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468 gentleman has often been of use to restrain the impetuous corruption of other men.

The enemies of this gentleman forget that the seat of a lord-lieutenant of the kingdom is besieged by men whose ready venality often outruns the wishes of Government; who, in addition to great present emolument, grasp at future and numerous reversions; who, not content with the highest offices in their own line, invade the offices of other men, thrust themselves into every department, civil, military, and ecclesiastical, and into stations for which the whole tenor of their lives and studies has rendered them wholly unqualified; who accumulate place upon place, and sinecure upon sinecure; who are so eager to obtain the wages of the day before the day is well passed over their heads, that they have emphatically and not improperly been styled ready-money voters; men that nothing is too arbitrary or illegal for them to varnish by their eloquence or support by their vote; men who are resolved at any rate to aggrandize themselves, and care not how soon they subvert the constitution of their country if they can but erect the fabric of their own fortunes on its ruins.

While our governors are surrounded by such men, surely, gentlemen, a wise and moderate and disinterested counsellor must be of some use to restrain their vicious ardour, and to prevent their headlong prostitution from subverting our liberties at a stroke. But however this may be, and though I have said thus much in justification of this distinguished character, I beg not to be misunderstood. I by no means insinuate that his conduct in supporting administration in general is such as I would myself follow. So far from it, gentlemen, that had I even been brought into Parliament by his interest, I should nevertheless have considered myself the trustee of the people, and perhaps there is no man that would have taken a more decided part than I should have done against that side which he generally espouses.

Gentlemen, I might call upon my worthy friend who has been put into nomination before me—whose truth and integrity are only surpassed by his abilities; I might call upon another gentleman, the greatest orator in this or perhaps any