French conftitution, had not at tempts been made to introduce the monster into this country. Libels, he faid, had been circulated against the constitution, by focieties calling themselves conftitutional: He faid when he law the new French conftitution, he wept: it was the work of Goths and Vandals, where every thing was out of place, disjointed and inverted. He mentioned many of the enormities which were com mitted in France, and particularly the religious perfecution to which the non-juring clergy had been fubs jected; and which, hejuftly obs ferved, was a cruel violation of the principles of toleration. His opinion! of the American revolution did not militate against his opinion of the French, as the Americans had fome! reafon for the conduct which they had purfued bobines 5H 52 21018TH that the British conftitution was not perfect, Mr. Fox mentioned the vote of the year 1780, That the influence of the crown had increased, was increafing, and ought to be di minished." To this vote his right honourable friend had affented; and in 1783, when his majefty, on the lofs of America, lamented in his fpeech the fate of the provinces, in being deprived of the advantages refulting from monarchy, Mr. Burke had ridiculed the idea, and compared it to a man's opening the door, after he had left the room, and faying, "At our parting, pray let me recommend a monarchy to you." He faid, if we did not with a monopoly of that liberty which we prized fo highly, we must rejoice in the eman cipation of France. Feeling the prefent temper of Mr. Burke's mind, he faid, he should keep out of his till time and reflection had way fitted him to think differently of the fubject; and then if their friends did not endeavour to re-unite them, they would not act as he had a right to expect. The conceffions of Mr. Fox made but little impreffion on Mr. Burke. He faid, that the tendernefs dif played in the beginning and end of his fpeech, had been completely counterbalanced by what occurred in the middle of it; and complained loudly of Mr. Fox taking advantage even of his jokes and molt careless expreffions, to prove him guilty of nconfiftency. It had been faid that in fome points the British conftit tation might be amended; but had he ever faid that that or any other human conftitution might not? It had been faid, that, in order to praife the Britifh, he had thought: proper to abufe every other conftitutions but had he ever difplayed any fuch fpirit? He would not even have brought forward the The chancellor of the exchequer explained that part of his former fpeech, which Mr. Fox had confidered as charging him with repub lican principles. He said, that when that gentleman propofed an elective inftead of an hereditary council, he conceived that he (Mr. Fox) was inclined to think that a larger infufion of the republican principle than at prefent fubfited in the British conftitution, was beft adapted to the new government of Canada; but that this was a fentiment to which he (Mr. Pitt) could not po fibly agree. With this explanation Mr. Fox declared himself fatisfied; and concluded this inmultuous del bate with intimating, that atwa future day he had no doubt of excul pating himself from every charge of republicanifm. The debate which followed on the fame bill, on the 11th of May took a milder and more temperate courfe. Mr. Fox declared himfelf: an advocate for the British confti tution, M 10? bad .noitutifnos d en sw nouutiir ɔs free tution, and for hereditary honours, his duty to his country, in warning fuck as exifted in this country, it against the pernicious French which were frequently incentives to principles, at a time when there was patriotism and virtue he granted, not merely a plot, but open and however, that his principles were fo avowed attempts to fubvert the con fan republican, that he wished to fitation nsits on Sosit idesic yod give the crown lefs power, and the Thus concluded an altercation people more, inb every government, which has produced a fchifma ftill old or new; and added, that he was evident in the politics of the oppo decidedly of opinion, that the con- fition party. How far the later proftitution of this country was more ceedings in France may tend to liable to be ruined by an increase of abatemthehardour of contention, the power of the crown than of the which the French revolution first expeople. Mr. Burke denied that he cited in this country, it is difficult had ever imputed democratic prin to fay. To us it appears, that they ciples to Mr. Fox, with a view to are too likely to unite all fenfible hurt him; and if he had pushed him and well difpofed perfons in a conto a declaration soft his principles, demnation of the prefent measures the fpeech which they had juft of the popular party there, how heard from him would prove how ever they may have differed as@ far he was likely to have attained his the principle of the Gallic revolu end. He confidered himself as for- tiongo q9a bort sri,bich od baim faken by his party; but he had done bud noirbolter bra soit fir zem and Darotid to finq tili bouinqzt vitasisitib duft of mir" bystig dor but not Mata donut-abusit 1st to mit Dus & Jad fuq die auf „nizenda Lorbe Meffage from his Majefly. Difpute with Ruffia Armament voted. Debates son the State of the Nation, and on the Probability of a War with Ruffias Debates in the Lords on these Subjects Committer of Finance, Budget Debate on the Report of the Committee of Finance Finances of India's Debate on the Repeal of the Teft Act as far as regards the Church of Scotland Scottish Burghe Prorogation of Parliament. Riots at Bir ;mingham.10 FOREVOD #700* baisimos ons to lbbin * 1. of total Б 99stovbe griet zobi JM to vil un it requifite, in order to add weight to his reprefentations, to make fome further augmentation of his naval force m frog samh ro W r 181 d HILE feveral of the topics which we have juft noticed remained in agitation before the Britifa fenate, the attention of that body was called to another object, not lefs importantnto the interefts and welfare of the nation. On the 28th of March a meffage was deli vered from his majesty, importing that the endeavours which he had ufed, in conjunction with his allies, to effect a spacnication, not having proved fuccefsful, his majesty judged As foon as Mr.Pitt had moved that the meflage be taken into confideration on the morrow,” Murt Fox rofe, and deplored the circumsi ftance of their having fallen into lan fituation fo unfortunate and foun expected. Referving himfelf for the confideration of the melage, be afked the chancellor of the exche quer, quer, whether he meant only to move a fimple addrefs of thanks to his majefty for the communication, or whether he meant to include in the vote an approbation of the measure? If the latter were to be the cafe, he trusted the doctrine of confidence had not yet proceeded fo far, that they would haftily profefs themfelves ready to fupport the king's expences, without having before them any ground of information whatever. Mr. Pitt answered, that it had not been ufual to delay the confideration of a meffage from his majety longer than a day; and in the prefent cafe, there were many reafons why the bufinefs ought not to be deferred. He intimated also, that a vote of fupplies would be included in the answer to the meflage. The debate on the 29th was opened by Mr. Pitt, who lamented that his majefty's endeavours to restore peace to Europe had proved ineffectual; yet while they felt the advantage of that fyftem of defentive alliance, which had been fo generally countenanced, he trufted they would admit that a temporary expence might be wifely and judíciously incurred, to prevent any alteration taking place in the relative condition of the affairs of Europe. With a view to the ftate of thefe affairs, he faid, an additional force had been kept up after the late armament; and a further addition was now neceffary. He ftated, that if defenfive alliances were to be maintained, it was our duty to ad here to thofe alliances. The influence of the Turkish empire, he said, was of great effect in the general fcale of European powers; and its prefent fituation was fuch, as to afford juft caufe of apprehenfion to all the other powers, whofe interefts were at all liable to be affected by a diminution of that influence; and to Pruffia in particular it must be highly injurious, to fuffer the Turkith empire to be diminished in force and confequence. He therefore moved an address, to thank his majefty for the communication, and to aflure him that the house would make good the expences, &c. Lord Wycombe obferved, that, on first hearing this report, he had met it with a positive disbelief. In a commercial view, there were no benefits to be hoped for from the meafure, in any degree equivalent to the mifchief attending hoftilities. In a political view, he could not think a difpute concerning the fron tiers of Turkey was a fufficient mo tive to engage this country in a war, At all events, he should refift. the meafure, till he was poffeffed of a more adequate share of information on the fubject. On the fame grounds the motion was oppofed by Mr. Coke, Mr. Lambton, Mr. Martin, Mr. Vyner, and others; and it was fupported by Mr. Steele. Mr. Fox declared, that he was not against a neceflary fhare of confidence in ministry; but he observed, at the fame time, that recefary confidence was only a neceffary evil; and ought, therefore, to be always the lealt that the nature of things would permit. To admit fimply that the king, by the advice of his ministers, had ordered an armament, and that the house must pay the expence, was not in all the gradations of rational confidence; and the house of commons which entertained the propofition, betrayed its duty and infulted its constituents. The right honourable gentleman who moved the addrefs had enveloped himself in mystery and importance, but explained nothing. When the balance 4 of and in 1789 his majefy again af fured parliament, that the fitua tion of affairs was fuch as promifed us a continuance of peace. of power was mentioned as a reafon for arming, it ought to be hewn how it was endangered. When fupplies are called for to prevent the aggrandifement of Ruffia, it ought to Whatever confidence, he obferbe ftated whom she meant to attack ved, might be claimed by minifters, He mentioned it as a general opis none could be due where they had nion, that Ruffia was attacked by betrayed incapacity; and this the the Porte, at the sintligation of prefent minifters had done in their Great Britain and Pruffia. If this continental connexions. In the was not so, why did we not prevent negociations at Reichenbach, when the war, if we thought we had any they found the emperor difpofed to concern in its iffue? Would fir Ro peace, they had neglected the opbert Ainflie fay, that he had been portunity of engaging the empress inftructed to divert the Porte from by the fame arguments which induattacking Ruffia? In all his maced him to confent, and which were jefty's former fpeeches, he had regretted the war on principles of humanity but always added an affurance, that no danger was to be apprehended from it to us. What then had fince happened to involve us? The difpute between the emprefs and us he believed to be this: She offered to cede all her Conqueks between the Niefter and the Danube, and propofed to retain only those between the Niefter and the Don; while we infifted that the should furrender all her conquells without exception. Such was the propofition which we held out to Ruffia; while in India, in our own cafe, we infifted that, fhould we be fuccefsful against Tippoo Sultan, he should not only make reparation, but also furrender as much as we could conquer of his territories, as a fine for having made the first attack. Our whole ground of quarrel with Ruffia was, therefore, the tract of territory he had mentioned; unprofitable and worthlefs so any power, except for a fingle plate contained in it, and this place was Oczakow. Now had Oczakow been taken in the present year, it might have been faid to have produced a change of circumЯances; but it was taken in 1788, But then in their power. They had fti- was was a peremptory refufal. They then faid, "You must take the confequence, we wash our hands of the bufinefs." If our allies were attacked, we had then indeed a right to interfere; but we had no alliance with Turkey, and were only called on to gratify the pride of our own miniiters, and fecond the ill-judged policy of Pruffia. How far minifters were pledged to fupport that policy he knew not, but he knew the country was not bound to fupport it. Mr. Pitt in reply obferved, that as Mr. Fox had admitted, that to interfere occafionally in the politics of the continent made a part of that defenfive fyftem which he had always thought it right to support, the prefent queftion was fimply, "whether the prefent was an occafion on which we ought to interfere?" Now if it were true that Pruffia, by the aggrandifement of Ruffa, muft be endangered, and confequently our defenfive fyftem impaired, then, the circumftances actually called for our interference. It had been infinuated that minifters were bound by engagements to Pruffia, with which the country had nothing to do. He begged leave to affure the houfe that the infinuation was unfounded, and that minifters were bound by no engagements to Pruffia but fuch as had received the fanction of parliament. Admitting, for the fake of argument, what he would not admit in fact, that we ought to have interpofed fooner on the prefent occation, that was no reafon againft interpofing NOW. But had the neceflity been fo preffing at any former period, or were fuch confequences to be apprehended without a fpeedy interference? It was next faid, that we had loft the opportunity of bringing Ruffia to terms, when the emperor was prevailed on to treat-But when the em peror manifefted a favourable difpofi tion, would it have been wife to ful pend the negociations with him, at the risk of their being broken off, in order to wait for the concurrence of Ruffia? Pending our dispute with Spain, we were neither fo free to act as now, nor was the ne ceffity then fo urgent. But why,. it was afked, did we difmifs our armament after that difpute was concluded? We had not dismissed our armament, for we had kept up a confiderable addition of force; but as the feafon of the year made it impoffible to act for several months, we had not kept up a force of fifty fhips of the line, because it would have been to no purpose, and the expence would have exceeded that of the prefent armament. Mr. Pitt obferved, that the predominance of Ruffia would proba bly effect an alteration in the ftate of Europe in other refpects difadvantageous to this country, with refpect to Poland in particular. We had a commercial intereft in culti vating a trade with Poland, and preventing Ruffia from obtaining fuch a decided command of the articles we wanted, as to give or withhold them at her pleafure. Mr. Burke faid, that as it might be the last time that he should have an opportunity of delivering his fen..., timents on a fimilar question, he could not refrain from offering a few remarks to the houfe. He faid, it was extremely novel, and contrary to all the politics with which he was acquainted, to bring the Turkish empire into the confideration of the balance of power in Europe. The queftion, he faid, was not, whether the emprefs of Ruffia fhould or fhould not difmember Turkey? it was fimply, whether the should poffefs Oczakow or not? When the emprefs had made thofe facrifices, |