work. He afterwards called the attention of the houfe of commons to the establishment of a fixed plan for the reduction of the national debt, a measure which he truftet the flourishing ftate of the revenue would be fufficient to effee, with little addition to the public burthens. He concluded with faying, that the vigour and refources of the country, fo fully manifefted in its prefent fituation, would encourage his parliament to give their utmoft attention to every object of national concern; particularly to the confideration of fuch meafures as might be neceffary, in order to give further fecurity to the revenue, and to promote and extend, as far as poffible, the trade and general induftry of his fubjects.

An addrefs in the ufual form being moved and read in the houfe of lords, the earl Fitzwilliam proposed to omit that part of it which related to the commercial negocia tions with Ireland; firft, as nugatory, it being acknowledged in the Speech that nothing more could be done on the fubject; fecondly, as containing an indirect reflection upon the conduct of the parliament of Ireland; and thirdly, as tending to revive the difcuffion of a meafure almost univerfally reprobated in one kingdom, received with great jealoufy and alarm in this, and marked with the difapprobation of a confiderable minority in both houfes of parliament. An amendment to the fame purpofe, and for the fame reafons, was moved in the houfe of commons by lord Surry; and al

though both the addreffes were carried as originally moved, without any divifion, yet the fpeech itself underwent a confiderable degree of animadverfion in both houses, principally on account of the vague and general terms in which it was, worded, and the feanty information it held out to parliament.

As the debate on the addrefs to his majefty on the first day of the feffion, is always confidered as open to any general obfervations on the fate of the nation, Mr. Fox took this opportunity to enter at large into the fituation in which we stood with refpect to the feveral powers of Europe. He frongly cenfured the impolitic conduct of his majesty's minifters, in not cultivating continental alliances, and their negligence in being perpetually behind hand in all their foreign negotiations. It was owing, he faid, to their criminal misconduct that the house of Bourbon had got the ftart of us in their late treaty with the United Provinces, and that our ambaffador at the Hague had been expofed to the ridicule of prefenting an ufelefs memorial to the ftates on the fubject, after the above treaty had been actually ratified. This treaty, which the court of Verfailles had perfuaded the United States to enter into (rafhly indeed he thought, and impolitically on the part of the latter) and which effectually fecured Holland in its interefts, he confidered as highly dangerous and hoftile to this country, in as much as it combined France, Spain, and Holland, three of the moft powerful maritime pow

vizes.

ers

ers of Europe, in a confederacy against Great Britain.

In order to counterbalance the mischievous tendency of this confederacy, a more clofe connection with the courts of Petersburg and Vienna feemed naturally to fuggeft itself. But what had been the conduct of his majesty's minifters? The emperor, who was the most able, as well as the most likely, to cut out work for France, in cafe of a future war, had been imprudently dif gufted by the part which the king, as elector of Hanover, had taken with respect to the electorate of Bavaria, and by his joining with the Germanic princes in a league, founded on the plea of preferving the liberties of the empire. He defired the house to recollect, that in all her wars, France had been moft embarraffed by her continental fituation, and the dread of an attack from the neighbouring powers; the whole of her policy therefore had been directed to engage them in fuch a manner as to fecure their neutrality, and by that means free her from the burthen of maintaining a ruinous frontier eftablishment; and hence it was, that in her late conteft with Great Britain, fhe had been enabled to aid her resources by a reduction of her army in the midft of a war, and to apply the favings to the increase of her maritime ftrength. And what were we to expect in a future war? She was fafe by the family compact on the fide of Spain; fhe had, by the late treaty, fecured Holland in her intereft. The em peror (whofe defigns, notwithitanding the treaties fubfifting between them, and all the endearing bonds of family connection, it was well known fhe ftill watched with jealous apprehenfions) was the only power

in Europe fhe had any caufe to dread. France therefore had nothing to wish for before the late league was made, but that some circumftances should happen to create a jealoufy and dislike of Great Britain in the emperor. That circumftance we had ourfelves provided; by the effects of that league we had fecured the frontier of France gratis, at a moment when she would have paid any price for it, as was apparent from the great fumas fhe had expended in bringing about the peace between the United Provinces and the emperor. The most fanguine dreamer of national good fortune could not have pictured to himself the poffibility of such a fortunate event.

With respect to Ruffia, a crifis had occurred two years ago, of which this country ought to have taken advantage, and which he himself had at the precife moment pointed out in that houfe: the moment to which he alluded was that when the emprefs of Ruffia had settled her differences with the Porte on the fubject of the Crimea, when overtures of the most advantageous nature were made to the British court. At the fame time, though he was convinced that the best opportunity for treating with Ruffia had been loft, yet he expreffed his fatisfaction at having heard, from good authority, that a treaty was then actually negociating, and in a fair way of being concluded.

Mr. Fox next adverted to the ne gociation for a commercial treaty, which was then on the point of being opened at Paris. He gave a decifive opinion against the policy of fuch a measure; appealing to the experience of former times, which, he faid, proved that this nation had

grown

grown great, profperous, and flourifhing, from the moment that the quitted all commercial connexions with France. The felection of a diftinguished member of oppofition, whofe knowledge of commercial affairs had given no fmall trouble to the minifter in the preceding feffion, for the negociation of this treaty, and the fingularity of the time of its commencement, were the objects of much pointed raillery. By the articles of the peace of Verfailles, a treaty of commerce was to have been fettled between this country and France on or before the first of January 1786, and from that day all negociation was to be at an end: but now that the time of negociation was paft, the board of trade were bufy with the subject, and were about to send out a negociator. The fame unfeemly, but more criminal mifmanagement, had marked their conduct refpecting the treaty between France and Holland, against the conclufion of which fir James Harris was directed to prefent a memorial to the ftates, but unfortunately several days after it had been ratified. The like prepofterous arrangement of public bufinefs had alfo taken place in the projected fettlement with Ireland; when, after the commercial propofitions had been tranfmitted by his majefty's fervants from that country, and just as the British parliament was called upon to vote them, the board of trade proceeded to enquire whether the propofitions were, in fact, fuch as were fit for either country to accept.

Upon this fubject, Mr. Fox remarked with fome triumph, the flat contradiction which the event had given to the arguments used by the

minifter and his fupporters, upon the propriety of firft taking the fenfe of the Irish parliament, in order to afcertain their expectations, before the English parliament was called upon to confider the fubject. He put the chancellor of the exchequer in mind of the confidence with which he had again and again told the house, refpecting the relative fituation of the two countries, that it was impoffible things could remain as they were; and defired to know, what was the meaning of that part of his majefty's fpeech which related to this fubject, if it was not that things must remain as they were?

Mr. Fox, finally, took a concise view of the affairs of India, infisting principally on the alarm, the difguft, and indignation, which certain regulating claufes in Mr. Pitt's bill had justly occafioned among ft the company's fervants in India; and upon the extraordinary orders fent out by the board of controul for reftoring to the Nabob of Arcot the collection and management of the revenues of the Carnatic, which lord Macartney, from the conviction of the neceffity of taking them, not out of his hands, but out of the hands of his agents, British ufurers, who plundered the natives and robbed him, had vefted in the company. It was owing, he faid, to this order, that lord Macartney had refigned his government, and that the company had been deprived of the fervices of that able and uncorrupt noble

Spoke last had certainly made none. He could not avoid bearing teftimony to that peculiar and almoft inftinctive dexterity with which that gentleman was enabled, on all occafions, to leave out of the difcuffion fuch parts of the fubject as were unfavourable to him; and he had on the prefent occafion an opportunity of equally admiring a fimilar talent in him, of introducing, however foreign and unconnected, fuch matter as he expected would be favourable. He did not mean, however, to follow him in thofe deviations from the fubject. The right hon. gentleman had affumed the liberty of fpeaking of foreign politics without reftraint, on the ground of his not being a minifter; and he for his part fhould avail himself of the delicacy and caution requifite in that character, and fhould not füffer himself to be diverted from it.

Mr. Pitt then acquainted the house, that the treaty with the emprefs of Ruffia was in a state of great forwardness, and he had every reafon to hope would be completed in fuch a manner as to give general fatisfaction. With refpect to the Germanic confederacy, it was a measure, he faid, with the merits or demerits of which his majefty's minifters had no concern; and he defired to have it understood, that Great Britain was by no means committed by any league lately entered into by the elector of Hanover, but was in the prefent inflance, what she always ought to be, perfectly unconnected with the politics of that electorate. He was clear and explicit upon this point. Accident, he faid, had placed the fovereignty of that country and of this in the fame hands; but it by

no means followed that the interefts of each muft neceffarily be the fame, though perhaps it might be for their mutual advantage to make their interests as reconcilable to each other as poffible. He pointed out the inconfiftency of Mr. Fox's apprehenfions of our being involved in difficulties through the means of his majesty's German territories, and yet his expecting that the administration of thofe territories fhould be fubordinate to, and regulated by, the minifters of Great Britain; as if that very circumftance would not bind this country on all occafions to affift and protect the electorate: whereas the only way for Great Britain to avoid embroiling herself in quarrels for Hanover, was by our government being kept, as much as poffible, independent of Hanoverian politics.

He next adverted to Mr. Fox's remarks on the affairs of India, and defended the obnoxious claufe in the India bill against the invectives with which it had been treated, as militating against the trial by juries. He contended, that there might be tribunals eftablished in certain cafes that would be found to answer equally all the purposes of public juftice; and he confidered the prefent as refembling in its conftitution the best fort of fpecial jury, and as totally exempt from the imputation of hardship, fince no man became fubject to it but by his own choice. With respect to the orders relative to the nabob of Arcot, he remarked, that though the policy of the measure was with lord Macartney, yet the good faith of the nation required that the facrifice fhould be made.

Having followed Mr. Fox through thefe parts of his fpeech, he took

notice of the contemptuous manner he had treated that part of his majefty's fpeech which refpected the flourishing ftate of our finances. He was, however, glad to find that he had changed his fentiments a little fince the laft feffion, and that inftead of the great deficiency he had then foretold, he had now declared that no perfon could have ever doubted but there must be fome furplus. He then declared, that it would fhortly appear, that the furplus was confiderable and impor

tant.

He laftly turned to Mr. Fox's obfervations upon the fubject of Ireland, and condemned in the ftrongeft terms the impropriety of fpeaking on a fubject of fuch delicacy in the unguarded and inflammatory manner they had just heard. He recapitulated the arguments ufed in the laft feffion in defence of thofe measures; and concluded with lamenting their failure, and expreff ing his fincere regret, that while this country had to contemplate the prefent profperous ftate of her affairs, and the pleafing profpect before her, she had not been able to extend the bleffings ftill further, by communicating thofe of her commerce to the fifter kingdom.

Mr. Pitt's idea that Great Britain was not committed by treaties made by the king, as elector of Hanover, was ridiculed by Mr. Fox with great fuucefs. He put a variety of cafes, in fome of which the fovereign might, with one part of his forces, endeavour to fupport a particular caufe, and with the other attempt to pull it down; in others, Great Britain might be called on to act against the electorate, and lend a hand to strip their king of his hereditary dominions; nay, a British

2

army might be directed to act hoftilely against troops, led in perfon by their fovereign, as elector of Hanover.

Before the house rofe, Major Scott (member for West Looe, and agent to the late governor general of Bengal) obferving Mr. Burke in his place, begged leave to remind the houfe that Mr. Haftings had been arrived in England fome months; and he therefore called upon that gentleman to produce the charges which he had pledged himfelf in the preceding feffion to bring forward against Mr. Haftings, and to fix the earliest day poffible for the difcuflion of them. Mr. Burke replied to the major, by relating an anecdote of the great duke of Parma, who, being challenged by Henry the fourth of France" to bring his forces into the open field, and inftantly decide their difputes;" anfwered with a fmile, that he knew very well what he had to do, and was not come fo far to be directed by an enemy."

Feb. 27.

The first object of importance that engaged the attention of parliament in the prefent feffion, was a measure which originated with the duke of Richmond, the master general of the ordnance. It was a plan for fortifying the dock-yards at Portsmouth and Plymouth.

The houfe of commons had in the preceding feffion expreffed their unwillingness to apply any part of the public money for this purpose, before they were made acquainted with the opinions of fuch perfons as were best able to decide concerning the utility and propriety of fuch a measure. In confequence of this intimation, a board of military and naval officers was appointed by the

king,