when we heard so much of the necessity of temper, moderation, and a spirit of unanimity, to find that there are men on whom all those qualities, when evinced by their oponents, are lost and thrown away. I much regret to find that there are such men and such tempers that with them forbearance begets irritation, candour is repaid by cant, and moderation encourages insult. I appeal to the house whether or not the hon. gentleman's speech justifies this observation. I appeal to them whether any part of my right hon. friend's speech can justify the manner in which it has been attacked. Mark the malice and the bitterness of the hon. gentleman's insinuations. He is graciously pleased to admit, that he does not believe that we wish this country to be actually conquered by France. As one of the party to whom he has addressed himself, I bow with all possible gratitude for this instance of his candour; "but," says he, " their avowed hatred of the present administration is such, that I believe they would not be displeased with that sort of invasion that might throw a degree of disgrace on the present ministers." Good God! Sir, what motive does he assign us, and what object does he allot us? In contradiction to all our professions, in contradiction to all the manifestations of our actions, he boldly presumes that we are a set of selfish temporising traitors, who, without meaning to destroy, would wish the safety of the country to be endangered for the gratification of disgracing the present ministers! of bringing, he says, a degree of disgrace upon them! Upon whom? Upon ministers? Begrimed and black with infamy, defeated by their enemies, and degraded in the eyes of Europe already! we, it seems, wish an attack on our country for the purpose of bringing a degree of disgrace on those men, as if it were possible to aggravate the shame and indignity of the situation which they have brought on themselves. On the question of the defence of the country, we have abstained from reproaching them, and they repay us with insult. I, for one, expect no credit or applause from the partisans of these ministers, for the line we have pursued since the first serious intimation of the danger of an invasion; but, desirous as we have shown ourselves, however distrustful of the minister, to strengthen the executive government in case of emergency-let them not mistake our present forbearance-let them not misconstrue it as the slightest indication of a departure from a solemn resolution, to look to a day of national

justice on the authors of our present calamities, as the only hope of national salvation. Our intermediate moderation they may treat as they please; but it is trying our patience high indeed to hear those ministers, or their advocates, arraigning us as factious traitors, if we dare to utter a sentiment that may bring a degree of disgrace on their characters. It is too much, sir, that we should be insultingly accused of a crafty plot to disgrace men whose want of vigour in every enterprise, and whose want of faith in every engagement, have made their administration at this moment the hope of their enemies, and the fear of their allies. It is too much that such men should arrogantly hold their heads up in this house, where I view them only as arraigned culprits, whose trial is put off. That they should presume that we are as insensible to the injuries they have inflicted, as their own hardened hearts are insensible of remorse; that they should come here with frontless inhumanity, confessing and boasting that even now, at last, they have expended blood and treasure sufficient to sooth their pride, and palliate the concession of their adopting the advice of my right hon. friend, which, if originally adopted, would have saved every one of those lives, and every guinea of that treasure. It is too much to see such men covered equally with crime and shame, besmeared at once with blood and mire, erect their crests, and boldly demand support from the country because they have endangered it, and attempt to proscribe as factious traitors, those who have fruitlessly endeavoured to save it.

But, sir, the hon. gentleman has accounted for the animated-I will not call it the rancorous-manner in which he has spoken, by asserting my right hon. friend's speech displayed, at a time when moderation is so desirable, the greatest degree of party animosity. On this charge I confidently appeal to all who sit near the hon. gentleman. A speech of more temperate counsel, both in matter and manner, was never heard in this house. Where was the party animosity?—Yet let me retract:-I guess the animosity which the hon. gentleman attributes to such counsel. My right hon. friend's advice was to change the whole system of the Irish government; to govern there as he would govern here, on the principle of equal justice, truth, and plain dealing. This is the counsel given by my right hon. friend; this is the aggression of his speech; the

hon. gentleman is right to resent it; as a friend to the present minister, he is right in considering any advice which is to take him from the profitable path in which he has trod, as the insidious counsel of party animosity. In corruption he has walked— in corruption he has thriven. However calamitous his career to his country and the people, nothing can have been more profitable to himself and his connections. The advice, therefore, that would tempt such a minister to return to the straight paths of truth and honour may, for ought I know, be plausibly imputed to party animosity. This is the only ground on which I can account for what would otherwise appear a spur of malice without a meaning. Mr. Sheridan adverted to Mr. Ryder's accusation of Mr. Fox for using inflammatory arguments with respect to Ireland, while he at the same time pleaded the danger of answering them. The hon. gentleman had represented the speech of his right hon. friend as containing matter for the manifesto of an invading general. This was at least a confession that the facts he alleged were true, since a general, on invading a country, would never enumerate to the inhabitants grievances which he knew did not exist, else he might be sure his manifesto would be treated with contempt. The best way of preventing a French general from putting inflammatory topics in his manifesto, would be to remove all cause of discontent. It could not be denied that those inflammatory topics, as they were called, were true. It would have been better to have shown Mr. Fox's assertions to be false, than to have traduced him for making them. Mr. Sheridan warned the minister of the dangerous conclusion he seemed inclined to countenance, that there was no discontent where there was no clamour. "There were those who felt and were silent, and those who felt so, were most to be feared." Mr. Sheridan concluded with a short review of the bill; and though he was thankful for amendments, which he understood were to be adopted from some suggestions of his, yet he still considered it, "if meant as a measure of force, weak and inefficient; if as a measure of revenue, partial and oppressive." He considered it as extremely objectionable, both in its principles and provisions; and he could not but remark, it had been carried through all its stages by the finance minister, in the presence of the war minister, to whose department it certainly belonged, but who had sat as dumb a spectator of its progress as if he had nothing to do with it.

The house divided—ayes 140; noes 30. The report being brought up, and several clauses added, the bill, with the amendments, was ordered to be engrossed, and read a third time to-morrow, if then engrossed.

GAMEKEEPERS.

Mr. Pitt brought in a bill for enabling his Majesty to require the personal serrice of a body of men of the description therein mentioned, which was read a first time.

Mr. Sheridan said, he took it for granted that the bill just brought in was called the gamekeeper's bill. He trusted the chancellor of the exchequer would not press the second reading of it that night. He said he objected wholly to the principle of the bill, as being one totally unknown to the constitution of the country, and of the most dangerous tendency. He particularly wished country gentlemen to have an opportunity of looking into it; for his part, he should, in the strongest manner, oppose it, and should take the sense of the house upon it. The second reading was deferred till the next day.

measure,

NOVEMBER 3.

GAMEKEEPERS.

The order of the day for the second reading of the act relative to gamekeepers being read, Mr. Pitt said that doubts hud been entertained with regard to this and as the gamekeepers, if enrolled, were not intended to be trained, there was no particular reason for pressing the measure forward. He therefore proposed the discussion should be postponed until after the recess : he then moved, “That instead of reading the bill now, it be read on the 25th of November.”

MR. SHERIDAN said, if he agreed to this motion, it must be from a conviction that the minister would never think of this bill again. If he did not think the minister had been better advised upon this subject than he was when he brought it forward, and that the house should hear no more of it, he should have moved that this bill be read this day nine months. If the minister would be frank upon the subject, and confess his error upon the matter, he would say nothing upon it; else he should make his motion now. The house had lately heard a good deal about recognizances. If the right hon. gentleman would enter into a cognizance that the house should hear no more of the subject he should be satisfied; otherwise he must proceed to show that the bill was a stigma on the good sense of the house and the nation; a bill of such pernicious and foul principles, he was confident he should persuade the house, if not the minister, to reject with indigna

tion. He had too much esteem for the good sense of the chancellor of the exchequer to believe he was the author of such a bill; somebody must have put into his hand, in the form of a bill, a bad translation of a German romance.

DECEMBER 14.

MR. FOX'S MOTION OF CENSURE ON MINISTERS FOR ADVANCING MONEY TO THE EMPEROR WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF PARLIAMENT.

Mr. Fox concluded a long and brilliant speech with the following motion:"That his Majesty's ministers, having authorized and directed at different times, without the consent, and during the sitting of parliament, the issue of various sums of money for the service of his Imperial Majesty, and also for the service of the army under the Prince of Conde, have acted contrary to their duty, and to the trust reposed in them, and have thereby violated the constitutional privileges of this house."

MR. SHERIDAN said, after the manner in which this subject has been debated to-night, I feel it impossible to give a silent vote. To the hon. gentleman behind me (Colonel Gascoigne) I readily yielded precedence, and felt the indulgence usually given to a new speaker, and I carefully abstained from giving any interruption which might add embarrassment to the diffidence natural upon such an occasion. I must confess, however, the speech of that hon. gentleman was not a little singular. He reposed with the utmost confidence upon the truth of my right hon. friend's assertion, that the conduct of ministers, in the matter before the house, was neither consistent with the principles of the constitution, nor supported by precedents in parliament. Impressed with this belief, he had come down to the house determined to commit the absurdity which he had reprobated so much in the conduct of the common hall of the city of London; for, he says, he came down resolved upon the belief he had taken up upon his authority, to vote in favour of the proposition of my right hon. friend. Though, upon the statement of my right hon. friend, he assumed that the conduct of ministers was defended by no precedent, since he has heard the artful representation and the eloquent speech of the right hon. gentleman-for dextrous in point of management, and eloquent in point of manner, it must be admitted to have been-the hon. gentleman has discovered that the sending of money to the emperor, without the consent of parliament,