power which it is now able to wield; a power which crushes under it the whole of the continental powers, and which has grown gigantic from the efforts which the alien powers exerted to opprefs its infant liberty. It is from this increafed power of France, that England has more to dread than from the arms of any other nation; and were France now again monarchical inftead of republican, we fhould equally have to watch and to dread its ambitious encroachments, and its formidable attacks; for, fully am I convinced, that were the unfortunate Louis XVIII. to be now fuddenly recalled by an almost unanimous with of the French people, were that unhappy Prince to be unexpectedly reftored, and that in a manner as unexpected as was our Charles II. were he, after being re-enthroned, to recal all his emigrant nobility, who have fuffered most cruelly from the French Revolution; convinced, I fay, am I, that France would not abate one atom of her ambition, nor would The attempt lefs, but grafp at more than fhe has lately acquired and achieved; the would not remain fatisfied with the Rhine for her barrier; with Holland and Italy for her veffels; with the addition of all the Low Countries, and a domineering influence over the Councils of Spain; fhe would still remain reftlefs and unfatisfied, until the had wrefted from Great Britain the fovereignty of the feas. Though I dread the Republic of France, 1 fhould not lefs dread the Monarchy of France; and in speaking of the Republic, I beg not to be understood as a perfon mixing in that spirit of invective and perfonality which has been adopted, and which I muft exprefs my regret at feeing continued in a claufe of a Bill which has paffed lately. Sir, when we have been asking for peace with the Government of France, I do not think it wife to charge them with cruelty, injustice, and oppreffion. Equally too thould I reprobate any idea of animating the country by the coarfe expreffions of Monster Hoche and Ruffian General, which have been imputed to a perfon in a high fituation in another country. Sir, instead of reforting to fuch expreffions, I would, on the contrary, pay the French a folid and fincere compliment, and I will tell you what that compliment should be: by knowing what they have done, and judging what they are capable of; I would omit no one human preparation that might enable us to make a fuccessful refiftance to the utmost their daring could attempt. That is the compliment I would pay them-that is I would meet them. It is not in any mortal power to fay they fhall not fubdue us, but at least we may take care that they fhall not defpife us. the way "If then they are to attempt to invade us, they will, no doubt, come furnished with flaming manifeftoes.-The Direc No. 24 ** 5 S tory tory may inftruct their generals to make the fairest profeffion of how their army is to act, but of thefe profeffions fure no one can be believed. Some, however, may deceive themselves by fuppofing that the great Buonaparte (for he, we understand, is to be their General); that the victorious Buonaparte, I fay, will have concerted with the Directory, that he is not to tarnish his laurels, or fully his glory, by permitting his army to plunder our Banks, to ruin our commerce, to enflave our people; but that he is to come like a Minister of grace, with no other purpofe than to give peace to the cottager, to restore citizens to their rights, to establish real freedom, and a liberal and humane Government. This undoubtedly were noble; this were generous; this, I had almost faid, were God-like.But can there be fuppofed an Englishman fo ftupid, fo befotted, fo hefooled, as to give a moment's credit to fuch ridiculous profeffions? Not that I deny but that a great republic may be actuated by these generous principles, and by a thirst of glory, merely for glory's fake. Such I might be induced to believe was the fpirit which infpired the Romans in the early and vir tuous periods of their republic. They fought and conquered for the meed of warlike renown-ftill fooner would I believe that the Spartan heroes fought for fame only, and not for the plunder of wealth and luxuries which they were more ftudious to exclude from, than to introduce into, the bofom of their Republic. But far otherwife are we to interpret the objects that whet the valour and stimulate the prowess of modern Republicans. Do not we fee they have planted the Tree of Liberty in the Garden of Monarchy, where it ftill continues to produce the fame rare and luxurious fruit. Do we not fee the French Republicans, as eager as ever were the courtly friends of the Monarchy, to collect from among the vanquished countries, and to accumulate all the elegances, all the monuments of the arts and fciences, determined to make their capital the luxurious mart and fchool for a fubject and admiring World? It is not glory they feek for; they are already gorged with it; it is not territory they grafp at, they are already incumbered with the extent they have acquired. What then is their object? They come for what they really want: they come for fhips, for commerce, for credit, and for capital. Yes; they come for the finews, the bones; for the marrow, and for the very heart's blood of Great Britain. Give them that, and they will give you as much liberty in return as you pleafe. They call you a nation of merchants; they ftyle you to by derifion; but, at leaft, in dealing with them for their commodity, I would deal as merchants indeed: as merchants give no truft to the mere name of a commodity, but are apt to inquire into the reality reality of the article; fo I would have our political merchants juft afk, whether the liberty they have for foreign exportation is or is not different from what they keep for their own home confumption; on this ground alone the barter muft proceed.— (Laughter, heart hear!) "But, Sir, look to what must be the policy of the French. We know how little real liberty they have at home. I will not take upon myself to judge how far, in a revolutionary state, thefe measures may or may not be neceffary. I am willing to grant, that if the men are entrusted with the will of the majority of France, whofe defire is that France fhall be a Republic, they must do that which is requifite to fulfil that end. But then, Sir, without throwing any blame on thofe men, I would ask whether they would let us have more liberty in England than they poffefs in France? Would they leave us, unimpaired, the important right of the Trial by Jury? Would they-in hort, Sir, would they leave this country to be a contraft to the violence practifed in France, and to be an eternal and marked reproach to the conduct of the Directory? they would be madmen if they did. No, "Thus far have we viewed them with regard to the wisdom of their policy, let us now inspect the nature of their enmity. And here again I feel difinclined to enter on this fubject with harshness or afperity; and I have only to regret that the French nation have both generally and individually been too frequently treated with fcornful and ignominious language in this Houfe. On the impropriety and impolicy of fuch coarse treatment I will not now be tempted to animadvert, neither will I ftop to confider who has been theaggreffor in the commencement of hoftilities, or who was or was not fincere in attempts at pacification. What I regret is, that the more they have been abused, the more rancorous must be their refentment, and as to their intending to exhauft upon us the full extent of their vengeance, in that intention I give them credit for being fincere. "The next confideration, therefore, which naturally occurs is, how, to enfure a fuccefsful refiftance to an enemy, of this temper and difpofition. I will not here require of Government to lay afide their political prejudices or animofities; neither will require of those who oppofe them to altogether fufpend theirs-but both muft feel that this facrifice is neceffary, at least on one point, refiftance to the enemy, and upon. this fubject at least I must entreat them to accord, for here it is neceflary they thould both act with one heart and one hand-if there be any who fay we will oppofe, the French when, we have fucceeded in removing the prefent Minifters, to them I would fay, Sir, let us defer that for a moment; let us now oppofe . 5S2 oppofe the enemy, and avert the ftorm, otherwife we shall not long have even Ministers to combat and remove. If there are any who fay, that Minifters have brought on us all our prefent calamities, they ought, therefore, to be first removed, I will grant them that there is logic and juftice in the argument, but for its policy I am at a lofs to difcover it. There are thofe alfo who think the prefent Minifters incapable, and that they ought, therefore, to be removed. Granted, but if they cannot fucceed in removing them, and if they be fincere' in their opi nion of the incapacity of Ministers, how can they approve them felves fincere in their wish to refift the enemy, unless they con, tribute to aid and rectify the incapacity they complain of. Indeed, there are fome Gentlemen who feemed determined to di vide their enmity and oppofition between the Miniers and the French, but muft they not fee, that the inevitable confequence of this divifion must be the conqueft of the country by the French And why do they thus hefitate about the fide of the queftion they are to take? Can there be any thing more childish than to fay I will wait until the enemy has landed, and then I will refift them, as if preparation was not an effential part of effectual resistance. What more childish and ridiculous than to fay, I will take a pistol and fire at them; but I will not go the length of a mufket. No, I will attack them with my left, but I will not exert my right hand against them; all muft unite, all must go every length against them, or there are no hopes; and already I fay, I rejoice to fee the ncceffary spirit begin to rife throughout the country and the metropolis; and when, on this fide of the Houfe, we nianifeft this fpirit, and forget all other motives to action, I truft the fame fentiments will prevail on the other; and that the offers we make fincerely, will there be accepted as unreluctantly. But now I muft obferve, that the defence of the country might be effentially contributed to, by two very different claffes of men. The one compofed of thofe fturdy hulking fellows, whom we daily fee behind coaches, or following through the streets and fquares, their mafters and miftreffes who may be ruminating, in the mean time, on the evils of an invafion: to those I would entrust the defence of the capital, and would add to them the able bodied men which the different offices, fuch for example, as the fire offices might eafily produce. His Majefty would he thus enabled to employ his more difciplined troops in a diftant or more neceffary fervice. There is another clafs I would also beg leave to allude to; and thofe are young gentlemen of high ranks, who are daily mounted on horfes of high blood. They furely at this perilous moment might be better employed than in foraging in fruit fhops, in blockading Bond Street and Piccadilly Piccadilly, or in taking the field in Rotten Row; it would ill become me to erect myself into a rigid cenfor of amusement and diffipation. That line of argument would not exactly fuit my own line of conduct, nor am I an enemy to their amufements on the contrary---but their mornings might now be more ufefully employed--they ought to be preparing for the task they may have to perform, for fure I am they poffefs a spirit that will not permit them to fkulk and hide themfelves from the form; they will never be feen a miferable train of emigrants wandering in a foreign land. rage "But, amidst all thefe warlike preparations, the idea of peace fhould not be forgotten; nor would I have that precious object remain unaccomplished merely for a difference about fome trifing points--for my part, I feel a more eager defire for peace than ever; for I by no means diftruft the intrepidity and couof my country. The death I fear it muft die is not à death from arms, but from the extent of the burthens under which it groans. But, fhould our refources begin to fail, or even be exhaufted, we fhould not for that be disheartened and defpair; we fhould ftill retain the heart of a nation, and fhew the enemy we can be as defperate as they are; that we can rob, plunder, ravage, and deftroy, as effectually as they have done. Yes, I muft repeat it, the real fire and fword that muft ravage this fair land, are the pen and power of the Right Honourable Gentleman. His eloquence and influence will prove our bane; we fhould alfo beware of too proud a confidence in our ftrength. This ftrength muft continually wafte as our burdens continue to multiply, and multiply they muft in proportion to our exigencies. But, however defirous I may be for peace, in order to avoid this preffure of taxes, I must warn the Right Honourable Gentleman that he must not think of treating for peace, if the French fhould land. That laft of humiliations would break indeed the fpirit of the country; it would break the heart of our navy.---With this opinion I am glad the Right Honourable Gentleman feems impreffed (Mr. Pitt had nodded affent), but, if I am to fpeak out, I have alfo to tell him that the want of confidence in public, men has of late more enfeebled the nation than any other caufe; and this want of confidence has principally arifen from the feceffion of certain Gentlemen, who have deferted the Whig party. And here I must do the Right Honourable Gentleman and his friends the juftice to fay, that I have not difcovered fuch a rage and eagerness for penfions and emoluments in them, as in thofe who joined the ftandard of religion, morality, and civil fociety. On them it is incumbent to repair the injury they have done to the public fpirit, not only by co-operating in the general efforts for refiftance, but in a ** hote |