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and then proceeded in great confidence to lay open the plan of the Union, which he now looked up to as a certainty.

He prefaced his speech with some remarks on the unfavourable reception, which had attended it in the preceding year, and on the change of sentiment, which had taken place in the minds of many who were then hostile to the measure. The resistance to it, he said, had been principally occasioned by ignorance of its nature and misrepresentation of its effects. In proportion as it was more deliberately and fully investigated, the opposition to it became less general, and the clamours less violent. The great body of the landed property in Ireland became friendly to the principle; for the property of those who had declared in favour of it in the two houses of parliament, was, in comparison with that of its opponents, nearly in the proportion of three to one. Nineteen counties, whose superficial contents formed five-sevenths of the island, had come forward in its support. He did not mean to assert, that these counties were unanimous in approving the measure. Complete and perfect unanimity was not to be expected upon any great political question; but he would venture to assert, that a very great proportion of the property in those counties decidedly favoured it, and most of the great commercial towns in the kingdom had also declared in its favour. Dublin was then affected, as Edinburgh had been at the time of the union with Scotland; and he trusted would like Edinburgh have cause to be

"had been laid before his majesty, accompanied by resolutions proposing and "recommending a complete and entire union between Great Britain and Ire"land, to be established by the mutual consent of both parliaments, founded on equal and liberal principles, on the similarity of constitution and govern"ment, and on a sense of mutual interests and affections.

"

"I have it now further in command from his majesty to lay those resolutions "before this house, and solemnly to recommend to the consideration of his "faithful commons the great objects they embrace.

"His majesty has observed with increasing satisfaction, that the sentiments "which have continued to be manifested in favour of this important and salu"tary measure by such numerous and respectable descriptions of his Irish "subjects, confirm the hope he has expressed, that its accomplishment will

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prove to be as much the joint wish as it unquestionably is the common inte"rest of both his kingdoms; an event to which his majesty looks forward "with the utmost earnestness, as the only means, by which the common inte"rests of all his people can be indissolubly united, and their security and hap "piness can be permanently established.

His majesty therefore relies on the wisdom of his parliaments, and the "loyal concurrence of his people for the completion of this great work, with a "firm persuasion that a full and unreserved participation of constitutional and "commercial advantages will augment and perpetuate the prosperity of his "subjects of his united kingdom, and that under the favour of Divine Provi"dence the freedom and power of the British empire will be established on a "foundation not to be shaken by the efforts either of its foreign or domestic "enemes."

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thankful to Providence for the accomplishment of an union with Great Britain.

He then animadverted on the proceedings of the chief adversaries of the Union, who not satisfied with exercising their deliberative powers within those walls, but organizing themselves in another place, empowering certain persons* to send their letters missive through the country, and establishing agents in the different counties, to bring the mass of the people to the bar of that house, as petitioners against the measure of Union. He was sorry to say, that some of the agents of those gentlemen had gone forth with the most unwarrantable pretences, and adopted the most treacherous artifices, and the most ludicrous misrepresentations, to deceive and distract the populace, whose signatures against an Union they wished to obtain. That had also been the case in the Scotish Union? The table of the parliament was day after day, for the space of three months, covered with such petitions but the Scotish legislators acted as, he trusted, the Irish parliament would act; they considered only the public advan tage; and, steadily pursuing that object, neither misled by artifices nor intimidated by tumult, they received, in the gratitude of their country that reward which amply compensated their arduous labours in the great work so happily accomplished.

The principle of the measure had been investigated with such depth of argument and such sound ability,† in a speech, which had been since committed to the press, that he considered it as placed beyond question or doubt.

With regard to the mode of proceeding, which the projectors of the scheme intended to adopt, he premised, that it was originally their wish to follow the form pursued in the Union with Scotland, and to propose the appointment of commissioners of both realms, who might digest articles for the consideration of the two parliaments; but that, as this plan had been prevented by the refusal of the Irish House of Commons to allow a discussion of the question, it became expedient for his majesty's ministers to adopt measures which might defeat the misrepresentations of their views, and unfold to this kingdom the liberal intentions of Great Britain. For this purpose they had introduced into the British parliament those articles, which had been now transmitted to Ireland, forming a basis for more extensive resolutions. After the minute investigation of these articles in the parliament of Ireland, and the detailed application of the general principles involved in them, the matured scheme would be submitted to the

Alluding to the marquis of Downshire, &c. vide antea..

By Mr. Smith.

approbation of each legislature, and eventually sanctioned by solemn acts.

The secretary's first proposition stated the grand object in terms similar to those of the first resolution of the British parliament. The three articles which followed tended to establish the complete identity of the executive power in every possibility of circumstance and in every application of authority. Some would think that this object was secured by the act of annexation; but, though he venerated that act as the only bond now connecting this realm with Britain, he considered it, both in principle and operation, as extremely defective. In principle, it gave to the parliament of another country, in which the Irish are not represented, one of the most important legislative powers, that of regulating the succession to the crown. That the practice was not less defective than the principle, appeared in the case of the regency; for the prince of Wales was absolutely constituted regent by the address of the Irish legislature, before any regent was appointed by Great Britain.

To prove the danger of so imperfect a connexion his lordship instanced the conduct of James II, when after his abdication of the crown of England, he repaired to Ireland, and made use of the parliament as an instrument for erecting his opposition to England, and establishing a distinct monarchy in Ireland.*

He then put some illustrative questions, respecting the predica ment in which Ireland stood in the important cases of war, of peace, and of treaties. He then referred to a more frequent and just ground of complaint in that house, that the Irish minister, acting as he did under the direction of a British cabinet, was not responsible to the Irish parliament from the moment of his withdrawing from this kingdom, unless by a derogation from our independence, we should impeach him at the bar of the parliament of Great Britain for offending against the constitution of Ireland. Who, he asked, advised the measures of the Irish government? The English minister. And how could the Irish parliament reach him? Who administered the great seal of England, without which no legislative act could be ratified? An English minister. And how could the Irish parliament reach him? In short, how could an efficient and constitutional responsibility be obtained, but by making the jurisdiction of parliament as comprehensive as the executive power? And this could be effected by an Union alone.

He separately and successively refuted all the objections made against the Union, as to its reducing Ireland to a mere colony, as to its weakening the executive power in Ireland, as to the impo

* Vide antea, Vol. I.

tency of a non-resident parliament, and as to future commercial and financial arrangements.

He then entered into the following detail.

Upon a comparison of the average value of the imports and exports of Great Britain for three years, ending with January, 1799, compared with those of Ireland ending on the 25th of March preceding, he found that the value of British commerce amounted to 73,961,899. and that of Irish commerce to 10,925,9617. and that they bear the proportion to each other of nearly seven to one. On a similar comparison of the value of the following articles, viz. malt, beer, spirits, wine, tea, tobacco, and sugar, consumed in the respective countries, he found that the value of the British articles amounted to 46,891,655%. and that of the Irish articles to 5,954,8561. forming a proportion of 7 and 7-8ths to one. The medium, therefore, or 7 to 1 was to be taken as the fair proportion; and upon this principle Great Britain ought to contribute fifteen parts, and Ireland two, to the general expenses of the empire.

In the article which related to this head, the first section provided, that the past debts of the two kingdoms should be borne by them respectively; and, if they coupled this liberal provision with the ninth section of the article, which gave to Ireland a participation in whatever sums might be produced from the territorial revenues of the dependencies of Great Britain in India, they would acknowledge not only the justice but the generosity of the terms. Great Britain held out to Ireland a proportional enjoyment of all the advantages of the empire, without requiring the smallest participation in the burthens, which she had incurred to procure them; and Ireland would acquire a revenue of 58,000l. a year, in ease of her own burthens, out of the revenues paid by the East India company, from the territories subdued by British

arms.

By the second section, the proportional contribution of 15 to 2 would continue for twenty years, that the system of the Union might acquire stability, before it should be subjected to the slightest modification.

When he stated the system of contributing on the principal of proportional ability, he was aware that a natural objection would arise, that, however fair or liberal the system might appear at present, it might at a future period, and under different circumstances, prove to be both partial and disadvantageous. It was therefore intended, that the imperial parliament should have a power to revise the proportion at the given period he had mentioned, but that the revision should be grounded upon the same principles, upon which the original proportion was formed, and limited to the result of those principles. Their contributions,

therefore, might hereafter vary according to their relative increased or diminished ability; but, until the period of a common taxation should have arisen, the principles and the basis of their contribution were unalterably fixed. The only power reserved to the imperial parliament, was to examine and ascertain the criteria, by which the abilities of the two countries were to be determined: the criteria themselves were to remain unaltered and unalterable and, since they were of such a nature that they could not fail of leading to a fair result. Ireland had by these means the utmost possible security, that she could not be taxed beyond the measure of her comparative ability, and that the ratio of her contribution must ever correspond with her relative wealth and prosperity.

By the fourth section, the revenues of Ireland would constitute a consolidated fund, which would be charged in the first place with the interest and sinking fund of the debt of Ireland, and be afterwards appropriated to its proportional contribution. The fifth section gave power to the imperial parliament to impose such taxes in Ireland as might be necessary for her contingent; but it should in no case be enabled to impose higher taxes, after the Union, upon any article in Ireland, than the same article should bear in Great Britain. The sixth section ascertained the manner, in which any surplus of the revenues of Ireland might be applied. There were four considerations which occurred with respect to any occasional excess of revenue. The first, and most obvious, was the diminution of taxes; the second, the application of such excess to local purposes of ornament or improvement in Ireland; the third to provide against any possible failure of revenue; the fourth to suffer such excess to accumulate at compound interest, in case of their contribution in a future period of war.

It was provided by the seventh section, that all future loans, for the interest and liquidation of which the respective countries had made provision in the proportion of their respective contributions, should be considered as a joint debt; and, on the other hand, that, where they did not make corresponding provisions, their respective quotas of the sum so raised should remain a separate charge.

The eighth section contained a provision, that, when the separate debts of the two kingdoms should be either extinguished, or in the proportion of their respective contributions, the general expenses of the empire might be thenceforward borne by common taxes, in lieu of proportional contribution. It might perhaps be alleged, that common taxes with Great Britain would impose upon that kingdom heavier burthens than she would otherwise be required to support. But let the house consider, that the charges of the debt of Great Britain amounted to twenty millions a year, and the charges

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