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ftated that fixteen or feventeen fhips had been captured by the French and carried into Sweden. As he could not deny this declaration, having no fpecific materials for that purpose, he would accede to it, upon the fuppofition of its truth. But the Right Honourable Gentleman had either cafually or purpofely avoided making any strict enquiry into the fituation of thefe fhips, to determine how far the agents of the Government were reprehenfible or not. He again lamented the indifpofition of his Right Honourable Friend, which thus deprived them of that information they should probably obtain. Upon his own authority he could, however, affure the Right Honourable Gentleman, that there were many fels which would not wait for the convoy to conduct and protect them, and thus imprudently they incurred the evils which might eventually befal them, by their own indifcriminate rafhnefs. Every Gentleman muft alfo be aware, that it was abfolutely impoffible for every fhip compofing a large fquadron to keep in company; fome would fail fafter, fome flower, than the reft; and he conceived that no Gentleman would argue fo weakly as to maintain, that it was abfolutely neceffary for the convoy to enforce the compact, or pursue the ftragglers. Much complaint had been made of the return of the fhips from Quebec and North America; yet, after all, the whole lofs was stated, and that with some apparent dubiety, at one vessel only, and that too in a ftorm. If the Severn was really in the unfound condition which the Right Honourable Gentleman had reprefented, he had an undoubted right to complain, and fome enquiries fhould affuredly be made in confequence of that complaint. He could not, however, pofitively credit it, as he believed the Gentlemen to whose care and attention that department belonged, were worthy of the greateft confidence. Here, however, he could not help smiling at the ridiculous manner in which cenfure was attached to them. The Severn failed with the fleet under her protection; they were feparated in a gale of wind, and the Severn arrived fome time before the fleet. This was illuftrative of her unfound condition! It was a strange illustration! That an unfound frigate fhould be the caufe of a ftorm, or that a convoy in an able ftate fhould have the power to prevent one, was, he fuppofed, to that Houfe both novel and furprizing. Some remonftrance had been also made against the mode of convoying veffels to the Mediterranean, or rather to the delay which exigence required.

He lamented as much as the Right Hon. Gentleman that this delay fhould have been the cause of litigation; but when the general fafety was concerned, it required fome extraordinary efforts, indeed, to fecure every individual from the furrounding troubles. That the greatest care had been taken for the protection of our trade in the Mediterranean he could readily prove, as well as in

every other quarter. That a powerful fleet had been fent into the Mediterranean, was fresh in the memory of every man. The delay that had arifen, proceeded in part from the circumftance of feveral fhips not having arrived from different ports, and from the unavoidable neceffity of making an inquiry into the strength of the enemy, in order to proportion our force, fo as to form a fafe and an effectual convoy. Would the Honourable Gentleman fay, under all thefe circumftances, that, prima facie, neither dates nor winds were objects for confideration? When the West-India fleet was about to fail, a convoy was appointed, and the Channel was the place of rendezvous. If that fleet did not fail at the time agreed on, no blame was therefore attributable to the State, as he hould immediately evince. Some delay was at first occafioned, as feveral of the fhips, that were to compose that fleet, were detained by contrary winds; but that could not poffibly proceed from the laxity of Government.

He referred to the Members that furrounded him, who were converfant in mercantile affairs, whether thefe delays were not conftantly experienced. The fleet confifted of veffels from Ireland, from Scotland, from Hull, and various other places, all of which, though they had fet out for the place of rendezvous in due time, might, either by the wind, or fome unforeseen accident, be of neceffity retarded. Information was afterwards received, that the French had a fleet at fea, and therefore it was neceflary to detain them a little longer until that information was attefted, or such measures were enforced for their fecurity as expediency should demand.

He reviewed the prefent fituation of the fhips in the Channel, and confidered the caufe of the annoyance which they had lately received from the fix frigates of Cherbourg. He obferved, that we had fitted out a Channel fleet at a great expence, and competent to exclude the daring invafions of thefe cruizers, but for a circumftance more honourable than otherwife to the British Nation. When an expedition of the greatest importance to the profperity of England was in meditation, and ripe for execution, the feet under Lord Howe was in fufficient force to defend us from these petty and inglorious attacks. The French, acquainted with our bravery, and our refolution never to fuffer an enemy to make any hoftile motions unobferved, dispatched a fleet from Breft; that fleet Lord Howe immediately purfued, and provoked to battle, which the French, in confiftency with their ufual courage, moft ftrenuously avoided. They finally eluded his vigilance; and Lord Howe returned with his fleet, as might be expected after fuch a chace, and in fuch a season, much difabled. It was neceflary immediately to repair it; and that reparation had been made with fuch aftonifhing expedition, that the fleet is again able to refume

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the duties of its ftation; and of course the encroachments of thefe cruifers will foon ceafe, and they will retreat from action. During the reparation, however, of the neceflity of which the French were well affured, they fitted out their cruifers, to do us all the damage in their power. That neither careleifnefs nor neglect was imputable to Adminiftration was manifeft, by the wonderful exertions that had been made in the equipment of our navy, and the subsequent fucceffes refulting from it. He entreated Gentlemen to remember, that five months had fcarcely elapfed before Great Britain had established one of the moft powerful navies that had ever floated. We did not begin to equip our fleets till March, and yet in the month of Auguft we could boaft of having fifty fail of the line, befides frigates, cruifers, &c. the greatest part of which were well manned and well fupplied. We had now eighty fail of the line; and ftill, although we prefented fuch a formidable appearance, we were but juft able to fupport our fuperiority. How was this to be accounted for? France, as far back as September and October 1792, had began to make every naval preparation for her defence, which demonftrated her hoftile intentions whenever the adjudged herself in fufficient force to declare them. If we had fuffered any loffes from her privateers, thefe loffes, very fortunately, were by no means adequate to what the Right Honourable Gentleman had predicted when the neceffity of the war was first stated. From the privateers much moleftation was threatened, and much was expected; yet after all, thefe pirating veffels had only made a few predatory excurfions. When we commenced the war, we had pofitive affurances that the French had feventeen fail of the line in the Mediterranean. We were accordingly alarmed for our commerce in that quarter, and every poffible exertion was used to protect it. How had thofe exertions fucceeded? Lord Hood had failed with a powerful fleet, had taken poffeffion of Toulon, and annihilated the greatest part of the enemy's force in that quarter. There his navies continued to ride, and the trade of the Mediterranean was entirely at our difpofal. He thought that, in the prefent cafe, there was neither ground for jealoufy, fufpicion, or enquiry; and that whatever had been done, had been done with vigilance, with vigour and effect.

Admiral Gardiner, in defence of the conduct of Administration, ftated, that Minifters had appointed fifty-two convoys during the courfe of laft year to protect the trade of this country. Indeed, whenever the merchants requefted a convoy from the Admiralty, that request was always complied with. He ftated the impoffibility of preventing the French, fo long as they were in the poffeffion of Cherbourg, from making defcents upon our coaft, tho the whole Channel was covered with cruizers; for they could get ander way in the night, and return by the next morning Of the

particular

particular fact alluded to relative to the victualling fleet, he begged leave to affure the Houfe, that the Mafter of Lloyd's Coffeehoufe had tranfmitted him a letter, in which he informed him, that the greateft part of the fleet had already arrived, and that only one fhip was known to be miffing.

Mr. Pitt made a few obfervations upon what the Hon. Admiral had ftated, and remarked, that although it was fuppofed that we were contending with a Republic without rulers, and without the means of enforcing their commands, yet it was too evident that France was at prefent fubject to a tyranny more defpotic than under the most arbitrary monarch; and that it was impoffible by any means to obtain intelligence of her defigns before they were actually put in execution. We might be prudent, we might fometimes anticipate, but we had not always the means of an arrange ment to prevent. Formerly, indeed, as Mr. Briffot, in his pam phlet, had afferted, there was anarchy and animofity, difcord and diftraction. Parties were disputing with each other, and the bufinefs of the state was terribly conducted. One party had now however engroffed the whole management, and governed with unlimited authority.

Mr. Fox expreffed great fatisfaction on hearing that none of the victualling fhips were taken. He then took notice of all that had been faid by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and maintained the points which he had infifted on before; namely, that fixteen fail of the Baltic fleet were actually taken. It was true they were separated from their convoy; that was the very thing he complained of; for the convoy feparated from the whole fleet, and the whole had nearly been captured, but fixteen of them were actually taken. To fay, therefore, they were not under convoy when they were taken, was an unworthy quibble, fince the very reafon of the complaint was their not being properly convoyed.

The Right Hon. Gentleman, speaking of the prefent government of France, always wifhed to infinuate, that it was the opinion of Gentlemen, at his fide of the House, that it was a Free Government; but he had often declared it to be his opinion, that it was not a Free Government, nor even an Anarchy, but the moft complete Defpotifm that ever exifted; he ftated it to be a furious and a rigid tyranny; and yet under this tyranny, the Right Honourable Gentleman pretended to discover fome perfections which Mr. Fox denied it to poffefs. The Right Honourable Gentleman had denied, that we commenced the War with advantage, inafmuch as the French had commenced their preparations fo early as October 1792; but he fhould recollect, that it was one of Briffot's charges against the Minifter of Marine, that the promised preparation was not effected.

But

But much had been faid of our great fuccefs fince the commencement of the war; the Right Hon. Gentleman afcribed every thing to our prodigious efforts; he forgot all this while that we had any allies upon this fubject. If ever there was a period when we had a right to expect complete protection to our commerce; if ever there was a period when we had a right to expect fuperiority at fea; if ever there was a period in which that ought to be manifefted to the world; if ever there was a period in which we aught to benefit by our fuperiority at fea; the prefent was that very period. Let us then ceafe to boast of our protection to commerce, but endeavour to extend it. What anfwer had been given to his affertion concerning the fix French frigates being mafters of the Channel? Should there not have been, in all the provident management of our naval power, fome arrangement that would have prevented this? But it was impoffible to have any intelligence of what the French intended to do: True; but we could have intelligence of what they, or any other people at war with us, were likely to do; which was that of cruifing in the Channel, if there was no force to oppofe them. But our navy was fuperior to that of the enemy now, fo that nothing need be dreaded in that refpect-"True, (faid Mr. Fox,) the fuperiority of our navy is unquestionable, and no man rejoices in that circumftance more than I do. But it would be ftrange, indeed, if it were otherwife. It would be ftill more ftrange if this country, with Spain and Holland, united againft France, fingly and diftracted, we could not maintain a fuperiority in our navy. That we fhall be inferior to the French in our navy can never happen. No mifmanagement, no incapacity, no inattention, no imbecility in any administration, be it ever fo weak, or ever fo inattentive to its duty, can ever give the French a fuperiority over us at fea."-He ftill maintained that none of his objections had been fully answered. Nor was it proved that any thing he had stated was not true.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that when it was expected the protection of our trade fhould be fo much more effectual than in the laft war, because Spain and Holland, then combined against us, were now in our alliance, that expectation was erroneous and deceitful. Holland had been fo much alarmed for her felf-defence, from the premeditated defcent upon her territories, that all her exertions were directed towards her military eftablishment, and the repulfion of the enemy from her frontiers, and her naval force must therefore, as it had been, be materially neglected. Instead of our obtaining or relying on affiftance from the Dutch, therefore, to protect our trade, our fleets, convoys, and cruifers were employed in defending theirs; and thus an additional obligation rendered our exertions the more furprifing. Spain, though poffeffed of great naval force, was, notwithstanding, inferior to us in the

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