also disclaim all allegiance to the supreme power of the state. To hold such doctrines betrayed a coarse and vulgar intellect, incapable of observing the sublime order of nature; and was evidence, at the same time, of a wicked, base, and ungrateful mind, receiving continually the favours of Providence without acknowledging the obligation.-Referring to lord Lauderdale's acknowledgment of friendship and intercourse with Brissot, he observed, that friendship and attachment were matters of taste more than of feeling or affection; and as he possessed none of the mo dern innovating taste himself, so was he unable to account for it in others. The taste of many might incline them to take pleasure in the contemplation of the arts, of pieces of ancient sculpture, of cities laid in ruins, of palaces destroyed by earthquakes, of prostrate temples, &c. But the prevailing taste now was for revolutions, massacre, war, confusion, and the murder of kings; and he certainly did not envy that taste which induced any one to contract friendship with the leaders in the propagation of such principles. Much had been said, and acrimoniously too, of kings leading crusades against France: whereas, in fact, it was the French themselves who were embarked in a crusade against all the governments of the world-a crusade more wicked, and infinitely more ruinous than those of ancient times which were prompted by devotion. The Asiatic chief of the assassins, the Old Man of the Mountains, who was the terror of the christian crusaders, was extremely well calculated to be a confederate with those atheists. He had every quality to entitle him to shine as a French hero. The learned lord ridiculed the argument against opposing opinion by force of arms, when these very opinions were propagated by cannons, daggers, poisons, and open assassinations; when they even proscribed the parties they were opposed to, and in the face of the world proclaimed reward and honours to the assassins of kings. to return within her ancient limits, for | she must still leave behind her the contamination of her doctrines, and the poison of her example. He must suppose himself to be mistaken, for as God was his judge, he could scarcely imagine any member of the House could seriously urge it, when he stated it as having been asserted by a noble lord, that on account of the weakness of our allies, we were justified in deserting their cause. Such a doctrine was so infamous in itself as to need no confutation, and he would not insult the understanding of the House by dwelling upon it. In order to magnify the resources of France, it had been said that Dumourier had negociated a loan with the clergy of Brabant, and this information had been derived from the Moniteur. According to the knowledge he had obtained from this source, he had discovered that this pretended loan consisted of drafts drawn by Dumourier at sight, at the point of the bayonet. As a proof of the uneasiness under which the Seven united provinces laboured on account of the opening of the Scheldt, he would appeal to a passage in the same paper, in which it is said, that the Dutch, since the preparations of England, were preparing to make every resistance. In the commencement of the present century we had a set of courtiers, who then were the correspondents of France, and wished to introduce its frippery, folly, and frivolity among us; but happily the spirit of the people defeated the attempt. And though the new-fangled doctrines of that people could hardly deceive the penetration of the lowest graduate in the schools, yet the practical effect of these miserable lessons ought to be resisted to the utmost of our power. In the works of dean Tucker, Adam Smith, and Mr. Stewart, to which allusions had been made, no doctrines inimical to the principles of civil government, the morals or religion of mankind were contained; and therefore to trace the errors of the French to these causes was manifestly fallacious. -The learned lord dwelt upon the language of M. Dupont, which was so well received in the National Assembly; in which, besides the profession of atheism, he also declared the collateral resolution of exterminating all kings whatever. It was consistent and true in the general course of affairs, that those who held atheistical principles, and rejected the adoration of the Supreme Being, should The Amendment was then put and negatived without a division; after which, the motion for the address was agreed Protest against the Rejection of the Amendment to the Address.] The following Protest was entered on the Journals: "Dissentient, 1. "Because the immediate tendency into a war. of the address is, to plunge the nation | concluded by a peace, negociation must at some time take place, and we must ultimately depend upon the good faith of France, unless we proceed upon a principle of partition, conquest, or extermination. 2. "Because we consider war as an evil of such magnitude, that nothing but absolute necessity can justify it. 3. "Because we have not heard of any danger to this country which renders war necessary. 4. "Because the observance of good faith towards our allies does not require us to engage in war, his majesty's ministers having admitted, that Holland has not demanded our interference, and it being notorious that Prussia has been the aggressor against France. 5. "Because, though we feel the utmost horror at the atrocious act of cruelty and injustice mentioned in the address, we think that no injustice, however flagrant, committed in a foreign state, and having no relation to other countries, is a just ground for making war. 6. "Because we are more likely to obtain the objects, whether of policy or principle, in the way of negociation than war; the aversion of France to break with this country, which has lately stood the test of repeated provocations, putting it in our power at this moment to give peace to all Europe; whereas, by entering into the war, we shall put all at stake; we shall be to join a league, whose duration cannot be depended on; our marine will be to act against armed vessels only, and that of the French against a trade which covers every quarter of the globe. 7. "Because in no view of policy, can we discover any advantage to be obtained to this country by war, however successful. The experience of our two last wars has taught us the little value of foreign acquisitions; for having lost America in the last of them, we now enjoy a more beneficial intercourse with it as an independent state, than we did when it formed a part of the British dominion. 8. "Because we think it the interest of this country to preserve peace with all mankind, but more especially with France. 9. "Because even if it should be thought consonant to the honour and magnanimity of this nation to seek the depression of France, that end will be most effectually promoted by leaving them to their own internal dissentions, instead of uniting them by an hostile aggression in a common cause, and thus calling forth all their energy. 10. Because as every war must be 11. "Because the measures now in view will utterly derange our system of finance, our war resources having been applied towards defraying the expense of our peace establishment, in consequence of which our floating unfunded debt, which amounted at the cominencement of the American war only to 3,100,000/. has accumulated to above ten millions, exclusive of India bonds; besides which, the additional effect that the late enormous extension of private banking, to an amount unknown, may have upon our public credit in case of war, is what no one can foresee. 12. "Because we dread the increase of those public burthens, which already bear so hard on the poorer part of the community; and because we are convinced that nothing can endanger our happy constitution, but an interruption of those blessings which it now affords us, by the calamities of an unnecessary war. "Dissentient, "LANSDOWN. "LAUDERDALE." 1st, "Because war is a state so unnatural, so barbarous in itself, so calamitous in its effects so immoral when unnecessary, and so atrocious when unjust, that every friend of humanity should endeavour to avoid it; and the establishment of a pacific system ought to be the first policy of a wise and enlightened nation. 2dly, "Because peace is always for the interest of the common people in all countries. And Great Britain and France, from their peculiar situation, have an evident interest to remain at peace with each other. 3dly, "Because it is a well known fact that the people in France, are in general, extremely desirous to maintain and strengthen, between that country and (Signed) "STANHOPE." The Address as at first proposed was then put and agreed to. this, the bonds of amity and friendship. | to the horrors of war, carnage and deAnd ever since the overthrow of despo- vastation. tism in France, the commonalty in that nation have such irresistible weight, that we might rest assured that, as peace with Great Britain is for the interest, and is the wish of the people in France, it would therefore be the constant object of their government, if not first provoked by our ministers, by such acts as the sending away the French ambassador, and expressly refusing to acknowledge their new government. Motion for a Committee to consider of Means for expediting the Trial of Mr. Hastings.] Feb. 11. Major Maitland rose, to make his promised motion, respecting the trial of Mr. Hastings. He said, that in what he was about to say, nothing was farther from his thoughts, than to touch upon the political character of the unfortunate gentleman under impeachment: or to arraign the justice of the House in sending him to trial, or to censure the conduct of the managers; but still he must state the extreme length of the trial, as a departure from that principle of the law of England, which required that judgment should be speedily given in all cases, so that punishment might soon overtake guilt, or an acquittal, speedily proclaim to the world the innocence of the accused. In the case of Mr. Hastings, the departure from this principle had been greater than had ever been known on any former occasion, and the trial protracted to a length unexampled and unprecedented in the annals of this or any kingdom. Mr. Hast 4thly, "Because the old, despotic, and detestable government in France, from its secrecy, its perfidy, treachery and restless ambition, has been the fatal cause of many wars in Europe for several centuries past. Therefore, any assistance given on the part of our government to any power in Europe that is endeavouring to restore that tyrannical form of government in France, is injurious to the true interests of this country.-And the people of France have, moreover, as just a right to enjoy civil liberty as ourselves. 5thly, "Because a war with France is at present most impolitic, extremely dan gerous to our allies the Dutch, hazardous with respect to the internal peace and external power of this country, and is likely to be highly injuriousings had now been nine years under acto our commerce, which is the great source of our wealth, naval strength, and prosperity. And any material interruption to the trade, manufactures and industry of this kingdom, may at this time, be attended with consequences the most fatal.—The war may, therefore, prove to be a war against our commerce and manufactures, against the proprietors of our funds, against our paper currency, and against every description of property in this country. 6thly, "Because every man of feeling must exceedingly lament the numerous taxes and oppressive burthens already borne by the people of this kingdom, and also the present high price of various necessary articles of life; and if an unwise system of policy be pursued, it must inevitably increase those burthens and eventually put those necessaries of life beyond the reach of the laborious part of the community. And 7thly, "Because these misfortunes ought the more to be deprecated, as it clearly appears that it would still be most easy to avoid them, if our ministers were to prefer a mild, just and pacific system, [VOL. XXX.] cusation; and nearly six years upon his trial. When it was considered, that this gentleman had returned home at an advanced period of life, and with a constitution impaired by the cares and fatigues necessarily attendant upon the government of a great empire, and broken by a long residence in a sultry climate, he was sure that no man could, by any calculation, suppose that his life could have lasted six years from the day of his return; and yet, during a period to which no one could have presumed his life would have been protracted, had this unfortunate gentleman been kept upon his trial, bending every year before the House of Lords, and the justice of his country. The length of this trial had been noticed in a neighbouring nation, and would no doubt be used as an argument by those who were disaffected to the constitution of England. From foreign or domestic foes he was anxious to take away every plausible argument against the constitution, that might be drawn from the delay of justice, occasioned by the unprecedented length of this trial: and it was his sincere wish that [2] in it as a contrast to a more summary mode, which the reporter hoped would be adopted for trying ministers. If any thing like that more summary mode suggested by his friend on the other side of the water, was what the hon. gentleman meant to recommend, he should be inclined to prefer the present mode of proceeding, slow as it was. If the committee could devise any means of expediting the trial, he should not oppose it, although he did not think that much could be done. He regretted the length of the trial, both as a hardship on the party ac cused, if innocent, and as a delay and injury to the justice of the country, if he was guilty. But it must be recollected, that the trial differed materially from any former trial by impeachment. It em. braced the numerous transactions of many years: the materials of evidence were to be brought from a distant country; and they were ten times more voluminous than any before collected. With respect to providing against the recurrence of any similar case that was already done by the act appointing a court of judicature for the trial of delin some member would undertake the task of devising a plan for expediting proceedings in criminal cases, and rendering it impossible that any other trial should ever be protracted to so astonishing a length. In turning over in his mind the hardship thrown upon Mr. Hastings, by the unexampled length of his trial, he had resolved to move that a committee should be appointed to consider of means for expediting the proceedings; and he meant in that committee to move two specific propositions, one, that the managers should be at liberty to carry on the trial, though the House of Commons should not be present in Westminster Hall. Of this he was aware that there was only one precedent, and that was in the impeachment of the earl of Strafford: he was also aware, that this mode was not without inconvenience and objection; for many cases might arise, in which the managers might have occasion to withdraw and consult their principals, which could not be done without great delay, if the House was not at hand and sitting. But this objection would not appear very forcible to those who considered, that on the days of trial the at-quencies committed in India. Of the tendance of members in the House was generally very thin. The other specific proposition which he meant to move in the committee was, that a conference might be proposed to the Lords, for the purpose of devising means for accelerating the conclusion of the trial. He concluded by moving, "That a committee be appointed to consider of means for expediting the trial of the impeachment now depending against Warren Hastings, esq. and to report the same to the House." Mr. Dundas agreed, that no blame was imputable to the House, who directed, the Lords who were to try, or the managers who conducted the impeachment. If it was true that the attendance of the House had not been so full as could be wished, it was also to be noted that from circumstances unavoidable, the managers box had not always been so full as at the commencement of the trial. The hon. gentleman had rather unnecessarily alluded to remarks made upon the length of the trial elsewhere. "The farce of Mr. Hastings's trial," he believed it was called in Brissot's report. With the author of that report he had neither friendship nor acquaintance; but he had seen that the trial was mentioned two things intended by the hon. gentleman, that of empowering the managers to attend the trial without the House, he thought might be adopted, for he was not quite satisfied with the reasons on which it had been set aside on a former occasion; but a conference with the Lords, he did not conceive to be the proper mode of obtaining a closer attention to the trial, even if a closer attention could be given. The Lords in their judicial capacity might object to making any arrangement for expediting a trial with one of the parties. Perhaps a better mode would be for the accusers and the accused to compare the state of their evidence, and the lords would not object to any mode of saving time, on which both the parties were agreed. It would therefore be advisable for the committee to get such information from the managers and the counsel for Mr. Hastings, as could be given with propriety. After a short conversation, the motion was agreed to, and a committee appointed. Copies of Lord Auckland's Declaration, and Memorial to the States General.] Feb. 11. The following Papers were laid before both Houses: TRANSLATION of a Declaration delivered by Lord Auckland to the States General of the United Provinces; dated Hague, Nov. 16th, 1792. DECLARATION. The undersigned ambassador extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majesty, has received the King's orders to inform their high mightinesses the States General of the United Provinces, that his Majesty, seeing the theatre of war brought so near to the frontiers of the republic by the recent events which have happened, and being sensible of the uneasiness which may naturally result from such a situation, thinks it due to the connexion which subsists between him and the republic, that he should renew to their high mightinesses on this occasion, the assurances of his inviolable friendship, and of his determination to execute, at all times, with the utmost good faith, all the different stipulations of the treaty of alliance so happily concluded in 1788, between his majesty and their high mighti nesses. TRANSLATION of a Memorial presented by Lord Auckland, his Britannic Majesty's Minister at the Hague, to their high mightinesses the States General. High and Mighty Lords;-The undersigned ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majesty, takes the earliest opportunity, in consequence of the express orders of the king, to lay before your high mightinesses copies of all the papers which have been exchanged, since the 27th of December last to the 20th of this month, between lord Grenville, secretary of state to his majesty, and M. Chauvelin. The king, high and mighty lords, is firmly persuaded, that the sentiments and principles expressed on the part of Great Britain are perfectly conformable to those which animate your republic, and that your high mightinesses are disposed fully to concur in the measures which the present crisis demands, and which are a necessary consequence of these sentiments and principles. In making to their high mightinesses this declaration, the king is very far from supposing the probability of any intention on the part of the belligerent parties to The circumstances which have led to violate the territory of the republic, or to this crisis are too recent, and the conduct meddle in the internal concerns of its of the king too well known, for the ungovernment. The king is persuaded that dersigned to have occasion here to enter the conduct which, in concert with his ma- into any long detail. It is not quite four jesty, their high mightinesses have hither-years since certain unhappy and deluded to observed, and the respect to which the persons, assuming the name of philososituation of his majesty and the republic phers, have presumed to think themselves justly entitles them, are sufficient to re- capable of establishing a new system of move any ground of such apprehension. civil society. In order to realize this His majesty, therefore, confidently ex-dream, the offspring of vanity, it became pects that no events of the war will lead to any circumstance from without, which may be injurious to the rights of their high mightinesses; and he strongly recommends to them to employ, in concert with his majesty, an unremitted attention and firmness to repress any attempts which may be made to disturb the internal tranquillity of the provinces. His majesty has directed this communication to be made to their high mightinesses, in the full persuasion that nothing can more effectually conduce to the interest and happiness of both countries, than the continuance of that intimate union which has been established between them for the maintenance of their own rights and security, and with a view to necessary for them to overturn and destroy all established notions of subordination, of morals, and of religion, which had hitherto constituted the security the happiness, and the consolation of mankind. These destructive projects have but too well succeeded; but the effects of the new system which they wished to introduce, have only served to demonstrate the folly and wickedness of its authors. The events that have since so rapidly followed, surpass, in atrocity, all that has hitherto sullied the page of history. Property, liberty, security, and even life itself, have been the sport of this unbridled phrenzy of the passions, of this spirit of rapine, of hatred, and of the most cruel and unnatural ambition. The annals of |