bill. His Lordship declared that it was far from his intention. to hold our defponding language under the prefent circumftances; but, to fpeak fairly, the bravery and vaft force of the enemy must be admitted; it must alfo be admitted that the infular fituation of the country made it incumbent on the Government to provide fuch means as would be equal to the tafk of defending the country at every point at which it might poffibly be attacked. The great extent of our coaft in proportion to the population of the country, was fuch as made it abfolutely neceifary, that when we faw that coaft threatened, fome extraordinary meafures thould be refrted to, in order to apportion our means in fome degree to that which was oppofed to us. The commerce, the finances, and the industry of the country were unable to bear the preffure of the expence or other inconveniencies which might arife from the circumftance of the Government having recourfe to the ordinary means of railing a military body, if they raised it to that extent which the circumftances of the cafe required. It was therefore evident that fomething like the prefent measure must be reforted to; in adopting it, his Majesty's Ministers had wifely followed the fteps of the late Administration, of which he was happy to say he formed a part. He was fully convinced of the measure being not only moft material y requifite for the defence of the country, but also that it did not in any degree interfere with the levy of other forces, and was as complete within itfelf as the nature of our fituation at prefent feemed to admit of; until fome noble Lord therefore fuggefted a better plan, the whole of the fyftem hould have his mot cordial fupport.

Lord Aucklan i closed the debate-He faid he was defirous to have it understood that he did not vote for the fecond reading of the bill, on the ground of its being now too late to take any retrograde measure with refpect to the volunteer system. Many of their Lordships had that night confidered it as a fyftem to be regretted perhaps in its origin, but now unavoidable to be mainta ned. He had confidered it with an unprejudiced mind; he could not regret it; he was not aware that it would have been prudent or even praticable to have adopted any other fyftem of defence commenfurate to the dangers with which we had been threatened He had not been blind to the obj Ations to which the measure was liable. To a certain degree it was conftitutionally dangerous; and it alfo had a tendency to change the temper and disposition of the people, and to become injurions to our commercial industry

and pre-eminency. But he thought it the least evil amidst the choice of evils. The calamitous deftinies of the present times, and the fudden rearing of a power which has defolated a large part of Europe, and overawes the remainder, required a force for our prefervation beyond what the regular recruiting could give. We were obliged to have a great augmentation either by compulfory means, which would have been difficult and precarious, or by volunteers. The latter had offered themselves, even beyond what was wanted, and with a fpirit and generofity to which it was impoffible for language to do juftice. He lamented the neceffity of war; but furely our present fituation was preferable to that in which we found ourselves during the fhort period of nominal peace. Fortunately for us the wickedeft of mankind was the most intemperate of mankind; and his imprudence had counteracted his malignity: He could not govern his domineering vanity; he had exhibited every vice but that of hypocrify. Inftead of lulling us into a falfe fecurity by proteftations and flattery, he had infolently apprized us of his intention to erafe us from the nations of the world, and to crush us: happily then he had forced us into war before his plans were ready for the explofion; and now without levity or prefumption we may boldly bid defiance to him. There could not be a doubt in any cool and unprejudiced mind, that with the combined force of our navy, army, militia, and volunteers, amounting together to about 700,000 men, we are more an object of dread and danger to France than France can be to us; and the only confideration which now gave any anxiety to his mind, was that of our expence. He knew that our resources were great; ftill, however, the duration of the struggle was uncertain; and it would be wife to reflect that due economy is an effential branch of fecurity. It had been painful to him to hear it faid in the debate, that the volunteers may quit the defence of the empire in the eve of danger. He had not the smallest doubt on his mind that if the hour of danger fhould arrive, the alacrity and zeal of the volunteers would be redoubl. d; that fuch of them as might have retired at prefent, would then refort to their refpective corps; and in the refuit, he had a well founded confidence that we fhould clofe this conteft in a manner glorious to ourselves, exemplary to our pofterity, and moft effenti to the permanent interefts and fafery of the British empire.

The bill was then read a fecond time.

Lord

Lord Hawkesbury faid, as it feemed to be thought that the Committee could not be conveniently gone through before the recefs, he should move that the bill fhould be committed on Thursday fe'nnight, which would be the first day of meet ing after the rece's which he intended to move for.

Lord Ila rouby expreffed a with that the recefs fhould be fhorter, in order to give their Lordships an opportunity of going through a bill of this importance with the utmost speed. Lod Hwhefbury oppofed the idea of curtailing the intended reefs, as it would be unufually thort.

The bill was then ordered to be committed on Thursday fe'nnight.

Adjourned at half paft eleven till the next day.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

TUESDAY, MARCH 27.

Petitions were prefented from Harwich, Gravefend, and Faversham, against the Marine Society fifhery bill, and praying to be heard by counfel at the bar, in oppofition to the fame. Ordered to lie on the table,

MARINE SOCIETY FISHERY BILL.

On the question being put upon the fecond reading of the Marine Society fishery bill,

Colonel Calcraft rofe, and argued forcibly against the farther progrefs of the measure, which he conceived to have a tendency very materially to interfere with the interefts of a meritorious clafs of men, by whom our fishery was now conducted, and from whom the Houfe had juft received several petitions. This interference he thought the more deferving of oppofition, becaufe no cafe whatever had been made out by the advocates of this bill to fhew that any neceffity exifted to call for it, or that any advantages were likely to refult from its adoption. No public benefit was held out to induce the Houfe to grant the immunities which this bill propofed, to any company of fpeculators. It was not pretended, much lefs fhewn, that this company could fupply the London market with fish at a cheaper rate than it now was supplied; and had fuch a pretence been even advanced, he trusted that it could obtain but little credit with the Houfe, when he ftated, that the great bulk of the fith brought to Billingsgate, was difpofed of by the fishermen at about 2d. per lb. To what had been and might be faid, refpe&ting the tendency

and

and good effects of corporations in checking monopoly and reducing the price of provifions, it was only neceffary to reply by a reference to the inftitution of the London Flour Company, from which fo much was promifed, and by which the public had not heard that any good had been done. He contended, that it was not at all probable the company which this bill propofed to incorporate, could furnish fish for the London market on terms as moderate, or that their fupply could be fo regular, as that from the old eftablished fishermen, who were obliged, from their circumstances, to look out for fish for their subsistence, and to exert their utmost skill; while the propofed company, who knew nothing of the bufinefs of fishing, would be of cou: fe obliged to employ agents to conduct their affairs, who were not likely to be as active as the former, because they would not have the fame motives to ftimulate their induftry. Under thefe confiderations, the hon. Member thought the Houfe fhould be cautious of entertaining a measure which would go to thake the old eftablishment of our fisheries, to interrupt that fystem from which the country had derived fo much benefit, and to injure those poor fishermen who had always evinced fuch readiness to contribute to the public fervice. In proof of this readiness, the hon. Member mentioned, that there were at present not lefs than 200 fishermen enrolled for the national defence at Harwich. The reafons he had ftated, he was happy in being able to say, were corroborated by the opinion of the refpectable colleague (Mr. Honey wood) of the honourable Baronet (Sir W. Geary) who made the motion before the House. This opinion, he was authorized to mention, was decidedly hoftile to the measure under difcuffion, and as it came from a mind not lefs competent to decide upon the fubje&t, than pure in the motives which uniformly guided its decifions, he had no doubt that it would have its due weight with the Houfe. The hon. Member, after obferving upon the rejection of a bill precifely Similar to the prefent, in the courfe of the last feffions, upon grounds none of which had yet ceafed to exift, concluded with moving, "That the bill fhould be read a fecond time on this day fix months."

Mr. Hiley Addington begged to fet the hon. Gentleman who had just sat down right with respect to the bill which was before the House last feffion, as that bill was not rejected, but withdrawn by the hon. Baronet who introduced it, merely in confequence of its being understood that more time was neceflary in order to give it a full confideration; and he complimented

plimented the candour with which the hon. Baronet had acted upon that occafion. The time which had fince elapfed, and the opportunity of reflection which it afforded, he should have fuppofed would have convinced the perfons interested that it would not be expedient to introduce fuch a bill again, a bill which, if adopted, would go to establish what he could have no hesitation in calling a dangerous monopoly-such a one, indeed, as there was no precedent for in the annals of Parliament. It would also be, in his judgment, found a very hafty, inconfiderate fpeculation for the subscribers themfelves, while it would operate not merely to injure, but abfolutely to destroy the old established fishermen. Such was the apprehenfion of the confequences of this bill, that he understood fome of his conftituents had actually fold fome of the thipping employed in the fifh trade. They felt that it would be wifer in them to abandon the bufinefs although they had at prefent not less than 3000 apprentices rearing for the fea, than attempt competition with a wealthy corporation, who could give fuch high bounties as would render it impoffible for them to keep their men on board.

Mr. Hurft had a host of objections to the bill before the Houfe, but there were two which ftruck him forcibly: the first was, that although no grounds of public advantage were laid for the meafure, it would tend to injure materially all the fishermen on the River and on the coaft adjacent thereto; and the second, that he believed no fund as yet existed for the purpofe of this company. If fo, then he would afk, why thould the Houfe fanction a vifionary project? He strongly condemned that claufe in the bill, which went to protect feamen employed by this corporation from the impress fervice. To the principle of impreffing men he was by no means a friend, but while it exified as a general law, he could not agree to the propriety of a particular exception in favour of this company, which would enable them to take from the public fervice any number of feamen they might think proper.

Sir W. Dolben thought there was enough on the face of the bill to entitle it to confideration in a Committee, where any alterations might be made in the provifions of it, as the cafe might appear to require upon further investigation. He alfo thought enough was ftated in the preamble of the bill to entitle it to further confideration; and as to the objections which had been stated against the bill, he did not at prefent undertake to decide whether they were well or ill founded in

point