HISTORY OF EUROPE. 



33 



north of Spain, the passage from 

 Paris to Madrid was as open as it 

 is now ; and that the French army 

 wasin possession not only of the pas- 

 ses of the Pyrenees, but of a large 

 district in the South of Spain. — 

 In consequence of the evacuation 

 of Portugal, the Spaniards had 

 been delivered from a large force, 

 which, by acting in their rear, 

 might have embarrassed and im- 

 peded all their future operations. 

 Lord Liverpool also defended the 

 equipment of the expedition to 

 Portugal, which, in every respect, 

 and specifically in the proportion 

 of cavalry and artillery with which 

 it was accompanied, was perfectly 

 competent to execute the service 

 on which it was sent. Neither, he 

 contended, had there been one mo- 

 ment's unnecessary delay in the 

 march of our army from Portugal. 

 If it did not proceed to Spain im- 

 mediately after the conclusion of 

 the convention, it was because no 

 central government had the« been 

 established, and it was impossible 

 to arrange any plan of operations 

 with the provincial Juntas. 



The Earl of Moira disapproved of 

 many paragraphs in the address, but 

 would still refrain from moving any 

 amendment. He particularly in- 

 sisted on that which referred to the 

 armistice and convention, conclud- 

 ed in Portugal, and took occasion 

 to explain the opinion which he 

 had delivered upon it as a member 

 of the Court of Inquiry, He con- 

 curred, indeed, with his colleagues, 

 in saying, that no further military 

 proceeding should be had in that 

 matter; and he had emphatically 

 made use of the word ' military,' 

 on the occasion. As far as the offi- 

 cers, who took a pc'.rt in the trans- 

 action, were engaged, he would re- 



VoL. LI. 



peat it, that they had behaved 

 with unquestionable zeal and firm- 

 ness. They might have perhaps 

 imputed to them an error in judg- 

 ment ; but, circumstanced as they 

 were, their error was not such as 

 fell within any infraction of the ar- 

 ticles of war ; it was rather an er- 

 ror imputable to his Majesty's mi- 

 nisters, and to the manner in which 

 they had prepared and sent out the 

 expedition. — The address also al- 

 luded to further aid to be afforded 

 to Sweden. Should it not be in- 

 quired how that aid was to be ap- 

 plied ? Was the further assistance, 

 to be hereafter granted to Sweden, 

 to be applied in the manner in 

 which we had hitherto aftbrded 

 that support? What, in fact, had 

 been done for Sweden, that in the 

 least contributed to give her any 

 material assistance? From her ad- 

 herence to our alliance, she had 

 already lost almost half of her ter- 

 ritory, and was now exposed to 

 the severest fate. We were as 

 much bound therefore to attend to 

 Sweden as to Spain. Looking to 

 the unfortunate peninsula, where 

 our principal exertions were said 

 to have been directed, what was 

 the situation of affairs there ? Did 

 the address at all indicate the feel- 

 ings of this House, or of any man 

 in the kingdom on that weighty 

 subject ? The noble earl had said, 

 that the Spaniards would not ac- 

 cept our proffered assistance. Was 

 the fit application made to them? 

 Where was the question asked? 

 At the extremity of the kingdom 

 farthest removed from the scene 

 of danger. Supposing an enemy 

 were to enter Scotland ; would an 

 ally, anxious for our protection, 

 take an army to Penzance, and in- 

 quire of a council there, if he 

 D could 



