[129b-453]

26 Apr 1817

Introd

§18.

Speaker craft

3

From the beginning of its /the/ course even to the end look now at this part of what was /is/ once our liberty. At the outset commencement it inter{posed}[?] /prevented/ for the | | /a great part/ prevented by a prohibitory tax /imposition/: an imposition for which all the ingenuity /wit/ of man can not find another object any more than so much as a colourable pretence: and from the forced silence is deduced the argument – Oh! the thing is not wanted: see how few there are that wish for it. Well: some however force /do at last succeed in forcing/ their way to the House, to that place which used to be the grand and avowed center of communication for every English public complaint, and when they get there what is now the fate provided for them? suppression, extinction, oblivion. Till now they might be seen in the Votes: henceforward they will /not/ be to be seen no /any/ where. Now with what possibility of effect can a petition for reform can a petition for redress of grievance in any shape be addressed to Honourable House? Neither eye nor ear will Honourable House give /lend/ to them: neither eye nor ear can any man out of the House give to them: it is /behold/ for this very purpose that they are excluded out of the Votes, it is for this purpose that with the exception of a bare skeleton the very Votes themselves are suppressed. Reporters[?] of Debates – to them they will be inaccessible No[?] emploiment[?] so ever to Honourable ears, for matter contained in Petitions and published in its Votes by Honourable House itself published in its Votes no Petitioner would be published /have been presented/ as a libeller. But after this suppression let it /any of this unpleasant matter/ but come into circulation, then unless the new imported French instrument called a Bastile should be preferred, there sits M r Attorney General ready to receive it.