geance on the men who were the authors of their country's ruin ?"

The impreffion made by the fucceffive speeches of the principal leaders in oppofition in this debate was too great to be concealed; but the estimates, as originally moved, were at length voted by a confiderable majority.

Nearly at this time a petition was presented by the city of London to the king, in which the calamities refulting from the war are stated in terms peculiarly impreffive and eloquent. In conclufion they fay, "We befeech your majesty no longer to continue in a delufion from which the nation has awakened, and that your majesty will be gracioufly pleased to relinquish entirely and for ever the plan of reducing our brethren in America by force. And we do further humbly implore your majefty, that your majefty will be graciously pleased to difmifs from your presence and councils all the advifers, both public and fecret, of the measures we lament, as a pledge to the world of your majefty's fixed determination to abandon a fyftem incompatible with the interest of the crown and the happiness of your people."

Soon after the recess of parliament, Mr. Fox renewed his former motion of cenfure against the first lord of the Admiralty; and fuch strength had the oppofition now acquired, that in a houfe of

near

near four hundred members it was rejected by a majority of only twenty-two. The unpopularity of the American fecretary was fo great and manifeft, that he now thought it expedient, seeing parliamentary cenfures likely to become again in fashion, to refign the feals of that departmentand for his eminent fervices he was by his majefty raised to the dignity of the peerage. But before the great feal was affixed to the patent, the marquis of Carmarthen moved, in the house of peers, "that it was highly derogatory to the honor of that house, that any perfon laboring under the fentence of a court-martial, ftyled in the public orders issued by his late majesty' a cenfure much worse than death,' and adjudged unfit to serve his majefty in any military capacity, fhould be recommended to the crown as a proper perfon to fit in that houfe."

The motion was evaded by the queftion of adjournment; but lord George Germaine having actually taken his feat in the house under the title of Lord Viscount Sackville, the marquis of Carmarthen renewed his attack, and urged, “that the house of peers being a court of honor, it behoved them to preserve that honor uncontaminated, and to mark in the most forcible manner their disapprobation of the introduction of a perfon into that affembly who was ftigmatized in the orderly books of every regiment in the fervice."

VOL. III.

T

Lord

Lord. Abingdon, who feconded the motion, ftyled the admiffion of lord George Germaine to a peerage an infufferable indignity to that houfe, and an outrageous infult to the public.What," faid his lordship, "has that perfon done to merit honors fuperior to his fellow citizens? His only claim to promotion was, that he had undone his country by executing the plan of that accurfed' invifible, though efficient cabinet, from whom as he received his orders, fo he had obtained his reward."

Lord Sackville, in his own vindication, denied the justice of the fentence paffed upon him, and affirmed "that he confidered his restoration to the council board, at a very early period of the prefent reign, as amounting to a virtual repeal of that iniquitous verdict."

The duke of Richmond ftrongly defended the motion, and faid "that he himself was prefent at the battle of Minden, and was fummoned on the trial of lord George Germaine; and had his depofition been called for, he could have proved that the time, loft when the noble viscount delayed to advance, under pretence of receiving contradictory orders, was not lefs than one hour. and a half; that the cavalry were a mile and a quarter only from the fcene of action; and it was certainly in his lordship's power to have rendered the victory, important as it was, far more brilliant

brilliant and decifive; and he had little reason to complain of the feverity of the fentence paffed upon him."

Lord Southampton alfo, who, as aid-de-camp to prince Ferdinand on that memorable day, delivered the meffage of his ferene highness to his lordship, vindicated the equity of the fen

tence.

The motion was likewife powerfully supported by the earl of Shelburne, the marquis of Rockingham, and other diftinguished peers.

On the divifion, nevertheless, it was rejected by a majority of ninety-three to twenty-eight voices but to the inexpreffible chagrin of lord Sackville, a proteft was entered on the journals of the house, declaring the promotion of his lordship to be "a meafure fatal to the interests of the crown, infulting to the memory of the late fovereign, and highly derogatory to the dignity of that houfe."

Mr. Fox, on the 20th of February, 1782, again brought forward his motion of cenfure, fomewhat varied, on lord Sandwich, which was negatived by a majority of nineteen voices only, in a house confifting of 453 members; but, to the astonishment of the nation, the noble lord ftill daringly kept poffeffion of his office, although 217 members of the houfe of commons had pronounced him "guilty of a fhameful mifmanage

ment of the naval affairs of Great Britain." The oppofition appearing every day to gain ftrength in the house of commons, the downfall of the miniftry began at length to be confidently predicted.

On the 22d of February, general Conway moved "for an addrefs to the king, earnestly imploring his majefty, that he would be gra cioufly pleased to liften to the humble prayer and advice of his faithful commons, that the war on the continent of North America might no longer be purfued, for the impracticable purpose of reducing that country to obedience by force." This was oppofed in a long speech by Mr. Welbore Ellis, the new fecretary for the American department, who declared, "that it was now in contemplation to contract the fcale of the war, and to profecute hoftilities by fuch means as were very diffimilar from the paft. That unhappy faction in America which ftill continued its refiftance to the government of this kingdom, though less numerous than the party of the royalifts, could only be rooted out by pushing the war with vigor against France. In order to obtain peace with America we must vanquish the French; and as in the late war America had been faid to be conquered in Germany, fo in this America must be conquered in France. In prefent circumftances, the adminiftration were confcious of

the