The Sun.
London, England, 1807-03-06 00:00:00

HOUSE :OF COMMONS,

THURSDAY, ,MARCH 5.
The crowd- this Qvening was very considerable.-
--Aefore five o'clock, the Lobby of the House and the
venue,to the Gallery were filled with people. Ow-
to the ballot for the Guildford Committee, and
ihT.' calling over of the House, strangers were not
admitted until a quarter past six o'clock,
.On our entering the Gallery; Mr. YORKE was on
his•-lEgs, but the noise and confusion, were so great
that several minutes elapSed before it became possi-
ble to hear what; was said. When something like
silence_ was obtained, we. found that Mr. YORKE
was stating that several persons had -passed Through
tbe.body of the House to ,the Gallery. He declared
that in case of any repetition of such a proceeding,
he should think it-his duty to enforce the standing
Order for the exclusion of strangers..
FELLOW'S complained in strong terms of
the Crowd in the lobby, through which he had passed
with much difficulty, arid at the risk of having his
grips broken.
Mr. BARRON observed, thathe had seen a num-
ber of Strangers force their way, in spite of the re-
sistance made by the-Officers of the House.
.:; The SPEAKER declared it to be the duty of the
Serjeant, when he found that the avenges to the
House were crowded with strangers, to provide pro-
per persons to clear them, and to maintain order.
Mar. WHITE Appeared at the Bar, with the reduced
List of the Committee ballotted to takeinto con-
sideration the Petition complaining of an undue
Return for the Borough of Guildford. As far as the
tumult, which still continued, would allow us to col.;
leEt the names as they were read by the Clerk, they
appeared to be as follow :
Sir T. Callander, Bart:
• T. Everctr, q.

Lord Louv4ine,

Lord Paget,
W. I. Dennison, Esq.
G. Vereker, Esq. •
Sir A. Wellesley, Bait.

H.4l)awson, Esq.
H. Pearce,, Esq.
T. thistictliwaite;Esq.
R. Mellish, Esq.
. NONIIN4Z-110 C. Combe, Esq.
WESTMINSTER WITNESSES.
On the Motion of Lord HOWICK, there were or-
tiered to be laid before the House ACcountsishew-
ing the tithe of service in His Majesty's Nay's, of.
Thomas Weatherbead and ,William Drake ; also,
Accotints. iheWing, the PenSions paid to William
Drake from the Chest at Greenwich ; the occasions
Op which the said Pensions were granted, &c.
- On the Motion of Lrwd Howtctc, the House was
ordered to be called over on Tuesday, When the
Noble Lord declared, that unless a sufficient excuse
should be made by the defaulters, he should move,
that the course of proceeding adopted in 1793, of
taking them into custody, should be enforced.
CATHOLIC AND OTHER DISSENTERS.
. Lord. nowirez a:,1(1, be rose in vnrsuance of a
notice which he gave on a former day, but which
had been since extended, .to move for leave to. bring
in a Bill to secure to all his Majesty's Subjeas the
freedom and privilege of entering into the service of
the Navy and Army, subject to no oath but that
which he should propose in the Bill, which heln-
tended, with the leaVe of the House, to bring in that
night. The principal object of the Bill would be to
enable Dissenters of. every description, who might
enter into the Navy or Army, to exercise their reli-
gion Without -any restraint whatever. He did.not
apprehend that a measure of this kind, which should
embrace so large a portion of the subje&s of the
Empire as the whole body of Dissenters, could meet
with any opposilion. ' The proposition was so self-
evident, that he hardly thought it necessary to enter
at any length into the subjeet. Self-evident, how-
ever, as the proposition was, it acquired additional
weight by the circumstance, that by the Bill intend-
ed to.be brought in, the Government would be en-
, ahlk.sd to accept the offers of service and the co-ope-
% ration Of such as were excluded under existing laws.
He had no intention of occupying the time of the
House by going into the policy of imposing restraint
in fornier,times he knew that a writer of great ce-
lebrity, for whose talents he entertained the
.highest
respect, had supported that doctrine--he meant Dr.
Paley ; but he rejoiced that we lived in times when
it would not be necessary to argue the principle of.
Dying restraints on account of religion. As the
elt4'tes to which that very great authority refereed no
lonv,erexisted, he should not, therefore, go into the
argament on that part of the subj,e6t ; and the
!louse surely must feel with.laim, that at a, period of
public• danger like the present, it was not only ex-
pediefit, but most wise to comprehend in the force
-of the country the Catholics of England and Ireland,
composing, at least, one-fouttli of our whole pepti7
latioo This he stated aS -a general proposition,
-which carried int the very mention of it the utmost
e-onvitaion—brit he was happily relieved from being.
obliged tO apply that they be permitted to serve-'-
far, notwithstanding the restraint which existed
they entered in considerable numbers into both ser-
vices, but particularly into the Navy. He did. not
)relieve that any person would say, that the great
prOportiOn of Catholic Sailors should be excluded
from serving in the cause of their King and Country.
Ile wished to call theattention,of the House to the
uncertainty of the law as it stood at present on this
subjed, which would fully explain the reason of his
introducing the .present Bill. The House would
observe, that ;by an A6t passed in Ireland in 1797,
the Catholics were enabled to serve in the Army,
'ind to enjoy at the same time, in that service, the
free exercise of their religion. But they were still
liable to the pains and penalties of the existing laws
against Catholics if 'they entered the Navy. The
mason was, that the Irish Legislature .had not the
• Dower of extending to the Navy the provisions of
t'helr • AEt. 'for admitting Catholics into the Army ;
and hence arose the present anomaly, which it was
the wish of Government to remove; for there could
not he a greater absurdity` than to tell the Catholic
that
.he might be trusted to serve in the Army, but
not inihe Navy this was the anomaly, though 'it
was not fortunately the faCt. 'By the A& of 1793,
Catholics wkge enabled to hold every rack btit

that of Cotnmander in Chief, Maitet-Gerietal of the
Ordnance, and' that of General on the Staff. - From
these situations alone were Catholics excluded by the
Irish Legislature. But what might be the el:fed of
the continuance of such an absurd exclusion ? Why,
that a Catholic Colonel; or Major-General, however
great his talents, and of whatever standing, would
be obliged , to give up the command of the force or
brigade to which he Was entitled, to a person, who did
not possess any claim but-that of being a Protestant.
This was not only -a hardship to the individual who
suffered this indignity, but. the greatest disadvantage
to the Country. The abaurdity and hardship Was
still greater in the case of a regiment coming from
-Ireland, even in time of danger, to succour Eng-
land ; the immediate corgrequence of which would
be, to subjea every Catholic in it to the penalty of
the law existing in this. Country for the exclusion of
that description of his Majesty's Subjeets, unless
they renounced their religion. Could there be a'
greater severity inflicted on the persons themselves,
or could a greater inconvenience arise to the Public
Servide, than those just mentioned, which'. might
hereafter be the effect of continuing the present re-
, striCtions ? This inconvenience which he stated had
been fOund to arise, and consequently a promise
had been made in .1793, .by Lord Clare in the
House of Lords, and by Lord Buckinghamshire
(Secretary Hobart) in the House Of Commons, that
they would use every effort to have the spirit and
provisions of the. A& of 1793 extended to this CoutF.
try. Government felt it their duty therefore to re,
deem this solemn pledge made to the Irish People
by those distinguished persons. The beneficial ef.-.
feits of the A& were immediately felt in Ireland ;
and he might say, without fear of contradiction, that
since the passing of it not one inconvenience had
arisen from its operation. On the contrary, the
Shores of Egypt and the ,Plains of Maida testified
the distinguished part
,which the Catholics had
acted in promoting, on those brilliant Occasions, the
honour, power, and glory of the Empire. The be-
nefit of this measure was not, to be solely enjoyed
by the Catholics, but to be fully participated by
Dissenters of every description. They would be
henceforth, or after the passing of this Bill, en-
abled to enter into his Majesty's service free from
all those restraints which hung over them at present.
It would be recollected by the House, that the Irish
Aelleft a, disqualification on the Catholics as to the
rank of Commander in Chief, Master of the Ord-
nance, and General on the Staff. It was the ob-
je& of the Bill for which he should move, tei do
away every-restraint whatever, and to allow Catho-
lics to bold rank of every description, the highest
,both in Army , and Navy, as well as the lowest.
His Majesty's Government did not apprehend any
danger from adopting such a line of condud towards
the Catholics, and every other class Of Dissenters ;
for if they thOUght there was the most remote cause
'for Apprehension from this indulgence, they would
not content themselves with imposing restraints, -as
former Govelntnents had done,• but proceed at once
to a total -exclusion of those whom'they had reason
to suspe6t. He could hardly expe& any opposition
to a Bill, the chief obje6t,of which was to enable, as
he had already stated, Dissenterl of all classes and
descriptions to exercise their' religion freely in the
Naval and Military service of the Country, and to
hold such • rank -as they might have entitled them-
selves to, by time and talents. He did not mean to
propose that they should have any particular Chap-
lains in either service. On the whole he was con-
vinced that the measure would be produCtive of the
greatest advantages in every point of-View ;it would
excite the ardour and energy of the Catholic Gantry,
and hold out an inducement to their sons to enter
into 'the Army and Navy, and thus enable them to
contribute tot he security, welfare, and mdependenCe
of the Country. Having stated the outline of the
Bill, be should reserve himself to reply to such
objeCtions as might be made to any part of it. His
Lordship then concluded with. moving • for leave to
bring in a Bill for enabling his Majesty to avail him-
self of the service of all his liege Subjects in the Army
and Navy.
Mr. PERCIVAL observed, that it was not his
intention to enter at length this night into the sub-
je& adduced by the Noble Lord. He felt it his
duty,- hoiarever, to state, that he should-One-Se it,
as far as he was able, in all its subsequent stages.--,-
He certainly had great objeetion to the dill itself,
but that objection was heightened by the eonvietioh
which be felt, that it was only a part, of the whole:
He was aware that it was the intention of the No-
ble Lord to introduce measure after measure in fa-
Vour of the Catholic Body, till the line of separation
between them and the Protestants was completely
destroyed. He called therefore upon the -House to ,
oppose the Noble Lord's encroachments on these
rights and privileges which the wisdom of, our an-
cestors had established and secured. -If we did not-
do so in time, he apprehended that the Catholie.es-
tablishment would soon supersede.
,that of the Pro- •
testants in Ireland, and break down their ascendan-
cy. The Learned Gentleman then argued at some
length in order to prove that the object of Govern-
ment was, to sap the power of the Protestants in the.
„sister kingdom., In, support of his position, the
Learned Gentleman advatw.ad the additional grant of
50001. made last night'to the College of Maynooth,
in Ireland, for the education of persons for the Ca-
tholic priesthoolin Ireland, He thought that the
object of the Noble Lord would be completely an-
swered by regulations in the articles of war, which
his Majesty might at any time introduce. But, even
as the law now Stood,' he Considered the Catholics
covered from the effe6ls of any of the old Aas.—
The Mutiny Bill enabled his Majesty to .call on all
his subjects, on pain Of 'death if they disobeyed-:
What occasion, therefore, had the Noble Lord to in-
troduce a new Bill, for enabling his Majesty to ac-
cept the service of any, of his subje&s ? He disap-
proved very much of the mode In which Govern-
ment proceeded to fritter away the Protestant ascen-
dancy in Ireland; but should take a-future opportuni-
ty of delivering his opinions at greater length on that
important subject.

Lord TEMPLE contended, that the whole of
the arguments of the Honourable and Learned Gen-
tleman•went the length of overturning every princi-
ple of policy and justice which one sett of Christians
was bound to entertain for another. They were ar-
guments better calculated for' the dark ages of un-
enlightened men, than for the more polished aura of
the 19th century. • He called to that Hon. Gentle-
man's recolleelion the circumstance which he him,.
yclf, on 4'l9l'lller occasion, acknowledged, that pia,

ny persons it; the Catholic persuasion were already
in the army, and he appealed to his candour, whe-
ther, iu tise condua of officer or private, be ever
knew or heard of one clamorous event throughout
that Army arising from religious prejudice? If any
thing could give them a title to consideration, that
certainly ought, and a stronger recommendation they
could 'not have.

,
Mr. YORKE did not obje& to the principle of the
Bill, especially as the Irish Parliament had recog-
nized it ; and he thought that the British could not
do less than follow their example; and he was also
free to confess that the Bill was but acing with a
just regard to reciprocal rights,' when its enaaing
clauses were extended .to the navy ;
,but he was ra-
ther apprehensive that the Noble Lord (Temple)
went a little too far, when be charged the pwcau-
tions of our ancestors in the restricting laws which
they made against Popery, as arising frorn_prejudices
of the.dark ages. He would bring to that Noble
Lord's mind the epocha when those laws were inad.
They were made when they constituted and .formed
the Bill of Rights ; when they established . and se-
cured the public liberty ; .and when they placed the
House of Hanover upon the Throne of these Realms.
It was true, however, that the dangers that existed.
when these restri&ing laws were made, had, in a
great degree, ceased, and he was therefore of opi-
nion, that
,a relaxation of their severer prohibitions
was now necessary ; but these matters of relaxation
should be adopted with a cautious regard. to public
safety ; it was quite imposAble for riith or for any
man to:forget the melancholy and tragic scenes that
occurred in Ireland in 1798 ; and, with these
in remembrance, it was impossible_not to ap-
prehend that too rapid a relaxation mightlead to the
most dangerous consequences. The Bill, however,
as far as he had an opportunity, of considering it, bad
his support, but he would not pledge' himself to ,the
whole of its enaaing clauses. The Catholics of
England had, for a series of years, been examples of
patience ; - they had undergone the most wonderful
purgation, and never murmured i they deserved
every consideration that could be paid to them; and
he bad only to lament, that, as often as the events
of the year 1798 occurred to his mind, he could not
say so much of those belonging to another part of
the Empire. But, as he hoped those efiervescences
would subside, so he also trusted they would here-
after deserve well of their felli!'--citizenS. That the
religious prejudices of those men who served in the
Army had subsided, he
,himself knew many in-
stances: he knew them go so far, as that when
the Privates went to church, several of the Officers,
who were Catholics, went thither along with them.
as regularly and as' corre&ly as if they-had been
educated in the tenets of the Established Religion of
their Country.

Mr. MONTAGUE considered the measure under
contemplation as dangerous and inimical to the peace
of the empire. He was certain that the indulgence
of permitting Papists to eater the Army and Navy
would lead to their admission to the civil and high
offices of the State ;;the consequences thereof must
in the event be fatal to the Country. fie anticipated
the confusion which it would create in the Navy,
where, instead of having one peaceable and orderly
Clergyman of the Established Church, there might
be collected together in the same ship a dozen of
Popish Priests, -to,divert the crew from their duty,
and annoy, them with religious principles and dis-
cipline. '
(At this latter remark the Members on the Treasury Bench,
ana nearly the whole House, laughed most heartily. The
Hon. Gentle.man;was, however, proceeding, when Mr. YOR X s
called toprder,, and complained that it was. unfairi not to say
unpolite, to prevent his Hon. Friend hiving a fair hearing.
The l'Ouse became calm, and Mr. Montague went on.]
He said he would express his sentiments as an Eng-
lish 'Member of Parliament, and riot be deterred by
either laughs or gestures, whether they proceeded
from the Noble'Lord (Hotvick) opposite to him, or
from any other quarter. He charged the House to
, advert to the dreadful occurrences that happened in
this city in the year 1780 ; and warned them to
beware how .they attempted like measures, which
might provoke like scenes, and probably envelope in
,flames the house-of that Noble Lord himself, in com-
mon-with the houses of others who then heard him.
Mr. FREEMANTLE desired Gentlemen would
withold their feari of what wasCoutaiped in the Bill
till they should read it ; as it . Was, he could assure
them it would not contain one syllable regarding
Catholic Clergy, and they' might rest persuaded,,,
that nothing of its contents bore'upon the. Constitu-
tion of the Country. -
Mr. PLOMER was convinced.the measure would
be produaive of the happiest effects ; and he trusted
that no slight-difference of opinion would prevent
its passing into dlaw, and thereby deprive the Coun-
try of so great, so usefUl, and so effective a body of
men as the Catholics.

Mr. CORRY apprized the House that this was a
measure of Policy, not'of Religion. It was to pre-
vent -men from furnishing Foreign States with that
aid which their Courage would produce, and that lus-
tre which would more happily and'fortunately shine
upon them• in their Country's carte.
Mr. HAWKINS BROIL NE. was against the
as be-Considered it air inlet to-give encourage-
ment to a telioion dangerous to civil liberty, _and cic-
struEtive of the constitution of this country. He.
vas fearful it would create alarm through the king-
dom, and he cautioned Ministers accordingly. But:
if it could be restri6ted to Officers of the Army and
Navy, without creating suspicions that it was only
the prelude to greater and' more serious innovations,
he could not consistently with his conscience' oppose
' it. As this, however, remained to be seen, he
should expea to be convinced that his apprehensions'
were unfounded, before even in this shape he Would'
consent to the measure.
Lord TIOWICK did not expe&, upon a Motion
for leave to bring in a Bill, that any such discussion
would have taken place as had occurred but, in con-
sequence of what had fallen from some Gentlemen,
he-thought it requisite to say a.few words,
,not only
in explanation, but in justification of himself. One
Hon.Gentlernan had expressed his feks that the Bill
might be. produaive of those scenes that disgraced
London in 1780. But he would ask that Gentleman,
whether the Catholics caused those horrid circum
stances ? or rather he could tell that Hon. Gentle-
man that those scenes arose from such speeches as.
the Han. Gentleman had just made, and uttered.by
a Member in that House, in a way exactly
It was there the alarm originated, and not out of
doors. He trusted, if his house should fall a sacrifice,
that-it.would not become his lot to accuse the Hon.
Gm:lemon as beiti the v.ause of it. An Honour,

able and Learned Getitlenian als:, hal stated that the,
Bill would have the _effea of a c impulsory measure;
but he must be pardoned if,.on this occasion; he doubt-
ed that Gentleman's law on the subject}. His opinion
upon what he considered a compulsory measure on a
former occasion, was already before the Public (pl-
ludink to an. opinion professionally giVen by the flbn.
and Learned Gentleman relative to the Volunteers),
and the House would judge of his opinion on this
subje&, by the Opinion he published npon that occa-
sion. To speak his mind freely od the matter,• he
was inclined to think that Officers of the Catholic
Religion in the Army were serving contrary to liw.
The Irish Aa,which ordained, that they should serve
only in the Irish Army, is itself a nullity, forly
the Union that Army .is ' merged into one con-
solidated body, and is now called in common with
the rest—“ The ' Army of • the :United King-
dom.- This Bill would, however., remove all-doubt
upon the case, and he trusted he Should have
leave to bring it in: . As to smiling at the HO-
nourable *Gentleman's, observations, it was quite
impossible' to avoid it, for when he talked of a
dozen Catholic Priests creating discord .on boird
ship, it naturally occurred to him that the Hon.
Gentleman must suppose, when the boatswain piped
all hands, that instead of performing the discipline of
theship, they were all to fall to and join in the
Matins. But, as his Hon. Friend had' before stated, so
he now repeatedit, that there was not a word in the
Bill, about either Pro/estant Or Catholic Clergymen.
Leave was then given, and the Bill was brought
in, read .a first time,. and ordered for a secolidlead-
•ing this day se'nnight. • - ,

SUPPLY. "!
Mr. HOBHOUSE. brought up the Report of the
Committee of Supply. ••
On the Resolution for granting 80,0001. to make
good a like sum advanced to the King of Prussia.
Mr. 13ANKES1 +wording this grant as. the first
instalment of a subsidy to Prussia, and regarding
subsidies, though they may be' wise in some circum-
stances, as very generally unwise, felt himself bound
to state his sentiments at some length. He would recall •
the attention of the Houseto the subsidies granted since
the commeecement of the late -war, every one of
which it was thought hard to refuse at the time, but
every one of which had altogether failed of pro-
ducing the benefits expe&ed from it. He first in-
stanced
the subsidy to the. King of Sardinia, agreed
upon in 1793,. the amounts of which was to ie
200;0001. a year during the war. But the King of
Sardinia was obliged to make a separate peace in less .'
than threeyears. In the same year a treaty ofsubsidy
was entered into with Hesse,Cassel, and that Power
• was obliged to make a separate peace in two years.
In 1''%98 another treaty was made with no better re-
sult. The Ele&oral troops of 'Hanover; the Mar,
grave of Baden, and the 4andgrave of Besse Darm-
stadt, subsidized at the same time, all made peace in
the same year. In 1793 ,a subsidy was granted to
Russia, guaranteed by the United States. The sum
was .50,0001. a Month during the war, and 300,0001.
in advance, but ,Russia made a separate peace in
1795. A larger subsidy ,was granted to Austria iu
1795: There was a loan to that Power of 4,600,0901.
in 1796, and a further loan of 1,600,0001. in 1797.
But Austria also was compelled by distress to make
a precipitate peace Shortly after. A new: loan of .
2,000,0001. was advanced in 1800,
and shortly after
the battle at Marengo eatingulsheci all hopes of benefit
from the co-operation of Austria. In 1798, a
Treaty
of Subsidy was concluded with , Russia. The sum
to be supplied monthly was 75,060 T. with an advance
Of 300,6001. But the politics of the Cotirt oflussia
changed suddenly, and that Power became our active
enemy.. In 1800, the•EleCtors of Bavaria and Mentz,
andother Powers,were also subsidized With as little good
effeEt. Since the renewal of the War on the Continent,
in 1805, another Treaty had existed, and it was only
last night that rums had been
.voted to pay some ar-
rearsicontraCted under that Treaty. But
,that-Treaty
had had no better effect than the former. The,
fatal battle of Austerliti compelled that Power to
, make what terms she - could, and now we had to
make good to Sweden and to Russia the arrears
of that unfortunate Subsidiary Allience. The present
grant seemed to be the commencement of a new -
system of Subsidy. He would not be disposed to
cavil at this sum, if it were not to lead to many
larger grants. (Lord Howick said, across the table,
" No, there is no Treaty of Subsidy.") Mr. Bal-dies,
in continuation, said, if there was 110 provision lbe
Subsidy in the Treaty with Russia, he had trespassed
,too long upon the House. He bad' addressed the
House only on the idea that a large Subsidy was it
contemplation. . .
Lord H. PETTYstated, that this adVance wad
made by Lord Hutchinson for the particular exigen-
cies of the Army and the Fortresses. in Silesia. - He
_conceived the cause of the misunderstanding, that
this advance was the commencement of a Subsidy,
arose from its having.been mentioned in 'the Message
from. His Majesty communicating the intelligence of
the Treaty of. Peace with the King of Prussia. But
there was nothing of Subsidy in the Treaty ; thead-
vance has been made in consequence of a discretion,
.ary- power given to Lord Hutchinson; whose dis
cretion could not' be' doubted, in case any particular
emergency required such 'a grant, or any particular
services could be effeaed by it. This advance had
had great effeCt in preventing the progress of the
enemy in the quarter in which it had been applied.
He,agreed with the Hon.Gentlernan,- that in making •
future Treaties of Subsidy we ought to be regulated
by past experience—and that our advantages ought
to be regulatecity the benefits which, according to
past experience, we might reasonably hope
to re-
ceive. •
'.Mr 'BANKES, under the ex planation that had
been given, haduo objeaion to make good the ads
ssurance given 'by the
No
vance that had been made by Lord HutChinson.—
He was
lu rd, pleasedthat in
wittuhree_Treaties of Subsidy pasta
experience would be made the guide, and that vast
sums would not be advanced without any certainty
of benefit.
Lord HOWICK said Lord Hutchinson had a. dis-
cretionary power to Make advances incase of any
pressing emergency, and he was sure every person
would agree that such a discretion could not be .
placed in better hands. There was no Treaty of Sub-
sidy. But he. Would not have the House go away with
the idea that Government was precluded from grant-
ing a Subsidy if circumstances should render it de-
sirable. He agreed that many of the former Subsi-
• dies were most unwise in principle, and most unpro-
CilldiVc in event. gut every case depended on its

1

own eircumstancec A principle of caution ought
always to be applied, to preverit the advances froth
being made unnecessarily, or incautiously, so as
to hazard a risk that no benefit _could be derived.
He disapproved .of all Subsidies which would hold
Out English money to induce- foreign Powers to en-
ter into war without any objets of their own. But
when they wet engaged, or ready to engage, for
.common interests, he thought it would be very wrong
,not to hold ourselves at liberty to second and sup-
port them, He allowed that past experience ought
to be made the rule of our condud with regard ',to
future treaties; but not so far as to prevent us from
_entering into such treaties.--The Reiolut ion,was then
agreed. to ; and also
.the Resolutions relating to the
a
Loan, upon which Bill was ordered. • •

WESTMINSTER ELECTION
Lord Fouls-rostre..moved the Order of the Day for
taking into. further consideration the. Petition of
James Paull, Esq. .
Mr. SHERMAN declared, he had. no obje&ion to
Mr. Paull's continuance during the discussion.
Mr. Plomer appeared at the Bar, in behalf of the
tetitioner; and, in a speech of considerable length,
Observed upon the nature of the evidence which had
been produced in support of the, allegations of the
Petition. As soon as Counsel had withdrawn"
Mr. SHERIDAN commenced in expressing his
surprise that. the Learned COunsel bad not thrown
up his brief, and that the Petitioner, instead of
persevering in his support of the allegations of his
petition, lud not come forward with one. expres-
sive of his contrition and repentance. In the pre-
sent case, he felt so disgusted, that even the neces-
sity of calling Witnesses, in contradiction of the
charges brought against him, produced, in his mind,
the feelings of abasement and 'humiliation. But
he thought it due to the charafters of some 'respeCt-
able friends, to the honour of the House, and the
'credit of a respettable body of his constituents, to
enter on a full investigation of the merits of that
Petition. That duty was more particularly necessary
after the observations which had fallen from the
Learned Counsel. Indeed he could not limit the
latitude ' which. Counsel, speaking from their brief,
were permitted to take; nor had he legal knowledge
sufficient to convince him when a 'Barrister was tra-
velling out of the range of .his pirOlessional 'duty.
At the same time he could not reconcile the pro-
priety of a learned and enlightened lawyer assum-
ing that as fa& which was only asserted, and garb•
ling evidence, as he should conceive it either. his
interest or inclination. He could not see in such
conduct any thing which he ghould Wish to
tate. He trusted he never would be the advocate
of prevarication, If
.he had the baseness or auda.
Oity.to intrude on the attention of-the House state-
ments which he knew to be false, he would be
as'tained to spew his face in society, unless he might
expea some excuse in that stupidity which
could imagine that the House would believe him.
No Man of gentlemanly mind would have so afted;
nor 'did he kilieve the respectable professors of the
Bar would produce many similar examples. The
Lea, ned Counsel had thought proper to assume
what lie should not have attempted. What right-
bad he to take for granted an allegation which was not
proved ? With regard to the chara6ters of the so-
liciwrs had never spoken disrespectfully. Two
things he knew of them : first, that they were
men of high integrity ; next, that they had no con-
cern, but actually resigned a connexion with his
opponent.. He hoped Mr. Paull and Mr. Dowel
would be found equally clear, and that they would
rather appear the dupes of others, than the advisers
of the umortuuate.deluded. wretches who were ex-
hibited in support of the allegations of the Petition.
But he feared that a scene of baseness, of suborpa-
Con of perjury., and malice, would be disclosed,
such as never before insulted', and affronted the
heart of mankind. As to the, Witnesses, Drake
end Weathernead, he had never' heard' of them
from the moment he had ordered them to come next
day, for the, purpose of having them taken into cus-
tody, until they were found togethei in a hackney-
coach, with Mr. Paull, on the 24th of February last.-
He had documents in his pocket to provt.-that Wea-
thertead was disgracefully dismissed by Capt. Trot-
' lope,. from the-Gladiator, and that she could not pass
the Admiralty for having attempted to pass forged,
certificates. . .

A long and uninteresting conversation took place,
with resped to the propriety of examining Frederick
Homan, Esq. he being implicatedtby the allegations
of the Petition. However, on the Motion of Mr.
rEncrviti., it was carried, that the allegations against
Mr. Homan were not well grounded ; 'and he was,
therefore, admitted as a comaetent•Witness.

Mr. Homan,- examined by Mr. Sheridan, said,
that he was at Mr. Sheridan's, at Somerset House,
on the 19th of February, and there saw Drake and
Weatherhead : Drake was-very anxious to see Mr.
Sheridan ; four of them sat in the parlour until Mr.
S. came in ; the conversation was general ; Drake
'said he had recently purchased a cottage in Hamp-
shire, and had been hunting it that country with
Mr. Cobbett ; that be was at that Gentleman's
house : it. was a good one, but that the passage
to it was through the stables and pig yard. Wea-
therhead was introduced by Drake, as a Clergyman ;
witness remained with Mr. Sheridan during the
whole'tirne ; Drake sat at a considerable distance.
There was nothing in the way of offer or promise
. made either to him or Weatherhead : Drake said
he was appointed to the Thisbe Sloop, and that he
must leave town. for. Hampshire in the morning •
Mr. Sheridan particularly told him not to be out of
town at the time the Speaker's Warrant ordered his
attendance,. Mr. Sheridan had told
.Witness that
he suspected Drake to be a great liar, as he was per-
suaded Mr. Cobbett would not know such a ft:II(JY...
Witness was also informed by him, that it v..t.s his
intention to commit Drake and Weatherhead to
Bow-street. Witness went, at the request of Mr.
;Sheridan, with a mess2ge to Mr. Graham,.for the
purpose of having the letter taken from Harris, and
kept by Mr.. Graham ; and that a communication
of his having it should be sent to the Speaker, and
to the Solicitor of Mr. Paull. Harris went through
an .examination on the gth. .
-Cross-ex:itnined by Mr. Warren, one of the Pe7
titioner's Counsel.
Witness was not at present of any profession ;
was eoncerned formerly in the Sour business. Has
a vropei ty in Ireland ; knew a person whom he
so; piiseu to b - the la. her of Drake; wrote a 'letter
to hi.n. On Shrove Tuesday last Duke, junior,
ca.led. on NVitLlt;:iSi in consequence of his wish to in-

i Lig,' '

TIIE private Letters evhich have reached Town
from the Continent concur in representing the !ate
battles in Poland as the most obstinately contested of
any that have been fought in modern times. The
great object which the French bad in view was to
get possession of Konigsburgh; and if after the Bat-
tle of Eylau they had, succeeded in accomplishing
that object, we should be inclined to give some cre-
dit to their Bulletins, in which they claiin a decisive
victory. • That _the French expeded to have defeated ,
the Russians on the Bth, and that it was intended in
the event of a Vidory to take immediate pOsSesSion
of Konigsburgh, is evident from BERTHIER'S Letter
of the .7th :—" To-morrow," he says, " we shall
be in Konigsburgh." But instead of advancing, the
French Army is to go into winter-quarters, " hav-
ing beaten the Enemy, and driven them 100 leagues
iron the Vistula." What is meant by the Russians
being 100 leagues from the Vistula we cannot ima-
gine. The Battle of Eylau was fought within
one-fifth part of that dist:r.4ce from that River.,--
It is observable that immediately after the Battle
of Pultusk, where, BONAPARTE also claimed: a
VidOry, the French Army were immediately
to be put into winter quarters, which, in
fact, was nothing more'than an excuse for retreating
after a defeat. His obje& upon that occasion was
to turn the Russians, anti, to get possession of their
magazines; but his attempt completely failed. His
obje& on the late occasion was to get possession of
Kohigsburgh, and for that purpose he engaged in
all these destructive battles from the 4th to the Bth
Feb. and sacrificed so many thousand of his best troops;
and yet, after defeating the Russians, he immediately
reheats into winter quarters ! There is one fad which
-the French have studiously concealed, and that is; that
in all these Actions the French Army has been con=
siderably superior, in point of numbers, to the Rus-
sians.

The following is an gittraet of a private Letter
from Hamburgh
The Battle of Eylau was a scene of carnage
which lasted from morning until night. It was the
Russians, at seven o'clock in the morning, who at-
tacked three French Divisions, all of wind'. would

have been destroyed; if 8 otrtr and. Nrt,i, had not
come to their as;istance•aiter
in a grey riding-boat, and, Polish bOtlet,. 'placing
hiinst.lf at the .head of his Guards, led Oh ihe attack.
The bulleti whistled arctuld him, mid a -shell burst
a few paces from him..

" AvomtE-ix's arm teas broken, and he hai set
but foe 'Paris: LANNEs is wounded, but not severely;
and is gone to WarsaW; his Division had fin share in
the battle. The Russians were immoveable. A
French Officer who was present, estimates the loss
Of the French at tomo men ; from the BthitO the
12th, the day on which Capt. 150VILLIERS set off
from the scene of Aaion; There had been no fight-

We have been favoured alsO with the perusal of a
private Letter from Altona, of -as late a date as the
..zsth ult. It states, that General MICHAUD'S Aide:- •
de-Camp had arrived at ,Hamburgh from Eylau,
which place he leftimmediately after the battle. It
was expeaed that upon 'his
.arrival sorhe particular:4
of the late anion would have been published, hut
that eXpetaation was di'sappointe.l He asserted;
that the French had • gained a'viaory, but said
that the . Russians had fought :like devil;', and
that-the French had lost a gieat many Officers
of distinction. It was believed at Altona that
the right wing of the Russians was. defeated
at Eylau by the left of the French, which
BONAPARTF. commanded in person ; but that the
right wing of the French, which was commanded by
General LANNES, had been nearly cut to pieces. So
that BONAPARTE was not only unable to pursue the
advantage he had gained, but found it necessary to
retreat. The great objea of the French was to get
possession of Konigsburgh; in which there were
immense Magazines of Provisions., of which the
French were in great. want.

ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE -OF GERMANY,

TIM COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF TFIE‘ IMPERIAL

RUSSIAN ARMY.

• ". By a long series of the most unfortunate, events,
your country his become a prey to the most cruel
aod insolent of foes. The manifold sufferings,to which •
you have been subje&ed are known to the. Emperor,
my most gracious Sovereign ; and his Majesty is so
much the more diSposed to take the warmest in-
terest therein, as he himself has sprung from
German blood ; and mindful of the intimate ties
which exist
,between his Imperial House and many
of ..the • German ' I4inces, he has never teased' to -
entertain, with regard to -the German Nation,
all :that esteem• to which a . people 'so numerous,
enlightened, • and. virtuous, -are justly entitled.—
With this sentiment of the warmest- interest in
the fate, of Germany, are naturally and insepar-
ably conjoined his, :Majesty's wishes to deliver this
Empire from' its oppressors, and restore it to its just
freedom and independence. •' His Majesty will' think
rici exertion too laborious to attain this great obje&.
" Inhabitants of Ger Many ! the whole Russian.
Armyfights for your interests ! Under circumstances .
so favourable, shall you alone remain inaaive ? Shall
you be so blinded, as. in the present state of things
to do nothing for yourselves ?
The enemy is at a great' distance from his
frontiers, in territories, and at a season of the year,
which not only do not afford him sufficient means
of supply, but afso. impede all his operations. Will
you voluntarily contribute to his relief ? Will yoti
aa against your own interests ? Forget not that you
'have all possible aid 'to exped from the brave army
entrusted to my command. I trust that I shall vie- •
toriously drive back the common Enemy of Europe,
and convince bin) that there still remains a People
who, faithful to their Country and their Monarch,
have both the inclination and the power to re-
sist the inquisition of his iron yoke. But, however
probable this success may be, his. Majesty will still
regard it as incomplete, so long as the foe shall not
be -driven :back', beyond his natural boundaries;
and- as this is the only means of restoring , the
independence of your country, and obtaining a ge-
neral Peace upon secure foundations, his Imperial
Majesty relies, with the fullest, confidence, that
at this finally decisive cris;s, the inhabitants of
Germany will notonly lend no kind of support to the
coalman foe, but, on the contrary, that they Will, by
a general resistance, render his further stay hi Gee-
many impracticable, and throw every possible diffi- •
culty in the way of his retreat towards his own fron-
tiers. By this intimate union of the *hole Rnssian •
force with all the means 'of the German Empire, the-
common object may be attained, and Peace, so anxi-
ously desired, be once more restored to suffering
Europe. .

" Take courage then, brave and virtuous Germans !
Rale& on the immortal. renown of your ancestors,
who, i❑ former ages, maintained their independence
with the most-signal bravery. -Unite yourselves un-
der the colours of such of your Princes, in whom
the unfortunate events of our times have not yet
extinguished a sense of honour and their own dig-
hity; To this grand and noble purpose of delivering

your l.out)tr7 iron foieigti yoke, Sacrifice evti.;
-priVate gdariel;' toils'iderAtion
bard, and theii shall you Coinpose
ealiable not only of digplaiai& every inch.
ground with tfie common enemy, but also tif olti~
mately vahquiishing and tepelling himfor ever witina
his natural frontier.

" In your efforts to attain so gloriotis an dbjeA, y ti
may rely with the fullest confidence on the pO'wertil
and 'continued assistance of the Emperor inoSt
gracious Soi-ereigui. The universally ackh•dwledged
'principles of his IMperial Majesty afford you a- gua
rantee, that not only will his Majesty not aband3u
pad in the preserit struggle, .htlf that' on,the,happy
termination thereof, he will particularly ditea- hii
attention to the restoration of the venerable cortstitu-:
Lion of yoUr cotintry, which for a succession of centu-
ries rendered Our forefathers the happiest people on
the face of the earth, and which could only bo,def:
stroyed by the domineering ambition ;of au.EneLny,
who rnako no scruple 'of treading under loathe:
most sacred Treaties.

" Given at the Imperial Russian ttead-quarters,
" Baron VON BE NNINC SEN, General of C ivalry,
" Military Governor of Lithuania," &c.

Yesterday Lords flowtcx moved for and obtained
leave to bring in a Bill for securing to His Majeity's
Catholic Subje6ts the free exercise of thcir Religion
in the Army and. Navy.

The charges against Sir .HOMEPOPHAM are coir-
prized in" a Letter of Instruaions to Admiral Yot3t;.3,
whopresides on the occasion, and state in substance,
" that having, in conjunction with General BA
been direeted to take under his command the ShiD:4
specified, for the purpose of capturing the C„t;-_, (sf
Good Hope, he, after that service was effened,
proceeded .to attack the Spanish Settlements in
Rio de la Plata, without direaion or author]t.
therebYTeaving the Cape exposed -to attack and la-,
suit, -without means of protecting the tradt of r-;s
Majesty's subjeas, or of taking pOssessioo of any
Ship of the Enemy whichthight have put into'the'
bays, harbours, or places adjacent, • though he had
r---ived• information of a detachMent of the Enemy',
Siiips'being at sea in the neighbourhood of the Cape;
and that a French Squadron was expected at the
Mauritius, &c. &c."
The Report of the Committee appointed to search .
for precedents respeaing theConsequenceoft heExpul-
sion °Wet:Fibers Of Parliament,which was ordered to be
printed,was last night delivered to the Met nberS.They
contain a series of cases,of expulsion, from the year
1558, down to the.present time. They are divided
into five heads or classes; viz.. Ist. Expulsion for of-
fences against the State, and frauds affecting the pub-
lic ; 2d. For offences against the House ; 3d. Vol.
other offences ; 4th. Disqualifications by Statute ;
sfh: Other Disqualifications. We are prevented, by
want of room, from making any extrafts from this
Report, which' occupies. 46 folio pages.
The husband of a certain foreign Syren recently
displayed the modest sMility of-his charaCter, by
inviting one of the branches of the ROYAL FAMILY'.

to drop-- in 'to dinner with him. when be pleased,
and by offering him tickets for the O'pera.

. PORTSMOUTH, MARCH s.—The Trial .of Sir HOME
PoPHAM is postponed till to-morrow morning, at
nine o'clock, for, the purpose of affording an oppor-
tunity to brill-, more Witnesses from London. Lord
M brill;
who is to attend on the occasion, is not
arrived, but is every moment expeCted. Mr. JRaVIS,
the Counsel, and Mr.BICK NELL, Solicitor fort e Ad-
miraltytare both here. There is a prodigious num. r
of persons now in the town, andallis eager curiosity
and strong solicitude as to the result..

PLYMOUTfi, MAii,Cl.l 4.—Arrived yesterday, and
soon afterwards sailed to ile:Westward the. Dispatch.
Sidrp of War, of 18 guns, Capt. -LII:LICRAP, ac-
companied by two. Gun-brigs, supposed to be des.
tined on a Secret Expedition.
Sailed this morning the Thilomel and *Maine
Sloops of War on a Cruize.
.• The Outward-bound East and West India Fleets
are in the Oifing, passing by to the Westward, with
a tolerable breeze at NAV.

Sailed the Lord Keith, Capt.•BRUCE, for Moga-
dore, and the Savage SicOp of War, with A Convoy
for Cork:

Arrived the Cockatrice Sloop of, War; from the
Eastward.

The Dale, Stator: Coca, Mariner and Argo,
Outward-bound West India Ships,' sailed this even-
ing to join the, West India CoUvoy.

FALMOUTH, MARCH 4.—Arrived the Dispatch
Sloop of War from Portsmouth to. take charge of tha
Ship.; lying here bound to Portugal, &c. the Childers
being ordered back to Spithead.

SHEERNESS, MARCH 3.—Sailed .the Bold Gun-
brig, •Lieut. CHIVERS.
Arrived the Escort Gun-brig.
Came into Harbour to refit, the Crescent.
Sailed His Majesty's Ship itesoltaion, Captain
BUELTON, to Yarmouth.

Came down the River, a few Merchant Ships to
wait convoy with the Falcon.
Passed by, the Nore, for ,the River, fourteen Sail.

' DEAL, MARCH- 4.—Sailed His Majesty's Ships
Seagull, on a Cruize, and Combatant for Sheerness.
Arrived the Bellette Sloop of War from a Cruize,
and remains in the Downs with the rest of the Ships
as tier last.
MARCH s.—Put pack the Combatant Praain.
Carne down from Sheerness the Bold. Gut Fit.

CORN-EXCHANGE, MARCH 6.---Wne It is here in
tolerable quantities, though few. arrivals, and sales
are made heavily at a small declension in price ; the
supply of Barley is considerable, and good samples
support last prices ; Malt likewise; there are but
few Pease or old Beans of each kinds, which fetch
better prices ; -the supply of Oats are rather large,
and this, trade is heavy of sale and cheaper, except-
inc, tine samples ; Flout at our last quoted prices,

*-
~T~: