determination to fupport upon all occafions, both the dignity of the crown and the interests of the nation, without entangling themfelves with any fpecific refolution or promife, and without the fmalleft occafion for any inflammatory language on either fide. They faid, that however grievous the measure taken by France might be, and in fact was, yet that war was by no means an inevitable, or even neceffary confequence of the prefent declaration. We had ourselves ufed a fimilar conduct on former occafions, with refpect both to France and Spain, without its being productive of any immcdiate war with either. And, however we might lament the occafion and its confequences, reprobate the conduct which expofed us to them, or vainly and paffionately exclaim against the perfidioufnefs of the act, it was in reality one of those measures of political advantage, which no rival nation, under a wife and active government, could have overlooked or neglected. In thefe circumftances then, there seemed no neceffity for entering into a war; if, without injury to the honour of Great Britain, war could be avoided it ought.

It behoved us firft to confider what the object of the war was, and our ability of attaining that object; and in the next place moft feriously to reflect, upon the poffible confequences of our failing in the attempt. The only object of a prefent war with France must be the recovery of America; an object which every man in his fenfes muft now fee to be totally unattainable. What then, faid they, is to be done? The answer is

fhort, and the ftrait line of conduct before you. Cancel your inflammatory votes, and your menacing declarations. Annihilate that ridiculous conciliatory fyftem, which feems to have been calculated only to render parliament a fubject of mockery and derifion. And, instead of fending out Commiffioners to be laughed at, to return as they went, and to render our public counfels ftill more contemptible, arm them with powers to acknowledge the independency of the Americans, if they infift upon it, and to conclude the most advantageous treaty of peace and commerce with them, that can now be obtained. But at any rate, let your conduct with regard to France be what it may, establish peace with America. The point of honour, muft in this cafe give way to neceffity. The attempting impoffibilities can only render our ruin inevitable. It is impoffible to recal what we have wantonly thrown away. By thefe means we fhall obtain fecurity. We fhall be extricated from our immediate dangers and difficulties. We fhall gain breathing time, which in our prefent fituation is a matter of the first importance, And we must truft to time, fortune, and future wisdom, to remedy fome of those evils, and to restore fome of thofe advantages, which our violence have produced, or our folly fquandered.

It was

The oppofition were not, however, unanimous in their opinion, with regard to admitting the independence of America. held and firmly fupported, as the only means of faving the nation, by the Marquis of Rockingham and the Duke of Richmond, and

feemed to be entertained by most, or all, of thofe Lords who compofe that party. But the Earls of Chatham, Temple, and Shelburne, with fome other Lords whofe fentiments were generally in unifon with theirs, could not bear the idea of a feparation from America, nor confequently of its independence. This they confidered as the greatest of all poffible political and national evils, and as including the utter degradation and final ruin of this country. The evil, (though not to the utmoft extent it was defcribed) was acknowledged on the other fide; but the poffibility of preventing it was the matter in question.

The question being at length put upon the Duke of Manchefter's amendment, it was rejected upon a divifion by a majority of 100, including 16 proxies, to 36, including two proxies, who fupported the queftion. The main queftion being afterwards put on the original addrefs, it was carried by a proportional majority, though the numbers were fmaller on both fides.

Among the fingularities of that day's debate, a noble Earl, in the warmth excited by the fubject declared, that the nation was betrayed, and that nothing less than treachery could account for thofe measures which led to its prefent fituation. The fatal effects of a fuppofed fyftem of corruption, which was faid to be at this time generally prevalent, became a fubject alfo of much animadverfion, in the courfe of which the conduct of a majority in the other Houfe underwent fuch ftrictures, as were probably never before heard with in those walls,

}

March 19th.

The committee on the ftate of the nation being refumed in the House of Commons, the fubject of the late expedition from Canada was taken up by Mr. Fox; who having first caufed the papers relative to that meafure to be read, proceeded to ftate the grounds of his intended motions. His principal object was to fhew that the measure was originally abfurd and impracticable in the defign; and that the failure of effect being accordingly inevitable, all the fubfequent loffes and misfortunes were to be directly charged to the noble Lord at the head of the American department, and not to the officers who were entrusted with the execution. He accordingly propofed three refolutions tending to eftablish the following points, that the plan of the expedition was impolitic, unwife, and incapable of producing any good effect; that the provifion made for it was inadequate to the object; and that General Burgoyne had acted agreeably to the tenor of his inftructions. From thefe, he faid, he deduced a fourth refolution, which he referved, and which was intended to pass the cenfure of the Houfe, upon the noble Lord who was the oftenfible author of the expedition.

This bufinefs brought on the longest debate that had taken place during the courfe of the feffion; and called forth little lefs than the whole ability on both fides of the House. The framer of the motion was thought in his introductory fpeech, to have even tranfcended his customary ftyle of ex-, ertion, and his friends by no means loft any ground in their

fupport.

fupport. On the other fide, the ground of impropriety in bringing on the bufinefs during the abfence of those generals, who until the contrary was established, muft be confidered as principal parties in the charge, was again taken. That there had been a fault, and a great one, fomewhere, was univerfally allowed. A whole army had been loft. The nature and fortune of the war thereby totally changed. A new, and most dangerous foreign war was the immediate confequence; the lofs of America, and even more, might poffibly be the final. The caufes that led to fuch a feries of fatal confequences, they faid, required undoubtedly the ftricteft inveftigation; and the fault, wherever it lay, might demand even more than cenfure. But the general acknowledgement of a fault or crime, could by no means imply the Minifter to be the guilty perfon; nor could the enquiry be properly conducted, nor the charge fixed as juftice directed, until all the parties were prefent, and all the evidence.

The direct charges made against the American Minifter by the oppofition, however, neceffarily called forth fome direct defence; and no pains were omitted to fhew, that the northern expedition was, in the first place, a wife and neceffary measure; that it was capable of fuccefs, and the defign evidently practicable; and that the noble Secretary in whofe department it lay, had omitted nothing which could be done by an attentive Minifter to infure its fuccefs. They alfo endeavoured much to controvert a point infifted on by the oppofition, that General Burgoyne's

orders were peremptory with refpect to his advancing to Albany. They faid, that however peremptory the letter of inftructions might appear, a difcretionary latitude of conduct, to be regulated by circumftances and events, was always neceffarily implied and underftood. This, with much more upon the fubject, will, however, properly appear, in the relation of the long difcuffion which this bufinefs underwent in the enfuing feffion of parliament.

The question being at length put, the firft refolution was rejected upon a divifion, by the great majority of 164 to 44. The event of this divifion was refented by the mover, Mr. Fox, with an unusual degree of warmth, and an appearance of the highest indignation. He not only declared that he would not propofe another motion; but taking the refolution of cenfure out of his pocket, tore it in pieces, and immediately quitted the House.

The conquering party were not, however, fatisfied with this victory. They were determined in the prefent warmth of fuccefs to purfue the advantage, and to render it complete by a vote of negative approbation. A great law officer accordingly moved, that it does not appear to this committee, that the failure of the expedition to Canada arose from any neglect in the Secretary of State for the colonies. Although this motion was carried in the committee, yet as the chief argument of the majority turned upon the injuftice of any decifion in the abfence of the parties, a decifion in favour of the party prefent did not appear very equitable; it was thought, on

confider

confideration among themselves, that it would be more expedient not to proceed upon it; therefore, the refolution was not reported to the Houfe, by which it was rendered in effect a non-entity.

As the charge of a boundlefs profufion in the public expenditure, had afforded a conftant theme for animadverfion to the oppofition in both Houfes during the feffion, Col. Barre, who had frequently taken up, and commented with feverity upon detached parts of the fubject, at length determined to render the whole an object of parliamentary enquiry. In a comprehenfive view which he took of various parts of the subject, the conduct of minifters and contractors, with the exorbitant profits fuppofed to be gained on contracts and agencies, underwent no small share of cenfure and animadverfion. He concluded an able, fpeech, fome parts of which threw the minifter into an unusual degree of warmth, and even betrayed him into fome irregularity in point of order, and with refpect to interruption, by Mar. 30th. moving for a "com

"mittee to infpect "the public accounts with refpect "to expenditure, and to report "their opinion thereon to the

"Houfe."

Several of the gentlemen in office oppofed the motion as unneceffary, from a conviction, they faid, that the treasury had acted with the utmost prudence and œconomy in the difpofal of the public money. They faid, that if any undue profits had in fome particular inftances been obtained by contractors, the treafury would oblige them to refund fuch fums, as foon as the accounts could be examined, and the ne

ceffary enquiries made. They alfo faid that this was not a fit feafon for a committee of accounts; the House was. not in a proper difpofition, nor the nation in a proper temper, for fuch a difcuffion; it would only afford fresh matter for the calumnious fpirit of the times to prey upon; and might be productive of great mifchief, by diffeminating ill-founded charges, and exciting caufelefs jealoufies and fufpicions among the people.

Amendments and modifications were propofed on the fame fide, particularly by leaving the words, "to report their opinion thereon," out of the motion, and by referring the matter to a felect committee. Thefe points were agreed to, and 21 gentlemen were accordingly chofen by ballot as a felect committee, although the gentleman who framed the original motion, faid he would rather withdraw it, than to join in deceiving the public by hanging out hopes of redrefs, when it was evident from the train in which the business was now propofed to be placed, that nothing ufeful could be effected.

On the fame day, a petition of uncommon rigour against the Minifters was prefented from the town and county of Newcastle upon Tyne. In this piece, after a long enumeration of grievances and evils, particularly thofe appertaining to the civil war, they call upon parliament, that its wifdom and attention may be "feriously en

gaged to inveftigate, and effectually root out, the caufe of "these evils; and to establish the peace and happiness of fociety, by humbly addreffing his Majefty to remove from his pre"fence and counfels for ever those "" men,

66

men, who from motives of inte"reft, or vindictive ambition, may have deftroyed this peace, in"terrupted this happiness, and "forfeited the confidence of the "people; and to prevent fucceeding delinquents from being mifled by the flattering hopes of impunity, we pray, that legal " but rigorous and exemplary pu"nifhments may be impartially "inflicted upon any who are found "to have betrayed the juft rights, " and facrificed the welfare, of "their country; that fuch effec"tual check may be given to vice "and corruption, and fuch countenance and encouragement to public virtue, as may unite a "free and generous people upon "the folid basis of loyalty and mu

had taken place before their first payment was made. And, that if the fubfcribers were to be the fufferers, it would be out of the power of any Minister to raise a loan upon any future occafion, however critical.

This propofal was however reprobated in fuch unreferved terms by the oppofition, that, although it was afterwards talked of, the Minifter never thought fitting to bring it forward. They faid they were aftonished at the noble lord's temerity, and his confequent contempt of parliament; it was, indeed, beyond endurance. So barefaced a propofition had never been made in that Houfe; and if it were received it would eftablish a precedent, of a more dangerous nature, than even any of those hitherto furnished, for the practice of future Minifters. With such a precedent, all ideas of loans and of contracts would become ridiculous. Did not the noble lord tell the House, with his ufual confidence and tone of authority, the great advantage he had allowed the fubfcribers in this very loan; and had he the face now to come, and propofe to take a fum of money out of the national purfe, in order to fupply any deficiency of intended and expected profit which might fall to the lot of those friends, to whom, as marks of favour, of private and parliamentary kindness, he had already parcelled out that loan in fuch fhares as were due to their refpective merits? Suppofe, faid they, that these subscribers had (as has frequently been the case) made fix or eight per cent. upon their money, would they come to the treafury, or to that bar, to acknowledge that their gains were exorbi

tant,