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On the Prefent Negotiations for a Peace WITH r" • , FRANCE AND SPAIN. Animum in Vulnere ponunt. ViRG. LONDON: Pdnted for J. C OOTE, at the King's Arms, in Pater- Nofter-Row. Mdcclxii. . [Price One Shilling and Six-pence. J F f r - '^^ • - - -— — — - ■r — -r- - it*» • *■ 'i.^3* -^ «. -_.^^:jp*^^^. * « • t * i V ^ ' '/ • . \ \ "f ■ t * :i J ' , - ) • - - ■ . / * -f •■ ■'i'"q 1 - '■ ' -= * "" ' t;/ :»l-,um " ^\ i ' ■5 / '.> , '"■ >^v^^^3 '. n^yvj ->• / li ii s ,»; ■»•■ ^ ■/ ' ' *^ *^;* ^ -'■^ -•#-*«. .. * * * ' i . i«j .*H *f ■■> *"? i •? ? .i r« 4 1 ' J : 1 >< ■^n-j'-): 'i -^^ UA jf! I ^ JLil 1^ iJ i i. SJlit i' I. -< ;* . i ♦! it «>**i e : J L- •„* /4'i' jr,' ;1 foO', v> LETT E R, &c SIR, I CAN addrefs you in no terms more proper than thofe that are fometimes made ufe of from the throne, ne eyes of all Europe are upon you ; 1 fay of all Europe, becaufe the refolutions of the Britifli par- liament, in which you have fo extenfive an influence, will, in a great meafure, de- cide the fate of the public, whether Great Britain fliall bend, or endeavour to break the neck of France. There feems. Sir, to be no medium ; (he has offered to fubmit to the former ; your friends infifl upon the latter ; they infift that there is no fafety for our Ame-^ B ' rican ( 2 ) rican interefts fhould France be allowed to keep a foot of ground on the continent of North America ; and that we can have no reparation for the expence this war has put us to, but by a total engroflment of the fi/li and fugar trades. This, Sir, is go- ing rather farther than you yourfelf went in the negotiation of 1761 j and there- fore I cannot figure to my Wf a more pro- per mediator than yourfelf for allaying thofe heats, which, if not allayed, miiy at this time, be fatal to the nation. If I could, Sir, forefce where our de- mands would Hop, I fhould by no means be averfe to our ftretching them to the utmofl. When our prefent difputes with France began we had not in our eye a An- gle objed:, but the afcertainment of the bounds of Canada. I fhall pafs no enco- miums upon the abilities of the gentlemen r who were employed as commiflaries for that purpofe. They certainly were far from being equal to their cpmmiflion 5 . and for want of information, or courage, '• or both, they gave the French court but too plaufibk a handle for trifling with the.^ ■i. .-■,.. negotia- ( 3 ) negotiation, and even for reprefcntinr; the arguments and fadls to be highly in their favour. Their aflurance was fuch, that ' prefuming upon that evident futility nnd fribbleriftn (pardon the exprellion) with ' which the whole nc{?:otiation was condu(5t- ed, they commenced hollilities in North America ; and thus ended the prologue and the firft a6l of our political drama. / • Our making reprizals, by feizing the French fhips without any formal declara- tion of war, opened the fecond adt, and fome very difagreeable incidents, fuch as the defeat of Braddock, and the taking our forts in America, changed the afped: of the war greatly to our prejudice. I am far from wanting to revive the remember- ance of difagreeable events ; but i. s cer- tain, that the fhameful difputes that reign- ed over all the Britifli interefts in America confirmed the obftinacy, and encreafed the infolence, of the French, v/hile the check that Byng received in the Mediterranean, and the lofs of Minorca, feemed to leave amongft us no national fpirit. • '• ? ; ^ ,. W .„ « - B 2 Such ( 4 ) ** Such was the gloomy profpedt when the curtain drew up for the third adt of the drama. All that we then wanted was to fccurc our back fettlements. Security and protedlion againft the encroachments of the French was the ultimatum of our 'defigns. Not a whifper tranfpired about Canada, and far lefs about Guadaloupe or Martinico. But the French were incau^ tious enough to unite us by their provoca- tions. Sir William Johnfon beat them j they were driven from their encroach- ments ; they loft fome of their capital (hips, and at laft Louifbourg itfclf fell be-» fore the Britifli arms. • - '» - .--.....v '' Here, Sir, our language was changed ; h was not enough that we had fccured our back fettlements, unlefs they were defended againft all poffibility of any fu- ture attack ; and this brought on the ex- pedition to Canada; which, give me leave to fay, and I appeal to the laft words of the hero, who condudted it, was the Worft concerted but the beft executed enter- prize that ever was undertaken 5 for had it not been for a moft miraculous concur- f; i'll' rence I T ( 5 ) rcncc of accidents, the planners of the ex* pedition, inftcad of being entitled to na- tional honours, muft have been covered with public difgrace. But in the fourth aA, Sir, I am afraid the laws of the flage were violated, becaufe the unity of place was difregarded ; the fcene was transfer- red from America to Germany ; but by what magic this traniition was made, you Sir, perhaps can beft account for. To fay, that our operations in Germany facilitated our conquefts in America, is flying in the face of common fenfe. The French had received their mortal blows in America before the German iyflem took place; they had received them during your anti- germanic profeffions ; they were not in a condition to fend a fingle battalion to A-" merica, from the time that Louifbourg was taken, to that unfortunate period, when the haughty and ofFenfive behavi- our of a certain great minifler obliged France and Spain to conclude that family compact, which the fame great perfonagc r/eprefented to be a meafure of danger, whereas. -*fr»' 'iv)v '■ 1)^)1 :■ i; y ,1. ( 6 ) ■ 1 • I i*»T t ' ) .1 whereas, in fad, it was a precaution for Icli-'dcrence* .«'« ^^r? "'/aV/ ^vn wfniftj /'> > ^Ja ^ Thus we have feen how gradually fuc- ccfs has extended our views. Inftead of the humble, defenfive, and indeed pru- dent, fcheme of afcertaining our bounda- ries, and defending them from encroach- ments, we annihilated the Dunkirk of A- merica, and laid an empire in the duft; We thus obtained more than our warm- eft expedations had reached ; we might now have bid defiance to the power of France, nor could the gates of hell have prevailed againft our empire in America j hut as Pyrrhus faid to his miniller. Let us (iep acrofs the Jea ; Martinico mid Guadu'- loupe invite our arms. But give me leave. Sir, to aik, to what part of the original fcjieme of fecurity for our conquefts do thofe two iflands relate ; are they not to- tally foreign to it ? They are, it is true, very tempting morfcls, and may ferve to make our merchants as kings upon the earth. Is not this a total deviation from our original plan ? To thofe queftions it K"*^^K^^<-i has ( 7 ) has been replied, that we could not other- wife have indemnified ourfelves for the vaft expence the war has coft us. This manner of rcafoning puts me in mind of your delicate punch drinkers. The firft glafs is too weak ; pray add a little more rum to it. — Now it is too ftrong. — It wants water. — Nay now, indeed, you have made it all water. — Prithee, a little more rum to it.- Thus we go on adding ex- pence upon expence till our views are boundlefs, and every acquilition induces a neceffity for another. We attacked and conquered Martinico and Guadaloupe to indemnify ourfelves ; but what indemni- fies us for the expences we have been at in thofe conquefts? Muft not another conquell be undertaken; and when we have been mad enough to drive the Frerch out of America, at an expence which is twenty times greater than all their property there can fatisfy, who is to indemnify us for that ? it .4-ifiti tU ' St *it'~' . f » i^- '•••1 ,J*L 'r- Ivi; ^* Let us then attack old France, and let her fufFer. Would not this be talking like mad men ? But what elfe can we do, i:^r;i/ ' if I ( 8 ) if we continue to multiply expenccs, and confequently indemnifications,. .. m , ^ .. . .^j. Having faid thus much with regard JtQ France, let us turn our eyes to a more important objedl, I mean Spain, I ihall, for argument fake, take it for granted that we fucceed before the Havannah; but can that be our ultimate objed: ? Every (hilling we acquire at the Havannah ^gpes into private pockets, without a far jhlnar* of it being brought to account by jii^e go- vernment. Does this eafe our lanjd^d in* tereft of taxes; does it diminifh ourpay* mcnts for window-lights and wheel-car^ riages 5 w ill it take oiF the duties we pay for every manufacture, and for every in-.: gredient that enters into manufadturi^; will it abolifh the burdens upon coals» feapi fait, candles, leather, and athou** fand other articles indifpenfable to a trad* ing nation ; or to fum up the whole, will the plunder of the Havannah contribujfe. towards the fitting out a fingle fhip for its, battalion for its proteftion, or a finglc defence..;.^ vJiM,i>'^." J^Ui/io)nTri^ %. i'^'-iit ( Q V What then is the ultimate end of oun attempt upon the Havatinah, fuppofing it to be fucccfsful ? Undoubtedly our hav- ing the treafures of Peru and Mexico at our devotion. This idea is too romantic to be farthcir infifted on. It confutes itfelf, and were it carried into execution, would in two years undo this country ; becaufe it would take from us that fpirit of induf-^. ity, which has given us more wealth than even Peru and Mexico yielded to the Spa- niards ; and yet without that ridiculous ro« mantic idea our whole proceedings and fohemes of accumulating conquefts arei tmaccountable. • , , , . ^ . ., .,..? .« ' But, it may be faid, we muft have theHa^ vannah to bridle the Spaniards and over-^ awe their infolence. Bridle them frortf what ? From bringing wealth and richc* into our own ports. The plain truth, is,* that we muft either keep the Havannlh Of give it back. If we keep it, it muft be for fome farther purpofe, as the place It- felf, intrinfically, even if the whole ifland is thrown into it, cannot pay the expences of garrifoning it ; and the charges of the C . expe-» ■ T;>r. Vs.. A j(' »',*».■*>« ■t.T'V*"?W'ntr»«j»«W»««T«»* I t i In .uxpfifitidn ia conqiiieriag k. rltrfervjof -die SjpintM'ds asF a noble: waiehmf^^^c^dthi? ktjaiofr thieir my\gmon, aMawdoiaBtcd^ the treafure that mwy he found in iti^ifirts Biifsipife! but wh^a.U is diverted;. vfirrmftlKifo pui;pofcs, it isQf ae?Jtto,p.o4t^pamH -^V^r5iv:^4iri/>r Vrffir^ 3(ij[fj;lihe:plaa of our operational dc^ W* •^tend to a total; iConqueiil:> of bol]ab^li|i French and Spaaiflij AmQficajjpyjj^fjipfiif^a is tocomprchejifible* ? i^ Cm it Istetin^g^Qd th^t any people iw#l fee b«w«i'JSv,^f wood ind dfiawejrs of . wa|er f^or-uf^oi^ I fetift in our power-to force the Spaniardft to^d^ tin the mines of Mexico and JRptofi for us. j andfif they do not, where is the vifesof oiju: keeping the JJavannah ? Let us fbr.a l^pn^en.t iupppfe tfeat. place to bp in our ^9^4^ ;i we fliould riol: b^ pofleffed of it fix- n|:^nths,befpre:_ f na.tion^J putcry WQ^!b} be made up on tbp unwhokfonie;)efs of f^ti?(e49limate, it^ 4ifagreepienS- >vith En- gjlifl^ Qopftitujtipns^ and the\ immpder^c ,>f3^pei>qe of n>ainta,iniag it. .T'Ws.be^ fn.fgot to l4niaA.'perh3p? and Vcra^Croz, tD bring otirfehes homey as the faying is,^ ihA thWfr&m exf^edition* to exp^dttkMin^tf m Intovmg^ it t!hiW>^ ^11, tai»vc hpy\ I fp^k^df ctMild b^^'^of^fervice to us to 6Ve?«^^c % ptdtid draf^^jufed people, heated wUbf»- 4m!ge^ md ^nfeiated hy defpAif. ' - Ni&w; • 4hat I iiriiUptfh €bis#b}#a:,-Si?/ *hl^ J:dU W?n iVbttakc it amtfs, • if I jUft *3f{^6 litty appf-ehenfions, tKat Wb hafre iilfeady gained more donquefVs than Ivc can ' make life of td ahy good piirpofe. For my own 'j^tt, cfotlfidering the nature of tbecapittt- •l^on of Guadeloupe and Martifiico, I tin ^'^^ito ttam^ difcover the infinite adviei-* *'->«.ii* '.»'J- tifgC -J Jtney trade under bur prolie(5tiQa;i,riiigf,?jre [ ocempted from many heavy ^^):^:del;s^ apd yoppreffi^ve taxes they pai4 t9/jl;]^eir fptxx^r m^rters^ and we neec^ not doj^b^^pf, |;|^^ir ^ ^^S^^S at ail times frepfh \)^r^^ ^fl^i- ments, and mann^r^. _^^ ^^0,6^ nprft^^ ;^But, It may be fai4, thfsy w^lJ:a%.pff * great quantities of our maAufiaitr fugir ifelps from Barbaddes, Jajma|ca, ana our other iflands, are^ one with ano- tfe^r,*ierdorh above half loaded ; and to 'Jilffly^wiil db by Iba^hg Giiadalouj^ "Jg^^C^* &iQ eiicreafe '61 fhippihg will he but very put iri^ competition witii tne fcehefits of peace. Witli regard to the laft aHvantage prppofed, I mean the (^x^lijfive Tugar trade, it is a rnere chimaera, whiicJ ^Uti fi''- ;'f^- ■■W»jV-"'.i;t' ' ( H 1 ind Iflan5 where fugars almoft fpontane*' :But, Sir, fiothin^ wduia t^i'niiir^W^ ing to me than to undefftand, that ath'y'^ o£yoqr Weft-India friends, of whoiii yW ha\^c great numbers, (hould clamour i-f ^ainft a peace that ft to reftorc GuHii'i 16upb and Martioico tothe Frenrh. Shouicl^ Great Britain avail herftlf to the utnioft by the cultivatiori of fagars in thofe iilanchf^ to!>*^hat a ftait^'rinja few years, tiiuft'dtiif old original iflaiids be reduced! SuppB* fing that our fhippirig is encreafed by th^ ^cquifition of tht>fe two iflan'd§, what d^ we gain, if it is at the expenjce of our otHfii. iilands? But, Sir, I am in no pain about thaft c6nfid:eration ^ perhaps the danger they hav6 ^fcaped may quicken them to a degree ^dC WiJuftryfthat may more than compenfatii for giving back the two iflands in qud-^ ^ion. Upon the wholeV therefore, I caA by iib tirteans be fatisfied, that our retentioh of thofe iflands would at any rate anfwef ^6 cxpence of continuing the wat-'i 'jfflfl that it niight not in a (hort time be at- tJMidcd with the detriment, if not the ufr ■ ■ ■ ' ' f T P •i'ir"?rt';nf "^r'^rr-f ( »5 ) -,',,!. ^rfi s K — #• ter ruin of our own iflandsy whiqhhave lai^ therto brought^ and daily brings in> imi men fe riches tp this kingdom. / .nr^i ^ I {hall .now> Sir^ proceed to the fifth oSt 9^ Our dramvw^chis to ufher in t the gfaiidxataflrophe; and it opens with our ^(^pgueft of Mbrtinico } a glory for which jP^lJTien^afaiy'WO are indebted t6you< a^lfujimilratiottv' But the confequence of ^^at,copqueft hais been already difcuflcd v^^QX the htad of Guadaloupe; I fhall l^refore only add^ that k is un^imouflji Hfgr^ed amongft all people in trade^ that« hqwever brilliant the conqueft of Marti^ idoo was, it is attended with no folid ai- Irantage to this nation, if we confider it feparately from Guadaloupe, You> Siti yeas willing to give up the kerneli^ and Ivhat fhall we do with the fhell? You a-? greed to reftore Guadaloupe by the fixth tsirticle of the anfwer you fent to the ulti-? matum of France, dated Sept. i, 1761; and indeed, if we ferioufly canvafs the »iyhole of that negotiation, it does not ap- pear to Tt^% that we were to have the imalleft compenfation for that ceilion, uh- ' f ^TCT-, >-\ lefs \- fr. I;. 11 . • ( I6) . lefs vre ftippofe the demolition of Dun«- kirk, and the rendition of Minorca, to be fuch. As to Dunkirk, I think it is en«4 tireiy out of the queftion ; the demolitJoa *^' of it was ftipulated by former treaties >^ ' xior do I fee why it ihould be anobjed: of terror to us in its prefeht cdhdition. A9 to Minorca, at the time when you offered t " to cede Guadalpupe, it was fo far from ^ ^ being of fervice to us, that it muft, have>- ' entailed on us a moft monflrous ufelefs 45^&^tll pence. At prefent, the cafe is altered by the family compadt, and by our war with Spain, which renders the pofTeflion of that ^'^ ifland now extremely dcfireable. But, Sir^-^**^ it would, I believe, puzzle the beft of your - '* friends to name any one difad vantage, which ^ - ^ the Ipf^ of Minorca put us under before ^* the War with Spain broke out, but that^?*^ of fredog us from an expence of abovefii * 200,000 1. a-year, in maintaining three^rft thou&nd men ingarrifon, not to mention |/' our immenfe charge in ibipping, in tranf^^^^ ? porting troops, ammunition, and provi-^^*^ lions to and from the iiland, and the coftt^^^^ f>{ fbrti^catiofis and repairs, which at' t^^l *^ moderate t. A -f :i'/. ( 17 ) moderate computitioa m4y be eftimafced^t at 100,000 .L.arjcear mors, I ifaall fini(h I this head with one x)brerviatioo ; which i»§ iii that no acquifition can be fo valuable to ^t the acq^irfr^t as ,4t .was, to .the original t^^ owner. .JVIiw:Unico could not have coft usi ft^ hCscthzn Xeypx^ .xhoaimid. men to garnfoa >^| it, and ke«p, the iii^^biMnta in awe. t The , t Frencht Wj^e.freepf that expsne^.,: ail-but fi the^irifle they^paidto thp officers -for difoit A pliailig. th«:ir) m«% which wc?e raifed up«% u-^ on ihat .aod thfe neighbouring iflands. *.^i» > ^ WJpc^ttiuive -obfcrNfed, ? with regard to 'li thciJfcndition of GuaSaloupe, i^ applica-^ |^ ble,t^ theilib^rty which theFrench^ bjr-'i^*^ the .cftforttg tteaty^ are to have of ^fi^i*f|^' '^ in tbcgulph of St, Laurence* You, Slr^'i?^ agf«e that they (houkl have aporttherb '^ witiiQiit fortifications to be fubj<»? infpiB^iondf England, you havegtai^ttd i> the French fuhjcds the privilege of ikh-^ ^^ ingiiivihc gulph of St. Laurence, upoiVthi^ ^^t^ cxpi;tf8 condition, that is to fay ; Tharthc o^' faid^vFrencb .fubjeds fliail abflrain from oa thalfiartkuil^ fifliery on all the coafts a/p- 1; A pertaining to *Grcat Britain, whethfcf^oH > a • sji;i:3Uva; D the ( : ,1 ( >8) k I iri4 tlife continent, or on the !ff^hds fituatetl in the faid gulph of St. Laurence,' ' which fifhcry the proprietors only (yf ihe faid coafts have conftantly enjoyed, and always cxercifed ; faving always the privilege granted by the thirteenth article of the treaty of Utrecht, to the fubje<5ls of France to fifli and dry theii' cod fifllt on; a part; fpecified on the banks of Newfounilaj^rl, You likewife. Sir, confented in yoi^r i^a* fter's name to cede to the French king the^ ifle of St. Pierre, which is divided^ 6y a little ftreight from another ifland, known by the name of Miquelon, or Michejon, lying to the north, which ifle of Su Pierre with its port, with refpeft to that part of Newfoundland fituate between tibe bay of Placentia, and the bay of La Fortune, flands eaft fouth eaft, and its port opens towards the north eaft, the interior part of which port is called Bourgway,.;^ ;:Tfo the ceflion of the faid ifle the foj- Ibwing conditions were annexed ; That; France, on' noyrietence, npr under any denoiiTiination whatever, fliall/ereift anjf fprtificatioiis, either ia the faid ifle, or in Its I, ii ( '9 ) its port^,,^r;(i that fhc fhall not keep any troops therCf noi* maintain any military cftabli(lim€;nt whatever. That the laicl iile, i^n4 the,faid port» Hiall only ferve as a fhelter for the fifliing veflels of the French nation, and that France fhall not fufferthc veflels of any other nation wrhat-' ever to partake of the convenience of this fhelt^f for the fifhing boats. That the pbflemon or the i(le of St. Pierre as afore- fai^, rtiall not be conftrued in any cafe to confer* tranfmit, or participate in any man- lier' wnatever, the leaft right or power of fiflilpg, (^5 of drying cod fifh, in any part of th^ coa(l of Newfoundland, beyond the diftridt exprefly ftipulated and fixed for that piirpofe, by the thirteenth article of the treaty of Utrecht, that is to fay, A loco Cap Sonavifta nuncupato^ ufque ad extre-* mifatem ejufdem infula feptentnonalem» inde- que ad tatus Occident ale recurrendo ufque ad lacum Pdihtriche appellatum. By the fuc- cee^irig article, an Englifli commiflary was to oe ajlowed to refide on that ifland, and thecomrhander of the Britifli fquadron at Newfoiipdlahd to be at liberty from time ' ■■ ■ ■ » i^ ■ ' ' y i/ 2 tQ '1» t } ( " ) Ir,'. $0 time to irvfpeca the faid ifle and tlhrefald Of! port, to fee that the ftipulations abofju ex- ^y prefl'ed were pundlually ohCervcd. t<»'^' ' * jfl; oj I have, Sir, been the more explicit with b^ regard to thofe terms, becaufe It is very aw pofliWe that by this time they arc forgot- -if Jten by the public. It is evident that they ijc arc founded upon the treaty of Utrecht, iv and it is extremely plain, than that H) if France fhall prefume to trifle with us, ,o; land to make a wrong ufe of the indul- 20 gence there granted, which ifi( discom- mon argument with the enemies o<^ peace, 1j fjinoithing can be more ea{y than for us to Ln annihilate the fame. As the terms of the .,;. prelimiDaries arenot yet publifhed, I am DVi... not a* liberty to fay, whether vvc have, or -ioq'haye not, admitted of the above ft ipula- il .tions, and whether the number of (hips T/iidto be employed in this fifhery arc not re* -qiAlftridted to a certain number. In the mean ,jf3i utime, it may. not be impertinent tp ob- iii Lujfcrvci that by this ceflion we give up no- .1 hthiug that property belongs to ourfelves, t) Hiiciaiad all we do is to reduce the treaty of -^?; or.Utfccbt to its primary meaning, without T-V3 ) s: ^ departing (21) Li departing in one tittle from the original principles,, upon vv liich we undertook the war. The great queftion therefore is, v^hc- J;i -ther the giving the French a right to the ^ fera mtura^ a privilege that is not denied -Jo^i^vcn by our lords of the manors, jealous •^jd«sthey are of the game, is of fuch con^ ,ir! icquence, as to perpetuate a war. You hiriryoucfelf, Sir, appear plainly to be of opi- C^u iHon that it. is not; you thought it inhu- Ifftman to deprive the French of a privilege, -fTH without which, as a people, they cannot 01 f K -'Thus far, Sir, I have by the help of ^f[i Yyour polar ftar, cleared my way, and rni; ilidwn that we have in reality given up r- -npthing that you yourfelf wouU not have Ji -given up, had Martinico been in our pof- ;>'^jif'.feflionon the 17th of Auguft, 176.1. It 71 remains then to enquire, whether we have nu-f, not gained by the new preliminaries, fup- Ho -pofing them to be fuch as we have in print. -on \;»« The capital maxim of your negotiation ,^.;r/ ^evidently was to fecure Canada^ and to U> y that feCurity you was wilUfig to facrificc tiioj -Cfuadaloupc, to which Mar^nico, how- ^;\\''.ir,i\% ^ ever ,,. wm ( 22 ) «ver we may boaft of its importance, is il6'hibte than tfaeci&del. 'But y6ti C^s^ libiV'Sit, be ignorant of the heart^turn- irigs, the doubts, and difficulties that k-* rofe upon your leaving them in poffeffiofi of Louifiana, even fuppofing the Mardjuis de Vandreuirs defcriptiori of GahaBa had, taken place, as mentioned in the 2d article' of the anfwer of the Britifh court i6 \Ut ultimatum of that of France; Ybii majr^ .remember. Sir, how copioufly your friends' ^edaimed upon the happy riddance yoi^^ met with on that account. Were I tbfee- cif;^ the numerous pamphlets and papers thsi^ had been publifhed by them, upOri the^ tmfitnefs and danger of leaving the French inpoffeffion of Louifiana, they could ip-- pear within thefe fix months to ametftit to 8 J.-^ The ftrortg argument lirged ag^iift it;^"^^^, tbereftlefs encroaching fpirifr%f^ thc^ !French| the arts of their emiff^ri^s, ' and their great intereft amongft thte iS?^* vagc^^^ whom they would be perpcttiall^^ ftirrifig lap agalnft our friends and plailier^V ^ ahd feme of y6ur advocates, or rather' tliil^ ©n^thi^i bf peatei afiibiigft wliottf 1 .a - ia ^, Ilvili - 'ilKiU Jy^U^Ci i iU.U I . C 23 ) particularly name, fome of your capital, writers, have within thefe fix weeks, again and again declared, that we had better yield up Martinico and Guadaloupe, with all the neutral iflands, than leave Louifia- na ih the poffeffion of the French. They hs^veeven gone fo far as to think, that the en- tireceflionof Canada was of no importance, unlefs we annexed Louifiana to it. The cbilyeniencies of its rivers, the fertility of its vallies, ahd'its abounding with all kinds of rhaterials for trade and manufadtures^ havi been fet forth. Sir, in fo oratorial a manner, thati have been fometimes tempt- ej to think, that you yourfelf was the penman^ .. 4^ n n r .rli T«A. ■fr nr\T ni^o n ill 2 How quickly was the ftrain altered,, t^en it became next to certain, that Loui- >r iiana was to be ceded to us 5 all its beau-f.r ties vanifhed at once, and left nothing be- j^ hind them, but uncultivated vallies and^ dreary mountains. In (hort, Sir, fuch i%,r the temper of one fet of people at this timeift that if 'the French would fend us a cartt^. bhrncbe. on which we were to write our owa . tei^liis, I don't believe that five men of the r ^'^•^ whole if t'^ ^J..j. jL reafonably to be, in favour both cfv^e^^ts caufe and courage of Britop? ; and I fefi oufly think, that atprefentwearefup^i^^^v to the French in the praftieal part of warii^,^ both by fea and land. I cai^ however bj no means admit that fupcriprity to betfixn cd and permanent. Your own friead$j|,| ,. Sir, produce a ftrong evidence th^t it, i^un not. According to them, when you tpofc, ;, into your hand the fteerage qf ftate,, thfl^ M French were to us what we;arc |ioyrj^|$^i,:.5 them. They beat us in every quartefr to and triumphed over us on both ele;maits«, '\i Idart^^ot, Sir,^ flattter you fq far» as tii-uri jfay that it was your eloquence and npieafi^rel^ uo alone that roufed us from'^ur defpoo4wM,uy<» cy. . The former was feldom heard beypn^ r ., th« it if .i natidn could no longer fuiFer the drones ? of corruption, and the veterans of iniqui- .| ^ ty, who had long done every thing but ,^.; fighl^ f(M: their pay, to engrofs the nati«^;[; { onal^fcrvicc. Such was the happy crifis, ^^» whidi W€ inay call the turn of the tide ,1^ *f K' '^1 Jh'ri? ; 26 ) our affairs, which you took advantage of, and monbpoHzed the merit 6f it 'to yoi'ii-w ftlf, Notwithftanding your uhfortuiiate choice of the St. Cas commander, to you was afcribcd the education, the fpmt and fucceft of a Wolfe, a Rurrington and k Monckton; tho*, God know??, it' requires but a very fmall portion, either of readi* ing, experience, or common fenfe, tb be convinced, that generals of tlittf igef'ahi the mofl proper to carry fiich fer vice$, as they performed, into executtohY^^^ ^mo-j ' But, Sir, upon what principle bfcbiti-^ mon fenfe or iuflice are we to cone hide, either that the operations of the '^Jfa'i'^; (ir the choice of the generals, w6ic dlreded by you 1 1 have indeed admitted th At they AX^ere, in the fame feiifc as Lewis XIV. was complimented on the aftibns of a Tiirenne, a Conde, or a Luxembourg; but I can by no means figure to myfelf, that you had the fmall efl exclii five privilege of appointing generals, or that you did any ni6ye' than fall in with the general fyerit'and opinion of his Majefty,' and your felloW 'Cdifnibllors, ' - ' ' ' - ' ■'''' -^ '-''■ :x\ as ( ^7 ) j^iit^ fty.your ad^iirisrf,^ the plart of th« n^eafiuj^^ was yours, your intelligence was ex;a<3:, prppifc* and extenfive, and there W^n^e^ nothing but addrefs and courage tOj carry ypur meafures into execution* TThj^le ^rq encomiums I have heard laviib* c;d .uppi;i . you in every cofFee-houfe, ^nd ^ye^-y corner, of a coftee^houfe ; our city .i^^ll^^ arid ey,en our churches have refound* .^d with yoiir praile^ and yet, when we come to what we call clofe quarters, With \\qw little foundation ! Your intelligence with regard to the fituation and ftate of Quebec was fo precile and exad:, that ■; general Wolfe was as much at a lofs when he Qmjc into, that river, as he mufl: have been, hifd he arrived on the banks of Styx without a Charon to ferry hint over. He . fucceeded, it is true, by one of thofe very ,/ew miracles that are recorded in hiftory j ^ but can the moft frontlefs of your admirers ^^whOj^eads his Lift letter to yourfelf, pre- ^ tend that he fucceeded by your dire<5lions, ^jby yourforefight, or by your difpolitions ? Had he not fucceeded, was you not more .UMjble to an impeachment than the Earl E 2 of m oi\ Oxford wasi when one 6( tht chargdis l^ainft him was, not for advifing^ hat, f^t ^ot prefcnting fo hair-brained an expediti*- ence in his preparations, ' iXliaVched'tothefea-fide, and orderinghls fol- d^r^^b fill their helmets with cockle-fhells iiftd'pen^iftcles, demanded triumphal ho- nbub for returning with the fpoils off the ikxreari)'' This is a fubje(5t however that is yi'athcr too ferious to be treated ludibroufly. The expence of Caligula's expedition came out of his own pocket ; that of the Bei- i leifle expedition was defrayed by a people ^f already overburdened with debt. Cali- gula's conqueft was bloodlefs ; your's, viras oiartended with the lofs of niany brave men's arlives; his, rendered him the mock of the 3 .'J3eople of Rome; your's, made you the idol »^lof the mob of England/r ^""^^^ rfift'^T^ lAn-pYoVit frfends, Sir, pretend to excufe fo "'flvamelefs a mifapplication, fo wanton a ^^f'proftitution of national power, and nati- ■ {T\iji.\ onal 5 r^ t y lo Blil Off) If) >(! ^ '^,ni 'r\(\l ■\\\P\(Uy} ^<)}-)i^c^ ontal treafurc, by pretending thfit thp ,^r^^t ment employed againft . BelleiHe was by you intended for another objed, tb^t ra«» thcr than that it Ihould be totally ynemf ployed it was fent againft that ifland.,v,^rf vji^Two confideratipus arife from this ^pft- logy J the firft is to the total difcr^dit,^ that intelligence and forefig^it, aflignfd you by your admirers, as well ^^ yo^r ^f direifting power in the cabinet. The ojthef confideration has a much worfe afpfi<9^* If you found. Sir, at the time the expe^ dition againft Belleifle was undertaken, that ypur intereft in the cabinet was x^^t ftrong enough to have diredied the arrpaf* ment to its firft objed:, why did you n,ot ibeu jeBgn the feals, becaufe you could no longer diredi the meafures of governpient ? you are, perhaps, the firft minifter in En*» gland that ever prefumed fo far upon an all- .engrolTing power in the adminiftration, 48 todifdain to found the fentiments of youi^ fellow minifters, or even vour fclla\!^ jepunfellprs, with regard to the proper ob* jeftoffp important an armament. Why* Sir, did you not, before the equipment was * f: ; madcj ( 3t ) made, confult the judgment of the reft oF fheadmihlftratibn'i' andhad you found it Sxrerfe to any violent mcafures with Spain, becaufe mattcfs^ between the two crowns ^re not ripe for aftion, why did you not prevent the nation from being put to a ttibft dnormous needlefs expence ? Before the expedition (I had almoft called it the IFatkl one) againft Belleifle Was undertaken, \v(iuld itnot have been becoming a minifter bfydur penetration, to have informed your- felf with the utmoft precifion of the dan- ger, the advantages, the expence, and the tronfequences of fuch an undertaking ? In- ftead of that, nothing was to be heard of hilt that Bdleifle was provided with a road, in which all the navy of England could tide; and when taken, was poffefled of advantages to which all the power of iFrance muft fubmit. The public was fo far ihipofed upon by fuch mifreprefentati- ^ns, that our cannons thundered, and our *^b6nfires blazed for an event, that, oonfi- iSeKng the expence of men and money it tteft tis, ought to have filled us with fliame, tllricf covered «S with cdnfufiv/ IrfjiTK^iupy 'jiii 3"iur,jc t?u)ii ij{ Y i-'^i wer^ h ■.a i\' ■ii^s"'*!?' ( 3O were without flielter, our garrifons with- out fuppcrty our troops without cloath- ing, and our fellow fubjedls without fuf* tenance upon a bare comfortlefs beach« which equals the horrors of any defcrib-^ ed by the moft difmal traveller. That I , .^ may not feem to exaggerate, give me leave ^ ' toobferve, that by the 6th article of the ^ ultimatum of France, in reply to that of* England, the French are willing to giye up to the Englifh the ifland of Belleiile, without even making a handle of reclaim- ^ ing it, as being a conqueft made after the^^ propofition of uti poffidetishad been fettled.^?: |^ This conceflion from a people, who never^ ^ , j failed to fnatch at all ac^ vantages, is a full^.-,f^ proof in what a light this conqueft was held by the French themielv^s. ->ff ::C7^ W;;-.?-^)-' ^f.:l« tM Jr**;.®^. ..I •' t I ». •>? ^^'J? /-,; >>•' • 4ffe. of m and ehe blood of many Hon- "' dred of Qur fellow fubjeds. Thus, Sir,^' after ^onr naighty projedion had blown into air, yoor had the pleafare of giving , your grocers, your tobacconifts, and your ' o^herAbelpruggers, the comfort tounder-^ fland^ that there was as much of the mighcy apparatius flill left at the bottom of the pot, aa would ferve to cure the itch. :^ ' . I (hall now. Sir, take the liberty to exa- • mine your adminiftration by a light, in which| I think, it has not yet been con- fidcred. But to do that, I muft appeal to the meiDories of your friends, and in- deed to the teftimony of the public. Ine- '^^ ver beard your warmeft advocates, either ^'\ in fpeaking or writing, deny that you fet out iiif the beginning of the prefent war iipon profeffed anticontinental principles* You yourfelf. Sir, again and again own— -- ed that you did, and the fadt is yet un- ^^ contradided, while the only apology which v-" jou a^d your friends can make, for fa ' glaring an inconfiftency, is that you aft- ^ according to the beft of your judg* merit, but that you faw you had reafon, . T^ F ta '■'1 \ i A*^ mio;; ( V ) to sdter your fyftem c ahd thus, like •an*' • other pontiff in poHtici, you ApfKdcd from the pope ill-informed t6 the |)€>p'o well-informed, ^ patre mali iffformdtOt ad ptitrem ' meliiu informatum. I fhould^; Sir# rieadily admit of your plea, e^dally^^al I think, that no pope/ either pontifical t)r political, is infallible, had I rcaibn^ifbr believing, that you did not origmaHy £ft out in your adminiftration with appedie^- termination to carry on the wari? as yoOi afterwards did, by plunging Us ih tihc a*- byfs of continental connexions, bldod^ (bed and diffipations. I fpeak it,'^Si^i with the utmoft regard for the memory of that auguft head, whofe grejr hairs went with fo much honour to the grait make him fenfible, that the bal- lsno(i!of' pcnver was a chimera ; that Bri- taiil^i^tis a match for all Europe befides ; ftifd'thbt, with ancient piftol on her fide, fbe ftlight defy the devil and all his works. This was a new do who till then had always found the limit of his natural affedlion preforibed/even by his warmeft miniftcrs, with a Thus, and no farther Jlmlt thou pro* €eed, )frt ^f{} lo'f irM^^'yx irumm 'jfft: r\x(^i> ' .Gentlemen may remember how often your friends boeftcd, even before your preferment to the feals was abfolutely refolved on, that his late Majefly often declared, he Inevcr had a minifter whom he pcrfe6tly tmderftood but you. The meaning of thofe words came foon to be explained. Inftead of difplaying your fchemeat once, ttrou -gave os every year more lafi words from tb$ tibmnc^^ The immenfe fums of^^ight o>-i^4?nMi£» oj 'iu n F 2 ^' '^jth to mow '.> or !>v ( i 36 .) ^;-t^n millions lavifhcd ohi cdniiiaefttai t^jfOQncxions, excli^fiv^: q£ the cx:{5ences of ^. ow&a war, were ,t(> fee coatinuccJlHit' for J. cuie. jfpar. Another year bringjS aboul^ thei ^,. f^me demands, and thole wer^ tqr > b®. the. . l,aft^ ,but at laii we were fairly told,,- thai» J ihe n^pre we granted every yearu th^ Q^f^. j.^ ^r we were to the period of our expeiwjes^ . I flipuld not have laken notice of; thofe ^^ fads, 4id they not, afford. ^« ?«i|^ncoBtc-^ J ftibk ev^cnce how f4r his lVI'4j§fty iivas' l- w^ifwfed iipoDi and; Ik>vv arrf^llyih^asvas ^.. ^verted from following his o$vnij|pi?Jina- ^ tfijps^ in reftoring pe^ce, to ihea?o*>ti^cnt ^ PI" Europe ; in the ilile of th^jfe j(ji;^cks, ,, who give a favourable intcrpretatioiJ to ^1 ^.v^jner^ fatjal turn which their poif^^ brings ^fft-j^ong patient, till, atlaft,,. ht.dhs i)f good b^ jJyff^P^P^^* ^mr' ■ >i that the diftrefs* to •'jifiwhich the clecSorate of Hanover was re* »^ri:du0ed ia the year 1757, whea^hfii:con- voio - i vention ! 1 ' '# W i im^ I>av& be^ diC^^ethh t6 hi^ liite i Ma^%w But> Sip9-it was £11* frem l>ei|]tg *jii|}i^rafie£iri« vio^^T^Sriar frf>m^ be^g fc^ t'/ito tho- liberties <^ Germafiyj or evenr ti^ 1 ^ the interefts of ^ that eloiftorate. His 1(A^^ -)j[efl:y viewed jt-mthaxlig^t. He wa^not ^^i^tbc firft prince of the fpremoft rank ia Dicjjiiftojryr wfepi hady through fwpcrior forces -::»ieiidi|)rudemial confideratians fubmitted tp 2rr|h|qfri^pfie$,:^ JHe knew ^JLt was 'ridiculouf ^i fet^the^FrcijqlHoimagiiiia that they^xiujUi -'^^^^^aiift ^he poileilion of Hanover/ and he ^n:^^OAfidefed it a$ a depofit; tiU it Ihduld be ^^^^dtored 16 him by' the return of petco^ ^^ #Iii»Rv H. had die fame wife moderate iea« ^'^^^iments^ and intimated tc^ thaDtsbe de Ri-ii W ^ll€Ueu,a$ if aneutraUty for Habover might ^edeiireable > and the propofal was backed Of .b^i^he royal authority. Happy bad it o been (or G^eat Britain, and even for hit ^mJfU'ciffian Majefty bimiel^ notwidbAanding ^Ai4ht^ many inixacubm events wbtqh after* ot wards fell otft in his favour, had tbofe wife --y) ,0ioderate counfelsprevafled y but their fucr -a .ce& were incompadbla \fitkyaur fehemeu ihjiiis^'^ Yon ■> ^oti rcprcfcnted the power' and riches of cip«^l6'of b««bylH|; irp^ the 'deaorat^ of IfelidfetV- thd" thr6#n imcP'Ubds^of^^m memi, rih(l,:*6 tift yoat dWn t^prefflo^J *^^it Hife vfis j^oiiS- 1««y^#^¥eafbtilij^ g^its frdw'fias that^eaK fbi* th^iiiU ftl^. Whb^ was it^ SiV^ thitgdVe^lfil ' ifitiii'' bei«§ 6h fbbt f #h6 ^dvifetfteil ?^l»%fiiiri liichticm erc«il^ iH4haah«BrilSfli miftifter had gainediiftJk •att^tettidarft Bins mafttf § cotincas, tfe^: Wtti t^ras no danger of his Majcfty'^ ' iiP- fiftin'^nijkm'^thc Hanover neutrality, Nb ^fitefl difavowal' of the letter hoWeVS* •* t't ,^ri ,i 1 y\ n •^ t 1 i • •< I M> /^f «>. . fc i , X %^ I, >, I / I i WAS ever publi&ed by the Authority pf ihic^ EngUfti government, but in a- c^in^ti^r' declaration emitted in the faMf tncMltb^ September^ his Majefty's deStotal nuiu^ fters, confcious' that, fuch a letter wa| written, ufe the following exprefficms* Pin fych fa critical fituationy '^whatever tnighl ^ye^be^n, the fuccefs of arnvsj his Maj<^ t)^ is determined fteadiiy toconeur wXtli fjl&il^lng of Pruilia iu the moil effiqacioad ^^ures, Jfqr difappointing the iniquiti^ii ail4^oppreffiM$ defigns - of -their cominciq( ^nemies^i and the King of .Pruifi^-maj^ a^ure ihimfelfy that ^the irrown of ff^t If^italn will continue ridigiqiifly tQuf\Mi lt$ imgagements with his.Pi^ufli^*^^??i|jjf apd iupport i him with vigqw: , aiid £99t;i ftaacy;?' i^l^iJ -m^ ^il • r-.^u y>.^.,,,qta:i -hmii ;,^QWr Sir, you ypurfclf»,who bfi|\wbw5l iai^arUament for almoi)^ thirty yeafiSii aiut ^9^^ 1 4arettb iayihas iludied;tbff £iPgliil| COfiftitutiori; with the tatQxoft fvcQiRpn^^ tp\x(i be fenrfible, that ^ British miniApt ^t^acco^cable for all. the political; a^.i(tf ticking ; and if I miftake noU it was ypt ^ mf^ that very principle of fafety^ that^y^ id j^4t(fiih[y^ freUthied ^a fciign the feds of youu- office* I fhall therefore make bold to tro^-^ Me^jfou >vith owe ^r Iwo (jucrks; which, aBiieirom fa^s well kiiowa to all the world, Iti the firft place. Sift what wera iAik:>(t en^gagements ^Ub ti:^ KiDg of Prurf* fi^^ fwhieh his^ri^annic MaJfCily was ir«^ icilv«& fk^diljr tp ful&l ? I ki>Owf of nofitf b!ut a eoiwentio^) whici^ was f?Qm time l€|. tiaaac cenew«3d> ho^ chd ii6idl i^f Jd^vsairf^ 1756^ tot the 1 ith of April, 4757, and ibfl yih of Deccmbdr the faitte jr^«r,. fttid >^. gain renewed on the 9th of NovembefD iyy^i by whncb bis: Pruifian Majcftjr ^si^^to Fieceife 670^000!. ois xdhditida. io|[ kii itUgmefiting his forces, fh as to ad tit tile moift advantageous manner ibr thecomfi mon caufe. By the 4th. article of thit feme treaty, ^* ThcTr high cantiiaing par- iie» moreover etigj^Cy viz. on the one |>art his Britannic Majefty^ both as kiog^ atid as eijedor ji and on the other part hi) Pruffian Majefty, not to conclude anjf treaty of peace, truce, or neutrality, ot any other convention whatioever, withr tbtit^ powers who have taken part in tho prefent ,v . .. ( 4' )• prefent war, but in concert ; and by mu- tual confenting, and cxprefly comprehend- ing each other therein." - .-./.». ^ Now, Sir, you and your friends fhall have the choice of your weapons. You will not furely pretend, that the Hipula-^ tion for the fubfidy was otherv/ife than an- nual. Had it been meant for a term of years, it muft have been declared to have been fo in the fame manner, as has beci^ ufual with our other fubfidiary pow- ers i fuch as Denmark, , IleiTe Caflel, Hanover itf^'f, and Ruffia. 1 will al- low, -^ that the largen^qfs of the fum might have made us a little cautious with regard to the limitations of the time ; but that. Sir, I think is the ftrongeft rcafon that can be adduced a- gainft fuch continuance, unlefs • the pur- pofes anfwered the expence. ' , I am aware of a quibble that has been thrown out by your friends, and thofe of continental connexions, as ii the reciproca- lity of the terms of neither party making peace without confent of the other, was to be perpetual, though the fubfidy w G V ..^ to bi'Mt'annnal. This argument, Sir, flies in the face of common fettfeJ The convention is plainly for a fubfidy,' and the condition annex^ed moft certaihlV de- tqriiiines with the payment of that fubfi- 3y 5^ nrict is' no farther binding, thdrt For the timd the fubfidy is paid. But griant- iiig ther^ was any thing in this argumc^nt, (ihe'riioft fhameful furely that eVer was, though g/eat confequences depend 'on it) how dan it account for our contlntiihg our expenfive engagemerit for one year after the pecuniary ftipulatibn was fatisifie'd. I can perceive ;n the convention nothing that we was to fufriiih the king ciif i^rilf- fia with but money; nor can I find any one article ftipulated in oiir favour, tiiit nis obligation to receive that monej^. Mad ^^Y^^ withdrawn the paymenSf^ what muft have become of the convention. But tlie abfurdity does not end here. ' '' '^' ^w. a/ ..Fray, bir, what was Great Fritain to have in return for this immenfe fubfidy, ^' or what advantages were fhe'to feip 7^om the engagement of his Pruffi^n^nfe- S jefly, flipulated in the third article for * ' augmenting ■ i^ ( 43 ) augmenting his forces ? Were the forces to, be employed againft the enemies of Great Britain ? No fuch thing is pretend- ed j theQ to what purpofe were they to be employed ? Againfl the enemies of Pruffia, or, if your pleafe, Sir, the ene- caie§ of fthat very eledorate, which might h^ve been neutral, had it not been for the; rage of a certain perfon, for engrof- fing -power at the expence not only of good policy, but of common humanity, f ...^te;r ages will have difficulty to be- lieve, that this nation could for {even lyears fubmit to pa,y an annual fubfidy, ^tfe^uliyhple amounting to four millions fix hundfjed ninety thoufand pounds, without our feceicing from it the fmalleft compen- f^tior^ in trade, in territory, or in honour. ^BfU even this is not ail ; we filled the fields J of Germany with our armies, while our c?wn,iields were lying uncultivated for want of hands; and fince our fnd fatal embarkation for that continent, we have, without any vilible Britifli purpofe, buried more men, and fpent more money, than, fi|',rjgl^^tjly applied, would have left us no- G 2 , L,...r. thing Ol TOlabbifi IfUib Df i]ain:-j/f!Hirf« ( C 44 ) ^jthing more to fear, aild hardly mbrc^* to ^^^ope for, in any part of the wortd# You ,,and your iriends, Sir, I know ' pre* tend, that the general inlereit of Europe required our taking alhare in tjatlG^i*- •man war, and our fupporting the king- of Pruffia, 1 admit it ; but that CQWC^rnapd ;that fupport ought to have been bounded ,by reaion. We were^ by ftiil, : Wronger ties, obliged to afliil Haiiover,> while iria- ^ nover could be affifted i but were wqqh- ';-liged to pluck her up by the locks hgrn ? floods of perdition, at the hazard of oar- ^.^felves finking along with her?i^r;y]^ii^f^Y Ji' In fadt. Sir, the whole fyftem of ^ the ■• Gernian war, fo far as Great Brit^iR i^fas ,; concerned in it, was begun and continued J upon wrong principles. The cO|:^M9nti9n ^.between his Pruflian majefty and us jiias .j^nothing in it that anfwers the title .;iUt evidently is a convention between two &- , reign powers, without the Jeaft: regard ^^to the CQnce*-ns of Great Britain lui^or ,jcan I figure to myfelf the fmalleft $4van- »tage we could have reaped from jt, tho' . jjftHl its purpofes had been fully anf^erfed, ■tii farther ' ( 45 ) ^farther than to have reinftated Hanover in i^the dondition fhe was in when our war -''^ith France broke out, and to have de- qfendtd Sileiia for his Pruffian majefty. As '"•to Hanover, nothing can be more certain, i'^thati that a neutrality was offered her ^^'iigain and again by the court of France, ^^^-and the rejecting that neutrality annihi- '^lat^d her importance in the empire; fo ^ that all Ihe now retains is a mere phan- '^tom of independency, without mdney, '^^thbiit^ means, and without nerves to Support it : infomuch that, for thefe three years paft, Hanover can fcarcely be faid to ^^'have'been an objedt of the French arms, <*Thbfe calamities, Sir, are owing to your ^>'pblicy',' which prevented her embracing ntfc*as a fettled plan formed againft him by -'the houfe of Auftria, the emprefe of Ruf- r^fll'fri fia, .1 ( 46 ) fia, and the elector of Saxony ; yet I can- l>ot perceive, that the public is at all agreed a^ to th^ juf^ice of his irruptioj) ioto fj^^ Qny» It is well known^ that his la^^ T^i^ jefty loudly difapproved of it, till yo»r palitics> Sir, found means to reconcile i% to common juflice, and to obliterate i*^ his royal mind the remembrance of all t,\^c grofs infults, which that monarch .At,jL ijertain time offered to his per Ion, bojlvas king ^aid eledor. :t ..r,;\^^r.. o-a.^n.. f^^^ ^^j, But, Sir, what dreadful conkqi^a^ could have happened to Great Britain,, or the ballance of power in Germany^ b^ his Pruflian Majefty even loft Silefiai ft . ' is true, we were obliged to guaranty the poffefiion of it to him; but that gaairaoty was forced upon his kte Majefty %f^,{^vG the houfe of Auftria from perdition ; : n^i* ther ought it ever to have operated in ja cafe of offence; all guaranties being in their own nature merely defenfive, ^Let us therefore fuppofe, for argument j ifekf, that when the tide of fuccefs turiucd a- gainft his Pruflian Majefty after the battle of Cblin, that her Hungarian Majefty had )iiO li:in LiTfJ y/:(.un'T'i1(.il ,^? V)i:^ iy i bc^n - ^KUI -nxij 1 3J7 t Yi'K^ ( 47 ) jjb 'jijj l.f.ri ,ui Dcch fuffcrcd to repoflefs herfclf of Silefia. What fundamental revolution mufl that haV'c ihtroduced in the fyftem of Europe ? Was public liberty more endangered by. the houfe of Auftria (who had pofleiled that dutchy for ages) regaining it, than by the houfe of Brandenburgh retaining it i Or wais the difference worth five millions ilerling to Great Britain ? Did we ever feel any bad effedts arifing to us by Silefia be** ihginthe hands of the houfe of Auftria ? Did wc ever feel any good ones by its be- ing in thofe of the houfe of Branden- bureh ?^*> ' - ' * ^^ -• ^ v- . ..^ ■ ui^^^n v^? ^^u " othlt appears, Sir, from his Pruflian Ma- jfcfty 's letter, which I have already men- tioned, and which never was contradided by the court of London, nor by the courts 'of Bdrlih or Hanover, till after the Hano- ^verlans had refolved to refume their arms, ^arid to break through the convention of .Ctofterfeven, that his Pruflian Majefty was encouraged by the Britifh miniftry to break off his connexions with France. But were inhere no authenticity, in that letter, the matter of fadt is notorious, and that our mag- A, (48) magnificent promifesinduccd that monarch to abandon his natural connexions with- France, for fo I muft call them, in op- pofition to the houfe of Auftria. No>y, Sir, let us a little confider in what manner the fyfteiii of Germany muft have been affedled, had Pruflia and France remain- ed united. We cannot with any fhew 0/ common fenfe pretend, that if the Queen of Hungary and her allies, as his Pruflian Majefly ftrenuoufly contends for, formed a deep, refolute, plan, for ftripping Pruflia of Silefia, there ever could have been aeon* junAion between the houfcs of Bourbon^ and Auftria; no. Sir, that conjundljon was formed by the magnificent promifes that clenched our alliance with hisPruflian Majefly. If then our real defign v^as to have preferved him in pofl!efl31on of Silefia, we took the worft way in the world to efFcd it, by detaching him ffpm a natural ally, who could cheaply and ef^ fedlually have ferved him ; and by taking upon ourfelves a burden, under which wc have ftaggered ever fince, and which muft have been totally inefFeftual, had it not Yv» » beea T 1' T| '>•.*■ '*;■; f^f* ( 49 ) been for the accidental event of the late Czarina's death. ~ ,,--,, It IS admtttcd,^that France attacked Ha- nover on account of her American quar- rel with us; but it is next to certain, that had it not been for our alliance with Pruf- fia, Hanover muft have been defended by the houfc of Auflria, the Czarina, and the princes of the empire, who have been lince confederated againft her. Your in- telligence. Sir, I am afraid was very de- fective, if you imagined that his Pruffian Majcfty's alliance was any great acqulfition to Great Britain, after he was detached from France. He was confcious that he was then totally undone without our fub- fidy, and without our army to fiipport him. This I believe was more than you either knew or fufpeded. But his Ruffian Majefty Was in the fecret ; he knew the connexions, perfonal as well as political, that fubfifted between the two empreffcs, and he Icricw'at the fame time, that they were Indiflbluble. The event juftified his forefight ; and in fad:, we abandoned the defence of Hanover for that of Pruffia. H What .■I r ( 5° ) What was France to do upon her lofing the only natural ally fhe had in the em- pire, hut to look out for others who would fupport her in her quarrel againft Great Britain ? She prefumed ; and flie prefum- ed rightly, that we would make the quar- rel of Hanover our own ; and fhe proceeded on a plan, that evinced fhe was refolved to make no diflind:ion between the King of Great Britain and the eledlor of Hanover. .This, Sir, ought, rnflead of engaging us ^wholly in the fupport of Hanover, to have been our flrongefl inducement to have left it to the houfe of Auflria and the princes of the empire, as it mofl certainly would have been, had not PrufSa been our ally. In that cafe, the war between the two houfes of Auftria and Brandenburgh might indeed have gone on, but it never could have af- fected either Great Britain or Hanover, nor had it not been for the conjuntftion between us and his Pruffian Majcfly, could it ever have entered into the heads of the two empreffes, or their allies, to have given up Hanover. ; ur^j .^ ,^^ ^r^w aidr to -^^n^n m^mJS,r% -'. .i:-r^.Mi-_ ..^:^$-^'i'$ \0 This • 1. conjundiori reverfed the true inter* > efts of Hanover, as it drew from her a- protedlion, under which fhe muft have been fafe againft all the power of France, and gave her an ally who could not fup- port hinrifelf ; not to mention the effufion of blood and treafure, by our carrying over, Supporting, maintaining, and re- cruiting five and twenty thoufand Britifh troops in Germany. When I fay this. Sir, I would not be underftood as if I meant that Great Britain ought not to have con- tributed, and that largely too, to the de- fence of Hanover, I mean in money, but to ufe your own expreffion, 7iot by JhtdtJig a Jingle battaf lion out of this country, fi^r'-l- - This^ naturally brings me to examine the reafons, you and your friends have given for your altering fo totally, as you did, the plan of your condud:. A certain French nobleman,who is now at this court, can (if he pleafes) tell you how extremely defirous his Pruflian Majefty, at the begin- ning of this war, was, to retain the friend- fhip of France. He even made a merit of tranfmitting to the French court a de- -i Ha claration. I . M 52 ) l^lar^tiQin, that he " flattered himfelf with paying done the King of France a ma^ diftinguifced fervice, in detaching Auftria froai the aUiance of England, that, fo far from cramping his moft Chriftis^n Majefty's pperations againfl the Engliih^ he has pro- cured Iiim a greater faciHty to pu(h them ,jyith .vigour, by flopping the Ruffians, th^ir commopi enemies. His Chriilian MajeiJy has^therefore nothing 19.. do, but to alter his project of carrying the war into the eledlorate of Hanover; a change in the "plan of his military pperations, fo, much the more eafy, for that the guarantee of the Low Countries was not i^iplud^d in ^that of the eledorate^;,^^,;^^ vDuke de Niverhois, Sir, is not infenfi- i We that this plan of his Prufflan Majefty, V when he returned from his embafly at Ber- t Jin, was far from being difrelifhed at the '-^<:ourt of France, and had it been thorough- ^ly adopted, the continent of Europe, long f before this time muft have been in a ftate t of tranquility, but that was not the view ^ of your adminiftration. His Pruffian Ma- jefty muft be tempted by a fubfidy greater < than all the refV of his revenues, to fall up- it on the houfe of Auftria; an undertaking highly agreeable both to his inclination and 'intereft, tho' it is perhaps impoffible to re- concile it to ours. From that inftant he abandoned his former fyftem, and obliged France and Auftria to coalefce. By thii condnd:, Hanover was deprived of its na- tural protedors, and Great Britain was .i}- ) ?)nirnBXC^ warmly adopted, and urged Jjiy you and your advocates, that I- Ihall treat it with fome degree of fcrious coil- fideration. Which was the moil impor- tant objed:. Sir, to the French; the more than doubtful recovery of the eledorate of Hfi.nover, already exhaufted, impoverifh- ^d and pillaged ; defended by feventy thou- fand men, five and twenty thoufand of whon> were Engliih, and by ftill more powerful enemies, cold and hunger, or the defence of their pofleffions in America, and the Weft Indies ? Had the French en- tertained the fmalleft hope, of being able to repair the firft blows with which we gave their marine there, could any thing in Germany, have been an objedl for eni- ,-*^ ^ ' ploying ( 55 ) ploying their arms ? But let us examine faft^ in their natural order, t rf riVr hif bh/.^ In the beginning of the years 1755, the French fent off from Brell to America, all the forces that they had fhipping %q (^arry ; and they were fufficient foe difap- ,ppii>tingi that year, our projedted expeditir onag^ipft fort du Quefne. .Wc fucceeded however, June the i6th, againfl: the French fort at Beaufejour, and all Nova iScotia fell into our hands. V/e likewift defeated, September the 7th, the* French general Diefkau, tho' we failed in our dei. fign againfl: Crown Point through the late- 'nefs of the feafon, and Braddock was de- feated and killed, July the 9th. By this ti'AeVViz. June loth, the admirals Bof^ cawen and Moflyn, who had been fent Witn a fquadron to. intercept a frefli em- barkation of the enemy's troops, took two French men of war of the line, on the cbaft: of America. Thefe, Sir, are events that did not ^properly fall under what is called your adminifliration, tho* they are immediately conneded with thofe that did, and to which I (hall now pafs. ^-' r You ( 56 ) 'I You was on the 27th of June, 1757, reftored to the feals, and you Was heard mbre than once, to exprefs your appf^oba- tion of Lord Loudon being appointed tb tl^con&nand of theland forces, arid Ad- miral Holbourne to thofe of the fea, that were fent againft Louifbourg, tho' both of them had been appointed during the late admihiftration. Had you found any ex- ccptibiisf to thofe appointments, you had full time to have altered them, becaufc it was the 9th of July, before the fea and the land forces effedled their junction at Hallifax ', and it was not till above a montii after, that the expedition was laid afide upon intelligence that 17 French fhips of the line, laden with all kinds of military ftores and ammunition, got into Louif- bourg. I iball not purfue the detail pf what followed, but only muft obferyi^, that on the 27th of July, 1758, we be- came matters of Louifbourg, by which tLp French were in fad cut off froni tbei|: cod-fifliery, and at the fame time we de- ftroyed the ifland of St. John's, .an4 all their otlier ftations on that coaft; Iw ' V which I iic^ the French could latid troops, fb fts t9 fviccour Canada j nay, their fhips flrolc out of the river St. Lauren ce^ and Joined their fquadron under Monficur Bpmpart in the Weft-Indies. ^^.^ ^..j .-^ Such, Sir, was the ftate of the war in America, during the year 1758, at^time^ and in a country, when the moft confum- ,lnate impudence itfelf cannot pretend, that the operations in Germany had the fmall- cfl; Influence upon ourconquefts in Ame- rica* When BolcHwen took Louilbourg, the French were in full vigour on thcf con^ hrient of America. He failed for Halli* fax on the 19th of February, 1758* He had under his command 151 (hips, and the land troops amounted to 14,000 men, and the garrilbn, who were made prifoner^ bf War, amounted to 5637. It is remark- ftole, that all this time, Canada received no kind of reinforcement or afliftance from tnii French, tho' their fquadron >vhich returned from America to Breft carried i,^ ^jr-lij* *k*. i:4*.U-^ 1474 guns. •' While atfairs were in this profperoud iStuation in America, the French neither a.^iai- I attempted '( 58 ) attempted nor intended to fuccouf Cana- da;^ or their fettlements on the continent o£ America, which they thought were fe- cure againft all attacks, and our difpofi- tions againft Canada were fuch, as all the force of France in America could not have difappointcd, confidering the vaft fuperio- rity of our naval force in thofe feas. But the truth is, the French had now in their eye an affair of greater importance than the defence even of Canada itfelf i and that was a defcent upon Great Britain. By this time, however, the ftate of affairs in the cabinet portended ? total alteration. • Continental meafures had got the afcen- dency there ; and you yourfelf. Sir, muft ^ have found it impracticable to perfevere even in the practice of diffimulation. You ' threw off the mafk at laft, and after Ame- ^ rica was, infadt, fubdued, you declared, that I it couldnot be done without employing five ^ and twenty thoufand^ Britifli troops* up on. the continent of Germany, and Jink- ^^ ing above fix millions of money- yeaHy ^ there. Let any one compare dates and 'I fafts, and there cannot be the leaft dif- - 5 ij j:f?|tn':i;tji; pute jo 3 - ■ (59 ) pute on that head. His Majefty, at open- ing the feflion of parliament, which be- g^n December the iirft, 1757, recom- mended as the great objedts, which ^e had at heart, the prefervation of the Prote- ftant rcligipn, and the liberties of Eu- rope ; and, in that view, to adhere to and encourage his allies, particularly the king of Pruflia, who fhould be fupported in fuch a manner as his magnanimity arid ac- tive zeal defcrve. By thofe expreffions which followed his Pruffian majefty *s viQr, tory at Rolbach, it was plainly difcovcri-^ hie, that the German intereft had now the afcendancy in the cabinet ; and the fupplies voted for the enfuing year to German troops and meafures, amounted to one million eight hundred fixty one thou- fand eight hundred and ninety fcvQn pounds, while the expences of our own war, and for defending'ourfelves, amount- ed to eight millions two hundred and eight thoufand three hundred and [Qven pounds, befides four hundred and iixteen thoufand pounds granted for deficiencies, repairs,&c, the total fum being, within a trifle, of ) •i'l h ■irt ♦ r', V4 ' I 2 ten . ( 6o ) ^\&i'%mrirMiii half^ All this, 8ir. ^- w&s granted at a feafon when it waa im- *poffible for the French to have employed "la finglc? ihip to favc Canada, or their fet- ^■tlements on that continent, and when " thdir whole attention was em^ployed upon '^invading Great Britain. We had, at that v-time, above twenty five thoufand of their h'ltioft ufeful fubjedts and failors prifoners *i here I and, excepting the (liips and tranf- ports, which they intended to employ a* t) gainft this nation, it was not in their «i power to have carried over threo hundred *i men to America. This obfcrvation holds ■^J equally ftrong with regard to the redudion '-■■ of Guadaloupe and Martinico ; for though, ^c: when the latter was reduced, they had oilaid afide their projefts of invafion, yet it v( is well known, that their marine was then -v almod totally annihilated, u ^l^u buU aril From this review. Sir, I hope your b: friends and you will be candid Quough to ,b acknowledge^ Firft, that the irnmenfe.ex- -n pence of blood and trcafure, which wc -^^ poured out in Germany, neither did nor *f' could, in the leaft degree, operate in A- '^^■^^ ^ -. m erica. ( 6' ) ^ mcrica,. farther than by diverting from it -.the troops and money that might have Ivbeen more ufefuUy employed there. Se- • Gondlyp that you never did make the A- r mcrican war your primary objeft. And, r .(thirdly, that the fear of lofing your pow- j\or in the cabinet, by a fopcrior German jfintereft, obliged you to pull off the maflc, ? ;dnd toavow tho& meafures which you had -'.always fecrctly abetted; hut which you -wivete now forced openly to purfue. ^lon - 7«t'rr Such was the infatuation of the puUic Liin your fevoury that fomc applauded, ^ fomepmed, and a few blamed, you. But, ^i upon the whole, no abatement of your i^ mimfterial influence was ienfibly perceiv- 1^ ftd, for fomc time after the acceffion of bis prefent Majefty; and,^ perhaps, no minifter ever had fUch fair play as you had from all parties. It was not, how- fevei*, to be fuppofed, that, after all the p«rp(rfcsr or, at leaft, all the declared "^ idft^s of our vaft expcnce were anfwered, ^ < thlat we were to go on in the fame ruin- ous track; nor indeed, when thenegotia- i tion carriied on by Mr. Stanley anxi Mon- .^ja->iH fieur V U 62 ) ■ , fieur Bufly was opened, had your charac- ter fufFcred in the eye of the public. The gentlemen who had been the moft averfe to continental meafures, would have wink^ cd at the futility of your apologies, and feemed willing to forget and forgive. But moderate meafures were farfrombeingyour aim J and tho' conveniency obliged you to make two great conceffions, thofe of giving up Guardaloupe, and allowing the French a liberty to fifli on the banks of Newfound- land; yet you, fbon perceived, that you> could not, at once, retain your power and < , your popularity. You faw, that it was ^ merely in tendernefs to the peace of tjie public, that you was indulged in theexeiv , cife of the former; and you began to perceive, that the other tottered through . the conceffions you had made. "- ^''"V^t Give me leave. Sir, to fpeak candidly. You know that you had no longer that * radical influence which you pofl!effed dur- ^ ing the late adminiftration, and rather than abandon it, you reverted to popula- rity even with fome fmall inconfiftency in your charadter, by pretending to be afliam- .lU'}!^^'^ '■'■'"■' ■■ ' ■ ed. 'I <«t ■'ff or in ^ r 63 ) ,; , cd, and to repent of the concefllons yoU had made. Every part of your conduct was fuited now to court the populace. The foolifli fimple paper, for it could be called no other, which Bufly prefented during the courfe of the negotiation, de- firing that his Catholic Majefty's claims and intereft might be confultcd in it> gave you full room for difplaying your patri- otifm, by treating both kings in a man^ ner that perhaps never was heard of be-?, fore, towards powers not abfolutely re- duced. And yet this haughtinefs, rafh and inconfiderate as it may feem, was the moft politic meafure you ever purfued. You were fenfible, nor did you conceal it, that the courts of Madrid and Verfailles were how in perfed: good underflanding with one another; and that this union mull in the end, if not in the progrefs of at/' break yoUr power. You, therefore, confulted with yourfelf in what manner to make your bows^ and to retire before yoti ihould be turned out. The family- compadt prefented itfelf, and was, before the contents of it were known, reprefented by 1. . i 1 n u ( 64 ) by 3^u as being big with fuch deftrttftkill ib this kingdom, as to require an imme* diate declaration of war againft Spaitt* Yoii did n6t indeed venture to point but particulars ; but you attempted to briri^ your fellow counfellors, as Well as thd public, into an implicit belief of ybuf dictates. You was hampered in your own fnare. Some minifters were in the cabinet^ who were as well inftruifted as yourfelf in the mighty fecret, and who knew that if there was the leaft danger in the family compafl;> it could arife only by your con-, tinuing in power, and by perfevwring i« the abfurdity of your condud^ and the iufolence of your behaviour. They gav« you line however, and without offering to pull the hook, you fairly dafhed inMr a refignation ; but upon what a ridiculdua pretext, let any man judge who has read this boafted compaft. In fliort, Sir, when you faw that you could no longer with-* Hand the torrent that was ready to break upon you, you dived below it, and by the favour of a mafter who loved his peo- ple too well to endanger the peace of the ^^a>. publici the ^ ii 6J ) public, yoti Was fufFered to retire from bu-i fineft withjmqfl; diftinguifliing marks of rpyal indulgence aod bounty. ^ .^^ .._ ., J I fliall juft onlyraeation the two pretexts \vhich you made for your relignation. Oiiq was, thft you was pp longer fuffercd to gpide the affairs of government; the or th^r, ^tha.t you differed from the reft of thc;,co.upciH with regard to the affaits of Spain. , ,Who, Sir, that reads the fir/lex^ cufe can, imagine you to have beed any other- thaii a vizir, to whom an indolent grand -fignipr had remitted the reins of government ; for the fuccefsful manage* ment of which you was anfwerabie with your head ? If- future times fhould perufe fuch an apology, will it not be natural for the readers to ailcv Whether GreatBritain ^t thatitinae was not governed by a prince Vfbo, Vf^ in a ftate of infanity, infancy, Pif 4otage ? But to put the matter on a fair iffae, I fli|alj take the liberty to vindicate hi$ Majefty and your fellow counfellors fp/a^^as to call publickly upon you to kaow, what lingle meafure you guided, in which the reft of the board had not, if ^;)i!du(| . K they i ( 66 ) they pleafed to have exerted it, a nega- tive ? Many meafures may occur in go- vernment, of fo trifling importance, that it is not v^orth while, to break the uijiity of" a council board by any difference upon them. But it was very plain, that when ap affair of importance occurred, you. Sir, was not fufFered to didlate ; but was controuled. It was then {ttn, that nei- thbr your Sovereigii hoi^ your fellow hi?- nifters were cyphers in the government; and had you not taken advantage of the very paufe you feized, you perhaps could have had no pretext for ufing the word RESIGNATION. c* *: As to the affairs of Spain, your boaft- ed difcovery of the family compaft was a mere evafion. That compadl is as harMeis as any meafure can be entered into arhbngfl fovereigns, who are apprehenfive of be- ing obliged to receive the law from a haughty,overbearing,minifter,withbut any other reafon but the^^ volo. It was then time, Sir, to fhew the crown of Spain, that his Majefty was governed ty prihci- " pies of juflice and moderation ; that he was ,J Ji^ ( 67 ) , was not to give way to a torrent of im- petuous paffion ; that you had at lead equals in his cabinet, and by well judged experience, fuperior in his favour. • In the mean while, it is to be lament- ed, that you had fo long time to fport with the paffions of the people, by throw- ing out the baits of pernicious conquefts, and unimportant vidories. What pur- pofe. Sir, can our acquifitions, were they ten times greater than they are, ferve ? Were I to fpeak my own mind I think ,they muft ruin us, in the fame mariner as a trader or fhopkeepef is ruined by over- dealing himfelf. The very houfe and fhop rent we pay muft fink us in the end. Confider, Sir, that by a moderate efti- mate, every fifth (I had almoft faid) eve- ry fourth able-bodied man in Great Bri- tain is either a foldier or a failor in his Majefty*s fervice. We have not in the united kingdoms feven millions of inha- bitants. Of thofe, one half are women ; and of the remainder, I fliall even admit one half to be capable of bearing arms. This, Sir» brings the number of fighting K 2 men ,( 68 ) men amongft us, to be about one million feven hundred and fifty thoufand ; which divided by five v^ill anfwer to pretty near the number of men employed in the war. virvJ know, Sir, that fome advantage may , be i taken of this eftimate ^ becaufe the nuniber of failors and foldiers do not rife :>fo high* But give me leave to obfcrve, ithat the paper kite tail is of a nionftrous 1 extent. The dependents upon war, fuch ? as tranfports, commiflaries, futlers, with a long train of et ceteras, arv hardly to be leflimated; and including workmen at a ; moderate computation, their numbers a- i mount to very near one half of the real .foldiers and failors employed. ^'^v\ v> Vv^c> '-. ' How long do you or your friends ima- gine, Sir, can a nation like this, which bfince the beginning of the prefent war ¥has loft above one hundred and fifty thou- rfand hands, continue to afibrd fuch an ex- ? pence of blood ? I will venture to fay, not ^ for two years, if our conquefts Ihould con- - tinue. Let a man, who has ever fo little '^ikill in figures, fit down with pen and ink, and calculate how many hand^com- merce. 'Ay)^wa\{\\\\[ (69) marce, agriculture^ and manufadurcs eih- i jdQy in this nation, he will find, that for five years paft, we have not been able to fupply the proper numbers, without rai- . fing the price of labour to fo exceffive i rate, as amounts almoftto a prohibition in many branches of bufinefs* This is « not all; there is fcarcely a conqucft we have made that is not at this very time jipofleffed by our natural enemies. What t muft the cafe be, when thofe conquefts come to be peopled, fo as to render them i of fcrvice to the mother country; Shall we unpeople England to make England; i or, as the faying is, are we to built London out of London. Look round this nation, and Ibt me alk any reafonable man, whe- r ther we can fpare more men to the pur- 1 pofes, either of war or population f Should it be faid that our enemies are equally diftreft. I anfwer that is falfe. Their I trade is indeed ruined, and their finances * are exhaufted. But they can lye by for as . many years as we can do months ; it is true \ private adventurers muft he hurt, but the . nuipb^r^ pf their fighting men are ftill un- diniinilhed» n m ))i^a? ( 7° ) diminiftied; andFrance, long before fhe had her Weft7lndia trade, was as powerful, I had almoft faid more fo, as fhe is at prefent. Where was her foreign commerce under her Richelieus and Mazarines, or when Lewis the 14th filled every corner of Eu- rope with terror and difmay ? Colbert was the firfl minifter that infpired her govern- inent with the notion of applying her ma- rine to the extention of her colonies, and yet a right Frenchman is, at this very time^ of opinion, that in fo doing, Colbert mif- took the true principles of French great- ncfs. I fhall not however enter into any difcufEon of that point. All that I would infer, is, that France within herfelf, by the advantages of her fituation and cli- mate, would be a great and powerful kingdom, tho' her commerce to the Eafl and Wefl Indies fhould not bring her in a fhilling a year. In this fhe indiiputaWy has an advantage over England. France could trade all over Europe, tho* fhe had not a fhip of burden. Great Britain with- out fhipping can have no trade, and fcarce- ly any exiflence. We proceed on falfe and -i>w ooT mtni ^ ix uixi ^^^^^?5- frivolous (71 ) i If . . i-> - ■ frivolous notions, when we talk of ruin- ing the French by deftroying their com- merce. If we have commerce of our own, the French muft, an4 always will have a (hare of it. What is commerce, but am intcrcourfe of the commodities of life ? If fuch an intercourfe does not fubfift, let us bring to our warehoufes all the treafure and trade of the two Indies, and we muft be ruined ?• 1 1.. '-J . ><*'»r . Suppofmg therefore, Sir, that this wat ftiould go on, and that we are /uccefsful in it to the utmoft extent of opr wiflies, bjr ftripping France of every footihe has in America. What muft be the