The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1807-04-16 00:00:00

• s my being exceedingly interested in the eommercial interests of the country, enabled to speak from my own knowledge ; I do not recoiled. since the be• ginning of the war, a year in which fewer captures have been made of Our slips. Wh le the increase of our force has been going on at home, our squad cons have been most judiciously distributed abroad. Finding that there was a loud call for ecnnoms, the y lost no time in setting on foot an inquiry into our financial resources, and to suppress useless places, and sinecures. By having done this. the late Ministers, in retiring, carry with them not only the approbation of their consciences, but the good wishes and the gratitude of their countrymen. 1 have heard it said, that the late Miniaer, were ex exedinoly litadiee in assistiag our allies, either by subsidies, by expeditions. or, I may say, by bustlin.: in preparing for expeditions, in order to keep the people alive. I grant that th-y have not, tile ferries Administrations, been the meats. of drown ing WO min in the ocean, in an injudicious expedi ti ; nut they have surely secured the means of an ..!•,niare. End well lion r co operation, by placing our r ivy in the most proper stations. His Majesty's ive '.limiters, constantly professing did. consistently with their acknowledged p in cipies. bring bra sad a measure, calcuia• ed as they thoug'.t For the advaroage •of t'e coun try. by augener firm its strength, and recon eilitg existing an:mositivi amongst out selves.— They afterwards thought proper to withdraw it. for reasons now well known ; hut in doing so, their opinions remained unalterable as to any future measure of a similar nature. when deem ed necessary. The King can, na doubt, dismn, Isis Ministers whenever he pleases, and thetetorc it has been said, there was no call to demand a pledge. That may do heovixt the Sovereign and His Ministers ; hut 119 W are the people to be situ ated witi. their represei.wires, when discussing the conduit of such Ministers ? We ate tie guaidiaos of the people's riglsts, and it is our duty to sandion the proceedings of Ministers, when we fin they have aded worthy of their situations of responsniility. It they had continued in place, and granted suds a pledge as was required ot them, they wciald have deserved to have been impeached by the House of Commons, for having betrayed the interests of their country. We are told I y the present Ministers, th..t they have not pledged themselves; but I say. that unquestionably tie, live done so, by the very as of taking their places. How can they be supposed to hav their minds open to such a siihjed ? I shall ask them, admitting the ba re portibiory cf their being cn voiced, at some future period, that some conces sions to the Catool•cs become necevary, both for the protedion ot the neople in general, and for the defence even of the Piorestai t derigian itself. lew ere di. ytoad ? Can it he supp .sed that they would be ready upon the first Jawnuig of mat a convidinn upon thi. sublet, to come forward to conies that they were wrong? Will they net then be reduced to the predicament of Heftor, when standing before the g.,tes of Troy, convinced that lie had slated a better advice, but had felt his error whee too late. If any argument. which may occur this night, ea.; • induce this House to agree to such a motion, I trust that if.ey will not be deterred from coming to a je..: and proper di tertuination. by the threat which Gil last Thursday from a Right Hon Gentleman. Such expiessions never fell from the lips of that consummate Statesman, Mr. Pitt, even in his greatest difficulties. I bate no personal animosity towards the present Mi istets ; but tie honour and dignity nt the House of Commons are sacaed ousts reposed ill us. It is our duty to evavh over tin. Goo. snorion of our ancestors ; and, therefore. I trust, that hit the purpose of showing our convidion upon this most important sut'j U. the present motion will this night be agreed t 0 . ,, the motion was then read from the Chair. M i . HILLS—. Sir, in rising to oppose this mo ticn. I shall not tre.pess long upon the' patience of the House. before I proceed I shall first abserve upon the form of the motion. It does 'tot appear to me to be the best calculated to do . justice to, or to attain the objea in view.-. It is not conceived in terms the most appropriate fir thcpurpose of expressing that approbation of the cokll of those persons, whom the Honour anle Ginaleman wishes to compliment. It is Dot to be inferred, that br:atre they deseived well of their country, their dismiwal not necessary. I think they state the case unfairly towards them selves. If that opinion is to be expressed as to their conslua, it by no means follows, that their dismissal Is to be ditaiproved of. It is a goes tion altogether ouconneaed with the former votes of this House. The principles of loyalty which a3nated the late Minions', ought, I think, to operate in making t►em endeavour to support the present ones. In this would be consistency with tlie;i: peofessions of afFettion and regard towards their Sovereign and the Constitution of their country. As to the pledge demanded of them. I think it was entirely the consequence of their own indiscretion. In discussing this question, an attempt has beta made to discuss the whole of their public condo& ; but this is impossible to be done withia the space of one night's debate. They had, isideed, introduced many innovations, both in re gard to our warlike preparatior.s, and in regard to t z ttr hoancial system ; but I do rot know, that either of them bad the public opinion in their fa vour. I believe, they have rather incurred the very opposite sentiment, notwithstanding the panegy tics which have been thrown nut, as to their System of Reform, and their having abolished the Slave Trade. Whatever objeOions I may entertain to these, and many of their Me:Math I shall content myself with hoping, that the present Ministers will not be above receiving any bench: that is likely to arise from what has been performed by their pre decessors. The abilities of the late Ministers they seemed to imagine were to stultify their oppo nents ; but I confess, for one, that neither in the late Ministers, nor in their adherents. can I discover that superiority; and the result of the last discussion seemed to justify that opinion.— I cannot refrain from alluding to what has been thrown out by the two Honourable Gentlemen who have spoken, as to the threat which they said had been thrown out by tr y Right Hunan:- dile Friend. I ~ r n convinced that Right lionoutable Gentleman did c t use it as a threat; and it is there lore fit them to justify their insinuation, that any thing can be supposed to operate as a dwelt upon the Members of the House. Ministers must se cure an influence, over whili the most fadiotts opposition can never succeed ; it being an ac knowledged Constitutional 'niacin's, that their dig. missal is the Prerogative of the Crown. Their Royal Master had the beneficence to state, tha , their dismissal was an ad or p irainotint neurs say. and to what good ptiri,o.e then call this mo• ion tend ? It can neither iit'oriti tie rople nor the King of any thing they do not already know. It only tend, to make this House Use arbitrators between t• King and his servants, instead of its • •ing purely a Constitutional question between the King a d his people. Such a motion merely seems to origin see in, and to breathe clamours of. diaap pointioe..t al .tie, The late Ministers sty that they would have pursued a diff..rent line of coodud from that adopted by the present ones. Bat how were the present Ministers to ad ? Were they to leave the official so illations o f the Government totally tin. occupied, and no person to whom responsibility could be attached ? We have not been told arise answer made by the late Ministers to their gracious Sovereign, upon rece•ving their dismissal, although we have tie Ira of the • xpressions of His Majesty upon that occasion It might naturally be supposed to have be.ori conc-ived um.; • In retiring from Your Ma jesty's service, we are admires! with an an=ions weds to accommod tte ourselves to Your Royal Pleasure, lost ad cf giving way to our own opinions or con scie. ces; hut, we shall by no means be thence disposed to refuse oar coun•enance or support to any measures that may be proposed by any Minis. tees you may think proper to appoint, being con vinced that our compliance therewith will tend most for the public good, instead of confounding the charade, of Parliament, or interfering with the principles of the Constitution ' Such would It tea been the words that would have a.-reared mu t curl si.tent with their duty to their Kaig." The Hon. Gent sail , that whatever might tie tie superior skill evi••ced, in eliaravouring to make this motion as comprehonsivr as possible, yet it evidently carried on the same design as the former one, lately pro posed. Obscured and cloak-d as it was. it might be easily di,covered. He should leave the alibied to others more able-than himself, but he though, that the best mode of deciding up•sti such a goes timn, would be to move ill , other Orders of the Day. He concluded with moving accordiazly. On the qw:ation, and the amendment, being put from thc Mr. W.\ Rll - ansa, and supported the motion— " I (Li not kaow," said be." how I could discharge my duty to my Constituents, if I were not on this occasion to deliver my opinion as to the tare charge wiicn has taken place in His Maj sty's Councils. 'Their condutt has been the subject of much milli'. misrepresentation. No means have been s;.areJ in order to lessen them in the public estimation ; 4. if the Ice Ministers had been endeavouring to se cure power, by thwarting the wishes, and insulting the feelings of their Sovereign. I know of cvthing that can countenance such an imputation. If I d d, I should he the first to reprobate and desert them. As it is, however. I think that nothing can be mote satisfatlory, than the circumstances attending their dismissal from office." Here the Hon Menther went into a re-statement of the circumstances he alluded to. o While the conduct of the late Ministers has been candid and manly, that of the present Ministers has evidently been quite the contrary, they having stooped to accept of bribes, to do that which no up right Ministers would condescend to dn. One Right Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Perceval) had s..t scrupled to accept of a bribe to tl , l his duty. The lltitchy or Lineaster was no doubt given to him, to enable him to make that gallant stand for the religion of his country. If I had seen that paper which had been circulated by him a few days ago, and had been to judge of the author without seeing him, I could not have said that it was the production of a great lawyer. or cf a Minister of the Crown, but rather that it was the produaion of a most mischievous disor derly man, for the purpose of exciting one individual against another, in order to raise the country, and make it fall into the hands of an enemy. 1 am inclined to think, that in better times, more favourable to the people, I do not mean the rioters at Breatford, or the assemblies at Chalk Farm, or those who cry against Popery, but 1' mean that *hole body of the people,that are not the creatures of the Court influence, or Court intrigue; I say, that titling upon the mitt principles of those times, perhaps the most proper moment for resig nation was. when His Majesty required the full abandonment of the measure. Perhaps it would have been better if they had not waited for that diss grace, or those emditions of ignominy that were proposed to them If such had been their deter. mination, I, for one. would have been contented to have stood by them, and abide the consequeuces. This, however, might have perhaps revived revo lutionary sentiments in the minds of well meaning men, in regard to religions toleration, and have associated their ideas with rapine and murder. How much was the forbearance of the late Minis ters, therefore, to be recommended ? They had shown every disposition to conciliate. I regret this change much, because it has deprived the king and the country of a wise patriotic Government ; and the more so, bi cause it has been replaced by r one direttly the enwrap:, in almost every re s pefl. H:re the Right Hon. Gentleman entered into an er.umeration of the excellencies of the various mea- sures adopted by the late Ministers. " They have made themselves objects of aversion to the whole class of jobbers and contralors, who no doubt felt themselves in a painful st a te of fear, till they were relieved by the recent change. What must be the satisfaaion of all that class of persons sit seeing a certain Noble Lord recalled to the Councils of his Sovereign; that Noble Lord, when called upon for his defence at the Bar of this House, appeared to make a confession ol his guilt, by boldly and openly declaring to us. the Guardians of the National Purse, th it he would render no account of a large sum of the public money, which was entrusted to his care. This change has produced a glorious op portunity to the present Ministers, for an increase of patronage. Who is it that has been so bold as to advise His Majesty to restore that per. sonage to the Council, with the Resolution of the gill of April, standing upon our Journals ? It could be nuue other, but those who have been aiming at procuring plaees for themselves, at the expense of their own con ci 'nces, and the regard lot the duty they owed their country." The Honour able Member concluded a very eloquent speech, with giving his utmost support in the motion Mr. HAWKINS BROWNS centidered the avowed aka of the present motion was to ground a proceeding for the removal of His Maj -sty's pre sent Ministers ; but he hoped the I louse wiluld not consent to any such application to His Majesty, at least until they had a fair trial; and when they should have had such a trial, lie trusted there would be no necessity for such an address. He considered that the present Ministry possessed all the talents, all the ability, ail the public spirit, all the constitutional feeling, and all the patriotivm, so much boasted of by their predecessor. ; and that they did not, in any degree, fall short of the former Administration, in these peculiar and necessary qualifi iations. They had a.ted, under all the circumstances, with petted uni formity, which could not be said of their predeces sors; for, from the measures adopted by them, and by the financial schemes which the late Chancellor of the Exchequer had brought forward, had they been persisted in, public credit must ere this have been annihilated. Upon the implied pledge given by His Majesty's present Ministers, he supported them, and should continue to do so, in the hope that they never would make any concessions to the Itcman Catholics of Ireland. Hut, above all things. he supported them, because they will not interfere with, •Of restrain the Prerogative of the Crown, or suffer any Bill to be introduced into Pailiament without the consent and approbation of His 61 ijesty. —The H asourable Gentleman (Mr Lyt levee) had given an early proof of hit ability and elo quence; but he thought his express; ins of loyalty were not so extraordinary fsr their strength, or his principles for their correaness ; and he thought, that, shouhrthe Prerogative of the Crown t.e 'e duced, it must destroy the Hams. s of Lorses aaa Commons; fur then the King outdid have no powet over them. Fie thought any rn.re concessions ;even to the !Inman Catholics, at this moment, would only be giving power to an adversary, that would materially affea the safety' of the Esta blished Church; and. being of theft opinion, he thought the late change of the Is:minty a very proper exercise of the Prerogative. He considered the exercise of another branch of the Prerogative, a Dissolution of the Parliament. would al o be a very proper measure; (War/ Arne! f. set all fart, of the ileuse); nor did he think the Fight PLin. Sectetary of State (Mr. Canning) had {seated the House with the least disrespra, in adverting to tha' steijea upon a recent debate; but had bden woolly situat...d by a z al for the public welfare. Neither did he conceive it necessary tor the late Ministers to ask their Sovereign's p. remission to bring the pre sent question before the House. . Mr. MACDONALD said, the present question led to a consideration ef public Affairs, an I this sea; not a time when public opinion should be re jeded or withheld; particularly when such un constitutional and unpathementary meaorres a. those of the present Ministry were resorted to, and such a change had taken place, just at the mo ment when the Continent of Europe felt a hope, anxiety, and confidence, in the measures of ibis Government ; when despotism was on the poi& of receiving a severe and deadly check from our silos trious Ally; when the eyes of all the woad wets turned upon us; when the people were united in one common cause ; when a system of economy retr leveed our finance, and our armies were disptss,l in every quarter of the globe, what might we not have dune t Under such citclimstances,our bright prosper:; sere realising, until this change took place, and it was now necesaary to inquire the cause of Vic reverse. Under such ciretimstances, he considered the House not bound to support thcse men, who, only twelve months ago, acknowledged their iocepacity to hold the reins of Government. He concludel by ex. pressing his regret at the late change, and returned his sincere thanks to the mover, fur bringing tor ward the present discussion. Mr. TIGHE., in a most animated and able speech, which we regret our ',nets will not permit us to detail, supported the motion. He considered the tranquillity of Ireland had been much offs led by the late change of affairs ; and supported the Er-Ministers, as men whose comfit& had stamped them with the confidence of the nations of Europe, and the gratitude of their country. They were economical in finance, wise in policy, prompt and decisive in war, and in reform of abuses, and abo lition of slavery, they had proved themselves the guardians and protedors of every thing dear to the eonamueity at large. They had lived long enough to establish their own glory, but not for the public welfare. He regretted to find that among the writers for the new Administration, the now Chancellor of the Exchequer was the foremost, and held up the existence of religinus animosity, thereby exciting rebellion and insurrection. l le was the mole asto nished at this, because he had understood the Rigot eionourable Gentleman war, a man of high ernineece in his former profession, and a man of great huma nity and jostles ; but that Right Honourable Gen . demos had spread a cry of the church being in danger ; yet this was, he understood, the gen tleman who could scarce be induced to enter into His Majesty's Council, until be should be re warded with a considerable sinecure place for the services he was hereafter to perform. Although there were some persons in the new Administration for whom he had the highest revert), yet he could not consider them as coming into office bat under a virtual pledge not to advise His Majesty on the most important constitutional measure of the Stare The Honourable Member then adverted to the means by which the Union was obtained.— The Roman Catholic Bishops were gained over by bribes, and various honours were conferred upon the subjea, by the prostitution of the Peerage. Ile next commended the condud of the Duke of Bedford, and Earl Fitzwil:um, as Viceroys of Ireland ; and then related an Instance of an Irish Roman Catholic soldier being forced to go to a Prot.:introit Church. and threatened with military punishment. He next referred to tl.e great diffi culty which must arise in the recruiting service in that country. The peesantiy had now no induce ment; and as to the higher ranks of Roman.Catho• lies, the great practical evil was. their entering into foreign servize, where their bravery was so con. SpiCSlOOl/ j while , were they etreoureged, they would • enter wish ten times the zeal in the service adieu oen country. Mr. ROBINiON declared it wet net his intents to follow ;be Hon. Gentlrroan, who just set down, through the various observetiens which fe had thought proper to make. When he artacke I o ne measure of th- [llion between the two countries, seemed to overlor.k the coasideration, that the Lord (Grenville) who- WAS at the heed of the los Gnvernment,wes one of the persona. nano forward re eatryieg that measure into ea.& He flt s ory !. 11 could not easent to the motion of his I to i. Frien.: ; motion, which he introduced in a manner cieditsler to himself ; and there wis nit man in the House Te ready tn.gise credit to his it, wives then he sioi. There were some points on whirls he could nen inclined to support the late Administration I n their military measures, he could see nothitor • • ; specula:lye plans and fallacious hopes. Ihe-. 2 ! : totally and completely reined the VtilunteerSier. • by their inattendon and disregard ; and them left no moral possibility of now ewers:mining the cipline and force of that establishme:e, rhe r • point on which he could not supoor t them, w „, , h , conduet relative to the Catholic Question. 1 1; 5.,„ opinion they had imprudently eccouraeed ea;:e o . tenons which they could not gratify. and were rut; predining evil consequences, which he did en think the circumstances w if:anted. He thoi.gitc the House might fairly expeiff that the Gro ot' . menu of the Duke of Richmond would be as po. pular and as lethent as that of Lord Hav,ivide. Vile late Ministerial charges he regretted upea general grounds ; yet still he could trot accede to the proposition of condemning their su:ces.nrs by anticipation, and much less, w:icu he recrnletled the peculiar circum•tances under which they eta called to the Caincili of their Sovereoen. Mr. GORE siid, he hid the honour ol lvi ft a Representative of a great and populous cett. tr tit. Sister Island. Snm- months hack. every i i -vas peaceable, and the peo;de wed ..ff d 1 ,411 wittee the last month, no less than four nor d rs had Oleg pl ice, and a number of indisedtra•s ad teen sr. rested for treasonable pt aetices. lie toss ed, t'lit when the pros nt Ministers should retire It en • ffice, the I Ittuse and Count' y would not be obiigusi to witness similar proofs of their policy and new sures. The Bill which opened the Military Service to the Catholics, had his warmest sup tit; a St•,:,l(7t which he would have continued, ;tad the Lee •. tens persisted in carrying it through its caps. It was true that the Catholics of Ireland looked to the late Ministers as their staunchest friends, Es th use charaOers upon whom ti:ey may Sully iied confidently depend for t h e complete fulfilment :of their promises and sangitt•ie 'visitations. nut tke late Administration must deer iv* themselves gratis- In if they imagined that the measure they pi posed was of a nature and • msnt to gratify t Claims of that body. No; the Catholics cot: o dried it only as an excuse for Mini-ten sot today ing their numerous pledges ; they estimated it a, a p iltry suhterfoge to escape timed d solicitatioos. %Vete the Lite Ministers sincere in their region- I Ireland, were they teeny inclined to prianote : s happiness and to augment its comforts, they col have embraced many opportunities of extending t benefits of education and kAnwiedge- Flave 11341• come forward with thategreal and oneitimable bless ing. which would have tang* the brave, but igrlns rant, peasantry of that cleanly. to choose betwe'aa real good and airy speculeinis ? Have they end: sa voured to rescue them from those numerous et 13 which result from the colleieioo or tythes in than country, and thus preserve them from thrt varier y Of distress to which the present system has In: k g t c ol o fi e m tyh m! to t commits ni ill-used s h ea e da m lel ? i countryora n t ameliorate a t ? the condition surd, what o ft the le e tli bri e aa p g o h b t ' L ?::: gem in the British Crown, and of which, in the so inds of the Poet, he would say— Long from a nation, ever hardly used, At wantonly abused, Have Brno n dram their strialgth." Mr. ROSCOE obsi.rved, that the guest; ? en of extending to the Ca:holics certain privile. rs it the army and navy, went only to this event. namely, was Parliament or the country disit whom to affot d relief and opportunities to men wh o were ready to expose their lives, and shed their b loos! in defence of fir itish Liberty, and in tne preserv. *ton of the Protestant Religion ? He contended, thaw the change of time and circumstances had ever, i history of legislation, operated to alter the vie mankind, upon those points, which, though merly the sources of great apprehension and lance, had now aluigether ceased to give any tifiable cause of alarm. Was there any gr to fear a Popish succession in the pi times t WAS not the country now bouni stria treaties of amity and confidence wake Catholic Allies on the Continent ? Therefore, Wiat principle could dependence b- place those Catholic States, up n the Catholic Ge who headed and commanded tir4r armies, a rime moment that this country had refused to , a similar confi 'ence and reliawe on the le auJ attachment of our own C.c!iolie fellot in the w of for wig'. jut- Goad our upon the place salty .set• jells? His - riSjeet - io;io the present Atimial lion was, that they hart come into power by ronstitutmal means ; and, therefore, were worthy of a eonetitutiotual support. ft tru:. that some of them were well krnw: the country. whilst others wine too well known• would not enter into a comparison of their respd merits, as compared with their predecessors. would nisi conirast the talents at the present C cellar of the Exchequer with the extraordinsr) lents of the Noble Lard wham ha succeeded ; bt should *dwelt. and request the I louse to keep its teculies:on, to the inclination and ansici I provide for their own p . r:onal emolument. cc ;c 4 was displayed by both. The one would be wool to have gone cut of office without sinecure nr pens 3. (Meer I hear .!) The other, (Mr. Perceval). e House should remember, had adually hogai ,' ,l for an office of fliAlt trust and great etrotamet:: and for what ?—to induce Lim to do the dot oi another important ctisze s to which a large la :F was also annexed. 1,1 .v If Hear! kr ir !) 1,8 line of argument adopted by the present Mtais h with tesped to the Coastitotionsl pledge which was proposed, immedistely scent to cast the oti Lai upon His Isiojetty. To intridoce the King person. -IT' agimn i was, in his mind, a high of datian of the Right ,I the 'lhrou, aaJ of the PI li ilegri of titer ' 3- 1 0 0,1 6P -.k 06100 )3, 0 • .010 1:0 KIM prrt, Op 1114! of th I cal to d