HISTORY OF EUROPE. 



vernment had been accused of 

 sending supplies to Walcheren 

 after it was in contemplation to 

 abandon it. It was to be lecol- 

 lecled, however, that had the ar- 

 mistice been broken off, instead 

 of being confirmed, the evacua- 

 tion of Walciieren would not 

 have taken place. Whether it 

 was worth the cxpcnce of a garri- 

 son, however, was another ques- 

 tion, which had been decided in 

 the negative. 



The next subject to which Mr. 

 Perceval came, was, the appoint- 

 ment of lord Chatham to the ex- 

 pedition. The gentlemen oppo- 

 site had indulged in reflections on 

 that noble lord, which nu'ght, 

 with great propriety, have been 

 omitted. Whenever it was pos- 

 sible that the conduct of an indi- 

 vidual would be subjected to an 

 inquiry, justice demanded that 

 the public mind should not be pre- 

 judiced against him. The result 

 of the inquiry, if any inquiry 

 should be thought necessary, 

 would, in a great measure, decide 

 the question of the propriety or 

 impropriety of the appointment of 

 that noble lord to the command of 

 the expedition. He could not, on 

 the present occasion, avoid ex- 

 pressing Jiis regret at the manner 

 in which lord Wellington had 

 been attacked in his absence. If 

 this practice of vilifying political 

 adversaries were persisted in, it 

 would damp the ardour, and check 

 the spirit of our officers. The 

 honourable trcntleman who had 

 seconded the motion, had also, in 

 a most unjustifiable manner, com- 

 mented on the conduct of several 

 officers of a less elevated rank, 

 whom he had chosen to term 

 " missioners.'' But in the whole 



of the speech of Ihe right honour* 

 able gentleman to whom he was 

 now alluding, there was no part 

 which he more sincerely regretted, 

 than that in which bespoke of the 

 allairs of Spain, and the exertions 

 of the Spanish people. For his 

 part, he was persuaded, that nei- 

 ther in ancient nor modern lii*lory . 

 could an example be found of a 

 country sustaining a contest like 

 that whicli Spain had so long sup- 

 ported. Never, in recent times, 

 had 250,000 Frenchmen been in 

 any country for such a length of 

 time without subduing it. At 

 every defeat anew army sprung up; 

 and the Spaniards, animated by 

 their hostility to the usurper of 

 their rights would maintain a 

 determined resistance to the last. 



With respect to the late cam- 

 paign in Spain, Mr. Perceval could 

 not admit that in any instance dis- 

 grace had followed our arms. As 

 the movements of sir John Moore, 

 in the year 1808, and the battle of 

 Corunna, had saved the south of 

 Spain that 3'ear, so, he believed, 

 the expulsion of the French from 

 Portugal and Gallicia, the junction 

 of lord Wellington with general 

 Cuesta, and the battle of Talavera, 

 saved the south of Spain in 1809. 



On a division of the House, 

 there appeared, 



For the amendment, 167. 



Against it, 263. 



House of Commons, Thursday, 

 January 25. Lord Barnard ap- 

 peared at the bar, wih the report 

 of the address to his majesty, in 

 answer tohis mostgraciousspeech. 

 Sir Francis Burdett rose, and said, 

 that he had listened with the ut- 

 most candour and attention to the 

 sentiments of the different gentle- 

 men who had already delivered 



