ferious and delicate a nature, as the report of the naval and military of ficers refpecting fo important a fubject as the defence of our dockyards.

The adverfaries of the fortifications were by no means fatisfied with the withholding entirely the report of the board of officers, though they admitted the propriety there might be for referving certain parts which it might not be fafe publicly to divulge. Mr. Sheridan obferved, that, unless fuch a difcrimination were made, and unless the report were in fome degree brought before the houfe, they were exactly in the fame fituation, in which they had ftood before their board was appointed; and instead of having the queftion fully before them as Mr. Pitt had promifed, not on the affertion of an individual, of a minifter, or of any man in office, but on the authority of a number of naval and military officers of known character, experience and integrity, they would fill have nothing but the bare affertion of the minifter, as a guide to their judgment. He would not entertain a doubt but that Mr. Pitt intended to be accurate in his statement, and that he had delivered what he conceived to be a correct account of the outlines of the report. But the report might be liable to different conftructions, and it was neceflary that the houfe fhould be enabled to judge of it by actual inspection.

The obfervations of Mr. Sheridan were strengthened by general Burgoyne, who thought himfelf obliged in fome meafure to take care, left, in confequence of a reprehenfible filence, he should be confidered as admitting the fuggeflions of Mr. Pitt in their utmost extent, as a correct reprefentation of the report of the board. He hoped and

trufted the minister would lay bofore the houfe as much of the report, as might be fubmitted to public perufal without violation of difcretion, or danger to the state. Unless this were done, it was impoffible for the houfe to determine juftly with regard to the fentiments of the members of the board. It was well known that cafes hypothetically put, admitted only of a direct anfwer given under the admiffion of the hypothefis. It remained to be afcertained, whether the cafe, which was put hypothetically, was a cafe fufhciently within probability to deferve attention. He would by no means betray any ftate fecret, or be guilty of a breach of the confidence, under the feal of which he flood as a member of the board in queftion; but without fearing to incur this imputation, he would fay, that feveral of the cafes which had been fubmitted were mere poftulata, and were hypothe tically as extravagant, as if it were afked, "Suppofe by fome ftrange convulfion of nature that the ftraits between Dover and Calais fhould be no more, and that the coafts fhould meet and unite, would it not be politic, expedient and abfolutely neceffary to fortify the ifthmus, or neck of land between France and England?" General Burgoyne had ever entertained a high opinion of the military skill of the duke of Richmond; but he had found him more expert and fcientific in engineering than his partiality had fuggefted; and of confequence, though he had spent a great part of his life in the prac tice of tactics, he had returned from the board with fresh informa tion upon the subject. There was a mode, general Burgoyne obferved, of conftructing a fyllogifm, by mul tiplying and branching out the

main propofition into numerous others, and placing it in a variety of points of view by means of quef tions, fo put, that human reafon could not withhold its affent to any one of the particulars, and yet the mind of every man would revolt from the general refult. Upon this occafion he flattered himself the houfe would give him credit for not confidering the question relative to the fortifications with any party impreffion or bias. The queftion was beyond the reach of party; it was in his mind the most important and the most interesting, whether confidered as a quelion of fcience, of revenue, or of conftitution, that was ever fubmitted to the decifion of parliament.

to have given additional animation to the leaders of either party; and Mr. Sheridan was fo fanguine as to declare, that, if the papers that were demanded from administration were granted, and if they bore out Mr. Pitt in the representation he had made of the report in all its parts, he would for one abandon all idea of oppofing the propofal of fuffering the money in queftion to be applied to the fortifications. Mr. Pitt in return, took up the pledge of Mr. Sheridan, and replied, that, if it fhould ultimately appear that the report of the board of officers did not fully and explicitly justify the measure, he would himmelf en tirely relinquish it, and not require a hilling from parliament for the purpofe of carrying it into execution. Mr. Viner, on the thirteenth of February, moved a call of thế houfe, for the purpose of giving greater folemnity to this important deliberation. The motion however was oppofed by Mr. Pitt, as calculated to create an unneceffary delay; and the houfe having divided, the numbers appeared, ayes 54, noes 100. The greater part the papers that were demanded were granted by administration, and the queftion was not brought forward for ultimate decifion, till a fortnight fubfequent to the motion of Mr. Viner.

It appeared in the progrefs of the bufinefs, that the objections of general Burgoyne had been fupported by earl Percy, and that their opinions had been in many refpects hoftile to the intended fyftem; though they were charged by Mr. Pitt with inconfiftency, in having given, to the earlier questions that were offered to them, anfwers favourable to the ideas of the duke of Richmond. Captain Macbride, one of the naval officers, was pointed in his condemnation of the whole fyftem, and his affertion of the lutter inutility of all kinds of fortification for the national defence; and he affured the houfe that his opinion had alfo the fanction of admiral Barrington. The majority however of the board, appears to have been greatly in favour of the fyftem, and there was in no cafe, to the questions that were put, either to the naval or military officers, an entry of more than three diffents out of the whole number.

The difputes, that were thus excited refpecting the real opinions of the members of the board, appear

of

fhould be adopted, and that the matter fhould be brought forward in the most specific and folemn manner. He accordingly moved a refolution, “that it appeared to the houfe, that to provide effectually for fecuring the dock yards of Portfimouth and Plymouth by a permanent fyftem of fortification, founded upon the most oeconomical principles, and requiring the fmallest number of troops poflible to anfwer the purpose of fuch fecurity, was an effential object for the fatety of the itate, intimately connected with the general defence of the kingdom, and neceffary to enable the flcet to act with full vigour and effect, for the protection of commerce, the Support of our diftant poffeffions, and the profecution of offenfive operations in any war, in which the nation might hereafter be engaged." To prove the utility of the fortifications, Mr. Pitt appealed to the unfortunate and calamitous fituation in which we were placed in the late war. A contiderable part of our fleet was confined to our ports, in order to protect our dock yards; and thus we were obliged, to do what Great Britain had never be fore done, to carry on a defenfive war, a war, in which we were un der the neceffity of wafting our refources, and impairing our strength without any profpect of any poffible benefit by which to mitigate our diftrefs. Mr. Pitt felt the quefiion to be a portion of that mementous fyllem, which challenged from its Mature the vigilance and fupport of every administration. Shame and affliction were brought upon us by the American war. Was the houfe ready to stand refponfible to pofterity, for a repetition of fimilar miffortunes and difgrace? Were they willing to take upon themselves the hazard of tranfmitting to the next

generation the dangers and calamities which they had themselves fo bitterly experienced?

Mr. Pitt obferved, that the queftion was not now for the first time to be difcuffed, and that from what had paffed in the house in the lait feffion he thought there was very little room, compatibly with confiftency of conduct, for the oppofition which was intended to be given to the prefent measure. Par liament had then feemed to be aware, that they were not competent to fuch an enquiry, as was neceflary towards forming a proper judgment upon the fubject. It had been on all hands agreed that it was in a great meature a question of confidence, and they had therefore acquiefced in his propofal of fending it to the arbitration of a board of land and fea officers, to be conftituted for that exprefs purpose. The board had confifted of every thing that was great and refpectable in the two profeffions, and they had given to the fubject a higher degree of confideration and research, than had ever been known on such an occafion in any other age or country.

The report, which had been made, was in itfelf fo direct and conclufive as to the neceffity of the meafure, that it ought completely to determine the question, whatever authority it might be thought pro. per to afcribe to the reafons that had been affigned of a collateral nature.

Mr. Pitt was very affiduous in removing the objections, that had been advanced in order to diminish the credit of the report. He obferved, that it had been imputed to adminiftration, that the inftructions given to the board of officers were fuch, as confined them to the neceffity of coming to one certain refult, by means of data propofed to their

cons

confideration, which were merely hypothetical, and afforded no latitude to them for the exercife of their judgment. But how was it poffible this fhould be the cafe, when the two firit data if granted, decided upon the neceflity of eftablifhing fortifications, and when the whole board were unanimous in admitting them? Was it credible, that fuch men could have been duped by chimerical hypothefes, fo abfurd and extravagant as to be tantamount to a convulfion of nature? The principal data upon which feveral parts of the report proceeded, were alfo not the original data referred to the board; but fuch as they thought neceffary to introduce, and fubftitute, as a foundation for their ultimate opinions.

The objection upon which fome reliance had been placed respecting the diffent of certain members of the board, had already been fufficiently investigated. Earl Percy and general Burgoyne had joined with the rest of the board in the first opinions, with respect to the neceffity of fortifications, but they afterwards by a fubfequent propolition declared, that, though neceffary, they were ufelefs, because we were not matters of a fufficient military force to man them. If this were the cafe, our fituation must be deplorable in the extreme. Mr. Pitt felt himself in a painful fituation at being obliged to canvas the opinion of a nobleman in his abfence: the nation however need not defpond at the profpect, thus unintentionally, he was convinced, prefented to them by the nobleman in queftion. The papers, laid upon the table in confequence of motions made by the enemies of the meafure, clearly refuted this opinion. It appeared, that in the year 1779 we had about fifty three thousand men in Eng

land, who were conftantly and uniformly increasing, till, in the year 1782, they amounted to feventyone thoufand. Befide all this our forces in Great Britain bore scarcely any proportion to thole, which we were obliged to diftributethrough our then extenfive dominions, and which, from our prefent fituation, it was not likely would be fo much scattered in a future war. It was therefore abfurd to imagine, as fome perfons had done, that any neceffity would enfue from this measure of augmenting the standing army. The board of officers had declared, that the plan of fortifica-' tion propofed, was not only the best calculated for the defence of the dock-yards, but that it was such as was capable of being ferved with the smallest number of troops. They had added yet a farther recommendation, and affirmed, that the fyftem was calculated even in an unfinished and imperfect ftate, to afford great means of defence, and that every part of the fortifications, though wanting all other affiftance, would prove highly advantageous and useful.

It had been one objection with the enemies of the fyftem, that the idea of fortification was new and unprecedented in this country. But this affertion Mr. Pitt was prepared to combat in the most direct and pofitive manner. He appealed to the ftatutes of king Henry the Eighth, for the truth of his obfervation. The fame policy was obferved by queen Elizabeth, and formed a confiderable part of the defence provided by that great princefs against the expected attack of the armada. During the reign of the house of Stuart, the fame fyftem was occafionally continued. Under queen Anne, when the victories of the British arms were forming the ad

miration