be then truly employed to profit, not diverted by.. duties, bounties, jealoufies or legiflative interference from its natural and beneficial course, this fyftem will attain its real object, confolidating. the strength of the remaining parts of the empire, by encouraging the communications of their market among themfelves, with preference to every part against all strangers.

I need not mention the Navigation Act, the proper benefits of which we have fo long looked: for; will only observe, that Great Britain. could never agree to receive the British Colonies' goods from us, unless we prohibited the goods of foreign Colonies as fhe does, which is a powerful argument for that part of the fyften against the conftitutional phrenfy that threa tens it. Let us alfo obferve, that now, for the first time, Great Britain offers us a right for ever in all present and future Colonies, without any reservation of power, to call on us either to procure, support, or preferve them; fhe maintains them, we fhare all the profits; and not only their goods, but all goods of Irish produce, are to pafs through Britain duty free. Can fo

reign nations, after this is fettled, make diftinction between British and Irish goods? Our manufactures will be united as our interefts, and we fhall laugh at Portugal folly.

I could run out for hours into he many bene fits of this fyftem but I have tired the Houfe too long; let me only implore you not to reject this measure, for ill-founded, vifionary objections, or to facrifice realities to fhadows. If this infatuated country gives up the prefent offer, she may look for it again in vain; things cannot remain as they are; commercial jealousy is roufed, it will increase with two independent legislatures, if they don't mutually declare the principles whereby their powers fhall be feparately employed, in directing the common concerns of trade; and without an united intereft of commerce, in a commercial empire, political union will receive many fhocks, and feparation of interest must threaten feparation of connexion, which every honeft Irishman must fhudder ever to look at as a poffible event.

I will only add, that if this meafure be refufed, Ireland will receive more folid injury than from any other evil that ever befel her; it is in vain for Gentlemen to think we can go on as we have done for fome years-or to expect to cope with England in a destructive war of bountiesour fituation muft every day become more diffi cult, and it is impoffible to foresee all the ruin. ous confequences that may enfue.

AUGUST 15th, 1785,

Right Hon. Chancellor of the Exchequer [Mr. FOSTER] I rife to ftate the mifconception of the Right Hon. Gentleman, and if any thing can thew the neceffity of curing the people of their infatuation, by publishing and explaining the Bill to them, it furely is this, that a Gentleman to whom they look up, and justly look, as one whofe wifdom and virtue will guard their rights, is fo very much mistaken.

The Right Hon. Gentleman in his argument has never once adverted to the Bill on your table,

but

but draws all his conclufions from arguments raised by his own imagination, on the British Refolutions. He dwells now only on foreign Colony trade and Navigation laws; the accepting a full participation of the British Colony trade, upon terms of equal laws, he gives up as not altering our conftitution, and he even agrees in the innocence of our declaring it as a principle of the treaty. In this he has fhewn his wif dom, for it is already declared in the law of Ireland. The objection then ftands as to a foreign Colony trade, and what fays the Bill, it declares it to be a condition of the treaty, to protect that trade, in the fame manner as Britain does, against the interference of foreign Colony goods. It enacts nothing, and there is the mighty evil which we have introduced, that is to give Britain the regulation of all our foreign trade with Portugal, with Spain, with all the world. If the Gentleman fo egregioully miRakes the purport of what he has not read, I trust the good fenfe of the nation will fee his mistakes and judge for themfelves; but the objections to an agreement of rating only the goods from foreign Colonies, fo far only as by protecting our Colonies against them,

year

them, is not fo wonderful from him as his objection to the Bill's affecting Navigation and British feamen in general; from him I fay, for in the 1782 the Right Hon. Gentleman introduced in conjunction with the late Chief Baron Burgh, and the present Chief Baron Yelverton, a Bill, adopting in the grofs all fuch claufes and provifions of the laws theretofore paffed in England, as conveyed equal benefits and impofed equal reftrictions in commerce, in the most extended fenfe, to the fubjects of both countries, and alfo putting the feamen of Ireland on the footing of

British feamen. [The Chancellor here read the words.] The Bill now brought in does not go fo far; he went to commerce in general, and adopted laws without reference to them, or evenreciting their title. What does this Bill do? it declares with him the principle; it does no more. This Bill declares for a fimilarity of laws, manners, and cuftoms, in toto. Our Bill declares

for a fimilarity of Navigation

Laws, on our ac

British, not for the

cepting the benefit of the first time offered to us. It is idle to believe, even his authority can have weight in fuch unfounded, objections; nay, our Bill reaches his,

to