•00 LON 
ring, entered at very considerable length into our com¬ 
mercial difputes with America ; and Mr. Alderman Combe 
animadverted in fevere terms on the anSw-er returned by 
liis majefty’s minillers to the addrefs of the city of Lon¬ 
don on the convention of Portugal : a topic which had 
been alfo touched on, though more briefly, by all the 
fpeakers oppofite to the treafury-bench. The queftion 
was then put, arid agreed to ncm. con. when a committee 
was appointed to prepare and draw up the addrefs. 
On the 13d of January, the earl of Liverpool moved 
•the thanks of the houfe to lieutenant-general fir A. Wel- 
'lefley, Iv. B. for the (kill, valour, and ability, difplayed by 
him on the 17th and eiftof Auguft of the preceding year, 
and particularly in the battle of Vimeira. After encoun¬ 
tering potent refiftance from feveral lords, the motion was 
agreed to. The fame fubjeft, having been brought into 
the houfe of commons by lord Caftlereagh, was alfo agreed 
upon ; as well as a vote of thanks to the officers, and the 
approbation of the conduct of the non-commiffioned offi¬ 
cers and privates; fo that all the brave co-operators in 
this viftory partook of the gratitude of their country, of 
which both houfes were the natural and impartial organs. 
Yet, after thefe debates, the minds of the anti-minif- 
terial party were not fatisfied as to the policy and necef- 
iity of the convention of Cintra. Lord Henry Petty in¬ 
veighed molt ftrongly againft the conduct of the miniliers, 
and moved the following refolutions : 1. That the con¬ 
vention concluded at Cintra, on the 30th of August, 1S08, 
and the maritime convention concluded off the Tagus on 
the 3d of September, 1808, appear to this houfe to have 
difappointed the hopes and expeditions of the country. 
2. That tlie caufes and circumstances which immediately 
led to the conclusion of tliofe conventions, appear to this 
houfe, in a great meafure, to have arifen from the mif- 
conduft and neglect of his majeliy’s ministers.. 
Lord Caftlereagh, after vindicating the conduct of go¬ 
vernment, moved the previous question on-the fir ft refolu- 
tion, declaring that he would take the fenfe of the houfe 
011 the Second.—General Tarleton thought that there was 
fomething rath in the action of the 17th of Auguft, and 
fomething wrong in that of the 21 St. 
Sir A. Wellefley explained his views and motives of 
aftion throughout the expedition. He had given it as 
liis opinion, and it was Still his opinion, that the operations 
in favour of Spain could not be carried on with any chance 
of fuccelV, otherwife than in conjunction with the people 
and public authorities of that country; and therefore it 
was necefiary, before the commencement of the campaign, 
to come to a right understanding with the juntas. When 
lie communicated on the Subject with the juntas of Galicia 
and Afturias, it was conceived, tliat the beSt fervice that 
could be done to the caufe of Spain, by the British troops, 
would be the expulsion of the French from Portugal. The 
British army, if in pofleffion of Portugal, might be a link 
between the northern and Southern armies of Spain, which 
had then no point of union. When lie landed in Portu¬ 
gal, he had the choice of two lines of march ; and, for 
obvious reafons, had chofen that along the coaft. Besides 
the troops which he had under his command at the time, 
lie had reafon to expect re-inforcements under general 
Ackland, Sir H. Burrard, and fir J. Moore. But lie was 
fo well fatisfied of the efficiency of his own force to exe¬ 
cute his objeft, that he did not intend to have employed 
the corps under general Ackland in the field at all, but 
in the liege of Peniche. And, as to Sir J. Moore, it 
was his plan to have fent him forward to Santarem, with 
a view to intercept the enemy, who, in fir Arthur’s opi¬ 
nion, would endeavour to crofs the Tagus. That plan 
was feasible, not only in his opinion, but in that of 
all the general officers who had given evidence at the 
court of inquiry, and even of the court itfelf. He far¬ 
ther obfervtd, that there were two parts of the aftion 
-of 1 he 17th; the one in the mountains, and the other in 
the plains. In that part of the action which took place 
in the plain, the enemy had retreated in good order. At- 
D O N. 
ter the battle of the lift, they had retreated in great dis¬ 
order. And the good order of the retreat in one instance 
made all the difference. If the enemy had been vigorously 
followed up on the 21ft, he was fatisfied in his own mind, 
that there would have been no reafon for concluding the 
convention which had given fo much offence. He added, 
that he had done every thing in his power to forward the 
obje6ts of his fuperior officers, though he differed from 
them in opinion. This was what he confidered to be the 
greatest diftinftion between military and civil inferior Situa¬ 
tions. If, in a civil office, the inferior differed materially 
from the fuperior, he ought to refign ; but, in military 
appointments, it was the duty of the inferior officer toaffilt 
the commander in the mode in which that commander 
might deem his fervices molt advantageous. 
The gallant general, who defended himfelf fo clearly 
in the houfe, having Since, by a long ieries of victories, 
expelled the French from the peninfula, we have thought 
it molt interesting to State his own words, in order to Show 
what were his ideas and conception of the matter, even 
at a time when the complete liberation of Spain existed 
more in our wifties than in our hopes/-—Mr. Windham, 
however, contended that the Statement, though Satisfactory 
for the justification of fir A. Wellefley, was no justi¬ 
fication of his majefty’s minifters.—After feveral Speakers 
had given their opinions at length, the houfe divided: for 
the previous queftion, 203; for lord H. Petty’s resolution, 
153 - 
We have already hinted, that the investigation into the 
conduCt of the duke of York and Mrs. Clarke would form 
a prominent article in the parliamentary transactions of 
the year 1809. 
When the woman caught in adultery was brought before 
Ciirift by the feribesand pharifees, the Saviour was proba¬ 
bly far from being inclined to forgive the guilty ; but, 
considering the zealous ardour with which young and 
old tinners were Stimulated to accufe others, marking their 
eager defire to punish, and ferutinizing their fecret views 
again St his own perfon, he made the well-known addrels 
to them : “ He that is without Jin among you, Id him JiiJl cajl 
a Jione at her." An aft of mercy towards the woman, 
yet alfo an aft of juftice tow-ards her acculers; but, 
above all, the fined and molt imprefiive leflon that ever 
was given to mankind, and a juft and appropriate appli¬ 
cation of one of the firlt and molt equitable laws of nature; 
“ Do not to others that which you would not wiffi to 
be done to you.” Had the prosecutors of K.R.H. the 
duke of York confidered this maturely and ferioufly be¬ 
fore they went to work, more recent events prove that 
they might have helitated at the very threshold. Thole 
who fat in judgment upon the accufed did not fail to en¬ 
ter into the rftpeftive characters of the acculers: fome 
thought that reform of abides was the pretext, but not 
the main fpring; whilft ministers were fully aware that 
this engine was Set to play to tempt them that tiny might have 
to accuje them. Yet for all this the investigation went on; 
lb that, not only this nation but the world at large ouo-ht 
to be impreffed with admiration and reSbeft for the im¬ 
partiality of our conftitutional laws, and be convinced 
that wherever corruption dares to Show her hideous head, 
whether from the flail of the colder or from under the 
footstool of majelty, a thoufand voices are ready to hoot 
her, a thoufand hands ready to punilli her, without thelealt 
regard either to rank, wealth, or power. 
We Should be lorry to give the reader to understand, by 
thefe preliminaries, that the investigation ought not to have 
taken place. We are of a very different opinion : for we 
hold as perfect truth, that, it the fpring is contaminated at 
its head, all the ramifications will be ltained with impu¬ 
rity, and the whole will be corrupted.—The higher the 
ltation, perhaps, the lets mercy ought to be Shown ; the 
Scandal of the example enhancing the heinoufnefs of the 
crime. Corruptio optimi pe/Jima. 
In the houfe of commons, on the’ 27th of January, 
Gwylliin Lloyd Wardle (colonel of militia) Slated, that, 
“ unlels 
