GENERAL 
her navy: or, supposing any ar- 
rangements to be made by her 
with the continental powers, that 
expence now incurred for our ar- 
mies would cease, and the sup- 
plies at present demanded for 
them could be applied to the ser- 
vice of our navy: so that he con- 
ceived no prospect of the war be- 
ing continued at the present great 
expense. Upto theyear 1814,a 
provision had been made for one 
hundred and forty thousand sea- 
men. These were reduced in the 
last year to 70,000: but this, in- 
stead of a diminution, had caused 
a great additional expense, as the 
number of persons returning from 
long voyages and claiming the ar- 
rears due to them, had made 
larger disbursements necessary 
-than were called for at any period 
of the war. This burthen could 
not continue; and he thought he 
was not too sanguine, when he 
looked for a diminution in the 
naval estimates for the next year, 
to the amount of four or five mil- 
lions, including the transport ser- 
vice. The reduction upon the 
whole, even if the war should con- 
tinue, might therefore, in another 
year, be not less than four or five~ 
and-twenty millions. He believed 
that in every stage of the late war, 
this question had constantly been 
asked, ‘ How shall we go on 
next year?” The general answer 
to this had been, that the spirit 
and resources. of the nation would 
still farnish the means for prose- 
_ euting the contest, if it should be 
mecessary. This answer, he 
thought, might suffice on the pre- 
_ Sent occasion ; but it was happily 
in his power to give one more 
- distinct and specific, The House 
HISTORY: [45 
were not to suppose the act of 
1813 would not yet furnish fresh 
resources from the fund in the 
hands of the commissioners for 
redeeming the national debt.— 
Though when all the grants of 
the present session were passed, 
but 9 or 10 millions would remain 
in their hands; in the next year 
there would, by the progress of 
redemption, be found in their care 
from 20 to 30 millions of stock. 
We had raised by loans in the 
present year, no less a sum than 
45,500,000/. The House would 
consider the prospect before us less 
gloomy than it might otherwise 
appear when he stated that it was 
probable, that in the next year the 
Joan required would not exceed 
20 millions, and from 20 to 30 
millions of stock would be appli- 
cable in the hands of the commis- 
sioners. But what had induced 
ministers to prefer having re- 
course to a public loan, rather 
than to a more onerous, though a 
more prudent and certain mode 
of meeting the exigencies of the 
case, was this—they had reason to 
hope the contest might be short. 
In whatever light the subject was 
viewed, whether we supposed the 
government of Buonaparte was 
only established over France by 
the domineering power of 4 mu- 
tinous army, or whether it was 
assumed that he was invested with 
the sovereign authority by the 
suffrages of the nation at large in 
the present instance, it could not 
affect the measures which it had 
become necessary for England to 
adopt. Placed in that situation 
which we occupied, and deeply 
pledged, mrespect both of honour 
and of interest, to support at any 
