make known. There would be that difference between money voted for these debts, and that voted on former occasions, that no person would claim it-(a laugh). There was the landgrave's debt also, unless it could be supposed that he, like those creditors, contrary to law, would fly from payment, except it was clandestine (a laugh). It would, surely, have been much better for the commissioners, in the first instance, to have come to parliament for an additional grant, when the original sum was found insufficient, rather than strike off ten per cent. indiscriminately. It could hardly be surprising that his royal highness should now wish to make amends for their inconsiderate deduction. He would hardly be suspected of having any interested view in supporting this motion; and certainly he would not be suspected by those who recollect the declaration he made at that time. But he thought it a weak thing, after we had voted away £250,000,000 for the support of the thrones of Europe, an object in which we failed, we should not give £100,000 to maintain the dignity of our own, an object which we could not fail to accomplish.

Sir Robert Buxton moved the previous question, upon which the house divided ; for the previous question 184; against it 139.

AUGUST 4.

DEFENCE AMENDMENT BILL.

MR. SHERIDAN ridiculed the hon. gentleman's (Mr. Wyndham) sarcasm on the public prints, observing that, in compliment to his friend (Mr. Cobbett), he probably preferred the weekly to the diurnal publications. He praised the readiness, zeal, and alacrity of the volunteer corps, and remarked, that, "with the exception of the regulars, there was not a corps in the kingdom on which the late secretary at war had not cast some degree of odium." He approved of this bill, because it encouraged volunteer exertions, and pointed out the station in which every man in the country ought to place himself. It had been stated by the right hon. gentleman, with respect to the general defence bill, that its object ought to have been to march companies to the army, and that their first destination was to be that of filling up the regiments of the line. He had spoken to gentlemen upon that subject, who thought that a nobleman, gentleman, trades

man, or farmer, all of whom were liable to the operations of the act, if they did not volunteer, would be very much surprised to find themselves, perhaps in the course of a month, in a private regiment, and liable to be tied up to the halberts. It was impossible for any man to make a comparison between the volunteers and those who were drilled on compulsion. Could the latter be compared with those patriotic volunteers who were sacrificing their time in perfecting themselves in their exercise? Look at the St. George's and the Westminster volunteers, who most likely might at this moment, be seen exercising in the hall. But the hon. gentleman had said, "he disliked that spirit of aristocracy in towns and villages which it was the tendency of the bill to introduce." He denied that it would have any such effect. The only effect of the bill was that of allowing persons to volunteer, instead of being compelled to serve. They were not obliged to wear an uniform. If in villages they voluntarily came forward without uniform, they were exempted from the operation of the general defence bill. In large towns, such as Birmingham, Sheffield, and Nottingham, he should prefer associations of the higher classes, and in the country and villages those of the lower. He was satisfied with the power this bill gave his Majesty, with regard to the acceptance of volunteer services. We ought not to stop while anything was left to be done. We should look forward to the possibility of the most disastrous calamities, and disgraceful events, again occurring. The state of Ireland was such, that although every man must rejoice at its present security, we ought not to calculate on its remaining free from disturbance. It was absolutely necessary that Ireland should not be separated from this country. It might, perhaps, be necessary that the whole of our disposable force should be employed for the purpose of retaining Ireland. Upon the whole, he saw no objections to the alterations proposed by this bill; but, on the contrary, thought it a proper extension of the system of volunteer service. (Mr. Sheridan delivered his speech from the treasury bench.)

Mr. Wyndham answered Mr. Sheridan.

Mr. Sheridan, in reply to the observations that he was a new convert, asked the hon. gentleman whether it was a new situation for him to come forward and state his opinion when the country was in danger? Did he call out, like the hon. gentleman, "re

store me and my friends to power, or the country cannot be saved ?" Was it new to him to be an advocate in the cause of the country? The hon. gentleman had accused him of firing his musket too soon; he had, however, returned the fire. He ought to apologise to his Majesty's ministers for the danger into which he had brought them; but though the hon. gentleman had fired his musket, he had forgot to put ball in it. The hon. gentleman commanded a fine piece of artillery, which was formidable whenever he had recourse to it; but he was so fond of squibs and crackers, that he seldom did any execution. It was not long since the hon. gentleman had stated, that there was no spirit in the country, and that the journals lagged in rousing its energies. Would he have had these bills brought in at that time? He had said "the people of England were a degraded, base, and lost people." Was that the time for bringing forward such a measure? No, it was more likely to be attended with effect, by having been brought forward after the spirit of the people had been excited. With regard to that clattering and race-course bustle the hon. gentleman had described, he was glad to hear that noise of the machinery of the bill, but it was with regret he had heard the hon. gentleman speak of it with disgust and rebuke. The hon. gentleman had called the placards of the enemy "paper bullets," and had said, "what a time for Buonaparte to come!" It was to be hoped he would not come the sooner in consequence of what the hon. gentleman had said, but if he did, he would find that the measures adopted by ministers had already produced an army of one hundred thousand volunteers. The hon. gentleman regretted the measure had not been brought forward sooner, but he could have no substantial reason for his regret, except that he would have had three times as many opportunities of abusing ministers. His system had been a system of discouragement, which, if it had been followed, would have led the country to despair, and prostrate itself at the feet of its enemy. He had said that there was no salvation for the country, except by a particular individual being minister; that the country had nothing to fight for; that, after the disgraceful treaty of Amiens, the country had received, on the part of honour, kicks innumerable; that it had nothing like glory or honour for which to contend. This was one of his modes of discouragement. The next was to lay down by most laborious

demonstration, that no irregular force could contend with the regular. That with such a force as we had, it was impossible to resist such a force as the enemy could bring against us. The next was, that nothing could be done for the country till the present ministers were out-that they were an incubus, a night-mareand that the more that was given them, the worse they were. He then referred to what he described as the hon. gentleman's silly panegyric upon Mr. Cobbett, and the erection of a statue of gold to his honour. (Here Mr. Wyndham said something in a low tone of voice.) Mr. Sheridan continued. The hon. gentleman, he said, seemed to mutter at this; nay, he groaned; he was glad to hear him groan. However, he hoped he would go on with his statue of gold, and make a colossal statue; but he advised him not to solicit subscriptions at the Royal Exchange; it was not likely he would be very successful there; for, he believed, in one of that gentleman's papers, he had observed, that the stocks could not exist if the monarchy existed. It was not very probable that the writer of such a sentiment would be very popular in that wealthy city where, only, any subscriptions could be raised with effect.

AUGUST 10.

VOLUNTEERS.

MR. SHERIDAN rose to make his promised motion relative to the volunteers. He began by reminding the house that, when he first gave notice of the motion, he had stated his conviction that it was of a nature which could give rise to no opposition. In now rising to bring it forward, he was not less sanguine that it would be unanimously adopted. It was of a nature which he flattered himself would meet the approbation of every man in the house, however different his opinions on general subjects of policy. (At this time Mr. Wyndham and some of his friends entered the house.) The hon. member, with peculiar good humour, alluded to the circumstance; and, however difficult he thought the task, he was not without hope that even these hon. members would give their assent to the motion. He trusted that, whatever zeal of opposition had been manifested on other occasions, there might, at least, be one cordial day before their separation—one day in which every consideration was lost sight of but devotion

to the cause of our common country. It might, perhaps, be thought by some persons, that the motion which he was now about to submit to the house would have come with more propriety from one in an ostensible situation-from a member of his Majesty's executive government. In bringing forward the motion, he certainly had no wish to interfere with what more strictly was the duty of the servants of the crown, but he could not but think that motion, such as he had to propose, was one which came with peculiar propriety from an individual who appeared in that house as a volunteer in the cause of his country. It might not possess equal authority, but he was sure it would not be inferior in honesty and sincerity. In the few words which he had to offer, before he submitted the motion to the consideration of the house, he should carefully abstain from every topic on which a diversity of opinion might arise, conscious as he was that some gentlemen (looking to the bench on which Mr. Wyndham and his friends were seated) were never backward in availing themselves of opportunities for starting grounds of opposition. Before he proceeded further, he wished it to be distinctly understood that his motion was intended to include every description of individuals whose services were voluntarily offered at this difficult and trying crisis. It would include volunteer corps, corps of yeomanry, and corps which were raised by patriotic gentlemen, and accepted by government. He thought it necessary thus far to explain the object of his motion, to prevent any misconstruction or misapprehension, from whatever quarter it might proceed. There were one or two points on which, before he handed the motion to the chair, he wished to say a very few words. At present there existed some degree of doubt respecting the proper construction of the clauses of the bill for the general defence of the country; and also of the bill by which some ambiguities were meant to be removed. It was not sufficiently understood how far a voluntary offer to enter into a corps, previously accepted by his Majesty, would exempt the individuals making this offer from the compulsory operations of the bills to which he had just now referred. He thought it the more necessary to call the attention of the house to this subject, in consequence of a circular letter from a noble secretary of state (Lord Hobart), in which it appeared to him that the noble lord had, to a certain degree, put a false construction on the act. After such an authority as this had