52 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



As to the building ships at the mcr- 

 rhants' yards, in preference to the 

 king's yards, there were many ob- 

 jections. The contract-built ships 

 were fouud not to he so good as 

 those built in the king's yards. The 

 Ajax, which was built at a mer- 

 chant's yard, in three years required 

 an additional sum of 17,000!. to be 

 laid out upon her in repairs. As to 

 the increasd of seamen, in (he first 

 year of the present war, it must be 

 recollected that the army of reserve, 

 the volunteers, and the great draught 

 on the population for the land ser- 

 vice, must necessarilj' injure the sea 

 service ; notwithstanding w hich, 

 there were only 1700 men Avanting 

 of the whole number of seamen voted 

 by parliament. He thought that 

 such an exalted character as earl St. 

 Vincent ought not to be attacked by 

 insinuations or unsupported asser- 

 tions ; and concluded, by moving an 

 amendment to Mr. Pitt's first reso- 

 lution. 



Sir C. Pole defended the conduct 

 of the admiralty, w ho had used, as 

 he conceived, uncommon vigilance 

 and exertion. In 48 hours after 

 hostilities were determined on, ad- 

 miral Cornv, allis sailed for Brest ; 

 and ever since that time, that port, 

 as well as Toulon, Flushing, and 

 Ferrol, had been kept in strict 

 blockade. As for building gun- 

 boats, he thought it would be mucii 

 better to fight the enemy's gun-boats 

 with Tessels of a superior descrip- 

 tion : those that were fitted out last 

 war he considered a mere job. 



Admiral Berkeley denied t"ie accu- 

 racy of Mr. Tierney's statenients : 

 it Mas by reckoning the marines 

 twice over, that he had supposed the 

 number of men to be deficient only 

 1700, when, in fact, they were defi- 

 «iuut by about '20.000. As to the 



number of Mhat he called the flo- 

 tilla, he was also mistaken, and 

 many of them were in such wretched 

 order, that they could not go from 

 Portsmouth to Spithead, except in a 

 calm, lie would contend, that if a 

 proper number of light Tcssels had 

 been constructed, to assist the ships 

 in the channel, the junction of the 

 enemy's flotilla at Boulogne might 

 have been prevented, and a consi- 

 derable numbei of frigates and other 

 vessels spared for the protection of 

 our convoys. lie by no means 

 thought light vessels to be despised, 

 lie perfectly agreed in the propriety 

 and necessity of the enquiry pro- 

 posed by INIr. Pitt, and if he had 

 any fault to find in it, it was mereljr 

 tiiat it did not go as far as he thought 

 it ought, into tlie investigation of 

 every branch of the naval depart, 

 mcnt. 



Sir Edward Pellew praised the na- 

 val administration, and thought 

 there was no cause for alarm. Near 

 the enemy's coast we had a light 

 squadron, at the Downs we had hea- 

 vier ships, and close to the beach we 

 had a flotilla of such vessels as, he 

 conceived, would give a good ac- 

 count of such of the enemy's gun- 

 boats as should escape. We had thus 

 a triple line of defence, which he 

 did not see how tlie enemy could get 

 through. 



ilr. Wilberforce supported th» 

 motion for enquiry. He declared 

 most solemnly, that, in many con- 

 versations he had had m ifh different 

 professional characters, and some of 

 them highly distinguished in the ser- 

 vice, every one appeared to a^ree in 

 being completely dissatisfied with the 

 conduct of the present admiralty. — 

 He felt as much respect as any man 

 for lord St. Vincent, on account of 

 the great ser\icefi he had rendered 



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