170] 
which the united force of so many po- 
tentates could not maintain. ‘Lhe 
pecuniary resources of Great Bri- 
tain were immense ; but our peo- 
ple were’ too advanta, zeously oc- 
cupied in adding to the wealth, 
by which our greatness was sup- 
ported, to be taken from those 
beneficial ‘occuptaions. It was 
not, therefore, at home we were 
to look for men to fight the bat 
tles of the contederacy; that task 
belonged exclusively to our allies: 
but such had been the slaughter 
of their own people, that they 
would themselves find. it difficult 
to replace. the number of | the 
slain. In the mean time, though 
a competent force was necessary 
for the land service in this coun- 
try, it was a secondary object, 
when compared with the navy: 
This claimed not only our atten- 
tion, but our utmost anxiety, 
and he lamented, that so large a 
proportion of the fencible inhabi- 
tants- of this country were to 
be employed in the army, in lieu 
of the navy. It no less: grieved 
him to perceive, by the tenour 
of the ministerial speeches, that 
thousands more of our people were 
to be sent “abroad to fall in bat- 
tle, or endure the miseries of a 
prisons’ *To sum up the condutt 
of ministry, they were, he asserted, 
equally imprudent. “and entries 
nate; but what was still worse, 
they aéted with an obstinacy, that 
fio misfortunes could counteract. 
Experience, -instead of reclaiming 
them from error, increased their de- 
termination to persevere in the en- 
countering of difficulties which eve- 
ry day became more insurmount- 
able. What name could be.given 
to so fatal a delusion? 
manly to cherish hope in the 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 
. coalition, 
It: was » 
1795. 
‘midst of distress; but. it was folly 
to persist in distresses that could 
be avoided. A fair trial had been 
made to compel France to altér 
the system she had embraced ; the 
trial had terminated in) her fa- 
vour, and had lasted long enough 
to convince all the members of the 
the English , govern. 
ment excepted, of the inefficacy 
of all farther attempts. It was 
time. to follow the advice ‘ con- 
tained) in the»example: they seem- 
ed willing to set before ‘us, 
remitting of the violence and ani- 
mosity with which they/first en. . 
gaged in this war. “If they were 
not averse to its termination, we 
could have no reason to’ be more 
inflexibly determined upon “its 
prosecution. Events had so decid: 
edly declared against the “pros 
bability of recovering the losses 
sustained by the confederacy, «that 
they could not be censured for 
preferring a treaty with the French, 
to a continuation of the ‘contest. 
Cur situation afforded, undoubt- 
edly, a powerful security from hos- 
tile designs; but our expences. 
were so great, and our debts so 
enormous, that as their increase 
was incessant, prudence forbad: to 
stretch them to any farther extent, 
lest, in an evil hour, we might 
find it impracticable, at once, to 
pay the interest of the one, ‘and 
to provide for the support of ‘the 
other. 
_ The misfortunes of the present 
war, Mr. Pitt replied, did not 
arise from the negle& or the ins 
capacity of ministers, but from 
causes which it was not in their 
power to obviate. Whatever de- 
pended ‘on their exertions had 
prospered. The management of 
the ‘navy had been ‘such, that we 
were 
