r papers. An order was made to secure
the books and papers of Knight, Surman, and Turner. The persons of sir
George Caswell, sir John Blunt, sir John Lambert, sir John Fellows,
and Mr. Grigsby, were taken into custody; sir Theodore Janssen, Mr.
Sawbridge, sir Robert Chaplain, and Mr. Eyles, were expelled the house
and apprehended. Mr. Aislaby resigned his employments of chancellor of
the exchequer and lord of the treasury; and orders were given to remove
all directors of the South-Sea company from the places they possessed
under the government.

The lords, in the course of their examination, discovered that large
portions of South-Sea stock had been given to several persons in the
administration and house of commons, for promoting the passing of the
South-Sea act. The house immediately resolved, that this practice was a
notorious and most dangerous species of corruption: that the directors
of the South-Sea company having ordered great quantities of their stock
to be bought for the service of the company, when it was at a very high
price, and on pretence of keeping up the price of stock; and at the
same time several of the directors, and other officers belonging to the
company, having, in a clandestine manner, sold their own stock to the
company, such directors and officers were guilty of a notorious fraud
and breach of trust, and their so doing was one great cause of the
unhappy turn of affairs that had so much affected public credit. Many
other resolutions were taken against that infamous confederacy, in
which, however, the innocent were confounded with the guilty. Sir John
Blunt refusing to answer certain interrogations, a violent debate arose
about the manner in which he should be treated. The duke of Wharton
observed, that the government of the best princes was sometimes rendered
intolerable to their subjects by bad ministers: he mentioned the example
of Sejanus, who had made a division in the imperial family, and rendered
the reign of Cladius hateful to the Romans. Earl Stanhope conceiving
this reflection was aimed at him, was seized with a transport of anger.
He undertook to vindicate the ministry; and spoke with such vehemence as
produced a violent headache, which obliged him to retire. He underwent
proper evacuations, and seemed to recover; but next day, in the evening,
became lethargic, and being seized with a suffocation, instantly
expired. The king deeply regretted the death of this favourite minister,
which