He

weight with the country at large. If he supposed however, that the language of the address arose merely from a hope of the co-operation of continental powers against France, he should disapprove of it. looked to the innate strength, courage and public spirit of the country, as the foundation of its security; and on that foundation alone, he trusted that we should rise superior to every difficulty which presented itself. With this qualification then which he had prescribed to himself, the address met his hearty con

therefore better to meet the perils of war with manly fortitude, than to see with silent indifference the subjugation of Europe. The speech from the throne met in several of its passages with his cordial concurrence: he thought many of its propositions were a direct censure on men in power, for their want of capacity and vigilance in the direction of public affairs. He would ask, was any attention paid to the machinations of France between the signature of the preliminary and that of the definitive treaty? Did not France during that interval

send a large fleet to the West Indies without informing us of it? Did she not take possession of Louisi ana? We saw Europe also prostrate at her feet, its territories plundered, and its liberties destroy. ed. Had we then boldly stooc. forward in defence of her liberty France must have receded from her desperate measures, discontinued her depredations, and Europe would have been saved from the tyranny of the French republic.

After the signature of the defini tive treaty, France pursued the same line of conduct: The ink was scarcely dry with which it was signed, the wax scarcely cold with which it was scaled; when France in violation of the treaty of Amiens began to add territory to territory to the republic. Piedmont was the first which fell under its griping ambition. Had Great Britain, ir concert with Russia, remonstrated at the time, France would not have dared to annex it to her empire France, with her usual cunning first pretended to occupy Piedmon merely as a military position, bu afterwards she thought fit to annes it to her states. She made a treaty with the king of Sardinia when he was a prisoner in his own capital but even then his Sardinian majes ty had fortitude and fidelity enough to refuse to act hostilely against Great Britain, or to exclude the English from his sea-ports; yet this was the man whom we afterwards so fully abandoned to the mercy of the French government. When we signed the definitive treaty we by no means acknowledged this right in France, nor had we abandoned our own right of interference for the liberties and interests of Europe

The

The definitive treaty was signed in March, and ratified in June. In the month of August, France took pen herself to regulate and new model the several states of Europe. So early as the month of August, the set about new modelling the German empire. Our ministers newed this scene too with the greatest indifference. The interests of another old and faithful aly, the prince of Orange, were 20 sacrificed at the peace of Amieas. It was understood however, and the noble marquis (Cornwallis) to had concluded that peace, had sea in his place and asked with an honest warmth, "Could any man Suppose that a full indemnity was Bot intended for the prince of Orange And yet his rights have been sacrificed. If any fears or arm can now be entertained of the capacity of this country to fat France, they were owing to the censurable and criminal concact of the king's servants, who had demantied the fleet and disbanded the army, before they had any cerdemonstrations of sincere and permanent peace on the part of France. 46 Another part of his may's speech has my sincere approBaton; I mean that part which ecommends an augmentation of forces. This was certainly not pacific, but it shews that sters at length see the necessity vigor and watchfulness when opposed to an able and an active government." On the retrospect of ars he could not help expresSg astonishment at the absurd fouduct of ministers, "We have now obtained peace, and yet, in

expect, we were now to have a considerable augmentation. In the late encroachments on Switzerland, they did not think it proper to interfere, but now they find out that it is necessary to be watchful of the conduct of France. In order to expect any real good, we must have a total change of men and measures. In the madness of ministers for a hollow peace, they sent out orders to abandon all our conquests. It was reported, however, at present, that orders had been sent out to retain such of our conquests as had not been already ceded: he feared those orders would not arrive at the Cape of Good Hope early enough to answer the end proposed; but the country has still the happiness of possessing Malta, whose commanding interest in the Mediterrancan is too great to be abandoned by a wise and vigorous government. From all those considerations, he could not but state that he had no confidence in the present administration. Instead of watching the operations of France with an eager solicitude, they had been aiding her against this country. Their policy was something similar to that of our ancestors, who gave bribes to the Saxons and Danes, to desist from the invasion of the country. Those bribes they applied to the purchase of ships and ammunition, and subjugated the country. In this manner we had surrendered Martinique, &c. as a bonus not to violate the peace. Let Malta be added to this bribe, and the price will be complete. We shall they perhaps experience a similar attack on the part of France, The war was now coming to our own doors, and no man could be absurd enough

ad of the boasted reductions and savings which we were taught to

to suppose that France will be more favourable to Great Britain, than to Piedmont, Switzerland, &c. We had no claim to her partiality." His Lordship concluded, by expressing his opinion that Great Britain might still be able to rouse the powers of Europe, if its. councils were under the direction of a leader of courage and capacity, of the man (Mr. Pitt) to whom Europe looked up for the preservation of its dearest rights and liberties.

Lord Pelham hoped that neither the house nor the country would believe that there was any thing in the speech which applied to the augmentation of our forces, as if war was inevitable. It was a measure of prudence rather than necessity, and dictated by the present appearance of affairs on the continent of Europe. As to our want of confidence in France, it may be readily perceived that after such a long and dreadful war, a spirit of jealousy must long continue. This was of itself a sufficient ground for the watchfulness now recommended.

Lord Carysfort expressed his regret that both the speech from the throne, and that from the noble secretary, admitted that we were not prepared at present to enter into a contest with France. The treaty of Amiens had certainly been violated, but while France was in possesion of the isle of Elba, and the principal strong places of the Mediterranean, he could not conceive that she would make the possession of Malta a very important object.

Lord Hobart vindicated the conduct of administration from the charge of incompetency, advanced by lord Grenville; he thought it ne

cessary to recal to the recollection of the house, that they had not courted the situations they now held. He regretted, as much as any man, the resignation of the noble lord and his colleagues in office, but that change was not produced by the measures of his majesty's present servants. He thought that when the noble lord spoke of the perilous situation of the country at the present moment, he had forgotten the state in which he left it, when he resigned; and if he and his friends then chose to abandon their posts, when the country was in real danger, he did not think that on that account the house should be told that the interests of Europe had been sacrificed. His majesty's ministers concluded a peace, when the objects of the war were no longer attainable. The noble lord so well knew the difficulties of office, that he thought in criminating the present administration for incapacity, he was at the same time criminating himself for relinquishing his situation.

The question was then put upon the address, and carried nemine dissentiente.

In the house of commons, on the same day, a similar address was moved.

The hon. Mr. Trench (member for Galway) rose, to propose an address of thanks to his majesty. He observed, that in a new parliament, which had been the first called since the legislative union with Ireland, it was necessary to consider both the important consequences of that event, as also of the change from a state of war to that of peace. After touching on the prosperous situation of our trade

and

and manufactures, and the terminata of the disturbances which had aetated Ireland, he cordially agreed is majesty's gracious wishes to preserve the peace, while, at the same time, he was convinced that the house must be impressed with the necessity of keeping a vigilant eve upon the continent, and being aays in a state of preparation; Lis part, he did not think, at the prescat time, that it was adviseable for us to interfere much in the afLars of the continent, without the cert of other powers. He coned by expressing his confidence that his majesty's ministers would duct themselves in relation to Continental afairs, with firmness moderation; and that if peace be tenable on those grounds, they ve the hearty concurrence ad united strength of the whole pire or their support, should war be theressary alternative. He moved an humble address to his ay, in the language of the

The hon. Mr. Curzon seconded address, which was moved. Ile 1ot but view, with the greatest tion, the internal situation of country, both in respect to its , manufactures, and domestic quity, as also to its abundant rest. With reference to its foreign tatons, the importance of prea peace, if it could be done honour, was sufficiently obviThe acquisitions of France the continent, and her extendde of maritime frontier, diectly opposite our eastern coasts, red a much stronger defensive

on our part, than was ever * deemed necessary. He coned by declaring, that he per

fectly coincided in the sentiments expressed by the honourable mover. Mr. Cartwright agreed with the honourable mover, in thinking the maintenance of peace desirable; and that the best means of preserving to the country its blessings were, to shew ourselves prepared for the extremity of war; considering the present conduct of France, the rooted enmity of its ruler to this country, the pains he has taken to irritate the feelings of the nation, and to degrade its character abroad. Although he was fully sensible of the calamities of war, and the sacrifices which its renewal would call for, still it was necessary that vigorous defensive preparations should be made for the security of the state. He could not help expressing his surprize at ministers having so suddenly disarmed the country, and reduced all our establishments. This was a course diametrically opposite to the practice of former ministers, who proportioned their reductions to those adopted by the enemy. We dismantled our ships and discharged our men, with the same activity that the French have increased theirs. However adviseable this might be, merely on the ground of economy, it was somewhat unaccountable on the ground of policy. After lamenting the fate of Switzerland, which however he conceived that we had no power to remedy, he concluded by expressing his concern that those great talents which had so long withstood the tide of French principles, and upheld the dignity and honour of this country, were not now more actively employed in its defence.

Sir John Wrottesley, notwithstanding the respect he felt for the

gentlemen

gentlemen at the head of administration, could not subscribe to all the statements of our prosperity in the speech. At least he was sure they were not borne out by the situation of the district in which he happened to reside. He should however be happy to find the assertions of ministers verified, although they were not agreeable to his own individual experience. He feared ministers had been equally mistaken in the views of France, when they per mitted themselves to be lulled into a fatal security by the professions of that government. We had now seen all the powers of the continent reduced to a state of subjection; we had seen the virtuous and unoffending Swiss nation prostrated before the feet of France,without even a remonstrance on the part of this country and perhaps many of the bravest Swiss patriots would soon share the fate and dungeon of Toussaint. He joined the hon. member who spoke last, in regretting the secession of those great talents, which conducted the affairs of this country through the vicissitudes of the late war; and hoped they would again come forward in the defence of the country, should war now become necessary.

Mr. Pytches opposed not only this address, but the whole spirit of addresses presented on similar occasions, which he conceived were nothing but servile echoes of ministerial sentiments into which the house had been cajoled year after year, under pretence of paying a customary compliment to his majesty. The present address was so heterogeneous in its composition, and embraced so many different objects, that it appeared to him a sort of political salmagundi.

He disapproved of the practice of speeches from the throne, which, with the addresses that followed, he considered a piece of bad machinery and of servile adulation,which every good monarch should execrate and forbid. As to the particular parts of this speech he should for the present decline to observe upon them, as they were topics which must be discussed in the course of the session.

Mr. Fox said, he should not have risen so early in the debate, if it had not been for some expressions which had fallen from other gentlemen, which had made it necessary for him to explain the grounds on which he gave his cordial assent to the address. There was however one expression in his majesty's speech, respecting the blessings which were to be derived from a legislative union with Ireland, which he never could approve of, although since that event had taken place he must wish every success and advantage might attend it. There was another material part of the address to which he had no objection, but would conceive highly objectionable if he understood it in the sense in which it had been explained by the honourable mover, who supposed his majesty had recommended generally the extending our military establishments; whereas the speech made mention of no particular establishment, but only of such establishment as might be most calculated to give security to the country. When the question should come before the consideration of the house, those who thought large military establishments the most likely to obtain this object, would state their reasons

those