s Bench. If once Members of Parliament can be practically
convinced that they do not depend on the affection or opinion of the
people for their political being, they will give themselves over, without
even an appearance of reserve, to the influence of the Court.

Indeed, a Parliament unconnected with the people, is essential to a
Ministry unconnected with the people; and therefore those who saw through
what mighty difficulties the interior Ministry waded, and the exterior
were dragged, in this business, will conceive of what prodigious
importance, the new corps of _King's men_ held this principle of
occasional and personal incapacitation, to the whole body of their
design.

When the House of Commons was thus made to consider itself as the master
of its constituents, there wanted but one thing to secure that House
against all possible future deviation towards popularity; an unlimited
fund of money to be laid out according to the pleasure of the Court.

* * * * *

To complete the scheme of bringing our Court to a resemblance to the
neighbouring Monarchies, it was necessary, in effect, to destroy those
appropriations of revenue, which seem to limit the property, as the other
laws had done the powers, of the Crown. An opportunity for this purpose
was taken, upon an application to Parliament for payment of the debts of
the Civil List; which in 1769 had amounted to 513,000 pounds. Such
application had been made upon former occasions; but to do it in the
former manner would by no means answer the present purpose.

Whenever the Crown had come to the Commons to desire a supply for the
discharging of debts due on the Civil List, it was always asked and
granted with one of the three following qualifications; sometimes with
all of them. Either it was stated that the revenue had been diverted
from its purposes by Parliament; or that those duties had fallen short of
the sum for which they were given by Parliament, and that the intention
of the Legislature had not been fulfilled; or that the money required to
discharge the Civil List debt was to be raised chargeable on the Civil
List duties. In the reign of Queen Anne, the Crown was found in debt.
The lessening and granting away some part of her revenue by Parliament
was alleged as the cause of that debt, and pleaded as an equitable ground
(such it certainly was), for discharging it. It does not appear that the
duties which wore then applied to the ordinary Government produc