declared, they thought the king was bound to maintain the Will. III. emperor's right to that fucceffion; yet this was not intended. 1700-1. by those who managed the party, who had not hitherto given any countenance to the emperor's pretenfions: fo apt are parties to make use of any thing that may ferve a turn, without confidering the confequences of it. Orford's an The earl of Orford put in his anfwer in four days; he The earl of faid he had no grant of the king, but a reverfion at a great diftance, and a gift of ten thousand pounds, after he had de- fwer. feated the French at la Hogue, which he thought he might lawfully accept of, as all others before him had done: he opened Kidd's matter, in which he had acted legally, with good intentions to the public, and to his own lofs: his accounts, while he commanded the fleet, had been all examined and were paft; but he was ready to wave that, and to justify himself in every particular, and he denied his having given any advice about the partition treaty; this was immediately fent down to the commons; but they let it lie before them, without coming to a replication, which is only a piece of form, by which they undertake to make good their charge (b). On year To which he answered, counts for the monies impref"fed to him, and had his Quietus eft in due courfe of law upon the fame.” 66 III. That he received from the king of Spain and others confiderable fums of money, and Will.III. On the 19th of May, after another quickening message 1700-1. from the lords, articles of impeachment were fent up to the Articles of impeachment mers. against the and great quantities of wine, lord Som- oil, and other provifions for the fleet, for which he ought to have accounted; but that he converted the fame to his own ufe;" and, for fecuring himself from rendering any account, he poffeffed divers great offices, inconfiftent, and defigned as checks one upon the other. To which the earl answered, "That what66 ever he received from the "king of Spain, or any others, "for the fleet, was duly de"livered and diftributed a"mongst the officers and fea"men; and he denied, that "he enjoyed any offices incon"fiftent, or which ought to be "checks one upon the other." IV. That he hath clandeftinely, contrary to the law of nations, fold feveral veffels taken under pretence of prize, without condemnation, and converted the money to his own ufe. To which he answered by denying the fact, and faying, That he did from time to "time give orders, that the prizes taken fhould be care"fully preferved without em"bezzlement,and duly proceed"ed against, and the product " answered as the law directs." V. That he, prefiding in the commiffion for executing the office of lord high admiral of England, had difcouraged and rejected the request and propofal of the Eaft-India company for fuppreffing piracies in the South Seas; and had procured a commiffion for one William Kidd, who had committed divers pi peers racies and depredations on the high feas, being thereto encouraged through the hopes of being protected by the high ftation and intereft of the faid earl. To which he answered, "That " he did never difcourage or re"ject the company's requeft, "unless it were by telling them, "that the admiralty by law "could not grant the fame : "and as to the matter of Kidd, "his commiffion was according "to law, and his expedition in"tended for the public good "and fervice; and, if he had committed any piracies, he is "anfwerable for the fame, he never being ordered or encouraged by the faid earl fo " to do." VI. That, while the kingdom was under an apprehenfion of an immediate invasion from France, he, preferring his hopes of gain to himself, to the fafety of the public, did order captain Steward, commander of the Duchefs, to put on board captain Kidd a great number of able feamen, to the prejudice of the public fecurity, and to the endangering the Duchefs, if the had been attacked by the enemy. To which he answered, "That the men taken from on "board the Duchefs were but "fome of the very perfons, that were juft before taken from "on board of captain Kidd, "and returned by their own "confent again, not being a"bove twenty in number, and "that when all fears of an in"vafion were over." peers against the Lord Sommers, by Mr. Harcourt, and the Will.III. demand for giving fecurity to abide by their lordships judg- 1700-1. ment was repeated. In these articles, the two partition treaties were copiously fet forth, and it was laid down for a foundation, that the king was bound to maintain the emperor's right of fucceffion to the crown of Spain; lord Sommers was charged, for setting the feals, firft to the powers, and then to the treaties themselves; he was alfo charged, for accepting fome grants, and the manner of taking them was reprefented as fraudulent, he feeming to buy them of the king, and then getting himfelf difcharged of the price contracted for; Kidd's bufinefs was alfo mentioned, and dilatory and partial proceedings in Chancery were objected to him. He put in his answer in a very few days in the partition treaty, he faid, he had offered the king very faithful advice as a counfellor, and had acted according to the duty of his poft, as chancellor; fo he had nothing more to answer for: as for his grants, the king defigned him a grant to fuch a value, the king was not de VII. That during the war, he did by mifrepresentations procure an order for his majesty's fhip the Dolphin, to be employed in a private voyage for the advantage of himself and others concerned with him. To which he answered, "That "what was done therein, was "done after the peace conclu"ded, and by his majesty's "command, at the inftance and "request of other perfons, con trary to his opinion." VIII. That, during the time of his commanding the navy, he did, through neglect, and in contempt of orders, unneceffarily hazard and expofe the fleet, and lofe the opportunities of taking or deftroying the French fhips, and fuffer them to return fafe into their own harbours. To which he answered, "That he is not guilty of any neglect or "omiffion of his duty herein, "nor did expect in this parti "cular to be charged therewith, confidering his faithful fer"vices rendered against the "French fleet." IX. That he did, in concert with other falfe and evil counfellors, advise the king in the year 1698, to enter into one treaty for dividing the monarchy and dominions of Spain; in purfuance whereof, in 1699, another treaty was entered into for the like purpose: both which treaties were prejudicial to the intereft of the Proteftant religion all over Europe, ruinous to the trade of England, and dishonourable to the king and the nation. To which he answered, "That he does deny, that he "did advise his majesty to en"ter into the treaty of partition; " and, fo far as he was any "ways acquainted therewith, "he objected to and gave his "opinion against the fame." Pr. H. C. III. 147. Will. III. ceived in the value; the manner of paffing it was according 1700-1. to the ufual methods of the treasury, in order to make a grant fure, and out of the danger of being avoided. Kidd's bufinefs was opened, as was formerly fet forth; and as to the court of chancery, he had applied himself wholly to the dispatch of business in it, with little regard to his own health or quiet, and had acted according to the best of his judgment without fear or favour (c). (c) The following extract gives a larger account of this affair: I That John lord Sommers, well knowing the most apparent ill confequences, as well as the injuftice of the partition of the Spanish monarchy, did advife his majesty to enter into a treaty for it, and did fo far encourage and promote the fame, that the faid treaty was concluded and ratified in 1698, under the great feal of England, then in cuftody of the faid lord Sommers. To which his lordship anfwered, by a full and plain account of all the fteps of that treaty, referring himself to the letters on that fubject between the king and him, "wherein, as he concei 66 ved, he had fully and faith"fully difcharged his truft, and "the duty incumbent on him." II. That, for the more effectual carrying on the said treaty, commiflions were prepared, amended, enlarged, or altered, by the lord Sommers, without any lawful warrant for his so doing; whereunto, without communicating the fame to the rest of the then lords juftices of England, or advifing with the privy council, he did prefume to affix the great feal of England, with a blank for commillioners names, to be afterwards inferted. copy of the Lord Sommers's anfwer was, with great dif- Will. III. patch, fent down to the commons, and upon that they were 1700-1. at "majefty's plenipotentiaries for "perfected, that nothing could his majefty afterwards, by his 66 leaving one entire blank fheet, 66 66 V. That, in the year 1699, another treaty of partition was concluded and ratified under the great feal, then in cuftody of the faid lord Sommers, evidently deftructive to the trade of this realm, dishonourable to his majefty, highly injurious to the intereft of the Proteftant religion, and manifeftly tending to disturb the general peace of Europe, by altering the balance of power therein, and ftrengthening France against the good friends and allies of our fovereign lord the king. To which he answered, "That he had not any knowledge of the faid treaty, or any tranfaction in order there"unto, fave only that a draught "of the faid treaty was read over in the prefence of divers "lords of the privy council "(whereof he was one) to which draught he, as well as others "then prefent, did make feve"ral objections; but they were afterwards informed by his 2 fying of the faid treaty under "the great feal, he did affix "the great feal to fuch ratifica"tion, being, as he conceives, obliged fo to do." VI. That whereas, by the laws and ufages of this realm, all commiffions under the great feal, for the making any treaty or alliance, ought to be enrolled and entered on record in the court of Chancery, he, the faid lord Sommers, not minding the duty of his office, did not in any manner enroll or enter on record any of the faid commiffions or ratifications. To which he answered, "That he con"ceives it was not incumbent upon him as lord chancellor, "to fee the commiffions or ra"tifications enrolled, the fame "being prepared and brought "to the great feal, by the fe"cretaries of ftate, ready in groffed, and, when fealed, "taken away by them, and the "original treaties remaining in "their cuftody; but the care of "inrolling the fame, if necef |