wished to hear these Gentlemen on the evils that might refult to this country by this measure; but when Gentlemen talked of facrificing the independence of the Irish Parliament, a ftranger in that Houfe would imagine, that this was a measure to be decided finally here, and not to be at all difcuffed in Ireland. He had heard that there was a great objection to the time of bringing these resolutions forward, but as he understood that these refolutions contained a very great boon to Ireland, as Ireland stood in great need of relief, the fooner the remedy was applied the better. But it was faid that these resolutions ought not to receive the fanction of the English House of Commons, until we heard from Ireland how they should be received there; but fince the facrifice was all one fide, he should be glad to know, whether it was decent or fit to call upon Ireland to deter mine before the fentiments of the English Houfe of Commons had been known? The representation of Ireland he had frequently heard ftated in that House to be fuch, that no change could happen to it but for the better, and yet Gentlemen now complained loudly, all on a fudden, of any attempt at the leaft alteration in it, although the attempt could never be effectual, without the confent of thofe who compofe that reprefentation now. The Irish have at present 300 Members in their Houfe of Commons. It was propofed, that they should have a 100 in the English House of Commons. No one could object to that, who well knew the constitution of the English House of Commons; they knew it would then be one Parliament for the whole British empire, and that then Ireland, in truth, instead of having 300, would have 658 Members to reprefent it, for then every Member of that House would confider himself as a Member for Ireland as well as for England, and they would all endeavour to relieve diftrefs by legislative provifion, wherever distress was found, and promote industry, by giving it due encouragementthat was the true way to make a people happy, and he had no doubt, that when these refolutions came to be well understood, the people would exprefs their gratitude for them. An Honourable Gentleman had taken notice of a griev ance in Ireland, alluding to the number of abfentees, which would be the confequence of the Union. He had often thought that circumftance would be attended with a ferious. mischief; but when he confidered the nature of our free conftitution, he could imagine no remedy for the difadvantages of non-refidence, unlefs it was an Union. If refidence was was to be reftrained, affuredly it would be a great act of power; but under an Union the misfortune would be removed. Did the Scotch fuffer by the principal people paffing the greater part of their time out of the country? Did fuch places as York, Durham and Chefter, fuffer from the fame caufe? He believed there were not many fenfible men who thought fo-people of rank might spend their fortunes. where they pleafed; he fhould be forry to be fhort in his refpect for perfons of rank or fashion; but he hoped it would be no offence to them to fay, that manufactories may and do flourish where there were but few of them. Where the land-owner spent his income, was of little confequence to any country where induftry was the characteristic of the inhabitants, for that would open a market into which money would flow as of course, and nothing could refift; industry established an equilibrium in the diftribution of wealth, so that whatever a man of fashion took away, the manufacturer would restore to any country; this was a very clear point. But as to the objection, that the Irish Parliament was independent, and therefore the Union was improper, he begged leave to fay, that the English Parliament was alfo independent, and had as great a right to stand out upon that point as the Irish had, and much more, for fhe was to make a great deal more facrifice. The fituation of the two countries at present was that of two mercantile houses, the one of which was in the moft narrow circumstances, without capital and without connexions, while the other poffeffed immenfe riches, had extenfive foreign connexion and unbounded eredit. If a junction were propofed between two houfes in the City of London fo circumftanced, there was no one who doubted, that the house which he had first mentioned would accede to the propofal with the greatest readinefs and gratitude; and fuch he hoped would be the conduct of the Irish Parliament and nation, on maturely confidering the outlines of the project of Union, as contained in the Refolutions of the Committee. Lord Temple thought it inconfiftent with his duty to give a filent vote on fuch an occafion; a duty particularly enforced by the calumny thrown upon Minifters, which imputed to them a wish to carry the prefent measure by fraud and intimidation. Such was the language used in Ireland, and re-echoed here, concurring in the fame charge against Minifters, as men who had waited for an opportunity to force the measure upon Ireland, and having gained that opportunity, to avail themselves of the advantage. How far fuch a charge charge was juftifiable, the flighteft confideration of the fubject would demonftrate. He profeffed himself a warm friend to the measure; and he could not poffibly fee any impropriety in paffing the Refolutions here before Ireland had affented to them. To fay that it was an attempt to facrifice the interests of Ireland was an abuse of language, for it was well known they would be of no force, unless they received the fanction of the legislature of that country. Indeed he knew that many unworthy attempts had been made to render the measure unpopular in Ireland; a county had been industriously folicited to petition against it, but had refused. He believed that many other counties were of the fame difpofition, and he trusted the plan would not be unpopular in that country. The rebellion which lately raged was ftill unbroken; and the inveterate enemies of this country were ftill attempting to renew their defigns. How different then was the conduct of England now from what it had been in the time of Queen Elizabeth, when many people in Ireland had shewn a difpofition to favour her invafion of thefe kingdoms. At that time it was the fword-now it was the olive branch which England held out to them. From the first moment of Irish diffention, up to its full maturity in rebellion, whatever mask it affumed, whether that of Parliamentary reform or Catholic emancipation, it was now unneceffary to ftate, that the real motive was feparation. His Lordship affuming this as a principle, proceeded to draw a picture of Ireland, as prepared by the advocates for a feparation, to produce that effect. The tenant was taught, he said, to think it no crime to murder his landlord; the poor were armed against the rich; and every bond of fociety was broken. Such was the object, it was now notorious, and fo was the disappointment that followed. Under fuch circumstances then, he afked, was it furprifing that England fhould not fit quiet, and fee the brightest jewel of her crown wrefted from her grafp without a fingle effort to prevent it? On the contrary, was the not bound in wisdom and policy to prevent such an evil? If, therefore, the principle were a good one, there could be no objection to the prefent time as the fitteft to carry it into execution; for why neglect a remedy until the disease had gathered ftrength beyond cure? The argument against the Union, as tending to irritate the people of Ireland, he conceived to be founded on mifreprefentation. Enflamed they certainly were, but not by any thing in the measure itself calculated to produce that fenfation, but by the machinations and intrigues of defigning men, who fought for for feparation; and fhould it be foiled through their means, on their heads he hoped might fall the confequences of its mifcarriage. His lordship next adverted to the objections urged against it, as defpicable in taking advantage of the weakness of Ireland, fraudulent in the means used to effect it, and unjust as depriving Ireland of her independent legiflature. As to the measure being defpicable, he thought it would be much more fo to leave her in her present miferable fituation, and to reproach her with her calamities instead of adminiftering a cure.-Fraud he denied; and as to depriv ing her of her independence, he asked of what independence it would deprive her? Why the independence, or rather the dependence of 1782, which left her unable to protect herfelf; but in which ever of thofe lights that fettlement might be confidered, the people of neither country ever regarded it as final. The nature of that independence, his lordship fail, was this:-A conftant ftruggle had been maintained between both countries until 1782, when England thought fit to relinquish the conteft, and allowed Ireland to try the experiment of independence-but a connexion with England was an implied condition of this adjustment; and so far the experiment had failed. The independence granted at that time was at this moment recognised by offering this plan to the Irish Parliament for its approbation. But the country ftood in a very different fituation now from what it did at the time that independence was granted. Ireland had given up the ground on which England had placed her in 17825 the had fince entered into a negociation with the common enemy, and there was a decided revolutionary party in her bofom. The noble Lord next proceeded to fhew that the fuppofed or affected independence of Ireland, in the praise of which fome Gentlemen had lately been fo loud, and of the affertion of which others appear fo tenacious, was in reality the fatal fource of all the miferies and calamities with which that unfortunate country has fo long been afflicted. -Widely different were the remedies propofed by different opinions, to heal these evils, and to open in their itead those fources of profperity which Ireland confeffedly contains, and which industry and due encouragement could not fail to cultivate and improve. This is the great object which the prefent measure propofes to accomplith:-And what is oppofed to it as a preferable remedy (at least it must follow as the neceffary confequence of rejecting it) but French fraternization and French connexion-or in other words the utter ruin of one country, and the evident danger of the other?--No. 24. 6 C Jt It was a reflection truly mortifying to obferve the ingratitude with which Ireland had lately treated the affistance she had received, at a moment of the most critical emergency—at a moment when a diforganizing and deftructive rebellion was raging in her bofom. From the voluntary zeal and exertions of the English Militia, to that affiftance is Ireland chiefly indebted if she still exists as a nation; yet by the Irish have these brave and difinterested men been recently branded with the odious appellation of the British Mamelukes. What, however, would Ireland be without his affectionate protecting aid on the part of Great Britain? could its trade exist without the covering fhield of the British Navy, or her manufactures flourish without the circulation of British capital. In the room of that nominal independence of which Ireland now appears to be fo enamoured, what is propofed to be substituted but an encrease of commerce, of her trade, of her civilization-all of which depend for their fecurity-nay, for their very existence, upon the British Parliament, and upon British countenance and Britifh capital? Without that foftering aid, it was well known that the poverty of that country would check the growth and arreft the progrefs of the arts. And what then could promote and animate it, but a nearer influence of that protection, which would arise from the propofed Union, the happy effects of which have been fo fenfibly felt, and fo prominently appear, in the increased trade, capital and civilization of Scotland, fince the period of its Union with England? And might not Ireland reap the fame bleffing from a fimilar Union, if the could bring herself to exert the fame talents, the fame industry and the fame perfeverance?-Here the noble Lord took a furvey of Irish affairs fince the time of Edward VI. and the efforts that had fince been made to maintain the Proteftant afcendancy, efpecially by Queen Elizabeth, who, he faid, held out the fword to effect her purpose, while we now held out nothing but the olive branch. He reprobated the parallel drawn between this propofed alliance and French fraternity, as exemplified in the cafe of Switzerland. "Let," faid his Lordfhip, "the Honourable Gentleman who made the comparifon, look to the fmoaking embers of that defolated country, her murdered fathers, her violated daughters, the parents lamenting over their flaughtered children; let him look to Venice, to Egypt, to every corner of the world acceffible to French influence and arms; and when he has fupped full of horrors, he would afk him, if he had an English heart or an English head, in what confifted the fimilitude?" He begged pardon for fo much |