the practicability, or chance of the practicability, of the object which we contend for. We now, my lords, have ample experience on this subject, and that experience leads to this conclusion-that the defence of Portugal, under lord Wellington, and acting upon the principles of that great and distinguished officer, and supporting him in his great and various exertions, is an object practicable to the arms of this country. The next question refers to that of the subsidies, or support given that way for the maintenance of her forces, and improvement of her military system; and how far that object has been obtained, in rendering the military assistance to be afforded by Portugal independent of the British armies. And upon the second object I likewise say there can be no difference of opinion. About two years ago opinions were entertained by some men in parliament, and even by officers who had served in that country, that it was impracticable to produce a Portuguese force capable of co-operating with a British power in the way we see it has done. To their own honour, some of the of ficers to whom I ailude have al lowed their mistakes in that respect. But what, my lords, I ask, has been the result, with a view either to Portugal, to ourselves, or to the ultimate deliverance of continental Europe, could her nations awake from their stupor? We have seen a Portuguese force established under the general direc. tion of British officers; (but I must accompany this by remarking, that mach may be attributed in this respect to the exertions of Portuguese officers;) we have thus seen a Por. tuguese force arise capable of meeting in action the most distinguished Battalions of the French army, un

der its most able and veteran commanders, and under the most critical and trying circumstances. I speak upon the authority of the most able and intelligent officers. We have seen them at Barossa most intrepidly attacking a formidable force of the enemy, most advantageously posted, and attacking the flanks of that enemy. Upon that occasion, and upon every other, the Portuguese military proved it. self equal to combating the proudest battalions of France. I refer, my lords, to those leading considerations generally, feeling it would be a waste of your time to enter upon any particular details. These results, however, are established, that the defence of the kingdom of Portugal is practicable, and that the Portuguese government has aided most essentially in that defence. Under these circumstances, I cannot believe there exists a doubt in the minds of many men, that we are doing too much for an ancient ally

an ally always remarkable for the fidelity of her adherence to her engagements, and who, by her con. duct under the particular circumstances of the case, presents an additional clain: to our assistance and consideration. Your lordships are aware, that soon after the necessary retirement of the prince of that country, it was occupied by the French armies, and of the consequences of that occupation, the great difficulties which every where obtained; and it cannot be a matter of surprise that, under such circumstances, the objects, since obtained, could not be achieved at once, but by a system of perseverance and attention to the most minute details, through which the exertions made have been effectual for their objects. But your lordships would be much mistaken were you to suppose that

the

the grants made last year, and now proposed to be continued, are alone sufficient. The government of that country applied, in addition to our grants, no less a sum than 1,800,000l. for the support and maintenance of its military system. I think it right to state, my lords, that we are not giving money for those who are doing nothing for themselves. I shall trouble your lordships with no remarks in addition upon the

subject, but move the address to his royal highness the prince regent, which I deem proper and suitable for the occasion. The noble secre tary of state then moved an address corresponding with the tenour and object of his royal highness's message, and assuring him of the cheerful concurrence of the house, which was unanimously carried. A similar address was carried nem. con. in the other house.

TH

:

HE debates to be recorded in this chapter were, in some instances, carried on with a degree of violence not very common in parliament in the discussion relating to an establishment for the princesses much was said respecting the princess of Wales, and those investigations which have during the year 1813 occupied so much time in the house of commons, and which it will be our duty to record in an ensuing volume. On the catholic question we have room only for a mere sketch of the speeches of lord Donoughmore and his royal highness the duke of Sussex: we regret that our limits do not allow us to enter further on this subject, which appears to gain more interest the oftener it is debated.

March 19. Lord Boringdon, in the house of peers, rose and said, that the motion he was about to make originated entirely with himself: it was not the suggestion of any man, or set of men, in or out of the house. It originated in the deep sense which he had of the necessity of making some effort to dispel the gloom of our present prospects, and avert, perhaps, the greatest calamity that could befall us-no less a calamity than a separation of the two kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, and the eventual dismemberment and dissolution of this empire. This was the fearful calamity which he contemplated: in his view of the case, it was the effect which must be produced by an adherence to the pre

sent

sent system of exclusion, and an effect which it was calculated to produce at a much earlier period than many imagined. It was under this strong impression, whether erroneous or not, that he humbly presumed to solicit their lordships' favourable indulgence. What were the prospects, he asked, which the country exhibited; and what the symptoms by which these prospects had been clouded? The extensive colony of Java had been wrested from the enemy, and added to the dominions of the British. Though a formidable navy had been prepared in the ports of the enemy, the British navy had been every where triumphant; the enemy's ships only quitted their ports to enter those of Great Britain. The colonial power of the enemy had been literally annihilated all over the globe. Portugal had been wrested from the military occupation of the French; and in the tenth year of the war, and in the fourth year of its existence in the peninsula, not only had Portugal been defended, but our armies had on every occasion-and those occasions had, as their lordships knew, often occurred-covered themselves with glory in the territory of Spain. The operations of the war in that quarter were conducted by one of the first generals of the age, whose services were still at the disposal of his country. What was the picture on the other hand? Commercial distress all over the country-our manufacturers reduced almost to a state of starvation-new laws, giving unprecedented encouragement and effect to our paper currency; to which circumstance, in the existing situation of the country, he was not disposed to object. In the interior of the country there appeared a spirit of disorder and con

tempt of the law, bordering on insurrection. At a time when we were not only at war with a power whose dominions were more extensive than those of Charlemagne, but also with every potentate of Europe except those of the peninsula, this was an appalling state of things; but the most appalling circumstance was, that while almost the whole population of the continent of Europe was united against these islands, whose numbers were so small in proportion, and notwithstanding the general complexion of the times, one-fourth of our population was excluded from the pale of the constitution-excluded by various laws, founded on causes and principles which had long ceased to operate-laws which had relation only to the peculiar circumstances of the age in wlach they were enacted, and the conti nuance of which, till this day, was a scandal to the nation, and a serious detriment to the political power of the country. It was under these circumstances that, according to an authentic though not official document, it appeared, that his royal highness the prince regent had expressed his wish that a government should be formed on an extended and limited basis. A negotiation was accordingly set on foot, in order to carry this desirable object into effect. That negotiation had unfortunately failed, and the wishes of the prince regent, and the expectations of the country, had been disappointed. It was from the period of the failure of this negotiation that he dated the commencement of those alarming symptoms to which he had adverted, and the glaring deterioration in our domestic situation which threatened the integrity of the empire. An hon. gentleman, a member of the other

house

house of parliament, had received a petition from the catholics of Ireland to be presented to the house of commons, and had given notice of a motion for its being taken into consideration on the 14th of next month. The votes on the table informed them that a call of the house was to take place on the 13th of April-a call not proposed by the hon. gentleman who was to move the consideration of the petition, but by a confidential servant of the crown, who was understood to be the bar to all conciliation. What must be the effect of this, but a deep-rooted hostility in the minds of the catholics? What must be the consequence of such a system, if continued? It was not among the least alarming of these fearful symptoms, that some of the clergy, as he understood, taking the hint perhaps from those in authority, had, in a manner very inconsistent in deed with the principles of their religion, made themselves the instruments of discord and disunion, and perverted even the pulpit itself to the worst purposes of bigotry, and faction. Already had there appeared a disposition, fomented probably by the tone of the government, to raise that execrable cry which, to the disgrace of the country, had more than once marked the epoch of the present generation. But were these the only symptoms that evinced the deterioration which had taken place in our domestic circumstances? Were their lordships aware of the state of the diurnal press of London, and, he had almost said, of the provincial press? Did they not know that they were arranged on two sides? And were not their lordships doomed every day, as had on a former occasion been remarked by a noble earl near him (Grosvenor), to read, on the

one side, of an overweening, overbearing, proud aristocracy, that strove to domineer over the throne itself; and, on the other hand, had they not read the most virulent and scurrilous attacks, even upon the prince regent in person? Were they aware of the effect which these things must have upon the country at large; and could they be indifferent to that effect, under the present circumstances of the nation and the world? These were not all the symptoms that served to characterize the eventful period to which he had referred. The prince regent himself was not exempt from his share in those alarming transac tions. They had heard, for instance, of the highest honours, of the most distinguished situations, being offered to various individuals, and refused, upon the ground that acceptance would be contrary to the honour of those persons who found it impossible for them to do any thing to assist, or give countenance to, the system upon which the government was conducted. It was rumoured that all the bent, aim, and force of government was inflexible hostility to the liberal principles which alone could ensure conciliation and union. This, however, was only rumour; but what was certainly true was, that on the 13th of February the prince regent, in a manner that did honour to the high situation which he held, expressed his wishes, that at the present critical moment no measure should be adopted which could excite the smallest suspicion that he intended to abandon his allies, or cease to give them the same liberal assistance as before; yet, subsequent to this declaration, it was well known that his royal highness had been obliged to accept the resignation of a noble marquis, who

had

had in some measure identified him self with the cause of our allies. He hoped the noble marquis, whom he saw in his place, would in the course of this debate explain the reasons which had induced him to resign, at a moment when his services, with a view to the war in the peninsula, were so very essential. And here he must advert to a printed letter bearing the signature of lord Grenville. If the construction which he put upon that letter, and which it was certainly capable of bearing, was the correct one, he flattered himself that hopes might still be indulged of fulfilling the wishes of his royal highness, and forming an administration adequate to the difficulties of the times. Whether his construction was the true one, the noble earl near him, (Grey) would inform their lordships. But it might possibly be said, that he was not authorised to refer to these documents, as they did not come in an official shape before the house: and the tone and manner of the noble secretary of state on a former occasion, when he put a question to him relative to one of those letters, were such as to justify some apprehension that such an objection might be made. Yet he maintained that any paper of public notoriety, and especially one bearing the signature of the prince regent, was a document for their lordships to proceed upon. He did not think that out of the whole kingdom this ought to be the only room where such a document could not be made the subject of discussion. It was, however, convenient for his purpose, that on the 13th of February a wish had been expressed by his royal highness to form an administration on a broad and liberal basis; and that wish had unfortunately not

been gratified at that time. But the wish which existed then, no doubt still continued; and the object of his motion was, if possible, to give effect to the declared desire of his royal highness; and, provided nothing occurred in the debate which should change his opi nion as to the construction to be put upon the answer to the prince's letter, he should still cherish a strong hope of being able to secure the accomplishment of so desirable an object. The noble lord proceeded to examine the details of the letter of lords Grenville and Grey. It stated that the noble lords differed from the present ministers in almost their whole policy. The object was, to ascertain the precise meaning and limit of that difference. The great questions were, the policy to be pur sued with regard to America-the bullion question-the war in the peninsula-and the treatment of the catholics. His lordship entered atge on these several topics, and concluded with a motion expressive of an anxious hope that his royal highness may yet be enabled to form an administration, which, by conciliating the affections of all descriptions of the community, may most effectually call forth the entire resources of the united kingdom, and may afford to his royal highness additional means of conducting, to a successful termination, a war, in which are involved the safety, honour, and prosperity of this country.

Lord visc. Grimstone regretted that such a motion should have been made by the noble lord, without. any parliamentary document whereon it could be regularly grounded. He was at first disposed to think that the most respectful mode towards the prince regent, to whom the motion imputed blame, would

be