The Sun.
London, England, 1812-07-22 00:00:00

BOISE OF COMMON i.--TUESDAY.

Sir S. Rom ILLY presented a Petition from, cer-
'bin person's, who, were prisoners as Debtors to
the CrOwil, complaining that they caun9t. have
the 'benefit of being lihvatel •• by the insolvent
Debtors Bill, without the consent of three of the
Lords of the Treasury. •• 7
Mr. AirnAnTog: stated, that it was 'not necessary
for Debtors to the Crown to be at any expense in
making out their memorials for the Treasury, as
they need-not employ a Man of
,business for that
purpose. •

The Petition was then ordered ,to lie oil the
table.

CASE OF MR. FITZPATRICK.

Mr. SHERIbAN calledthe attention of the House
to the conduct of the Atfornu-General -in Ire-
land, in the case of -.Mr. Fitzpatrick. The cir-
cumstance of the attendance- of Mr. Fitzpatrick.
having been required at the Attorney-General's
own house appeared to_ him a'very 'strange pro-
ceeding, and he thought it the duty ofthat House
to take effectual means for preVenting the-recur-
rence of such practices. It had been Said that
acts of this kind were not Oppressive, nay, some
.had even gone so far as to say that they were
acts of civility. But if even. this were admitted,
still he must strongly object to the practice, as
what was the effect of it but to leave it at the option
of, the Attorney-General to act • with civility or
severity., and thus make a distinction between in-
dividuals, and Fireverit the impartial adininislra-
don of justice The book had not, in his opi-
nion, been properly charaCterized When it
-described as a- libellous and- seditious publication.
The facts which, it contained were undenied, and
its arguments had 'not been controverted: The
Right Hon. Gentleman Went on to shew the in-
conveniences which might 'result fi:oni the exer-
cise of a power like that assumed hy-the Attor-
ney-General, in the case of Mr. Fitzpatrick. He
.was against trusting the liberty and the security
of the.subject-to any Attorney-General? Of Mr.
Laurin he spoke with the greatest respect ; but
because his character stood so high, he (Mr. She-
- fithin) felt it to be the more incumbent upon him
to take up the subject.- If it had been the act of
A person of mean character, le did not know
'that he should have troubled 'head about it.
With the lives of such persons such ei';ilS might
end 3 they_ would go down. with them to the
grave ; they would rot together in infamy, and
posterity would be ashamed.to quote, such an au-
thority. It,Was very different in the present case,
and it was therefore his 'duty to fasten on the
transaction... He hoeed no objection would be
made to the production. of the document for
which he was about to move. When it was on
the table, it would be foi-the House to reprobate
the amion, if illegal and if 'it should' appear to
be legal, he thought it would be their duty to
take measures for snaking the future exercise of
that power illegal. The Right Hon.`Gentittman
concluded' by moving,--=.
c. That a copy of the 'Notice from the Right lion. William
Samin, his Majesty's Attorney-General for Ireland, dated
the 3d instant, serkd on Mr. Fitzpatrick, requiring him
.to attend at his house on :or before Wednesday, the Sth inst.
be laid before the House."'

I.ft W. POLE said, he really hardly knew how
to commence his reply to the speech of his Right
,Honourable Friend, who had completely disap-
pointd him in the manner in' which be,had intro-
duced this subject. If he were to .confine himself
to, a strict reply to. hiS Right Honourable Friend,
he should hal;.e nothing to dk hut to defend- the
practice of commencing criminal prosecutions in
Ireland_in the manner alluded ; a practice which,
as far .as it -differed from the mode adopted in this
country, was much more advantageous to, the sub-
ject in Ireland. - his Right Honourable Friend
bad studiously kept the motives which bad induced
the Attorney-General of Ireland to institute this
prosecution out of sight : he had contented himself
with merely reading the notice, and, even in doing
that he omitted theimportant words, which shelved
that the part complained of was part the second.
He was stkongly inclined to think that his Right
-Honourable Friend had not seen the second part of
the work in question : if he had,. it was impossi-
ble but that he must be of opinion that the Attot-
ney-Gencral of Ireland would have been. guilty of
a dereliction Of, his duty, if he had not taken legal
notice of the passage in question. But though his
Right Honourable Friend had thought it, expedi-
ent to abstain-from discussing; the propriety of in-
stituting this prosecution, he (Mr. Pole) felt it to
be his duty to say a few words upon that part of

thesdbjeet.- It had aiv.a.ys b-een Ihe.practice in
rela And for the tcorney,Generat to order a notice
of this kind to be given, before he filed theinfor-
:nation ; he did not krinw that, the notice was al-
ways-precisely in the same form of WOrds; but it
was in substance always the same as.-that which
his Right Honourable Friend7comPlained of.' This
notice was not given with a view...to intrndude Star
Chamber practice, as had beewinsinuated,br for
the pnrpose of entrapping the defendant,. and
veigling him to say something that. might tend to
convict himself, but, with the view-of - giving the
defendant an opportunity of stating any thing
which might induce the Attorney—General not to
institute the prosecution. In this country the de-
fendant would have no such information, because
the inforniation wouldbe filed in the first instance.
His Right HonOurablOriend had stated,. that
Mr.-Fitzpatrick did go to th 9 house of the' Attor-
ney-General, in consequence of this notice ; he
supposed he had collected his inforMatiOn from.
the letters signed "A Barrister," in 'the Irish
Ppers, in which letters it was stated, that Mr.
Fitzpatrick 'having, at the Attorney-General's
house, declared that he had nothing to say, was
not interrogated by the Attorney-Gneral - This
fir: -s a pretty decisive proof that the intention of
the Attomney:General was not, as it had been insi-
nuated, to ensnare the defendant, and to • induce
him say something that might be prejndicial
to himself., This notice, then, was meant to he,
and in fact was, a favour to the subject, and he
did not think the people of 'lreland. would .thank
his Right Honourable Friend, if through his in-
terference it was discontinued. The defendant
knew very well that no.pena?..y would attach upon
him if he did not attend the summons : he knew
that it was entirely optional with him-to attend or
not.. It had been stated in- other places, that the
Irish Government, in instituting this prosecution,
were proceeding against the Catholic body, be-
cause these books contained nothing, but a state-
- meta. of the penal laws affecting the Catholics :
against ON asset tion be. desired to enter his pro-
test in the strongest and most distinct manner.—
This prosecution bad no more to do with the Ca-
tholics, or with their -claims; than with any sub-
ject the most remote. Neither the Government,
nor the Attorney-Generalof Ireland, had or would
interfere with the Roman-Catholics for supporting
their claims irs any nehrter they thought proper,
.provided they did it in a legal and constitutional
manner. But surely it could not be contended,
that because the Roman Catholics,of Ireland were
preferring certain claims, the laws of Ireland 'Nvere
to remain in estateof abeyance ; that libels, con-
taining the most foul and unfounded assertions,
were to be circulated and taken under, the patron-
age of large bodies of men ; .that the most serious
charges were to he promalgated against the very
,fountain head of justice ; that the, Judges and the
_Government were to he- accused
_of crimes little
short of muider. Whether the case in question
'came within his description it was not for him to
Say ; that was a question to,be determined in a
Court of Law ; but as an abstract proposition, it
could not be contended that libels
.of the kind that
he had stated, should be circulated with impu-
nity. His Right Honourable Friend, he was
sure, could not have read the book- to which be
had alluded, through, for be had described the.
'.passage which the Attorney-General had felt him-
self bound to prosecute, merely as a misrepre-
sentation of something that had passed at a trial ;
now he would' read the passage,
.and leave it to
the House to.determine whether his Right. llon.
Friend had described it correctly, or whether time
Attorney-General could, consistently with his
duty, have passed over it without legal notice. " At
the Summer Assizes of Kilkenny, 1810, one
Barry
,was cimVicted of a capital offence, for which
he was afterwards executed. This man's case,
was truly tragical. He was wholly innocent ;
was a respectable Catholic, formerly in the county
of Waterford, in good circumstances.. His in-
nocence was clearly established in the,interval be-
tween his conviction and execution ; yet. he was •
hanged publicly, avowing his innocence. There
are some shocking ciremnstminCes attending this
case, which the-Duke of Richmond's administra—
_

tion may yet lie invited to explain to Parlia-
ment:" He would now ask the Honse whether
it was possible that the, Attorney General could,
without being guilty_ of a 'dereTion of. his
duty, have avoide4 taking 'notice of this charge.
It; was the duty of 'Government to administer
justice with impartiality to every sUbject of the
- .
realm, and justicelvould not beadministered.with
impartiality if one man was punished forian of-
7fence, while another committed a similar act with
impunity. What would Mr. Walter Cox, who
was last year prosecuted and convicted fora libel,
and. was now suffering imprisonment in Negate
in Dublin, what would he
,say, if another man, .
equally guilty with himself, was suffered to escape
with impunity ? The principle upon which the
Duke of Richmond's Administration had always.
acted, and he defied any man to produce a case
to the contrary, was to administer justice equally,
and \fallout any distinction, to all classes of his
;Majesty's subjects in the present instance, they
_ -had not departed from that principle,' for it was
-impossible that any Government could suffer such
a-charge to go unnoticed. Having given this ex-
planation, he felt it necessary to add, that be did
not think it necessary that the Paper moved for'
should be laid before the House„, But there were
'other reasons why be objected the production
of the paper : there were proceedings pending ;
the whole case
./Ivas about to he submitted to a
Jury, any intefference therefore on the part of that
• House would be improper. His Rt. lion. Friend
had, said .that he wanted to knout what the law
was upon this subject 3 that information he would
soonhaVe from a Court of. Law, for Mr. Fitz-.
patrick had brought an action against the At-
torney General, and laid his damages at 1000 i..
SO that the question of law must soon be decided.
- His Right Hon. Friend had also expressed some•
apprehensions that ti.*: Attorney General might
proceed-against an ignorant man, who might from
his ignorance ruin his own cause ; • but his Itight
.Hon. Friend nead not entertain any apprehen-
sions of thatkind,ifc the case of Mr. Fitzpatrick,
'who boasted 7 , of having the advice of a King's
Counsel, and wh6 had not taken a single step in
this business without advice. With regard to
what .his. Right lion. Friend :had said about the
Government in England being ignoral,t of t 46 ,

commencement of this prosecution, it was cdtainly
true. Did his Right Honourable Friend suppose
that the Irish . Government was so wretchedly
pusillanimous, or so inattentiv'e to their duty, that
they Would not take notice of such a paragraph
•as he'had read without orders from this -country.?
If the charge contained in that paragraph Was
true, the Judges ought to be cashiered, and the
Lord Lieutenant impeached ; when such. an -ac-
cusation was preferred, was it to be suppOSed
that the Government of Ireland was to wait for
orders how to proceed ? He should not trou-
ble the House any longer, but he thought
it right, befgre he sat down, to state that this pro-
secution had no connection, directly or indiT
rectly, with the Roman :Catholics.; the Attor--
ney-genenal made no distinctions _between Ca-
tholic; or* Vrotestan.; and -if the :passagii in
queSti6n had appeared in any of 'the answers to
" the Statement of the Penal Laws," instead of
•in that work itself, it would have been equally
-Prosecuted. His Right Hon: Friend had adverted
slightly to the manner in which this book was
:written ; he (Mr. Pole) would not now enter in-
to that part of the subject. }, He had upon a for-
tiler occasion made some observations upon it,'
and had shewn, that, upon the subject of
charitable donations, the hook . did ,contain
much misrepresentation, but he would not now
recur to that discussion, -.because, as he had be-
fore said, the claims of the Catholics were wholly
unconnected with the question before the House.
His Right Hon: Friend who came into the HouSe
just when he" (Mr. Pole) hail done speaking on
.the occasion to Which he wa) alluding, made some
pretty sharp, observations upon a speech which he
had not heard. lie would not troublp theflonse
any farther, except to state that he should give his
negative to the motion:
-Mr. HUTCHINSON aid Sh P. litr,p)ETT in short.
speeches each supported the ;nation ; Mr W.
Fitzgerald and Lord -Castiereagh'opposed it ;. Mr.
Sheridan replied ; and, after a few words from
Mr. -Tighe, Lord Castlereagh, Mr. Barham;and
Mr. Sheridan, the House divided :

. 23
. . . . 67
. . . . -44

For the Motion
Against it.
Majority
FINANCIAL RESOLUTIONS.

On the motion of the -CHANCELLOR of the Ex-
CHEQUER, the adjourned debate on. the Finan-
cial.Resolutioni was postponed until to-morrow.

OVERTURE FROM FRANCE.

Mr. SHERIDAN did not think it would be ne-
cessary to preface with many -observations the
proposition which in 'consonaace to his notice 'he
was about to make, as lie understood that it
Would be acceded to by the Gentlemen opposite.
'But, undoubtedly, considerable interest bud been
excited in his mind by the intimation which the
House had last night ,received, that .hiS Hon.
Friend on his right hand,. (Mr:' Whitbread), had
hurried to town fort•the express purpose of de-
claring, thatle conceived Ministers' to be entire-
ly wrong-, and that the late overture from the
French Government was the last Opportunity
that could possibly have beers afforded for' enter-
ing into a negoeiation for peace. That the mo-
tives of his lylon 'Friend were excellent no one
, could doubt ; but be eonfesied that he waited
with considerable curiosity to hear how his Hon.
Friend would attempt to establish his ptoposition..
In the mean time he certainly felt great timidity.
He experienced the sensation of a partridge or a
pheasant, with a hawk hovering over him, for
Tie very well-knew his Honourable Friend's power.
But undoubtedly he must hear some very strong
arguments to the contrary, before he could be
convinced that the letter of the -French Minister
did not deserve the character which he had given
to it on a recent occasion ; that it did riot deserve
to be called perfidious, insidious, and insulting.--:-
Perfidious, because it called upon us to be guilty
of the grossest perfidy to our ; insidious,
bi!co.use it was evidently' written with the convic-
tion, that the proposal which it contained could
not be accepted ; for he exonerated the policy of
the Emperbr or Ruler of France (he cared not
'which he was called, and considered any dispute
on that point as a matter of silly etiquette)
from the weakness which would attach to it, if
it could be supposed for a moment that the
',French Government thought or meant that their
-overture should really be acceded to by the Bri-_
tish: Insulting, because it- affected, on certain
flimsy pretences, to induce the British Govern-
ment to depart from the most sacred and, honour-
able engagements. To the reply of our Govern-
ment sthe Ruler of France returned no answer.
He never cared for any answer to his original pro-'
position. The fact was, that when that proposi-'
tion was made, he was in the heat of a7' negociation
with the Russian GoVernmanti and feeling that
the negociation was•not going on so successfully
as he could wish, he sent to Great Britain the
overture which we had received, 'hoping that an
impression favourabh: to his views might be made
on the Russian Cabinet, When they should find
that he was willing not to push the boundary of.
his dominions beyond. the Pyrennees, to guaran-
tee the independence al Si- 'ly, &c. but certainly
not entertainipg the instr,,:ina• expectation that
this stratagem could deceive the British Govern-
nient.- The French proposition was dated April
17 ;' it was promptly replied to by the Noble Lord
on the 23d. -By some mistake, however, the flag
of truce in which our answer was conveyed, was
fired at from Calais, and was obliged to proceed
to Morlaix; This very much delayed the arrival'
of the British dispatch, and before it reached
Paris the dispatches of the French Government
went off to Russia. But it was impossible that
any one/could be surprised that no answer was
made to the Noble Lord's communication. He
was persuaded that Napoleon would laugh at
those who thought he seriously meant to carry on
a negociation for peace with Great Britain. If
we could penetrate into his thoughts; w 4 should
find the course of them running thus :—" I will
'send to the Russian Cabinet to terrify them with
the prospect of my 'concerting a peace with
England entirely disadvantageous to Russia. I am
Compelled to go to war with Russia, and for the
purpose of intimidating that power, I will desire
the acquiescence of 'Great Britain in, a pretended
negociation for peace. I want 150,000 men out
of Spain. .1 will tell England that I wish she
would release them by withdrawing her troops, in
order that I may use them in my designs against ,

Russia. Tte answer of England will be, What
is your quarrel with Russia ?'-1 reply, because
she inexorably ref•ises to assist me in ,destroying
that maritime ,Strength, and those maritime priril-
ciples on which alone your existence as a-great
nation depends. Because Russia will 'not- join
with hie m destroying the sinews of:yoUr power,
I make war upon liessia; I ask you, Eughmd, to
lend me your assistance ; and when I have achiev-
-ed my-object, I Will come hack to Spain, and shall
-be very much obliged to-you." For his•,.part,ltie
could see no proper answer:to a proposition which
veiled such hitentions,as these, but precisely that
which the Noble Lord had given. To the propo-
sition that the present dynasty in Spain should be
declared independent, no other -answer could.,be
returned than that to accede to,. it would be in-
consistent with the obligations of goird, faith on
the part of Great Britain towardS her allies.
.`,lt
was whirusicvl to hear the. French Minister, hi his
note of the lath April to Count ROmanzow; the
Russian Chancellor, tell him that 'the Emperor,
" constrairiedto -abandon every hope from Russia,
before he commenced the contest in which so
much blood must be shed, felt it-to be his thity-to
-address himself to the English, Government ; and
that the diStress felt by England,_ the agitations
which preyed on her, and the changes which had
taken place in her Government, had induced his
Majesty to take this course." Any one who could
really suppose that the French Emperor saw the
state,of our trade, and our agitation, as he term-
ed it,- with any thing like affection, or a wish"to
relieve uS-, must be more than ordinarily credu-
' lons. He gave credit to him (the Emperor of the
French) for not expecting that such credulity
would be shown by the British. Government.
ever there was a time at which Great Britain might
and ought to make a grand struggle,. it.was the
present, when the enemy affected godd--will to-
Wards the country, and pity for its agitated state.
Nothing but the Bill which had-recently passed
,
through the 'House could countenance the sup-
position that there was any thing- like --dis:r
loyalty or -disaffection in the country ; but
notwithstanding that Bill, and nothwithstand-
ring the commercial and manufacturing distresses
I.Which really existed, he firmly believed that if the
point at issue were the degradation ofGreat Bri-
tain by submission to France, there
.was not an
Englishman Who Would not perish rather than
Consent to it. He was, most happy,to hear his
Henourable-Friend express him Self lately in; such
strong terms` against the -conclusion of -a-disho-
nourable peace. He was sure that his Honour-
able-Friend would act up to his professions. But '
did he recollect that to commence a-dishonour-
able_negociation vas 'little less reprehensible than
to conclude a dishonourable peace ? Was it pos.:-
sible that hiS Honourable Friend 'Could be-blind
to the sole objact of Napoleon ? Did his Ho-
nourable ' Friend think that the -affairs of the
Peninsula, or o Sweden, -or any other coMpara-
tively minor consideration, prompted his policy
and governed his actions ? Was it not manifest
that itslong grudge was seated in his heart ; for
the gratification of which he. alone
,lived; and
that the real.object of ihis ambition was to des•s
troy the maritime superiority of Eng,larid ? Did
he even-Conceal this object ? By no means. He
had repeatedly avowed it; he had made it the
basis of his treaties with other countries. In his
proposition to us, was there any expression of
a contrary resolution on his part, to abate his
hostility to those just_ rights which we Inherited
from our brave anceStOrs, and which it was to be
hoped we should leave unimpaired •to out poste-
rity ? They were rights which the enemy could
not wrest from us by Near. He (Mr. S.) trusted
.that we should not be wheedled out of them by
negociation. The acquisition of them, however,.
was Napoleon'S sole object. With regard to
those undeniable rights, he should like to ask it
any other nation in Eutope,had it possessed themi.
would have used them -with equal moderation :,
Would the great Emperor himself, had ,be the
power at sea which England possessed, use it
with equal" moderation ? It was a libel false-as
hell to say that Great Britain ever foully • availed
'herself•Of her maritime,supefiority. '" If there
be those," continued- Mr. S. who 'think that
any portion of these rights' might be advan-
tageously, surrendered, I tell them that I for one,
(and-I am sure that lam only echoing the senti-
ments• of, the House, would rather scuttle this
Island of England, and alto* it' •to ,be over-
whelmed by the surrounding ocean-,than would
surrender one iota-of that charter which has " ap-
pended to it-the seal of nature herself; and which
—I speak it with reverence—enjoys the guarantee
of Providence, manifested, in the high glory and
-prosperity of this renowned nation."—To this
point alone, however, were all Napoleon's efforts
directed. He was ,at war with Russia-for no
other cause than that-she Would not cordially join
with him. in attempting the destruction of the
'British Empire. Under theie circumstances he
felt himself imperiously called upon to applaud
the conduct of the British Government, in ire-
fusing to enter into the disc:.ssion of propositions
which were ,evidently Made. with no otlwr view
than to have an--effect on, the politics- of die Ca-
binet of St. Petersburgh. into, the details of those
propositions he 'would not enter. It would:b.
time enough for him to do that after he should
have heard the observations, of
_Honourable
Friend, acid after. the , documents should be laid
on the table. At- present he
:would content him-
self with repeating, his „conviction,- that of all
the hasidiOus propositionS ever made by one
country to another, the late overture from the
enemy was the most so ; and that-the worst con-
sequences must have ensued, had/any disposition
been evinced on the part of. the' British Go-
vernment to entertain' an offer so hollow and in-
sincere. - lie concluded by moving—

" That an humble Address be presented to his Royal High-,
ness the Prince Regent, praying, that he would be graciously,
pleased to order the proper Officers to lay before the House
Copies of all correspondence or communications between the
Duke of Bassano and the Right Hon. Lord Viscount-Castle-
reagh, in the mouth of April last."
Mr. WHITBBgAD rose to second the notion of
his Right Hon_ Friend. .fte observed, that from
the speech of his Right Hon. Friend, those who
bad not been in the House must have supposed
that he (Mr. W.) had preceded him, and had been'
contending, as the basis of s negotiatiOn, for an •
unconditional surrender• of the maritime rights of
Great Britain, for the purpose of laying prostrate

: not only the Bitish -flag,but himself and his coun-
try at the feet of France. But those who were •
present would see that' it was the work of imagi-
nation merely. He had uever intimated such -a ~.
disposition to his Right Hon. Friend, nor had
any conversation which could lead ,hine to form
such a.conclusion. His Opinion was founded upon
some report of what he had stated; for which he
~
(Hr:W.) was not answerable; and the scope of
which his Right, Hon! Friend had 'entirely Mis-
taken. At the shine time he must say, that if thia
country was prepared:to go the length of the opi- '
nions which his 'Right' Hon. Friend had just pro-
-1 amiigated, they _must be prepared for eternal and
I everlasting war. ' With the Ruler of France'it Wits .
inipteeOble to make peace, or to treat foe.l.Leare,
I it such 'doctrines were to be proceeded upon. /Hi; •
sole object Was to overthrow this country, aiat.
I was iiot that the object Of this country as applied`
to•EranCe ? It had been so for the last centurvZ: -,
Long befare the' name 01 the present. Ruler (')f ,
France was known, the- overweening ambitioa
Of..igngland was to destroy France. In her turni; -
France directed her enmity tow'ards the overthrow,'
' of. the maritime polder of England. The object
was conmion and reciprocal. • With respect to the
line of argument taken by, his Right Hon. Friend
upon the letter of the Duke of Bassano, he found
' no sentence derogatory to this countryhe found •
no proposition aiming at the destruction of our
„/
maritime rights—yet those rights were the cause
for complaint all over the globe-. -He would put
it to any Civilian, whether the fact was not, so ,
whether England was 'not abused for-the eau- "
wise of theie rights ? Wit § the atrocious act con'
mitted against Spain (the seizure of the -frigates)
so soon forgOtten ? Was the Copenhagen business
obliterated from therannals of. our history
,? And
was it 'necessary to call fOrth the powerful -elo-
quence of his Right Honourable Friend, to. array}'
in brilliant colours those black deeds ?. Was it
a proper periode..when. the armies of France had
• advanced to-the frontiers of Russia.(There tra ,
a negotiation
atiooing on., said Mr. Sheridan)—Cer-
tainly there was a negotiation going on, but ne-
vertheless Franee Woula not evacuate the'Russian
territories, and on that account the conflict be--
gan, . just as. Russia had concluded the foolish war'
- whiCh she carried On against Turkey. - The 1109-.
Gentleman then noticed" the opportunities which
-in his opinion had been aelforded for entering into
a negotiation, which hail; been lost—the variou''
flags,pf truce . sent over by France, • and the ail-'
savers to the se propositions. He :knew that on
one occasion our flag had been fired at, but that:
circumstance was -,purely accidental, and -aft -
ample apidogy was afterwards made. Some -
of those, propositions were, as' he understood,
sincere. With respect to the last propositions
he thought the -Noble Lord had acted iMpru"-
dently in retiirning the answer which, he did ; anie
were it not % for that sentence in the letter ea
the Thike of Bassano, in which he talked about, ,
the dynasty of Spain, the negociation would. have
been entered into. The Honourable Gentle-mar'
then, at soine length, contended for the necessitY
of negotiation, and that this was ,as -fav,ourable ..
an Opportunity as could' be afforded. He !was not
-disposed tocommute either the dignity or honour
of the country; but :he thought Ouvernan44
.! .
should have stated the terms upon whigh they
would be inclined to negocifite, making the eal" ;,i
isting authorities in Spain parties to the nego4' t
elation. He condemned persevering in the Fin'.
..ciple of eternal war. That principle was repro-
bated in 180, and those friends with whom his'
Right Hon. Friend then acted, considered peace
of such vital importance, that they proceeded to
open a negociation. In so doing they met the
approbation of his, Right Hon. Friend.- Ad-
verting to the embassy to Russia, he observed, ' .
' that before, the arrival of Lord Cathcart,' St.
Petersbnrgh might be in possession of-the French,
anti then his mission would be useless. With re-
spect to the war with America, he thought the
_war would be more fatal to Great Britain than to.
- America. He -wished to hear from our financiers/
,and especially from the Right Hon. Gentlernall
' (Mr. Vansittart), where the supplies were to be
obtained for currying on- the war ? ,
Lord CASTLEREAGH did not mean to oppose the
motion of the Right Hon. Gentleman. A great
part of the observations which he otherwise should'
have troubled-the House with, were rendered un-
necessary by the speech of the Right Son. Gen'
delimit. With respect to the observations of th'P
Hon. Gentlemen
,(Mr. Whitbread), on the answer
-given to the proposition from France, and which
the lion. Gentleman had characterized as an ab-
solute rejection of all 'overtures for peace, he would
'pet • it- to the judgment of the ttouse, whether .
such Vas in 'their opinion the result of the al'
sever ? Whether his Majesty's Government was
not- bound to give the answer which they had ~
given ? Whether they would not have, forfeited
the good 'opinion; and deseeted the contempt of
the allies of England, if they had neglected tcl.
proceed upon negociation under an idea of the ne- '
cessity of keeping strict faith with her allies ? But
in contending
sfor-the propriety, under. existing
circumstanoes, of sendingsuch an answer, he shonio
not, he hoped,, be considered as' wishing to con-
tend for the principle of eternal war ; the House,
he was certain; did not understand the Right 1-I°n•
Gentleman (Mr. Sheridan) as supporting any such
principle. He was prepared to admit to the-Right
Hon, Gentleman, that the views a France, as di, .
rected to this country,• were those of a great rivu`
, • i
power ; such must he the character of the el reacl
Government, in the present day, even though a
Bourbon should be on the Throne. Though he Nots
uotdisposed to contend for interminable war, Ye
if'his Majesty's Government were to adopt the
feelings which seemed to pervade the mind of the
Iton. Gentleman for the last twenty years'--feel."
ine-Ps which induced hini to place confidence in the
i propositions and sincerity of the French Govern-
ment-a-he surely could not be expected to embrace
this moment as the best for success in the result of
any negociation for peace. The Hon. Gent. did,
not expect that his opinions, as to the suppose('
sincerity of the French Government, were to 11
taken as _arguments and reas ;nett upon. It woulo
' be recollected that the French Ruler was in the
practice of sending overaropositions similar in ef-
fect to the one under discussion whenever ke •
was about to place himself at the head of his arina't,
for the purpose of extending his conquests. 130
the Hog eGentleman wh i was so friendly to ocg°-

ciati°ns -Might have reasoned on the subject, and
.referred to a period when those with whom he
..ttsually acted were in the confidence of his Majes-
j He then Might have Stated that the Earl of
../..,rsanderdale was sent to Paris to negociate ; that
parte was on the eve of his departure for
hras'la_,- that, he left the Noble Lord at Paris,
liended his army, and the negociation terminated,
the Hon. Gentleman had reasoned neon the
polio of opening negotiations for. peace, he
Wright,
.lay reference to the period of. the NOble
;rd's journey to Paris, have obtained so much
'illustration of the policy of the measure. With
,‘sPect, however, to .the present proposition,.
the French Government had not stated their
exact meaning. In the answer, his Majesty% Go-
'eminent had distinctly stated their readineSs to
Iteeeile to treat on all. the other propositions. con-
tainedin the letter of the French Minister, pro-
'lLled that the meaning of the whole Of the letter
was completely understood, and that the treaty
''null be entered into with safety to the allied in-
terest. But what-did this prOposition state ? the
!visit to treat, and the declared basis of the treaty
was the recognition, by England, of the dynasty.
of. Spain. What dynasty was meant Undoubt-
!'lly that of Joseph, King of Spain. To have
treated upon such a basis would have been con-
trary to the stipulations, which in honour and
lood faith bound this country to the Government
The Honouralsle Gentleman, by de-
'ring the acceptance of the proposition unex-
Plained by the French Government, would con-1r
15te,l his Majesty's Ministers to recognise two au-
thorities in Spain, namely, Ferdinand the Seventh,
'
JnSeph Buonaparte. Viewing the negociation
.th a question•of policy, did he mean to contend that
ere-was any thing in the State of Russia, Spain,
r Portugal, to authorise the throwing loose the
te'
estian ? When the alliance with Spain 'vas
Pon the basis, that the Sovereign authority was
reested in one House, and the proposition was for
Ggnizing
.-it in another, would it redound to
theet honour of the British charlcter ? Would it
itise that character in the estithation of the world,
°r S tat esman-like qualities, to tell the people of
bPain, " We treat for peace upon the recognition
tit," Ilelv dynasty i" Would not such conduct be
qt,i,° g the apple of discord to Spain, when the
ii,„-`,l°n was one which could only be left 'for the
lie'slon of the Government Of that 'country ? The
ta°nourable Gentleman had.. talked too. of the
lierdiness in sendiog out Lord .Cathcart.- But vas
sure the Emperor of Russia, pending the.nego-
C4ti°°s virith France, was inclined to have' Lord
ii'C'theart The Noble:Lord condemned that.po-
ij,. as an unwise one, which was continually di-
pea to
:try the enemy with negoCiations for
tlidaee' He denied that the answer was not can-
tle and frank, and such as was liable to be consi-
vereti wa.nting'in terms of conciliation. The
thrY admission of the Honourable Gentleman that
ktie Proposition with respect to the new dynasty,
rrt that it should be in the person erf Joseph
401„"aParte, was complimentary to Ministers, by
11,ruting to them a foresight. , At the same time
a., was disposed to admit that Joseph could not
Th'a'n Without the:British arms were withdrawn.
e great objection to the withdrawi of the
‘l,l
104 es from tile Peninsula was, that it would tend
chill the exertions of Russia, and degrade the
w:tacter
au.A reputatiOn Of this-country. 'Unless
4,,were prepared to allow the dynasty, any ar-.
40dgeutent of a ,pacific nature would be illusory
11 dangerous to the interests of the country.--
44' trusted that the country would not collect. frOm
tin' Part
of the -proceedings that Ministers were
A,wrillills to treat for peace.
'r• tinTcsuNsost recommended, Oat every op-
pa
rtunity should be affordedto obtain peace. He
ttlnegyrized the conduct of the Russians, and,.
thaught that if proper steps-had not been taken by
t,: British Government torevent the war be-
bi„een France and Russia, Ministers were culpa-
gr. Other efforts he thought might be made with
h. eat effect, if we did not lose opportunities.. He
pt" serry that the papers did not give the Em-
Li °r of France his title, and expressed his opi-
ct°, that no Conqueror of ancient or modern.
e was more deserving power than the Emperor
A ,anee orl3 . had committed fewer outrages.—
- was the greatest Conqueror that ever ap-
tkitred, so perhaps he had' more to answer for ;
heont spoke :here of private atrocities, which
il be less charged upon him, he would repeat
' tie tuan upon any other Conqueror. He thought
tutlvere yet. capable of 'making a gigantic effort;
not in the way in which the war was at pre-
tent carried on.
LO
t 0 rd.CASTLEREAGH said, that so far from en-
_
og Russia, the language held out to her
of this Government was that of precaution, not
Ivaexeitement ; butlie thought that when Russia
tos disposed to make an effort, we Should not be
octant to assist. ,
CANNING Observed, that the -state of the
Ouse, the period of the Session, and the clear-
sess of the question itself, would haVe been suffi-
tiont to disincline him from-making any observa-
Ishn.s: if it 'were not for 'sonic strong stimuli with
t. clt Gentlemen sought to change the disposi-
befit of the House. 'lt had been his intention,
o °re he sat doWn, to put a question to'Alini.sters
t a point alluded to by the Hon. Gentleman who
Pok •
last• ll4, • The question, however., had been sa-
ti
y anticipated by the statement of the
tx °le Lord ; he was indeed quite sure, before the
qtl3'al'ation that this country could never have
ip ere(' its policy so far from the time 'that he was
tria:3lllee, as to induce a Power, situated like,
110 ` of Russia, to commit herself to a .rash and
tliaPfeless contest with Buonaparte. He was sure
V,: it was our policy. now, as it was when he
be s in the Government, rather to inculcate for-
aranee, as a means of continuing the old PoWers,
tf Zl•rder that they thightexist as so many pledges
tve,"e future tranquility of the world; and that
111,1: of should be made, and every disposition
siOkated, which could operate against the pos-
liincie effects of the system adopted by that most
%vas and merciful of conquerors-7-(a laugh) . He
,t,i'are that the Government of . thisi country
.411t,T not only use the language of caution to
\varta, but would tell her, that to engage in a
Hess °P°ll the principle of the old wars was mad-
tioo ',and unless it could be made completely.na-
ona', the result* must be disappointment. !This
44i-trY had not rendereditself responsible by 'its
ee, and he hoped it would not render itself

PRICE OF STOCKS YESTERDAY.
Bank Stock, 2101 India Bunt, 10s. 11s. dis.
Navy 5 per'Cent. 87iii - South Sea Stock, 60f • '
Irish s,per Cent. ' • Excheq. Bills,l. per clay, 4s.
4 pvr Cent. 73 72 73{ , 'es. dis.
3.per Cent. Red. 56iii Ditto, 34d. per day, 3s. Is. pr.
:3 per t,:ent. Cons. 56ial Oumium, 1i 2 pr. -.
Bank L. Ann. 15,1-16th i 1-16 Imperial 3 per Cent. 55a
India Steck, Cons. for Opening, 67411 •

FRO THE LONDON GAZETTE, SLILY 21.

"(VAR DEPARTMENT-.
Dqivning-street, July 20, 1812.

Dispatches of which the following are Extracts, and a Copy,
have been this day received at Lord Bithurst's Office, ad-
dressed to the Earl of Liveriimil, by General Earl of
lington, dated 25th and BOtliof June 1812.
Salamanca, June 25) 1812►
- - - - -

-Marshal Marmont collectedhis army on the Douro
between the 16th and 19th inst. with the excep-
tion of General Bonnet's division, which 1 believe
is still in 4 the Asturias,- and some small garrisons,
and he Moved forwarr from Puente Subneo on
the 20th. -1 formed the allied army, with-the ex-
ception of the troops engaged in the operations
against the forts in Salanaanca, on the heights ex-
tending from the neighbourhood of Villares to
Morisco ; and the advaheed posts of. the cavalry
and infantry retired upon the army in goOd order,
and With Out material loss. The enemy remained
in our front on that night and during the 21st,
and during that night they established a post on
our right flank, the possession of which by them
deprived us .of an advantage. which might even-_
tually be of importance,
.\
I therefore 'requested Lieutenant-General Sir
Thomas Graham to attack them in die post on
the 22d, with the troops on the right: which he
did with those of the 7th division, which were the
reserve of the right, under the command of Ma-
jor-General HOp.e and Major=General de Berne-
witz.

The enemy were driven from the ground ilme-
`diately with considerable loss : our troops con-
ducted themselves remarkably well in this affair,
which took place in the view of every man of fioth
armies.

The enemy retired during that night ; and on the
following eveui ng,they posted themselves with their
right on the heights near Cabesa Vellesa, and
their left on the TOrmes at Iluertii; their centre,
at Aldea Rubia. ;The object of the enemy in this
•movement being to; endeavour to communicate
with the garrisons in the forts of Salamanca by,
the left of the Tormes, I changed the front of the
army, and placed the right at St:Martha, where
there is a ford over the Tonnes, and the b. avanc-
ed posts at Aldea Lingua. .
1 sent Major7Genetal BOck's brigade-of heavy
Dragoons across the Tormes, in order to observe
the passages of the river.
The enemy crossed the Tormes at Huerta.about
two o'clock of the morning of the 24th, in consi-
derable numbers of cavalry, infantry, -and..artil--;
lery; and there was every appearance of'4"ge-
neral movement in that direction. The conduci-
of Major-General BoCli.'s Dragoons was conspi-
cuously good upon this occasion ; they, did every •
thing in their power to make known the, enemy's
movement, and opposed their 'advance vigorously,
under many disadvantages, in order to atforatime
for the dispositions necessary to :be made: on-the
occasion.

AS/soon as I Was_ certain that the enetiiy had
crossed the Tormes,. I requested Lieut. Oen. Sir
T: Graham to•eross that river with the Ist and 7th
divisions ; and I sent offer Major-General Le-Mar-
chant's brigade of cavalry, and I concentrated the
remainder of the army. between Morisco and,Ca-
•brerizas, keeping the advanced pOsts still at "Al-
den Lingua. At about noon the enemy advanced
ar far as Calvarissa de Abaxo ; but, observing the
disposition made for their reception, they retired ,
again in the afterno6n to cross the Tonnes to
fluerta ; and they have since reinaiped in the po-
sition,which they occupied on the 23d. - •
The siege of these forts has not 'advanced with
the rapidity which I expected ; although froth the
pains taken, and the expence incurred in their
thratinetiOn, I was' prepared to meet with some
difficulties, and provided an equipment according-
-1y; the diffieultieS are of a formidable nature, and
the forts,- three in number, each defending the
other, are very strong, although -not of a regular
construction.

We have breaches
.open in the convent of St.
Vincente, WhiCh is the principahwork ; pmt these
cannot, be attacked in security till we shall have
possession of fort St. Cayetano. Major-General
Clinton made an attbnkpt to carry'that place by
storm, on the night_of the 23d instant, the gorge
having been considerably 'damaged by. the tire of
our artillery.; This attempt unfortnnately.failed,
and I am concerned to add, that Major-Ge-
nerahßowes Was killed. He was so eager for the
success of the enterprise; that he had gone for-
ward with the storming party, which consisted
of a part of his brigade,. and was wounded ; and
after. his first wound was, dressed, he returned again
ko the attack, and received a second wound which
illed him. Our loss in officers and men was like-
wise considerable..

By a letter from Lieutenant-General Sir R. HUI,
of the 22d, I learn that
.General Dropet had, been
considerably reinforced from Andahtsia, since the
defeat of General Ballasteros at Bornos; iu the
beginning of the month, and had advanced as, far
as Almendralejo and Villa Franca ;, and Lieut.-:'
General. Sir R. Hill had concentrated his troops.

General Ballasteros •had sustained a severe los's,
in his action at Bornosi on the Ist of .11,nie; ' and
I understand' that he retired to the neighbour-
hood of Gibraltar. •

In the North, General Santinildes, under the
direction of- General Castanos, haYinvested 3-Is-
torga with the. Gallician army, and is_ about to
attack that place ; in which operation I. imagine,
that he cannot be interrupted.
The Guerillas are in unmolested possession of
all parts of the country, and the. enemy's. weak
and scattered garrisons are cut off from all com-
munication with each other, or with the country.l

Y. s. I inclose a return of the killed, N.vounded,
and missing, from the I.6th to the 24th instant
inclusive, (for which see our Pg.per of yesterday).

Puente la Pena, June 30, 1812.

The ammunition to enable us to carry on the
attack of the forts having arrived at Salamanca in
the afternoon of the 26th, the fire was immediate-
ly recomdnenced upon 'the gorge of the redoubt of
it. Cayetano, in which a practicable breach was
effected at about ten o'clock .on the 'morning' of
the 27th, and we had succeeded nearly about the
same time in setting fire to the buildings in the large
fort of St. Vincente, by the fire from which-the
proach to St. Cayetano by its gorge was defended.
Being at Salanianca at thi# moment, I gave di,
re'cliOns• that the forts of St, Cayetano and La

Merced Should be stormed; but some little dcla•,
occurred, in consequence .of the• Commanding
Officers of those forts in. the first instances and
afterwards the Commanding-Officer of St.-.Vin-
tente having- expreSsed a desire to capitulate
after the lapse of a certain number of hours.
As it Was obvtous that these :propositions
were made in order to gait's, time, till the fire
of St. Vincente should ,be extinguished, I raliSed
to listen to any terms, unless the forts should be
instantlysurrendered ; and having found that the
Commanding Officer of St. Cayetano, who was
the first to offer to surrender, was, entirely de-
pendent upon the
.Governor Of St. Vincen,te, and
could not venture to carry into execution thoca-
pitulation which- he had offered ,to make, I. gas'e
directions that this fort and That of La ,liercQd
might be stormed forthwith. -.
Thesooperations were effected in the most gal-
lant manner by detachments. of the Gth division,
under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Davis,
of the 36th regiment,- under thedirection of Major
General Clinton. - The trOopsentere;l the fort of
St. Cayetano by the gorge; arid escaladed that of
La Merced ; and I am happy to add that 0n,.. loss
was but

The Gorenior of St. Vincente then'sent out a
flag to notify: the surrender of that fOrt on, Or
terms I had offered hire; vii.• the garrison
march out with the honours of. war.;_ to, be pri-
soners of .war ;,.and the officers -to retain .their
peisonal Military baggage, and the soldiers' their
knapsacks ; anduotwithanding that the 9th regi-
ment of qacadores had actually -stormed one of
the outworks of St. Vineententwere- in possc4-
sioir 'of it, 1 .deemed it ,expedient. to accept the
fort, by capitulatioD on those terms,. and to stop
the attack. „

. _
I have already informed your thlt
11lajor-Generale Clinton commanded the attack
-against these forts, which was carded on with
great vigour and ability ; and .he'mentions' in
-Strong terms of commendation, the Conduct of the
General Officers,
_Officers, and troops einployed
under his command, 'particularly Colonel. Hinde,
of the 32d,. Lieutenant-Colonel Davies of the
36th, Captain Owen, of 61st, Brigade-Mkj-Or
Hobart, and Ensign Newton, of the 32d regi-
giment,..who diStingnished himself 'in the attack
of the night of the 23d. inst. and volunteered
lead the advanced party in the attack of the 27th.
He likeWise.merqions, in strong terms, Lieut..-
Colonel May; -who commanded the artillery under
the direction of Lientenant,Colonel Framingham,
andthe Officers and soldiers .of the Royal Portu-
-guese artillery under' his command ; 'Lieutenant-
COlonel Burgdyne, Lieutenant-Reid, and the Of-
ficers of the Royal Engineers _' • and Major Thompr-
-son, of the 74th regiment, who 'acted as an -engi-
,neer during tilese operations.
The enemy Ithd been employed for nearly three
-years in Constructing these works,• but with in-
creased activity for the last eight or nine Months

. .
A large exp-nce had been incurred ; and these
works:, sufficiently garrisoned by about 800 men.
'and armed with thirty pieces. of artillery, were of
a nature to render it quite irupossible" to take
'them, excepting by a, regular attack ; and it' wag
obvious that'llie eneiny relied upon their strength,
.Aild upon their being sufficiently garrisoned and
armed, as they had left in St. Vincente large
depots of clothing and military stores of every de-
scription.
I was mistaken in my estimate of the extent of
the means which would 'be necessary to subdue
these foils ; andl was obliged to send to the,rea
for a fresh supply of ammunition ; this necesity
occasioned "a delay of six days. The enemy
withdrew their garrison from Alba de Tormes as
soon as they heard of the fall of the forts of Sala

manca.
-The' operations against the Sorts of Salamanca
were carried on' in sight of Marshal Marmout's
army, which remained in its poSition, with the
right' at Cabeza Vellosa, and the left-at Huerta,
till the night of the 27th ingtantovhen they brol. e
up, and retired in three columns towards the river
Douro ; one of them directing its march upon
Toro; and the others upon Tordesillas. .The al-
lied army broke up the following day, and arc
this day encamped upon Guarena.
By accounts from Lstremadura of the 26th inst.
'it appears that the enemy still continued in the
positions which they had occupied in Extremadura.
I have not yet heard that General Santocildes has
commenced his attack, upon Astorga. General
Cabiera is at Benevente with his division; and I
understand there are-Spanish troops in Leon. I
have received no late intelligence from the South.
I inclose a return of the killed and wounded of
the- army since my last dispatch, and a return of
the prisoners taken in the forts of Salamanca. -
-Return of Killed, Wounded, and Missing of the Anny under
the Command of his Excellency General the Earl of Wel-
.lington; K.B. in the Siege of the Forts of St. Vincente, St.
'Cayetano, and La Merced, at Salamanca, from the 25th to
the' 27th July, 1812, inclusive.
General Total of British and Portuguese Loss-,4 ensign, 4
rank and,file, killed ; 1 lieutenant, 19 rank and file, wounded.
Names of Officers killed aild wounded.-32d Foot, Ensign
Fitzgerald; killed. 1 lth Foot, Lieilt. Gethen, slightly
wounded. -

(Sighed) JOHN WATERS, Lieut. Col. and A. A. G.
Return of Killed, Wounded, and Missing of the Army unit.-T
' thee Command 'of his Excellency General the Earl of Wel-
lington K. B. in severalaffairs with the Enemy, froth the
23a to the P..lsth June, 1812, both-days inclusive.
General Total-4 rank and file, 7 horses, killed; 2 rank and
file, 6 hyrses, wounded ; 5 rank and-filetnissing.
(Signed) JOHN WATERS, Lieut. Col. and A. A. G.
General Total British Loss, from the 16th to the 27th of June,
• 1812, inclusive.
KILLED-.-2 C4taiDS, 3 Lieutenants, l'Ensign, 5 serjeants,
1- drumther, 98 rank and. file, 28 horses-.
Wou N DED-i4 General Staff,l- Lieutenarit-Colithel, 1, Major,
8 Captains, 10 Lieutenants, 4 Ensigns, 14 serjeants; 7 drum-
mers, 317-rank and file, 51 horses. •
Mtssix.n-2 Lieutenants, 11 rank and file, 5 horses.
General Total Portuguese Loss, from the 16th to the 27th of
June, 1812, inclusive.
KILLED-5 rank and file. --
WouNDEO-2 Captains, 1 Ensign, 16 rank and file.
General Total British and Portuguese Loss, from the 16th to
the 27th of June; 1812, inclusive.
. KILLED-2 Captains, 3 Lieutenants, 1 Ensign, 5 serjeants,•l
drummer, 103 rank and file, 28 horses.
WouNDED—.I General Staff, '1 Lieutenant-Colonel, .1 -
jor, 10 Captains, 10 Lieutenants, 5 Ensigns, 14 serjeants,
drummers, 833 ranktind file. .
Missixo-2 Lieutenants, 11 rank and file : 5 horses. _
RetUrn of Priseuers taken in the Forts of St. Vincente, St.
C:ayetano, and La Merced, at ;Salamanca, on the V:h
June, 1812.

Total-1 Governor, 15 Captains, 12 Lieutenants, 660 non,-
commissioned officers : and; privatesir: 10 civil branch, s ser-
*ants, • not soliers.
Grand total-706.
(Signed) ' JOHN WATERS, Li.eut4ol. and A. A. Gen. •