HISTORY OF EUROPE. 



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»ase8 of notoriety, examination must 

 be futile ; and was any one ignorant 

 that, were not the fleets of tlie ene- 

 .my, destined for the invasion of Ire- 

 land, now blocked up in their ports, 

 they woHid have landed their armies 

 there, accompanied by these Irish 

 traitors, now formed into a kind of 

 regiment, and keeping up a corres- 

 pondence with many of their un- 

 fortunate and infatuated countrymen 

 at home. 



It was certainly true, that the dis- 

 afTected Irish were now few in num- 

 ber compared with what they had 

 ■feeen, and that their means of doing 

 mischief were proporlionably small, 

 but experience had abundantly 

 shewn, since the French revolution, 

 the miseries which a small minority 

 were capable of iallicting on their 

 country. We were engaged with an 

 active and formidable enemy, who 

 would avail himself of any rumours 

 of jcdition he may find, and turn 

 them to Ills own advantage. It was 

 indeed to be hoped that experience 

 vould have opened the eyes of even 

 the mo-^t disafi'ected of the Irish, 

 and that none could be found mad 

 enough to seek so fatal an alliance 

 as that of the present government of 

 Franco; but unfortunately that was 

 not the case, and there were still 

 some, wcuk and wicked enough to 

 «ultivale huch a connectien. The 

 distance of Ireland, so much dwelt 

 upon, was with him an argumcat in 

 favour of the measure, because it 

 was therefore the more exjiosed — 

 it was the important point of the 

 British empire — it was tliat to which 

 the enemy moat particularly directed 

 )iie attention — and therel're should 

 be the more carefully protected 

 against hostile aggression and secret 

 machinations. He agreed that the 

 Mcelieace of the character of th.» 



lord lieutenant of Ireland was not 

 of itself a ground for entrusting him 

 with extraordinary jjowers ; but 

 when the necessity for vesting the 

 power was fully made out, as in the 

 present case,it became of importance 

 to ascertain the person who was to 

 have the execution of the object 

 intended by the grant of such pow- 

 ers. He was sorry to observe the 

 right honourable gentleman now^ 

 bave recourse to the clumsy dilem- 

 ma, he had himself so often baffled 

 in the course of the last war, when 

 brought forward by those wifli 

 whom he was now associated. '* Ei- 

 '• tlier the majority of the people 

 '• a re loyal, or are not; if the majori- 

 '• ty be loyal, there is no occasion for 

 " this measure; if the majority be 

 " not loyal, say so." Heagairi re- 

 peated his regret at finding him now 

 having recourse to this weapon, to 

 wliich he before opposed himself 

 with so much indignation. 



Mr. Fox declared the doctrines 

 promulgated by the right honour- 

 able gentleman, that night, the most 

 alarming he ever heard broached in 

 that house since he liad a scat in it, 

 and if ever meant to be seriously 

 acted upon, deplorable indeed would 

 be the fate of this country. It had 

 never before been maintained, tiiat 

 because some of the people were bad 

 subjects, the liberty of the whole 

 people should be placed at the dis- 

 cretion of the minister or his agents, 

 by the suspension of the habeas cor- 

 pus act. He denied it to bs hisi 

 " clumsy dilemma, " as it was called, 

 but the ckimsy mis-statement of that 

 dilemma, that his right lionourabia 

 friend (Mr. Windham) was success- 

 ful in refuting, lie never argued 

 that a man, or even a considerable 

 majority, would furnish an irresisti- 

 ble objection to such a measure, but 



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