24 
destroyed by the tyrannical power 
of Bonaparte. On the contrary, he 
thought commerce could only flou- 
rish in a free country, and the ef- 
fects of the tyrannical government 
of France would be only to crush it 
in that country. He could not ap- 
prove of a renewal of the war, be- 
ing convinced that France would 
doas it had done before, and make 
some neighbouring state pay for all 
the losses she might sustain in a 
contest with this country. 
The secretary of war (Mr. Yorke) 
expressed astonishment that any 
gentleman should say we had no 
army, and had laid aside our navy ; 
when, in fact, we had a greater 
efficient force than we ever posses- 
sed in peace, or even for many years 
of the last war. The diminution 
is only of the militia and of several 
corps who were enlisted only to 
serve during the war. Our army 
was not only respectable in nuin- 
bers, but its discipline and orga- 
nization were such as would enable 
it to be rapidly increased, to a point 
that would make it not very desir- 
able to any foreign force to meddle ~ 
with it. He was very glad to hear 
a noble lord (lord Temple) avow in 
a manly way, that the object of 
his friends was to obtain a change 
of the administration, and that they 
thought they would make better 
ministers than the present. If they 
should succeed, if their administra- 
tion was not a mawkish one, it 
would probably not be without a 
considerable share of insolence, 
The present ministers came into 
power without cabal or intrigue; 
it must be acknowledged that they 
had given peace to the country, and 
that it had suffered no calamity at 
their hands, 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 
1803. 
Mr. Fox had heard, with lively 
satisfaction, the warm eloquence of 
the youthful lord, he had heard 
with pleasure the avowal of the ob- 
ject, and conclusion of his argu- 
ments; and now found that all the 
imagery which had adorned the 
speeches of the noble lord and his 
friends, went only to a change of 
ministry, by substituting a part of 
the late administration for the pre- 
sent. ‘lhat being the case, if those 
gentlemen were restored to oflice, 
the only consequence he expected 
from it would be, that we should 
get rid of all their warlike speeches. 
As to the gentlemen who now are 
ministers, if they have drawn a 
gloomy picture of the country, for 
the purpose of arming beyond what 
was necessary, he considered such 
lavish and wauton profusion of the 
resources of the country, as great 
a crime as ministers could well be 
guilty of, and such as would justify 
their removal; but it would be too 
much to join the noble lord, who 
merely found fault with the admini- 
stration as'a mawkish one, and 
wished for another. Although he 
had hitherto supported the present 
ministers from their conduct, he 
was by no means disposed to ap- 
prove of the manner in which they 
came into office. The late minis- 
ters assigned a certain principle as 
the cause of their removal. If the 
present ministers came in upon a 
contrary principle, and to prevent 
the extension of their rights to a 
great portion of his majesty’s sub- 
jects, he could by no means ap- 
prove of their manner of com- 
ing into office. As to the suppo- 
sition of a right hon. gentleman 
(Mr.Windham), on a former night, 
of a man rising from the dead, and 
inquiring 
