subject of the intended union, (March 19, 1799), the affairs of that unhappy island engaged the particular attention of the house of peers, and the Marquis of Lansdowne, in a long and able speech, was supposed to reflect on the late viceroy, He also accused the cabinet of acting with impropriety in respect to the recall of Lord Fitzwilliam, to which he attributed most if not all the miseries that had ensued. The following is the substance of the reply upon this occasion; "Earl Camden rose to say a few words in consequence of some observations which had fallen from the last speaker. He did not mean to follow the noble marquis through much of his speech, but merely to comment upon that part of it in which he had endeavoured to shew that the present state of Ireland was owing to the recall of the noble Earl (Fitzwilliam) from Ireland, and the measures which were subsequently adopted. In the first place, he wished to remind the house that before that noble earl left Ireland there were disturbances in the county of Cavan. "Soon after he (Lord Camden) took possession of the government of that country, there was a slight disturbance in Roscommon, which was, however, soon suppressed, and the kingdom was quiet for nine or ten months, which was a proof that the public mind was not affected by the recall of the noble earl in the manner that had been stated, He could with great ease prove to their lordships, that the measures which were adopted in that country were such as the necessity of the case called for. If any cruelties were Committed they were not authorized by government, and whenever any complaints were made, the persons who were guilty of them were punished, Before he went to Ireland, it appeared by the report of the Secret Committee that there existed a correspondence between the United Irishmen and France, and the consequence was, that two bills were passed in the Irish parliament, viz. the gunpow. der bill and the convention bill. His lordship here begged the indulgence of the house; he was very little used to speak in public, and and consequently he could not immediately arrange his ideas. It had been asserted, that the rejection of the question of parliamentary reform was one of the principal causes which led to that rebellion which afterwards unfortunately broke out in that country, But this assertion was evidently incorrect, because before that period a messenger had been sent from Ireland to France. "With respect to the measures of severity which were adopted in Ireland, they were not had recourse to till the outrageous conduct of the rebels compelled government to use them. It was really shocking every morning to read the horrid list of murders committed by the rebels upon peaceable and loyal subjects. But government did not adopt severe measures till they were actually driven to it, and General Lake's proclamation for the delivering up of arms, was not published till after the north was in rebellion. "When he saw plans formed for the destruction of the constitution, and that they were carrying those plans into execution, he felt himself bound by the oath he had taken to defend it. The conse quence that followed that proclamation shewed the necessity of it, for the quantity of arms that were found was immense. The country was then returning to a state of quiet, when the negociation at Lisle broke off, and the efforts of the French party in Ireland became more vigorous; and then it was that the government, being attacked, was compelled to have recourse to force, and that the danger which led government to act was a real one, the quantity of arms found was a most decisive proof. When he found things in this situation, he thought it necessary to adopt active and vigorous measures, and therefore the leaders of the rebellion were taken up. And in this instance he was ready to admit, that government did accelerate the rebellion; for when the rebel leaders found that all their plans were detected, they would not delay any longer, and on the 23d of May 1798 the rebellion broke out, and several military posts near Dublin and elsewhere were attacked, and some of them defeated. It was not necessary for him to take up their lordships' time by stating the events which took place when the rebellion broke out. He had said thus much, to shew that the measures he had adopted had not produced the distress of the country, but that the state of the country had rendered those measures necessary. He was very glad to find, that though he could not agree with all that that had fallen from the noble marquis, yet that upon the main question they did not disagree. "The situation of Ireland was such as to render it absolutely necessary that some steps should be taken, and no other one had been suggested as likely to produce such beneficial effects. There was one part of this subject upon which he could not speak but with great delicacy, and that was, with respect to the Irish parlia ment. He had upon every occasion during his residence in that country observed the energy and vigour of the parliament of that country; but still he felt himself bound to say, that he thought a better form of government necessary for Ireland, and therefore it was that he should give his assent to this measure. "The noble earl had stated, that the consequence of this measure would be, to alienate the friends of government. He was sorry to observe, that much difference of opinion had prevailed upon this subject; but though they might differ upon this, still upon other constitutional points their opinions remained the same as they were before. They had, it was true, opposed government upon the question of the union; but these very gentlemen had given their support to government upon the redemption bill, which they found it necessary to pass in Ireland. There were many persons who had declared themselves in general as friends to the union, but who thought this was not a proper time to bring it forward. He was not of that opinion: he thought that the circumstances of the times required the measure. He was more inclined to think that government did right in bringing forward the discussion of this subject here, because it had failed in Ireland; because it was the duty of ministers to explain to Ireland what were the grounds upon which they recommended this measure to the adoption of both countries. "He was strongly inclined to think that the discussion which had taken place in this country would tend in a very great degree to do away those prejudices which existed in Ireland against the union; he was convinced that the speeches which had been made here would have very great weight in that country, and tend very much to allay the warmth which at present existed there. He had to apologise to their lordships for trespassing upon them so long; but he could not sit still under the imputation which had been thrown thrown out, and he hoped their lordships were convinced that measures of severity were not resorted to in Ireland till the neces sity of the case absolutely called for them; that the government of Ireland never authorized any cruelties, that whenever complaints were made, the persons guilty of such conduct were punished. He approved of the union as a measure highly beneficial to both coun. tries, and he thought, for the reasons he had before stated, that ministers were right in bringing forward the discussion at present.” Lord Camden also, in a subsequent debate on the same subject, declared, in reply to Earl Moira, that government had not countenanced measures of violence, cruelty, and injustice in Ireland; he also seized this and every other opportunity to support the idea of an union between the two nations, as a measure particularly calculated for the immediate security as well as advantage of both countries. It Earl Camden has always enjoyed the countenance of the King, which was evinced in a particular manner on the occasion of the royal Kent review. was then intimated to his lordship, that his Majesty and family would partake of a refreshment at his house previously to their appearance at the Mote. Accordingly, on Thursday, August 1, 1799, the King, Queen, and two of the Princesses, set off from Kew palace at half past five o'clock, and arrived at the Wilderness, in the parish of Seal, near Seven-oaks, where they were joined by the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cumberland, a number of the nobility, and all the equerries in waiting. After a breakfast, followed by a cold collation, prolonged to a later hour than was originally intended, the royal and noble guests set out, accompanied by Lady Camden, while his lord ship appeared on the ground at the head of his regiment,* and was afterwards appointed to communicate the thanks of the commander in chief to all the officers of yeoman cavalry in West Kent.f Lord Camden upon this occasion commanded the first corps of West Kent yeomanry, consisting of those of Seven-oaks, Tunbridge, Chislehurst, Greenwich and Woolwich, Queenborough and Sheppy, Tunbridge-wells and Deptford, Farningham, Cox. heath, and Cobham. + "SIR, Wilderness, August 2, 1799. "I have the honour to enclose to you, by command of Lieutenant-general Sir Robert Lawrie, the general orders of Field-marshal the Duke of York, and also the general orders of General Sir Charles Grey, which I request you will communicate to the squa dron which you command. "It affords me the highest gratification to become the channel through which this marked and well-deserved applause is commu nicated to you, Sir, and to those who are serving with you; and I shall ever esteem it among the most honourable circumstances of my life, to have been united with the yeomanry cavalry of West Kent, in that cause in which they have so efficiently and so gloziously embarked. "I have the honour to remain, Sir, "CAMDEN." "Mote Park, August 1, 1799. "GENERAL ORDERS. Though his Majesty has already directed Mr. Secretary Dundas to express to the lord-lieutenant of Kent, and lord-warden of the Cinque Ports, his thanks for the zeal and loyalty of the gentlemen, yeomanry, and volunteers of the county of Kent, yet his Majesty cannot leave the field without ordering the commander in chief to take this opportunity of conveying to them the heartfelt satisfaction which his Majesty has received from the appearance and conduct which he has witnessed this day. (Signed) "FREDERICK, F. M." |