and taken his measures accordingly; but the young monarch’s health began to be established, and all the duke’s schemes were defeated by an apoplexy, of which he died, in the fiftieth year of his age, after having nominated the duke of Bourbon as prime-minister. King George immediately received assurances of the good disposition of the French court, to cultivate and even improve the good understanding so happily established between France and Great Britain. The king arrived in England on the eighteenth day of December; and on the ninth day of January the parliament was assembled. His majesty, in his speech, recommended to the commons the care of the public debts; and he expressed his satisfaction at seeing the sinking fund improved and augmented, so as to put the debt of the nation into a method of being speedily and gradually discharged.