82 A:NNUAL register, 1810. 



himself on the share he had borne 

 in that important transaction — 

 The house now resounded with 

 cries of adjourn. Mr. Ponsonby 

 had spoken for some time in an- 

 swer to Lord Castlereagh, when 

 the House became again clamor- 

 ous for an adjournment. It was 

 tlien moved that the House do ad- 

 journ: which it did at two o'clock. 



The adjourned debate on the 

 expedition to the Scheldt was 

 continued till three o'clock on the 

 morning of the 28th of March. 

 It was resumed on the 29th, and 

 continued till about the same hour 

 in the morning of the 30th of 

 March. Towards the evening of 

 that day it was again resumed and 

 continued till half-past eleven on 

 Saturday morning, 3 1st of March. 



It will be readily and rightly 

 conceived that, in the discussions 

 of such an assembly, on a subject 

 so complicated as well as impor- 

 tant, and connected by so many re- 

 lations with other important sub- 

 jects, there was, amidst much tire- 

 some repetition, not a little enter- 

 tainment in the way of argumenta- 

 tion and eloquence, with some wit 

 too. But it is not permitted in 

 such a design as ours, nor is it at 

 all necessary for the information of 

 our readers respecting any essential 

 points, to follow the course of rea- 

 soning, or even the series of the 

 speakers, in what ma'y be styled a 

 renewed debate, continued for four 

 days, or rather nights, on a ques- 

 tion that had been already much 

 agitated on sundry occasions. In 

 the sitting of March 21 st, General 

 Crawfurd, in a speech of uncom- 

 mon length, contended that the 

 expedition to the Scheldt was a 

 measure of great political wisdom ; 

 that the utmost attention had been 



paid to the wants of the army, both 

 by government and the comman- 

 der in chief, and that the attempt 

 to retain the island of Walcheren 

 was not only justifiable, but an in- 

 dispensable obligation. He there- 

 fore heartily concurred in the 

 conduct of the army and navy. To 

 the resolutions of fact he should 

 propose the previous question, be- 

 cause they were unnecessary ; and 

 to the resolutions of censure a de- 

 cided negative ; and he should beg 

 leave to conclude with moving re- 

 solutions of an opposite tendency. 

 In the sitting of the 29th, 

 General Tarleton replied to the 

 speech delivered on a former night 

 by General Crawfurd. He said, 

 in conclusion, that the whole trans- 

 action of the Scheldt expedition for 

 absurdity of design, and profligacy 

 of expenditure, among all the hol- 

 low notions of ministers stood pre- 

 eminent for ignorance and folly. — 

 Mr. Rose maintained, that even 

 stripping the affair of its merits as 

 a diversion, the taking of Flush- 

 ing alone, could it have been re- 

 tained, was worth the whole ex- 

 pence of the expedition. — Mr. 

 Grattan asked how it was, that 

 if 17,000 men could succeed 

 against the fortified town of Flush- 

 ing containing a garrison of near 

 10,000 men, an army exceeding 

 20,000 men, could fail in their at- 

 tempt upon Antwerp without a 

 garrison, with guns dismounted, 

 and perfectly unaware, as minis- 

 ters said, of the invasion of an 

 enemy ? Was it to be understood 

 that local difficulties were to swell 

 into importance, when they were 

 to justify the retreat of an army, 

 but to dwindle into trifles when 

 brought forward to exonerate the 

 minister ? Upon what fair pre- 



