Mr. Beau foy. Mr. Sheridan. Mr. Beaufoy (according to order) reported from the Com mittee of the whole Houfe, to whom it was referred to con fider of fo much of His Majefty's moft gracious speech to both Houses of Parliament upon the 23d day of January laft, as relates to the treaty of navigation and commerce between His Majefty and the Moft Chriftian King, the refolutions which the Committee had directed him to report to the Houfe; which he read in his place, and afterwards delivered in at the table, where the fame was read a first time. The Speaker put the queftion, "That this Report be now read a "fecond time," when', Mr. Sheridan remarked, that he confidered himself obliged to trefpafs upon the patience of the Houfe whilft he adverted to fome particulars, refpecting which he thought it highly neceffary that the right honourable gentleman fhould give fatisfactory anfwers previous to any final decifion concerning the refolutions contained in the Report which had been just read. What firft he wifhed to be fatisfied about, was the confolidation of the duties on the customs, which, if he had underflood the right honourable gentleman correctly on Friday, he meant to mix and blend with the bufinefs of the commercial treaty. If this were really the right honourable gentleman's intentions, it would furely be highly improper for the Houfe to give their vote for the fecond reading of the Report, before they were in poffeffion of the additions which were meant to be made to it, and much of addition he conceived there would be, as there were, he fuppofed, feveral other refolutions abfolutely neceffary to be fubmitted to a Committee of the whole House on the other parts of the treaty, for, those contained in the Report, the right honourable gentleman would recollect, were confined merely to the articles ftated in the tariff. Another matter which he must again mention, and to which he had received no express anfwer, though there was fomething like an anfwer contained in one of the right honourable gentleman's fpeeches, was, that propofition which appeared to him to be indifpenfable and incontrovertible: that a new commercial arrangement with Ireland muft be fet on foot as a confequence of the commercial treaty with France. The right honourable gentleman had given them to understand that he had no objection to hear of the Irish propofitions: whether that was the fact or not, (Mr. Sheridan faid) he was perfuaded that when the right honourable gentleman firft introduced the bufinefs of the commercial treaty, the Irish propofitions had been upon his mind throughout the whole of that long speech. Certaip he was, that fome arrangement between Ireland and England must take place in confequence of the prefent commercial treaty; because, after the right honourable gentle man man had himself ftated with a proper difdain of the idea Mr. Chancellor Pitt obferved, that as to the hovering Mr. Chanact, and the idea that its operation as a check on fmuggling cellor Pitt. was to be fufpended, the answer of his right honourable friend (Mr. Grenville) to that queftion was fully fufficient. It was by no means the intention of the parties that those salutary checks against illicit trade, contained in the hovering act, fhould be done away or weakened; on the contrary, it was the wifh of each of the Monarchs to prevent, as much as poffible, the continuance of any such practices between both kingdoms. With refpect to the proceedings intended to be followed on the bufinefs on concluding the treaty in that House, there was nothing more neceffary for them to do than to agree to the feveral refolutions contained in the report from the Committee, and which only went to a confirmation of the tariff. The honourable gentleman had inquired whether it was in contemplation to frame any new arrangements of a commercial nature with Ireland, and to make fuch arrangements a part of the fyftem now to be adopted. But as that was in a great measure to depend on the difpofition and inclination of the fifter kingdom, and as it was in all respects to be confidered in the nature of a new and totally diftinct treaty, it was a fubject which on the present occafion he thought it highly improper to difcufs. Mr. Grenville expreffed his perfuafion that the hovering Mr. Grenact was not in the finalleft degree affected. After his expla- ville. Mr. Sheridan. nation of the meaning of the 25th article of the commercia treaty, he charged Mr. Sheridan with having mifconceive its meaning. Mr. Sheridan anfwered, that the explanation of the righ honourable gentleman had not given him the leaft fatisfac tion whatsoever. He was a little amazed also at the filence of the right honourable gentleman himfelf, who, he thought would have deigned on queftions of fo much importance to have favoured the Houfe with an immediate elucidation of the point. He thought it impoffible that fo monftrous a propofition as the giving greater privileges and advantages to France, in the home market of Great Britain, than Ireland either enjoyed, or could claim, was intended; but he could not fee how Ireland could be said to be entitled to all the advantages of the prefent treaty, without its having been fo ftipulated in the treaty. Mr. Sheridan animadverted on the terms of the articles of the treaty, and contended that Ireland was no where mentioned, excepting only as to her linens in the fixth article. He inftanced the article of the tariff refpecting brandies, where no mention was made of Ireland, and feveral others. Mr. Sheridan made a great variety of remarks upon the treaty, which he termed a most incorrect production, and faid, he lamented the abfence of the right honourable negotiator, as he fhould have been glad to have heard from him the meaning which he had in view where he had not expreffed it clearly. He mentioned the part which he had taken with regard to the Irish propofitions, upon which he had more frequently divided with the Chancellor of the Exchequer than with the right honourable negotiator (Mr. Eden.) The present treaty was fo directly in the teeth of the evidence given by the manufacturers at the bar of the Houfe, when the Irish propofitions were under confideration, that he prefumed when the nego. tiator of the treaty returned to his duty in that House, he would publicly declare his conviction of the error of almost every one of the opinions which he had maintained on that memorable occafion He fuppofed that this right honourable gentleman had fent circular letters round to the manufacturers, and declared that he had not abandoned one of his commercial doctrines, though he had, pro hoc vice, adopted new ones, and made the treaty turn upon thofe new commercial fentiments, of which he had probably informed his friends of the Chamber, and at the fame time had faid, that he would renounce them when he came back to England. He hoped that he should hear no more of a charge of confidence and ignorance from the right honourable gentleman, who must be confident and ignorant beyond all example, if he thought that no more refolutions were neceffary to be mo ved on the treaty with France. To convince him that there were various additional refolutions neceffary, he would bring down a string of resolutions, and submit it to him and to the House, whether they were not abfolutely neceffarý to be moved in a Committee. The Mr. Chancellor Pitt answered, that he felt it difficult, al- Mr. Chanthough he was himself the fufferer, to avoid fmiling at his cellor Pitt. own awkward fituation; a fituation into which he was unmercifully thrown, by the honourable gentleman's complex and confused manner of putting his questions, which had afforded the honourable gentleman an opportunity of cenfuring him for anfwering fome parts of them, and for not anfwering others, although he had given him no clue by which he could be enabled to diftinguilh which of his queftions he thought required an anfwer, and which not. honourable gentleman had gone farther, and had found fault with him for his patience in fitting ftill, and not interrupting him, although he confeffed the unprovoked afperity which the honourable gentleman had ufed in fpeaking of him, would, if he could feel any thing from the honourable gentleman's afperity, have been a fufficient temptation for him to have interfered in his felf-defence. He could not help obferving on the instructions which he received from the honourable gentleman, that they were fo conciliating, fo winning, fo fincere, and feemed to have fo little of any intention of gratifying the perfon who delivered them, and to be fo entirely calculated for the benefit of the perfon to whom they were addreffed, that he could not but return the honourable gentleman his warmeft thanks for the obligation he had conferred upon him, and he should endeavour to return. the obligation, by giving the honourable gentleman as full an answer as he was able to the question, concerning which he feemed fo anxious, relative to Ireland. That country was undoubtedly entitled to all the benefits of the French treaty; but it was entirely at her own option whether she might chufe to avail herself of those advantages; for it was only to be done by her paffing fuch laws as fhould put the tariff on the fame footing in that country as it was ftipulated fhould be done in this. Had the adoption of the treaty by Ireland been a ftipulation neceffary to be performed before it could be finally concluded on by this country, then this country would have been deprived of all the benefits refulting from it in the event of Ireland's refufal. As to the objection of the honourable gentleman, that there was no ftipulation that Ireland fhould reduce the duties on brandy, and that of courfe fhe was not to be entitled to the equivalent advantage confequent on fuch reduction; that, he said, was the most unfortunate objection that could poffibly have VOL. XXI. been Mr. Sheri dan. Mr. Gren been made, and proceeded from a perfect misconception of the subject. It was not a ftipulation that the duty on brandy fhould amount to feven fhillings a gallon, for fuch à ftipulation on the part of France would be highly abfurd, but it was a ftipulation that it should not exceed that fum. Now, the fact was, that at prefent the duty on brandy in Ireland did not amount to near feven fhillings, and therefore to couple the ftipulation relative to the duty on brandy in Ireland with that in England would be perfectly ridiculous; for in England the ftipulation was, that being now at nine Thillings, the duty fhould be reduced to seven at the utmost; and would the honourable gentleman expect that a ftipulation fhould be made for Ireland to make a reduction on her duty from the fmaller fum already paid them to the greater, which was to be paid in England. Having put the abfurdity of fuch a propofition into the most striking point of view, he proceeded to fhew how the article of brandy was to be affected in Ireland, fhould that country adopt the treaty, which was, that it should there be ftipulated that the brandy of France fhould from hence forward be admitted to the market in Ireland on the fame terms as from the most favour⚫ed nation. Mr. Sheridan declared, that he was not confcious of hav ing used any afperities, or expreffed himself petulantly, angrily, or in a ftile unbecoming any member of that House; and if the right honourable gentleman felt that he had, he had indeed afforded him a piece of inftruction, for which he was fure the Houfe would think he ought to confefs himself indebted. Mr. Sheridan now went into an examination of the 6th article of the convention arguing from the words, that it contained a contradiction in terms.-The preamble of that article fet off with faying, that by the 43d article of the treaty, it was ftipulated that, a convention relative to that, article fhould be concluded immediately after the fignature of the treaty, whereas the 6th article of convention does not fettle the matter of the 43d article of the treaty, but talks of an ulterior convention to be fettled within the space of two months. Mr. Sheridan contended, that the convention was not the convention which had been ftipulated for by the 43d article of the treaty, and that as an ulterior convention was now to be fettled, they ought to wait for that previous to their decifion. Mr. Grenville explained that the ulterior convention related merely to Conful Generals, Vice-Confuls, &c., and could in no manner whatever affect their decifion upon the treaty. Mr. Grenville took fome notice of what had been faid relative to Ireland, and the Irish propofitions, arguing that |