was captain Kempenfelt, now an admiral, who had been first captain on board the Victory to three commanders in chief. He had originally been first captain to sir Charles Hardy; he next devolved on Mr. Geary, and late on Mr. Darby. Why he was so fortunate, and had been favoured with so high an honour, he was not able to guess; he had heard indeed, on all hands, that he was an excellent officer; but considering how few other officers of equal standing had countenance under the present administration, the case was certainly singular. When he said this, and when he called upon the noble lord to state why admiral Keppel, lord Howe, admiral Barrington, admiral Campbell, and admiral Pigot, were unemployed, he did not mean to cast the least reflection on any officers who were in service; others whom he had not the honour to be personally known to, he believed were equally objects of respect and esteem. He thought their serving their country at this moment, a matter of great merit, and they had his sincere good wishes; he only desired, that all the ability of the profession might be exercised for the public good, and that by a due distribution of rewards and punishments, the ancient and noble spirit of the British navy might be revived and carried as high as it was last war, when all Europe saw the glory we had obtained at sea with wonder and with envy. He took occasion to remark on the very extraordinary event of the campaign of 1779, declaring, that the people of England, after voting and providing sums beyond all precedent for the service of our fleet, had been witness to the shameful circumstance of the western squadron, the great home security of the country, flying up its own Channel, to avoid a foe of greater force in pursuit of it. Was this a proof of the care of Admiralty? Was this the testimony of their proper application of the sums voted for the navy? Besides, if common report was to be credited, at this moment the western squadron were in the chops of the Channel, incapable of getting higher, and not daring to keep their proper station, because a superior fleet of the enemy was out, convoying a fleet of French merchantmen, &c. to such ports as France had in the Channel. After dwelling a short time upon this, he concluded with declaring, that he expected to have an answer to his questions. expence for actual services increased, the half-pay list of the navy always decreased, and that head of expence grew less as other heads of expence grew greater. At present the half-pay of the navy was not lessened, but was uncommonly large. This was a proof that the old officers, those who had served in the last glorious war, were suffered to remain on half-pay, while new masters and commanders, and new captains, were daily created. With regard to the flag-officers, a matter equally extraordinary was obvious. Last war we had but about 30 admirals in the service; now there were upwards of 60, and 40 of that number had been created in the time of the present first lord of the Admiralty. Out of the 60 admirals now on the list, not more than 20 were employed; and among them, only two of those who had served with so much honour to their country, and so much credit to themselves in the course of last war. Why was this? Why were such great and respectable names as admiral Keppel, lord Howe, admiral Campbell, admiral Barrington, and admiral Pigot, suffered to remain on the halfpay list? This the country ought to know; and the cause ought to be removed, in order to restore spirit and unanimity to the navy. The cause why some of these respectable admirals were unemployed, was certainly no secret. Two of them had served, and how had they been treated? They were obliged to quit the service, because they could have no confidence in the present administration. Feeling as they did, from their experience of the present ministers, they would be fit for Bedlam, if they again trusted them and accepted commands. He observed, that it was now the will of the present first lord of the Admiralty to employ those officers who had received promotion during his presidency at the head of the Admiralty, as well flag-officers as captains, and masters and commanders, in preference to those who had gained their characters last war. As the papers were not before the House, he could not speak precisely as to the captains, masters and commanders: he did not mean to complain, he knew there was not time to prepare them; but he should like to have been able to compare the list, and see whether, from the great number lately created, the greater proportion of those now in actual service were not selected. The only captain of last war who had been promoted, and was in actual service, Lord Lisburne said, he was always ready to answer such questions as he had it in his a superior fleet of the enemy being at sea. Before he could credit this, he must have it well authenticated. But from his knowledge of the bravery, zeal, and good wishes of the officers of the western squadron now at sea, he was perfectly convinced, that let the force of the enemy be superior or not, the fleet of England, under its present commanders, would never justify an accusation of skulking from its station for fear of an enemy. power to reply to. With regard to admiral Keppel, lord Howe, and some other admirals alluded to, he could only say, that one of them, with whom he had the happiness to live in friendship, had been with him that day, and had authorised him to declare, that he was willing to serve as second in command, upon any service, but that he did not choose to accept of a command in chief. The reason the admiral assigned, was rather a proof of his own modesty, than any thing else, Mr. Townshend expressed some surprise the admiral having excused taking a comat what he had heard relative to officers mand in chief, on the plea that his talents on the impress service, receiving both full were not equal to it. He alluded to and half-pay. He also begged the comadmiral Barrington, who it was well known mittee to recollect that he had not used had been more than once pressed to ac- the term "skulking" in what he had said cept the command of the western squadron. relative to the present situation of the fleet With regard to the other admirals alluded of England, as report stated it to be, or of to, they from private motives, best known the motives which occasioned that situato themselves, had declined to serve. As tion. He was far from supposing, that the to the half-pay list, he believed as many officers on board the fleet, would on any old officers, whose age, health and abilities occasion act in such a manner, as to merit would allow them to serve, were in the reproach. He therefore desired it to be service. In reference to flag-officers, he remembered, that the pretty word "skulk” was pretty sure that nearly all who were had been applied to the fleet by the hon. from the state of their health and faculties gentleman who sat at the board of Admicapable of being employed, were em- ralty, and not by him. ployed. And as to the promotions, of late years, it had been a custom to promote the officers of the navy in general according to their seniority, unless in cases of extraordinary merit. Formerly, he believed, the custom had been to elect some and pass by others, which, except under particular circumstances, was surely a little unfair. Mr. Gascoyne acknowledged that he had used the word, but he believed no man could seriously imagine, that when he was speaking in justification of the characters of the officers of the fleet, and in order to rescue them from the possibility of a bad impression operating to their prejudice, he could mean to fix reproach and disgrace upon them. He had not picked his expressions, but had talked of the fleet's skulking, the more stronger to mark his sense of their being incapable of such conduct: perhaps if he had called it a discreet retreat, his expression would have been more suitable. Mr. B. Gascoyne said, that as from his connection with the Admiralty, it might at times be in his power to satisfy the House, he should always be willing to give the House information when he could do so. The noble lord had omitted a part of the answer due to the hon. gentleman, relative Lord North rose to defend the Admito the large half-pay list, and that was, ralty from the suspicions which he said, he that all the captains upon the impress ser- was sorry to see the hon. gentleman, who vice were still on the half-pay list. It spoke first in reply to the noble lord near therefore seemed as if less of the old him, entertained, under an idea that more officers were in actual service than there masters and commanders, and more really were; since in all the great ports captains were made than was necessary, or and towns, the duty of the impress service in fact, that their promotions were mere was committed to captains, who, according election jobs. His lordship declared, if to the rule of the service, received their the entire list was referred to, the contrary half-pay as well as other pay: in small would appear to be the case. Upon lookplaces lieutenants did the duty. Another ing over those promotions of the last year, part of the hon. gentleman's speech seemed which he had in his hand, this was evident. to merit some notice, and that was, with In the course of the last year, the greater regard to the report of our fleet being in part of those promoted, at least one half, the chops of the Channel, not daring to were promotions made by the commanders keep their destined station, on account of in chief at sea, who had a power of making t and personal abuse might be avoided. He post captains, and masters and commanders, as occasion offered. That this power had long been vested in our naval commanders, but that the Admiralty had done all they possibly could to restrain the abuse of it, and had lately in a great measure effected this, by issuing an order, that neither any post captains, nor any masters or commanders, should be made by commanders at sea, excepting only in the cases of death, and sentence of death, incapacity, or suspension, by a court-martial. From the list of the promotions of the last year it appeared, that a full half were promotions at sea, and that the other half were promotions of gentlemen who had done their country such eminent services, as made reward highly necessary, and would have rendered it a matter of censure and blame in the Admiralty, had they passed the services over in silence, for which services the promotions were given. In order to satisfy the committee fully, his lordship read over the names of all that had been made post captains and masters and commanders in the course of the last year, as well those promoted at sea, as those promoted by the Admiralty. Among the latter, were the lieutenant of the Quebec, the lieutenant of the Serapis, the lieutenant of the Apollo, several other officers who had greatly distinguished themselves, and the hon. James Luttrell, whom his lordship described as a very worthy and deserving member of that House. There was scarcely one, the mention of whose name and the ship he had belonged to, did not call to mind some glorious action, performed by the officer named, in the course of the present war. Mr. Fox said, he thought it necessary to repeat what he had stated to the committee when they first took the navy supply into consideration on a former day, namely, that though he did not object to it, he acquiesced in it under an idea that it was generally understood that the late proceedings of the Admiralty would be made the subject of an enquiry, and that the House would proceed to examine on a future day, by whose advice it was, that his Majesty had conferred a post of distinguished honour and emolument on a person convicted of having preferred a malicious and ill-founded accusation against his superior officer. Earl Nugent spoke to order. His lordship with great carnestness begged, for the honour and dignity of the House, that every matter which led to angry discussion [VOL. XXI.] Sir Robert Smith called lord Nugent to order. He insisted upon it, that his hon. friend had not been disorderly in what he had said, and that the noble lord was not warranted in interrupting him. It was perfectly in order, when a question respecting the navy was before the committee, to go into a discussion of the rewards and punishments bestowed on naval officers. It was not merely hulks of ships and guns that made the navy of England, it was the spirit and honour of the officers and the men, and when they were damped, the navy was sure to be ruined. Earl Nugent rose again, and said, the only reason of his interrupting the hon. gentleman had been from a most sincere wish to preserve that general peace, good humour, and temper, within those walls, which alone could give dignity to debate, and assist the public business, in the eyes of Europe, by shewing, that the British parliament was unanimously inclined to [3 N] proceed in the war, and to forward its operations, however debates might arise as to the manner of doing this. He protested he had a very great respect for the hon. gentleman, and for his extraordinary talents; but it was from a painful remembrance of what had already past, and a fear of similar consequences which might end more fatally, that he had interrupted him where he had. Let gentlemen consider how important it was to preserve the honour and dignity of the House from such in jury as it must ever receive, when matters were carried to the length that they had been carried to last year; exclusive of the less important, though very serious matter, the chance the House ran of having two of its members lose their lives. It was from these feelings that he had spoken before, and he hoped to God, what he had said would meet with due attention. Mr. Fox resumed his argument, and said, he had possibly, he was free to confess, in the heat of debate, frequently transgressed the orders of that House, and had often been carried farther than he ought to have been; but if saying a thing deliberately, if saying a thing in cool moments, when nothing had happened in the course of a debate which could justify heat and betray a man into resentment, made it worse, or more wrong than it was at any other time, he, in defiance of that conviction, was ready now, seriously, deliberately, and coolly, to repeat what he had before said, and why?-because he was conscious he was perfectly in order so to do; and he appealed to the committee, whether he had given the least occasion for the noble lord, or for any other person to call him to order. Every word the noble lord had said, referred to matters of a nature perfectly private, matters with which neither that House, nor any committee of that House, had any concern; matters which fell not within the scope of parliamentary debate in any sense whatever. He had said before the very same words, and to the very same effect which he was beginning to repeat, when the noble lord interrupted him. If it had been wrong, if it had been disorderly in itself, it was as much so on the former day when he first mentioned it, as it could be now, and the former day, in that case, would have been the time to have called him to order upon it. He had before avowed, and he begged leave now to repeat the avowal, that he never in that House meant any thing personal; he never said a word, which any man had a right to take as an affront to him as a private gentleman, because he never said a word which was intended to carry any such import; as well might the noble lord in the blue ribbon say, when he was arraigning his public conduct as a minister, that he was affronting and insulting him as a man. The noble lord knew parliamentary order better, the noble lord, he saw, had looked to the motion when he had been called to order, and had not the noble lord's good sense and judgment told him that he was speaking strictly to the question, and that he was not disorderly, he would undoubtedly have risen himself to have called him to order: he therefore should pursue his subject, and he begged once for all, gentlemen would hold in their minds, that he never would be deterred from speaking his sentiments fully and freely in that House, by any dread of consequences personal to himself, consequences which it would be madness for him to wish to incur, or for any man to take pains to draw upon himself. It was therefore in strictness of duty to his constituents, in conformity to his duty as a member of parliament, that he recurred to what he had before said, and for this good reason, which his hon. friend near him had suggested, that it was not merely sails and masts, rigging and hulks; it was not merely yards and timber, that made the navy of England; it was the spirit and high sense of honour of its officers; a spirit and a sense of honour which could not exist, but under a proper administration of justice in the Admiralty, by a proper distribution of rewards and punishments. How, then, was the navy to be expected to flourish, when the person convicted of having preferred a false and malicious accusation against his superior officer, and who was barely acquitted when tried by a court-martial, upon charges exhibited against himself, was promoted to a post of distinction, of honour, and of profit; and here he begged leave to say, he did not blame that person; it was the first lord of the Admiralty, the earl of Sandwich, who was alone to blame, who ought to be made the subject of inquiry. What had been said formerly, when the accusation was first preferred against his hon. relation, admiral Keppel, but that the accuser was the instrument, the Admiralty the principals. It was they who suggested, who prompted, who spurred on the accusation. It was attempted to be denied on the part of the Admiralty; but what would men say to it now, when the accuser, after being pronounced by the sense of one court-martial, a false and malicious accuser, and being barely, not honourably, acquitted by another, was rewarded with an office of high honour, of great emolument? What had been the accuser's own sense of his conduct immediately after the first sentence was pronounced? Had he not abdicated his seat in parliament? Had he not resigned his seat at the Admiralty-board? Had he not made a discreet retreat from public notice? His hon. friend below him had asked, why was not admiral Keppel, lord Howe, and others employed? His hon. friend, from a lapse of memory only, had, he was sure, omitted to mention the name of another great officer, who ought undoubtedly to have been employed; he meant sir Robert Harland. But the motives why these great officers refused to serve, were obvious: they were not, as the noble lord had termed them, private; they were public motives. The reason was, they could not serve with confidence or with safety, under an administration guilty of convicted falsehood, and not merely of notorious, but of recorded treachery. This was the reason, the true, the only reason. There were certainly in the service several very worthy and respectable officers; men, who having no situation like that of his hon. relation, had not the same risk to run. Men who had no parliamentary connections, no connections which rendered it, in their opinions, likely that ministers should endeavour to ruin them. They had his applause and his thanks for serving, as heartily as that of any other member of parliament; as heartily as he gave his applause and his thanks to sir George Rodney, to whom he had so repeatedly declared, and with sincerity declared, that applause was eminently due. But still no man who wished well to his country, could avoid lamenting, that it was impossible for the great and distinguished characters alluded to, at this moment of exigency to serve their country; every man that wished well to his country, could not but most anxiously endeavour to remove that only bar to their service, the present administration. It was, he confessed, the wish of his heart, his constant endeavour, to do his country that essential service; and therefore it was, that he hoped after the holidays, the sentence of the second court-martial, which had been refused before, might be moved for, when he would move a question for an inquiry into the conduct of the earl of Sandwich; and he made no scruple to say, that his first and principal motive for it, was, that the first lord of the Admiralty had promoted to a post of distinguished honour, a gentleman who had been convicted by a court-martial of having preferred a malicious and ill-founded charge against his superior officer; his secondary motive was, because the gentleman so promoted, when tried by a second court-martial, before whom charges had been exhibited against him, had been not honourably, but only barely acquitted. He concluded, with saying, that the inquiry was essential to the public, and essential to the navy, and that it ought to be brought on as soon as possible after the holidays. Lord North said, that whenever an enquiry into the conduct of administration was brought on, either on the present grounds, or on any other, he assuredly would not attempt to parry it by a call of order, by taking refuge under any form of the House, or by any shift of the question whatever. With regard to the threatened enquiry, he cared not how soon it was brought on; the sooner the better; he was ready to meet it fully and frankly, to join issue upon it with the hon. gentleman, and go into an investigation of the merits without reserve. The hon. gentleman had declared he rested his reasons for thinking an enquiry necessary, in the present case, principally on the sentence of the court-martial which tried Mr. Keppel, and in which sentence the person who preferred the charges against Mr. Keppel, was pronounced a false and malicious accuser. As the hon. gentleman meant to bring on an enquiry, he would not go into a very ample discussion of that point now; he would only say shortly, what he had before said more at large, and should say more at large again; the court martial was convened for the purpose of trying Mr Keppel, and not sir Hugh Palliser; the court martial had a regular charge submitted to their consideration and decision against the one; they had no charge whatever before them against the other; in pronouncing, therefore, sentence upon the motives of the accuser, they had exceeded the line of their jurisdiction, and had condemned a man unheard, who had no opportunity of trial, no opportunity of entering upon his defence. With regard to the main cause upon which the hon. gen. tleman had declared his eagerness for an enquiry, namely, the having given sir Hugh Palliser, accused as he was by the |