Mr. Secre ploy our time in fuch pitiful difcuffions. He would therefore move the previous queftion, which he did. Mr. Secretary Fox faid, that the motion made by the laft tary Fox. honourable speaker, had his approbation; not that he thought the motion which the honourable Alderman had made ill founded or wrong in itfelf-but though trifling in itfelf, included in it matters of a more ferious nature-it would affect the whole of the late adminiftration, and had it paffed, a cenfure on those perfons who advised would be the confequence-therefore as an honourable friend of his had moved for a committee to enquire into the ftate of the finance, it would then come with more propriety before them, with a thousand other grievances. He faid, wretched and miferable as this country had been painted by gentlemen before they came into office, yet, to their aftonishment, it was found infinitely worfe than they ever conceived it could be-he faid, he had attempted, on a former day, to point out to the House, the state of our navy, and weak and inadequate as it turned out to be; yet, fince that time, he was come to the knowledge of facts which fhewed him that all his former fufpicions were poor and weak in proportion to the truth. Neither he nor any man that acted with him, imagined that our navy was fo reduced and impotent as they now found it was. He thought it neceffary that an enquiry fhould be fet on foot, to fhew its fituation, and the caufe from which it originated, that no blame might be attributed to thofe in adminiftration, but what fhould appear to be incurred through their conduct — he then faid from the management of the late administration, there were the greateft difficulties thrown in the way of a peace with Holland; but that he had no doubt, had the prefent minifters been called to his Majefty's councils fome weeks before, that it would have been brought about: this he thought proper to mention, that the public might know, who were the cause of preventing that matter from being accomplished, which the nation fo anxioufly wifhed for, and which the fame perfons had fo wantonly plunged us into.He then mentioned that at the time the noble Lord in the blue ribband was telling the Houfe of his eagerness for peace with America, as haughty and imperious language was held out to that power as ever. He faid, that no man was influenced leis by any vindictive fpirit than he was, yet felf-prefervation demanded that the ftate in which the prefent minifters found the nation fhould be known; and in order to that, it would be neceffary to lay before Parliament feveral propofitions concerning its navy, the internal defence of the country; its foreign politics, and many other matters of importance. The Lord Advocate faid, it would be wifdom in the pre- The Lord fent miniftry, inftead of breeding diffention or bad humour in Advocate. this Houfe, or the nation, to endeavour to encrease that unanimity and concord which promifed fuch vigour and strength to their government, and which alone could ftrike terror into our enemies. Do they think in inftituting enquiries here, that gentlemen who fupported the late administration will forego their former opinions, and condemn thofe meafures which they before approved of? If, through vindictive fpirit, or to ferve the purpofes of party, they make the experiment, they will be anfwerable to the nation for all the bad confequences that may enfue. If our navy is in a bad ftate, and has been mismanaged, as the right honourable gentleman afferts, the best method to prove it fo, will be to shew us a better one; and if it was fuch an easy matter as a right honourable gentleman (Mr. Fox) faid, when out of office, to make peace with America and Holland; why not bring such a meature about now; that they have the whole conduct of the business in their own hands, or, if they find difficulties in it, furely they fhould be candid enough to fuppofe the former minifters had like impediments to obftruct them. Mr. William Pitt fpoke very ably, and ftrongly recommend- Mr. Wil. ed unanimity in the Houfe, from which the falvation of the liam Pitt. nation alone could be hoped for; however, if there were any crimes fo glaring as to demand the attention of the Houfe, he faw no good reafon why they fhould be paffed over in filence. The Earl of Surrey faid, the deception which had been Earl of Surused by the late miniftry on the Houte, demanded the feve- rey. reft reprehenfion; who, after they had informed them they were no longer a miniftry, yet had fhamefully exercifed every power which minifters could ufe, and that for the worst purpofes; he fhould, therefore, when the motions now before them determined, move, that an account be laid before the Houle, of all penfions granted from the 15th of February to the 30th of April. Mr. Haffey approved of this meafure, and faid, if the Mr. Haffey, noble Lord had not propofed it; he had prepared a motion to the fame purport; he wished, therefore, the honourable Alderman Alderman Governor Lord Surrey The Lord Advocate. Alderman would withdraw his motion, and the gentleman who moved the previous queftion would do the fame too. Alderman Sawbridge faid, he was not averfe to it, as it appeared the sense of the House he fhould do fo, provided the noble Lord would make the motion he proposed. Governor Johnfione faid, he was against the previous queftion being withdrawn; for it would be a warning to gentlemen how they brought on motions which cenfured gentlemen, without having good grounds for fo doing. Mr. Drummond, Sir Charles Turner, Sir John Rous, Sir Jofeph Mawbey, Mr. Campbell, Mr. Dempfter, Mr. Burke, and others fpoke; when the previous queftion was put by the Speaker and carried; after which Lord Surrey rofe, and made the motion for an account of the penfions, which was unanimously agreed to. The House then adjourned. May 1. The Houfe proceeded to ballot for the Secret Committee, to enquire into the expences of the war. When this bufinefs was over, Mr. Fox delivered to the clerk copies of the late addreffes from both Houses of the Irish Parliament to his Majefty; and an order was made that they fhould lie upon the table. The Lord Advocate, as Chairman of the Secret Committee on the affairs of India, informed the Houfe, that Mr. Whitehill, one of the perfons against whom they had brought in a bill of pains and penalties, had quitted the kingdom, and was not now to be found: the Committeé had fent to his house, and a plate was found on the door with the name Lewin. Mr. Lewin had informed the Committee, that Mr. Whitehill, in confequence of an opinion from his furgeon, had gone to the continent. He faid that the house in which he (Mr. Lewin) then lived, had formerly belonged to Mr. Whitehill; but that he had purchafed it; he faid there had been a mortgage on it of 500l. to General Jofeph Smith.Upon the whole, the Committee ordered him to attend again, not being fatisfied with his answers: to their order, they had received an anfwer that Mr. Lewin had been fuddenly taken ill with the gout, and begged that the Committee would difpenfe with his attendance, till he fhould get better. The next day, however, their meffenger was informed by his fervant that he was out walking, inftead of being laid up with the gout; the fervant alfo had been ordered to attend the Committee, Committee, but had neglected: the Committee deeming this to be a contempt of Parliament, had directed him to move, and he moved accordingly, that Mr. Lewin, late Secre tary to the Council of Madras, and Thomas Gardiner his fervant, be taken into the cuftody of the Serjeant at Arms. The motion paffed without any farther conversation, except that General Smith took an opportunity to inform the Houfe, that the mortgage of 500l. that General J. Smith had on the House alluded to by the learned Lord, was not a mortgage, for the purpose of covering property; it was a mortgage of five years ftanding; and he himself as agent for General J. Smith, had advanced that money on mortgage in the year 1777. Lord Mahon put off the confideration of the report on the Lord Ma gold coin to the next day. hon. Mr. W. Pitt gave notice that on Tuesday next he would Mr. W. move the House on a fubject of the greatest importance: on Pitt. that day he intended to move for a Select Committee to take into confideration the prefent ftate of the reprefentation of the Commons of England. Mr. Dempfter expreffed his hopes that the honourable mem- Mr. Dempber would not confine the enquiry to the reprefentation of fter. the Commons of England only, but that he would extend it to Scotland. Mr. Pitt faid his intention was, that the enquiry fhould be Mr. Pitt as comprehenfive and as widely extended as poffible. The report of the refolutions relative to Mr. Sullivan was alfo adjourned to to-morrow; Mr. Dempfter taking occafion to fay, that having heard that the Secretary to the Court of Directors of the India Company, had conceived himself injured by fomething that had dropped from him in a former debate on these refolutions, and had taken it fo much to heart, that he fickened at it, and had been confined to his bed, he thought it a duty to that Secretary (Mr. Mitchell) to fay, that nothing could ever have been farther from his intention, than to fpeak, in the fmalleft degree, to his difparagement; that gentleman had been from his earlieft infancy in the India Houle; he had difcharged, for thirty years, the very confidential, and perhaps the moft laborious employment in the kingdom, that of Secretary to the Company, with a diligence, activity, zeal, and fidelity almoft without example; and with a spotless integrity, which the best men might be proud to emulate. That gentleman was now in the 68th year of his age; and he fhould never forgive himself, if he had inVOL. VI.* tentionally P Mr. Crifp tentionally done any thing that could give fo worthy a man a moment's uneafinels. May 2. Mr. Crifp Molyneux moved the Houfe to refolve itself Molyneux. into a Committee, to take into confideration a propofition relative to the laws of trade. The motion having been carried, and Captain Minchin having taken the chair, Mr. Molyneux opened his propofition with many invectives against the war, which had made neceffary the motion he was going to make; he inveighed alfo againft the late miniftry, who, he said, had failed too far North-ward. He then beftowed the greateft praifes on Lord Rockingham, and moved that the Chairman be directed to move the House, for leave to bring in a bill to admit commodities of the growth or manufacture of St. Kitt's, Nevis, and Montferrat, into the ports of Great Britain and America, on the payment of the duties payable in faid ports. Mr. Burke. Mr. Demp- Mr. Moly neux. Mr. Burke thought the navigation act, on which the motion trenched, ought to be wholly repealed; for though it had once been deemed the fupport of our trade and of our navy, the face of affairs all over Europe was fo altered, that at prefent it produced to us nothing but inconvenience. Mr. Dempfier wished to know why the line was drawn that granted fuch indulgence to the three islands above-mentioned, and not to the other conquered iflands, which had formerly belonged to Britain. Adverting to Mr. Molyneux's expreffion of "too far North-ward," and thinking that he alluded to the Scots members, he faid, that it was not the North of Britain, but the fouth, that had ruined the country; for if the fortyfive Scots members were to act all together, they could do no mifchief, if oppofed by the English members; it was therefore by English majorities that the country had been brought to the verge of ruin. Mr. Molyneux faid he really had not the North of Britain in view, when he made ufe of the expreffion to which the honourable member alluded; he meant by the North-ward, that we had been carried to a north or boisterous ocean, where our bark had been nearly deftroyed. The reafon of the dif tinction on which the honourable member required an explanation, was, that the inhabitants of St. Kitt's, Nevis, and Montferrat, were, under capitulation, allowed to fend their goods to Great Britain, or America; which was not the cale 2 with |