Star.
London, England, 1809-01-20 00:00:00

NIA(' ele• House and the country forbear to
his •lajt.,ty in the vigorous measures he has
I for ,Tie prosecution of the war (Hear! hear!
le ling :.epic to which his Majesty's Speech refers,
le 6 ite `pain. And whoever looks to the situ-
in of :hat :aumry, and the circumstances which
led or connexion with it, will not be indis-
.d to that the circumstances in which we
.elves s' and, point out to us most forcibly the pro-
,ty of reducing to practical effect the spirit of aid-
and assising the Spaniards in the contest with the
irnon enemy, t° promote which we have made
Attempt. it is a maxim sufficiently well establish-
and was peculiarly applicable to the present mo-
That vigorous war leads much more speedi-
w honourable peace, than a weak and temporiz-
spirit." Our peculiar situation with reference to
min, bound us to support her, by every feeling of
moor, of nature, and I may even say, self-interest,
id enable her to resist the tyrannous spirit of France.
lat the contest is arduous, and will continue to he
no man will deny,but was the apprehension of the
womulgation of the war to intimidate those who had
le spirit to prosecute it, from continuing their exer-
ms ? If we suffer ourselves to be led by a belief that
te contest would lead to such an effect, we must sit
ysn, and subject ourselves to be the objects of the
Lstilt and aggression of France. I trust, therefore,
lat notwithstanding the difficulties, the dangers, and
distresses which that country has experienced, that
4 the exertion of her own spirit, and by the assist-
ance that may he in our power to afford her, she
may yet mm
u
ph in her struggle, and hold out an
of invincible opposition to the greatest ty-
inny,

per damna, per ccedes
" Ab ipso ducit opem aMmumque ferro."
Ile Honourable Gentleman adverted then to the
.xt topic in his Majesty's Speech, namely, the cam-
Lin in Portugal, and he participated, he said, in
:e satisfaction which the country felt in contemplat-1
ig the glorious conduct of our troops in that arduous
:vice. Indeed the merits of the battles fought in
;at ccnntry spoke for themselves. The military skill
id judgment &splayed by the officers commanding
:e troops, and the zeal and ardour evinced through-
it, formed such an epoch on British military genius
:d character, as must command the admiration and
plause of the whole country. That the result of
,is expedition caused a very considerable disap-
intment, because it was not commensurate with

to sanguine expectations of the country, was too
ue—but whatever difference of opiniun might exist
to the policy of the armistice and convention them-
!lees, the observations he had made referred only to
at part of his Majesty's Speech which had alluded
the military operations in Portugal. With respect
) the next point in his Majesty's Speech, namely, the
ttuation of his Swedish Majesty, he observed, that
:e were net only impelled to admire and respect the
spirit and perseverance with whin that magnanimous
monarch had opposed the aggressions of his ambitious
seighbi)urs, but we are called upon to support him to
the utmost for that spirit and faith he ever maintained
in his alliances with us. We were not only to avoid
the appearance of insensibility to his situation, but,
Ircm motives of policy, to disarm him of any feeling
,f hostility such indifference might excite in his Ma-
jesty's breast towards us. The Honourable Gentle
man then reviewed the remaining topics of his Ma-
jesty's Speech, and contended, that the only means
ty which this country could effectually render assist-'
ince to Spain in the contest i i which she was engag-
e!, was to augment the military strength of the coun-
ety to such a force, as must give a decided superiority
to our arms in the field. He congratulated the House
in the pleasing information communicated by his
Isejesty's Speech on the subject of the financial affairs
tithe country. A report truly grateful in these
ifllicting times, when no means of annoyance are
:pared by the enemy to destroy the commercial re-
sources of the nation, that source of our national pros-1
peritv. He thought it unnecessary to trespass further i
en the attention of the House, but he conceived that
a motion of thanks to his Majesty for his most gra-1
cious Speech could not but meet with the unanimous
support of the House. He concluded by moving,
that an address of thanks should be presented to his
Majesty, which, as usual, was an echo of the Speech.
Mr. RUMBOLD LUSHINGTON seconded the
motion in a very appropriate speech. He relied on
the usual courtesy of the House in making large al-
lowances for one in his situation. There never was,',
he believed, a period in the history of this country,
when Parliament assembled under circumstances,
more deeply affecting. Nor was there any hour of
his Majesty's reign more critical than this, for mani-
festing the strongest attachment to his person and go-
vernment, cr a period when the most effectual and
cordial co-operation and support of his measures was
demanded. Ho. however, built his hope that this
ce-operation in his Majesty's measures would be
evinced by the Parliament and country upon the
sense of the necessity of such conduct every man
must entertain. He highly approved of the Address
proposed, as tending to convince his Majesty that he
had not only the good wishes of Parliament, but that
every aid would be rendered him, in the glorious task
of restoring peace and happiness to the world. He
concluded by seconding the motion.
Mr. PONSONBY._ Sir, the important circum-
stances of the present crisis, in which more than the
fate of one nation is concerned, would have excited.
every man to give his opinion, and to give his coun-
try the benefit of his counsels, such as they are. His
£vlajcsty's Speech, Sir, haS very justly asserted, that
the contest in which we are engaged at present can
never be brought to a conclusion without a vigorous
perseverance in the war. There is absolutely no hope,
Sir, of any success to the common cause, of any allevi-
ation of our calamities, whilst the present ministers
still remain in power. Never in the long period of
(liar history, never in the most imbecile of the admi-
nistrations which have degraded our national charac-
tcr, and brought us to the brink of ruin ; never, I
say, has the public force, have the public resources
cf this country been so ill conducted, so pitifully
called out, so inefficiently directed, as under this vi-
gorous Ministry. I say, vigorous ministry, Sir, for
such is the term by which they have chosen to be
characterised, and which I understand to be the
watchword amongst their advocates. It is worth
lk:hee to begin with one proof of this vigour. His
Majesty concluded a treaty with Sweden, by which
e Isere to subsidize Sweden at the rite of 100,0001.
Per month, and by one of the articles of this treaty,

snould the enemy make any show in immediate]
invasion of Sweden, his Majesty's government pledg-
ed'
themselves immediately to concert with Swe-I
den the best possible means of repelling such attack.
Now, Sir, let me ask what has been done in conse-'
quence of this article, how has this engagement been
executed ? Why, Sir John Moore, one of the first
Generals in the,k4glish service—a General who pos-
sessed the lull confidence of his Majesty's Ministers,
and who possesses it still : Sir John Moore was sent

with a force, small or great, to the aid of the King
of Sweden, and what did Sir John Moore do ? Why,
without seeing an enemy, without firing a musket, he
returned—No, he escaped from the country I Was
this ridiculous result to be imputed to Sir John
Moore ? Most certainlyinot, for immediately upon
his return he was appointed to the command in Spain,
a proof that he was still in full possession of the con-
fidence of his Majesty's Ministers, and that they did
not impute the failure of their Expedition to him.—
There is another proof of Ministerial vigour which it
would be unpardonable to omit. The Danish Expe-
dition, W calculated according to its actual cost to
the country, I mean not its cost in money, but its cost
in reputation—its sacrifice of the reputed honour
and integrity of the country ; the Danish Expedi-
tion, I say, accompanied with such circumstances,
should have produced some equivalent good—some'
at least apparent advantage, which might redeem
this measure from the imputation of equal folly'
and criminality. Yet what was the present state
of this country with respect to Denmark ? We
had taken her ships, and left her sailors. The mule,
therefore, was what might have been expected, her
sailors were still in operation against us, and were
carrying on a war against our commerce, which must
expel it from the Baltic. Surely, Sir, the results
should have been different from such an expedition,
an expedition more disgraceful than any which stood
upon our records cannot be found. I do not say dis-
graceful to our men, for they did their duty, as I
trust, and am sure, that English soldicri and sailors
always will do. Not disgraceful to our Generals or ,
Commanders, fer they only obeyed their instructions,
and obeyed them in the spirit of British officers ; but
disgraceful, infinitely disgraceful, to his Majesty's
Ministers, who could so far forget the honest reputa-
tion of the nation, or having it before their eyes,
could suffer it to pass away for such a mistaken
good. But I now, Sir, come to the main point.—
If there were any possible event which could vary
the fate of Europe,—which might retard the wave
of destruction, which was rolling onwards over
the whole face of Europe, it was the awakened
spirit of the people of Spain against the Invader of
their country. Here was an occasion, Sir, which a
Great Minister would have hailed as worthy of his
talents, and to which, even a timid one would have
looked up with hope. Here was an occasion, you
must pardon me, Sir, that I can hardly speak of it
with common temperance of language, the very con-
templation of it, all its possible results, awakens all
that is man within me. I see, Sir, the feelings of the
House, as I know that those of the country, go along
with me. Now, Sir, how have his Majesty's Minis-
ters availed themselves of this opportunity--how have
they laid hold of this chance of safety, of this means
of deliverance, of this accidental plank, which the
-very wave that destroyed all the former hopes,
threw up to them almost in the moment of despair?
What would a wise Ministry have done in this case ?
Why precisely what his Majesty's Ministers have
neglected to do. They would have turned their
whole attention to this object. They would have
seen nothing but Spain in the map of Europe. They
would have reflected that the subjugation of Spain
completed the fabric of European servitude, and
that her liberation was the commencement of a new
zra ; that the Genius of Liberty would but ap-
proach where he might wave his wand, and again
awaken the nations of the earth. There were chiefly
two means by which Spain might have been assisted,
either by direct co-operation, or by assisting the
people, in a secoleciary manner, with arms and am-
munition. I do xi* intend to deride between the
two, I merely say, that his Majesty's Ministers should
have considered both—should have had before their
eyes the nature of the country, the nature of the con-
test, and the nature of the combatants, and should
have formed their system accordingly. If the Spa-
nish people had testified a preference of meeting
their enemy as an armed nation, by that desultory
kind of warfare, which is perhaps best suited to a
mountainous region ; if this, I say, were the sys-
tem adopted by them, in this system we should
have concurred. When they had determined for
irregular warfare, it was a gross error for us to
obtrude upon them our regular armies, to compel
them to encamp, to form themselves into regi-
ments and armies, and to become an ill disciplined
army, instead of an armed nation. This, Sir, seems
to me to have been our main error ; we have mixed
two species of warfare which were incompatible by
their very nature. Our regular warfare has destroy-
ed their irregular vigour, as their irregular vigour has
in turn acted upon our tactics, and thrown our regu-
lar armies into confusion. As long as the Spaniards
could fight in their own way, they had only to reas-
semble when broken. The enemy beat them. Gran-
ted. They fled to the mountains, and reassembled
when the enemy had disappeared. The enemy could
not but lose something in the brush, and the sum of
these losses, frequently repeated, must gradually
have pared away the superior force of the enemy.
Such was the kind of warfare that seems to me (of
course I speak only as to opinion) the warfare, I say,
that seems to be best suited to the country ; and if
this warfare had been persisted in, I am not without !
a strong confidence that the event would have ;
been very different. But this warfare did not suit I
our taste. No, we must dictate another of our
own. The Spaniards must fight according to the !
Prussian tactics ; they did so, and they were defeated.
Did his Majesty's Ministers, from first to last, seem
to have any plan of this kind, or of any kind what- ,
ever ? None at all. How was it with Sir Arthur
Wellesley, who is stated to have been sent to Portu
gal-to assist the Patriots in Spain ? Why Sir Arthur
Vsrellesley had an army perfectly incompetent to any
service whatever, either to take the field, to keep the
field, to remain in Portugal, or to go into Spain ; he
was sent without any instructions whatever, on a kind
of roving commission. In this perplexity he consults
the Junta of Gallicia, who return for answer, that
they would wish him, in the first place, to effect the
conquest of Portugal, and then to take such it sta-

tie% is might render hint the rallying point of the
Spanish armies of the south and the west. This was
very well for the Junta of Gallicia, whose province im-
mediately bordered on Portugal, and who, therefore,
in such an arrangement, provided a kind of rallying
point for themselves. But was such a measure suited
to the interests of Spain—to the common cause ? I
remember, Sir, early in the Spanish contest, seeing
in the public prints a paper purporting to be the cir-
cular instructions of the Junta of Seville. This pa-
per was entitled " Precautions," and amongst other
things, asserted, that the main stand of Spain
should be made in the Pyrenees ; that every pre-
caution should be taken both that France should
in tioduce no new armies, and that the force at that
time in Spain should not escape. Was not this better
advice than that of the Junta of Gallicia ? Portugal
indeed Use his army in Portugal ! In the name
of common sense, where would be the utility of con-
quering Portugal, which must necessarily have
followed the fate of Spain. if Spain he conquered,
what is to save Portugal ? We begin with the less
object, and neglect the greater. Not a point was
gained in the conquest of Portugal. Again, Sir, the
speech says, that glorious as was the expedition, it did
not terminate to his Majesty's wish. His Majesty,
here, therefore, expresses his dissatisfaction of the Cin-
tra Convention ; his Majesty is dissatisfied with it,
And his Ministers fire the Tower guns in exultation at
it. Here, therefore, we see his Majesty protesting
against his Ministers, and tendering his royal honour be-
fore Parliament. Why is it we have never heard of this
before ? The City of London petitioned that his Ma-
jesty would be pleased to call the offenders to a just ac-
count, and a most rigorous reception did the City of
London meet. His Majesty's Ministers did not want
vigour against the Lord Mayor and Common Council.
Sir, I will say that the answer of his Majesty's Mini-
sters to that petition was not correspondent to
his Majesty's paternal character. It was flippant, it
was peevish. it was petulant; it might suit his Majes-
ty's Ministers, but certainly did not suit his Majesty.
Upon this subject, therefore, Sir, I cannot but hop..,
that his Majesty will be pleased to institute an inquiry,
and such an inquiry as shall satisfy the country.—
This Ministerial vigour, Sir, has not only been emi-
nently conspicuous in Portugal, but in the equipment
of the army which was sent thither. Three Generals
concur in executing the Convention of Cintra, by
stating the bad condition of the army, its want, its al-
most total want of ammunition, of artillery, and of
cavalry. The greater part of the horses, says one of
the Generals, were lame, blind, and old. This I
say, Sir, is to my mind a very sufficient proof of the
military vigour of his Majesty's Ministers. But
whence, Sir, was this miserable deficiency ? How was
it that the Noble Lord ( Lord Castlereagh) was so
unhappily stinted in cavalry, in transports, in every
thing ? Sir, I remember, and I remember with pity,
when the Noble Lord would come down to the House
and with tears in his eyes, a pallid face, and a faul-
tering voice, would lament the wretched condition of
the country under the late Administration, as being
without transports and cavalry regiments. Were I
in power, he would say, at least by inference—.
Well, you are in power, and what have you done ?
Where are your transports ? Gone to carry the
French in Spain ! gone to convey Junot and his army
to France ! So indeed it is, and to our shame be it
spoken. The second reason assigned by the General
examined on the Board of Inclairy was, that the army
of Portugal was wanted for Spain. I shall briefly
observe, Sir, that this army so much wanted in Spain
remained stationary in Portugal for nearly ten weeks,
and never reached Spain till the contest was termina-
ted. So much, Sir, fol• the vigorous conduct of
the war in Spain by his Majesty's Ministers. On the
table of this House, Sir, is a memoir of the Court of
Vienna to the Court of Petersburgh, delivered before
the former coalition war. The Court of Vienna here
states for the information of its ally, that the availa-
ble force in France, exclusive of the imperial guards,
is 598,000 men, and that France could at anytime send
into Germany an army of 500,000 men. And you
will be pleased to call before your mind, Sir, that the
period at which France possessed thisibrce was previous
to the confederation of the Rhine, the incorporation
of Italy, and the union, for so I may call it, of Bavaria.
What, therefore, must the power of France be at the
present crisis ? Tremendous indeed ! I. say not this,
as if it was easy to deter the country (Heavee avert
it) from giving all due assistance to the Spaniards ;
but I say it, as necessary to call before your view
the full importance of the state of affairs, and
as necessary to impress upon you, how unequal has
been the conduct of Ministers to times of such peril
and difficulty. This is not the first time, Sir, that this
country has been engaged in similar affairs ; I mean
in assisting a nation to maintain or recover its liber-
ties. Queen Elizabeth assisted the United Provin-
ces against the Spanish tyrant, Philip the Second.
But how did this wise Princess, how did her able Mi-
nister, Lord Burleigh, how did they conduct them-
selves in this auxiliary war? Why they took those pre-
I cautions which the nature of things suggested were
necessary. They demanded security for the good faith
of their allies ; they required the means of ensuring
their own safety, should those allies desert their own
cause. To this end, that wise Princess demanded
and obtained the deposit of those towns since deno-
' minated in our history " The Cautionary Towns." I
come now to the Swedish war. Sir, when the subsidy
in the last Session was before the House, I made use
of an expression which excited some disapprobation
at the time. I stated it as my opinion, that Sweden, if
she were wise, would apply our money to purchase
peace. Sir, I will repeat the same maxim. I will
grant that the King of Sweden is great, gallant, and
generous, but I will maintain, that his perseverance
in the war will ruin him, and will in no possible way
be of service to us. If this be what is to be expected,
if this be the natural, the necessary issue, I cannot
but think, Sir, that it would be more generous in us
not to encourage a minor power in a war uhich can
only aid in his annihilation. The Speech says not
a word of our relations with America, yet with what
country are our relations more important, and with
what country at the present time are they more
critical ? In the conclusion of the last Sessions of
Parliament, our absurd conduct had nearly brought
us to the verge of hostility with the United States.
A glorious opportunity has since occurred for re-
instating ourselves in amicable relations : yet how \
has this been lost ? America applies to the French Go-
vernment 1,
to revoke its Edict,--France refuses. Ame-
rica they comes to us-a-Repeal your Orders of Coun-

el against us, and. we mill raise our Embargo. as rtr
as you are concerned, and keep k r:A
in °peiwa only
again4t France. To this offer what is our reply
Why, a petulant answer, that his Majesty's Ministers:
will not consent to buy off the embargo by any am.:
cession real or apparent to the French Government ;,
as if the American offer necessarily implied any such
concession. No, but the Right Hon. Secretary hap-'
pened to be at that time in the full intoxication of
success, and therefore must have his joke, his pun,
and his sneer. I care not how pleasant the Right
Hon. Gentleman be, if he be but wise in his plea-
santry. As to the general tenour of the Address, as
far as it goes only to assurances of support, it is not
my intention to dissent from it, but in consideration
of' the crosses of the times, I deemed it necessary to
qualify my assent by accompanying it with the ex-
planations by which I have taken up so much of the
time of the House. No one, lam sure, Sir, either

in this House or country can wish that the Spaniards
should be deserted ; but no one likewise can wish that
we should persist in a contest, and in a mode of com-
bat which may be eventually ruinous to us, and can
be of no service to them.
Lord CASTLE REAGH.—Sir, the assurance of
the Right Honourable Gentleman who has just sat
down, that however he may differ from me in gene•
ral policy, as well as in some particular points expres-
sed in his Majesty's Speech, he will not disturb the
unanimity of the House, relieves me from much of
my anxiety, and leaves me only the task of cursorily
commenting upon some of the objections which hehis
brought forward. The Right Hon. Gentleman has
veryroundly stated, that the present crisis is so eventful,
and so pregnant with events of such peril and difficulty,
that there is no possible chance of salvation, but in the
dismissalof his Majesty's Ministers; and that if Europe
is to be saved, its safety can only be worked out by
the Right Hon. Gentleman and his own peculiar
friends. Ido not think that the country will find
much consolation in this view of the present state of

affairs, and of the remedy thus proposed by the Right
Honourable Gentleman. His friends have been in

power, and it is not so long since, that the memory
of them is still green, both in the recollection of the
'.House and the Country. I deem it necessary to say
thus much on what may seem personally to apply
to myself and friends, and shall now pass to some
observations on the particular points which seem to
have moved the spleen of the Right Honourable
Gentleman. The first proof of the want of vigour,
according to the Right Honourable Gentleman, was
the Danish Expedition. Sir, if any proof were yet
wanting of the expediency of this Expedition, I
have no hesitation in disclosing, that the Marquis
of Romana stated to his Majesty's Ministers while
in this couatry, that if the• Expedition had not
been executed on the very day on which it was so hap-
pily accomplished, he (the Marquis) was ordered to
pass into Zealand, and was instantly to have been fol-
lowed by Bernadotte. With respect to what the
Right Honourable Gentleman has said as to Sir John
Moore, I have only to say, that the House shall in
due time have every explanation, which is consistent
with delicacy to his Swedish Majesty. All I can say
at present is, that the expedition was sent at the earnest
request of his Swedish Majesty, and that the fai-
lure of it, is in no respect to be imputed to any causes
under the controul of his Majesty's Ministers. As to
the pitiful and feeble war force still maintained by
Denmai k in the Baltic, let Gentlemen compare it with
what might have been her warfare if she were still in
possession of her fleet, if instead of ten or fifteen sail of
the line, Russia and Denmark could have marshalled
thirty sail against us ? Will any one deny, that such a
force would have added infinitely to the relative supe-
riority of the enemy. And, as to what the Baltic
Trade is stated to suffer, I can make it appear, at
the proper time for entering upon this enquiry, that,
in despite of the power of France, our trade in the
Baltic has never fleuriihed more than during the pre-
sent year. I would cordially agree with the Right
Honourable Gentleman, as to the responsibility ofhis
Majesty's Ministers with respect to Spain, but I must
contend, that his Majesty's Ministers have in that re-
spect most fully discharged their duty—that they
have met the utmost wishes of the Spaniards, and that
their efforts have only been limited by the extent of
the resources of the country. With respect to the
kind of warfare to be preferred in Spain, the course
of events determined it, and Spain decided for itself-:
her armies advanced to meet those of the enemy--all
Spain rose as one man, and rushed into the field.—
Spain, therefore, made the option of her own
warfare, or rather chance, and the uncontroulable
course of events decided it for her. As to the cau-
tionary towns ; according to the ideas of the Right
Honourable Gentleman, there was but one town
in the Spanish dominions which possessed.the requi-
site qualities. This town was Cadiz ; but surely no
one would have recommended his Majesty's Ministers,
on the known characteristic jealousy of the Spanish
nation, to have demanded this town in deposit and
pledge for the Spanish faith. With respect to the
plan of sending the expedition to Portugal, and the
termination of that expedition, it will be perfectly sa-
tisfactory to me, to hear, that no public inconvenience
will arise from my affording, on the part of his Ma-
jesty's Government, any explanation that may be
requested, while the campaign in that country con-
tinues ; time must be a.great object ; but every pro-
per species of information shall be given fully and
readily, and I shall be at all times perfectly ready
to meet the Right Honourable Gentleman on the
whole principle and details regarding the question
of the option afforded us of sending his Majesty's
troops to Spain or Portugal. Upon that question
I entirely differ from the Right Honourable Gentle-
man. He seems to think that we ought to have sent
our forces to another part of Spain, in order to stop
the communication between France and Spain by the
Pyrenees. He does not exactly say that the force of
Sir Arthur Wellesley should have been sent to Spain
as an advanced force, but that the army should have
been sent to Spain. No fallacy can be more desti-
tute of foundation than this which has been so widely
circulated. The notion of an inferior army cutting
off the communications between a large army in
Spain, and the great faces sending by Bonaparte
from France was quite absurd. The Right Ho-
nourable Gentleman seems to have taken all his ideas
Upon this.subject from the daily and other prints,
and he supposes t int when an army is once landed,
it may set out the next morning in a. state of full
equipment, and take all possible advantages of
its cii,esnbarkation, ju.sr• as a ship sent out to sea;

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