were was also a collision between the Crown and the Commons on the subject of the Speaker. King Charles II. wanted some tool of his own to be chosen; but the Commons asserted their independence, and selected Sir Edward Seymour. And as it was supposed that, as usual, on his presentation at the bar of the Lords his excuse would be received, he was instructed to say that he had been elected mem con. This he did, and instead of "I pray you have me excused" he concluded his speech with these words:- "And now I have come hither for your Majesty's approbation, which if your Majesty will please to grant, I shall do them (the Commons) and you the best service that I can." This unexpected harangue confounded the Lord Chancellor, who had got a nice little speech prepared for the occasion, which was thus rendered useless. However, after some thought and consultation with his brother commisioners, he told Mr. Speaker elect that the King reserved him for other services, and commanded the House to choose another. But the House persisted in their choice, and the matter was not settled without a prorogation, which led to a compromise. This Sir Edward Seymour was of the ducal house of Somerset, and was is said by historians to have been the proudest, if not the most arrogant man that ever lived. The following anecdote seems to prove the allegation:- On one occasion, when Speaker, he ordered Serjeant Pemberton to be taken into custody by the Serjeant-at-Arms for not paying him sufficient respect on passing through Westminster Hall. On another, when his carriage broke down at Charing Cross, he seized the carriage of a private gentleman then passing, and, turning the occupant out, took his place; and when the gentleman expressed surprise at such conduct, Sir Edward replies - "Sir it is more proper for you to walk in the street than for the Speaker of the House of Commons to do so".
The Speaker elect no longer prays to be excused; he now merely expresses his sense of the arduous duties of the office, and adds "that if it should be her Majesty's pleasure to disapprove of the choice, her Majesty's Commons will at once select some other member of their house better qualified to fill the station than himself."
Baron Rothschild
An allusion was made on the Hastings hustings to the question of admitting Jews to Parliament; and it was a curious feature at the opening of the parliamentary session that "nugget on two legs" Baron Rothschild was present and prepared to vote on the election of Speaker, had there been a division. Nor could anyone have prevented him. He was the duly returned member for London, and stood in just the same position as everyone else in the House. No one had been asked to take the oaths, and the Baron, for aught anyone could prove to the contrary was prepared to take them.
