GENERAL HISTORY. 



[37 



commencement of hostilities, of 

 a threatening urmiiment ? It was 

 decided in favour of the ministry, 

 but by a majority considerably 

 less than their \isual numijers. 

 Lord Milton's motion was de- 

 feated by KiD to 114. 



MOTION RESPECTING THE LORDS 

 OF THE ADMIRALTY. 



On February 25th Sir Muttluw 

 W. lUdley rose to move an address 

 to the Prince Regent, requesting 

 him to remove siicli of the lords 

 commissioners of tlie Admiialty as 

 could be spared without detriment 

 to the public service. After some 

 observations resi)ect:ng the former 

 conduct of goveinment, when 

 they were piodigal in their pro- 

 mises of economy, and as prodigal 

 in their waste of the public money, 

 he .said that he did not expect 

 much from the measure he now 

 proposed, but it would be laying 

 the foundation of a system of re- 

 duction by which the undue in- 

 fluence of the ministers might be 

 abridged. He then went through 

 a cursory view of the formation 

 and progress of the navy-board ; 

 and liaviag attempted to sliew tliat 

 the present number of six Ion's of 

 the Admiralty was much beyond 

 the wants of the oflice now that 

 the number of seaincn wa:5 re- 

 duced from llO.OOvOto 19,000, he 

 concluded with the following ino- 

 tion : " That an humble address 

 be presented to his royal highness 

 the Prince Regent, to represent 

 to his royal highne«5, tliat his 

 Majesty's faithful Commons, re- 

 lyingupon the gracious disijosition 

 of his royal liighness to make 

 every reduction in our establish- 

 ments which t\v safety of the em- 

 pire and s(mnd policy allow, hiun- 

 bly I'lay, that his Royal Highness 



would be graciously jdeased to 

 give directions, that the Lirds 

 commissioners of the .Admiralty 

 may be reduced to such a number 

 as the exigencies of the public 

 service may actually leipiire." 



This motion being evidently, 

 as the hon. baronet acknowledged, 

 a trial of strengtii between the 

 parties, it was argued chiefly up- 

 on that ground ; theiiiinister« and 

 thtir friends strongly resisting 

 Huy further attempts to limit the 

 power of the ciown ; whilst it 

 was still considered as abundantly 

 too high in the nation at large, by 

 the achocates for independence 

 The previous (piestion being put. 

 the House divided, when a majo- 

 rity appeared for the ministers ol 

 20S to 152. 



MOTION ON THE PUBLIC INCOME 

 AND EXPENDITURE. 



Lord Castlcreagh, on February 

 7th, began his motion by causing 

 the clerkof the Houseof Commons 

 to read such part of the speech of 

 the Prince Regent as was particu- 

 larly addressed to that House, and 

 •which rel'erred to the distress con- 

 setp'.ent upon the war, and Ing 

 own confident exjiectation that at 

 no distant ])eriod the native energy 

 of the country would enable it tc 

 surmount lis difficulties 



The time, said Lord C. was 

 now come, when tlie House ought 

 to consider what would be a pro- 

 per permanent system for a peace 

 establishment ; and he trusted 

 that gentlemen would bring to tiie 

 subject that combinati(m of flrm- 

 ness and wisdom which they su 

 eminently exhibited in the course 

 of that arduous contest in which 

 Great Britnin had been so long 

 involved. Tlie House would go 

 niong with him when he laid down 



us 



