A Royal Proclamation was issued, offering one thousand pounds reward to any one "who shall give information, so that any of such authors, actors, or abettors, as aforesaid, shall be apprehended and brought to justice."
In November there were fearful storms, especially on the 6th, which were extraordinarily destructive, both to life and property. One of these storms was so severely felt at Weymouth, that nearly 1600 dead bodies were, at different times, thrown up on the beach, 300 being buried at one time, and, had not the Gloucestershire Militia helped in burying them, there would, doubtless, have been a pestilence.
On 8th December Pitt, in the House of Commons, delivered a message from the King, in which occurs the following passage, which must have been hailed with thanksgiving throughout the length and breadth of the land:—"His Majesty, on this occasion, thinks proper to acquaint the House, that the crisis which was depending[2] at the commencement of the present session, has led to such an order of things in France, as will induce His Majesty (conformably to the sentiments which he has already declared) to meet any disposition to negotiation on the part of the enemy, with an earnest desire to give it the fullest and speediest effect, and to conclude a treaty for general peace, whenever it can be effected on just and suitable terms for himself and his allies."
At the commencement of 1796 the Royal Family were still in bad odour with a certain section of the public,—nor can it be wondered at by any one who has studied the satirical prints of the day. Every foible of Royalty was noted, exaggerated, engraved on "perennial brass," exhibited most freely in the shop windows, and most eagerly purchased. Farmer George, and his simple, and somewhat mean habits, the Queen's avarice, the Prince of Wales' licentiousness, and extravagance, and all the scandals (and they were many) appertaining to the rest of the Royal Family, were ruthlessly laid bare, and mercilessly exposed to the public gaze.
That this must have tended to lower the Royal Family in most men's eyes, there can be no doubt, so that we are not very much surprised at the occasional practical manifestations of the mob. On the night of 1st February, there was more stone-throwing on the part of the populace, which the Times of 3rd February thus describes:—"On Monday night, as the Royal Family were returning from Drury Lane Theatre, just as they reached the middle of Pall Mall, a stone was flung at the coach in which were their Majesties and the lady-in-waiting, which broke the glass, and, entering the carriage, struck the Queen on the cheek, and fell into Lady Harrington's lap.
"A deposition of the circumstances was taken yesterday at the Duke of Portland's office, at which his Grace and some of the Bow Street Magistrates were present; when four of the footmen attending their Majesties were examined; a reward will be immediately offered to discover the offender." And so it was to the extent of £1000, but nothing came of it.
Whilst on the subject of the royal unpopularity, I may mention that Kydd Wake, who last year was apprehended for hissing and hooting at the King, was tried before Lord Kenyon, for "trespass, riot, and misdemeanour," and found guilty—sentence being deferred. This, however, was pronounced upon him by Mr. Justice Ashurst at the Court of King's Bench 7th May. His judgment was somewhat long-winded, and he concluded thus:—"It now becomes my duty to pronounce the sentence of the Court; which is, that you be committed to the custody of the keeper of the Penitentiary House, in, and for, the County of Gloucester, and be kept to hard labour for the space of five years; and, within the first three months of that time, that you stand in, and upon, the Pillory for one hour, between the hours of eleven and two o'clock in the afternoon, in some public street on a market day; and that you give sureties in £1000, for your good behaviour for the term of ten years, to be computed from the expiration of the said five years; and that you be further imprisoned till you find the said sureties."
On the 15th February, Mr. Grey, in the House of Commons, again ventilated the subject of peace, this time in the shape of an address to the King, praying him to communicate to the executive government of France, his readiness to meet any disposition to negotiate a general peace. Both Pitt and Fox spoke on the subject, but the motion was lost by 189 to 50.
There was one crumb of comfort to the nation, which had hitherto been suffering from a grievous scarcity of bread-stuffs, and this was the great fall in wheat, which took place on 31st March. On that date, owing to the large importations of foreign wheat, this grain fell 13s. per quarter.
Joy, too, must have sprung up in the national heart when the King made his speech on the opening of both Houses, 7th October. He said:—"I have omitted no endeavours for setting on foot negotiations to restore peace to Europe, and to secure, for the future, general tranquillity. The steps I have taken for this purpose have at length opened the way to an immediate and direct negotiation, the issue of which must either produce the desirable end of a just, honourable, and solid Peace for Us, and for Our Allies, or must prove, beyond dispute, to what cause alone the prolongation of the calamities of war must be ascribed. I shall immediately send a person to Paris with full powers to treat for this object, and it is My anxious wish that this measure may lead to the restoration of General Peace; but you must be sensible that nothing can so much contribute to give effect to this desire, as your manifesting that We possess both the determination and the resources to oppose, with increased activity and energy, the farther efforts with which We have to contend."