sion must have been effected, if the embar-tended, that in spite of our naval superiokation had not been prevented by a storm, which destroyed the transports, &c. destined to carry the invaders to the British shore; the other was of a later date, when lord Hawke had the honour of defeating the fleet under M. Conflans, in 1759. Indeed, it required very little argument to prove the absurdity of trusting the safety, nay very existence of the nation, to so precarious a defence as that of our fleet alone. It was well known that France had at all times a powerful military force, in the vicinity of our coasts: and it was equally as well known, that in the space of twenty-four hours she might, by pressing fishing-boats, small craft, &c. have it in her power, from Calais, and other ports in the channel, to invade us with such an army as would drive us to the necessity of fighting for our very existence and independence as a nation. His lordship entered, besides, into the consideration of what little dependence we ought to have on our militia, from its present wretched and undisciplined state and concluded with giving his assent to the Resolution, on the ground, that national security, at the present tremendous period, called for a suitable military defence; and that of course none of the Old Corps, in the terms of the Resolution, could be spared out of the kingdom, without hazarding the most dangerous consequences. The Earl of Sandwich paid several ironical compliments to the noble lord who spoke last, on his great knowledge, talents, and volubility of speech, but which, in the present instance, he feared had run away with his judgment. He presumed the learned lord did not mean to expose our national weakness by assenting to the motion. He supposed the contrary: and was inclined to think so from the noble lord's own argument; for surely if his lordship imagined the nation to be in the weak and defenceless state which the resolution was supposed to import, he could never have brought himself to point out the means of invading us, or instruct our enemies to attack us with success: he could never have described the wretched state of the national militia, or asserted, that a British fleet might be beaten upon an equality; that the uncertainty of winds and tides rendered our naval defence precarious, and not to be at all depended on. Much less would the noble lord have alluded to instances in support of those arguments, and, on the whole, have con rity France might, at any time, in the space of twenty-four hours, collect flatbottomed boats, fishing vessels, and other small craft, and land an army in this island without interruption.-His lordship proceeded to expose what he called their absurdity; he said, the learned lord possessed such transcendent abilities, such a crowd of ideas, was blessed with such prompt utterance, and such a weight of eloquence, he was always happy in hearing him speak on subjects he understood; but assured him, he never desired to find him on salt water; there he was clearly out of his element. This being the case, though he would scarcely venture to contend with the learned lord upon any other subject, he would take the liberty to set his lordship right; previous to which he thought proper to give his general sentiments as to the effect of the enquiry. He said he was, from the first steps taken in this business, totally against disclosing any matter which might tend to expose to foreign powers the state of this kingdom; or, in general, that of our naval or military strength; and his reasons were, that whatever was said in that House, immediately got abroad. He perceived that the space below the bar was crowded; he would not determine on the propriety or impropriety of admitting strangers; but certainly it was a fair consequence to draw, that foreign powers had their emissaries in that House, who would, by the very first opportunity, transmit home an account of what was then passing. Such being the case, he should have hardly thought it necessary to reply to the matters thrown out by the learned lord; but that his silence might be construed into an acquiescence in what had been urged by his lordship. On the first fact alluded to by the noble lord, relative to the armament at Dunkirk, when the late marshal Saxe came there, to command the troops destined to invade this kingdom, he contended, that the project was deemed wild, absurd, and impracticable; and the event proved it was so; for the vessels being obliged to lie in an open, dangerous road, the first heavy gale of wind which happened destroyed the transport vessels, dashed them against each other, which ended in their destruction, and defeated the project. Independent of this circumstance, he said, as long as we have a superior fleet, no embarkation at any port in the channel can possibly succeed. And even while the armament at those, on which such high commendations had been bestowed. Dunkirk was pending, he saw hogsheads of letters, both from persons resident at Dunkirk and elsewhere, and from officers serving in the intended expedition, totally reprobating the absurdity and impracticability of the attempt, and earnestly wishing all thoughts of it were laid aside. His lordship next ridiculed the learned lord's assertions of an invasion from Calais. The learned lord must first suppose, that an armament could be collected, without our having any previous knowledge of it; and must likewise suppose, that, when collected and ready to sail, our fleet in the Downs would rest inactive, and let the armament pass without destroying it. But even granting that all impediments of this kind were removed, where could the enemy land? Such an armament, consisting of flat bottomed boats, &c. could not be supposed fit to keep the sea; if not, then he should be obliged to the learned lord, to land, as well as he had collected, this armament. The learned lord had been almost as unlucky in his military, as in his naval assertions. Indeed, he seemed to be equally ignorant of them both. He had condemned the employing of substitutes in the militia; now in his apprehension, the employing of substitutes was the very circumstance which rendered the militia respectable; and would, if occasion should make it necessary, render it formidable. Instead of giving us decrepid, unserviceable men, it had a direct contrary effect. It was the cause of filling the militia corps with able men. The grocer, manufacturer, &c. who knew nothing of military discipline, was excused, upon procuring a substitute to serve for him. This man, perhaps trained to arms, strong, robust, of a healthy constitution, served as long as the law permitted him; and either instructed his comrades, if before a soldier, or, by habit of a long service in the militia, became one. Whereas in the other manner, the drawing by lot those on whom the lot fell, unused to arms, or unfit from some natural or acquired impediment, answered no end whatever. He recollected, that he had served himself, in the militia corps, now under the command of a noble duke (of Manchester) and what he now observed was the case, particularly at the beginning of the late war: and he had every reason to be satisfied, that if the embodying the militia, at any future period, should become necessary, the present corps could soon be rendered as useful as The learned lord had talked of some of our cruizers being stationed off Nantz and L'Orient. He affirmed, he knew nothing of the matter; if the fact was so, the orders did not come from him. If it was true, he thought it not proper for his lordship to divulge it. On the whole, he thought it extremely imprudent, if not highly censurable, to expose our weakness, if any such weakness existed; and if it did not, the folly or blame was still increased; but above all, his lordship condemned such parts of the learned lord's speech, as tended to invite a rupture with, or an attack from our foreign enemies. He The Duke of Grafton said he disapproved of the manner adopted by the last noble lord, in the discussion of matters of such singular importance. He disclaimed every idea of introducing jest and merriment on the present occasion. charged administration with all the evils that at present threatened this nation; and reprehended, in terms bordering upon reproach, the authors of the implied imputation thrown out on those who obstructed the measures supported by the noble lord. His grace observed, that the main argument used by his lordship was of the most extraordinary kind he ever heard. "Opposition have testified their dissent of such and such measures; they have foretold the events that would happen in consequence of them; of course, opposition were the cause of those unhappy events." This, he insisted, was a language not to be endured. He trusted, that the day of enquiry and retribution was not far off; that the day was swiftly approaching, on which such a defence dare not be avowed; or, if set up, would not be accepted of. He contended, that the nation had been betrayed, misguided, and misled; and that every mischief which had already been brought upon us, or threatened the nation, had been occasioned by the inability, treachery, or design of those to whom the conduct of public affairs had been entrusted. From ministers every evil originated; from them of course redress or satisfaction would be ultimately sought and obtained. The sovereign was surrounded by such men; he was advised by evil counsellors. The nation, in consequence of their power and influence over the sovereign, was led to the brink of ruin. It was now become absolutely necessary that such councils should continue no longer to ope notice of a very formidable armament being preparing to sail from Brest in the winter 1759; and that sir Edward, now lord Hawke, was ordered to watch its motions. What was the consequence? The admiral stationed off Ushant, where he was ordered to cruize, was blown into Torbay by contrary wind. The same wind that compelled him to return to Torbay from his station, served the French fleet under Conflans to come out of Brest water, and to collect the transports, in order to proceed towards Ireland, to invade that kingdom. So matters stood at the very instant Providence interposed. A brisk wind sprung up, not only to enable the admiral to quit Torbay, and return to his former station, but to catch the French fleet, struggling with a hard gale to call their transports out of port; from which his grace drew this inference, that our naval defence, however superior or formidable, was not sufficient, solely, to protect us from an invasion. rate or mislead. The nation called for other men and other measures; and he was certain both would be required, and must be obtained. The throne was not only surrounded by weak, but he feared wicked men. If, in the general mode of conducting the affairs of government, ministers were supported in carrying through doubtful measures, not in their possible consequences of any great importance; if on such occasions, even improper compliances took place; and that an acquiescence might be fairly interpreted into a support of government; if, in such a supposed case, the influence of the crown, and the power of those acting under its authority, might be supposed, on account of favours granted or promised, to bias the general conduct of parliament; the evils resulting, if any, from this influence and these motives, might be remedied, or removed, when they were discovered; but in a case like the present, when the very existence of the nation depended on the issue, he hoped no man would suffer himself to be led by such an improper influence, or to be guided by such base, and unworthy motives. He was once in office himself; and by every light he could obtain then, and both before and since, he was fully justified in affirming, that the Debate in the Committee on the State of nation, should the measures now pursuing the Nation, upon Mr. Fox's Motion," That be persisted in, let the promised event of "no more of the Old Corps be sent out of them be what they might, could not much" the Kingdom."] Feb. 2. The order longer bear the burden. What he was now going to offer, was but the opinion of a private man; but if his information was not very ill founded indeed, he could venture to affirm, that a war with France was swiftly approaching. He would not pretend to fix the exact time; but he undertook to say, it would take place within the period of three months at the farthest, if a peace with America was not immediately agreed to. A peace with America he ventured to predict would ensure the continuance of peace with our natural enemies; without that, a war with the latter was inevitable. His grace next endeavoured to shield his learned friend from the wanton attacks of the noble lord who spoke before him. He confirmed the fact alluded to by the learned lord, relative to the affair of Conflans' fleet; and lamented the absence of the noble lord (Hawke) who could have so properly informed their lordships on that subject, as well as several other matters mentioned in the course of the debate. He well remembered that we had The Committee then divided on the duke of Richmond's motion: Contents 31; Not Contents 94. The further consideration of the State of the Nation was adjourned to the 6th instant. of the day being read, for the House to resolve itself into a Committee of the whole House, to consider of the State of the Nation; the several Estimates, Papers and Accounts which had been moved for, were referred to the said Committee. The House then went into the Committee, Mr. Puiteney in the chair. Upon which, Mr. Fox rose, and after an apology for the trouble he was going to give the Committee, and his own personal good-fortune in having his audience reduced,* being "This day, a vast multitude assembled in the lobby and environs of the House of Commons, but not being able to gain admission by either intreaty or interest, they forced their way into the gallery in spite of the doorkeepers. The House considered the intrusion in a heinous light, and a motion was directly made for clearing the gallery. A partial clearing only took place; the gentlemen were obliged to withdraw; the ladies, through complaisance, were suffered to remain: but go vernor Johnstone observing, that if the motive for clearing the House was a supposed propriety, to keep the state of the nation concealed persuaded he should not have answered the great expectations which had brought them there, stated the motion he was going to make, and the grounds of it, in the following, but much more correct, elegant and energetic manner : Sir; it is my intention to enter this day only into the minor part of the business, which I hope will undergo the consideration of this committee-a committee, Sir, appointed for the important purpose of considering the present alarming State of the Nation. I must, however, beg not to be considered as the mover in this momentous concern; the nation calls for this enquiry, and I am only one instrument in the bringing it about. What I have to beg of the House, is not to mix this day's business with any thing that has passed before, but to go plainly and directly to the business, to consider what is the actual state of the country, and how Great Britain can be saved from the critical situation in which she now stands. And in considering the subject, I would wish gentlemen would agree with me at least so far, as to divest themselves of all former opinions, of all favourite ideas, and of all prejudices which may have been contracted in the course of past debate, and take them up anew as they are the result of the present enquiry, and the fair deductions from the information now conveyed to the House. I would wish gentlemen to forget their animosities, and consider themselves neither as friends nor enemies to America, nor that country either with love or hatred, but regard it with a calm and dispassionate mind, as a part, and a very considerable part, of the British empire. Sir, the method I have chalked out to myself, as the most likely way to bring men to a right understanding of the present state of the nation, and to point out what conduct it is our interest in future to pursue, is to state facts as they appear from the papers on the table; first, with respect to the army, that in the years 1774, 1775, 1776, and 1777, there' was such an army, consisting of so many thousand men, and that such and such operations were performed; I shall, secondly, state the impossibility of increasing that army; and, from our enemies, he saw no reason to indulge the ladies so far as to make them acquainted amongst whom were some friends he had inwith the arcana of the state, as he did not troduced, insisted, that "all strangers" should think them more capable of keeping secrets withdraw. This produced a violent ferment than the men; upon which, they were like-for a long time; the ladies shewing great rewise ordered to leave the House. The duchess of Devonshire, lady Norton, and nearly sixty other ladies, were obliged to obey the mandate." London Chronicle. "When a inember in his place takes notice to the Speaker of strangers being in the House or gallery, it is the Speaker's duty immediately to order the Serjeant to execute the orders of the House, and to clear the House of all but members; and this, without permitting any debate or question to be moved upon the execution of the order. It very seldom happens that this can be done without a violent struggle from some quarter of the House, that strangers may remain. Members often move for the order to be read, endeavour to explain it, and debate upon it, and the House as often runs into great heats upon this subject; but in a short time the confusion subsides, and the dis. pute ends by clearing the House; for if any one member insists upon it, the Speaker must enforce the order, and the House must be cleared. But, at luctance to comply with the order of the House; so that, by their perseverance, business was interrupted for nearly two hours. length, they too were compelled to submit. Since that time, ladies, many of the highest rank, bave made several powerful efforts to be again admitted. But Mr. Cornwall, and Mr. Addington, have as constantly declined to permit them to come in. Indeed, was this privilege allowed to any one individual, however high her rank, or respectable her character and manners, the galleries must be soon opened to all women, who, from curiosity, amusement, or any other motive, wish to hear the debates. And this to the exclusion of many young men, and of merchants and others, whose commercial interests render their attendance necessary) to them, and of real use and importance to the public." Hatsell's Precedents, vol. 2, p. 172. During a debate on the 1st of June 1675 (see vol. 4, p. 732), some ladies were in the gallery, peeping over the gentlemen's shoulders. The Speaker spying them, called out, What! "The most remarkable instance of this, that borough do those ladies serve for?' to which has occurred in my memory, was at a time, Mr. William Coventry replied, They serve when the whole gallery and the seats under for the Speaker's chamber! Sir Thomas Litthe front gallery, were filled with ladies; cap-tleton said, 'The Speaker might mistake them tain Johnstone of the navy (commonly called for gentlemen with fine sleeves, dressed like Governor Johnstone) being angry, that the ladies.' Says the Speaker, 'I am sure I saw House was cleared of all the Men strangers," petticoats.' [2X] [VOL. XIX. ] thirdly, the enormous expence that is already incurred. The resources in men and money thus failing us, the conclusion naturally is, that there must be some sort of negociation, and in this part of the business I cannot too much lament, that my motion for papers relating to what has already passed on this subject was rejected. This would have enabled the House to judge of the impediments that have hitherto prevented such negociations from taking place, and to provide some adequate remedy. After having stated these facts, and drawn this conclusion, which, I think, may fairly be deduced from them, I shall go retrospectively, and shew that the war has been mismanaged, even on the principles of those who undertook it. It will be, then, a proper time to look back, and see to what our want of success has been owing, as I believe I may lay it down as an incontrovertible axiom, that, when a country falls, within the short space of a few years, from the very highest pinnacle of glory to which any country, either in ancient or modern times, ever arrived, there must have been some radical error in the government of it: though at the same time I will allow, that if it should turn out that there is a radical error, it is not of itself a proof of the criminality of ministers. I am inclined to think, that there has been a radical error in carrying on the war at all, and likewise that there have been errors equally great in the conduct of it. continent; they mistook the single province of Massachuset's Bay for the American empire. Virginia, a colony no less jealous of its rights, nor less warm in its assertion of them, was entirely forgotten: it was not thought possible that any other colony should unite with the Massachuset's; now, whoever fights against ten men, and thinks he is contending only with one, will meet with more difficulties than if he was aware of the force brought against him; for I believe I may lay it down as an undoubted maxim in politics, that every attempt to crush an insurrection with means inadequate to the end, foments instead of suppressing it. The case here was, you took a great object for a small one, you took thirteen provinces for one; and not only that, you imagined the other twelve were with you, when the very act you was then doing made those twelve equally hostile; for another misfortune at this time was the taking a violent step against the town of Boston. If America was not before sufficiently united in a determined resistance to the claims of this country, this made all America combined; they were all from that moment united with the town of Boston, which might have been before the object of the jealousy of the rest. Another mistake was the altering the government of the province of Massachuset's Bay, whereas the acts of all the other colonies, as well as this, plainly shewed it was not the form of govern, ment in that province, which occasioned Sir, I shall not now enter into any more the commotions there, because other proof the proceedings relative to America, vince, which depended more on the than are necessary to shew the immediate crown, and which have the appellation steps which have brought us into our pre- of royal governments, were not less early sent situation. Without discussing the or less vigorous in their opposition and revarious questions which have been for sistance. Now, Sir, if the form of this many years agitated in parliament, I shall government was not itself the cause of the take up the measures relative to America troubles in that country, then the alarm in the year 1774, when the riots at Boston given by the alteration of that government first called for the attention of this House; was certainly a most capital mistake; bepapers were indeed called for and granted, cause it gave the whole continent reason but there were some things that tended to think and to fear, that they had no sethat year to shut the eyes of ministers to curity in the permanency of their governthe true state of that country, and the true ment, but that it was liable to be altered interest of this-which was to prevent, or subverted at our pleasure on any cause rather than stimulate and increase the ge- of complaint, whether real or supposed; neral discontents in the colonies; every their natural jealousies were awakened; body must allow, that the agreement with by the same reasoning, the governments of the East India Company was a most un-the other colonies, though much more defortunate ene, and the immediate source of all the troubles that have since followed; every body knows what happened. Here began a capital mistake of the ministry; they mistook a single province for a whole pendent on the crown, might be rendered entirely despotic, and they were all from thence taught to consider the town of Boston, as suffering in the common cause, and that they might very soon stand in need |