Mr. Wilkes. Mr. Speaker, I rife to exprefs my hope, Mr. Wilkes● 、 that the honourable gentleman, who made this motion, will confent to its being withdrawn, becaufe I think it is impoffible that the united efforts of the noble lord in the blue ribband, and the feveral gentlemen, who have attempted it, fhould fucceed to ender it palatable to both fides of the House, and he has declared, that he had rather it should be withdrawn, than meet a fingle negative. I think it, Sir, my duty to oppofe this motion, as originally intended, of which the notice was given, refpecting only Lord Cornwallis, and all the fubfequent amendments, because in my idea every part of it conveys an approbation of the American war; a war unfounded in principle, and fatal in its confequences to this country. I condemned it at the beginning, and have regularly oppofed its progrefs in every ftage, both in and out of parliament. The eminent and very important fervices to bis Majefty and this country, mentioned in the motion, I entirely disapprove, and confequently fhall withhold the poor pittance of my thanks and gratitude, where I do not think them merited, in a war of glaring injuftice and wretched policy. I do not mean, Sir, to derogate from the high heroic courage, and fuperior military virtues, of Lord Cornwallis. I admire the fplendor and brilliancy of thofe qualities, which dazzle in my countryman as they did in Julius Cæfar, and I equally lament that they are called forth to action in the fame bad and mischievous caufe; the attempt to overturn the liberties of his country. The Roman too poffeffed, as the honourable gentleman fays of Lord Cornwallis, nice and delicate fentiments of honour and valour. He was certainly an accomplished gentleman, perhaps the most accomplished of any in the history of mankind; but he carried on a wicked war against the conftitution of the free country in which he was born, and therefore under the ftrongeft obligation to fupport. In the fame light I confider the war now carrying on againft our brethren in North America; and if an arbitrary, but incapable, adminiftration had fucceeded in the plan of dragooning the colonifts into unconditional fubmiffion, I believe that the liberties of England would not long have furvived those of

Lord North, Chancello of the Exchequer, and member for Banbury.

America,

América, and the vital principle of freedom, which now pervades and animates this ifland, except perhaps a few clans very far north, muft have been extinguished. Every friend of the conftitution faw early in the fupport of the Ainerican cause a vindication of the rights of Englishmen against an old exploded ufurpation of the Stuarts, revived under the third prince of the Houfe of Brunfwick.

Sir, I hope to be forgiven, if I repeat at the beginning of this new Parliament the fentiments, which I more than once fubmitted to the laft, and even in the firft feffion of 1774I am ftill convinced that the war with America originated in tyranny and ufurpation, in the unjust attempt of taking money from the fubject of the colonies without his concurrence, in levying taxes on the people there against their confent. This has ever been the favourite maxim of defpotifm. In oppofition to this illegal claim the immortal Hamden fhed his blood. Such an attempt against the fundamental rights of the people fully warranted our virtuous and free ancestors to begin the civil war, which brought the tyrant Charles to the fcaffold. The American caufe, therefore, I mean the primary cause of this deftructive civil war, is the cause of every Englishman, who values our excellent conftitution; a conftitution for feveral years in a decline, which has of late received many ftabs in its vital parts. This right of the people, to withhold or grant their own money, this power of the purfe, which includes that of the fword, alone fecures the existence of Parliament, our annual meeting within thefe walls. This marks the difference between the limited monarch of our island, in a mixed government, and the eaftern defpot, or the arbitary fovereigns of France and Spain. We then in a particular manner, with a fingular propriety, ought to ftand forth the guardians of this right to all the fubjects of this ftate.

The fentiments, Sir, on the rights of our brethren in the colonies, which I have now the honour of delivering here, I imbibed from Lord Cornwallis, who enforced them with great energy a few years ago in another House of ParliaHis lordship, in a folemn argument in the Houfe of Peers, in conjunction with four other refpectable characters*,

ment.

* The Earls Tankerville, Cornwallis, and Shelburne, Viscount Tor rington, and Lord Camden.

ftrenuously

ftrenuously denied any right we had to tax the Americans, while they continued unreprefented in the British senate. was in the debate on the motion for the commitment of the declaratory act. His Lordship's opinion likewife of the wifdom of the meafure, after condemning the theory, may be gathered from his words in his examination before this House in May 1779: I never faw a ftronger country, or one better calculated for the defenfive. Mr. Pitt, in this Houfe, with a boldness of imaginary, and glow of colouring, which his eloquence always gave, did juftice to the diftinguished patriotifin of the band of the five illuftrious heroes, as he named the small number of peers who on occafion of the oppofition to the declaratory act approved themselves the friends of freedom. He did not foresee the flaughter of his fellow-fubjects in the fame cause by one of that band of illuftrious heroes at the glorious victory at Camden. If there is any change of fentiment on this important queftion in his Lordship's mind, we have no parliamentary evidence, on which it can be founded. It can only be furmifed from his Lordfhips eagerly foliciting a command against the Americans at the first breaking out of a war, which originated from the unworthy purposes of paffion and party, and fince endeavouring by fire and fword to enforce a taxation on the colonies, although as a member of the legislative body he formerly did not hesitate to pronounce it equally impolitic and iniquitous. If arguments of great and irrefiftible weight have been urged for fo total and wonderful a change, they are carefully concealed. The motives of conviction, or rather of this miraculous converfion, are easier gueffed than with delicacy explained. As a Peer, his Lord Thip fupports American freedom, and votes against an ignominious badge of bondage on the colonifts; as an officer, the fame Earl folicites a command in America to enforce that injuftice of which he complains, and is active to rivet the chains of flavery on the free-born inhabitants of the new world, and the defcendants of Englishmen. In fuch a cause I will not give thanks to genius and courage united, but ill-directed, productive of no good, but infinite mifchief. I will never fail, Sir, to exprefs my concern and anguifh, when I fee great military talents thus triumph over the fuperior civil virtues of the citizen, when I obferve mere lawless force and violence receive the aid of valour and diftinguifhed ability to overturn a fabric of freedom and juftice, cemented by the beft blood of our ancestors. Such military glory is purchased too dear. It is a kind of wretched anti-civic crown, which must disVOL. XVIII.

grace

grace the fanguinary brow of every unfeeling, unprincipled conqueror. A good man will indignant turn his eyes from laurels and palms of victory ftained with the blood of deferving fellow-fubjects facrificed to fordid views, to the luf of power, to the rage of a tyrannical adminiftration. The palin of confiftency, at leaft, the honourable gentleman who made the motion will at all events fcarcely think of offering to Lord Cornwallis. That will be worn, and I hope long, with the applaufe of his grateful country, by another + noble Earl, who rofe fuperior to the falfe glory to be acquired from his profeffion, when called upon in an unjustifiable cause, and honourably preferred the line of duty to his country and its conftitution, to the fame and renown of military atchievments, which his natural ardour panted after. Lord Cornwallis, Sir Henry Clinton, and Admiral Arbuthnot, I will not confent to thank, for I confider them as having drawn their swords against their innocent American fellow-fubjects, and without provocation bathed them in their blood.

The noble Lord who spoke laft, fays, that our thanks would come with great propriety to Lord Cornwallis, and the other two officers, becaufe the thanks of this Houfe were voted on the taking of Quebec, and the late fuccefs of the gallant Rodney. Does not the noble Lord obferve a striking difference in the three cafes? The furrender of Quebeck was, perhaps, the most important and brilliant triumph over France of all the fplendid victories of the laft glorious war. It was the conqueft of the capital of the perfidious Gaul in the new world. Sir George Rodney's late defeat and capture of the Spanish men of war at that critical moment merited the warmeft thanks, and moft efteemed rewards of this country. In both cafes we were deftroying the overgrown power of the House of Bourbon, the inviterate, avowed enemy of this nation. I think with Hannibal, hoftem qui feriet mihi erit Carthaginienfis. I hold that man to be the beft Englishman whole efforts fhall be the boldeft, the moft fpirited and fuccessful against France and Spain, especially against their naval power, which by the criminal negligence of our minifters has risen to fuch an alarming greatnels. I will from my heart thank that man. I will vote to decree him every honour of

The Earl of Effingham.

Lord Beauchamp, member for Oxford, cofferer of his Majefty's houfhold.

the

the fenate and people. On the House of Bourbon fhould we call down all the thunder of the war. We ought, Sir, to blufh at the cruel ravithing and defolation of the country, and the merciless flaughter of the inhabitants of our colonies, in a foolish, angry quarrel, carefully fomented at laft to a bloody war, raifed on a baseless fabric, which perhaps in the end may scarcely leave a wreck behind. Our generals and admirals have already totally ruined fome of the most flourishing parts of this convulfed empire, and destroyed numberless induftrious brave fellow-fubjects, equally intitled with themselves to the protection of the laws, and executive power. Are thefe, Sir, the eminent and very important fervices to his Majefty and this country, for which the honourable gentleman flattered himfelf with obtaining for our commanders the unanimous thanks of this Houfe, of the reprefentatives of the people of England?

It has been faid, Sir, by the honourable gentleman who made this motion, that the Americans are now actually leagued with France and Spain against this country. I do not doubt the exiftence of a triple league between America,. Spain and France, but I know the provocation, and I have good reason to believe the alliance is only defenfive and temporary. I do not allude to commercial treaties. France and Spain now appear to the world as auxiliaries to the United States of North America. The firft alliance with France was made with great reluctance by America on the fpur of the prefent neceffity. It was not thought of until in our domeftic quarrel we called in foreign forces to cut their throats, until the mercenary German, or rather Cappadocian, princes, fold their fubjects, like cattle, to an adminiftration expert in every fpecies of bribery and ruinous contract, until long after our negociation for Ruffian troops to be fent to North America had been rejected in terms of contempt and horror. The late union between America and France is fo unnatural, that I am fatisfied, whenever you offer, with fincerity and cordiality, honourable terms, accompanied with the fecurity America will expect, it will be diffolved. Your conduct hitherto has drawn clofer every tie between them. If you improve the late moft glorious victory at Camden, to bring about this neceffary peace with America, then will be the moment to rejoice, to join in thanksgiving for the falvation of Great Britain as well as America.

Sir, I will not thank for victories, which only tend to protract a destructive war, I fhould rather have faid for tome tranfitery,

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