The Sun.
London, England, 1810-03-31 00:00:00

a
ii

~• ,

HOUSE OF COMMONS,

PRWAY, MARCH 30. .
LORD VISCO•UNT WELLINGTON.

SMITIIFIEtII MARKET

SIR GEORGE BARLOW.

• _formation, while it would rob hitn of the means
doing justice to his own charailer and c,nduci ;
least let them not consent to • the. suppression of
ii-einformation which his dispatches would be found
to contain.
. •
Lord-GtiEY pursued nearly the same line of argil,
ment as that insisted upon by Lord Grenville. He,
noticed an iticonsistencil in the opinions deli+ et:et' on
a former occasion, reTeCting Gen. Ch-esta, --by-ttr
Marquis. When defending the condu6l of
Lord Wellin ton itventering Spain, great stress was
laid by 'the N:tble Mtarqhis on the distingu shed is •
lents-of that General, and otifhe excellent discipline
and appointment of- the Spanish army Under his
6,tuniitnd. Athl indeed after the d:•,!strticrion of the
r-c-,,ttlat Spanish troops tuider Genera! Catiatio,, it
was 110 Common nierit to collect, organize, 'arid
c‘tplitte, -3 new artily out of the ruins of ihoSe, that
were disp.rsed. .Sach, -however, was the merit of
General Coesta—but now, it seems, that he has no '
I.llorit at, all, when it no-longer can serve; any pur-
pose to suppose he hes: The .Noble Earl also (.4)-
- .4-era ed Iliat a different -reason was rimy. ascribed for
-thee: delay in the march of General" Vene:,aS to tlr
Formerly the delay was ascribed to a prasi-.
fforn- the Junta that he: should not stir.
.:Now it .appears to have been Occasioned by informa-
tion tec!:iyed from Sir A. WellesleY of his ineaPa-
. city to move Rona want .ot provisions and the means
- of: transport. ' The Noble Earl concluded by denim--;
• ing _the mischief that ,must ace: tie froM the diselo-
. sore of fans which would indhce the enemy to
abandon that line of humane treatment of their pri-
soners which was so conspicuously displayed towards
the British troops lett behind at Talavera, and sti-
mutate them to,tesort to-exceSses in retaliation in-
' compatible With the-practice of civilized warfare.
The Marquis of WELLESLBY obseiyed, that" the
Papers now before their-LordshipS referred to a dif-
ferent circumstance itythe conduct of GeneralVene-
gas from that which the'Noble Earl supposed. The
• eircutnstance now,alluded to was subsequent to that
connened with the simultaneous movement of Ge-
• Petal Vetiegas I,dith Sir A. Wellesley.
The luestion was then put on the motion of Lord
Grenville, and negativedwithout a division.
Adjobrned till Monday. •

The SPEAKER infornied, the. House that he bad
received it Letter from Lientenant• General Lord
Viscount Wellington, dated VizeO, 6th :March,
1g t o,' in answer to the Vote of Thanks •of this
House, conveyed to him by the Right Hon. Gentle-
Anan, in a Letter of the date of the -2d Febrn iry.—.
The Gallant and Noble Lord expresses his ackn,o.e-
ledgments for the letter, the contents of, which be
:states that he communicated to the Officers and
troops ender his Command=that he enterLiins
h g:. ensc ut gratiuide for the hoi,our contemd on
which sentiinent the Otlicees Troops
c;,ncur, aid than he should persevere hi that line of
condtict which had'catled forth the Thanks of Par-
liament, by a zealot .di,chartie of his military
dtities. The answer of the gable LOrd was or-

deiA to b. enure-.t on the JotirtiAs of- the_lionse.

'Mr. Mra.Listi presc,lkted a Petition from the Trus-
tees ottlie-Hampstead Thad against the Bill now
petiddig in Pat-Ha-meta 'foe removing Smithfield
',Ain

On the riaOtion ofSir CHARLES PRICE, the second
matting of the above 13111 was ordered tor Thurs-
day Petitio6 having been laid on the table,.
SUPPLY.

Mr. IYlytypow moved the -Rouse to go.into a
Committee of Supply. The. amount of Exchequey
Billie Oingtending, and of monies 'lssued Under ad-
dresses, not made good by 'Parbament; were reh;r-
. 'red Co the said Cornmittee. The Hon. Gentleman
in the Comiriittee Molted; that the sum of 15,1651:
3s. 6d, be granted to Make good so much money
issued pursuant ,to addreses ; and that 1,600;0001.
be granted 'for ExaeqUer services. The ReSolu-
tions having been :greed to-, the House resumed,
'and the Report was ordered for Monday.
The Motion respeeling the Salaries of the
Judges of Ireland and Scotland was postponed till
Monday, on the. Motion of the Chancellor of the
Ex4dit quer.

Mr. CaE.Eyiivrose to ask the. Right Honourable
• 'Gentleman opposite, whether it was in the contem-
plation of. the India Company and the Board of Con-.
trota to recal Sir George Barlow: from Madras_; be-
cause if no such intention was manifested, he should
give notice of a motion on the subjea,, , . •
The CLIANCELOR of the .EXCHEQUER rose to
"ans‘ter the Hon. Gentleman (but the Right Hon.
Gentleman spoke across the.table. in so low a tOne,
tliat ue could dot.dis.tinttly hear him) ; we tinder 7
stood him express his surprise that
.the_ Honour,
able Gentleman-should entertain anidea 'of the kind,
nod tOassure him thatsuch, a step was not in the
conteo:Vation at the GOvernment •
•• Mr...City.6;a4.then observed, that, 'understanding
Do such Stets
' tite,n,_heshou,l‘t on this day
r
to night. mov. .efor Papers respcaing the late %laot
tnnate trausattions in, the Nradras
Mr. G!SA:,,l4'natiertaig to .some observations be
tad in 'de 5011 e tint: Sip= upon the loteport ut the
Committev ot,li quiry respecting transattions in the.
Sick llUrt Department, wished to be informed
he then understood the fact to be) if any prose-
ctit ion had been or was still going on against Dottor
Mayne foOis pecuniary defalcations in that depart-
;
•
Mr., CnortaNre,plivd, that it happened to him to
I:.ilon.v that the tact was as the Hon. Gentleman sup-
. vii;:(1, a prosecution had_ been commenced against
the Doctor and.,was going on very lately. ,
The foartn, filth, and sixth Reports of the Com-
-mittee on the Irish endowed Schools were brought
up, and 'ordered to be printed.
$ message front the Lords announced that their
Lordship:, had passed a Bill,for making a Settlement
upoil Lady Essex by Lord Essex, to which they de-
stral the concurrence of this House.—The Bill was
read a first time:,
ADIOURNED DEBATE ON THE EXPEOITION T-0
•

THE scuELLYr.
Oriler of the DAy for resuming the debate
otl the Ekpedilion to Waldheren having been read,
fir Tu.ostAs rFurvr,oN rose to offer his opinion s

. . . .
- , •
upon the iubjeEt. - The Honourable, Baronet ob.,
served, that afterahe very long and able discn.sion
which thi4 subject had undergone,_ be should only be .
wasting the time of
.that • House were he to detain '
then) long. It cimild not be supposed that he could
add any thing.to .the arguments already -adduced in.
favour of the Resolinions of the Noble-Lord nor '
t hat .he could a naaLy aeattleeaideneeawith lietier.effett
t ban -tra-t Noble Lord had done. It would be ne-
cessary, hoWever, before he stated hii opiniohs-up-
on the great ,question, to premise, that the restric-:-
tions attached upon all thelinisiers, and: did .raft
connect with diem the. heads of the military part o
the Expedition—in short, that censure was iinputable
to those persons who composed the Catiinetthat
every Than N4ho voted on that occasion was:equally
responsible for the bad success of the Expedition.--,
In considesing the question, it appeared to: him as
brarrching„intO three heads : First„ what was the ob-
jeCt of the Expedition ? Secondly., What means bad
beep used te cal ry the objeM int; etrea? anti Thirdly-,
whether Ministers had been justified in their endea,
. voupt to attain it ? With respect to the first ques-
tion" much stress had beet, laid by Gentlemen oppo-
Site on theithportance of the obj,•6l—the possession
of the Wand ; and 'it had been : stated by a Right
ion. Gent. (the Ex-Secretary for Foreign` Affairs,)
That the Austrian GoVernment considered it of high
iropOrtance, as making a diver-SIM( in their favour ?
but what rand die ,- apers, on the table in that respeat
W4y, those,paperg she yed that the Right Honour-.
able Gentaanan's assertion was tontaded in error, for
• they proved the contrary. They suageated a plan
that fight have had. the effeci of making a diver- -
skin in favour of Austria,: but Ministers. did not at-
tend to the suggestion. It was asked by the Aus -
trim\ Government that
_a British force of cavalry
and-artiller,' might a6t in Sially:and ' the Medi!er-
rapean. Minis:erg' objea, lie(vcvera was to assail
(as they , stand in answer) the French tetritoriet,
and to "create a diversion, and with this • vie a
. the sent the. largest expedition that ever quitted
the shores of England to the Island of Walcheren.
It had been stated by a • gut ant General (Cra-w- ,
ford); that in .so doing. the atiee tion-of at ne :French
war diverted,' and a great part of theirforce was
dtaix-n from-the Dauube ; he hal alsb irgated, that
if the •British fierce had been sent to toe North of
Germany the loss would have'been very great. Did -
he mean to say 'that the. numbers of killed. and
wounded would 'have been greater than those on the
Sick iiSt of W'ulcheren ? . So far from the expedi„
, don having drawn off . the etioiny7sdOrce-frofti.the
Danube, the force in that quarter was increased..
The Hon. Baronet in cosidering the objna-of the
,expedition, thought it
.was• but just to take into esti-
. illation the risk That Was run, and to see whether'
that risk was :.commensuote with the object.. Tile
object Was to destroy the
.arsenals and ',basin at
Flinching ; then came the quest* as to the means
s employed to secure that object. Mini4ierg had cert.
Stilted the Opinions oitive General Officers, and the
concurrent opinions of - those military chara:aers
'were, that in attempting to accomplish the 'object
great i:isk was-crewed. It was not a little extraor-
dinary, when, that in these. consultations, recourse
• was not had to the opinion of Lord Chathaat, nor to
Sir Eyre Coote.. Was it not singular that Ministers
should not deign to consult the Pirst and. Second in
a ComMandol,this great Expedition, the life and soul
of it, on whoin every thing Was to 'depend ? The
' Hon. Baronet then referred to the evidence of Sir
"Dataid •Dandas; to shew, that- at• the tittle of the
. projected Expedition, out of the army of 105,000
men, a firce of 15,000 could not be mustered to
send to accomplish the object of, taking the ships in
the harbour, and yet my,
.Lord Castlereagh desired
: that secrecy should be. Observed, for on the smallest
alarm, the enemy would withdraw their -ships into
the harbour, andago up to Flushing. At that time
it was known to the Noble Lord that. wenty ships
had got out and were at Antwerp, therefore the ob-
ject of the Expedition, for the ships were gone, and
- consequently were out of the reach of capture;
What was the evidence of Sir Richard Strachan,
who reltictantly came forward, to be employed in
the Expedition ; that gallant Officer had told Min-
seers that be did not like the intelligence they
' had received, and upon which they Were going
'to send so large a force 'out of the country;
they did not know any • thing, of the place ;they
were about to attack. The Hon. Baronet stated,
that he had been in WalcheretOnd that any person
" could ascend the steeple. of the chuuch at Middle---'
burgh, hang out a handkerehief, and in week-
-19,000 soldiers might be marched from France to
the 'assist ince of-the people of the Island. Sir R. -
' Strachan had informed Ministers, that though they
might take Flushing, there was no chance of keep-
ing it ; he bad also desired to know whether they
Were aware that it. was necessary to have pilots
for the ships,',One in each ; it bad been proved they
were not, for only one pilot Was in the whole Sept.
The Hon. Gentleman said, Sir Home Popham; too,
recommended an early departure in order that the
' Ex`pedition might arrive before the unhealthy season
came on, and he, too, urged the absolute necessity,
of having pilots. After these salutary admonDions,
what did the Noble Lord? Why he sent out a fleet
1 of upwards of thirty,Aail of the line, the best equip-
ped, with the exception of pilots, that ever acid,
the command of which was given act, a Noble
Lord whom ,he would not 'speak . ill of,, btu' of
whose apPointment from one end of the country
to the other, general expressions of surprise were ex-
cited. The Noble Commander, ignoratit'Of the si-
tuation of the plaCe, he was destined to proceed
.against, was obliged fo acknowledge that- faait ; lid
did not even' know that`there was. an arsenal pro-
tetled by grins, nor a dock-yard; he knew nothing
of Fort Lillo, nor of Lielkenshoek; in short;that
he did not know that on his arrival lie sliculd ',b.;
fain any thing. The Naval Commander was not
acquainted ‘iath the Channel. Would it not be said
that under these circumstances great responsibility,
attached to Ministers ? The Hon. Baronet then pro-
ceeded to make some observations' upon the deduce
lions ftoin the force, in the event of their occupying
the different places in. the. Island,' in order to
spew that our force would be so detached as
not to be able to cope with the enemy, whose
force on the i 1 th August-, at. Breda, Bergen-Op-
-Zoom, and its - vicinity,: amounted to upwards of
26,090, .ef which number 10,000 were regular
troops,' the remainder conscripts.. Under these cure
eumstances, he thought •LortiChatharri acted wisely
in calling a-consultation of General,GifiCers upon the
necessity of evacuating the place, as the Climate was

.so unhealthy, and the ski; daily increasing. Siir=lti- •
.olrard Stradian had written home, on. thet9thof
'.oetriher, stating,--.that it . would be thaadYisable to
retain the Island any longer: It had' betm said by a
Right H. Gentleman, that though LordChathamn
arrived in .England on the .t 4th September, 'atid
Isl.:Md. was retained till the 19th October, we kept.
-for At is-:
for Count Stadion, the Austrian Minister, com-
plained in bider terms of the usage his Court had ry-
-ceived in not sending a force into the N rth of Ger:
many instead of Walcheren. Ministers could there-
,fo?e hate no object in contemplation, but to conti-
nue a prospect that was hopeless of success: The
Eiipeditinn,:,he believed; originated in the Nobkt
. Lord's ,(Castlereagh) unfortunate predilection for
evnteing the military spirit- and.the martial character •
of ,Greirt -13rioin, • which, it per.ievered in, ,
infallibly, in his opinion; ruin the country. The
Ruler of France 'surelyhod never experienced so
Much joy, as, in seeing -the martial spirit of this.
.-country buried in the pestilential vaults of Walche-
ren, at the experce of so Many thhusand liveS.- If the
Noble Lord had joined the 39,000. brave men sent
out in this expedition to the, 28,000-under:General
Wellington, and brdered them to, a& in the :Penin-
sula, Ike should haVe had
.sorne hopes, and was sure
the Noble Lord could not have dilne the sick more
service than to have sent them to Spain. The RiOtt
Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Coining) from his speech the
other night, evidently ,shewed that from the first he
= had no hopes of success from the expedition. The
:I-16n. Bart.could not conceive what right the Itt.Hoil.
Gent. had to declare that he should vote against the
Resolution~- Why, he was one of the accused, and
With equal j us ;ice ;night a criminal jump into the.jury-
box. in a Court Of:Justice and say, " Conic, / will
make one among.you."—The proper cour-e to pur-
sne would be 161 the R•gin Hon. GentivaizM to with-
draw when the vote was about to be taken:: The
Uon. Baronet, after making some further observa-
tions, in which he attribu;e I the losses to the des-
unions in his Majesty's Cr!oncils, who were waiting
, tot the Eastern .Star (Margins Welles;ey) to illumine.
the dark horizon, concluded ;by-supporting the Re-
solutions of the Noble -Lord: .

General' LiFTUS said, that he had listened with
the same degree of attention to the Hon. Baronet's •
speech as he had-td all that had been
.advanced by
the Hon. Gentlemen who had spoken upon the pre-
sent important subject, aed was.'convinced that the
more this subje& was discussed, provided it was-
wash 4.t.ternper.and patience that had hitherto; en
much to the credit of the House, shewn itself
throughont the debate, the more the country would
,see that Ministers were bound to undertake such an
enterprise as that which had been undertaken against.
the great and growing force of the enemy in the.
Scheidt ; • that to consider .the important question
fairly, they Must:look to the. 3C:ttlatiitiatitiOri of 141-•
rep;:-• at the tinae thiS expedition took plase, pat:tic:n.7 ;
larly to the'situation of :the French. and ••Austrian.
. armies - on the Danube, and the severe neck the
French had-met with, wl2ich•obliged. Buonaparte to
lay.upou his arms for such a leiyoli of time, waiting
for reinforcements from the interior of France, from
the interior of Holland, from the Netherlands, and
from.the very shores of the Scheldt. Therefore, if
there ever was a tiniefor this country to make a great
exertion; it was at the tune this expedition took place,
which was nyt only a. great diversion for our ally, the
Emperor of Austria, but also wTs that which we w eie
oiled upon to make front our, own. sduation, cost
what it would. That a Government that consulted
the good of the people ought. eVer to ba mindful-
-in pi cawing_ against any sudden attack ; and what-
ever the. people may say or think, whatever. those
who have only the interest of the people at heart may
wish fur, yet a Government who are mindful of the
true interest of the State, ought to be prepared -for
the preservation of that State. The Honourable Ge-
neral then desired they ould look to France with
all her gigantic powers at prevent—to look at her in'
possession .of the Netherlands,— to look. •at her hi'
possession of the Flemish ports, and then to • look
at the Narrow seas, and to recoiled that Holland _was
not that Holland that Once could . and did preserve
the balance of Europe, duel then fairly to lay their
handsupon their hearts and say, if a.Governineut Coto!
soiling ate security of the country were not bound to
undertake 'such an enterprize as that which had been
undertaken against the enemy's alarf ning and growing
force in the Scheldt ? That it. must have long since.
been.seen, that if France was alloWed to keep pos-
session of the Netherlands:fin-any length of time,
that it would _not be in' the powerof all . EaroPe to
set any bounds. to the progress of her. arms, That
Ave had seen the United Provinces falling. under her
power, and that she had all the command- of that
power at present ; that §be had carried her artni in-
to Germany, and her conquest there-as far as she
pleased ; and that her great object hiowvas,- tojpos-
sess herself of the counnand•ot the Ni:TroVrseas, so
that our trade should neither go out 'or ieinm,.but at
her pleasure; that it. was' almost
~fatal ..to England
that France should be in possession of the -Fietnish
ports, •for if any accident was, to :tidal our fleets .at
seas that great extent of coast, our north- vast coast
was naked and open to the enemy—that the iailure
of the Expeditiou led him meali upon M misters. to
pay hiteotion to that ;tort h-.east cb.sst, particululy
:10.Yinnouth, and the negleMed batteries there, also
to the' neglected. batteries at Lowestoft; 'for if
the enemy. possessed biokell of, theses position, it
would be difficult to 'remove hirn frot.n it; It was
.
lull of resources, aed.among the strongest positfousin
this couniry, but that which had bet:ft icaSt thought.
of, and the most negleded. The. Hon. Gen.:oil
then desired to draw tie attention of the House to
what had been advanced as to the imp, e-siou_an
army might have upon a fortified, town, inha-
bited, and spewed that the. great. Duke of Marlbo-
rough, alter the battle of Ramillies, oppeated be-
fore Antwerp, then in a. strong state of defence,
which bad in it twelve regiments; but that. the
Duke being in possession ot sne avenues tot .c place,
the inhabitants, induced the General to surrender ra-
ther than risk the destruction of the Thatiin
the same campaign the- Duke of Marlbotough ap-
peared before Ostend, one of the strongest towns in
the Low Coontries,,, which, atter. three days siege,
aurreuderpl by the inllueoce of the populace. He
now drew conclusions from theteinstorical !acts, tbin
:Government was juntified to entertain,such an Ex-
pedition as 'that which had been undvrtaken against
the Scheldt, and against Antwerp, even if there was
only a single chance of success, the object Wing
so great; but he maintained, that bad Cadsand,

been possessed according to the plan; and had r ito'-
the Admiral been obliged by the weather to carry ,
The fleet into the Roompot, the Expedition' ronit.:l
tAave succeeded, that the enenly not being able 1)-
'defend the important post of Bat hz, wits a proof of
'the weakness of their force in Anti-verp, for 11c4
they been strong there, they never would have eivo i
--up iiathz in-the 'manner they did, and Which open- •
ed thee.vholeWestScheldt to oor .fleet on the 9-d Of
August; • this pitture was sOstrong a one, so strong
ly impressed upon the Commander in Chief. .01 the •
land forees, that he early detached that plea 3"-d
excellent Officer Sir John Hope to secure that forr.,,
:end had the wind allowed of the transpoitis•gettil
up the West Scheldt, the Hon. General- mainiai'lleu;-,
that the Expedition would in all huenata probabilitY
have succeeded. . • . ;
• ,; ,'
-- Sir FRANCI4 BURDETT declared that he rose %.'-iI '
a considerable degree of, awe on his mind, from Ow-
feeling w hich be entertained of the magnitude of th
,subject, and of his inability to de it that justice, wrbicrk
..
us importance demanded. He expressed his a"
tenishment at the kind of defeoce.that had.becofe-
I sorted,to ; he waS.astonished at the arguments of ti'e 1
1 -Hon. General, who asserted that- because it -'° a
d e1,..--teible, and ie .ttte opinion of.: that Hon: Getre°l i
a vital obje4l of the. country to reduce "the n 3"
means of the eneme, Government - was justified in
.nedert'akina ;an: expedition afor that purpose d
grounds, t:,e utility of which was so amply evinced
by the documents un the. table. The Hon. Gene°l
had also stated that it might be proper, e threjwa
a town -with bombardment in or. ',4, r to ides} its l'e,
;
dualion, and .had quoted an' instante in which til
Doke of Marlboronahhad acted uponehat priociple•
-tOr•hiiitiaelle however, he ;Must say that the ooctiri
renee thus alluded to was not one which he 5111'w('t•
letve thought of pointing oat as'. the most .brili'3llt
:feature in thechairtaer and conduct of that gee
nin. The Noble Lord who (lad-commenced the de;
relit:e of this illefated Measure- had spoken; 'e.'ith dc't
most reprehensible indifference of one 'of w' the ns
• dreadful calamities which the preseet war, dtsa4r°l-,,
-as it' had' .been, had ' occisiOned ; and in the l'"I;
seology - peculiar 'to .himself 'lied declared, thatA , `ll,
. wished to abide by' the experience of tact.' -1-'''.,',
ether ground that the Noble. Lord might haVe tril'e'l
. would. nut !lave been so surprising :it Would "
Have been surprising had he stated a variety of l'g 1
1 soils in extenuation of his, conduit, but .that i )o \
should. declare himself .content to 'have the merits -ti
the operation tried-by- theteeidence of the fad as
' truly astonishing.- The Right Hon. Gentleman tdt4; '•the late colleague of the•Nohle Lord, after man/. '
skilful attempts to divelt the attention of the Hou'eli
• Out the only. way of proceeding which Govern i
could snecessfeily adopt, was to diStract the riti.t)
of the country, and take it off from the real obielelo
had ;dvancied the most _surprising doairines. 111
I had stated, tiyt if the la'apedition had -not becl),':tia '
sl to Walehel en, it tritn•a- have been sent Qlsewa'
)4
The Rieln e: h .ilen. Ge. ad conteinteTh
d,•at it itti ,
I bave been sent 'somewitrre ; _ and afteretannera
the various obstacles WhiCh it
.1voti1:191a-ve 431 to t-'''r
I counter :Medi direetions, he reneiuded bv asso°3;
rthat it. was necessary to send •;it in, the dire..ll,
It in .which it its sew, i hat • was, to 'send- it 40 \)(''' I
l • ' t • nor°
hoeren, not to. meet the eeetny, but a peail-li --'e,
t• disra e, andets had been well said, to be eatiegu'':o .
ed like e eaedle in ,ki v.11.1:t. In Mardi, who',..',jo
Noble Lord appliel to-the Commandei- in Citidlty
ascertain the amount of the disposabe. force, in ••.i.;
• coetitry, he 'fituod, thee rietwe;eaateeee 0C ii)o
manse expel a e to which the ;Pub w lic ere put ``';
; tins head, that there were ..rdy- sixteen thomat','o
' t men fit for service: Had this.nu tither, however, ll'',
been iudtciuusly enipleyed, the shies at Fin''i itm 'e
ail'
• might 'perhaps have been ' taken, and, at a '.;'.ia
the lever would not bite heets eneountered• eat
-t Noble Lord's views, hoeiever, were Mere eate°s:oo
Ile was anxious to get up a great- ai teamevt. i'','l,
March to, June it took to get, up this gtett ar"d'a
•Ment ; I,or the calamities of our troops in se"lo' 0
thinished as Government had endeit,ouresr 1° °''
1 avl
' - them appeer in the eyesof, this: country, 11 i&
detoly kilt its not the ahlrdbw'ofem army. ly al
this armament was at length prepared, it witt'' seir
out---for what purpose-? TO act ?—.No—t° it" le
neate ; for it. had been proved, that the Cot-lll'll a
dens were wholly ignorant of every step;wlPtceeif
t would' ba necessary. for , them to take troth
very arrival On the enemy's Sh6res. To' the -°C 0
,J
patron of liathz every thin had been andel:Pate:a:a ;
of easy attainment; On the Coetinent o',o°e or
lions difficulties had been apprehended, -13°I, ,1•4
these serious difficulties the Expedition troeteille
rived,. This great ar•mament,' cent-lila:led bY :eh
•• greater fully, never reached 'the Place a( W"`,e,
• alone obstacles Were forc-Secn... Noe was thii we
~01'
trairdinary when the nature of the inform:4i° ,
- which the NOele Lord depended wae• Considere.,t
eo
I-
The Noble Lord had, teett in ioi nwd, that At't`lid
and its neighbo.ruood 'were destitute of fort‘c; ag'
had no .doubt theta sinallar infmMation 1110' fl
received from ',every pet of the Frinib ceo;*3l; te.
might be- told Geyer:me-re that Totai-n W3' ‘`°i,or;
title oft force ; that Brest wit; destieee of farcl ;eta,
could such Mile:math:la ea feneel ee., or' if time
would_it shine- stn Ex-peduien aglinst.,l,%aill,
plices ? The •Notpie Lied had applied 'le the; L''';lll
enander in Chief to ,e, ' treiin the ;etacteatbdi(v )iit
coup, de-main on Aiit ae• e. Tiiia• Ceinte•i°;ici.' 4
Chief wrote to tour , ; :, , . ~-li‘vri tin ri
b'e. q.ll%lz',
•
• 'and their :Ulmer--; •.; . e ,:: ••• :teat cc cars ,ae-i "if
4;
.
doe.' They • v.; ; , iethae :,1 ae,e eend lea:t''',
laeguage, het ( ea- e. Ol4 if : ' .1:'1W . : ' I ':
' ' ll'
I „,, i if
I deck, . .. ' . • .
inerre;y : H.,.. . 11 it SU(7II ald serer ,--d" i
• statements eei a • ,I tut Hi fe e heei,. ho,coir
were faliee) . tleit Ile ii, though the 'idea of n"'la
'de-stain wets atese a
rde that n attaele wes•prild'c'eo.
, TJ,i.p ii vi,,,ci 0,, the Noble Lord hoe t'' li"Oilie
of the inatter.• In the reditary (14_1rJrituenf, air
Coinniander iii Ciief and the folar Crenerais-Kt':pe !
'' nOthin4 of the inatter..: lithe Floese leok"i '',l(lll''
Naval' Deirrtrnetir, they. woeldtind that Lord Pe`til; '
grave knew nothing of . I he" Matter, and that SI" ill
Strachan knew nothing .of the matter,, 61th"tlie
wall !peat modesty be told Lord Mulg-rave at" ay
w:ts ready to go with any body who (lid .k"(P4Yee'
t Meg- of the Matter. 'Thus in complete iguor', el;
. fettled thisanighty E44litiute, ta.t.d. thus were lig) ,;
.tiCotrimitted the lives and honour of t be• British rifLtlrli
In the 'lust opinion giveii •by the Comtn"'l 11/
Chief to theNobleLord, he had stated that if
•i army were to go to Ostend (a plan which Ire cliii - •
,
reeterised as nearly impossible), it woutd"Kee)
teen days to march them to Flushing. ' It '',,,,e11' 1
however that it took a longet. time to get to; u

had I
to clirry

be that, mode which be had deemed the less,
difficult, ' And yet,• Ministers
.had been lavisb,it4 their
ienenrniumsoe the kapidity of the movements cif the,
rMv. Indeed all parties in -the I-easiness
.appeared .
tiptoe to praise one another:. -When was ra.
pidhe to be discovered? Every, fishing towntin
waY had been invested by tke man who went to take
Antwerp by a comp-de-main ; and at length 40,000,
'British troops, were stopp!zd by a ditch -at • Middle-,
t)tirgh. So -much for • the Army.—Then for the.
Navy. On the arrival of the .Marquis of Huntley's
dt...ision at Cadsand, the occUpation of which was,
coitsilered an' indispensable prelimmary,• it was
fotiud that .the boats of the squadron-were insuffi-
den% to convey an adequate_force -on shore. , It -was
true Niat the-Admiral attributed the non-occupation
)11;s indispensable preliminary to the hackies: of the .
'r;' 1)01 it, was ako true that ComModore
Owen, in a letter written on the same. day, said,
. 'that the weather was very fine,- adding, that the
enemy's- force was greater than anticipated. What
'ight be the cause be could not divine, but certain. it
was that the-plan of occupying. Cadsand was . aban-
'cloned. When the Expedition. proceeded:to Flush-
ing, they's commenced by battering the town at a
great-- distance. - And behce it was curious to
remark - that with the gheatest inhumanity they
injured the people
.whore • they professed 'they
came to deliver, bdt that *hen they got `pos;-
session of e place, their hunrane fit seized them-
"and instead of-lodging the British soldiers in good
and comfortable quarters, they placed them in the
most unfit and unwholesome situations. This know-
ledge and 'the ignorance, the huManity and thein-
humanity of those who planned and those who con-.
ducted this ill-starred enterprise, producei :dike the
'Most disastrous consequences. Sir Home Popham
Was the only pers6n (except a pilot) who•was pie,
smiled to be acquainted
.with the navigation. Hay.-
ingTfailed in securing ,iduch had been conceived
an indispensable -prehmelary to .the oreration, the
Commindete of the .L!ixpedi:ion• were highly de-
lighted *all the skill- and facility with which it was
Carried through, the Veer Gat, and Sir Hoine,-Pop-
h_eit was sent to find a way to Southßeveland in
a -liretilon -in which it was -just -as -rational:to sup-
pose.a way would found as 'it would be toima-
-gine ciat a way would be found to Kensington over
Weste,ins:er Bridge. Having got. to Bathz, they
fund themselves completely unintormed of the state
of. Antwerp ; they gad no plan; of the Place ; and
on the 25th the Cotninandea in chief. callecl
Council of War, by which any further proceeding was
declared
.uttadYisable Was it possible that any one
Could say that such a transattioh did not demand
. the,severest punishment of those whose. consummates
•ignorance so wasted -the blood of the .conntry ?
It tnight be urged against hint that he spoke with
•waririth on this sithjeet. He owned. that he did •
tg.ieak with warmth ; for he felt With warmth upon
it. Fle felt that• all
.those who
.participated iii the
enterprize stood before the Public as criminals ; not-
only -the Administration, who with such a.:know--
ledge(' ignorance planned it, but the General and
.the Admiral Who wit h such acknowledged ignorance::
underthok to carry it inte.execution. On the part •
which was the most Llpottant of all these consi-
derations,' be would hot at presytit say much, be-
cause it would lin m a subjed of separate dismission ;
be meant the conduet of the Medical Department of
the Expedition,- and the calamitous fate of those
brave men who were sacrificed to the ignorance of
tine Medical Board. 'Nothioghad.ever more shock 7
ed his rifind than the indifference—an indifference -,
amounting almost to sportiveness—in which the
Noble-Lord had treated this part of the sehjeCt. It
was to have been expeded. that a man who had on
Ins -head the deaths of
.thousands would have risen
in that House with at least something :like com-
pundion ; that he would not haVe spoken of ca-
latnity as if it had been triumph ; that he
.have been- ashamed to mention the names ;
Of .Chatbam and Wolfe, and 'Nelson and St.
Vincent—men who had achieved for their
Country such important services, and with 'whom

ion' omit.

able c›-
[ proof of
for 110'
avelive6
a open'
66 9,d of
so O'ong
of tile
and
tbat fort
.('• getting
aintaiWeq
robabilitY

-

any thing . like an association • with the N,.,ble
Lord - was one Of the most disgusting ideas that
his mind could entertain. It was scarcely to
be credited, it was a truth ',too painful to be easily
_believed, but he had been informed on good autho-'
iity, that thi4 miserable Expedition cost th.3country,
even by the official returns, -which were no doubt
tht reverse of being exaggerated, three times the
number ermen that .had lallen in all the glorious
naval victories that had been achieved from the
commencement of the war down to the' present
moment. But this was nothing to the Noble Lord.
talked'as fatniliarly of the death of brave men as
it' he were speaking of the drowning of puppy-dogs.
The Right Hon. Gentleman had behaved with ;

somewhat more propriety on this point. He had not
turned the. sacrifices of the country into mockery ;
but the Right Hon. Gentleman, in the course of his
-argnment,•had • attributed the failure, not to the
miseonduCt of Ministers, but_ to an intrinsic cause—
to the despotism of Buonaparte. He ha I stated that
A tree Government was not calculated to.meet on
-verirtal terms the efforts of an absolute one. He bad
-thought that Right Hon. Gentleman too much at-.
tiched to Greek and Roman learning to utter such.a
.• He had always' understood that to the
-4reedom of the Romans Rome owed her power; and
nth t the energy which liberty produced in the Greek
compen,ated for their inferiority to their
--e:riemies,in point of numbers. He had always un-
stti too, that to-the courage which British in-
-dependence and freedom had inspired, this coun-
',try had hitherto owed its seccrity; It was a new
-and m6riiiying doctrine, that the liberty of England
Was the ciluse of her want of military success. Such
i docttine. produced in his, mind, as' well as the
-greatest surprise, the greatest alarm ; for if it were
once established; the liberties of Englishmen would
be more in danger than ever. To the Resolu-
'liens before the House he. should unquestionably
.agree, although 'they did not go to the length to
'which he thought- they ought to go, namely, im-
peachment; The projedors of the. Expedition,
'ought to be impeached, and the Commanders of it
trkd by Court's- As to:the effect which the
discussion might have in displacing the pre-
sent Miniters, ho, repeated his former opinions. of
-fteunimpot tance of such an event, w the country.
•\1; t :,;.I:e,l:,tif,its of public benefit by 7t change-Of
v tt a ur a eh:111;e of measures,, without re-
t,! tiinhe• great constitutional principles, by
from ‘A hi, h ,the country had cheli!led, he
to be -absolutely deltisive. Ile 'had no doubt

that the child of folly and imbeCility on which the
.Idouce were now' called- upon to pronounce, .oived
:its origin to the same cause as. that which gave
birth to all the calamities which, the conotry fra:l so
brigand so patiently sAtfered. To a fair represen-
tation of the people, and. to nothing short of that
must the. Country loOk for redress. .This-Expedi-
tion, and such expeditions as tids, -were,th. off_
spring of, the craft. of Ministers working on the
Abandoned.prostilution which resulted from an in-.
efficient representation of the•people. -If a ciatintly
groaned under tyranny, at mattered -little whether
it was under the .tyranny.of corruption, or under
the iron:hand of a foreign despot. Nothing- wbuld
satisfy the Public but-an iinpeadiment.of.
and Courts Martial no the Commanders; na,vtiand
military.. Of such an -Expedition it was impossible
to speak with temper. Men were sent to death in-
a way which in a private place 'would be called
murder. The Expedition seemed .to have-been de-
tained for the. fatal disease by which it was visited;.
and the patience of British soldiers under suffering
called still -more strongly for retribution.

' -Mr. BATHURST began by observing, that the
Hon. Baronet had spoken of: the feeedorn of our
cient States -as having enabled them' to cope with
more pciwerfOl despotism. Did the lion. Baronet
reColleal another qiiality belonging. to tho:se States
by which they were eventually subjogwei to the
oppressor ? What was\this but the degeneraCy of
that liberty , into 'licentiousness, and the presence
of individuals never wanting in any country to
persuade the people that they might enjoy more
than their stationsqualitied them to enjoy ? . It was
this'spirit which-reduced Greece to the power of the
Xacedoniati Monarch ; and by the help of factious
citizens his rival was deiivered Into, the hands of a
Military despoticane:—With resped to the subject
before the House he should occupy but few mo.
views of t; ei, attention. He conceived that the
Noble• Lore and the Rieht Hop. Gentleman had
not placed the question on quite fair grounds. They
hao stated it as a dilemma, teat being nude an en-
- gagement to an• ally, and 'baring large dispose.
able force at their command, it was incumbent
them to employ it m the reliet of their ally, although
there-were no p:•,.• ts of cop...ttct by Which it could be.
rendered eminently serviceable, He _knew of no
claims Of pal or jastite which required such a mea-
sure., It:was to be regretted that the habits of the•
House did not qualify them to enter minutely into
military operations, although it was indispensable
that they should carefully watch over them.- The na-
ture of the Constitution required such a check upon
Government. The first point of view in which he
would ,coaider the expedition was. *as an intended
1 diversiou. How was it Skto operate ? The limited
time of'theeiapedition itself .was presumptive against-
its probable extent as a,diversion. . The expectation
ought to have- been, that the force brought against it
would to thecolle4led perthal cut foreeof he country,
and not any returning forc.(.. from the Danube. -Nor
could the expedition be defeoded by a reference to the
intentions of former Governments, for those inten-;
tiops were confined to an_ attack on Flushing. An.
att.tek on Flushing alone might have been made by a
cotip-deernain,. with small expence, with little risk,
and with treat probability of. sUccess. • It Was indis--
pensable thai tnose. ;alto_ planned so great an enter-
prize, should be possessed of full information re-
specting :tie object against whiclia it was to be di-
rected.
The E pedit ion failed for want of i n forma-
.tion,with this further feature, that Government could
not produce a single naval dr Militery authority in
support of their plan; for certainly a proposition
to military men, on suppositious grounds to in-
stitute a comparison between two'plans, and a pre-
ference given by them to the one plan over the
other, could, by no means be called an opinion
.or .an authot ity. The 'Noble LOrd had ..argued,
that as the ulterior objea' Of the ExpedionaWas
never attempted, the policy of it could not be canvas-
sed. This lie denied. ThOsecousulted had spoken
.of - the Expedition as affording little prosped. of
success. The Ailiniral 'Who was to command,
when he hac', expressed- himself to that effect, was
told to go on and he would do very well. There
never was a case in wllich, a conjoint consultation of services.
_was more necessary. The plan. was
:deficient ; the expedition could, indeed, hardy be
said to have .any plan at all. The lion. Gentleman -
then tools
.a comprehensive view of the operations of
the armathent, from which he inferred the, want of
-a proper combination for the attainment. of the ob-
ject in view, which, he wa4 olopinion, could hardly
be gained under ciicumstancesahe most favourable.
He then adverted to what had been •said respecting
the West India Islaeds, which he contended was
no justification of-the conduce of Government in eX7
posing' an army to the ravages of,the-climate at Wal-
cheren. The question was, did
.the Expedition ap-
pear, justifiable,. or did it call for the censure of the
House ? On that the country e.xpeded them to de-
cide.He might have to say sorriethiog more on the
second question, as be understood an amendment
was to be moved, thoegh_he hardly comprehended
the nature. of it, as it seemed .to him that if the, plea
set up for the retention of Waleheren was done
away, there was •no groutid on which an•ameini.-
mem could possibly stand_ • •
PEELE defended Ministers in a very able
speech. He thought it unnecessary to state the
grounds on which the EXpedition had been sent,: as
he•considered it established thatat_the time the plan
was formed, there' existed the tair:st prospects. of
success.. It had been laid down as an aximit by an
Hon. Member opposite, •that England should- have
nothing- to do with Continental operations, but in
cases where success was hardly doubtful. Where we •
deviated from the line of conduct dictated by sell-
deteoce,. the dbjects. in .view :should certainly be
great. But were they not great iti the present
instance, be • would ask ? 'He thought he. Might
confidently ask the country, if :at a time when the
efforts of France to her navy were, so
immense, it was the duty of England to remain
quiet; If she,. While the influence of France sPread
far and wide around, should think herself happy
in not being included among the sufferers; and
glad to be safe herself, view with apathy the sot:IL
augation of others ? • The expedition, had 'hot been
undertaken in consequence of •the Austrian war.
The project 1)41 been, in conteMplation for years.
Were we to give-up our plans because Austria went
to war v. ith _France'? 7 He should rather 'think the
contrary. With respeet hat had been said as' to
direct co-operation,. hr.: would -ask, if our interests-
were. so ideutitioti with those of Austria, that we

l

'• should enaeloy 40,000 men in her servicee—atay, thee •
• however, undertake the Expedition
place them cie-ne"etely at Ita t'dis pateti W ide'phi- merit not,
without a concepti in that it would be attended
;uing aft objeal (ot oar own, ee had: not •IloaVeer, with risks and losses, but they never calculated upon
ahem unmindfel of her-inter:a:ea,
it as a last 'stake. -They were prepared for all the
[We• regret vley•inuch that -taaeare from hazards of war, Lei. they certainly did not expect
the le age`; of the debate, •-to is this speech in de- : the raseiges Of die ase to such an. eaten( e and the
tadeit was replete with argnee nt and elocetebee, and yes
he ria,i no d'sl.lbt would have been complete-
appeared to-attatel the atinairatfeh af both sides of. 1y overcome, if were not for the prOaress of
the House. -We can only say that MI-. P. proved in ahe he latter. When GentleM •!n dwelt :so much
, strongest manner the policy of the expedition, and upon- the great disastees of -.Lis Expedition, 1-,e
.completely justified• Ministers for-the retention of Walcheren.] ' would beg it to be recollected, that no military
•
fail-pre had occurred in the whole course of
Mr.-Wits:lmam spoke at length` in support of the it hat in fact nothing hid taken place which- could
Resolutions. ' • a • : be said ro recioendaolhe diicredit of the country:
- The Cuaxcret.ott of the EX df-IEaU 611 said, he 'a
But- the tone in which all the Gentlemen on the
regretted extremely that in the present exhausted other side spoke of this event, betrayed the characa
'state 'of the House, of the argwnent, and of him, ter of their oaposition. A Right Hon. Gentleman
self, he -felt'it his duty to enter at ally length upon hadatidathat wind and weather torteed part of the
but he must be allowed to say, that wind
adiscussiotta'in which-they had ebeen engaged so Plan ;
But
many successive night Sand weather formed I,,art of tie failure, of which
nights:, he conceived that he. :
should be -watiting iu rea'ea both to the House and ..they were a treat cause; 'He was aware that
eo.hi,tiself, if he did not offer his sentiments upon aft -1-loeOurable Officer in his eye- (Sir Hi.nue Pop-
the occasion. The Geettlemen, particularly
.the . ham), Ii coinnrunicated his opinion, that onies
Right Honourable Gentleman' who spoke list, bad the expeqition, sailed within a cartain period, adverse
indulged his wit upon iota occasion ; indeed they winds must be expeeled that it was to be retnema
had througliout the whole debate turned their tta- bered,athat according
.to the evidence of Admirals
'gecly into farce; but whatever .tale.nt and pleasantry Strachan atid.Keates the wra:her
they had displajed, he never in his life was engaged i favourableeind to that stateavas attributable the dif.
_it) an argument in will:61,11e felt less diffiCulty; he ficulty of inir debarkation. -Why then, :0 this cir'
never rose upon any oceasionan which he felt thdt. rcutnstance, which ~c.casioned suchtierangement and
there was less in the argument of his vpponehts. 'i delayin the,condttet of :the expedition._
.that be shouldwish to
.remove, otaless in tee argil_ could not be pronounced any Harty. ,
Buutt it ova:
merit of has fiends that wialical sepaly,. "1: he • Said, !Ministers had no' n val ikutitority fur the
-ftight Honourable Greteinan (Mr. Witetharn) sect f practicability of their project. That, however,
this debate had a;io,l upon his :ti ii priOe;ple; he could not. he m•entlined bv, arty of those who took
.always thought that ity going the ta;-ttteit Ns.s%)Y about, the 't.t(e.foie qt lucking at the ,\-Ii alias of the Ad.
•be should rind the. nearest way .He had ; miraltY. But the mils±ary opintens were urged
argued that the poli.e of thiS Eapeition was snce, 'against us. Let it•ho.,ever be observed, that the
that even success would not le-aye justified: it. if opinion of COodel Gordon, for. instance,' which
the Right Hon.. Gent, had prot-ed that t' ,position:, • had been so much: dwelt 'aeon, referred ;tiny to
lie weut! indeed have- prove:l much ; but he melt •. the danger eo whia) our army would be. expvaed
'great consolation from the adieision which tie ti id :, or. its retreat. Neat,. it w.;s calculated,, that our
-afterwards made, Cita; in ,that oetieon tie
nett. -1
army waeulal reachßatitz.on the ad of eaueuit, and
that he should hate stood alone. He believe,:*, it f) aI se late as the f t th, the enarny had
deed,• there, were fiAv. riCE'tbo,:it or utiplejuate;:d bur aleogether in Ant atarp,l3,eigeafrop-Zoom,'
men who would joie in •'such an oeieion. The Cadsaed, :Ind all the ktdjeirtiegeouotry. What then
a had our troops to aeereeend in their retreat frem
()hied- of this -Expedition-e-as net, as had been
asserted, niereiy to gait , a little popularity, or. Ant-coif, hq their object beeeaCcempli:.hed within
to take; a, few ship, no, objects were the tirno, in tli Manner expected ?A; to-the doubt
much larger' and much eigher—there e COI-meet.- expressed by hia:Right Hon. Frienti (Mi. Bathurst)
ed won tha vital interest; of this ceantry ; and be respe.eting the- plitA intended to be pursued, he re-
begged to assure. the House, that att regretted more, fell-d him tg'thf7 iirCid,:tlet: of Sir Howe Pophatri and
infinitely .inore'e. that he had been, from cirearn- -Lord Castlereaele from- which it appeared, that ;ha
Stances, under t he•neceisity of giving' up so vaaara- 1 resolution 'ae.,s to on to Bet 127 a; soots as a footing
ble an -acquisition
jag the fsiand of Walehereo;- •' vas secured iii 'Wil,:heren. That the:fleet:had not at
ban that he 'should now be 'charged by iris polio once gone up the s,ll&d .t, Was Owing to tae saint;cal adversaries with. having undertaken an Expedi- cause whief.prevented the landing of our force al Cad-
tion for an objeat importance. He confessed e sand Ow the 30th 'of Augusta vizetite s: ate of the wea-
it was withrauch difficulty that he retrainedfrom theta It it were not fortlicSe lowed .neats, for
wfiicit
expressing his - ast6nishineet. when he heard the 1' it'coUld -not surely. be meant to in,:ke Alinktrs res.
Manner in which the Right Hon. Gentleman talk- I Ponsible, he inliniaiued that our fleet- and army
ed of'the failure of the present testers; lie was ! would have reached B ehr,, as soon as Sir John Hope;
astonished 'When he heart! that ILglit Hon. Gentle- namely, by the 3d of August, and it ao, they could
man contend that the faileet of an Expedition was have arn•sed before Antt.verp by the 4th and sth,
a proof of the incapacity at those who planned he. :-'svlien it was clear from the evideaceethere cc as no
this was indeed a strange assertion: Irvin oee ut lae au- etleqUate force there 'for its defence. The nib:ire
thorn of the Expedition to Eeypt, to the Dard In e; leS, alien of iilig greAt.bbjea was ascribable to causes
and to Buenos Ayres, aed liotn the G,eutlemai: over which Ministers had do centroul, ct liit h aeleed
he supposed was to be the War Mittister of -this -;* they could tint reasorial:ly-apprellend. Therefore, hl*.
Country, if the preseet lalin-: iters• could. be re ; sited al theeobse.rvation Wan the oillersiX

. je. .e, that all
„. , , .
.„ .. . • .
moved. • . with re3peot to the peat (:nation on the ; circumstances were, required to nes ta,ourable, in
policy of the Expediiion, the Hon, Genf'leetee nit' . 0.t.2:- to' insure the -arrival •of •our twee in due
the -other side of the House seem to bove lei:A aute,f. thee at With z, he would nuint'ain thaCtinfavourable
their consideration the immense means w tech Buo- creunistauces alone prey .11.eii their arri many Cate. •
naparte was preparing at .A.taserp, for the con- did main. whet followed the evict rice, would, be was
struetion of a fleet, • and the progress hehad already ", pet:shaded, adillit that if our Puree had reached Ant-
made in that object; - even: his Right Hon. Friend werp, by the-4th or sth Angust, no army would
(Mr. Brugge) seemed to have overlooked that. con- have been-,torttied there to !resist tee n Atenalob-
sideration. 'altogether: His Right Hon, Friend ject of the Expeditien.. This, however, was an
seemed to..thiek that the deStru'ettoll of the Basin ..admissiow.which he he did trot expect from the
'of Flushing was -not an. 'objedt7ofeso Mace ltd. Gentlethen on the side of the House. Those
portance as had been represented, but upon this Gentleen,
.on this occasion; were seeking their
! point he begged. to refer his Right Him, Friend, and -own objeee :They were, anxious to get two the
the House to the authorities of Lord Nelson,'of Sir . pl;:ces occupied by himself and his colleagues. No
Heine Popham, and of Commodore OWen, who all doubt they thought it 'foe the benefit of the court-
! concurred in the very .great importanee of that ob- try to do so, and he gave them credit for their sjn-
jea. In. faa, that was the opinion of all' Naval ,cerq,. Now, he begged.to- take credit for equal
men, and had beta the opinion of all Adininistra-. sincerity, in thMking it fur the betteflt 'of the wen-,
tions antecedent to the present. ButTnoW that the try to keep them Out. (Hear, hear, /ear, on the
; value of Flushing was intiiliCtly increased by the OpPosition.B enches.) Was he to infer from that
•growing naval poker of the enemy at Antwerp, there - cheer that his' sincerity Was questioned ? If so, there
.
could not, he was sure, id the mind of any rational was a want. of reciprocity, and those. Gentlemen
man,-exist a more important objeot. He O.'ji eon- were not willing La allow to othersthat credit which
vinced that it was one which 'Weald have jus- i they claimed :to themselves. But whet, he would
titled greater- risks' and! greater expence "nail beg the Hause to retlectedid thoSe Gentlemen look
tbr by -the ReSolUtions Under discussion ?---.they
had been incurred upon this Occasion, It was nut :
with a view merely.to the .destruelion of the ten dr ' looked for the.
.punishment of an' Adinieistration
eleven sail of the flue actually afloat in
tee :. which had sought a practicable objeet by competent
:'
tneaes, because that object had failed through causes
• Scheldt, that tine Exeedition'waS Undertaken, but !
i against which it was irtipoSsible tor-adnileistration
in order to destroy that arsetial which furnished
facilitieS for the preparation'of a fortnidable fleet, in to provide. But lie trusted the House Wadi by the
: 'adoption of the amendment,' which contained a fair,
a quarter most dangerous to the safety of this-coun-
character of fitly prOceeding, disconcert the prospects
Ary. But independently of ail solicitude for our :
clot} interests; the Scheldt was, lie maintained, the ! of those Oettlienlene
.. best point that,. under all the circumstances of the Mr. P.ERCEVAL then read; the'Amendment which
case, could be selected for the common pUrpose of ' had been proposed by Oen. Cranford, whiCit he con-:
our Allies. It had been said that, our army would, . tenitedcomaineda fairdescription of thegroundsof the
have'been better disposed of if sent to Spain. But , expedition, But the Right h-lon. Gentleman whO had'
:.,IW begged Gelitleibbn to consider how unwise it ; preceded him had referred to the Copenhaeen ex-
: wouldbave turned out to send an 'additional force. pedition, and had described it a lis
to Lard Wellington,. who found. it so difficult to :to this country, and had said as ,
. that astingn oed ofgrace the
provide any supply fOe even the toree which he had. consequences of that :expedition ' !woad have been
In fact, any additional force, in his circuinst tildes, ' that we should have had littlish sailors te contend
instead of being serviceable; would have rather in against at P‘ : mtwerp. With respect to that Ext)orli-
:.
.
-•
Crease& his ettibarasStnenks. There was, however, Lion; he bk.ggea to say; that it was one evfecli ,Gol.
ahother reason whyrail army. could not have been • vernment lad net engaged in from choice ; it was
i sent to--zny of the points, .which Getitlemen 4 the imposed upon them by the imperious necessity of
other side rtecornmendei, and that was the made- the case i. and with reSpOCt toethe circumstance of
quacy of .. our means, =as 'appeared from the papers our hat ins Danish sailors to contend against; Gen-
on the table,. to defray the expenices of any length-- ! tleinen, he Was surd, would not deny that if that
ened service.- 'ln feet,- the country could• dot aftbrd ,expedition-had not taken place, we should not Only
it, and no other choice remained than to take the have tneiDaniii'fesaders but the Danish fleet to fit
direction objected
,to, anct in which, unfixtunately,' against.. .1.1:;:- nii,.v came to the consideration of a
out-efforts:had been so unavailing. But let it the very important branch of this 'case, he meant the
considered, that, although we could achieve nothing ' conduct-of Ministers in not abandoning. Waleheren
in' the, way of a diversion in favOur pf Austria,which ! as soon .as tine ulterior object of the expedition was
was:one•of the objects of the Etpedition, yetthat, found to be unattaamble. • Upon this .part of the
from the 'state of the war, a' diVersioh was created case more feeting had•naturally been excited than
nn savour of ; the other object of that Expedition,: upun any other. :No man could speak of it, no man
our own national object' :being rendered more at- could think of the loss of valuable lives, without the
tainable by the occupation.: which Austzia gave to - deepst regret. He could not suppose, however,'
the tr,Ops of the enemy. This he observed, mere- that t boSewho bad declaimed loudest upon this sub,
ly to strew that existing circumstances were not so ju4'.i, really feli'more upon it that} has Majesty's Mi-.
unfavourable •,o the. Expedition as the Gentlemeo so nist.:es. ' Party' opposition could hardly be. C.:cried to
earnestly contended,
.That this latter object-. was, such a length' as to induce Gentlemen to.believe , :at.
practicable, -..5.a5,,. he ni entained, apparent,. from the feeitngS of regret on one side Of the House were
the ev,idence; and that the menus !were sufficient, more acute than they were on the Other. But it
could not, he thought, be questioned. -Govern- ' was one thing to regret the loss of lives, and another