§ On the motion of Mr. Wardle, the house resolved itself into a committee, to inquire into the Conduct of his royal highness the Duke of York, touching the disposal of commissions in the army, &c. Mr. R. Wharton in the Chair.
§ Mr. Wardle,in proceeding to the investigation he proposed, felt it necessary 265 to call the attention of the committee to a few preliminary observations. He hoped that in the statements he had already made to the house, he had not uttered a single word which could justify a suspicion that he was actuated either by party motives, or any thing like personal animosity towards the commander-in-chief. He trusted his conduct on the occasion had been open and candid. When first he proposed this investigation he had offered an entire list of all the witnesses. He had never kept any thing a secret from the house, and God forbid he should attempt to sustain his charges by any proofs but such as it became a man of honour to offer! He felt it necessary, however, to advert to some strong remarks which had fallen from a right hon. gent. (Mr. Yorke) on a former night, which were not relevant to the subject before the house, and which, he thought, might better have been omitted. He had a right to appear in his place as a member of parliament, the accuser of the commander-in-chief; and it was the privilege of gentlemen on the other side of the house candidly to deliver their opinions on the subject: but he did not expect to be attacked in his personal character, or his conduct imputed to private motives, without any foundation injustice. Much was said about tile licentiousness of the press, the spirit of Jacobinism, and of a Conspiracy to overturn the illustrious house of Brunswick. Nothing, however, which he bad said, had any thing to do with the licentiousness of the press. There was no man within or without that house who abhorred jacobin principles more than himself, unless by jacobin was meant an enemy to corruption, for such he was, whether it existed in great or little men; and as to conspiracy against the house of Brunswick, if any man presumed to charge such a motive to him, it was the duty of that man openly and manfully to follow up his accusation by proofs. As to jacobinism indeed, if his principles had tended that way, he should have adopted a contrary conduct; and, instead of opposing, have cherished corruption, until it undermined the government. His object, on the contrary, was to check corruption, to serve his country, and to prevent in time those dreadful effects which were the certain consequences of corruption. Ay hon. and learned gent, had said on the former night, that he could give no credit to the charges against the commander-in-chief because he 266 had been so intimately acquainted with him for 20 years, that had any such transactions taken place, he must have known of them: but, as he knew of none such, the charges must in consequence be false. He would, however, undertake to prove the existence, not merely of those comparatively slight transactions under investigation, but of others to a most enormous amount, which, most probably, were unknown to the learned gent. and which were the cause of the breach between Mrs. Clarke and his royal highness. He was aware of the difficulties opposed to him in such a pursuit. He was aware there were many members in that house, who might be supposed to lean more towards the commander-in-chief than towards a private individual like himself. He was confident no member of that house would be actuated by motives of partiality in this case. He threw himself upon the honour, the can-dour, and indulgence of the committee, and without trespassing further on their attention, would proceed to evidence.
Mr. Yorkesaid, as the hon. gent. had alluded to some words which had fallen from him on a former night, he must beg leave to explain. So far from casting any censure on the hon. gent. or imputing to him any hostile motives towards the duke of York, he said his royal highness must feel obliged to him for putting the rumours, long industriously propagated on this subject, into a tangible shape. What he had said about jacobinism and the licentiousness of the press, had no relation at all to the hon. gent. but applied to other topics, which must have been passing at the moment in every man's mind who heard him, and not what fell from the hon. gentleman.
Mr. Wardle then read an extract from the London Gazette, of the 30th July, 1805, announcing the promotion of Col. Brooke, from the 56th regiment to the 5th dragoon guards, vice lieut.-colonel Knight, exchanged, and said he gave this as a competent proof of the exchange.
The first Witness called was Dr. Andrew Thynne. But before his examination, Mr. Wardle assured the committee, that he very reluctantly, and against the gentleman's own wishes, called him as a witness. He had no other concern in the business than merely the inadvertent delivery of a message, which, upon mature reflection, he most probably would have declined.