Parliament having met, according to the royal summons, on this day,
his majesty made a speech from the throne, which being afterwards read
by the president, lord TWEEDALE rose, and spoke as follows:
My lords, it is not without the highest satisfaction, that every lover
of mankind must look upon the alterations that have lately been
produced in the state of Europe; nor can any Briton forbear to express
an immediate and particular pleasure to observe his country rising
again into its former dignity, to see his own nation shake off
dependence, and rouse from inactivity, cover the ocean with her
fleets, and awe the continent with her armies; bid, once more,
defiance to the rapacious invaders of neighbouring kingdoms, and the
daring projectors of universal dominion; once more exert her influence
in foreign courts, and summon the monarchs of the west to another
confederacy against the power of France.
The queen of Hungary, who was lately obliged to retire at the approach
of her enemies, to leave her capital in danger of a siege, and seek
shelter in the remotest corner of her dominions, who was lately so
harassed with invasions, and so encircled with dangers, that she could
scarcely fly from one ravager, without the hazard of falling into the
hands of another, is now able to give laws to her persecutors, to
return the violence which she has suffered, and instead of imploring
mercy from those who had no regard but to their own interest, and were
determined to annihilate her family and divide her dominions, now sits
in full security on her throne, directs the march of distant armies,
and dictates the terms on which those who have entered her dominions
shall be suffered to escape.
Such, my lords, is the present state of the German empire; nor have
the affairs of the rest of Europe been less changed; the power of the
house of Bourbon has been diminished on every side, its alliance has
been rejected, and its influence disregarded.
The king of Sardinia has openly engaged to hinder the Spaniards from
erecting a new kingdom in Italy; and though he has hitherto been
somewhat embarrassed in his measures, and oppressed by the superiority
of his enemies, has at least, by preventing the conjunction of the
Spanish armies, preserved the Austrians from being overwhelmed. Nor can
the situation of his dominions, and the number of his forces, suffer us
to doubt, that in a short time he will be able entirely to secure Italy,
since he has already recovered his country, and drove back the Spaniards
into the bosom of France.
The condition of the other Spanish army is such, as no enemy can wish
to be aggravated by new calamities. They are shut up in a country
without provisions, or of which the inhabitants are unwilling to
supply them: on one side are neutral states, to which the law of
nations bars their entrance; on another the Mediterranean sea, which
can afford them only the melancholy prospect of hostile armaments, or
sometimes of their own ships falling into the hands of the Britons;
behind them are the troops of Austria ready to embarrass their march,
intercept their convoys, and receive those whom famine and despair
incite to change their masters, and to seek among foreign nations that
ease and safety, of which the tyranny of their own government, and the
madness of their own leaders, has deprived them. Such is their
distress, and so great their diminution, that a few months must
complete their ruin, they must be destroyed without the honour of a
battle, they must sink under the fatigue of hungry marches, by which
no enemy is overtaken or escaped, and be at length devoured, by those
diseases, which toil and penury will inevitably produce.
That the diminution of the influence of the house of Bourbon is not an
empty opinion, which we easily receive, because we wish it to be true;
that other nations, likewise, see the same events with the same
sentiments, and prognosticate the decline of that power which has so
long intimidated the universe, appears from the declaration now made
by his majesty of the conduct of the Swedish court.
That nation which was lately governed by the counsels, and glutted
with the bounties of France, which watched the nod of her mighty
patroness, and made war at her command against the Russian empire, now
begins to discover, that there are other powers more worthy of
confidence and respect, more careful to observe their engagements, or
more able to fulfil them. She, therefore, requests the British monarch
to extricate her from those difficulties, in which she is entangled by
a blind compliance with French dictates, to restore to her the
dismembered provinces, and recall that enemy which now impends over
her capital, and whom the French have neither interest to appease, nor
strength to resist.
Such, my lords, is the present prospect which offers itself to him who
surveys Europe with a political view, and examines the present
interest and dispositions of neighbouring potentates; such is the
order which has been produced from general confusion, and such the
reestablishment of equal power, which has succeeded these concussions
of the world.
It is no small addition to the pleasure which this change must afford
every man, who has either wisdom to discover his own happiness, or
benevolence to rejoice in that of others, that it has been the effect
not of chance but of conduct; that it is not an unforeseen event,
produced by the secret operation of causes fortuitously concurring,
but the result of a political and just design, well concerted and
steadily pursued; that every advantage which has been gained, is the
consequence of measures laid to obtain it; that our happiness has been
procured by prudence, and that our counsels have not been lucky but
wise.
If we reflect, my lords, upon the causes which have contributed to the
rescue of Europe from impending slavery, which have reestablished the
queen of Hungary in her dominions, enabled her to lay waste the
territories of her invaders, confirmed her friends in their fidelity,
and intimidated those whom rival interests inclined to wish her fall,
or the hope of sharing in the plunder, had incited to form designs
against her. If we inquire to what it is to be ascribed, that she is
able to form new alliances, and defend her dominions with confederate
armies, we shall find it easy to trace all these revolutions to one
cause, the steady and prudent conduct of the king of Britain.
Our sovereign, my lords, has looked on the troubles of Europe with
that concern which publick virtue inspires; he has seen the sufferings
of this illustrious princess with that compassion which is always due
to magnanimity oppressed, and formed resolutions for her assistance
with that ardour, which courage naturally kindles; but with that
caution, likewise, and secrecy, which experience dictates. But he
remembered, my lords, that, though he was the friend of the queen of
Hungary, he was to consider himself as the father of the people of
Britain; that he was not to exhaust the forces of this nation in
romantick expeditions, or exhaust its treasures in giving assistance
which was not needed.
He therefore waited to observe the event of the war, and to discover
whether the incessant struggles of the Austrians would be able to
throw off the load with which they were oppressed; but he found that
their spirit, however ardent, could not supply the want of strength;
he found, that they were fainting under insuperable labours, and that,
though they were in no danger of being conquered by the valour of
their enemies, they must, in a short time, be wearied with their
numbers.
His majesty then knew, my lords, that, by sending them speedy
assistance, he at once promoted the interest of his people, and
gratified his own inclinations; he therefore supplied the queen with
such sums as enabled her to levy new forces, and drive her enemies
before her. By procuring a reconciliation with the king of Prussia, he
freed her from the nearest and most formidable danger, and gave her an
opportunity to secure herself against the menaces of other powers.
But though she was set free from domestick dangers, though invasion
was driven from her capital, though captivity no longer pursued her
flight, nor usurpation hovered over her throne, her more distant
dominions were still a prey to her enemies. The Spaniards had already
landed one army in Italy, with which another was hastening to join.
The success of this enterprise, which would have gained the greatest
part of Italy, could only be hindered by the king of Sardinia, who
was, therefore, solicited by the Spaniards and French to favour their
design, with the strongest protestations, and the most magnificent
promises. But these were overbalanced by the influence of the king of
Britain, whose name was of sufficient importance to make the weaker
part most eligible, and to counterbalance the force of immediate
interest.
Thus was the passage into Italy barred against the Spaniards, by
obstacles which they can never surmount, while the other army is
besieged by our fleet, and by the Austrians; and reduced, instead of
conquering kingdoms, to change their camp, and regulate their marches,
with no other view than to avoid famine. While that prince, whose
dominions might most commodiously afford them succour, and whom all
the ties of nature and of interest oblige to assist them, is awed by
the British ships of war, which lie at anchor before his metropolis,
and of which the commanders, upon the least suspicion of hostilities
against the queen of Hungary, threaten to batter his palaces, and
destroy his city.
In this manner, my lords, has the king of Britain assisted the house
of Austria with his treasures, his influence, and his navy; thus does
he subdue some enemies, and restrain others; thus does he hold the
balance of the war, and thus does he add the weight of power to the
scale of justice.
But to secure the success that has been already obtained, and to take
from the enemies of liberty all hopes of recovering the advantages
which they have lost, he has now no longer confined his assistance to
negotiations and pecuniary supplies. He knows that alliances are
always best observed, when they confer security, or produce manifest
advantages; and that money will not be always equivalent to armies. He
has, therefore, now acted openly in defence of his ally, has filled
Flanders, once more, with British troops, and garrisoned the frontier
towns with the forces of that nation by which they were gained. The
veteran now sees, once more, the plains over which he formerly pursued
the squadrons of France, points the place where he seized the
standards, or broke the lines, where he trampled the oppressors of
mankind, with that spirit which is enkindled by liberty and justice.
His heart now beats, once more, at the sight of those walls which he
formerly stormed, and he shows the wounds which he received in the
mine, or on the breach. The French now discover, that they are not yet
lords of the continent; and that Britain has other armies ready to
force, once more, the passes of Schellembourg, or break down the
intrenchments of Blenheim; to wrest from them the sceptre of universal
monarchy, and confine them again to their own dominions.
To the British regiments, his majesty has joined a large body of the
forces of his own electorate, without regard to the danger which may
threaten his dominions in the absence of his troops, having no other
view than to secure the publick tranquillity at whatever hazard of his
own, and being convinced that private interest is most effectually
secured by a steady attention to general good.
These measures, my lords, undoubtedly demand our gratitude and
applause. Gratitude is always due to favourable intentions, and
diligent endeavours, even when those intentions are frustrated, and
those endeavours defeated; and applause is often paid to success, when
it has been merely the effect of chance, and been produced by measures
ill adapted to the end which was intended by them. But, surely, when
just designs have been happily executed, when wise measures are
blessed with success, neither envy nor hatred will dare to refuse
their acclamations; surely, those will at least congratulate, whom the
corruption of their hearts hinders from rejoicing, and those who
cannot love, will at least commend.
Here, my lords, I suspect no inclination to depreciate the happiness
that we enjoy, or to calumniate that virtue by which it has been
obtained; and therefore doubt not but your lordships will readily
concur in the reasonable, motion which I have now to offer:--
"That an humble address be presented to his majesty, to return him the
thanks of this house, for his most gracious speech from the throne.
"To declare our just sense of his majesty's great care and vigilance
for the support of the house of Austria, and for restoring and
securing the balance of power.
"To acknowledge his majesty's great wisdom and attention to the
publick welfare, in sending so considerable a body of his forces into
the Low Countries, and in strengthening them with his electoral
troops, and the Hessians in the British pay; and thereby forming such
an army as may defend and encourage those powers who are well
intentioned, and give a real assistance to the queen of Hungary, and
to assure his majesty of the concurrence and support of this house, in
this necessary measure.
"To express our satisfaction in the good effects which the vigour
exerted by Great Britain in assisting its ancient allies, and
maintaining the liberties of Europe, hath already had on the affairs
of the queen of Hungary, and on the conduct of several powers; and our
hopes that a steady perseverance in the same measures, will inspire
the like spirit and resolution in other powers, equally engaged by
treaties and common interest to take the like part.
"To give his majesty the strongest assurances, that this house has the
honour and safety of his majesty, the true interest and prosperity of
his kingdoms, the security and advancement of their commerce, the
success of the war against Spain, and the reestablishment of the
balance and tranquillity of Europe entirely at heart. That these shall
be the great and constant objects of our proceedings and resolutions,
this house being determined to support his majesty in all just and
necessary measures for attaining those great and desirable ends, and
to stand by and defend his majesty against all his enemies."
Lord MONTFORT spoke next to the following effect:--My lords, the
motion offered by the noble lord, is, in my opinion, so proper and
just, so suitable to the dignity of this assembly, and so expressive
of the gratitude which the vigilance of his majesty for the publick
good, ought to kindle in every heart not chilled by ungenerous
indolence, or hardened by inveterate disaffection, that I cannot
discover any reason for which it can be opposed, and therefore hope
that every lord will concur in it with no less alacrity and zeal than
I now rise up to second it.
It may, indeed, naturally be hoped from this house, that his majesty's
measures will be readily approved, since they are such as even malice
and faction will not dare to censure or oppose, such as calumny will
not venture to defame, and such as those who will not praise them can
never mention. If it be allowed, that the interest of France is
opposite to that of Britain, that the equipoise of power on the
continent is to be preserved; if any of the counsels of our ancestors
deserve our attention, if our victories at Cressy or at Ramillies are
justly celebrated by our historians, the wisdom of our sovereign's
conduct cannot be denied.
The French, my lords, whom our armies in the reign of Anne saw flying
before them; who, from dividing kingdoms, and prescribing laws to
mankind, were reduced to the defence of their own country; who were
driven from intrenchment to intrenchment, and from one fortification
to another, now grown insolent with the pleasures of peace, and the
affluence of commerce, Have forgotten the power by which their schemes
were baffled, and their arrogance repressed; by which their fabrick of
universal monarchy was shattered, and themselves almost buried in the
ruins.
Infatuated with the contemplation of their own force, elated with the
number of their troops, the magnificence of their cities, and the
opulence of their treasury, they have once more imagined themselves
superiour to resistance, and again aspire to the command of the
universe; they have now for some time assumed the haughty style of the
legislators of mankind; and have expected, that princes should appeal
to them as to the highest human tribunal, and that nations should
submit their claims to their arbitration; they have already assumed
the distribution of dominions, and expect that neither peace shall be
concluded, nor war proclaimed, but by their permission or advice.
By this gradation of exorbitant claims and oppressive measures, have
they at length arrived, my lords, at the summit of insolence; by these
steps have they ascended once more the towering throne of universal
monarchy; nor was any thing wanting to complete their plan, but that
their ancient rival, the German empire, should be reduced to
acknowledge their sovereignty, and that the supreme dignity of Europe
should be the gift of the French bounty.
The death of the late emperour, without sons, furnished them with an
opportunity of executing their design, too favourable to be neglected.
They now imagined it in their power, not only to dispose of the
imperial dignity, but to divide the dominions of the house of Austria
into many petty sovereignties, incapable singly of opposing them, and
unlikely to unite in any common cause, or to preserve a confederacy
unbroken, if they should by accident agree to form it.
They, therefore, sent their armies into Germany, to superintend the
approaching election, and by hovering over the territories of princes
unable to resist them, extorted voices in favour of their ally; a
prince, whose dominions must, by their situation, always oblige him to
compliance with the demands, and to concurrence in the schemes of his
protectors, and who will rather act as the substitute of France, than
the emperour of Germany.
But it was to no purpose that they had graced their dependant with
titular honours and ensigns of sovereignty, if the house of Austria
still retained its hereditary dominions, and preserved its strength
when it had lost its dignity. They well knew that armies were equally
formidable, whether commanded by an emperour or an inferiour
sovereign; and that a mere alteration of names, though it might afford
a slight and transient gratification to vanity, would produce no real
increase or diminution of power.
They, therefore, thought it necessary to improve the present time of
confusion, and excite all the princes of the empire to revive their
ancient claims upon the Austrian territories; claims, which how long
soever they had been forgotten, howsoever abrogated by long
prescription, or annulled by subsequent treaties, were now again to
become valid, and to be decided by the arbitration of France.
But this project being defeated by the heroick constancy of the queen
of Hungary, whose wisdom and resolution, which will equal her name in
future histories with those of the most successful conquerors,
rejected their mediation, and refused to own her right doubtful, by
submitting it to be tried; they were obliged no longer to dissemble
their designs, or make farther pretences to respect or tenderness. Her
fall was necessary to their own exaltation; they, therefore, kindled a
general conflagration of war, they excited all the princes to take
arms against her, and found it, indeed, no difficult task to persuade
them to attack a princess, whom they thought unable to form an army,
whom they believed they should rather pursue than engage, and whose
dominions might be overrun without bloodshed, and whom they should
conquer only by marching against.
Such a combination as this, a combination of monarchs, of which each
appeared able singly to have carried on a war against her, nothing but
the highest degree of magnanimity could have formed a design of
resisting; nor could that resistance have procured the least
advantages, or retarded for a single day the calamities that were
threatened, had it not been regulated by every martial virtue, had not
policy united with courage, and caution with activity.
Thus did the intrepidity of this princess, my lords, support her
against the storms that shook her kingdom on every side; thus did
those, whom her virtues gained over to her service, and whom her
example animated with contempt of superiour numbers, defend her
against the forces of all the surrounding nations, led on by monarchs,
and elated with the prospect of an easy conquest.
But the utmost that could be hoped from the most refined stratagems,
or the most exalted courage, was only that her fate might be deferred,
that she would not fall wholly unrevenged, that her enemies would
suffer with her, and that victory would not be gained without a
battle. It was evident, that bravery must in time give way to
strength, that vigour must be wearied, and policy exhausted, that by a
constant succession of new forces, the most resolute troops must be
overwhelmed; and that the house of Austria could only gain by the war,
the fatal honour of being gloriously extinguished.
This his majesty's wisdom easily enabled him to discover, and his
goodness incited him to prevent; he called upon all the powers, who
had promised to preserve the Pragmatick sanction, to have regard to
the faith of nations, and by fulfilling their engagements, to preserve
the liberties of Europe; but the success of his remonstrances only
afforded a new instance of the weakness of justice, when opposed to
interest or fear. All the potentates of the continent were restrained
by the threats, or gained by the promises of France; and the disposal
of the possessions of the Austrian house, seemed, by the general
consent of Europe, to be resigned to the family of Bourbon.
But our sovereign was not yet discouraged from asserting the rights
which he had promised to maintain, nor did he think the neglect or
treachery of others a sufficient reason for refusing that assistance,
which justice and policy equally required. He knew the power of his
own empire, and though he did not omit to cultivate alliances, he was
conscious of his ability to proceed without them; and therefore
showed, by sending his troops into the Austrian territories, that the
measures of the sovereign of Britain were not to be regulated by
either his enemies or his confederates; that this nation is yet able
to support its own claims, and protect those of its allies; and that
while we attack one of the kingdoms of the house of Bourbon, we are
not afraid to set the other at defiance.
The effects of this conduct, my lords, were immediately apparent; the
king of Sardinia engaged to oppose the entrance of the Spaniards into
Italy; the king of Prussia not only made a peace with the queen of
Hungary, by whom he was more to be dreaded than any other enemy, but
entered into an alliance with his majesty, who has made no small
addition to his influence, by another treaty with the most powerful
nations of the north.
Thus, my lords, are the dreadful arms of France, which are never
employed but in the detestable and horrid plan of extending slavery,
and supporting oppression, stopped in the full career of success. Thus
is the scheme of universal monarchy once more blasted, and the world
taught, that the preservation of the rights of mankind, the security
of religion, and the establishment of peace, are not impracticable,
that the power of Britain is yet undiminished, and that her spirit is
not yet depressed.
By his majesty's conduct, my lords, the reputation of our country is
now raised to its utmost height; we are now considered as the arbiters
of empire, the protectors of right, the patrons of distress, and the
sustainers of the balance of the world. I cannot, therefore, but
conclude, that no man in this illustrious assembly will be unwilling
to acknowledge that wisdom and firmness, which not only this nation,
but the greatest part of the universe, will remember with gratitude in
the remotest ages, and that the motion, which I now second, will be
universally approved.
The speaker then read the motion, and asked in the usual form, whether
it was their lordships' pleasure that the question should be put; upon
which lord CHESTERFIELD rose up, and spoke to the following
purpose:--My lords, though the motion has been, by the noble lord who
made it, introduced with all the art of rhetorick, and enforced by him
that seconded it, with the utmost ardour of zeal, and the highest
raptures of satisfaction and gratitude; though all the late measures
have been recommended to our applause, as proofs of the strictest
fidelity, and the most sagacious policy; and though I am very far from
intending to charge them with weakness or injustice, or from
pretending to have discovered in them a secret tendency to advance any
interest in opposition to that of Britain, I am yet not able to
prevail upon myself to suppress those scruples which hinder me from
concurring with them, and from approving the address which is now
proposed.
I am less inclined, my lords, to favour the present motion, because I
have long been desirous of seeing the ancient method of general
addresses revived by this house; a method of address by which our
princes were reverenced without flattery, and which left us at liberty
to honour the crown, without descending to idolize the ministry.
I know not, my lords, what advantages have been procured by an annual
repetition of the speeches from the throne, however gracious or
excellent. For ourselves, we have certainly obtained no new confidence
from the crown, nor any higher degree of honour among the people. The
incense, which from our censers has so long perfumed the palace, has
inclined the nation to suspect, that we are long enough inured to
idolatry, to offer up their properties for a sacrifice, whenever they
shall be required; and I cannot dissemble my suspicions, that a long
continuance of this custom may give some ambitious or oppressive
prince in some distant age, when, perhaps, this beneficent and
illustrious family may be extinct, the confidence to demand it.
I cannot but be of opinion, and hope your lordships will be convinced
upon very short reflection, that there is a style of servility, which
it becomes not this house to use even to our monarchs: we are to
remember, indeed, that reverence which is always due from subjects,
but to preserve likewise that dignity which is inseparable from
independence and legislative authority.
That we ought not to descend to the meanest of flattery, that we ought
to preserve the privilege of speaking, without exaggerated praises, or
affected acknowledgments, our regard not only to ourselves, but to our
sovereign ought to remind us. For nothing is more evident, my lords,
than that no monarch can be happy while his people are miserable; that
the throne can be secure only by being guarded by the affections of
the people; and the prince can only gain and preserve their
affections, by promoting their interest, and supporting their
privileges.
But how, my lords, shall that monarch distinguish the interest of his
people, whom none shall dare to approach with information? How shall
their privileges be supported, if when they are infringed, no man will
complain? And who shall dare to lay any publick grievances, or private
wrongs before the king of Britain, if the highest assembly of the
nation shall never address him but in terms of flattery?
The necessity of putting an end to this corrupt custom, becomes every
day more and more urgent; the affairs of Europe are hastening to a
crisis, in which all our prudence, and all our influence will be
required; and we ought, therefore, to take care not to perplex our
resolutions by voluntary ignorance, or destroy our credit by a publick
approbation of measures, which we are well known not to understand.
I suppose, none of your lordships, who are not engaged in the
administration of affairs, will think it derogatory from the
reputation of your abilities and experience, to confess, that you do
not yet see all the circumstances or consequences of the measures
which you are desired to applaud; measures which have been too lately
taken to discover their own tendency, and with relation to which no
papers have been laid before us. We are told of armies joined, and
treaties concluded, and, therefore, called upon to praise the wisdom
of our negotiations, and the usefulness and vigour of our military
preparations; though we are neither acquainted on what terms our
alliances are formed, nor on what conditions our auxiliaries assist
us.
This, my lords, is surely such treatment as no liberal mind can very
patiently support; it is little less than to require that we should
follow our guides with our eyes shut; that we should place implicit
confidence in the wisdom of our ministers, and having first suffered
them to blind ourselves, assist them afterwards to blind the people.
The longer I dwell upon the consideration of this motion, the more
arguments arise to persuade me, that we ought not hastily to agree to
it. My lords, the address proposed, like the speech itself, is of a
very complicated and intricate kind, and comprises in a few words many
transactions of great importance, crowded together with an artful
brevity, that the mind may be hindered by the multitude of images,
from a distinct and deliberate consideration of particulars. Here are
acts of negotiation confounded with operations of war, one treaty
entangled with another, and the union of the Hanoverians with our
troops, mentioned almost in the same sentence with the Spanish war.
This crowd of transactions, so different in their nature, so various
in their consequences, who can venture to approve in the gross? or
who can distinguish without long examination.
I hope, my lords, that I shall not be charged with want of candour, in
supposing the motion not to be an extemporaneous composition, but to
be drawn up with art and deliberation. It is well known, that the
address is often concerted at the same time that the speech is
composed; and that it is not uncommon to take advantage of the
superiority which long acquaintance with the question gives those who
defend the motion, above those who oppose it.
We are indeed told, that the visible effects of his majesty's measures
prove their expediency, and that we may safely applaud that conduct of
which we receive the benefits. But, my lords, the advantages must be
seen or felt before they can be properly acknowledged; and it has not
been shown, that we have yet either intimidated the enemies of the
queen of Hungary, whose interest we have been lately taught to believe
inseparable from our own, or encouraged any new allies to declare in
her favour.
The Dutch, my lords, are not yet roused from their slumber of
neutrality; and how loudly soever we may assert our zeal, or with
whatever pomp we may display our strength, they still seem to doubt
either our integrity or force; and are afraid of engaging in the
quarrel, lest they should be either conquered or betrayed. Nor has the
approach of our army, however they may be delighted with the show,
inspired them with more courage, though they are enforced by the
troops of Hanover.
The addition of these forces to the British army, has been mentioned
as an instance of uncommon attention to the great cause of universal
liberty, as a proof that no regard has been paid to private interest,
and that all considerations are sacrificed to publick good. But since
no service can be so great but it may be overpaid, it is necessary
that we may judge of the benefit, to inform us on what terms it has
been obtained, and how well the act of succession has been observed on
this occasion.
Though I am too well acquainted, my lords, with the maxims which
prevail in the present age, and have had too much experience of the
motives, by which the decisions of the senate are influenced, to offer
any motion of my own, yet these reasons will withhold me from
concurring with this. I cannot but be of opinion, that the question
ought to be postponed to another day, in which the house may be
fuller, our deliberations be assisted by the wisdom and experience of
more than thirty lords, who are now absent, and the subjects of
inquiry, of which many are new and unexpected, may be more accurately
considered; nor can I prevail upon myself to return to general
declarations any other than general answers.
Lord CARTERET answered in substance as follows:--My lords, as there
has arisen no new question, as his majesty in assisting the queen of
Hungary, has only followed the advice of the senate; I am far from
being able to discover, why any long deliberation should be necessary
to a concurrence with the motion now before us, or whence any doubt
can arise with regard to the effects of his majesty's measures;
effects which no man will deny, who will believe either his own eyes,
or the testimony of others; effects, which every man who surveys the
state of Europe must perceive, and which our friends and our enemies
will equally confess.
To these measures, which we are now to consider, it must be ascribed,
that the French are no longer lords of Germany; that they no longer
hold the princes of the empire in subjection, lay provinces waste at
pleasure, and sell their friendship on their own terms. By these
measures have the Dutch been delivered from their terrours, and
encouraged to deliberate freely upon the state of Europe, and prepare
for the support of the Pragmatick sanction. But the common cause has
been most evidently advanced by gaining the king of Prussia, by whose
defection the balance of the war was turned, and at least thirty
thousand men taken away from the scale of France.
This, my lords, was a change only to be effected by a patient
expectation of opportunities, and a politick improvement of casual
advantages, and by contriving methods of reconciling the interest of
Prussia with the friendship of the queen of Hungary; for princes, like
other men, are inclined to prefer their own interest to all other
motives, and to follow that scheme which shall promise most gain.
That all this, my lords, has been effected, cannot be denied; nor can
it be said to have been effected by any other causes than the conduct
of Britain: had this nation looked either with cowardly despair, or
negligent inactivity, on the rising power of France and the troubles
of the continent; had the distribution of empire been left to chance,
our thoughts confined wholly to commerce, and our prospects not
extended beyond our own island, the liberties of Europe had been at an
end, the French had established themselves in the secure possession of
universal monarchy, would henceforth have set mankind at defiance, and
wantoned without fear in oppression and insolence.
These, my lords, are consequences of the measures pursued by his
majesty, of which neither the reality nor the importance can be
questioned, and, therefore, they may doubtless be approved without
hesitation. For surely, my lords, the addition of the Hanoverian
troops to the forces of our own nation can raise no scruples, nor be
represented as any violation of the act of settlement.
Of the meaning of that memorable act, I believe, I do not need any
information. I know it is provided, that this nation shall not be
engaged in war in the quarrel of Hanover; but I see no traces of a
reciprocal obligation, nor can discover any clause, by which we are
forbidden to make use in our own cause of the alliance of Hanover, or
by which the Hanoverians are forbidden to assist us.
I hope, my lords, this representation of the state of our transactions
with Hanover, will not be charged with artifice or sophistry. I know
how invidious a task is undertaken by him who attempts to show any
connexion between interests so generally thought opposite, and am
supported in this apology only by the consciousness of integrity, and
the intrepidity of truth.
The assistance of Hanover, my lords, was, at this time, apparently
necessary. Our own troops, joined with the Hessians, composed a body
too small to make any efficacious opposition to the designs of France;
but by the addition of sixteen thousand men, became sufficiently
formidable to oblige her to employ those troops for the security of
her frontiers, with which she intended to have overwhelmed Italy, and
to have exalted another Spanish prince to a new kingdom. The
Spaniards, deprived of this assistance, harassed by the Austrians with
perpetual alarms, and debarred by our fleet from the supplies which
are provided for them in their own country, must languish with penury
and hardships, being equally cut off from succour and from flight.
Thus, my lords, it is evident, that the true and everlasting interest
of Britain has been steadily pursued; that the measures formed to
promote it have been not only prudent, but successful. We did not
engage sooner in the quarrel, because we were not able to form an army
sufficiently powerful. An advantageous peace is only to be obtained by
vigorous preparations for war; nor is it to be expected that our
enemies should court our friendship, till they see that our opposition
is really formidable. Such, my lords, is our present state; we may
reasonably hope that the French will desist from their designs,
because they will have a confederacy to oppose, more powerful than
that by which their immortal monarch was lately humbled; and I hope
that conduct will always be applauded in this house, which enables us
to repress the arrogance of France.
Lord WESTMORELAND then spoke to the following purport:--My lords,
though the warmth with which the noble lord has defended the motion,
and the confidence with which he asserts the propriety and efficacy of
the measures to which it relates, are such proofs of the strength of
his conviction as leave no room to doubt his sincerity; yet as the
same arguments do not operate upon different minds with the same
force, I hope I shall not be thought less sincere, or less studious of
the publick happiness, or the honour of the crown, though I presume to
differ from him.
In the motion now before us, I cannot concur, because, though it
should be allowed to contain a just representation of foreign affairs,
yet it appears to me to omit those considerations which I think it the
duty of this house to offer to his majesty. This nation is, in my
opinion, exposed to enemies more formidable than the French; nor do I
think that we are at leisure to defend the liberties of Europe, till
we have made some provisions for the security of our own; or to
regulate the balance of power, till we have restored our constitution
to its ancient equilibrium.
That there are flagrant proofs of the most enormous corruption
throughout the whole subordination of publick offices; that our
publick funds are only nurseries of fraud, and that trust of every
kind is only considered as an opportunity of plundering, appears
evidently from the universal prevalence of luxury and extravagance,
from the sudden affluence of private men, from the wanton riot of
their tables, the regal splendour of their equipages, and the
ostentatious magnificence of their buildings.
It is evident, likewise, that corruption is not confined to publick
offices; that those who have lost their own integrity, have
endeavoured to destroy the virtue of others; that attempts have been
made to subject the whole nation to the influence of corruption, and
to spread the contagion of bribery from the highest to the lowest
classes of the people.
It is therefore necessary, before we engage in the consideration of
foreign affairs, to prosecute the inquiry which was begun in the last
session, to trace wickedness to its source, and drag the authors of
our miseries into the light.
These, my lords, are the inquiries which the general voice of the
people importunately demands; these are the petitions which ought
never to be rejected; all parties are now united, and all animosities
extinguished; nor is there any other clamour than for inquiries and
punishment.
The other house, my lords, has been engaged in the laudable attempt to
detect those who have betrayed, or plundered, or corrupted their
country; and surely we ought to have so much regard to our own honour,
as not to suffer them to toil alone in a design so popular, so just,
and so necessary, while we amuse ourselves with applauding the
sagacity of our ministers, who, whatever they may hope themselves, or
promise others, have not yet prevailed on any foreign power to concur
with them, or to interpose in the affairs of the continent. And,
therefore, I cannot conceal my suspicion, that instead of furnishing
any subject for panegyricks on our policy and caution, we are now
wasting our treasures and our strength in a romantick expedition.
Since, therefore, my lords, our domestick evils seem to me most
dangerous, I move, that in order to their speedy remedy, and that the
people may see we do not forget their immediate interest, this
addition be made to the motion now before us:
"And humbly to assure his majesty, that we will apply our constant and
persevering endeavours to calm and heal animosities and divisions,
unseasonable as they are at all times, and most pernicious in the
present juncture, which the true fatherly tenderness of his majesty,
out of the abundance of his constant care for the rights and liberties
of his people, has so affectionately at the close of last session
recommended from the throne, by searching thoroughly and effectually
into the grounds, which are or may be assigned for publick discontent,
agreeably to the ancient rules and methods of parliament."
This additional clause being delivered in writing to the speaker, he
read it to the house, but said that the noble lord spoke so low, that
he could not tell where he proposed to have it inserted. Lord
WESTMORELAND then directed him to read the motion, which done, he
desired that his clause might be added at the end.
Upon this lord RAYMOND spoke as follows:--My lords, the addition which
the noble lord has offered to the address proposed, cannot, in my
opinion, be properly admitted, as it has no relation to the preceding
clauses, but is rather inconsistent with them.
Nor do I think it only improper with regard to the other part of the
motion, but unnecessary in itself; since it has no reference to his
majesty's speech, now under our consideration; since it will
facilitate none of our inquiries, which may be carried on with equal
vigour without any such unseasonable declaration of our design.
If, therefore, the motion for the amendment be not withdrawn, I shall
move, that the first question be first put.
[The question was then put with regard to the first motion, and it
passed in the affirmative, without any division.]