taking to fecure every part of the British dominions in their whole extent, from any fudden blow

that might be given in cafe of a war? and if there is, what given number of troops would be requifite to anfwer fuch an undertaking? It was faid, that our character for courage and prowefs, was too well and too generally established, to leave any room for our being at all punctilious about it; and as war

was never defirable, while peace could be preferved with fecurity and honour; that therefore it was right to leave an opening, whereby the King of Spain, if he chofe it, might withdraw himself with honour, and by difavowing the act of his fervant, avoid the alternative of a war, or of making difagreeable conceffions, and of acknowledging himself the author of a rafh and hafty measure.

Nov. 22.

OON after the delivery of the addreffes, a motion. was made in the house of Lords by the Duke of Richmond, and a fimilar one in the house of Commons on the fame day by Mr. Dowdeswell, that all the letters and other papers which had been received either by the miniftry or admiralty, between the 12th of September, 1769, and the 12th of September, 1770, relative to any hoftilities defigned or commenced by the crown of Spain, or any of its officers, against any part of his Majefty's dominions, expreffing the times at which the intelligence was received, fhould be laid before the house.

As the prefent uncertainty of war and peace, would have made it difficult to adminiftration to know what ground it fhould chufe, in making a defence to the many ob

jections or cenfures that might arife in the courfe of fuch an enquiry, and as it would befides have probably continued for a confiderable time, and must have greatly embarraffed them in the beginning of a feflion, already clogged with the railing of extraordinary fupplies, the preparations for a war, and the attention of a foreign negociation; fo all the vigour and ftrength which they could exert, was used in oppofition to it.

It was faid, that we were now engaged in a negociation of great importance with the Spanish nation, by which matters were in a courfe of being brought to an accommodation; that the honour and happinefs of two great nations were at ftake in this negociation; and that if the papers were now produced, it would make the whole world acquainted with tranfac

tions, which till their completion, require to be carefully confined to the cabinet; that it would be opening the fources of our intelligence, the fprings of our action, and the principles of our conduct, to fufpicious friends, or profeffed enemies; and that if it had even been prudent on our own account, to unlock the English cabinet in this manner to all Europe, we have yet no right to betray the fecrets of the court of Spain: they are now treating with us confidentially, and a rude publication, of what they communicate to us under the facred feal of fecrecy, muft at once put an end to all amicable intercourfe.

That his Catholic Majesty had already difavowed the behaviour of his officer; and promised every equitable fatisfaction to this nation. That by acting with temper and moderation, a fhort negociation might happily prevent all the miferies and horrors of a long and ruinous war. The fatal confe. quences of war, were pathetically defcribed, and its effects upon this country, loaded as we are with taxes and debt, fet forth and explained. But at the fame time, all apprehenfion of commencing hoftilities, or dread of entering into a war, as foon as the honour or intereft of the nation fhould render fuch a measure unavoidable, or even neceffary, was totally difclaimed.

That administration had hitherto been neither fupine nor negli gent upon the occafion; that the moment certain intelligence arrived of our having caufe to find fault, a fpirited refolution was taken to demand fatisfaction. That altercations have often arifen be

tween kingdoms, through the negligence, the ignorance, or the infolence of officers, where there was no intention whatever of a quarrel between their refpective governments; and that our own offi. cers have not always been fo chafte and guarded in their conduct, as to avoid giving causes of offence to our neighbours; that therefore in the present inftance, as well with regard to the honour and justice of the nation, as to its profperity, it was neceffary to demand this fatisfaction, firft, in a peaceable manner; it was neceffary before we refented, to know whether we had a warrantable right to refent; it was neceffary to know whether the court of Spain, or its officer, were to blame; when this point was determined, the fysten to be adopted was obvious, and we accordingly prepared for it. If the Spaniard, was not to be argued into juftice, he was to be compelled: and adminiftration, though willing, if poffible, to avoid the calamities of war, prepared at all events for the worft; fo that the preparations for war went hand in hand with the plan of negociation.

On the fide of the motion it was faid, that Parliament, can never have too ample a field for information. That they are the hereditary counfellors of the crown ; and to enable them to give counsel; must have a particular acquaintance with the facts that they advise upon. That they were now met to confider the bufinefs of the king. dom; and when were they to givé counfel, if not in a time of public danger? That they had been told in the speech, that they fhould be applied to from the throne for advice; but, if they were not, it

was

was their duty to give it. And that their advice and interference was now particularly called upon, when, by an unparalleled fucceffion of weak and fhameful measures, the nation was disgraced, infulted, and dishonoured abroad, and at home, weak, divided, and expofed. That the pretence of a negocia tion, was equally replete with abfurdity, indignity to the crown, and dishonour to the nation. That we were not in a fituation, in which a great and powerful nation was permitted to negociate. A foreign power had forcibly robbed his Majesty of a part of his dominions: of his dominions: when this part was restored, and every thing replaced in its priftine form, it might then perhaps be juftifiable to treat with the aggreffor, upon the fum and nature of the fatisfaction which he ought to make, for the infult offered to the crown of England: but that it was betraying the honour of the King and the nation, to make it a matter of negociation, whether his poffeffions should be restored to him or not. That, in fact, there is no ground or matter to negociate upon the Spaniards have feized one of our poffeffions to which they have no right, and our minifters enter into a treaty to regulate a right that does not exift.

It was faid, that pains had been industriously taken to poffefs the public with an opinion, that the Spanish Court had conftantly difavowed the proceedings of their governor, and even that means had been shamefully and daringly ufed, to have this opinion fupported and countenanced from the throne. That nothing could be more odious or infamous than thus to advife an act, which was to give a

confirmation and currency to an abfolute falfehood; and which was as derogatory to honour on the one fide, as it was an infult to p— -t, on the other. It was asked, whether the island had been fummoned to furrender in the name of the Governor of Buenos Ayres, or in that of his Catholic Majefty; or was it pretended that the island belonged to Don Francisco Buccarelli? And it was afferted, that the court of Spain, by not having made an inftant offer of reftitution, of immediate fatisfaction, and of the punishment of the governor, had fully avowed and adopted the act as her own.

That the very terms of the motion obviate all the objections that are made, and which are only founded upon the pretended ill confequences that may attend the expofing of the papers, while the negociation is in hand; that no papers are called for by it, of a date fubfequent to the notice received by the ministry of the hoftility being actually committed, confequently the motion cannot reach to any letters written or received, or to any negociation entered into, after the receipt of ' that notice; it was only meant to obtain, for the houfe, fome accurate information of circumftances leading to and accounting for a fact, which is itself notorious and undisputed.

Severe cenfures were past upon the refufal laft year of an enquiry into the ftate of the navy, and of an augmentation of feamen; upon the flacknefs of preparation, and the weakness of our prefent armament; the naked and defenceless ftate of our Weft-India islands, particularly Jamaica, which had only one fhip of the line for its [B] 4

pro

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protection, though the Spaniards had long kept a very confiderable fleet in that quarter; and the dangerous ftate of Gibraltar, without a fleet to protect it, or a fufficient garrifon. It was faid that all these were matters of the last and greatest national importance, and that they were called upon by all the ties of duty, to God, their country, and themfelves, to make ftrict and fpeedy enquiry into the caufes of them. If the gentlemen in adminiftration could exculpate themselves of thefe charges, if the facts were falfely stated, if no timely intelligence was or could be received, or if, upon the whole, every prudent and requifite meafure has been purfued, which time and the nature of things would admit, it was their intereft, above all others, to further and promote an enquiry, which would redound fo much to their own honour, give fuch univerfal fatisfaction to the nation, and be the means, in cafe of a war, of the most unlimited confidence being placed in them, and of their receiving the most effectual fupport. In a word, it was treachery to the nation to conceal from them their real circumftances, whatever they were; and, with refpect to foreign enemies, all concealments were vain and useless ; they were as well acquainted with the actual force, and the weakness, of this country, as even the King's fervants could be.

The ill difpofition of Spain to this country, and its hoftile intentions, were argued from many preceding facts, as well as from the late act of hoftility; from all which it was inferred, that this dilatory negociation was only intended to amufe us, till fhe had

completed her preparations, and had time to put in execution fome of thofe dangerous defigns which she had in view. Among the rest it was fhewn, that the Spanish prifons were filled with British seamen, who had been taken under pretence of an illicit trade by their Guarda Coftas, and were condemned either to perpetual confinement, or to the most cruel flavery, in working at their remote fortifications, where they were treated with the greatest inhumanity; that great numbers of them were in this ftate, particularly at Ceuta, and it was fuppofed they amounted in all to fome thousands: it was farther proved, that this enormity was a defigned and premeditated act of the ftate, and an inftance given, where one of our admirals was refufed the discharge of fome English feamen from confinement, by a Spanish admiral and governor, who were willing to oblige him, but dare not counteract the strict orders of the court.

That the fame determined intention and expectation of war, fhewed itself after the late act of hoftility, if any thing farther could be requifite to make it evident, by difarming and making the garrifon prifoners at Port Egmont, and not fuffering them to depart, when they took poffeffion of that place; to which was added that melt daring infult to his Majefty, of taking the rudder off from his fhip, and detaining her by force twenty days; a defigned affront of such a nature, as nothing but a thorough knowledge of the defigns of their court, and an inevitable certainty of a war, could have emboldened the actors to have offered: that, fuppofing they had a claim to the ifland,

island, the detaining of the garri fon, was an exprefs violation of treaty, by which, in the cafe even of an open rupture, fix months åre allowed to the subjects of each nation, to remove their perfons and properties from the dominion of the other. And that from a due confideration of all thefe premifes, it was evident, that we were only made the dupes to a pretended negotiation.

It was faid in reply, that if all thefe charges could be admitted, it would be fuppofing the moft heterogeneous and unnatural combination that ever existed, in which the three great parts that compofe our government, with a great majority of the monied and landed interefts, were to join with the miniftry to betray the nation, to facrifice their own moft effential interefts, and to entail ruin and deftruction upon their pofterity. That his Majefty had wifely entrusted the whole conduct of this bufinefs to the care of gentlemen in whom he placed the greateft confidence, and who would fhew that they were not unworthy of it, by the ftriéteft attention, as well to his honour, as to the interefts of the nation.

The fufpicion of duplicity in the court of Spain, was faid to be groundless; that the Spaniards were like, ourselves; they were haughty, brave, and generous; they were willing to be juft, but they would not be bullied, or compelled into juftice; they would not have that demanded as the conceffion of their fears, which should be required as the refult of their probity; they would fuffer diftrefs fooner than difhonour; and if we talk of forcing them into our meafures, they will make that force in

difpenfibly requifite; that there fore great allowances were to be made for the nice delicacy of honour, and extreme fenfibility of fuch a people; and it was better and more prudent, to treat even their prejudices with tenderness, than by the rafh and untimely ap plication of a rough hand, to irritate and provoke them.

That it is abfurd to fuppofe, that we are only amused by a treaty, while the enemy is meditating fome fignal and dangerous blow. If the barren rock of Falkland's, ifland has abundantly furnished matter of ferious reflection to both nations, and Spain is already fully convinced, that we are not to be deprived of fo infignificant an object without ample fatisfaction, and is fenfible at the fame time of the formidable armaments we are making, for the purpofe of exacting any juftice by force, which is refused us by treaty; can it be fuppofed in fuch circumftances, that the will, by giving new caufes of complaint, urge us to an immediate commencement of hoftilities, at a time when he will know that we are fully prepared to take the moft fignal vengeance. Spain will therefore have a regard to herself, however fhe may wish to diftrefs us; and will be cautious from prudence, if she is not even honeft from inclination.

Such were fome of the arguments made use of in the long debates that arofe upon this motion in both houfes; it was however rejected by a majority, of more than three to one, of the Lords; in the houfe of commons it was better fupported as to numbers, and the minority thought it no fmall inftance of their strength, to count 101, in their divition, upon a qucition