Hand forth and defend the Crown and Confiitution of the united realm against all attacks whatever. There were certainly fome few among the very lowest orders of the peoplethe rabble of every country, who, bound by no ties, or influenced by no juft principle, were prone to with for changes in the Government, in the hopes of being able to gratify their own unruly paffions and propenfities, and fo far may be held as difaffected; and fuch there were in Ireland in common wi h other countries; but with refpect to the great body of the people, he repeated, his Majefty had not more true, firm, or loyal fubjects in all the empire, than thofe of Ireland.

Col. Calcraft begged leave to offer a few obfervations upon the fubject before the Houfe. If he understood the nature of the cafe rightly, there was no neceffity whatever for the haûty decifion preffed by his Majefty's Minifters. He was informed, by an officer of great refpectability, that the Irish Government had offers of fervice from fome of the militia regiments fo long back as four months; if this were fact, the confideration of the fubject furely would admit a fufpenfion of half a dozen days, to allow Parliament to deliberate on a principle of fuch importance as that involved in the addrefs. He defended his right hon. Friend, fo he hoped he might call him, from the charge of inconfiftency in the opinions delivered by him. The ftate of Ireland at the time alluded to fhould be confidered-a rebellion raged in the heart of the country, and we could fpare no other force to resist or to fupprefs it then, but our militia. He had had fome opportu nities of knowing the ftate of the popular mind in Ireland, and he was not quite fo fanguine as to the extinction of difaffection therein, as fome Gentlemen feemed to be; and much fill remained to be done, before that fpirit would be obliterated. There were other objections which he enter tained to a hafly decifion upon the fubject. He recollected on a former occafion the total want of difcipline that prevailed, while the fentiments of the militia corps were alcertaining upon the point of extenfion of fervice; and he trufted, he fhould never again have occafion to go round canvassing his men on fuch a subject.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer and Mr. Calcraft fpoke in explanation; in the courfe of which the latter wifhed the Minifter, if he had any objection to lay the dates of the offers of fervice before the Houfe, to state them; to which the reply was, "None in the leaft."

Mr.

Mr. Grenville made a few general obfervations on the fubject and in fupport of the arguments advanced by his right hon. Friend (Mr. Windham). He would put it to Minifters, whether, if fimilar offers were made on the part of the militia of England, they were prepared to say, they would not propose measures for carrying them into effect, which, it would appear, in the way it feemed to be treated, they were brought to difcufs by stealth.

Mr. Archdall expreffed his hope, that neither Ministers nor the Houfe would allow a queftion of fuch importance as the prefent to be treated of by stealth. On the contrary, he hoped it would fully and clearly meet the unanimous approbation of Parliament. The eulogium of the hon. Baronet on the loyalty of the bulk of the people of Ireland was unneceffary. Who ever doubted it? It was faid that the militia fervice had received a blow; with refpect to that of Ireland, he knew not what blow it received, but he well knew what blows it gave-it gave rebellion in that country a mortal blow; they gave repeated blows to their enemy; and he was confident they would do fo again, wherever the opportunity was afforded them.

Lord De Blaquiere expreffed his approbation of the addrefs, as he deemed it highly proper at fo critical a period to accept the fervices which had been tendered with fo much loyalty; he was furprifed that any hefitation fhould exift for a moment to accept the proffered fervices of fo large a body of loyal men in arms. With refpect to an equal offer of fervice on the part of the English militia, he well knew the beneficial tendency of fuch a proe ceeding. He recollected their fignal fervices to the empire at large while employed in Ireland. To their exertions the falvation of that country was owing. Had not the regiment of Lord Buckingham and the Duke of Rutland landed fo opportunely as they did, that country would no longer have appertained to Britain. He hoped the English militia would voluntarily come forward and extend their fervices to Ireland. But he reprobated the idea of this being done in the way of ftipulation. Was the ardour of either militia clogged in fuch a way, it would be injurious to both countries, and an infult to one. He thought the militia of Ireland could ren-, der the greateft fervice to the empire at large, when employed out of Ireland, problematical as this might appear. He felt it to be the cafe. He felt how it muft operate, when a father and two or three of his fons were perhaps fighting VOL. II. 1803-4

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against

against the rest of his family. He was aware of the effect of religious prejudices, which he lamented did yet unavoidably exift. In short, he was convinced those men would be more advantageously employed any where than at their own

thresholds.

Lord Folkeflone made a few obfervations in fupport of what had fallen from Gentlemen on his fide of the Houfe. He particularly touched upon the fact alluded to by Mr. Calcraft, that fome of the offers of fervice were made four months ago, which he confidered an argument in favour of poftponing the difcuffion; and he took occafion to depreCate the practice of fuffering military bodies to deliberate. The queftion being loudly called for,

Mr. Secretary Yorke faid a few words in explanation, and the gallery was cleared in expectation of a divifion. The addrefs, however, was carried as originally propofed, without a divifion; and at twelve o'clock the Houfe adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

THURSDAY, MARCH 29.

Mr. Steele reported at the bar, that his Majefty had been waited upon with the addrefs of that House of the preceding day, which his Majefty was pleased to receive very graciously.

Sir John Newport prefented a petition on behalf of John Ogle, Efq. complaining that John Manners, Efq. had been unduly returned at the last election for the borough of Ilchefter; that by undue means a colourable majority had been obtained for the faid John Manners, to the prejudice of the petitioner, who had the majority of legal votes, &c. Ordered to be taken into confideration on Thursday the 19th of April next.

The Secretary at War brought up the report of the Committee of Supply, which contained a refolution upon the subject of the civil lift, which was read and agreed to, and the report ordered to be printed.

Mr. Sheridan called the attention of the House to the fubject of the election for the borough of Lifkeard. He delivered in a declaration on behalf of Thomas Sheridan, Efq. and figned by him in the form required in such case by the act of Parliament, fignifying that he did not infift on the right of return made on his behalf for the above borough, and tha he should not profecute the claim under fuch return, &c. The natural re

fult

fult of which was, that thirty days were to be given to the electors of this borough to prepare, if they fhall be so advised, to fupport the return which the candidate declined, he relying on the question of merits upon the election.

It was here doubted whether the cafe of Mr. Thomas Sheridan, the candidate, came within the provisions of the act of Parliament; and upon it a converfation arofe, which ended in an adjournment of the debate until Thursday.

LOYALTY LOAN.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer obferved there was in the order book a notice, fignifying the intention of an hou. Member of that Houfe to bring forward a fubject which had before been stated to him; it was a motion intended to be made on behalf of the holders of a loan, ufually denominated the loyalty loan.-He must be pardoned for faying, that as he did not before hear, he now read of this notice with a confiderable degree of surprise, because he did not understand it to be the with of Gentlemen concerned on that fubject to bring it forward in that shape, although it had been defired that fome decifion fhould take place upon it previous to the 5th of April. The matter was of importance, and after having confidered the question upon the merits, to the best of his power, and having fubmitted to the Attorney and Solicitor General a statement of the cafe, their opinion was that the fubfcribers to the loan of 1796, were not under the letter, nor apparently within the equitable conftruction of the law made for the regulation of that fubject, entitled to payment of their proportions at par, previous to the 5th of April 1805.

IRISH MILITIA.

The Secretary at War brought up the bill for empowering his Majefty for a time, and to an extent to be limited, to accept of the fervices of fuch part of the militia of Ireland as may voluntarily offer themselves to ferve and to be employed in Great Britain. Read a first time, and ordered to be read a fecond time on Friday fe'nnight, and to be printed.

The bill for the augmentation of the militia of Ireland to an extent and for a time to be limited was brought up, and read a first time. On the question for the fecond reading,

Mr. Dent obferved that when a bill was brought in, in confequence of the apprehenfion of an invafion, it was proper the House thould be informed by Minifters, whether in their apprehension

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apprehenfion that event was more probable now than it was a month ago.

The Secretary at War reminded the hon. Gentleman that this was only a bill for providing for the augmentation of the militia force of Ireland.

Mr. Dent faid, it was a bill for providing means to replace a certain military force in Ireland, which was about to be called from thence, on account of the exigencies of the prefent war, and, therefore, his question to the Minifter was perfectly reasonable. What he wanted to know was, whether Great Britain was in more danger now of invasion than it had been a month ago; and if it was, whether Ireland was not also in as great danger as Great Britain, from the same apprehenfion; for unless Great Britain was in greater danger now than it had been a month ago, Minifters would not pretend that the measure was neceffary. If the danger was greater now to this country than it was a month ago, but that danger was equal to Ireland as to this country, then the meafure would be inefficient. He was not fingular in the opinion, that the disappointment would be great indeed, unless the militia of this country made a fimilar offer to Ireland, as the Irish militia did to come here. This was a matter which required fome explanation.

The Secretary at War contended, that the observations of the hon. Gentleman had no application to the bill then before the House, which was merely a bill for the augmentation of the militia of Ireland, and the hon. Gentleman had not offered any reason why that military force fhould not be augmented. The obfervations of the hon. Gentleman feemed to have been intended to apply to another bill which had been difpofed of for the prefent, namely, the bill to empower his Majefty to accept of the fervices of thofe militias of Ireland, who fhall voluntarily offer themfelves for the fervice of this country. When that fubject came again forward for discusfion, it would be proper to take notice of the obfervations of the hon. Gentleman; at prefent they were not in feafon.

Mr. Dent faid, that although in itrictnefs this was not the bill to which his obfervations were applicable, yet in point of common fenfe, the obfervations were not out of feafon, for this bill was part of the fame fyftem as the other bill.

The Secretary at War moved, that the bill be read a fecond time on Friday fe'nnight.

Mr. Kinnaird objected to that day, on account of its being

the