Star.
London, England, 1802-05-11 00:00:00

ViEffaiiiic

AT the reqtteft of leveral Gentlemen of this
County, I appoint a General Meeting of the County to
he held at tfic Town Hall In Devizes, on Monday the rich •
day of this irritant Islay, at eleven o'clock in the forenoon, for
the purpofe rff preparing gi loyal and congratolatory Addrefs to
his Majdty, on the teitoration of Peace.
ANDREW SAYDITUN, Pura
Spye Park. May 8, am.

Pi 4 Lt4mEn24Ar PROCEBDINGS.

HOUSE OF LORDS, MONDAY, MAY to.

The Duke of Cambridge's Annuity Bill received the Royal
Affent by Cumblifrion.
_ .

The gills on the table were feverally read.
The Earl of Sunni K laid, as he law the Noble Lord near
him who had the other day given notice of his intention to
move a vote of approbation of the condua of 4b Majefty's
lice Minifters in their conduet of the war, on the fame day
on which the Noble Lord oppate to him (Lord Haan, )
&wild bring his Fondled motion rdpeEtlng the condua of
thofe Minifters, be hqgid, therefore ,to require of the Noble
Lord. If he perfifted In his intention, and what would be the
nature of his motion f

The Marquis of GRAIAM (Duke of Montrofc) raid, the
Noble Bari was miftaken totally, fines lie had given no notice
o' his intention to make any motion, but as the Noble Lord
oppofite to him having given notice of his having it in con-
templation to move a vote of difapproval of the condua of his
Majeity'stitc Miniftere, he had obferved, that when the No-
ble Lord did make any inch motion, he might, perhaps, think
it right to move for an approval of their =dud. •
Lord HOLLAN o.raid, be did not mean to lead the Houle in-
to adebate unneceltarily, bet it appeared to him that it would
be better for the Noble Lord to make his a feparate and dif-
find motion, as whether he should move at all or uot, midi, as
he had raid on a former day, depend upon the vote come to by
the Hpufe when they took the Definitive Treaty into their
eunfideration.

Lord itotte exprcffed his hopes that the Noble Duke oppo-
Ike to him would perfilt in his intention, and move to approve
the conduet of his Majefty's late Mlnifters, to whom the
country was, in his opinion, highly indebted for their eminent
Cervices.

P•PEIS RELATIVE TO PORTUGAL.
The Order of the Day having been moved and
read,

Lord HOLLAND rote, and after declaring that
he concurred with the Noble Lord below him
(Lord Grenville), in lamenting that fo early a
day was appointed for taking into confideration
the Definitive Treaty, becaufe the fhort interval
previous to the general diffuffion of that Treaty. •
was not fufficient to allow time enough for Noble
Lords to move for all the information neceffary
to enable the Houle to difeuh the merits of thp
Treaty as they ought to be difeuffed ; yet of thy
he was fatisfied, that the interim could not be
.more tifefully employed than in bringing different
parts of the Treaty under confideration, and
calling for fuch papers refpeding them as would
be molt likely to throw a light upon each. Under
this impreffion it was, that he meint that day to
lead their Lord(hips' attention to one very im-
portant branch or the fubjeft, viz. that refpefting
the fanatical to which our old and condant Ally,
the Q2een of Portugal, was reduced by the Dar
nitive Treaty, and the caufes which neceffarily
led to that effed. That part of the Treaty which
related to the Prince of Orange had been too find
pretty much (lit-cuffed, but when he confidered the
argument now ufed by fome Noble Lords refped-
ing that Prince, and thole that the fame Noble
Lords had urged during the war, they were not
very fair, or at all confident with each other.—
It was contended, while we induced Holland to
go to war, it was not acting in a very friendly
way by the Dutch and the Prince of Orange, to
force them into a war in which they did not with
to be engaged ; and the anfwer then given- was.
Yes, it is right we thould lead the Prince of
Orange to wage war; it is for his good that he
(hould do fo. Whereas the argument NOW was,
the Prince of Orange had continued faithful to his
engagements to this country ; he had facrificed
every thing to our interefts ; Noble Lords were
not entitled to have the advantage of both argu-
ments. But, however he ought to apologife for
thus deviating from the main object of the mo-
tion, he fhould conclude, and would fay no more
about the Prince of Orange.—His Lordfhip pro-
ceeded to Rate that it would be impolfible for the
Houfe to decide upon the merits of the Treaty in
regard to Portugal, without comparing the Trea-
ty of 1797, which this Government had prevent-
ed from being ratified, with the Treaty of Bada-
jos, which was now to be held good. His Lord-
(hip completed that the Treaty of 1797 was more
favourable. His Lordfhip laid, lie underflood
there was no other material alteration between
the Treaty of Badajos and the Treaty of Madrid
than what merely related to the French limits of
Guiana .[Lord
.1 Lied Pelham o 4 his head), Hit Lord-
explained the nature of the alteration he al-
`hided to, and (poke of a natural canal, which,
during fome parts of the year, paired from out
of die river Arawari into the river of Amazons,
arid as that canal was navigable, it might in time
of peace enable the French to carry on an advan-
jageous fmuggling trade with the Portuguefe in
1 heir divffitm of Guiana, while in time of war be-
tween the two nations the French might• float
their gun-boats down it, to the great annoyance
rof the Portaguefe. Having jail noticed this, he
laid he thould ultimately conclude with moving
an humble Addrefs to his Majedy, to beg his
Majelly to give orders for a copy of the Treaty of
Paris, tigned at Paris on the loth of Augu ft, x 797,
between France and Portugal, as it had been com-
municated to his Majefly's Miniders at the time.
His Lordfhip difeuffed at great length the conduit
of the late Miniders in having retrained and pre-
' vented Portugal from ratifying that Treaty ' • and
contended, to them and their conduct of the war,
that the 7th article of the Definitive Treaty was
imputable ; it was not, therefore, the conduft of
the prefent Minifters that was to be called in
queftion for the condition to which Portugalipas
reduced by their predeceffors i they fetiabout ths
i-. • -

great work of Peace the inilant they could accom-
p! h it, and the Treaty was not to be condemned
if it was not fo good as might have been hoped,
tAr ; it was iiifficjent for them to have done the
i.eit that they were able to perform wider the la-
tnetitable circumfiances in which their predeceffors
had placed the country ; and when he confeffed
this, jullice to them he (wiled obliged him to con-
fers it, and not partiality ; he did not by aly
means approve the principles upon which they
came into office, nor the whole of their conduel
flue. His Lordfhip compared the treatment of
Portugal by his Majefly's late Minifters, and the
ruinous effea of it, with the different effea of the
me4fures adopted in raped to Portugal by the
Adminifiration in the war of 1763. In the courfe
111 his argument, his Lordfisip (aid, he had been
--iiiinderftood on the day of a former argument
refpeaing Portugal, when it was thought he was
againfl the giving any fublidy to Portugal, he was
only ah•rainft the fmalleft of the fums propofed,
which he thought infinitely too (mall. Lord Hol.
land concluded his fpeeeh with the motion that he
had fisted.

Lord Pesusis Paid, he could afire the Noble
Lord that any information be could with difcretiost
communicate, he should be pevfeely ready to give
it, but Tome better ground ought to be laid berme
the Houfe, in order tort* fuffering an Addrefs
to go to his Majefty for a paper that referred to a
negotiation between two foreign powers at a for-
mer period, to which negociation this country was
not a party ; he muft, therefore, give his negative
to the motion. _

The Marquis of Ssrao rote to take notice of an
error into which he believed he bad kim'if fallen,
in refpea to what the Noble Lord (Lord Holland)
had raid on a former day laft Seffion, when the
fablidy to Portugal had been voted. From the
general tenour of that Noble Lord's argument, he
had thought the Noble Lord was adverfe to grant-
ing any fubfidy to Portugal at all: he now found
the Noble Lord meant merely to objea to the
fmallnefs of the firm propofed. With regard to
the difference between the Treaty of Badajos and
the Treaty of Madrid, he (poke from certain know-
ledge, and could take upon himfelf to alien, that
eicre was not only the difference alluded to refpeet-
ing the limits of French Guiana, but many other
differences.—As to the heft means for this country
to hi. of fervice to Portugal, he could tell the No-
ble Lord that the belt means of affording Alliance
to Portugal was for this country to maintain her
own honour, her own dignity, and her own inde-
pendence; for he was convinced there was no good
fobjedt of Portugal that did not think his eziftence
depended on the ftrength and fafety of England.
Lord Gat rc vi Lzz faid, the noble Secretary of
State aged wiftly and well in not acceding to a
motion for ar Addrels for papers relative to a ne.
gociation between two powers to which this coun-
try was no party. It would be in the higheß de-
gree indifcreet to grant fuch papers, nor could they
be laid before the Houfe without an abfolute breach
of the oath dill! King's fervants; hut if they could
have been laid before the Houfe, the Noble Lord
behind him would have Peen that the greater part
of the fags on which he had built his arguments
a o'a in ft the Admiuiaration were erroneous, and
thatt Co far from their having forced Portugal into
the war, they bad done all in their power to pre-
vent it, and to keep Portugal neutral. That (he
bad remained perferftly neutral for Come time, and
to enable her to do fo, the Britifh Government bad
forborne to expea her to fulfil any of her engage-
ments to this country that in the 'call flood in the
way of her neutrality. With refpeet to the treaty
of El-Arifch, he begged to fay, notwithftanding
the repeated affertions of Noble Lords, that lo
coon as the Government of this country had re-
ceived an official communication of that treaty,
they immediately difpatched orders for its ratifi-
cation.
The Earl of Sorroza, notwith (landing the af-
fertinn of the Noble Lord who (poke laff, denied
the faa, and faid he (poke from as good authority
as any man could ; that an official communication
of that treaty was brought here to his Majefty's '
Mindters, dire& from Sir Sidney Smith, by Sir
John Douglas, a confiderable length of time before
any orders were difpatched for its ratification.
Lord HOLLAND faid, he was amazed that the
Noble Secretary of State fhould oppofe the motion,
which would afford fo .good a ground to )unify fo
much of the Treaty as related to Portugal. It
hems as if the foipport of (Fine powerful party, or
individual, was to be purchafed at any rifque to
Minifters. who were ready to facrifice all the mate-
rials of their defence fooner than loft that fupport.
With re/Lard to the difference between the Treaty
of Badajos, and the Treaty of Madrid, the Noble
Marquis near him had mistook him—He had not
(aid, that there was no other difference bin that
refpeeting the French limits of Guiana, but that
he believed there was no other material difference
between the two treaties. Before he fat down,
Lord Holland declared he lhould not take the fenfe
of the Houle, but thould neverthelefs perfift in his
The Tuition vras put, and the non contents had it.
ITALIAN
Lord Mt wTO (aid, that in riling to move for the
papers of which he had intimated his intention on
a former day, it might naturally be expefted that
he firould make Tome obfervations on the fubjed
to which they referred. He Ihould not anticipate
that difcalion that was likely to take place in a
day or two on the late Treaty of Peace, upon
v !rich he had been, on account of abfence from
this kingdom, precluded from giving an opinion
when the Preliminary Articles were difcuffed. It
was impoffible for him to defcribe to that Houfe
the aftoniffiment which he felt upon his hearing
the fir (1 account of that Preliminary Treaty. There
was not a Tingle friend to this country in Vienna
at that time, who was not alto Anniffied ; and
whore grief and dirappointment were not equal to
their altonifhment. As the information, however,
firff came from France, they, in common with
himfelf, felt a momentary confolation in thinking,
that the account was either totally 'hate and fabri-
c-AA by the French to anfwer Comet purport of
their own ; or that the articles of the Treaty had
Leen, much difguifed and exaggerated. But in a

Mort time his apprehenflons concerning the dif-,
grace and degradation of his country were too
well confirmed. At the conclufion of every for-
mer war this country had maintained her high
charaaer, and prefeived her independence ; it was
not until the prefent difaftrous period that the fat-
Erred the enemy to diaate terms the molt humiliat-
ing that ever any nation in fimilar circumftances
had ttooped to. It could not be called a Treaty
of Peace, it was more like a Capitulation to a
vktorious enemy on the field of battle, than an
agreement mutually entered into by two indepen-
dent nations; and all this was done, not on a fad-
den, not in confequence of a panic occafioned by
any untorefeen diallers, but after a negotiation
that had been carried on near a whole year; and
after a feries of the molt brilliant and important
fucceffes obtained by Britith valour on the ocean,
and on the land. in feveral parts of the world.
—Could any man pretend to fay that we were
not more powerful than France in ftrength
and refources ; that we had not much greater
means for carrying on the war, and that a peace
far lefs diadvantageons had been called for by any
circumfiances of the country. Great as had been
his furprize and indignation when he learnt the
terms of the Preliminary Treaty—what mutt he
have felt when he heard of the fignature of the
Definitive, with very little alteration, notwith-
ftanding the eztrordinaryand alarming tranfaaions
that occurred on the part of France between the
figuing of both thefe treaties. The firft of thefe
was the affumption of fovereignty over the greater
part of Italy by Bonaparte. Perhaps it might be
laid that fuch nominal fovereignty added nothing
to the real power he had previoufly poireled over
that country, called the Cifalpine Republic. In
anfwer to this he would alien, that there was a
material difference between the power he could ez-
ercia in the one cafe and in the other. He well
knew the nature of fuch a difference; and as he
never did any thing without Tome ftrong and fe-
cret motive, it was to be prefurned that he had
objeas in contemplation which might not flrike
people at firtt view. • Trifling as it might appear
at firft fight, the very circumftance of his chang-
ing the name from the Cifalpine to the Italian
Republic ferved to develope his plans, and fur-
nithed ground for alarm to all thofe who walled to
prefcrve the integrity of the States of Europe.—
While that part of Italy retained the name of Cif-
alpine Republic, its title would be geographical-
ly inconfittent in any new mention of territory;
but by the change of name, it was put into a
growing ftate. Like a child, it was to be confi-
dered as in the all of encreafing inmagnitude every
day, and the new name might be compared to a
child's garment, which tome frugal parents have
fo contrived, that it could be made wider and wider
as the child mould grow up. He law nothing now
to prevent Genoa and the neighbouring States from
becoming a part of this Republic ; he law nothing
to prevent it from running along the whole
peninfula of Italy, and then the name of Italian
Republic would -be more applicable than it
was at prefent. There was another event which
took place between the figning of the two Treaties,
and to which be thould call the attention of the
Houfe. This was the occupation of the Ifland of
Elba by France. This might appear to be of tri-
fling confequence. It was no Inch thing ; the
French by this had gained one of the molt im-
portant ports in the Mediterranean, both as a
commercial Ration, and as a place for their 'hips
in time of war. There was a fbort communication
between it and the principal ports in the South of
France, and it would command the Mouth of the
Tiber, and feveral other places along the coal of
Italy. It did not appear that any remonftrances
had been made by our Minifter at Amiens in con-
fequence of thefe two alarming events. If no ne-
gociations had at all been carrying on—it all the
parties had been in a Rate of profound tranquility,
the very circumftance of the greateft part of Italy
being added to France mull have been a futficient
ground for going to war ; and a fortiori, it ought
to have been a ground for breaking off the Ne-
gotiation. There never was before that time an
inftance of one of the negotiating parties having
committed fuch a violation of the laws of nations,
and of the negociations having Rill gone on and
come to a conclufion, as if nothing of the kind
had happened. After various other obfervations,
the Noble Lord Paid the Definitive Treaty could
not be properly difculred without documents relat-
ing to this fubjed. He therefore moved, " that
an Addrefs be prefented to his Majefty, that he be
gracioufly pleafed to lay before the Houfe copies
of all official communications that were made re-
lative to the proceedings of the Congrefs at Lyons,'
and theappnintment of the Ftrtt Conful of France
to the Prefidency of the Italian Republic ; as well
as thofe relating to the occupation of the Hand of
Elba by the French."
Lord Pli.Ham laid, he would firft inform the
Noble Lord that it would be of no ufe to move fuch
an Addrefs, as his Majefty's Minifters had received
no fuch communications, but as his Noble Friend
had gone fo much at large into the fubjed, he
might expel to bear fomething farther from him
in regard to the tranfadions referred to by him.
He would only fay, therefore, that he did not
differ much from his Noble Friend in refpea to
many of the,points touched upon by him in the
courfe of his argument. He admitted that the
taking poffelfion of fuch an aggrandifement and
Mention of territory as thole of the Cifalpine Re.
public and of the Ifland of Elba, during a Nego-
tiation for a General Peace, was one of the many
inftances of the improper conduB of France •dur-
ing the Negotiation ; but notwithftanding that he
admitted this, he, in concert with others of his
Majefty's fervants, had thought it their duty to
advife his Majefty to figs the Treaty of Peace,fuch
as it was.
Earl Firzwit.Liaie Aced if Minifters had made
any reprefentation againft the tranfation as loon
as they heard of it, and what that reprefentation
was
Lord 11011 ART laid it would be impoflible,if any
thing fo irregular was done, as anfwer a mieftion
of that nature put acrofs the Houk in an irregu-
lar manner, without being then driven to the ne-
ceSty of afwering every other queftion that

might fuggeft itfelf to Noble Lords' minds, and
there wonid be no need of the betraying of con&
dential matters.
Lord PELF+ ass raid'he fhould have con fidered
that the tranfaaien referred to, if taken fingly,
was not of filch magnitude as to conftitute a fuffi-
cient ground for war, but it was the duty of his
Majefty's Minifters to take all matters into their
contideration together.
Lord CARYSTORT called the attention of their
Lordthips to the declaration juft made by the No-
ble Secretary of State.
The LORD CHANCELLOR ftrenuoufly defended
the refufal to give any reply to the Noble Earl's
queftion. He Paid Minifters ought neither to deny,
nor confers, whether any reprefentation had been
made by them or not, and to meet the queftion of
decifion of the Definitive Treaty under that fitua•
tion of its circumftances.

Lord Gavavit.LE ftrongly reprobated the refu-
fal of Minifters to anfwer the Noble Earl's quef-
tion, and contended that they might fairly give a
fatisfadory anfwer without any impropriety. His
Lordfhip thawed the difference between refuting
the papers refpe6ing the Treaty between France
and Portugal, in ;797. and faying whether, in
refped to the Firft Conful's poieffing himfclf of the
whole of Italy, and, by a juggle between him and
the Duke of cany, obtaining the Hand of Elba.
Lord AUCKLAND fupported Miniflers in their
refufal to give an anfwer to interrogatories put to
them by Noble Lords individually and irregularly.
Their duty limited them to anfwer no queftion, but
inch as came before the Houfe upon motion, and
was regularly read from the Woolfack by the No-
ble and Learned Lord.—The queftion was then
put, and the Contents had it.

DEFINITIVE TREATY.

On the Motion of Lord Pausal', the Order for
taking the Definitive Treaty into confederation,
which flood for Wednefday, was difcharged, and
the fame was fixed for Thurfday ; for which day
the Lords are to be fnmmoned.

Adjourned at halfiall (even.