54 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1S04. 



only felt a high respect, but a strong 

 personal friendship. He considered 

 the battle that he had to fight against 

 the corruptions and abuses of the 

 jnav.al departments, was full as ardu- 

 ous, if not as brilliant, as the cele- 

 brated battle from whidi he took 

 his title. 'lie considered, that it was 

 the merit of the noble lord in this 

 contest, against corruption, which 

 had excited so much obloquy. As ■ 

 to the ofliccrs from whom an ho- 

 nourable gentleman (Mr. Wilber- 

 force) obtained his information, he 

 should have no objet^ion to their 

 testimony, if they delivered it at 

 the bar of the house, as the house, 

 in that case, would know how to 

 appreciate it. lie thought, that the 

 right honourable mover had made 

 out little or no case. It was not 

 enough to state the number of ships 

 of a certain description, built at 

 such a period ; it was also neces- 

 sary to consider the circumstances 

 ■which called for those exertions. It 

 ■was also isecessary to consider the 

 naval administration general! v, as 

 an entire system, and not separate- 

 ly, in every part. It was often ne- 

 cessary to sacrifice an object of in- 

 ferior consequence, for anoHier of 

 greater importance; and, he be- 

 lieved, that species of defence, on 

 ■which the right honourable gentle- 

 man so much insisted, the tiotilla, 

 ■was precisely that description of 

 force which could be the best spared. 

 He considered the motives of minis- 

 ters, in resisting the enquiry, to be 

 merely from a wish, on some future 

 day, to screen themselves by that 

 precedent. He, therefore, led both 

 by private friendship and public du- 

 ty, -ivould vote for tho enqaiivy. 



The Chancellor of the ilxchequer 

 noticed it, as a common practice of 

 the honourable gentleman who spoke 



lastjto claim a strong personal friend- 

 ship with almost every person of dis- 

 tinguished character ; but he took a 

 mode of shewing that friendship, 

 which ■was direcSly the reverse of 

 what was practised by other peo- 

 ple. When the thanks of the 

 house was once moved for lord 

 Cornwallis, he opposed it, on the 

 ground of personal friendship, and 

 now, when an enquiry was moved, 

 which implied suspicion of the con- 

 du6l of lord St. Vincent, he sup- 

 ported it on the same ground ! As 

 for himself, out of personal friend- 

 ship to the noble lord, and a proper 

 regard for his character, he should 

 opjjosc the enquir)', for which no 

 ground had been stated. As to 

 those gun-boats built in the last war, 

 most of them were found to br ut- 

 terly unserviceable, and could not 

 go, without danger, from Plymouth 

 to the Kddvstone Light-house ; and 

 as to annoying the enemy w ith small 

 craft, it was perfectly ascertained, 

 that, from the shallowness of tJieir 

 coast, and their numerous batteries, 

 it was impossible to prevent their 

 flotilla from creeping along their 

 own shores. 



Mr. G. Ponsonby, after highly 

 complimenting Mr. Fox, on the 

 warmth and steadiness of his friend- 

 ships, observed, thata charge against 

 him on that ground, could not come 

 with less propriety from any quar- 

 ter than from the chancellor of the 

 exchequer. If that right honour- 

 able gentleman would turn his head, 

 and look behind him, he would sec 

 a gentleman (Mr. Pitt) Avho, per- 

 haps, would not be able to compli- 

 ment him on the steadiness of hh 

 friendships and atfachments. It was 

 allowed, that Ireland was one of the 

 most vulnerable parts of the em- 

 pire, and, for its defence, it was ne- 

 cessary 



