conscious that the more their conduct was examined into, the less they would be found to merit the opprobrium with which they had been loaded. The charges against the slave trade were either true or false. If they were true, the trade ought to be abolished; but if, upon inquiry, they were deemed to be without foundation,, justice ought to be done to the characters of those who were concerned in it. The African merchants and planters were equally earnest in their desire, that the subject should be inquired into immediately.

Mr. BURKE said, that the noble lord being a man of justice himself, had reasoned according to the dictates of his mind, and, conscious of his own integrity, was very naturally led to imagine, that other men were equally just and honourable. Undoubtedly, the African merchants and planters had a right to call for an investigation of their conduct, and their doing so did them great credit. The slave trade ought to be inquired into: it ought to be fully and maturely considered; but he agreed with the chancellor of the exchequer, that the subject could not be discussed this session, and that it was right that his majesty's ministers should inquire into its merits. His majesty's ministers had done their duty, while that House, who had the petitions of the people on their table, had deferred an inquiry. If that House wished to preserve their functions, their understandings, their honour, and their dignity, he advised them to beware of committees of the privy council. If they suffered the business of the House to be done by such committees, they were abdicating their trust and character, and making way for an entire abolition of their functions, which they were parting with one after another. Thus, " Star after star goes out, and all is night." If that House neglected the petitions of its constituents, that House must be abolished, and the privy council substituted in its stead. What would be the consequence? His majesty's ministers, instead of consulting that House, and giving them. the opportunity of exercising their functions of deliberation and legislation, would modify the measures of government elsewhere, and bring down the edicts of the privy council to

the House to register. He was one of those who wished for the abolition of the slave trade. He thought it ought to be abolished on principles of humanity and justice. If, however, opposition of interests should render its total abolition impossible, it ought to be regulated, and that immediately. The House need not send to the West Indies to know the opinions of the planters on the subject; they were to consider first of all, and abstracted from all political, personal, and local considerations, that the slave trade was directly contrary to the interests of humanity; and that the state of slavery, however mitigated, was a state so improper, so degrading, and so ruinous to the feelings and capacities of human nature, that it ought not to be suffered to exist. Protraction might raise hopes in the unfortunate people whose freedom they were anxious to restore, that might produce infinite mischief, if suffered to remain long ungratified. They ought, therefore, as soon as possible, to go into an investigation of the subject, as well for the sake of the planters as the slaves, to prevent the dangers that might result from protraction, and allay the hopes and fears that might have been excited on the one hand, or entertained on the other.

The motion was agreed to nem. con.

GOVERNMENT OF QUEBEC.

May 16.

THIS day, the House having resolved itself into a committee on the petitions which had been presented relative to the government of the province of Quebec, Mr. Lymburner, the agent of the province, was called to the bar, where he read a variety of written documents, stating the proceedings which had taken place before the judges in Canada, from whence it appeared that their decisions had been formed on vague and

indeterminate principles, one deciding according to the Roman law, another according to the French law, a third according to the English law, and a fourth without regard to any code of law, but solely in conformity to the dictates of his conscience. The documents also afforded proof of the existence of a variety of acts of oppression and injustice in the practice of the law in Canada, which called aloud for remedy. After the agent had withdrawn, Mr: Powys called the attention of the committee to the subject, and moved, "That it is the opinion of the committee, that the petitions are deserving of the immediate and serious consideration of parliament." Should the present motion not be agreed to, he would in that case move, "That this House will, early in the next session of parliament, proceed to take into consideration the matters of the said petitions." The motion was supported by Sir Matthew White Ridley, Mr. Fox, Mr. Burke, Mr. Sheridan and others; and opposed by Mr. Pitt, principally on the ground, that the House wanted more information, and were not ripe to proceed to inquire into and discuss the subject. He therefore moved, "That the chairman do leave the chair."

Mr. BURKE said, that he rose under some degree of terror to oppose the motion, that the chairman do leave the chair, because having seen the manner in which the chancellor of the exchequer had treated other honourable gentlemen who spoke before him on the same side of the question, he knew not what he was to expect for having the confidence and the impudence to support them in their arguments. The right honourable gentleman, Mr. Burke said, was not a member of that House, nor had he commenced his political career, when the Quebec bill was first brought in and debated; but throughout those debates, he (Mr. Burke) had been one of its most steady opposers, and had predicted, that the consequences it would produce would be nearly what they had turned out to be. He knew not whether we were not in a great measure to ascribe to that bill much of the mischief that followed it, the American war and the loss of the colonies, since it held out to all our provinces what sort of government was most wished to be established in America by some of those in power

here. It was a measure dealt out by this country in its anger, under the impulse of a passion that ill suited the purposes of wise legislation. The Quebec act had been loudly complained of, as containing a system of government ill adapted to the province of Canada, and it was now, he believed, universally agreed that it was so. Why, then, let that act remain unrepealed? Why not proceed to repeal it instantly, even if it could not with convenience be immediately followed up with the establishment of a new and better system of government? The right honourable gentleman had intimated, that he stood in want of more information, and that they were not ripe to proceed to inquire into and discuss the subject. Not ripe after twentyfive years' experience! Nay, the right honourable gentleman had gone farther, and declared, that possibly they might not have sufficient information before them, and not be ripe enough for the discussion next session. He might go on in that manner, making the same objection year after year, so that most probably by far the greater part of that House would be rotten before they were "ripe." The right honourable gentleman put him in mind of a certain philosopher, whose mother wanted him to marry; and upon her asking him to take a wife, his answer was, was too young.' A few years elapsed, and the matron, anxious for a progeny to keep up the family, again solicited her son to wed; his answer again was, "he was too young." More years elapsed, and the old woman asked him a third time to take a wife, when the philosopher answered, “he was too old." So the right honourable gentleman might go on, year after year, till the opportunity of establishing a new form of government over Canada would have escaped. The right honourable gentleman had made a fine dissertation on the beauty of the British constitution; he had praised it highly, and had declared himself extremely desirous to communicate its blessings to all parts of the world, but he had followed up his encomiums with a declaration of delay. Thus had he at length

he

that could express one sort of desires, and unite them with an opposite species of practice. Who, before the right honourable gentleman, had been able to hold popular language at the same time that he held possession of power? To join a theoretical recommendation of action with an effectual exercise of practical delay? Mr. Burke said, he wished to relieve the minister from his difficulty and his dilemma, by persuading him to carry his professed wishes into immediate performance. The right honourable gentleman had said, he above all things thought a house of assembly a blessing fit to be given to Canada, but that it might not be given them, because it was notorious that the province of Canada was then distracted with the differences of opinion that prevailed in it, as to the best mode of establishing laws of commerce. So far from admitting that proposition to be well founded, Mr. Burke declared, it operated in his mind directly the other way, and was of itself a strong argument for the immediate institution of a house of assembly. If there were a great variety of discordant opinions afloat in Canada, on the subject of the sort of laws most applicable to the concerns of the province, it was highly necessary that there should be some organ created in Canada, to speak by authority what the opinions were, and which of them was most prevalent, and merited the greatest share of attention. The present was the proper time, at least to proceed as far as his honourable friend had declared it to be his intention to proceed. From what the right honourable gentleman had said, how were they sure the House would next year be able to get a step farther than they had done that day? With ample information before them in the petitions on their table, with that information supported and strengthened by oral evidence delivered at their bar, why were they not ripe to proceed? Was it because the right honourable gentleman had talked of counter-petitions, which he would not let them see? Next year, the, same scene might be repeated, and the same plea of want of information urged. What must the gentlemen who had felt it to be their duty to agitate the question rela