in order to prevent any mischievous consequences of their unhappy difference. Their personal invectives were illustrative of many traits of the Irish government.* The division was, for the motion 27, against it 84: a majority of 57 in favour of government.

On the 3d of November, 1783, Mr. Flood returned again to the necessity of retrenchment in the military establishment, as the only solid ground of economy. To reduce the civil list, he contended, would be frivolous, pitiful, and undeserving the name of œconomy, and therefore ought to bring contempt on such, as would venture to rest solely there. Not that he thought the civil list ought to escape the pruning hand of that house, for every little would help: but so materially did their then expenditures exceed their income, that the whole civil list being struck off, would by no means equal them; to begin with that therefore was ridiculous: that that was the proper time for entering on the discussion, no man could deny: if they waited till the committee of the supply sat, they would be told, it was too late. So rapid and constant too had their extravagance been, that no time should be lost in interposing on behalf of their distressed country. In the year 1755 they were not in debt: in the beginning of the late war, they were not in debt. At the conclusion of the war, they owed but 500,000l. yet in the time of peace, they quadrupled that debt, notwithstanding the people and manufactures were burthened with new and excessive taxation. Their revenue had increased, and their debts had kept pace with it since the augmentation was voted, such had been regularly the course of things. Let the virtue then of 1783, correct the abuses of 1782. The causes had originated in the breach of faith of the minister of that day: a man as able as he was crafty: a man who wanting natural, had substituted pecuniary influence; who unconnected with Ireland, had great native connections to oppose: thus situated, he at first carried his ideas so far, that he applied for an augmentation of 20,000 men: but that was so truly laughable, that it was scouted. This unreasonable plan was reduced to 15,000 men; but foreseeing, that it would not be easy to carry even that point at one stroke, he artfully introduced a resolution, that 12,000 men were necessary for the defence of the country, knowing that we dared not meddle with the 3500, which we had always paid for England. Thus did they become dupes to his ambition, and were saddled with an army of officers, not privates; an army of expence, not of use; an army of the minister, not of the people.

They are given as reported in the second volume of the Parliamentary (Irish) Debates, Append. No. LXX. They exhibit a curious spectacle of two such great orators descending into the most pitiable and invidious personalities.

Then the report of the committee in 1768, stating the burthensome military establishment as the cause of the great national inability and distress, having been read by the clerk, Mr. Flood moved, "That an humble address should be presented to his "majesty, stating the same, and that since an augmentation had "taken place, additional burdens had been laid on, by which "they had been prevented from making any effectual retrench"ment, but had much increased the expence of the nation."

Mr. Denis Browne entirely coincided in the motion of the Right Honourable gentleman, and if ministers should oppose that great economical measure, it must appear to that house, that their intentions and declarations were widely different: and he had no doubt but many respectable gentlemen, whom he saw disposed to concur with the administration, would abandon it.

The attorney general spoke strongly against the motion, as did also Sir John (now Lord) Blaquiere, Mr. Ogle, Sir Hercules Langrishe, Mr. Conolly, the provost, and several others: amongst whom in particular the recorder referred to the volunteers, whom he now strongly recommended to return to their occupations. Was garrison duty and other military service to be for ever thrown upon the volunteers? Were agriculture, the shuttle, and the loom, for ever to remain neglected? No: let the volunteers have rest, and return to their occupations. They had used their arms in their country's service, and, he had no doubt, would keep them bright and ready to support the law and constitution of their country when attacked. On the other hand, Mr. Corry, Mr. Browne of Trinity College, Mr. Parsons, Mr. Gardiner, and others spoke strongly for the motion: they called upon ministers to act up to their boasted professions of economy: that peace was the only moment, when they could with propriety reduce the military establishment, and then they ought to do it, unless they intended that kingdom merely as a

The Duke of Portland was by many accused of not wishing well to Ire land, and not acting fairly by her or Great Britain with reference to the 100,000. granted for raising the 20,000 seamen for the British navy: he was charged with employing a great part of that money in raising fencible regiments, to bring into disrepute the volunteers; and on that account Mr. Ď. Browne moved the House of Commons on the 1st of November, that the proper officers should be ordered to lay before the house an account of the expenditure of that sum of money, with the agents receipts for the same. This was afterwards denied by Mr Yelverton, attorney general, on the 29th of No. vember, who said, that from the investigation of the accounts of the expenditure of the 100,0007. it turned out, that the insinuation of part of it being applied to raise fencible regiments was false. To which Mr. Flood replied, that he had good reason to believe, that men were enlisted for the navy, and were afterwards turned over to fencible regiments, and that they were suffered to retain their bounty money, which was the same thing as if the money had been given to them in the first instance. 2 Parl. Deb. p. 224.

barrack to Great Britain. Mr. Flood spoke a second time in the debate, which ended with Mr. Grattan's reply, who rose to speak once more on this subject, which had been so frequently before the house. The question is, said he, will you withdraw from the common cause, that quota of troops, which hitherto you have maintained? Are the circumstances of the country such as you think demand it, and if you are crazy enough to think so, will his majesty assent to that opinion? There never was a time, when he could make reduction with a worse grace, because this country is now as eminently happy in trade, as Britain is the reverse.

In 1769 England possessed, almost unrivalled, the trade of all the world. She possessed America, and owed one hundred and fifty millions less than she owes at present. Ireland had no trade at all, and her constitution was denied; yet at that day it was thought wise to augment the army; and shall we reduce it now, when we have obtained a free constitution, a free trade? When we have obtained a judge's bill, a limited mutiny bill, an Habeas Corpus bill? When every thing that we have demanded, has been conceded? Shall we in that moment withdraw our quota of troops? Before she obtained these advantages we said to Britain, that provided she would acknowledge our constitutional and commercial rights, we would stand or fall with her. And when they have been acknowledged to the full satisfaction of every man, it is proposed to withdraw the support of our army. Suppose, instead of saying we will stand or fall with Great Britain, we had said, "and when those things shall be "done (when our rights shall be acknowledged and established), we will then in return, withdraw from you the support of our army;" and yet in effect, this is the proposal at present made. I do not entirely agree in all that has been said of gratitude; we owe no gratitude but for the plantation trade; but this we owe to England, and to our own honour, that we should not depart from an old covenant. The navy of England protects our trade, and we, as an equivalent, pay 70,000l. a year to maintain the troops destined to serve in the plantations. This is not a dear purchase for partaking that, which has cost England so many millions. Has success made us niggardly, and shall we become unkind to England, just at the moment she has shewn kindness to us? We have indeed held out the language of magnanimity to England, and shall we fail in the performance? No; there are many other places to make retrenchment, we grant a pension list of 80,000l. a year, yet complain of 70,000l. paid to an army ; paid for the protection of the British navy. We may indeed make very great reductions in the army extraordinaries. We may make great reductions in the revenue department, and in others. Those reductions will, I trust, far exceed the pay of

our augmentation. These are retrenchments that ought to be made; but the number of our forces ought not to be diminished.

On the question being put, there appeared a majority of 74 against the question; ayes 58, noes 132.

On the 10th of November Sir Henry Cavendish again brought forward his motion, that the condition of that kingdom required every practicable retrenchment consistent with the interest and safety thereof, and with the honour and dignity of his majesty's government. Mr. Mason seconded the motion, and Mr. Attorney General gave it his hearty concurrence, now that the national accounts had been examined. And as the speaker was about to put the question, Mr. Flood said, he had an amendment to propose; the motion as it stood at present, was giving too great a latitude to administration; it was leaving them to pursue any measure they thought proper, they had only to say, that it was for the interest of the nation, or for the dignity of his majesty's government. He therefore moved for the following amendment," and that the military establishment in particular "will admit of a considerable retrenchment, inasmuch as 12,000 66 men are at present sufficient, not only to maintain the defence "of this kingdom, but also to afford Great Britain, for her ser“vice abroad, as many men as we granted to her by the aug"mentation; and inasmuch as many important savings may be "made in the expence of maintaining that number of 12,000 men;" he observed, that certainly ingratitude could not be objected to the motion, since they were not about to withdraw their aid from Great Britain, but to allow her as many men out of 12,000 men as they formerly did out of 15,000 men; and surely there was more generosity in giving three out of twelve, than three out of fifteen.

This amendment brought on a very long and warm debate, in which General Luttrell and Major Doyle and some other military gentlemen spoke strenuously in support of the army, which had been mentioned in a very invidious manner, and placed in an ungracious comparison with the volunteers. *On the division, 65 were for the amendment, and 143 against it. Then the original motion of Sir Henry Cavendish was put and unanimously carried. On the same day, when the attorney general put one of his official motions, namely, " that the supply "to be granted to his majesty to commence the 25th of De"cember, 1783, continue for 15 months, that is, until the 25th "of March, 1785," Sir Edward Newnham said, it was the general sense of the nation, that the money bills should not exceed the term of six months, and he accordingly moved, that the word six should be substituted for fifteen. Mr. Hartley

11 Com. Journ. p. 94.

seconded the motion, as he had been instructed by his constituents to vote for no bill of supply for a longer term than six months, until the great national measures then pending were decided on this division 32 were for and 92 against the amend

ment.

Mr. Grattan having opposed the retrenchment in the military establishment, and having uniformly avowed his principles of œconomy, on the next day moved for a committee to enquire into the expence of collecting the revenue; and said he was convinced it was an object of retrenchment, as though there were an increase in the revenue last year of 150,000l. it would have been much more, if the collection had not amounted to 161 per cent. and he was certain, that it could be collected at an expence of ten per cent.

Mr. Beresford assured the house, that the more minutely the accounts of the revenue department were inspected, the greater would be his satisfaction, and that of the gentlemen, with whom he had the honour to sit at the revenue board; however, the amount of the collection, though much greater than he wished, was not so great as the Right Hon. gentleman had stated, for in it he had included the incidental expences of the customhouse, and great works then carrying on; were these deducted, the expence of collection would not amount to 14 per cent. though formerly it had been 18: besides, in comparing that country with England, gentlemen had fallen into a mistake. A single great distiller in England, paid more duty than a whole county there, though he required but one officer to watch him, and the country perhaps forty. He said, there were twentysix ports in Ireland, of which nineteen did not produce a revenue equal to the expence of guarding them; and the whole balance in the public favour, arose from seven ports, Dublin, Cork, Waterford, Belfast, Limerick, Derry, and Newry, though the necessity of watching the inferior ports must be obvious to every man. It was said, that in England the revenue was collected at seven per cent. but of those seven ports, that had been mentioned, the revenue was collected at five and nine

tenths per cent. The manner of estimating the expence of collecting in England, and comparing with Ireland, was unfair; England was a market for the whole world, goods imported there paid heavy duties, for the purpose of re-exportation: when those duties were drawn back, that increased her fictitious revenue, though it did not add one farthing to the real one; and that reduces the relative proportion of expence in the collecting.

The revenue board of Ireland, which was originally consti tuted for revenue business only, had the business and expences of the whole state heaped upon it. The expence of passing bills, and sundry circumstances of the law business, had raised