confideration of fuch meafures as may tend to alleviate the present diftress, and to prevent, as far as poffible, the renewal of fimilar `embarraffments in future. Nothing has been omitted on my part that appeared likely to contribute to this end; and you may be assured of my hearty concurrence in whatever regulations the wifdom of Parliament may adopt, on a subject so peculiarly interesting to my people, whofe welfare will ever be the object nearest my heart.

The Speech being read, the Earl of DALKEITH (fon of the Duke of Buccleugh) rofe to move the addrefs, and faid, he was perfuaded the Houfe would agree with him, that though fome events had taken place, which, in themfelves, appeared unfavourable to the juft caufe in which we were engaged; and though they could not but feel for the misfortunes which, in the profecution of the war, had attended our allics, there was ample caufe for fatisfaction in the fituation of cur own affairs, taken in the general view they afforded of improvement fince the last year; for though no conquefts had been made on the Continent, the farther progrefs of the French arms had been prevented in Italy, and on the Rline. In the Eaft Indies, thofe pofeffions belonging to the enemy, that could contribute to the wealth and commercial interefts of this country, had been all taken from them; and in the Weft, if not all, at leaft poffeffions abundantly great, had fallen before our fleets and armics. While the unexampled vigorous operations, going forward under one of the ableft commanders of the country, gave foundation to fuppofe that the whole of thofe iflands would fall into our hands, and that by becoming mafters of the Weft Indies, we fhould fecure the means of carrying on the war as long as it might be found neceffary. He was aware, that to counterbalance thefe weighty advantages, the feceffion of fo many of our allics from the common caufe, would be enlarged upon by gentlemen on the other fide of the Houfe; but paradoxical as it might feem, he was perfuaded, that by the lofs of thofe allies we had acquired additional ftrength, fince it enabled us to profecute with increased energy the war by fea, and to exert our whole means and efforts in maintaining and improving our naval fuperiority. He was aware, too, that obfervations of a fimilar tendency would be nade on the loffes our trade had fuftained by captures at fea; but when the House recollected the unbounded extent of our commerce, and the difficulty, or rather impoflibility, of covering the whole fea with our fhips, in order effectually to prevent their cruizers from coming out, together with the circumftance of their having no commerce to protect, the Houfe could not be furprised at the oc

rule.

cafional partial loffes fuftained by our trade. Upon reading His Majesty's Speech, he would affert, that better measures could not be proposed, more wife and suitable to the policy of the country. When the nature of the enemy, with whom we had to contend, was duly confidered, it would be found, that in order to fecure a lafting and honourable peace, we muft fhew them their inability to contend, and convince them, at the fame time, of our ftrength. They did nothing from found policy, but acted entiicly upon the impulfe of the immediate neceflity of that party who happened to It was therefore obvicus, that, in order to fecure the defireable object, peace, we should fhew ourselves prepared for either alternative of peace or war; befides, he was fure, that a difgraceful peace would be much more odious in the eyes of Britons, than any inconveniencies which could arife from the farther profecation of the war. As to the prefent conftitution of France, it was not, he conceived, an object of our confideration whether it was detrimental to themfelves. If it was not detrimental and dangerous to the tranquillity of other nations, it could be no reafonable impediment to the accomplishment of a peace. But confidering that that conftitution was upheld by the army against the confent of the people, who, fo far from being fatisfied with, had rifqued a bloody ftruggle to overturn it, it must be very doubtful at what period a fecure, lafting, and honourable peace could be concluded. The diffraction and anarchy in which France had been involved, remained. The man who, fince the overthrow of Roterfpierre, had been thought to regulate their affairs, had been denounced, and the iffue was yet uncertain; in fhort, nothing seemed to indicate a return of a stable and permanent government. With what propriety could any propofition of terms come from this country, while the terrors of denunciation are fufpended over the heads of thofe with whom we would be taught to negociate? Was it at the period of establishing their constitution by the army influence, we were to look to for peace, or when the bloody and violent struggle was concluded? He faid, he feared he had trefpaffed too long on the patience of the House, and concluded by moving the addrefs, which was as ufual, an echo of the Speech.

The Hon. ROB. STEWART, (fon of Lord Londonderry) on feconding the address, said, he should not recur to any of the questions which the Houfe had difpofed of in the progrefs of the war; he should only look to the prefent fituation of the conteft, and the probable iffue of a perfeverance in the war. In comparing the profpects of the prefent moment with thofe of the last year, notwithstanding fome reverses, our fituation was evidently improved;

war.

in looking to France, it clearly appeared, amidft the confufion that reigned there, that the two great features of their system, which made them fo formidable to us and all the other powers oppofed to them, were falling to decay; viz. their paper currency, and that government of terror, which had enabled them to make fuch unexampled military efforts, which had been able for a confiderable time to turn the whole wealth and population of the country to To prove that the affignats had nearly loft their powers, it was fufficient to ftate, that they were difcredited in the proportion of 70 to 1; that the ftate, for every one and a half per cent. which it might have occafion to expend, muft iffue 100l. in nominal currency; and another campaign, fuppofing their actual expence 20 millions fterling, would require an iffue of affignats to the amount of 1400 millions fterling, fuppofing the depreciation not to be increafed, which could not but happen; a quantity of paper which, if added to 720 millions now in circulation, would leave them without any value whatfoever. If any farther argument was required, we had the admiffion of the Convention, that the affignats could not be farther relied on, and that fpecie muft be reforted to. But where was it to be found? They had it not; and if they had, having neither induftry nor commerce, it would not long remain in the country. They felt the neceffity of an entire change of fyftem; nothing but peace could bring them any relief; and the neceffity of peace would force them to abandon the deftructive fyftem they had been acting upon.

The government of terror was held in fuch abhorrence, that the re-establishment of it was impoñible; al parties felt it fo; it was a muter of contest which should disclaim it most. After the Sections had been reduced, the first act of the victorious party was to banish Barrere, and to bring to trial the former terrorists; and fo completely odious was terror and revolutionary law, that they had recourse to military tribunals for the trial of the revolters.

Such was the state of France; and although the last campaign had not been fruitful in victorics, the preffure of the war had caufed the diftrefs and weakness which reduced the enemy even with more certainty than military fuccefs. Although he was willing to admit, that the weaknefs of the enemy made negociation much lefs hazardous than when they were in ftrength, yet he did not believe that any man would recommend negociation juft at the prefent moment; the total change which a few days must make one way or the other in the affairs of that country, made it a matter of common fenfe to wait for the event, before any decifion was taken,

He faid, notwithstanding fuch favourable profpects, it could not but be lamented that there was a neceffity of ftill farther adding to our debt; the country had, however, the confolation to obferve, that the fources of wealth had not been impaired by the war; that commerce and manufactures were never more flourishing; that public credit was high; that the preffure of the late taxes was little felt; and that the principle of liquidation had so accompanied the new debt, as to make it lefs to be regretted. Such a picture of refources, compared with the annihilated commerce, manufactures, credit, taxes, currency, of the enemy, every thing which conftitutes wealth or ftrength, gave the Houfe the ftrongest affurance that perfeverance muft enfure fuccefs.

As the arguments in favour of immediate negociation were not to be maintained, he was prepared to hear the other fide of the Houfe indulge in lamenting the difafters of the campaign on the Continent; the reverfes we had experienced in that quarter, and the feparation of several powers from the alliance, certainly afforded just grounds for regret; yet notwithstanding its difafters, the war on the Continent had been the great means of reducing the enemy, by neceffitating an expence which no country could long fupport. It was the preffure in that quarter which took the fting from Jacobinism, and made it comparatively harmless; it was not till after France was materially exhaufted, and incapable of acting on her original principles, that Pruffia made peace; and from that time the war, like all former wars, had been rather a ftruggle for territory, than a crufade for the propagation of the rights of man. The feparate peace made by the finaller states of Germany, particularly Hanover, he expected to hear obferved upon; but however the conduct of the Elector of Hanover might furnish a topic for declamation, it never could be gravely adduced as a reafon that other powers, not fimilarly expofed, should follow an example which neceffity, not choice, might have dictated. Upon the whole, the war on the Continent had exhaufted the enemy, and enabled us to employ our navy more offenfively in the different quarters of the globe, much more than we could have done had the French army been unemployed, and ftationed along the oppofite coaft. In fact, the money we had expended on the Continent contributed as efficiently to our naval fuccefs as any money laid out upon the fleet itfelf. The lofs of Holland was a fevere blow, but a misfortune caufed rather by the feafon, than the arms of the enemy; and notwithstanding France was in poffeffion of that country, fo flow were the Dutch in their imitation of French politics, it was clear that the new principles were un

congenial, and that Holland, when the French troops were withdrawn, would return to their old habits.

Such had been the reverses of the war; it had not, however, been without its triumphs; and as far as it depended upon Great Britain as a nation, it had been particularly glorious. Never, in any former war, had our naval fuperiority been fo decifive; and never had the maritime power of France been fo completely crushed. Our fuperiority on all the principal ftations had been uninterrupted, and our commerce, confidering its extent, had fuffered but little. The French had been expelled from the Eaft Indies, and our poffeffions in the West Indies been extended; an armament was now prepared to act in that part of the world, which promised such extensive advantages, as would enable us to teach the enemy, that if they were not prepared to be entirely excluded from the Colonial advantages of the Weft Indies, they must return within their former limits in Europe.

Having the strongest conviction of the original justice of the war, and fecing, as he did, notwithstanding fome disasters which no war was exempt from, the beft profpects of a favourable iffue from a steady and vigorous perfeverance in the conteft, he felt an entire confidence that His Majefty's Minifters would seize the first practicable occafion of concluding a peace. Had the Minifter been led, by the fuggeftions of thofe who differed from him, to infift upon the establishment of any particular form of government in France, or had he efpoufed the caufe of any particular clafs of emigrants, a doubt might arife whether it was our own or their cause which was now at iffue; but the right honourable gentleman (Mr. Pitt) having diftinctly avowed at all times that it was fecurity for Great Britain, and not a government for France which he contended for, he felt affured that no practicable occafion of treating would be neglected; and that is, the Minister was himfelf, (if a perfonal feeling could be fuppofed to operate) in his mind, the individual in the nation moft interested in not going to war, fo he was the perfon molt powerfully called upon by every feeling to make peace, when it could be done with fecurity and honour.

He trusted, no pictures which might be drawn of military difafters would shake the national energy, convinced, as he was, that a short time longer would fecure every object we had contended for, and that Great Britain would have the honour of fettling, as it already had the glory of faving, Europe, by its firmness in refifting the arms and principles of France; he concluded by feconding the addrefs.