m;
and that, if he had done amiss, he erred from want of judgment rather
than from want of inclination to protect the unhappy Porteous. It
likewise appeared that Mr. Lindsay, member for the city of Edinburgh,
had gone in person to general Moyle, commander of the forces in North
Britain, informed him of the riot, implored his immediate assistance,
and promised to conduct his troops into the city; and that his suit
was rejected, because he could not produce a written order from the
magistracy, which he neither could have obtained in such confusion,
nor ventured to carry about his person through the midst of an enraged
populace. The Scottish members exerted themselves with uncommon vivacity
in defence of their capital. They were joined by sir John Barnard, lord
Cornbury, Mr. Shippen, and Mr. Oglethorpe. Lord Polworth declared, that
if any gentleman would show where one argument in the charge against the
lord-provost and the city of Edinburgh had been proved, he would that
instant give his vote for the commitment of the bill. He said, if
gentlemen would lay their hands upon their hearts, and ask themselves,
whether they would have voted in this manner had the case of Edinburgh
been that of the cities of Bristol, York, or Norwich, he was persuaded
they would have required that every tittle of the charge against them
should have been fully and undeniably proved. Some amendments and
mitigations being inserted in the bill, it passed the house, was sent
back to the lords, who agreed to the alterations, and then received the
royal assent.

{GEORGE II. 1727-1760}

PLAY-HOUSE BILL.

The next effort of the minister was obliquely levelled at the liberty of
the press, which it was much for his interest to abridge. The errors of
his conduct, the mystery of that corruption which he had so successfully
reduced to a system, and all the blemishes of his administration, had
been exposed and ridiculed, not only in political periodical writings
produced by the most eminent hands, but likewise in a succession of
theatrical pieces, which met with uncommon success among the people. He
either wanted judgment to distinguish men of genius, or could find
none that would engage in his service; he therefore employed a set of
wretched authors, void of understanding and ingenuity. They undertook
the defence of his ministry, and answered the animadversions of his
antagonists. The match was so extremely unequal, that, instead of
justifying his c