42 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



tion ; it has not been laid before 

 us, and therefore is, as yet, un- 

 authorized by Parliament ; and, 

 consequently, you may approve or 

 disapprove, you may grant or re- 

 fuse the supplies for carrying it 

 into effect. Upon the whole, 

 therefore, I know not how an en- 

 gagement of this sort is to be con- 

 sidered as equally binding as the 

 most solemn treaty. But we now 

 understand, that a formal treaty 

 has been negociated, which it is 

 intended to lay before the house, 

 and until that be done I cannot 

 decide upon its merits or propri- 

 ety. 1 dare say the house would 

 naturally be inclined to receive, 

 with the fondest partiality, every 

 thing apparently tending to the 

 advantage of the Spanish cause : 

 but, sir, the state of our warfare, 

 under such circumstances as I have 

 already stated, and as his Majesty's 

 ministers have conducted it, is 

 truly extraordinary. If the Spa- 

 niards preferred that mode of war- 

 fare, which was of a desultory na- 

 ture, instead of a continued war- 

 fare, then the British army could 

 not have been of the least use in 

 Spain; for a British army there 

 must necessarily have pursued a 

 plan wholly different from that of 

 the Spaniards. I know not which 

 system of warfare was proper to 

 be adopted; but I say the two 

 systems are completely incompa- 

 tible. The Spaniards, in their 

 own country, and pursuing a de- 

 sultory mode of attack, have the 

 power of dispersing and rallying 

 again, as occasion might require ; 

 but this is not the case with a re- 

 gular army. If you combine the 

 two modes, you must necessarily 

 destroy the energies and efficacy 

 of one of them. We have already 



seen this exemplified in the Spa- 

 niards. We have seen their re- 

 gular army defeated, and almost 

 destroyed by the enemy ; while in 

 another quarter we have found 

 their irregular force very success- 

 ful ; which shows that the two 

 modes of fighting are perfectly in- 

 consistent. 



Now, sir, let us see what has 

 been the vigour of ministers upon 

 this occasion. By vigour, I pre- 

 sume, is meant a prompt energetic 

 use and application of the public 

 force. Will you tell us of one in- 

 stance of such promptitude and 

 energy ? I presume you cannot 

 say it was displayed in Portugal ; 

 nor in Spain by Sir John Moore's 

 coming into the field after the 

 Spanish army had been defeated ? 

 It was not then useful, because it 

 was unable to keep the field by 

 itself. It is an extraordinary cir- 

 cumstance, that the Convention 

 of Portugal is made to rest in a 

 great degree upon the speedy 

 applicability of the British army 

 in Spain, and yet the general of 

 that army. Sir Hew Dalrymple, 

 tells you there was no preparation 

 made for its reception in that 

 country for some considerable 

 time' after the Convention was 

 concluded. Can it then be said, 

 that the object of the convention 

 was carried into effect, or that any 

 time was gained by it ? If such 

 measures deserve the name of 

 being energetic or useful, I am 

 at a loss to know what sort of 

 measures would be deemed the 

 contrary. 



As to that part of the speech 

 which relates to Sweden, I have 

 only to observe, that this country 

 is placed in such a situation that 

 I do not see how we can refuse 



to 



