uld venture, he said, to pronounce this part of the general system of
deception and delusion, a "bed of justice," where justice would for ever
sleep. With regard to the East India charter, Fox insisted that it
was as much violated by this bill as by his own; but on this important
point, at least, the difference was palpable and striking; for while
Fox's bill took away commerce from the company, the other left it
solely in their hands. By Pitt's bill, indeed, the management of their
commercial concerns was guaranteed to them, and they were only divested
of that political power which they had abused, and of that civil
authority which for a series of years they had shown themselves to be
incompetent to exercise, Many other objections were started, and during
the progress of the bill through the house, several amendments were
moved and adopted, but its main features were preserved, and the bill
finally passed both houses with triumphant majorities. In the whole,
twenty-one new clauses were added to the bill, which were distinguished
by the letters of the alphabet; and Sheridan humourously suggested that
three other clauses should be affixed, in order, as he observed, "to
complete the horn-book of the present ministry;" The minority in the
lords, in a protest, branded the bill as a measure ineffectual in its
provisions, unconstitutional in its partial abolition of the trial by
jury, and unjust in its inquisitorial spirit. But though Pitt's scheme
was not perfect, yet in many points of view it was preferable to that
of Fox; and even its errors were magnified by the prejudice of party
spirit.

BILL FOR THE RESTORATION OF FORFEITED ESTATES IN SCOTLAND.

The last measure which came before parliament during the present session
was a bill introduced by Mr. Dundas, for the restoration of estates in
Scotland to the heirs of those who had forfeited them in the rebellions
of 1715 and 1745. In making this proposition, Mr. Dundas declared that
it was, in his opinion, worthy of the justice and generosity of the
house. There was not one of the families comprehended in the scope of
it, he said, in which some person had not atoned for the crimes and
errors of his ancestors, by sacrificing his blood in the cause of his
country; and he declared that the sovereign had not, for a long series
of years past, a more loyal set of subjects than the Highlanders and
their chieftains. He did not, however, propose that the estates should
be freed