gal

if he should attempt to negative the prefent motion, he might feem defirous to cover what he was not able to defend. If there were in the Proclamations fome inaccuracies of expreffion, from which improper conftructions might be drawn, it was at the fame time to be remembered, that fome of the strongest charges, which had in the first inftance been brought against the conduct of the Commanders, had afterwards turned out not to be true. The firit Proclamation of his Majefty, which had been referred to, was addreffed to the islands, on the idea that they would make no refiftance; Martinique, however, had been difputed, every inch of ground; it had not furrendered, but was captured, and it was evident that the troops had a juft claim to every advantage which they acquired by the right of conqueft. Mr. Dundas ftated, that though, in juftice to the Public, to the lant officers, and to the refpectable perfons whofe petition had that day been prefented, he should not refufe copies of the papers which had been moved, there were various objections which he fhould have afterwards to urge to going into an inquiry to any extent. Thofe were the immediate call upon officers for the public fervice, whofe teftimony might be defired by the Commanders whofe conduct was called in queftion; the advanced period of the feffion, which would neceflarily occafion the absence of many refpectable Members; and the impropriety of taking up in that House, the difcuffion of the claims of individuals with refpect to West India property, which were at prefent in a train of decifion before the proper Courts. One of the evils as ftated to flow from the conduct of thofe Commanders, was the lofs of Guadaloupe, &c. Surely no man could be fo irrational as to fuppofe this. Because the French had landed large reinforcements from Europe, did that flow from their Proclamations? Because privateers had landed men on the island of Grenada, and the Caribbs had joined them in plundering and devaftating the country; could that be attributed to their measures? Nothing fo abfurd. He had Battered himself, that the letter which had been written to a Noble Duke, in anfwer to the Memorials, would have fatisfied Gentlemen, that there was no neceffity for fuch a measure as the prefent. In thefe Memorials the merchants certainly called for a public difavowal of the Proclamations iffued by Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis; but whatever tended to a difavowal, tended alfo to a cenfure on the conduct of the two Commanders, and to any fuch cenfure he fhould have had a decided objection. He should have thought it fufficient that the Proclamations had not been acted upon, and that affairs had returned to the fame fituation on which they were previously to fuch Proclamations. In juftification of the Noble Duke, he

begged

begged leave to read the answer that had been returned to the Memorials that had been presented to him :

"In antwer to certain Memorials on the subject of the two Proclama. tions fue by Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis, I beg leave to affure you, that as fon as Government were informed of the nature of thofe Proclamations, they fent directions to the West Indies, which were fo clearly understood, that the money that had been levied was immediately restored, and the Proclamations cannot but be confidered as annulled."

He objected to any difavowal implying cenfure of a proclamation, which either had not been acted upon, or its effects done away. So far from the complaints which had been talked of, the General Affemby of Martinique had lately voted to Sir Charles Grey a fervice of plate, and a sword, as an expretion of their fatisfaction and gratitude for his conduct.

Mr. Fox declared himself to be a friend to inquiries, but faid, he always wifhed fome ground to be laid for them. The Hon Mover had laid no ground for going into any inquiry. What had been stated by the Hon. Gentleman who feconded him, confiited partly of matter of opinion and partly of fact. The opinion upon which he feemed to proceed was, that plunder ought not to be carried to the extent to which at prefent it was exercifed by the right of conqueft. In this opinion he might agree with him; but at present they were not fitting in an affembly of delegates to new-model the law of nations; they must look to what had been the uniform practice of victorious troops. An Hon. Gentleman had referred to what had paffed at Valenciennes; the cafe was entirely different; Valenciennes capitulated; Martinique was taken, as it were, by ftorm. In order to lay a ground of charge against the Commanders, it would be neceffary to fhew that the accounts given in the Gazette of their conquests were only mifreprefentations to juftify the feverity of their fubfequent treatment of the islands. He ridiculed the idea of the conduct of the British having given rife to a system of retaliation on the part of the French, and of a French General brought up in that fchool of juftice and humanity, the African trade, having modelled his violent declaration from the proclamations of our Commanders. He was astonished to hear that Guadaloupe had been loft by any proceedings of Sir Charles Grey or Sir John Jervis; he had confidered it as having been loft in confequence of the arrival of French reinforcements, the infurrection of the negroes, and the return of perfons who had been sent away for their difaffection to the British government. The gallant Commanders whom he had

juft

1

juft mentioned felt themfelves highly aggrieved by the charges brought against them, and he, leaning to their fide, would certainly vote for an inquiry. What he, however, thould defire, would be a full and fair inquiry, in the confidence, not only from the high military fame, but from the reputation of untainted integrity which thefe gentlemen had maintained through life, that in the result of such an inquiry their hands would be found to be as clean as their exertions had been spirited.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer remarked, that the present was fimply a motion for the production of papers, and not a motion of inquiry. He objected therefore to all discussion, as premature in the prefent ftage of the business. The refult of the production of the papers must be either to afcertain the extent of blame, or completely to do away the imputation, or elfe to leave fuch degree of doubt as might or might not appear a fufficient ground of inquiry. He thould not pledge himself to any fide of the question. It feemed to be the general fenfe to grant the papers, which indeed could be attended with no public inconvenience; as to all details of facts, and difcuffions of principles, he should entirely reserve himself for a future occafion.

Colonel Maitland was of opinion, that thofe Gentlemen who came forward upon this occafion ought to have taken pains to afcertain fome facts, upon which to found afterwards an inquiry, and to fhew that there was reafon for inquiry before they proceeded to call for any papers: Such the Houfe in general expected upon motions for the production of papers; but, instead of this, they called for the papers, and left the matter to be difpofed of afterwards, according as they might be able to fifh for information out of the papers fo produced. He had no objection to the inquiry, and he hoped they had none; but he muft alfo exprefs a hope, that thefe Gentlemen would follow thefe motions for papers with others of fome importance, which would afford to Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis an opportunity of laying all the circumstances of their conduct in the West Indies before the Houfe. When thefe circumftances were brought fairly forward, he had no doubt but that the conduct of thefe gallant officers would reflect on them the highest honour. This would refute all the calumny that had been fo induftrioufly circulated against them. He hoped, that Gentlemen who feemed fo defirous at prefent of entering into the difcuffion of this fubject would keep nothing back, but come forward fairly and candidly. It had been induftriously reported that the British army attacked defenceless towns, only with a view

to

to plunder; but he put it to the hearts of the Houfe, whether it was poffible that fuch men as Generals Campbell and Dundas were capable of fuch mean and deteftable baseness? He also noticed, under different heads, the other reports that had been circulated to the prejudice of Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis, and explained the points that had been erroneously stated, on each of which he argued at some length, and came to conclufions highly favourable to these Gentlemen. As they took poffeffion of the different places mentioned by force of arms, and by ftorm, as had been truly ftated by the Secretary of State, all the property, he faid, became forfeited, and all the inhabitants were fubject, by the law of nations, to a military execution. This doctrine he maintained to be confiftent not only with the fpirit of the law of nations, but alfo with the practice of war in the most modern, as well as ancient times; and viewing the subject in that light, they were, in his opinion, highly meritorious. The circumftances of thefe places being taken by affault, did away all the objections which had been taken against the principle of the proclamation which had been fo much complained of. Thefe objections were built upon the idea that the parties on whom contribution had been levied had furrendered to the British arms, for fo fome of the memorials ftated; but it was ridiculous to talk of the furrender of the inhabitants of a place which had been taken by storm. that he had heard, and all that he knew upon this fubject, led him, as a friend to Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis, to wish for this inquiry, because he was fure that the more their conduct was examined, the more it would appear to their honour; but he could not help expreffing fome regret that perfons who had merited fo much honour, who had fo defervedly received the thanks of the House for their conduct, who had been fo victorious, fhould not yet have received fome mark of his Majefty's approbation, efpecially as others, who no doubt had acted bravely, but had not been equally fuccefsfal, had received Royal favour. He concluded with faying, that as this bufinefs had been brought forward in this manner, he hoped the Houfe would not be content with having a few papers on its table, but that a fair and full inveftigation of the whole matter would be entered into.

Sir William Young wifhed alfo for this inquiry. He expreffed great apprehenfions of the ftate of property in the Weft India islands, in confequence of the principles contained in the Proclamation of Sir Charles Grey and Sir John Jervis. He faid, he had letters from thence, expreffive of great terror on that account, and he wished the principle-in

culcated

culcated by that Proclamation to be done away, by the determination of the Houfe.

Mr. Grey faid, that many circumftances had induced him to fpeak in this debate, at as late a period as he poffibly could. He wished to have heard fully ftated all the objections and all the articles of accufation brought forward on this occafion, against the two officers whofe conduct had now become the object of difcuffion. He was anxious to learn what part would be taken on this occafion by his Majefty's minifters, for they had long been in poffeffion of every proceeding that related to the fubject. He must fay, he felt himself under a confiderable degree of embarraffiment, in confequence of fome part of the conduct of minifters, and of the explana tion given on their behalf. He agreed however in this, that the question, in its prefent fhape, was not adapted for minute detail. He owned, that this proceeding appeared to him in fome refpects fingular. It had been ufual, when inquiries were talked of, to lay fome grounds for entering into them; to ftate fome charge that was to be made out; to state that the papers called for would tend to make out that charge, and that witnefles might be examined to prove it. In the prefent inftance the reverfe was the cafe. Hon. Gentlemen, with a vague cenfure and indifcriminate rumour, feemed to affert they had fome idea that if thefe papers were produced, fome inquiry might in the event be neceflary. This mode of proceeding diftreffed him confiderably. There was no fpecific charge exhibited, but fomething by way of implication. Did he know that this was to be followed up, he might remain filent for the prefent. But as he did not know the cafe would fo turn out, he could not be fure that he fhould have another opportunity of faying any thing. If, after these papers came to be laid upon the table, no inquiry thould be moved for, the business muft end. Ile had fome idea that this might be the cafe, from what he heard that night from his Majefty's minifters, one of whom had given the Houfe to understand that he was rot pledged to any thing upon this fubject. If, therefore, no further proceeding fhould be had than merely laying thefe papers before the Houfe, he should be deprived of an opportunity of giving any explanation upon the matter.

The Secretary of State had entered his caveat against pledging himfelf to any inquiry, becaufe it might be very inconvenient to the fervice to call for the teftimony of officers who might be called abroad; and indeed, that, to a certain degree, was true, for he knew many whofe evidence would be effential if this inquiry were to be entered into.

VOL. III.

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But