ENG. 
©ne or more members ought to be added to the reprefen. 
tation of the counties, in order to operate as a balance 
againd the weight of the.feveral corrupt and venal bo¬ 
roughs. Indead of opprefting tlie colonies with a heavy 
taxation, it is our intered to-repeal all fuel) laws, and be 
content with the abundance which accumulates to the 
t-reafury from this commerce.”—To this lord North re¬ 
plied—No—the propered time to exert our right of taxa¬ 
tion is when the right is refufed. To temporize is to 
yield; and the authority of the mother country, if it is 
now unfupported, will in reality be relinquifhed for 
ever. A total repeal cannot be thought of till America 
is prodrate at our feet. 
For more than two years the affairs of America, and 
the Middlefex election, had fo engroffed the attention of 
the miniftry, the parliament, and the nation, as aimed 
to exclude the conlideration of other fubjefts in them- 
felves far more important and intereding. At this period, 
however, an event forced itfelf upon the public notice, 
of condderable importance to the date. A fhort time 
previous to the clofe of the fedion, lord Chatham had 
declared, “ that a great blow either was, or would foon 
be, druck in fome part of the world.” The high idea 
univerfally entertained of this nobleman’s political infor¬ 
mation, neceflarily kept the public mind in a date of fuf- 
penfe; but the mydery was quickly developed, and it was 
in a few weeks publicly afeertained, that a fquadron of 
Spaniih diips from Buenos Ayres had feized upon the 
Malouine or Falkland iflands, (ituated in the Magellanic 
ocean, and of which the Englifli had been for fome years 
the aftual occupants or poffeffors. Towards the clofe of 
the year 1769, captain Hunt, of the Tamer frigate, cruiz¬ 
ing off thefe idands, fell in with a Spanifii fchooner be¬ 
longing to Fort Solidad, and, agreeably to what he con¬ 
ceived to be bis duty, charged the commander of the 
fchooner to depart from that coad, as it was the property 
of his Britannic majedy. The fchooner obeyed ; but foon 
returned with an officer on-board, bringing with him a 
letter from the governor of Buenos Ayres, addreffed to 
captain Hunt, in which the governor, in his turn, warned 
the captain to depart from a coad belonging to the king 
of Spain; but, on the fuppofition that captain Hunt’s 
touching at thefe iflands was merely accidental, the go¬ 
vernor exprefled his earned defire to fliew him all pofiible 
civilities. Captain Hunt replied with warmth, that thefe 
iflands were the property of the crown of Great Britain, 
both by difeovery and fettlement; and the governor main¬ 
taining with equal warmth the rights of the crown of 
Spain, an altercation of confiderable length enfued. But 
in the refult, captain Hunt was charged with a direft vio¬ 
lation of treaties by the governor-, who declared it to be 
his duty to tranfmit the particulars of this tranfa&ion to 
the court of Spain. Captain Hunt, perceiving that this 
bufinefs was of greater importance than he had at firft 
apprehended, and not chooiing to take any further deps 
without proper authority, fet fail for England, where he 
arrived in June, 1770, two fmall doops only remaining 
at the Britifh Port Egmont. Soon after his departure, a 
very confiderable armament, confiding of five (hips of 
war, with their attendant veffels, furniflied with all the 
apparatus for a regular dege, appeared before Port Eg- 
rnont. Captain Farmer, the commandant, knowing the 
place to be utterly untenable, fubmitted, after a few 
fhots were fired, to a capitulation ; by which he and his 
whole garril'on were allowed to evacuate the place, carry¬ 
ing with them fuch of their dores as they were able. The 
commander of the Spanidi fquadron, not caring, however, 
that very early intelligence of this outrage diould be car¬ 
ried to England, enjoined captain Farmer not to fail with¬ 
out his permiffion ; and in order to enfure compliance, 
lie caufed the rudder of captain Farmer’s fhip, the Fa¬ 
vourite, to be taken off and kept on-fliore, and it was not 
redored for the fpace of twenty days ; an infult to the 
Britilh flag not eafily paralleled. The Favourite was at 
A N 0. 74'3 
length permitted to depart, and, after a voyage of feventy" 
days, arrived fafe at Portfmouth. 
No fooner were the particulars of thefe extraordinary- 
proceedings known in England, than the whole nation 
appeared inflamed with refentnient, and eager to avenge 
the national honour, thus grofsly and daringly violated. 
But a negotiation between the two courts immediately 
commencing, the miniflers of Great Britain infided upon 
the reditution of the ifland on the part of Spain, as a 
previous dep to the determination of the quedion of right, 
and as abfolutely neceffary before an amicable accommo¬ 
dation cotdd take place. 
At the enfuing meeting of parliament, in November,. 
1770, the king acquainted the two lioufes, in his fpeech 
from the throne, of this infult which had been offered ta 
the honour of the nation, “ by the governor of Buenos 
Ayres, in feizing one of his majedy’s poffeflions; and 
that, diould fatisfaftion be refufed by the court of Spain 
for this injury, preparations had been and were dill 
making to do ourfelves judice.” Addredes were pre- 
fented from both houfes on this occafion, in a drain cal¬ 
culated to convince the court of Spain, that Englifhmen, 
however at variance amongd themfelves, are ever united, 
as in a common caufe, in oppofition to a common and fo¬ 
reign enemy. The miniders exerted themfelves to the 
utmod in the equipment of a formidable fleet ; and the 
court of Madrid was foon convinced, that, unlefs fome 
concellions were made, an open rupture mud enfue. In 
reply to the demand made by England, the marquis de 
Grimaldi, the Spanidi minider, alleged, that as England 
well knew in what light the court of Madrid had ever 
viewed the fettlement at Port Egmont, it could not be 
imagined that the court of Spain could really difapprove 
the conduCt of the governor of Buenos Ayres, don Buc- 
carelli. But as it was neither the intered nor inclination 
of Spain to involve herfelf in a war with England, his 
Catholic majedy was willing to make fuch concefilons as 
fhould be confident with his honour and the welfare of 
his fubjeCls; and tl\at indruCtions had been tranfmitted 
to prince Maferano, his ambalfador in London, for this 
purpofe. Prince Maferano accordingly acquainted the 
Englilh fecretary of date, lord Weymouth, that the king 
of Spain had empowered him to difavow any particular 
orders given to M. de Buccarelli, and at the fame time to 
fay that lie had adted agreeably to his general indruftions 
and oath as governor; that the idands diould be redored ; 
and that it was expected his Britannic majedy would 
on his part difavow captain Hunt’s menace, which had 
prompted the governor to adfas he had done. 
At this period, lord Weymouth refigned the feals of 
the fouthern department to lord Rochford, and a conven¬ 
tion was foon after concluded on the terms propofed, but 
with a fecret article or engagement annexed, that the 
idands diould be evacuated by England within a certain 
fpecified term. To this mode of accommodation, lord 
Weymouth refufed to accede, as injurious to the honour 
of Great Britain : but the condition not being known or 
fufpedted, it afforded at the time no public ground of 
objection ; and when the evacuation of the idands actu¬ 
ally took place three years afterwards, the quarrel being 
almod forgotten, and the attention of the public other- 
wife engaged, it paffed off with flight and tranfient ani- 
madverfions. 
The earl of Halifax now took the feals of the northern 
department in the room of lord Rochford ; lord Suffolk 
fucceeuing lord Halifax as lord privy feal; and fir Edward 
Hawke relinquifhed his feat at the head of the admiralty 
to the earl of Sandwich. Mr. George Grenville had de¬ 
parted this life November 13; and many of his friends 
joining the adminidration, the majorities in both houfes, 
notwithdanding the general unpopularity of the miniders, 
became very formidable. 
About the fame time an incident occurred, which re¬ 
vived in an alarming degree the refentment of the people 
again!! 
