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of the civil lift? What minifter could, under fuch a direction, venture to give his majefty any counsel, or to explain to him what the House defired? But he particularly reminded the lords, that if the motion was carried, it could not enforce the advice. It was no act of parliament. His majefty's civil lift was eftablished at its prefent amount, by a pofitive act of parliament. He concluded by endeavouring to fhew, that the object of the addrefs, if the words and language of the motion fairly avowed its purpose, was both inexpedient and impracticable; if it were intended only as a covert attack upon the minif ters, and as a means of turning them out of office, he thought it would be more fair and more honourable, to come forward, in a more explicit, a more direct, and a more obvious manner.

The lords in oppofition, however, fupported the motion with great vigour. The noble earl, who had been himself the mover of the late addition to the civil lift, ftated the reasons, why he now thought a retrenchment of that establishment to be, even, more neceffary, than he, at that time, did its increase. The times were unhappily changed; the fituation of this country was totally different; our revenue was leffen ed; our resources greatly exhaufted. The immenfe fums raifed upon the people were either en tirely diverted from their purpose, or if applied, fquandered without wisdom or effect. With a vast nefs of fupply before unheard of, and a prodigious, but mifapplied and ill-directed force, he faid, that the coafts of this country were

more expofed and defencelefs, and her dependencies and commerce in every part of the world worse protected, than ever had been known in any former war whatever. In a word, that our mifconduct and mifgovernment was fo glaring, that this country excited either the pity or contempt of all the world. We were become defpicable in the eyes of our avowed enemies, as well as of those who had not yet declared themselves fuch.

It was only regretted on that fide, that the measure had not originated from the throne. Surely they faid, if his majesty had any real friends about him, they would not fail to have fuggefted a measure, which would fo effectually have conciliated the affections of all ranks of his fubjects; who admiring it, when coming unfought from the father of his people, as an act of the higheft wisdom and goodness, could never think they had means fufficient for expreffing their gratitude. Queen Anne had fet the example, in a war of a far different nature from the prefent; the had the good fenfe or good fortune, during all the bright part of her reign, to be guided by wife and honeft counfels; the allotted 100,0col. a year of her private revenue to the fupport of the war; and her civil lift was lower by 300,000l. than the prefent eftablifhment.

Other lords on that fide went farther. They attributed all our misfortunes and calamities, to the long increafing and now prodigious influence of the crown. They confidered the augmentation of the civil lift, as having

greatly

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greatly increased and confirmed ed lord's concurrence with the more material parts of the addrefs, they would undertake to induce the noble framer to withdraw thofe two paffages of objection.

that influence. They faid, that all temporizing expedients to relieve the people would prove ineffectual; that a reformation of the conflitution was called for; that its principles were perverted; and that until it was reftored to its native and original purity, this country could never recover its former power and character, nor could any thing great or decifive be expected from its utmost exertions. A noble lord, in a high military office, declared his concurrence to the motion, provided that it extended to all places under government: he faid, that he knew it was what all people expected; that all ranks felt the general calamity, and looked out impatiently for relief; and that he would chearfully give up the whole emoluments of his own place for the good of his country.

The great and learned law lord was congratulated, on his happy ignorance of thofe manifold public diftreffes and calamities, of which every other man in the kingdom, they faid, had too fenfible a knowledge. He was like wife, they faid, the only ignorant man in the kingdom, with refpect to that wafte of the public treasure which was ftated in the propofed addrefs. The fact had been charged, admitted, or acknowledged, on every fide of the Houfe; and even confirmed by the declaration of a noble vifcount newly come into high office, that the fact was truly ftated. Although it could not be difficult to give to facts of fuch notoriety the fullest degree of conviction, yet, in order to obtain the learn

The question being at length put, the motion was rejected, upon a divifion, by a majority of fortyone, the numbers being 77 to 36; including ten proxies on one fide, and three on the other.

Dec. 13th.

The minifter at length opened his propofitions for affording relief to Ireland in the Houfe of Commons. They were three in number, and went to the following articles.-To the repeal of thofe laws, which prohibit the exportation of Irifh manufactures, made of or mixed with wool, and wool flocks, from Ireland to any part of Europe. That fo much of the act of 19th George II. as prohibits the importation of glafs into Ireland, except of British manufacture, or to export glafs from that kingdom, be repealed.-And, that Ireland be fuffered to carry on a trade of export and import to and from the British colonies, in America and the West Indies, and her fettlements on the coafts of Africa, fubject to fuch limitations, regulations, reftrictions, and duties, as the parliament of Ireland fhall impofe.

The noble lord ftated, in a fpeech of confiderable length, and of equal ability and knowledge of the fubje&t, the propriety and juftice, as well as the neceffity, of affording relief to Ireland; and entered fully into the claims of that country, as well with respect to her natural and inherent rights, as to thofe arifing from her parti

cular

the army, and which every year became ftill more enormous, had long been a fubject of complaint with the oppofition in both houses of parliament; who had likewise, from time to time, made various ineffectual attempts to refrain them within fome defined limits.

cular connection with Great Bri-. The vaft fums which were tain. He likewife expatiated charged to the extraordinaries of largely on the mutual and refpective interefts of both countries; and very happily collected into one point of view almost all those queftions of commerce and policy, which we have already feen agitated upon the fubject. Indeed, it would not have been eafy at prefent to difcover much new ground, upon the general queftions of right, justice, or reciprocal advantage, whatever might be derived from expedience or imme-. diate neceflity. Such was the happy temper now prevailing, that the refolutions were agreed to without the fmalleft oppofition. Some fhort difcourfe of the nature formerly related; fome reproach for delay; and fome doubt of the complete efficacy of any thing which could be done in the prefent circumstances to give complete fatisfaction, was the whole of what paffed on a fubject, which would formerly have agitated, ponibly convulfed the whole empire. But the late great revolution had rendered every change eafy. Bills founded on the two first propofitions were accordingly brought in, paffed both houses with the utmost facility, and received the royal affent, before the recefs. The third, being more complex in its nature, requiring a variety of enquiry, and being fubject to several limitations and conditions, was fuffered to lie over the holidays in its prefent ftate of an open propofition; not only to afford time for confideration here, but for acquiring a knowledge of the effect which the meafure would produce in Ireland.

Although the bufinefs feemed more properly to appertain to the Houfe of Commons, yet the former failure, or prefent hopeleffness of fuccefs there, probably were the motives which induced the Earl of Shelburne to bring it now forward before the 15th: lords, who were accordingly fummoned for the purpose. He introduced his motion by entering into an ample difcuffion of its fubject, and by an accurate comparative eftimate of the extraordinary military fervices of former reigns, and of the prefent. On this ground he stated a number of curious and interesting facts. He fhewed that the extras of King William's reign, when a war was carried on in Flanders, Ireland, and the Weft Indies, did not ex. ceed, in the highest year of the revolution war, 100,000l. That in the next, the fucceffion war, which we maintained in Germany, on the banks of the Danube, in Flanders, Spain, the Mediterranean, North America, and the Weft Indies, the extras never exceeded 200,000l. And, that in the first war of the late king, waged with France and Spain jointly, they did not, in any one year; exceed 400,000l.

That during the late war, the moft extentive, and alfo the most expensive, in which this country

had

had ever been engaged, the extraordinaries of the year 1757 were only 800,000l. while thofe of 1777 amounted to 1,200,000l. befides a million granted for the transport service; thus, upon the whole, exceeding two millions. That the higheft year of the late war, that of 1762, when our arms were triumphant in every quarter of the globe; when we fupported 80,000 men in Germany, befides victorious armies in North America, the British and French Weft Indies, the Eaft Indies, in Portugal, on the coaft of France, and at the reduction of the Havannah, the whole of the extras did not exceed two millions; whereas the two laft defenfive campaigns would be found, when the accounts of the latter of the two were made up, to amount to the enormous fum of upwards of three millions each. And that the extra military charges in the laft four years, during the greater part of which the conteft was confined to the Americans only, would be found to amount to a fun very nearly equal to the whole expenditure of the first four years of King William's, and fully equal to the two first years of the Duke of Marlborough's campaigns.

He then proceeded to ftate and explain the caufes, to which he attributed the monftrous difproportion between the prefent military extraordinaries, and thofe of any former period. In this cu rious and particular detail he flated, that only one contractor had been employed in the laft war for the fupply of the forces in America; but that the minifter had split the prefent contract into twelve parts, in order to make a

return to fo many of his friends for the fervices which he received from them at home. That in the former inftance, the fole contractor,

Sir William Baker, was bound to furnish provifions on the fpot, in America, at fixpence a ration; whereas the prefent contractors were only to deliver rations at the fame price in Cork; fo that the whole freight, infurance, rifque, and all other poflible expences, were taken out of the pockets of the public, and put into the pockets of the minifter's contracting friends. From which, and from a variety of other specified inftances of mismanagement, he pledged himself to the proof, that every ration now delivered in America ftood the public in two thillings, instead of fixpence, which they coft in the laft war.

He went the whole round of contracts in this courfe; and while he treated the conduct of the minifter without mercy, he was nothing more fparing of the contractors. He paid particular attention to the fuppofed favourite of the minifter in that line. That man, he faid, notwithstanding his reprobation in parliament, and his detection in the moft glaring impofition on the public, had contracts given him, in the years 1777 and 1778, to the amount of 1,300,ocol.; and probably, his contracts in the preceding year, (the accounts of which were not yet delivered in) far exceeded thofe in either of the two former. He was exceedingly fevere on the conduct of the minifter with this fuppofed favourite contractor. Nor did he pafs over the gold, or bullion contractor, through whofe

hands,

hands, he faid, no less than three millions feven hundred thousand pounds in fpecie had been tranfmitted to America, and for which a fingle voucher had not been produced. That immenfe fum, he faid, had been written off in thirty or forty lines, without any account, or fpecification whatever, forty thousand pounds in one line, twenty in another, and thirty in a third. When it was remembered that the transport fervice, ordnance, provifions, ftores, pay, new appointments, and, in word, every item of expence that could be thought of, were all feparately provided for, and each brought to account under its proper head, it must furely puzzle the moft quick and fertile genius, even to guefs, in what manner, or to what ufe, this enormous fum, of nearly four millions, could have been applied.

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After going over a vast quantity and great variety of matter relative to the fubject, he opened his views more particularly with refpect to his intended motions. He faid that an unconftitutional, minifterial influence, had ufurped the regal prerogative, which it was now become abfolutely neceffary to crufh for the falvation of this country. That this mischief arofe principally from the opportunity, now afforded in a greater degree than ever to the firft lord of the treafury, of expending millions of the public money without account, and confequently without economy. And, that as the army extraordinaries afforded the most unlimited means to the minifter, for the propagation and fupport of that fatal fyltem of influence and corruption,

he would make that lavish head of expenditure the firft and great object of his enquiry and cenfure.

He accordingly moved his firft refolution to the following purport,-That the alarming addition annually making to the prefent enormous national debt, under the head of extraordinaries, incurred in the different fervices, requires immediate check and controul:The increafing the public expence beyond the grants of parliament. being at all times an invation of the fundamental rights of parliament; and the utmoft œconomy being indifpenfably neceflary, in the prefent reduced and deplorable ftate of the landed and mercantile intereft of Great Britain and Ireland.

The defence on the part of the miniftry was extremely fhort and dry. It is not clear, whether this arofe from fome difagreement between the minifters, which did not permit them to be much difpleafed with the arraignment of a conduct, in which none in that Houfe was officially concerned; or whether at the time, they were not fufficiently inftructed in the ftate of the queftion to answer to it fully. Whatever was the caufe, the chancellor feeing no likeli hood of a debate, after waiting a confiderable time, proceeded at length to put the queftion. This called up a noble duke in the oppofition, who expreffed the utmost aftonithment and indignation, that minifters fhould venture to fit ftill under fuch charges, without an attempt at answer or defence. A noble earl likewife, who had lately fucceeded to his feat in that Houfe, declared, that during fifteen years he had fat in the other

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