Mr. H. Mr. Brett. Mr. Ald. great load of expence, it might have been in a flourishing itate at this day, whereas it had long fince fallen to decay. Mr. Hawkins Browne declared, that the honourable baronet had furnished a moft forcible argument in favour of it, because if a valuable manufactory had already been loft to the country, for the want of fome favour refpecting coals, it was furely a ftrong reafon why fuch a favour fhould be granted for the encouragement of a rifing fishery manufac ture. As to its being a partial remiffion of duty, he must deny that it was a remiffion of duty; it was a commutation of duty in favour of a particular part of the kingdom, and that upon publie reafons of very confiderable weight. Mr. Brett faid, a few words on the neceffity of guarding against the propofed commutation being perverted and made a door of abufe. The refolution was agreed to, and a Bill ordered to be brought in. Mr. Alderman Sawbridge faid, that the papers on the table Sawbridge. 'relative to the ordnance, fo far exceeded every thing which he had imagined, that he would move for a Committee to inquire into the truth of the statements which they contained; but in order to give the officers of the ordnance time to meet that inquiry, he would defer his motion till Thursday. Mr. Beau foy. Wednesday, 21st June. The order of the day being moved for the House to go into a Committee on the inquiry into the duties on coals paid in Scotland, Mr. Beaufiy rofe and pointed out the abfurdity of the act of Charles the fecond, which impofed the duty on coals carried coaft-wife. He ftated the hardfhips fuftained by Scotland, in consequence of this law, a hardfhip which operated as a profcription in the northern parts of that divifion of the kingdom against manufactures, or the inftitution and fuccefs of any branch of bufinefs, or fpecies of undertaking, which could not be carried on without the confumption of fuel in a confiderable degree. He urged the injuftice of continuing fuch a profcription, and the neceflity for encouraging manufactures and fifheries as much as poffible, declaring that above 50, co of the inhabitants of Scotland, had been induced to emigrate to America, in fearch of that employment abroad, which they had been denied at home, between the years 1753 and 1765. He dwelt on the bad policy of affording any grounds for the juftification of an evil fo mifchievous in its confequences as depopulation. Having thus prefented his motion with many strong reafons in fupport of its neceflity, he moved a refolution for the reduction of the coal duty in favour of Scotland. Sir Adam Ferguson fupported Mr. Beaufoy with a conti- Sir Adam nuation of the fame fort, of argument, clearly stated and Ferguson. forcibly urged. ney Gene ral. The Attorney General declared, he thought the coal duties The Attor as abfurdly laid as any duties poffibly could be; but, re- ne minded the Houfe that they produced the country an ample revenue, and that, the prefent circumftances confidered, the minifter could not afford to part with them. He mentioned that the hard hip complained of was not peculiar to Scotland; parts of Wales, and fome of the English counties felt it as forely. As however, the alteration propofed only made part of a refolution, he would not object to it, but would reserve, what he might have farther to fay upon the subject, till a future and more advanced stage of the bufinefs. Aftley. Sir Edward Aftley thanked the right honourable and learned Sir Edward, gentleman for his candor. The act impofing the duties on coals carried coaft-wife had been paffed in the reign of King Charles, a monarch who, as hiftory ftated, had never "faid a foolish thing nor done a wife one." Mr. Dempfter explained that, as the law food, in all the Mr. Dempfouthern part of Scotland where the great and wealthy cities ter and towns, fuch as Edinburgh, Glafgow, &c. were fituated, no duty was paid on coals, but that in the more northern diftricts, where there was no coal in the country, and where juftice demanded that the country fhould be relieved instead of oppreffed in this particular, a heavy duty, (for fo it was, confidering the circumftances of thofe who were to pay it,) was impofed. Mr. Dempfter defired gentleman would turn this in their minds, being perfuaded that when the encouragement of the fisheries in every part of the kingdom was viewed as a national object, its importance and advantage would be admitted, and the refolution would not meet with this objection. Mr. Jolliffe defired the Committee would recollect the Mr. Jolliffe. amazingly difproportionate part of the coal duty paid by the city of London, where many great and effential manufactures were carried on. He ftated what the port and other duties on coals paid by the city were, and compared their amount with the amount of duties paid by other feaports. He defired the Committee in candour, to afk themselves whether the partiality, grofs as it was, ought to remain? The refolution was agreed to. The order of the day having been read for the fecond reading of the Bill for granting a relief to the Eaft India Company, Mr. Sheridan rofe, he faid, not to debate the bill, but to Mr. Sheriobserve that as the papers he had moved were but juft dan. 3 E 2 printed Mr. Huffey. Mr. Dun4.45. Sir Grey Mr. Hamilten. printed, it was impoffible for gentlemen to have had time to examine them fufficiently. He hoped therefore, a day would be allowed in the fubfequent ftages of the bill for the difcuffion, and he conceived the report would be the proper period to enter upon that difcuffion. (Mr. Dundas and Mr. Chancellor Pitt nodded affent.) Mr. Huffy faid, he had fomething to fay against the bill, and he was as ready to fay it at that time as at any other. Perhaps he should be fatisfied, and his objections done away, but he did not much think they could. He then stated the main objection to be, that the bill granted a greater relief to the Eaft-India Company than they flood in need of, though not a greater relief than the Company prayed for in their petition. He proceeded to difcufs the condition on which the Company were originally empowered to difpofe of their annuity of 36,000l. viz. in difcharge of their bond debt. He next went into figures to fhew, that as the relief they ftood in need of was occafioned by the increase of their tea trade, which confequently called for an increase of their capital, the fum which they actually wanted did not amount to near fo much as the bill enabled them to borrow. Mr. Huffey fuggefted, that as a fum was taken out of the pockets of the Public to make way for the commutation tax, the profits on the increafe of the trade ought to be paid to the Public. He contended alfo, that not only the tea trade ought to be laid open, but declared that he had never heard a good argument why the whole of the Eaft-India Company's trade fhould not be laid open. Mr. Dundas faid, that he would meet the objections of the honourable gentleman, and endeavour to obviate them, and to fhew that the mode of relief propofed by the bill was the moft proper mode. Sir Grey Cooper faid a few words expreffive of the neceffity of its being clearly understood what the fecurity was which the lender received when he became a fubfcriber to the loans made by the Company, under the authority of an act of parliament. The bill was read a fecond time, and committed for Friday. Mr. Hamilton rofe to make the motion for a call of the Houfe, agreeable to the notice which he had given on Friday. He begun with ftating, that he had expected the affiftance of a right honourable gentleman, in search of whom he had employed his eyes in vain, ever fince he had entered the house; but, notwithstanding that right honourable gentleman's abfence, he fhould perfevere in his purpofe, and look for affiftance from fome of the eminent and diftinguished characters on the other side of the House House, affuring them, that odious and unpopular as the making and fupporting fuch a motion might be, he was willing to exonerate every gentleman who fhould concur with him, from any fhare of that odium and unpopularity, being perfectly ready to take the whole of it upon himself. It was needlefs for him to make ufe of many words, or to take up much of the time of the Houfe in juftincation of the propriety of his reforting to the only means of enforcing a full attendance, with a view to go on with the charges against Mr. Haftings, fo as to completely finish them in the courfe of the prefent feffion. The only objection to his motion which could be urged, was, the inconvenience that might be felt by individuals; but when the minutenefs and infignificance of that objection, was oppofed to what was due to the feelings of a perfecuted and accused man, he hoped the juftice of the House, and a regard to their own dignity and character, would induce them to fupport his motion; a motion which he declared he brought forth in behalf of one whom he had never feen but at the bar of the Houfe. He reafoned on the circumstances in which Mr. Haftings ftood, declaring that gentleman had fpent the best part of his life in the fervice of the Public, in one of the most eminent and distinguished situations a subject could fill, and that on every confideration, it ought to be afcertained whether the only return which he was to receive for his fervices was cenfure and infamy. If Mr. Haftings were ultimately to be deemed criminal, let him be proved fuch, and then be punished; but let condemnation precede punishment, and his punishment not be fufpence. To a fpeedy decifion Mr. Haftings was intitled, and for that purpofe, without thinking it neceffary to fay much more, he, fhould conclude with moving," that the House should be called over on the mor"row fortnight." Mr. Dempster feconded the motion. Mr. Demp fter. Mr. Sheridan ftated his reafons why he fhould give it his Mr. Sherinegative, being perfuaded, notwithstanding the honourable dan. gentleman's dauntlefs determination to bear all the odium and unpopularity of it, that whoever did fupport it, would find fome fhare of the odium incurred by calling gentlemen back to town, after they had gone into the country and made their arrangements for the fummer, fall upon them. Mr. Sheridan then begged leave to justify his abfent friend, which he would do, he faid, by ftating what his meaning was, in order to fhew, that he had not pledged himself to fecond a motion for a call, unless it could be made appear that the call would be effectual. Mr. Sheridan here repeated, that part of the argument of Mr. Fox on Friday, in which that gentleman had declared, that it would be a most defirable thing to go through the whole of the charges that feffion, if it were practicable to obtain fuch an attendance as ought to be present in the difcuffion of matters of fuch infinite importance, and if that could be made appear to be likely, he fhould then have no objection to fupport a call of the Houfe or any other means of enforcing it. He appealed to the House, whether this was a pledge to fupport a motion for a call before it was made appear probable, that a call would be effectually obeyed? A word had fallen from the honourable gentle:nan which required fome notice. Perhaps the honourable gentleman had ufed it accidentally and without meaning to convey any improper infinuation by it. If he had, he would be fo good as to fay as much. But if he really meant it in its ordinary fenfe, he believed the Houfe would agree with him, that pending an inquiry before parliament into the public conduct of Mr. Haftings, it was not very decent language, nor language that would be endured within thofe walls, especially after the vote the House had fo recently come to upon the fubject. The honourable gentleman had faid, he ftood up in the behalf of a perfecuted and accufed man. That Mr. Haftings was an accufed man, was true, but in what was he a perfecuted man? He would not endeavour to argue that he was not perfecuted, because if the honourable gentleman alluded to the vote on the charge relative to Benares, he fat near feveral of Mr. Haftings's perfecutors, who could much better justify their vote, than it would become him to attempt to do for them. Neither the cause of substantial justice, the reasonable claims of Mr. Haftings, nor the dignity and character of the House, would be better ferved and fatisfied, by going on with the charges without interruption, than by poftponing the remainder of them till the next feffion. On the contrary, he contended that they would all of them be far lefs fatisfied. He obferved in the first place, that it was neceffary not only to have a full attendance, but also that gentlemen fhould attend with that fort of temper which would qualify them for feriously difcuffing and folemnly deliberating on the important facts fubmitted to their confideration. Did the House imagine either whether the call was enforced or not, that gentlemen would after that day attend in numbers, or with a determination to apply their minds clofely to the subject? On the contrary was it likely, if they proceeded any farther, that they fhould divide more than one hundred and twenty or one hundred and fifty on any one of the remaining charges? He asked whether any gentleman prefent would fay, that it would |