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ever, is mightily content with what he had done, except that when it is mentioned every one bursts out a laughing. In the fame manner, though it happens that every body is fowell content with the prefent Minifters, yet when their merits are fpoken of, it generally produces a laugh, or at least a smile, on every countenance. Different indeed is Lord St. Vincent in this refpect from all his colleagues; and knowing that he is in every refpect a perfect contraft to them in merit and reputation, they wish to bring him down to their level, or at leaft to fhelter themfelves under his great authority. But in order to strengthen the public confidence in Lord St. Vincent, let the adminiftration of the Admiralty be examined, and the fervices of that noble Lord will appear even more important than they have yet been estimated. In voting for this motion on thefe grounds, I am confcious that I do that which private friendship and public duty equally preferibe.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that he did not rife to add much to the ftrong and convincing arguments which had been fo ably urged in defence of the measures of the Admiralty, but to make a few obfervations on what had fallen from the hon. Gentleman who had just fat down. Although the hon. Gentleman had faid, that all or none of the papers moved for ought to be granted, the Houfe, he trusted, would fee the diftinétion, and they would be difpofed rather to acknowledge the fairnefs of Adminiftration that were ready to lay before the Houfe every information that could be granted, confiftently with the public fafety. From every thing which he knew, from every thing which had been unged, he was fatisfied that no ground had been laid for any inquiry; that no cafe had been made out which at all rendered it neceffary that Lord St. Vincent fhould be put upon his defence. If, however, there could be any doubt in the minds of the public as to the deficiency of our naval defence, the papers that were to be produced would afford the fulleft fatisfaction. It was not difficult therefore to perceive the reason why fome part of the papers were refused, while others were granted. As to the number of gun veffels con1racted for, he conceived that it was a good reafon for refufing thofe papers, as if granted, it would be neceffary 10 go into an inquiry upon other points conne&rd with it, from which might refult much inconvenience and detriment to the public fervice. The fame reafon occurred for refufing thote papers refpecting the number of fhips built in 1793 and fubfequent periods, as it muit branch into the fame kind of

details,

details, and call for the fame kind of communication. In every point, therefore, in which papers are refufed, it is where it would be inconvenient for the public fervice to grant it, and it is granted in every cafe where this restraint did not exist. The hon. Gentleman (Mr. Fox) called him felf the friend of Lord St. Vincent, and folicitous for his fame; but the hon. Gentleman had on former occafions profeffed himself the real friend of great men, and on thefe oc cafions he had always acted that part which the friends of thofe men did not fupport. When it was propofed to vote thanks to Lord Cornwallis, the hon. Gentleman oppofed that vote, upon the ground that it was better for the reputation of that noble Lord that the vote of thanks fhould not pafs. In the fame manner, profelling to be the friend of Lord St. Vincent, he fcrupled not to expofe that noble Lord to the fufpicion of maladminiftration by supporting a motion for inquiry, for which he admitted that no ground had been laid. I confefs however, (faid the right hon. Gentleman), I intend to fhew my respect and friendship for Lord St. Vincent by a conduct the reverse of that of the hon. Gentleman. With refpect to the system of degrading our navy to the fame level with the miferable fpecies of naval force to which the enemy's want of means compelled them to refort, he agreed entirely with the hon. Baronet who fpoke fo ably. It furely would be ftrange, indeed, if with giants at our difpofal we should employ pigmies; but whenever an inferior fpecies of naval force was neceffary, it would not be wanting. It had been already ftated (by Sir Edward Pellew), that on the coaft of France fuch was the nature of the fhore, that no fpecies of craft could prevent the enemy's boats creeping along. In addition to the powerful teftimony of that officer, he could produce that of another naval officer (Captain Day) who had been employed by the Admiralty to examine and report his opinion as to the poffibility of giving any effectual check to the com munication of the enemy's gun boats along their own fhores. That officer, in a letter to the Admiralty, ftates, that on account of the fliallownefs of the French coaft, and the number of batteries on fhore, it was impoffible for us to fend any species of veffels close enough to make any material impreffion on the enemy; and as the enemy had horfe artillery continually moving along the fhore, it was impoffible even to fend in boats for the purpose of annoying the fquadrons of the enemy's flotillas. Such was the cafe as to annoying the enemy on their own fhores; but in every fituation where our fmaller veffels could be of ufe to the protection of our own coafts, at every fit

ftation

ftation and expofed point from the North Foreland to Portf mouth, there was fcarce a point for the defence of which ample provifion had not been made. It had been faid, that there was a larger number of gun boats last war; but of the value of such veffels, he had a letter in his hand from an officer of merit (Lieutenant Topley), which would give the House fome idea. That officer ftates in the letter (which Mr. A. read), that he was once commander of one of the Dutch veffels, which had been fitted out as a gun boat, and it was almost impoffible to keep her from finking. Twenty fine fchooners had been fitted out with one 24 pounder, which did not answer, and they were armed with carronades. Thefe veffels had commonly lain idle at Portsmouth, and were good for nothing but a parade on a fine day, fo that if they should have ventured fo far out as the Eddystone Lighthouse, they never would have returned to port had a top-gallant breeze arose. The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that of the gun brigs, a much better kind of veffel, orders had been given for building twenty-three of them; but the First Lord of the Admiralty, deeming it advifeable to complete other veffels that were in hand, had ordered the floops of war to be previously launched; and if more gun brigs were not in fervice, it certainly was because the First Lord of the Admiralty was of opinion that another and fuperior kind of force was preferable. It had been faid, that the number of fhipwrights in the yards was 800 deficient. The fact, however, was, that more men were now in the yards than during the first year of the laft war, and only 58 lefs than during the highest year of the laft war. It was to be confidered, too, that as nearly 400 perfons had been discharged who received 6s. a day for doing nothing, the number of efficient men now was greater than it had ever been. But it was unneceffary for him to go further into details which had been fo much better handled. He agreed with the hon. Gentleman oppofite, that it was, becaufe Lord St. Vincent had hewn himfelf fo inexorable a foe to abuses, because he had fhewn himself determined to lay the axe to the root of the tree, that he had incurred fo much obloquy. There were other great men engaged in the fame arduous career, who had their share of that obloquy; but he was convinced that to this chiefly were complaints owing; and fometimes, perhaps, thofe men, from their habits of life not calculated to give grace to refusal, and to soften denial, might have excited the animofity of those whom it was impoffible to gratify. The public indeed had a deep interest in the character of fuch men and of the First Lord of the Admiralty. No man was better qualified to ferve the country

country than that noble Lord. Of him might be faid, what had been faid of Lord Chatham, that he had the name of an Englishman, refpectable in every quarter of the globe.

Clarum et venerabile nomen

Gentibus et noftræ multum quod proderet urbi.

The House and the Country will then judge, who beft confult the fame of Lord St. Vincent, on the prefent occafion; and if no ground of inquiry be laid, furely nothing could be more to be deprecated than at fo critical a moment throwing fufpicion on fo important a branch of the public defence, and wafting the time and attention of the Houfe upon unnecessary inquiries.

Mr. George Ponsonby was forry to fee an imputation brought againft his hon. Friend below, that was of all others, he thought, the least likely to be brought. He would afk the right hon. Gentleman oppofite, if he had preserved his friendship inviolate to the fame degree as his hon. Friend (Mr. Fox), or if he in every inftance had carried his friendship to the fame extent? Had his good Friend by him tapped the right hon. Gentleman on the fhoulder, and bid him look back, that right hon. Gentleman would have seen a quondam friend, for whom, perhaps, he had not preferved all the attachments nor all the fympathies of friendship. Why should any with exift to conceal the naval fituation of the country? The more our state is known, faid the hon. Gentleman, the more respect will our naval force command. He could perceive no ground of delicacy on this question, when our naval fuperiority was fo confeffedly admitted even by our enemies. The more, in fact, our naval force is known the more we must be dreaded. Nor could fuch an investigation as that proposed by the notion, give greater information to the enemy than what they already poffeffed, which was, he conceived, an information of our fuperiority. He would ask the Houfe what had been the conduct of the Admiralty in regard to the most vulnerable part of the empire? Was it not the moft judicious in every refpect? Every perfon would admit Ireland to be that part of the empire which he had defcribed, and the conduct of the Admiralty in regard To Ireland was the most fatisfactory, and appeared, he could fay from good authority, to thofe that were most interested in that part of the empire, to be the beft calculated for pro-. rection and security. What defcription of vetiels did Ireland moft require, or by what defcription of veffels had Ireland VOL. II, 1803-4.

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been.

been fo much fatisfied? It was by large veffels that the fhores of Ireland had been protected, and not by the fmall craft, which feemed to be the object of fome Gentlemen to recommend; and Ireland, at the fame time, it would be admitted, was the weakest part of the empire, and therefore the best criterion by which we ought to judge from experience of the best means of our defence.-The hon. Gentleman was by no means anxious to go into comparifons, but at the fame time no comparison he was certain could terminate in any way difadvantageous to the noble Lord now at the head of the Admiralty. A force, he remembered, had hovered over the coaft of Ireland for upwards of 17 days, under a former Adminiftration, with General Hoche at its head, which, had not the weather prevented it from landing, might have been attended with very ferious confequences, and which, during thofe 17 days, was unmolefted, or rather undifcovered, by any British fleet. Were comparisons to be made, and were he permitted to follow them up minutely, he believed they would terminate greatly in favour of the prefent Board of Admiralty in every refpe&; and feeling this with his hon. Friend below (Mr. Fox), he could fee no rational objection to the inquiry propofed. Should fuch an inquiry produce any effect in regard to the enemy, it must be, that only of deterring him from his falfe and ill founded enterprises, it must be that only, from the prefent ftate of our navy, of convincing the enemy that fuccefsful invafion was impoffible, and that the attempt must be attended with difcomfiture to themselves. If any objection was entertained to the conduct of the noble Lord at the head of the Admiralty, it must be on account of the averfion he has difcovered to every fpecies of corruption, and his laudable determination to check and oppose it in every fhape. On this account, therefore, he was glad to fee that noble Lord fo warmly fupported by the Gentlemen oppofite, and profeffedly upon the lame principle, because from this circumftance it was natural to conclude, that there was no corruption exifting in any of the other departments of Adminiftration, or the noble Lord could not have been the only one fingled out as an object of perfecution in this respect. He must again repeat, that in regard to policy, there could be no objection. The more the enemy fhall know, the more he will fear, and Lord St. Vincent will have an opportunity of vindicating more generally his conduct. For thefe reafons, the hon. Gentleman faid, he would vote for the motion, not for an addrefs to his Majefty to re

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