acts as she should pass relative to the trade and commerce of both kingdoms. This was ftated to be directly in the teeth of what had been folemnly ftipulated betwixt the two kingdoms, namely, that Ireland was in future only to be bound by her own ftatutes-That it was a refumption of the right of legiflating for Ireland, which this country had renounced-That it was bartering the liberties of Ireland for the advantages held out to that kingdom by the fyftem now propofed, and there cle, unless in cafes where a fimilar bounty is payable in Great Britain, on exportation from thence, or where fuch bounty is merely in the nature of a drawback or compenfation of or for duties paid, over and above any duties paid thereon in Britain; and where "any internal bounty fhall be given in either kingdom, on any "goods manufactured therein, and fhall remain on fuch goods when exported, a "countervailing duty adequate thereto may be laid upon the importation of the faid goods into the other kingdom." XVI. That it is expedient for the general benefit of the British empire, that the importation of articles from foreign" countries" fhould be regulated from time to time in each kingdom on fuch terms as may "effectually favour" the importation of fimilar articles of the growth, product, or manufacture of the other; except "in the cafe of materials of manufactures, which are, or hereafter may be allowed to be imported from foreign countries, duty-free; and that in all cafes "where any articles are or may be fubject to higher duties on importation into "this kingdom, from the countries belonging to any of the states of North Ame"rica, than the like goods are or may be subject to when imported, as the growth, "produce, or manufacture of the British colonies and plantations, or as the pro"duce of the fisheries carried on by British fubjects, fuch articles fhall be fubject "to the fame duties on importation into Ireland, from the countries belonging to "any of the ftates of North America, as the fame are or may be fubject to on im"portation from the faid countries into this kingdom." "XVII. That it is expedient that measures fhould be taken to prevent difputes touching the exercife of the right of the inhabitants of each kingdom to fish on "the coaft of any part of the British dominions." XVIII. That it is expedient that "fuch privileges of printing and vending books as are or may be legally poffeffed within Great Britain, under the grant of "the crown or otherwife, and" the copyrights of the authors and bookfellers of Great Britain, fhould continue to be protected in the manner they are at present, by the laws of Great Britain; and that it is just that measures should be taken by the parliament of Ireland for giving the like protection to the copy-rights of the authors and bookfellers of that kingdom. XIX. That it is expedient that regulations should be adopted with refpect to <s patents to be hereafter granted for the encouragement of new inventions, fo that "the rights, privileges, and reftrictions thereon granted and contained, fhall be of "equal duration and force throughout Great Britam and Ireland." XX. That the appropriation of whatever fum the grofs hereditary revenue of the kingdom of Ireland (the due collection thereof being fecured by permanent provifions) fhall produce, after deducting all drawbacks, re-payments, or bounties granted in the nature of drawbacks, over and above the fum of fix hundred and fifty-fix thousand pounds in each year, towards the fupport of the naval force of the empire, to be applied in fuch manner as the parliament of Ireland fhall direct, by an act to be paired for that purpofe, will be a fatisfactory provifion, proportioned to the growing profperity of that kingdom, towards defraying, in time of peace, the neceffary expences of protecting the trade and general interests of the empire, by by purchafing Irish flavery at the expence of English commerce. With refpect to the laft propofition, which ftipulated, that whenever there should be a furplus of the revenue of Ireland, over and above the fum of 656,000 1. fuch furplus fhould be applied to the fupport of the British navy, it was urged, that if this was held forth as a compenfation for advantages voluntarily refigned by Great Britain, nothing could be more fallacious, the prefent net revenue of that kingdom being little more than 333,000l. and therefore little more than half the ftipulated fum, over and above which the furplus only was to be applied in aid of the public revenue of this country. The arguments which were of. fered generally, and against the whole of the propofed fyftem, went chiefly upon the fuppofed injury which the manufactures and commerce of Great Britain would fuftain from it the former, from the comparative fmall price of labour in Ireland, which alone, it was contended, would foon enable that kingdom to underfell us both at home and abroad; the latter, from the facility with which it was well known the revenue laws in Ireland were evaded. The impoffibility of preventing the clandeftine importation of a variety of the most important articles, was ftrongly insisted on; and it was added, that the competition which would arife betwixt the two kingdoms, which should fell cheapest, would of courfe encrease the evil. Finally, it was argued, that fuch was the nature of the propofitions, that in whatever proportion one country might benefit from them, in the very fame the other would become a loser; and that as to Ireland, whether the advantages gained on her part were great or small, they were to be purchased at the price of her liberty. In favour of the fyftem it was argued, that it was a measure of abfolute neceffity, in order to put an end to the difcontents which prevailed to fo alarming a degree in the fifter kingdom.-That if the prefent propofitions were not paffed into a law, all that had already been done in favour of Ireland would prove nugatory, as it was clearly inadequate to the expectations of that country. That with refpect to the fourth propofition, it was a condition which the fafety of our own navigation laws made it neceffary to annex to the boon granted to Ireland.-T hat it was unfair to infer from hence that the British legislature had any views of trenching on the independence of Ireland, fince it left to that kingdom the option of taking or refufing the advantages held out to her, fubject to fuch a condition. That the condition itself was fuch as had frequently, been adopted in the negotiations of independent ftates-as in the late treaty betwixt this kingdom and France, when the latter bound herself to publifh certain edicts, as foon as other edicts ftipulated on our part were published by this country. With * In answer to this argument, Mr. Fox replied, that in the cafe ftated, one na tion bound itself to do fomething defined and fpecific, when the other adopted fome other defined and specific measure. To make the cafes fimilar, an instance should [B] 3 be With refpect to the difadvantages which it had been supposed our manufacturers would have to encounter from the comparative fmall price of labour in Ireland, it was faid fuch a fuppofition arofe from a mifconception of factsThat the wages of artizans and manufacturers, although not of common labourers, were higher there than in this country, and therefore there was little likelihood of their being able to underfell us on that ground.-Nor could our commerce be in any danger from the reafons which had been alledged, fince the provifions and reftrictions contained in the propofitions were fufficient as well to pre vent any clandeftine importation of foreign goods into Ireland, as to infure the duties payable on all fuch as might be legally imported. The propofitions, after having been agitated upwards of three months, and after having received a variety of amendments and alterations, finally paffed the house of commons by a large majority, and on the 30th of May May 30th. were carried up to the houfe of lords. They here again encountered a confiderable degree of oppofition, and received feveral amendments, although not of a material nature. The propofitions having thus paffed both houfes, a bill founded on them was brought into the house of commons by Mr. Pitt, which was read the first time before the end of the feffion, and was folJuly 28th. lowed by an address to his majesty, voted by both houses, wherein they acquainted him with what they had done, and that it remained for the parliament of Ireland to judge and to decide thereupon. That kingdom had attended the progrefs of the propofitions through the British parliament with much anxiety and impatience. On their arrival they met with the most discouraging reception; they were petitioned againit by feveral of the public bodies, and many of the bers of the Irish houfe of commons ftrongly marked their difapprobation of the additions and alterations which the original fyftem had undergone. On the 12th of Au mem guft, the fecretary to the Aug. 12th, lord lieutenant moved the house for leave to bring in a bill correfpondent to that moved by the English minifter. The debates on this occafion, and more especially on the fide of oppofition, were long and animated. Whatever had the leaft appearance of infringing on the legiflative independency of Ireland, was marked and ftigmatized in terms of the utmost indignation and contempt. The perpetual difpofition of her hereditary revenue by the laft propofition-the furrender of her commercial legislation by the fourth the restraint impofed on her from trading beyond the Cape of Good Hope and the Streights of Magellan by the ninth-were put in every point of view in which reafoning and eloquence could render them impreffive and convincing. On this fide of the question, Mr. Grattan and Mr. Flood were the most confpicuous fpeakers. The be produced, which Mr. Fox affirmed could not be found in the hiftory of mankind, where one independent state bound itself folemnly to do any thing undefined, unfpecific, and uncertain, at the arbitrary demand of another. firft of these gentlemen, after ftating "See now what you obtain by In favour of the bill it was urged by Mr. Fitzgibbon*, Mr. Hutchinfont, and Mr. Forster §, that the fourth propofition, which had excited fo much jealoufy and alarm, could not on any fair conftruction be faid to take from Ireland her right of commercial legislation, any more than the acts paffed in 1779 and 1782 had done before; wherein Ireland The Attorney General. had ftipulated to trade with the British colonies and fettlements in fuch manner as Great Britain herfelf traded, to impofe the like duties, and to adopt the fame reftrictions and regulations. That in the bill before them, it was proposed to trade with Great Britain on the fame principle; the liberty of either complying with the conditions, or renouncing the agreement in toto, whenever the conditions fhould become obnoxious and diffatisfactory, would be left by the prefent bill full as much in the power of the Irish parliament, as it was by either of the foregoing acts.-The difference only was, that by the former acts Ireland had fubfcribed to the commercial laws which had been adopted by Great Britain for 290 years back; by the prefent, to fuch as that country fhould bind itself to in future; but that it would be ftill in the power of the Irish parliament to renounce these laws, and the whole agreement together, whenever the thought proper.-On the other hand, the commercial advantages offered to Ireland by the bill were stated to be very important; the linen trade was thereby fecured to her for ever the colony trade through Ireland to Great Britain was given herthe British markets were thrown open to Irish manufactures-and again, as thefe manufactures were allowed to be re-exported from Great Britain, with a drawback of all duties, the Irish would, in effect, export on the foundation of British capital, at the fame time that they were left to employ their own capital in the extenfion of their home manufactures. + Provoft of Trinity college, Dublin. The The house at length divided upon the queftion; when there appeared for leave to bring in the bill, 127, against it, 108. So fmall a majority in favour of fo important a measure, was looked upon as a defeat; and according ly, although Mr. Orde afterwards moved to have the bill read a first time, and to be printed, yet he declared he fhould not proceed any further in the bufinefs during the prefent feffion, nor at all, unless the kingdom in general fhould grow to a better liking of a measure, which he was confident, upon a further and more temperate re-confideration of its principles, would obtain their approbation. Thus terminated the intended commercial arrangement betwixt Great Britain and Ireland, after having exercised the attention of both kingdoms for upwards of seven months. We shall take this opportunity, before we difmifs our review of Irish affairs, to mention the intended fettlement of the Genevese emigrants in Ireland. The difputes and diffenfions which had fo long fubfifted betwixt the aristocratic and democratic powers in the republic of Geneva being finally terminated in favour of the former, through the interference of the kings of France and Sardinia, and the cantons of Zuric and Berne, a number of the citizens of the popular party refolved to quit a country, in the government of which their weight and authority was totally at an end. On this occafion they turned their eyes upon Ireland, and commiffioners were accordingly fent by them to Dublin, to confult and treat with government there rela tive to their reception into that kingdom. The commiffioners, on their arrival, received the greatest perfonal attention from the people in general, but more especially from the different corps of volunteers in the province of Leinster, into feveral of which, as a mark of respect paid to the cause they came to folicit, they were chofen as members. Their requeft, with respect to the admiffion of their countrymen into Ireland, was complied with, and a particular tract of land in the county of Waterford was afterwards fet apart for the new fettlers. Notwithstanding thefe preparations, the whole fcheme in the end proved abortive. The terms infisted upon by the Genevese, previous to their becoming fubjects of a new ftate were, ift. That they should be reprefented in parliament. zdly. That they fhould be formed into a diftinct corporation. And, 3dly. That they fhould be governed by their own laws. The first of these conditions might have been a matter of opinion, and fubject to dif cuffion; but the two last were held to be incompatible with the laws and the conftitution of Ireland, and as fuch were totally rejected. This difagreement between the parties on leading points ftopped all further procedure in the bufinefs. Some of the Genevefe, however, tranfported themselves into Ireland; but they foon found by experience, that nothing was gained by changing their fituation, and most of them, after a fhort stay, quitted the kingdom. The reciprocal advantages which might have accrued to Ireland and the Genevefe emigrants from the propofed fettlement, even had it taken |