mself to Pitt. The king was completely in the hands of Bedford and
Grenville, his only defence against an administration composed of whig
magnates. They used their power to force him to send Bute out of London.
This insolent conduct was specially reprehensible in the case of
Grenville, who owed his advancement to Bute's recommendation. Grenville
continued to weary the king with interviews; he worried him with his
disputes with his colleagues, and irritated him beyond endurance by
suggestions, which were not ill-founded, that he was still under Bute's
influence. "Good God, Mr. Grenville," the poor king exclaimed, "am I to
be suspected after all I have done?"

Parliament met on November 15, and the government at once made an attack
on Wilkes. In the lords, Sandwich complained of two profane and obscene
pieces printed in his private press, _An Essay on Woman_ and a
paraphrase of the _Veni Creator_. There was no evidence of publication;
a few copies only were printed, evidently for private circulation, and
one of them was obtained by tampering with a workman. Even if
publication had been proved, there would still have been no reason for
the lords' interference; for obscene and profane publications were
punishable by law. But the ministers were anxious to obtain support for
their measures of revenge. The name of Bishop Warburton of Gloucester
was attached in mockery to notes in the _Essay on Woman_, and with his
concurrence the case was brought before the house as a breach of
privilege. The lords lent themselves to this transparent device; they
petitioned the king to command the prosecution of Wilkes and, later,
when he was out of their reach, ordered that he should be confined for
his offence against themselves. Their proceedings excited public
ridicule. That Sandwich should complain of obscenity and profanity, and
should censure Wilkes, a fellow-monk of Dashwood's debauched fraternity,
for indulging in them was, indeed, a case of Satan rebuking sin. At a
performance of the "Beggar's Opera" at Covent Garden theatre the
audience caught up with delight Macheath's words, "That Jemmy Twitcher
should peach me I own surprised me," and Sandwich became generally known
as Jemmy Twitcher.

[Sidenote: _WILKES EXPELLED FROM PARLIAMENT._]

On the same day as the proceedings in the lords, Grenville brought a
message from the king to the commons informing them of what had been
done in Wilkes's case. They voted, 273 to 111, that the _Nor