their wool under the fanction of the treaty, which restored to both France and Spain the privileges of the family compact. By this France would be able to manufacture this article, and afterwards ferve us with the commodity which we before made ourselves. And as it was a species of cloth which our wool would not make,, we fhould be obliged to purchase it from France, under the difadvantage of their having the labour, and we the lofs of the artificers, and they the emolument, and we the lofs of the manufacture. Thus, having fhewn in what manner the advantages of reciprocity were to be estimated in this treaty, he proceeded to feveral other articles. Among thefe was the importation of brandies into this country. He had before manifested, that in no poffible manner could this treaty diminish the fmuggling of this article into the country.. And now he meant to evince, that the revenue could not poffibly be benefited under the idea of a greater quantity of brandy being imported into the country. 600,000 gallons were the estimate of the brandies imported here. But of this quantity, only 160,000 gallons was the quantity imported annually from France. It was, therefore, evident that the reft must be chiefly imported from Spain, or fome other countries on that part of the Continent. Confequently lowering the duties of what were imported from France could not increase the revenue; for, as what was imported from thence was evidently fo difproportionate to what we imported from Spain and other countries, no increase of confumption in French brandies could poffibly be expected. Unless the conftitutions of the people could be altered, he believed a greater quantity could not be confumed than what was at prefent. He, therefore, could not conceive any advantages of revenue, or indeed commerce, to be derived from lowering the duties on this article. He then proceeded to the cotton manufactory, This, he faid, was chiefly fupported by the working of a raw material, of which no lefs a quantity than 17,000,000lb. of wool cotton was ufed. But of this quantity half was imported from France, Portugal, and the Brazils. Was not this an alarming circumftance to a manufactory of fuch confequence as the cotton, fuftian, and velvet was to this country? By this treaty, France herfelf might withhold two millions of the quantity we ufed, and keep it for her own rifing manufactures. And if we were deprived of this raw material, one of our greatest manufactures would be deftroyed, or at least tranfplanted to France. What was there in the treaty to compenfate for fuch an effential lofs to the commerce of the kingdom? He knew of none. Much had been faid with regard to its reciprocity, but with all his examination of it he could not find one article in which any trace of it exifted. Proceeding thus

through

through feveral articles of our commerce, he adverted to our fituation with Portugal with refpect to the present treaty.As to the idea of our renewing or preferving the Methuen treaty, he had not the leaft expectation. We had not preserved to ourselves the only chance which could give us any pretence to ask it with confidence. Portugal knew that we had formed a treaty which precluded us from every poffibility of making any advantage of any propofal we might offer, and the might think proper to reject. She would, therefore, not be inclined to give us a benefit for a bonus we had not in our power to bestow; for notwithstanding we had a referve to reduce her wines one third below thofe of France, yet as we had no means of giving, or rather felling, this advantage to any other, should he refufe it, fhe could have no reason to accept a propofition tending fo much to her disadvantage. What gave a pretence to treaty was, to have it in your power to offer to one, what, if rejected, you might, with advantage, offer to another. But this you could not expect in the present inftance of Portugal wines, and therefore he did not perceive on what fpecies of confidence we could expect the Methuen treaty to be continued, what was to compensate for the advantage which we loft? 150,000l. of falt fish we annually fent to that country. Where could we find a market for this invaluable article of our commerce? If any where, we should expect to have it in France. For as we loft a be nefit in confequence of giving them an advantage, we certainly had a right to expect from them a compenfation. But could we expect this? No! They had a fishery of their own. They, therefore, would not take ours. Where then

would the right honourable gentleman find the reciprocity in this particular? None could be found. It was confequently evident, that here a moft material facrifice was offered to the pretences of France. We loft not only this fale of our produce, as it might be called, but we loft this proportionate opportunity of reaping those advantages from our fisheries, which rendered them the moft immediate and abfolute nurseries of our feamen.

The right honourable gentleman had made fome extraordinary observations concerning the importation of wines into this country, in confequence of the treaty. He did not conceive that any particular advantage could ever be derived from this conceffion-if it might be fo called. Wines were certainly a luxury, and a most agreeable species of luxury, with which we could not difpenfe. But furely, their importation on one third lefs duty than before; would not prove the leaft advantageous to the country from any pretended equivalent that might be offered us.

With refpect to the equivalent which we were to have VOL. XXI.

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for

for the reduction of the duties on French wines, fo as admit them more freely into our ports, what article had v the privilege of exporting into France? He knew of non It appeared to him, therefore, an advantage given to Fran without the least sign of an equivalent. We were admittin French wines into our ports to the exclufion of those Portugal, reducing our duties on both, and forfeiting a thofe advantages which we formerly enjoyed by the Methue treaty. Such was the policy and principle of the leadin feacure of this treaty.

The right honourable gentleman had ufed arguments no lefs extraordinary in favour of establishing peace betwee this country and France. He had afked in his zeal and fan guinary wishes for the event, was not the two countries nearly fituated, were they not nearly connected in their mutual intercourfe, were they not pursuing the fame means of increafing their profperity, and was not this the only means of uniting a people in the bonds of peace, amity, and profperity? Such arguments might be used with regard to Spain and Portugal. Portugal might fay, am I not nearly adjoining to Spain? Do we not fpeak almoft the fame language? Are we not of the fame religion? Are we not fimilar in manners? And fhould I not feek rather alliance and protection from a neighbour fo near me, and fo competent to afford protection from infulting and invading neighbours? Thefe queftions are certainly as applicable to Spain and Portugal, as they are to France and England. And yet the answer which would naturally be given to Portugal as well as to Great Britain, was that vicinity of fituation, inftead of being the means to connect, is what fhould excite your fear and jealouty. Portugal being fo near to fuch a fuperior power as Spain, is certainly in danger of her ambition. It is therefore, that fhe rather feeks foreign connections and alliances, than union with a country to which the might be facrificed, had the not fuch a friend as Great Britain to call to her affiftance. is the reason that Portugal cannot enter into any treaty with Spain with fafety, no more than Great Britain can polfibly enter into a commercial treaty with France. Both tranfactions are equally dangerous to us and Portugal; for each of our relative fituations are fuch, as to render this policy extremely hazardous, not only to the profperity, but to the exiftence of each country as a nation, in the scale of European politics.

This

As to the ftipulation of reducing Portugal wines one third below the French wines, while the eleventh article of the treaty fubfifted, he could not conceive that this could have the leaft effect to preferve the Methuen treaty unbro

ken.

ken. For by the eleventh article it was agreed, that all commodities imported from either nation into the other fhould be on terms of the moft favoured nations, Portugal excepted. Thus, if we reduced the Spanish wines, we fhould be obliged alfo, by the French treaty, to reduce to the fame degree the French wines, unless they were already as low as the duties on Portugal wines. Thus fhould we be obliged to reduce the duties on both the French and Portugal wines, to the great diminution of our revenue, without the leaft probability of having any pretence to an equivalent.

In the course of his fpeech he made feveral obfervations on other parts of the produce, commerce, and manufactures of both France aad Spain. But as we cannot poffibly engage more of our paper to enter minutely into these several fubjects, we are thus obliged to give only the most interesting articles on which he gave his ingenious fentiments. The men of the benefits given in this treaty to France, muft naturally lead him to obferve, that the fame advantages were as due to Ireland as to a rival. He therefore perfectly agreed with what his honourable friend (Mr. Sheridan) had remarked. It was certainly neceffary to form an act to grant them the privileges. The only difficulty which he perceived in the prosecution of this fubject, was the oppofition made to the countervailing duties on the Irish propofitions. If this could be difpenfed with, let the manufacturers come to the bar, and acknowledge that they had been mistaken in the evidence which they had formerly given on the fubject. If fuch were the alteration of circumstances from this treaty, as to give juft caufe for fuch a variation of fentiment, he faw no reason for the manufacturers not coming to the bar and correding what they had mifconceived. Then the Irish might participate of those advantages, to which they had certainly as great a right as the French, on the fame conditional countervailing duties.

Mr. Fox mentioned the conftruction which Mr. Pitt put upon fome of the articles, and particularly the clause relative to fhips and veffels driven by ftrefs of weather upon the refpective coafts of the two contracting powers; afking how the honourable gentleman could expect the manufac turers of the Chamber of Commerce to understand the treaty, if they were to have words fo ftrangely tranflated, as to hearships driven by the stress of weather upon a coaft, "termed fhipwrecked? He alfo fpoke of the conftruction which the Chancellor of the Exchequer had given to the eleventh article on Friday evening in refpect to Spanish wines, and declared that it was a conftruction by no means obvious or warranted by the wording of the article. Mr. Fox maintained

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Mr. W.

maintained that the treaty was a tempting bait, which none but gudgeons the moft fimple would have bitten at. He concluded with moving, that the Chairman do leave the Chair, report progress and ask leave to fit again.

Mr. W. Grenville apologized for his troubling the House, Grenville, confcious as he was, that he had no pretenfions to the eloquence and ability of the right honourable gentleman, (Mr. Fox) nor was he able to cope with him at all in point of minifterial knowledge, but he nevertheless thought it his duty to rife and fay a few words. Mr. Grenville then denied that his right honourable friend had faid, that he rested principally upon verbal affurances of fincerity and profeffions of friendship for the good intentions of France. He had added various other reafons to induce him to believe the Court of Versailles fincere, but furely, if France was fo powerful as they had been stated to be, it was an unanswerable reason for this country's uniting herself to France by a commercial connection. He could not agree that this country ought to stand forth ready on all occafions to affift others in attacking France, but that every measure which could be adopted that was likely to enfure the duration of peace ought to be adopted by her. He suggested, that, however refpectable the manufacturers, that House was furely much more qualified to legiflate than they were. Mr. Grenville ftated that the fifth article of the treaty, which the manufacturers entertained doubts about, was copied from the treaty of Utrecht, and was already in force. Speaking of our political interests, he faid, that he did not believe the defcription the right honourable gentleman had given of the influence France had over the other powers, fo as to make them adverfe to entering into an alliance with us, was founded; but, on the contrary, he hoped, and he believed, that they felt very differently towards us. Yet the best alliance in his mind was, an alliance with our merchants and our manufacturers. Encourage the fpirit of adventure and of induftry, and that would neceffarily increase the means, and furnish the refources to enable us to fupport a war, fhould a war become unfortunately neceffary.

Mr. Fox.

Mr. Fox having obferved, that the right honourable gentleman, who spoke laft, had faid, that the Chancellor of the Exchequer refted his belief of the fincerity of France on fomething better than mere affurances and profeffions of friendship, fignified his wishes to know, whether the honourable gentleman would be fo good as to declare from what fymptom the Chancellor of the Exchequer was led to imagine France fincere? Was it from her kind interference in our favour with the Court of Portugal? Was it from her well-timed affiftance at the Court of Ruffia, or in Spain, or

any.