the intention of administration to institute an inquiry into the whole conduct of the war, and then he would have an opportunity of showing the inhuman neglect of this expedition, in which there was not only an extravagant waste of treasure and national honour, but also of the lives of their countrymen.

The house divided-for the amendment 28; against it 74.

Mr. Sheridan asked whether the sum, which they were now called upon to vote, would cover the whole expense of the barracks? From his own observation, and from the report of others, he understood that a great part of the barracks were by no means completed; they were at present in a state of preparation, and it might cost the country as much more before they were finished. Now he wished to put to the house, suppose that the sum total of these barracks should amount to two millions (and it was not probable that it would fall short of one million), if the estimate had in the first instance been laid before the house, would they have consented to incur so enormous an expense for such an object? Now, however, they were called upon to vote it away in scraps and parcels, without any account being given of the application, or having any means to judge how far they were applying the money of their constituents for a proper purpose.

DECEMBER 7.
LOAN.

The loan was raised for 1796 without the usual mode of competition. Mr. Pitt assigned as a reason for this conduct, that the persons concerned in procuring the last loan had not yet received the latter instalments due to them upon it. He had, however, so far consulted the good of the public, that the interest to them would not prove more than £4 4s. 3d. per cent. This assertion gave birth to a long and tedious discussion.

MR. SHERIDAN said he rose to make one observation; the right hon. gentleman admitted that he had been in an error with respect to what passed with Mr. Boyd; that when he came to carry his project of competition into execution, he had, for the first time, discovered that he was entangled in an engagement, of which he was not before aware; and that, had it not been for this, he would have proceeded to a loan by competion. He thought it extraordinary that, in transacting this loan, he should have forgotten the circumstances that passed in conversa

tion with Mr. Boyd. He said that, in a former conversation with Mr. Morgan, the right hon. gentleman was chargeable with the same forgetfulness as to the circumstances of the Austrian loan; that Mr. Morgan and his friends had taken fire at this, and had posted up a paper in the Stock Exchange. He thought it somewhat extraordinary, that after the rebuke which the right hon. gentleman had received, he should omit being explicit, whether or not there was to be another Austrian loan? He asserted, that the effect of this negligence would be a total loss of character as to punctuality of business, a great pecuniary loss to Mr. Morgan and his friends, and a loss to the public of nearly £400,000 sterling. How far such a loss was criminal, he should leave to the committee. The question he wished to ask was, whether the right hon. gentleman considered himself bound to contract no new loan till the last payment on the former one was made good?

DECEMBER 8.

WAYS AND MEANS.

MR. SHERIDAN said, that though it would be more proper to come in detail to the taxes, he wished merely to observe at large on one or two points. When the bills should be brought in on the several taxes, there would be ample scope for particular observation and discussion. With regard to the tax on horses, he thought it should not extend to the agricultural part of the country. When a tax was before laid on the carts, to which his hon. friend (Mr. Curwen) alluded, the law was repealed, because the house thought that part of the community ought to be held sacred. Besides, the tax on husbandry then was not so heavy as now; and the farmer was then more able to bear taxation. He thought the right hon. gentleman also wrong in his calculation of this tax; he doubted the amount produced by the tax on horses of pleasure, without allowing any diminution in consequence of the duty; for certainly gentlemen would be induced to keep fewer horses on account of the tax. The plea of laying a duty on the farmer's horses, namely, the dearness of provisions, was a bad one; for if the farmer already, from a principle of rapacity, stood out for an extravagant price for his provisions, would the house, he asked, increase that rapacity? Would they furnish him an excuse for asking more? Again, the horse-dealer

was thrown into a disagreeable predicament by doubling his license. The imposing a duty of £20 on him, injured him in the exercise of his business. Again, how would the tax be extended to all horses? Did the right hon. gentleman mean to employ officers to ascertain the number of horses, and the age when the duty was to attach? How could he ascertain all the horses in New Forest and elsewhere? In fact, if the right hon. gentleman followed up his own principle, he would find that the operation of the tax would defeat its own purpose; for in New Forest, and such places, there were horses that were not employed for any service. On the other hand, if he confined the tax to horses of pleasure, he would find that it would be unproductive. Upon the whole, then, he wished him to reconsider it, and substitute some more equitable and productive tax. The next thing to which he wished to call the attention of the house, was the tax on collateral successions. He was free to say, that this had so many difficulties as to render it, to all intents and purposes, impracticable. There would appear so many difficulties in preparing the provisions, and enforcing the regulations of the bills on this head, that, on the first blush of it, he thought it ought to be abandoned. With regard to personal property, did the right hon. gentleman mean to ascertain the real value of estates, to find the amount of debts? Could an officer be able to ascertain all this, and afterwards, on a division, strike a balance? He would put a case: how could the commercial stock in trade of a merchant be ascertained, and his debts, with a thousand other complicated circumstances, be regulated? With regard to real property, how could it be made to attach to life estate? In the cases of mortgage, it would be difficult to ascertain the real value above incumbrance. He thought Mr. Pitt was beyond the mark, in stating the property of the nation in this way at twenty-eight years purchase. In this estimate the right hon. gentleman could not be regular. Was he to institute assessors to ascertain the amount of personal property? and on the whole, would he constitute an inquisitorial power? He said thus much, merely to induce the right hon. gentleman to consider the business maturely; and if he did so, he thought he would find his plan impracticable.

DECEMBER 9.

MESSAGE FROM THE KING RELATIVE TO A NEGOTIATION WITH

FRANCE.

On the 8th December the following message was delivered from his Majesty :—

"His Majesty, relying on the assurances which he has received from his faithful commons, of their determination to support his Majesty in those exertions which are necessary, under the present circumstances, recommends it to this house to consider of making provision towards enabling his Majesty to defray any extraordinary expense which may be incurred for the service of the ensuing year, and to take such measures as the exigency of affairs may require. His Majesty, on this occasion, thinks proper to acquaint the house, that the crisis which was depending at the commencement of the present session, has led to such an order of things in France as will induce his Majesty (conformably to the sentiments which he has already declared), to meet any disposition to negotiate on the part of the enemy, with an earnest desire to give it the fullest and speediest effect, and to conclude a treaty of general peace, whenever it can be effected on just and suitable terms for himself and his allies. It is his Majesty's earnest wish that the spirit and determination manifested by parliament, added to the recent and important successes of the Austrian armies, and to the continued and growing embarrassments of the enemy, may speedily conduce to the attainment of this object, on such grounds as the justice of the cause in which this country is engaged, and the situation of affairs, may entitle his Majesty to expect.

"G. R."

On the 9th the message was taken into consideration, and the usual address moved by Mr. Pitt.

MR. SHERIDAN said, I certainly rise with considerable astonishment at the conciseness with which the right hon. gentleman has thought proper to preface the address which he has now proposed to the house. As there does not appear a disposition in the house to notice either that conciseness, or the matter contained in the address, it is impossible for me to remain silent. The right hon. gentleman said, that he would trouble the house only with a few words, because that order of things which had been intimated in the speech of his Majesty, affording a reasonable expectation of security and permanence in any treaty which might be formed, had arrived. Undoubtedly, we were told in his Majesty's speech, that such an order of things was expected. I should have hoped that the right hon. gentleman would not have come forward to say that peace was at all nearer, but only that the obstacle arising from the nature of the government in France was removed. But I ask why the right hon. gentleman

nence.

comes now to tell us, for the first time, that the government of France is of a description with which we may safely negotiate, and is capable of maintaining the relations of peace and amity ? Time and experience have, no doubt, enabled him to alter his former opinions on that subject. All the advantages which he can have derived from time and experience, have occurred within the last five weeks. This is the utmost space which he can possibly assign for the acquirement of those new means of information, which have produced so material an alteration in his sentiments. But in fact, I contend, that he has had only one week, and that upon the experience of that single week, he now comes forward, not to propose a jealous peace or an armed truce, but a peace affording a reasonable prospect of security and permaIf he contends that he had more time to make up his mind on the subject, I ask him, why he did not bring forward the result of his deliberation before he settled the terms of the loan? This one week's experience of the right hon. gentleman has cost the country two millions of money! What excusewhat apology-can he possibly allege to the nation in justification of his conduct? Will he say that on Wednesday last, when he arranged the terms of the loan, he had not taken such a view of the subject-he did not possess such means of information-he had not such grounds of decision as he has since acquired? The effect of the message last night has been, that the loan is this day at a premium of two per cent., and a sum of £2,200,000 is lost to this country: but I must confess, when I see the right hon. gentleman turning so short-when I see him altering his opinions and reversing his former declarations, I think that he is not sincere in the object which he avows. I conceived him sincere, so desirable is the conclusion of a peace to every friend of his country, however much I might think his · policy deserving of censure, I should avoid every species of reproach on the present occasion; but when I see the right hon. gentleman bringing forward such a declaration, at the present moment, in order to defeat the proposition (Mr. Grey's motion for peace) of my hon. friend, I cannot help adverting to the grounds on which he may be supposed to have changed his opinion-I must look how that government is composed which he now states to be capable of negotiation. I have only to refer to his own statement on a recent occasion (the opening of the

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