the act, the account of stock was made up and adjusted with Mr.
Knight, and the pretended purchasers were paid the difference out of
the Company's cash. This fictitious stock, which had been chiefly at
the disposal of Sir John Blunt, Mr. Gibbon, and Mr. Knight, was
distributed among several members of the government and their
connexions, by way of bribe, to facilitate the passing of the bill. To
the Earl of Sunderland was assigned 50,000 pounds of this stock; to
the Duchess of Kendal 10,000 pounds; to the Countess of Platen 10,000
pounds; to her two nieces 10,000 pounds; to Mr. Secretary Craggs
30,000 pounds; to Mr. Charles Stanhope (one of the Secretaries of the
Treasury) 10,000 pounds; to the Swordblade Company 50,000 pounds. It
also appeared that Mr. Stanhope had received the enormous sum of
250,000 pounds as the difference in the price of some stock, through
the hands of Turner, Caswall, and Co., but that his name had been
partly erased from their books, and altered to Stangape. Aislabie, the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, had made profits still more abominable.
He had an account with the same firm, who were also South Sea
directors, to the amount of 794,451 pounds. He had, besides, advised
the Company to make their second subscription one million and a half,
instead of a million, by their own authority, and without any warrant.
The third subscription had been conducted in a manner as disgraceful.
Mr. Aislabie's name was down for 70,000 pounds; Mr. Craggs, senior,
for 659,000 pounds; the Earl of Sunderland's for 160,000 pounds; and
Mr. Stanhope for 47,000 pounds. This report was succeeded by six
others, less important. At the end of the last, the committee declared
that the absence of Knight, who had been principally intrusted,
prevented them from carrying on their inquiries.

The first report was ordered to be printed, and taken into
consideration on the next day but one succeeding. After a very angry