The Pennsylvania packet, or, The general advertiser — Lancaster, Pa.;Philadelphia, Pa., 1782-03-19 00:00:00, page 2

% ,te offeet 1 nature, and so carry it in so fndrt a
time to the summit of perfection.
The number of armed ships at prefect in govern
ment fcrvice is '26 fail, mounting from 20 to 24 guns
each ; all which are employed in protesting the coaft-°
1 ing trade, except 5 which are in America or the Eatt
fneies.
HOUSE of PEERS, November 27, 1781.
An account of lord Shelburn's fpeechon'the read
ing the address of thanks moved for by lord Southamp
ton.
After lord Southampton and lord Walfingham
had done Speaking, the earl of Shelburn rose, and with
his usual method/ precision and/clearnefs answered as
" follows, to the speakers in favour of tre addref#.
sc I CAN perfectly imagine how a prince, who is still
' young, whole feofibihty is equal to his courage,
whose generous, noble and elevated foul, equally
open to the Lentim'hrs of honour, and to those of com
m^eration, was assessed with the calamities which dis-.
tress his people, let's perhaps then' his own misfortunes
or losses; now the monarch of a great people, who
butlately was the 6rft monirch in the world, fee
: ng the edifice of the height of his glory, of his eleva
ted profperiry, tumbling down with a furpriting rapi
dity,' such as history presents to us no example: I com
prehend, I fay, how a prince in such cricumftances,
deriving his condancy even from the midst of his dis
appointments, hides from the view of his fubjefts, un
der the veii of an encouraging smile, the an^uffh of
his foul, and whilQ his people partake of the accumu
lated calamities which surround the throne, assumes a
dignity and serenity of countenance, which direct
them how to aft, and invite them to adopt like beha-
viour.
"' But as it is universally known, that the fp^ech
delivered from the throne, is the (perch of the ministers;
as we have been used from time immemorial to confider
jt as such ; that which as the genuine declaration of
the prince wool I appear natural and even engaging,
becomes quite otherwise when considered as their work.
They have taken advantage of the knowledge which
their situation has furnifhed, of learning the intimate
Sentiments of their matter, to fabricate, as well as'they
were abl% a speech, the best calculated to flatter those
sentiments: But in so doing, th^y haven't confuted
history, which would have told^hem, that in all times,
in every country, the minister who has not vigour e
noogh to withfiahd the influence which arises in coun
cil from a knowledge of the private wifhesof the prince,
is a bad minister.
“ Besides, to what does the speech tend ? What is
its'tenor? We may call it the lamentations of the mi
nifiry, upon calamities to which they give birth: view
ed in this light, we should expel to fee 'ome plan pro
posed to p«t an end to the calamities, which are deplo
red. No such thing, we are only urged to a continu
ation, an aggravation of misfortunes. We are told
that a revolution istaken to go on with the war!
What is the aim of the address to which we are invit
ed to fubferibe? Is it not to give our consent to con
secrate by our solemn approbation, this resolution,
which offers us only this continuation, this aggravati
on of ca amities, ft is true that as far as they can,
they offer us asafort of recompence for the disappoint
ments which they could not avoid mentioning, the for
tunate turn our affairs in India have taken. I confefs
that 1 do not understand what India has to do with the
speech, or what is to be had from that part of the
world, that will give us any r lief from the mortifica
tions and real losses we meet with every where else.
" The noble lord who seconded the motion, fays that
Hyder Ally has been repulsed by fir Eyre Coote. I lay
it down as a fa^ that no one in government has re--
ceived any thing authentic of this nature. But fuppo-
Ting that our troops under fir Eyre Coote have lately
'h^n feccefsful, I can declare from the best authority,
and the most positive, that many years will not fuffice
to repair the ravages of Hyder Ally in his irruption
into theCarnatic. Bengali and the immense resources of
that province, are spoken of in most pompous terms ; we
are taught to believe many fine things, that the whole
extent of it is a min, of gold, from which we may dig
treasure at our pleasure; that we need but stoop and
take it up. After tbefe fancies one would be tempted
to think that the treasury of Bengali is full, however
vast it my be ; not at all ; there is not a (hilling in the
treasury of Bengali! This so far otherwise, that tho'
India in general be a mine of gold, an iuexhauftible
source of riches, though the revenues thereof are by
virtue of territorial possession reputed by ours, yet by
reason of mifeonduft and bad administration, far from
yielding us a crown, this country is become an insup
portable burden. Every thing there is supported by
Great-Britain; government, the establishments civil
and military, nothing there would exist, if the funds
of this island had not greater resources than those of
Bengali ; so that I can fee nothing in India to relieve
us under the disasters elsewhere which we deplore.
Ah! from whence can we expert consolation ?
“ We have now been thirteen years engaged in this
deplorable depute, in which we have loft two whole
armies. I fay thirteen years, for I recoiled that in
1768 (having the honour then to be in office) it was
proposed to fend over two regiments to general Gage,
and it may be remembered, that my opinion was that
the, be sent, but that the use of them should be left to
the diferetion of the general, so that he might fend them
back if he did not need them. The opinion of my
colleagues was that at all events they should conti
nue in America. Numbers carried it, and the regi
ments were sent. From that time, I foretold the fa
tal events, which naturally followed from this fatal
measure. In 1775, the affairs of Lexington and Bun
ker's hill, became the signals of carnage. It is now
seven years, that the unhappy fubjefts of a divided
and convulsed empire have not ceased to cut one ano
thers throats. What have we accomplished? What
has been the fruit of so much bloodshed? What have
we got by all this? Nothing! What do I fay, a
great deal worse than nothing ! Our losses are immense
and we are at this day in a situation infinitely more
critical than we were when the war commenced.
More than 80,000 men have been successively sent 0-
A BOOK-KEEPER
is WANTED in one of the PUBLIC OFFICES in
this City. Enquire of the Printer, Maca 16.
vet to Americ 1 ; Tot one returned ; ^nd this at the
cofl of too millions'erling ; foolifhly wafted in execu
ting ill digested plans, without connection or objeft ,
we scarcely potfefs a hope that our national debt will
"flop Short of the- point of inevitable bankruptcy. In
1775) two millions were voted for this unfortunate Ser
vice ; of whatufe were they ? What good resulted to
Great. -Britain from this disbursement ? A compa
rative good ! We were less unlucky the firft year than
afterwards; we payed 4efs and were less hurt. In
1776 five millions were vpted. What did you get by
them? Your affairs took a more unfavourable turn,
more alarming than in the year preceding. The next
season the fame sum of five millions, the fame use,
fame fruit ; you must have seen that your affairs held
a regular retrograde progress. In 1778 the burden in
creased, was doubled at once ; ten millions were become
necessary ; but you had something for your money ;
you had the capitulation of Saratoga ; the year fol
lowing two millions more were required. You voted
twelve millions to pet an end to the war. France met
your grants by coming into the war. You iofl a part
of your Welt-India islands. In 1780, again twelve
millions. Spain increased your means of expenditure
by ' joining France. The next year, once more twelve
millions. This year was marked by the IoL of the on
ly natural ally which you had ; by the loss of Toba
go, and lately by that of a brave army, a brave ge
neral, who like as at Saratoga, was facrificed to the
want of abilities, the wild, illconcerted Schemes
of administration. I fay to the want of ab lity, for
our defeats are evidently from that deleft. The fame
blunders, tire fame want of connection, combination,
and r ydem, have led to like catastrophe in the case of
general Burgoyne and lord Cornwallis. Adminiftrati
-011 has never had before it a regular and general plan ;
never has its views risen above rhe details of a parti
cular expedition. Hence the dispersion .of the forces
weakness every where, when had t^ey been collected,
they had formed : ad army too formidable for the Ame
ricans to oppose for want of numbers. All this is
proved by fads known to all the world. What was
the distribution of the army through the campaign?
At New York 13,000 men, scarcely fufficient to de
fend the place. Five thousand at Charleftown so pent
up, that scarcely dares an officer to ride a mile with
out the works, and where we hold not an inch of ter
ritoryj Lord Cornwallis had 7000 in Virginia so inju
dicionfly dispersed were these frnall detachments, that
they could not come together, nor sustain each other.
Nothing was done on this fide, till our enemy appear
ed, and forced this general so ca pitulate. Having be
fore us such multiplied proo's of the inability of the
mifeondua of administration, is it possible that
1 can concur in measures which can only result in a
copy of the didrefstul picture which I have been Sketch
ing? But if from North-America, we turn to the Weft-
Indies, what do we fee but disasters, and difaflers caus
ed by faults.
" The most grevions of all our faults is this ; we never
go before the French, we follow them throughout.
Thus we always arrive too late, and if we go on thu<,
we Shall find a Chefapeak every where ; at Barbadoes ;
at Jamaica, in every island we have left. We Shall
find a Chefapeak at Plymouth; in a word, I should
not be surprised, if we meet a Chefapeak in the Thames.
I have charged administration hitherto with inabil ty
Is it only guilty of inability ? May we not reproacih i
with robbery ? Will not the conduct of administration
towards Holland juflify this reproach ? Did not their
disguised conduct towards the States general bear
strong marks of perfidy, when from pretended resent
ments it broke out in a Shameful furprize, and what is
worse without eißft, without fruit? Ido not know,
but, I think that if I were to aft the thief, I would
play the part to Tome purpose. I would be a thorough
robber. 1 would do something brilliant to repay the
ftandal of perfidy, supposing such an emulation in the
cabinet when the ministry broke with the Dutch, I
should have expected the seizure of Ceylon ; no such
thing. It was St. Euftatius that they faflened upon.
" You must recollect, my lords, that vvhen, last sea
son, they published this event, I cried out, tnat it was
one of those extravagant follies which charaHerife the
pres ent war throughout. I was right, as the event has
Shewn. What might I have said could I have forefeen
that the juflification set up by the miniflers for this
stroke, was the exaft couaterpoife of their (peculation.
They took St. Euftatius, they fay, to deprive the Ame
ricans of the resources they derived from this island,
by felling to them the supplies which they pretended
to take for them; for our admiral and general, in fel
ling their bo^ty to the neutrals, could not be ignorant
for what account they were purchased. How plainly
then was perfidy united to ignorance, to absolute ina
bility; and ths under the direction of these very mi
nisters who nowca I upon as to continue the war. How
ever, supposing, that more fidelity, more talents w? r e
to be found in these men, will it be possible to go on
with the war? This ought to be considered. Where
Shall we procure recruits for the land forces? What
ever price we offer, they are not to be had. Whence
Shall we take them for the fleet? The security is pret
ty near the fame. In Short, where will money be
had? The best loan of 12 millions has induced a debt
equal to it! We have already expended.Bo millions
merely thrown away ; by the end of another campaign
our national debt will be increased too millions, with
out the slightest profpeft of a peace, we have exactly
trice the interest to pay, which we had to pay when
the war began; how can we be eager to continue this
ruinous war? Before we resolve on this, let us at lead
take those precautions which commom prudence sug
gests &c."
The earl of Shelburn concluded in moving an amend
ment of the add ref?, in such manner that the king might
underhand that the house wished to threngthen his
councils, and his information, into the plan of conduct,
which he might adopt in these difficult circumstances.
Art. 4. They shall observe an exaft neutrality and
shall not be compelled to take arms against his Britannic
majtfty or any other power.
They are at liberty to retain their arms for the in
ternal police and better subjection of their negroes ;
but they are to make a return of them to the justice of
the peace, who shall be responsible for any bad use that
may be made of them, contrary to the tenor of the pre
sent ca pitulation.
Art. 5. They shall enjoy, until the peace, their laws,
customs and ordinances, juflice shall be administered by
the fame person, who are actually in office—all expen
ces attending the administration of juflice, shall be de
frayed by the colony.
Art. 6. The court of Chancery shall be held by the
council of the island and in the fame form as heretofore,
and all appeals from the laid court shall be made to his
most chriftian majesty in council.
Art. 7. The inhabitants and clergy shall be sup
ported in the possession of their estates and properties
of whatsoever nature and denomination, and in their
privileges, rites, titles, honours and exemptions, and
in the profeffion of their religion, and the miniflers in
the enjoyment of their livings.
The absentees and those who ere in the service of
his Fritannic majefly shall be maintained in the posses
sion and enjoy ment of their eflates and properties, which
shall be managed by their attornies,
The inhabitants may fill their elates and possessions
to whom they shall think proper and they are at
liberty to fend their children to England to be educat
ed and from whence they may return when they judge
proper.
Art. 8. The inhabitants shall pay monthly, into
the hands of the treasurer of the troops, in lieu of all
taxes, the value of two thirds of the duties that the
islands of St. Christopher and Nevis payed to the king
of Great Britain, which shall be estimated according to
the valuation of the revenues made in the year 1781, and
which shall serve as a basis.
Art. 9. The slaves which may have been taken dur
ing the siege shall be religiously restored ; and they
may also be reclaimed in any of the French windward
or leeward islands.
Art. to. The inhabitants shall not be obliged to
furnifh the troops with quarters, except in extraordina
ry cases; but they are to be lodged at the expence of
the king, or in houses belonging to the crown.
Art; ti. In cases where the king's business may re
quire negroes th work, they shall be furuifhed by the
inhabitants of the said islands, to the number of 500 ;
but they shall be paid at the rate of two bitts per day
each, and vidualied at the expence of the king.
Art. 12. The vessels and droghers belonging to the
inhabitants at the capitulation shall be restored entire
to their owners.
The vessels which the said inhabitants expert from
the ports of England, or from any of his Britannic ma
jesty's possessions, shall be received in the said colonies
during the space of fix months, and t,hey ma, load
them to return under neutral colours, even for the
ports of Great Britain, with the particular permiffiora
of the governor; and if any of the vessels expe—ed
should flop at any of the Englilh islands, the governor
shall be authorifed to grant permission for them to come
to either of the said islands.
Art. 13. The inhabitants and merchants shall enjoy
all the privileges of commerce granted to the fubjeds
of his Most Christian majefly, throughout all the ex
tent of his dominions.
Art. 14. Whatever may have been furnifhed for
the French army during the siege and to this day, by
the said islands, and the lodes that the inhabitants have
sustained by the burning of plantations, and by every
other means, shall be estimated by a meeting of the in
habitants, and the amount shall be equally borne by
the two islands, under the head of contribution or in
demnity for the expences of the war, but in such a man
ner that this article shall not diminish the taxes above
mentioned, which are to take place from the date of
the capitulation, but the. aiTembly of theinhrf"
may apply to it the arrears of the general taxe;
remain in their hands at the date of the capitula
Art. 15. The fai|ors of merchant foips,l
privateers and other individuals, who have no]
ty in the said islands, shall depart from the 1
the space of fix weeks, if they are not empf
droghers, or avowed by two proprietors, who \
fwer for them, and means fliall.be furuifhed ti
depart for the neutral islands,
Art. j 6. The general Qf the French troops f _---
CAPITULATION ofthe inlands of St. Chriftopber 2ntf
Nevis, between his excellency the count de GRASSE,
commander of his most chriftian majesty's naval for
ces, and his excellency the marquis de BOUILLE,
governor general of tie French windward ifjands in
America, and his excellency THOMAS SHIRLEY,
efq; a major general in his Britannic majefly's army
and governor of the i(lands of St. Christopher and Ne
vis, and THOMAS FRASER, efq; brigadier ge
neral, commanding the troops on Brimstone-hill.
Art. I. " ' governor, the commander of the
I troops, the Regular officers and soldiers,
the officers and privates of militia, (hall march thro'
the Breach on the fort of Brimstone-hill with all the
honours of war; with drums beating, colours flying,
one mortar, two brass field pieces, ten rounds each,
arms and baggage, and then lay down their arms at a
place appointed, the officers excepted.
Art. 2. The Regular troops (hall be prisoners of war,
and sent to England in (afe and good vessels which shall
be furnifhed with provisions for the voyage; but the,
shall not serve against the king of Fiance until the^
(hall be exchanged.
The officers are permitted to reside in any of the
islands upon their parole.
The militia and armed negroes (hall return to their
refpeftive homes.
Art. 3. The inhabitants or their attornies (hall be
obliged to take the oaths of fidelity to the king of
France within the space of one month, before the go
vernor of the said islands, aud those who are prevent
ed from it by sickness or otherwise shall obtain a de
lay.