ad been divided mainly between Windham's abortive scheme
for a vast standing army, to be raised on the basis of limited service,
and the secret inquiry into the conduct of the Princess of Wales. This
resulted in her being acquitted of the more scandalous charges against
her, but on the advice of the cabinet, she was censured by the king for
unseemly levity of behaviour. On October 24 parliament was dissolved. It
was a foolish dissolution, for ministerial convenience only, and aimed
not merely at strengthening the ministry, but at weakening the tory
section within the ministry. The election was not well managed, and the
king withheld the subscription of L12,000 with which he was accustomed
to assist his ministers for the time being at a general election. Still
the ministry obtained a considerable majority.[32] The new parliament
met on December 15, and on March 25, 1807, the abolition bill, having
passed the house of lords in spite of strong opposition, was carried in
the commons by 283 to 16. Thus ended a philanthropic struggle, which
began in 1783, when the quakers petitioned against the trade. Three
years later Clarkson began his crusade. Two bills in favour of abolition
were carried by the house of commons before the close of the eighteenth
century, but were thrown out in the house of lords. The same fate befell
a bill for a temporary suspension of the slave trade, which passed the
commons in 1804 under the spell of Wilberforce's persuasive eloquence;
but Pitt's government caused a royal proclamation to be issued, which at
least checked the spread of the nefarious traffic in the newly conquered
colonies. A larger measure failed to pass the house of commons in 1805,
but in 1806 Fox and Grenville succeeded in committing both houses to an
open condemnation of the trade. This was followed on March 25, 1807, by
an enactment entirely prohibiting the slave trade from and after January
1, 1808, though it was not made felony to engage in it until a further
act was carried by Brougham in 1811.

[Pageheading: _FALL OF GRENVILLE'S MINISTRY._]

In default of important legislative tasks, the parliament which expired
in 1806 devoted much attention to various features of the military
system, as well as to proposed reforms in the public accounts. It
sanctioned the principle of raising a great part of the war-expenses by
special taxes rather than by loan. A property-tax of 10 per cent. was
freely voted, and this was then represented t