1753. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 451

Let

wards reducing them to the same abject flavish condition, which the people of Venice were reduced to by their great council in the beginning of the 14th century. But this of its being dangerous to our conftitution is not the only bad eonfequence to be apprehended from paffing this bill into a law; for it will really prove a fort of prohibition of marriage with refpect to all our poorer fort of people, because it will render the folemnization of that ceremony fo tedious and troublefome, or fo expenfive, that many of them wil either chufe to live fingle, or agree to live together without any marriage at all. We know how averfe our B people generally are to a proclamation of banns, even in the prefent method, when in any of our holy-day weeks the whole may be performed, and the loving couple made happy by marriage in three or four days; how much more averle then will they be to this way of marrying, when they must give a week's notice before the banns can be first proclaimed, and after that must wait above three weeks before the proclamation of banns can be finished, and the marriage ceremony performed according to the rules prefcribed by this bill? We may therefore with great reafon prefume, that very few even of the most vulgar fort of our people will fubmit to be married by way of proclamation of banns; and what with ftamp-duties and fees we have made licences fo expenfive, that very few of them can bear the expence, and if they could, there are but few of them that know how to come at a licence.

of Venice when this remarkable change In their form of government was brought about, we have reafon to be furprised how it was poffible to concert fuch a defign, much more how it was poffible to earry it into execution; and we can afcribe it to no caufe but that of their having allowed a few families to accumulate A too great a fhare of the wealth of their country: This thererefore, as well as a great many other inftances, muft convince us, that there is no preferving a form of government which has any thing of the democratical in its conftitution, but by difperfing, as much as poffible, the wealth and property of the fociety through the whole body of the people, and by preventing, as much as poffible, every custom or regulation that may enable thofe, who have already too much, to accumulate more. That this would be one of the bad effects of the bill now under our confideration, if paffed into a law, I think no man can conteft; for it is certain, that parents generally have no confidera- C tion for the affections of their child. a man be but rich, he may be deformed, he may be brutish in his nature, nay, he may be next degree to an ideot, yet ftill an old mifer will think him a proper hufband for his only daughter. Let a woman be but rich, he may be ugly, fhe may be difeafed, he may be justly fuf- D pected as to her chastity, yet still an old mifer will think her a fit match for his only fon; and in both cafes the father often takes every method in his power to force a compliance with his defire: Nay, we know, that the fon or daughter has often no way of avoiding fuch a deteftable match, but by getting him or herself married clandeftinely to fome other; but E this refource will be taken away from every unfortunate child, fhould this bill be paffed into a law, fo that our avariti. ous rich men will have an indefeasible method of accumulating more wealth into their families; and ambition, the next governing paffion of all rich mifers, will appropriate every rich heires in the king- F dom to the eldeft fon of fome of our nobility, which in a few years must greatly increase the property and influence of the other houfe of parliament, to the manifeft danger of our prefent happy conftitu

tion.

In short, Sir, I think there can be nothing more evident than that this bill

must tend towards introducing an arifto- G
cratical form of government amongst us;
therefore I must be of opinion, that our
giving our content to its being paffed in-
to a law, would be a fort of treachery to-
wards our constituents, as it is a fep to-

What then will be the confequence, Sir, of pafing this bill into a law? In my opinion, the certain confequence will be that of rendering common whoring as frequent among the lower fort of people, as it is now among thofe of the better fort; and multitudes of wenches in all parts of the country, when they find they cannot get hufbands according to law, will fet up the trade ; fo that the bill ought really to be called, a bill for the increafe of fornication in this kingdom. How this will fuit with the religion or morals of our people I fhall leave to the confideration of our clergy, but I am fure it will not fuit with the happinefs of the fociety, which must always depend upon increafing the breed of the induftrious and labouring fort of people amongst us; and therefore instead of making a law for preventing this incrcafe by throwing obfta

cles in the way of marriage, we thould confider what is the caufe that makes clandeftine marriages fo frequent amorsft us, and endeavour to remove that caufe by fome new regulation. I fhall not preLiiz tund

tend to offer any fcheme for this purpofe,
but I must fay, that I can fee no neceffity
for a proclamation of banns: I can fee
no reafon why the parish fhould be told
fo often, and in fuch a folemn and pub-
lick manner, that there is a marriage in-
tended between John the plowman and
Mary the dairy-maid; and it is plain, A
that neither the clergy nor the promoters
of this bill think a proclamation of banns
abfolutely neceffary, becaufe they admit
of a marriage licence without it. I am
therefore apt to fufpect, that this procla-
mation of banns was introduced, and is
now to be enforced by law, in order to
render licences neceffary; and the only
ufe of a licence I take to be that of put- B
ting money into the pockets of our clergy-
men or some of their officers: Whereas,
if the parfon of every parith had a power
to marry people at his church without
either licence or proclamation of banns,
I believe, we should never have any fuch
marriage fhop fet up as that at Keith's
chapel, or any of thofe now kept within
the rules of the Fleet or King's-bench
prifons; and if there were no fuch pub-
lick marriage fhops kept, a young gentle-
man or a young lady would find it very
difficult to get married to any low or in-
famous perfon, because a fettled clergy-
man would have fome regard to his cha-
racter; and as fuch clergymen are not be-
low the law, they might be prevented by
Jaw from marrying any but fuch as they D
knew, or fuch as were recommended to
them by fome person of character whom
they did know, who fhould always be
prefent at the ceremony, and a figning
witnefs to the regifter and certificate of
marriage.

I fhall not fay, Sir, that this would prevent a young gentleman or young lady's being ever married without the confent of their parents or guardians; nor do I think that fuch marriages ought to be abfolutely prohibited, because it would be giving a greater power to parents, and efpecially guardians, than they ought to have, and which, from experience we may prefume, would often be made a very bad, a very tyrannical ufe of. But it would, I am perfuaded, prevent infamous or fcandalous marriages, because there would then be no shop for the folemnization of fuch a marriage, as their only fupport now arifes from the multitude of vulgar marriages folemnized at fuch shops, because they cannot be fo conveniently, or at fo cheap a rate, folemnized any where elfe. Whereas, if a marriage could be folemnized as conveniently, and for as little expence, at the parish church, and by a regular clergyman, even the most

E

F

G

vulgar would chufe to be married there ; and I fhould readily agree to any law you pleafe for enforcing the keeping of a regular register at every church or chapel where marriages could be folemnized, and for the more easily convicting, and more feverely punishing fuch as fhould be guilty of bigamy; but I cannot agree to what will be in fome measure a prohibition of marriage amongst the poor, for the fake of preventing what we call clandef tine marriages amongst the rich; for marriage may be compared to the importation of fome of the conveniences of life: If you lay heavy taxes upon fuch importation, you of courfe introduce fmuggling, and if by fevere laws you prevent imug. gling, you force the poor to make the best Thift they can without the use of fuch conveniencies; fo by taxing and throw ing obftacles in the way of marriage, you of course introduce clandeftine marriages, and if you prevent these by feverer laws, you will force the poor to make the best hift they can without marrying. This, I am convinced, will be the effect of the bill now before us, and as this is neither confiftent with the religion or morals of the people, nor with the interest or happinefs of the fociety, I must be against paffing this bill into a law.

The next that spoke was L. Bellienus, wife Speech upon this Occafion was to the fellowing Effect.

Mr. Prefident,
SIR,

HAVE not very long had the honour

of a feat in this auguft affembly, hut, I believe, the oldest member amongst us never was present at fuch an extraordinary debate as what we are now upon. The real question now before us is, whether we shall leave our young gentlemen of fortune, whilft under age, a prey to bawds and prostitutes, and our young ladies of fortune, whilft under age, a prey to sharpers and fortune-hunters, or whether we shall pafs a bill which alone can effectually put an end to this evil, by which fo many of our beft families have fuffered, and more may fuffer, and a bill which cannot poffibly be attended with any inconvenience or danger to the fociety? To hear fuch a question feriously oppofed, and gravely debated, muft certainly appear very strange to every one, who is not well acquainted with our conflitution; and if there were any foreigners now in our gallery, I hope there are not, they would certainly fuppofe, that many of us were fharpers or fortune-hunters,

1753. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c.

and many others of us in combination with bawds and prostitutes.

A

To confirm what I fay, Sir, I fhall confider this bill, first as to the evil which it is defigned to put an end to, and 1 next as to the inconveniences and dangers which, it is faid, may be apprehended from it. By our law, as it stands at prefent, a boy of 14 years of age may be feduced to marry a kitchen wench, or a common prostitute, and let his quality and fortune be never fo confiderable, he can never by any means avoid fuch a rash, inconfiderate, and infamous marriage: Nay, even our king's eldeft fon, the heir apparent to our crown, may at this age be feduced to marry a creature, B without poffibility of avoiding fuch a marriage by any law now in being. Then with regard to the female fex, a girl juft turned of 12 years of age, may he feduced to marry the loweft, the most infamous wretch I can name, and let her quality or fortune be never fo great, this marriage can never be avoided, nor can you inflict any higher punishment upon the man who marries fuch a girl, than an imprisonment for five years; neither can you, I think, deprive either her or her hufband of the poffeffion of her fortune, if her parents were both dead at the time of fuch marriage; and tho' it be high treafon to violate the king's eldeft daughter, yet it is neither treafon nor felony to marry her, even tho' fhe be then prefumptive heir to the crown, nor could you by any law now fubfifting difannul fuch a marriage, if he was above 12 years old when the marriage was contracted, fo that the fon, perhaps, of a footman who had feduced her at that age to marry him, might come to have a legal right to the crown of thefe E realms, and a right which you could rot make void by any law now in being: I fay, Sir, by any law now in being, because in fuch extraordinary cafes, I do not know what the parliament might be induced to do by a law ex post fatto; but as all fuch laws are of the most dangerous confequence, furely the wisdom of the nation, as our parliaments are called, fhould have forefight enough to prevent its being ever under a neceffity to make any fuch.

Sir, I hall readily grant, that if our clergymen were all men of cafy circumftances and unexceptionable characters, there would be no great danger of any fuch infamous marriages as I have mentioned being ever contracted, because no fuch clergyman will ever folemnize the religious ceremony of marriage between any two perfors without knowing fomething of their characters, and would abfolutely refufe to do fo, if the marriage

D

453

appeared to him to be rafh, fcandalous, or infamous, with refpect to either of the parties. But I am forry to fay, Sir, that many of our clergy are not in easy circumftances, and fome are very far from being of unexceptionable characters; for we all know that fome of them have fet up fhops, as the Hon. gentleman very properly called them, where any two perfons whatsoever may be clandeftinely married, without any inquiry into their characters, or even notwithstanding its being known, that the marriage will be of the most infamous fort, with refpect to one of the contracting parties. This we all know, Sir, and I believe, every one of us may recollect more than one inftance, where a young gentleman or a young lady has been betrayed, and deceitfully drawn into fuch a marriage, to the great grief of their parents, and the utter ruin of themselves. And as

the evil is fo glaring, and the misfortunes arifing from it fo notorioufly frequent, will any gentleman fay that a remedy should not be attempted, or that any other adequate remedy can be contrived, but that of declaring the marriage void, if not celebrated according to fuch rules as are or fhall be prefcribed by law?

That the parliament has a power to do fo: That there is nothing inconfiftent with juftice or with religion in our doing fo, no one, I believe, Sir, will doubt, who confiders that this bill has already paffed the houfe of lords, where the learned bishops have voices, and where the learned judges always attend and are ready to inform their lordships upon every point relating to law or right; and that our doing fo can be no way inconfiftent with the good of fociety, we may learn from the practice of our neighbours the Dutch. In Holland, Sir, a regular proclamation of banns, much the fame with what we have here, is fo neceffary, that a marriage without it is abfolutely void, without any decree or sentence of any court for declaring it fo; and this proclamation of banns must be made not Fonly in the place where the parties then refide, but alfo in the place of their former refidence, if they have refided but a fhort time in the place where they then are; and even after proclamation of banns, they must be married in the church or chapel of the religion to which they belong; neither of which can be difpenfed with but by the fupreme court of Holland with refpect to the nobility, or by the fupreme magistrate ot. their city with respect to the other inhabitants;" fo that in Holland ro licence can be granted, either as to the proclamation

of

' of banns, or as to not being married at church, by any ecclefiaftical perfon or court whatfoever; and no fuch licence or difpenfation ought to be granted but upon good caufe fhewn to the court or magiftrate, why one or both of thefe hould be difpenfed with.

B

Then, Sir, with regard to the confent of A parents or guardians, the law of Holland is, that a fon under 25, or a daughter under 20 years of age, must have the confent of the father, if alive, of the mother, if he be dead, or of the next relations, if both be dead; and fuch a power have the parents over their children under this age, that even after the banns have been regularly proclaimed, they may interpofe and forbid the marriage, without being obliged to fhew any caule for fo doing, unless the proper magiftrate should fufpe&t their having a very felfish unjuft caufe; and if notwithftanding their forbidding the marriage the Came thould be folemnized, it is by their law, what they call ipfo jure, void, that is to fay, without the fentence of any court for declaring it void. Indeed, if the parents be both dead, the guardians or relations refusing their confent, or forbidding the marriage, are obliged to af

of the feven provinces is a fort of forereignty within itself, the laws of the other provinces are in fome few refpects different from thofe of the province of Holland, but in general they are pretty much the fame; and these laws with refpect to all the provinces have fubfifted for feveral centuries, without adding to the power of the nobility of that country, of being any hindrance to the marriage of the poor, or any bar to the propagation of induftrious and laborious people in that country, which, I believe, is the most populous fpot of ground of any up. on this globe, not even excepting China, tho' we admit all we have heard of that

country to be literally true.

With respect to this bill's being a flep towards introducing an ariftocracy amongst us, by fecuring all the rich heireffes of the kingdom to the eldest fons of our nobility, I am furprifed, Sir, at the fuggeftion; for admitting that rich fathers, or guardians of rich heireffes would always chufe to have their daughters or wards married to peers or the eldeft fons of peers, and would take measures to compel the young ladies under their care to agree to fuch matches, tho' contrary to their in clinations, which, experience must convince us, is not to be admitted, yet from the laws of this country we must know, that no father can abfolutely compel his daughter, much lefs can a guardian compel his ward, to marry any one he pleases, and if the young lady will but stay till fhe is one and twenty, the may as freely marry the man the likes after this bill is paffed into a law, as he can do at this prefent time, becaufe neither the father nor the guardian can then forbid the banns, or prevent her having a licence, unless there be fomething very infamous in the match fhe propofes for herfelf; and even in that cafe it could be done only by making intereft with the proper perfons not to grant a licence or to proclaim the banns; for this bill gives no legal power to the father, or to any relation, of a gentleman or lady of F full age, to prevent the granting a licence, or the proclamation of banns; and if the proper officer should refuse to grant a licence, or the proper clergyman should refufe to proclaim the banns, without a just cause, I believe, he would be liable to an action upon which very heavy damages might be recovered against him.

gn their reafons before the proper magiftrate, who may approve or disapprove of them as he fees caufe; and if without his authority the marriage fhould be fo- D lemnized, the marriage, 'tis true, is not void, but the party thus marrying a perfon under age, can reap no benefit by the marriage from the eftate of the perfon fo married. Nay, fuch is the duty of children to their parents, according to the opinion of the Dutch, that even after they are above the ages I have mentioned, they are obliged to give exprefs notice to their parents of their intended marriage, who have 14 days after fuch notice, to appear before the proper magiftrate and give their reafons for forbidding the marriage, and if thofe reafons fhould be approved of, and the marriage neverthelefs folemnized, it would be ipfo jure void.

I have been the more full in my account of the laws of Holland with regard to marriage, because I hope it will from thence appear, that every objection a gainst the bill now under our confideration is frivolous and entirely groundless; and I must farther obferve, Sir, that these laws are in force with regard to every G Subject of Holland even tho' the marriage fhould be folemnized in a place not under the dominion of the states, and according to the rules prefcribed by the laws of that place. I know that as every one

But now, Sir, fuppofing that by this bill's being paffed into a law, all the rich heireffes in the kingdom could be effectually fecured for the eldest fons of our peers, believe the property of our nobility in general will in every age bẹ

1753. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 455

as much diminished by the extinction of
fome, and the extravagance of others,
as it can be increafed by the marriage
of heireffes or the creation of new peers,
This has always been my way of think
ing, and I am forry to fay that the conduct
of the prefent generation furnishes me with
reafons for being confirmed in this way of A
thinking, rather than with any reason for
altering it; from whence I am of opinion,
that we have more reason to apprehend
danger to our conftitution from an in-
crease of the number of peers, than from
an increafe of their property, for nothing
can be of more dangerous confequence to
Our conftitution, than a great number
of peers who cannot fupport their dignity,
without a penfion from, or fome em-
ployment under the crown; which may
very probably happen, if the number of
peers fhould be very much increased, as
no eftate can by our law be unalienably
annexed to the title, and as the family
eftate is often feparated from the title,
when the latter happens to devolve upon C
a collateral branch; therefore, if it were
in our power, I think, we should con-
tribute towards a poor lord's being al-
ways fure of matching himself with fome
rich heirefs, and thereby restoring the
luftre and the independency of his family.

B

Then, Sir, as to the marriage of our poor, there is nothing in this bill that can prevent any thing of that kind which ought to be encouraged, or even fuffered; for as to all thofe rafh and inconfiderate marriages which are entered into between two poor creatures, fometimes before they have got cloaths to their backs, and often before they have faved any thing for furnishing a lodging or cottage for themfelves, or have got into any way of E providing for themselves, much lefs for their children, I think they ought all, if it were poffible, to be prevented; therefore to lay the poor under a neceffity of thinking beforehand of what they are about, is in my opinion, a wife and neceffary regulation, and can prevent no marriage which ought to be permitted; and as to fuch of the poor, who have thought beforehand, and in confequence thereof have faved a little money, and got into fome way of living, if they are in a very great hurry to be married, or not willing to have the parish made acquainted with their intended marriage, 30 or 40 fhillings is not fuch a large fum as to prevent their getting G themselves married; and this is the higheft expence that a marriage by licence will cost them any where in this kingdom, for in moft places it will not coft near fo much, nor can any of them be at a Lofs where to apply for a licence, because

the parfon or curate of their parish can always inform them,

But befides, the reafon of the thing, Sir, the example of Holland, where the marriage is abfolutely void if entered into without proclamation of banns or a licence, muft convince us, that fuck a regulation in this kingdom can no way prevent or leffen the number of marriages amongst our poor; and from the fame example we must be convinced, that it can no way impede the propagation of the induftrious and laborious part of our people; for there is no country in the world where this fort of people is more numerous, more frugal, or more diligent than they are in Holland, which I am apt to think is chiefly owing to their preventing those rash and inconfiderate mar riages fo frequent in this country; for if an inquiry were to be ftri&tly made, I believe it would appear, that our Fleet and May-fair marriages have very much increafed the propagation of beggars, rogues, and the most abandoned fort of proftitutes, amongst us, and but very little that of laborious and induftrious poor, as most of this fort here in London are fuch as were born and brought up in the country, where they have very few clandeftine marriages, and where their marriages do not proceed from a drunken frolick, or fome fudden whim, as most of our clandeftine marriages here in London do, and as they are fuddenly joined they are very often as fuddenly parted, and each of them perhaps in a few days coupled with a fresh fpoufe; therefore I do not at all wonder at its appearing, that vaft multitudes have been married in a year at fuch a place as May-fair. But this is fuch an abufe of the religious ceremony of marriage, that no man who thinks there is any thing facred in that ceremony, can in my opinion be against paffing this bill into a law, as it is the only effectual method for putting an end to this abufe, and for fhutting up thofe infamous marriage fhops, which have fo long been a fcandal to this country and a publick nufance in the eye of every fober chriftian.

I have faid, Sir, the only effectual method; for what the Hon. gentleman who fpoke laft was pleafed to propofe, is rather a fcheme for rendering all marriages clandeftine, than for preventing any fuch for the future; because an abandoned fellow might then marry twenty different women in twenty different parishes, and might in every parith get an alehousekeeper, or fome tradesman, to vouch for him to the incumbent, who could not take upon him to object to the chara&er of one of his parishioners against whom be

had