it was a prerogative, the exercise of which it was the duty of that House to examine. With respect to the conduct of captain Gawler, in refusing to erase his name from the society alluded to, in compliance with the imperious orders of a number of officers, all of whom were inferior to himself, except one of them, he must say, that to make such a circumstance the foundation of dismission was against all the principles of military distinctions, against the principles of justice, and highly injurious to the service, When he saw a meritorious gentleman dismissed the service in this way, without a reason, it gave him great concern. He said again, this gentleman ought to have had a court martial; but although ministers had not assigned a reason for dismissing these officers, he would venture to say what were not the reasons for dismissing this gentleman. They did not dismiss them for want of an honourable character. No! caprice, founded upon political topics, was the sole reason. With regard to lord Edward Fitzgerald, his abilities and cou-vernment for what they had done. He rage have been tried; and he had acquitted himself to his honour, and to the satisfaction of the public, and of his most sanguine friends. Captain Gawler, too, had more than once signalised himself in the service.

plied to for a subscription for Poland, he confessed that his heart was engaged in her favour; every thing that could move his affections pleaded in favour of Poland; but doubting so much on the point of propriety, he hesitated, and finally declined subscribing. He took notice of the case of captain Gawler. He belonged to a society, called a Society for Constitutional Information: there was no imputation upon captain Gawler for being a member of this society at first, because the professions of its founders were harmless; but it had long since changed its original character, and now its members held open correspondence with certain societies in France, for the express purpose of altering the constitution of this country; citizen Joel Barlow, citizen John Adams, and citizen Frost, were engaged in this correspondence. He saw no rea son why one of his majesty's officers should object to erasing his name from such a society. Upon all these conside-· rations, he was not ready to blame go

Mr. Burke entered into the nature of the king's prerogative to dismiss any of his officers without assigning a reason for it. It was a power wisely given to his majesty by the constitution, and was not to be called in question. He admitted the exercise of it might be abused, and when that was the case, that House ought to interfere; but he did not think it so in the present instance. He took notice of what Mr. Fox had said with respect to "the probability of a war with a foreign power, in which case we should be armed." Here he agreed with Mr. Fox; but with respect to the other part, where he said he thought "we might build on tranquillity at home," he differed from him widely, and observed, that he never knew an armament that was not applicable to both. He thought the conduct of these officers highly improper and unconstitutional; for so appeared to him the raising of money by individuals, without the direction or consent of the king, and without the interference of parliament, and to support a war against a power with whom we were actually in alliance. So forcibly did these points strike him, that, when he was ap+

thought that government should judge of the conduct of its military officers by its own discretion, in the same way as a jury judged of the tendency of a seditious libel: just as a jury decided in the case of libels, so should the crown of the conduct of its officers.

Here the conversation dropped.

Debate in the Commons on the Alien Bill.] Dec. 28. On the order of the day for the second reading of the Alien Bill,

Mr. Secretary Dundas rose to state the objects of it. He observed, that so very great and extraordinary an influx of foreigners into this country must, at any time, have called for the attention of government, and rendered some measures on their part necessary. That attention was still more requisite, and the necessity of adopting some particular measures was still more urgent, when it was considered that this influx of foreigners had come from a country which had lately been the scene of very extraordinary transactions; where their constitution had been overthrown, and acts of the most dreadful enormity had been perpetrated. In these transactions a very great number of the people, either from compulsion or inclination, had taken an active part. It was likewise to be considered, that the revolution which had been brought about was not confined to the country where it had

lar regulations of the bill, which he hoped would, in the present circumstances, be considered necessary to the safety of the state, and not giving a power to the executive government greater than the occasion justified. He had only one circumstance more to mention. If he was called upon to state the grounds upon which he had founded his allegations, he would decline entering into any detail, and appeal to the general sense of the House to determine how far they were well founded. As this bill was grounded on suspicion, and authorized the executive government to act upon that principle, it would be impossible, with any degree of propriety, to lay open the particular sources of information.

first originated, that it affected the whole of Europe, and was connected with principles which were directed against every government. It became, then, a matter of serious attention, if the foreigners who had come into this country were influenced by those principles; and it was his duty not to conceal from the House, that many of those who had fled from their own country had been engaged in those very transactions of cruelty and outrage which, he was confident, no one would defend. And this was not all: it became matter of still more serious consideration, since there had been found men in this country so infatuated as to adopt those very principles which, in the country where they originated, had overthrown the constitution, and which were inimical Sir Gilbert Elliot said, that it was alto every government. There existed ways with extreme reluctance that he likewise those, in the acting government rose to speak, from a consciousness of his of that neighbouring country, who en- own incapacity to claim the attention of couraged the addresses of the discon- that House. The reluctance, however, tented and disaffected in this against our which he now particularly felt, arose from constitution, and who published decrees a different cause-a cause, namely, a diftending to favour their views, and flatter ference of opinion between himself and them with hopes of support. When he some honourable friends whom he highly had stated these circumstances, he trusted respected and esteemed. This difference that it would not be thought that there of opinion, he trusted, however, would not was not sufficient ground for some degree affect their private friendship, which, he of caution in the present moment. If it hoped, would ever remain unaltered. was allowed that there was ground for This sentiment he was more particularly some measures to be taken, it would then led to express, as he had received disonly remain to be determined how far the tinguished marks of friendship from one proposed measures were too strong or too right hon. gentleman (Mr. Fox), with excessive. He then briefly stated the whom he was now compelled to express several clauses of the bill. It was in his difference in opinion. On this octended in the first instance, to make all casion he felt himself prompted by foreigners, arriving in the kingdom, give duty to declare, that since the close. an account of themselves; to make them of last session he had felt much regret give up such arms as they might have in from what had been said by that right their possession; he did not mean such hon. gentleman. The views which he enarms as were natural for gentlemen to tertained of the present situation of affairs wear, but such as might naturally excite were not only widely different from his suspicion against the owners. It was also own, but the means which he proposed to intended, that, in their several removals be pursued for the public welfare were through the country, they should use such as appeared to him to be even of an passports, by which their actual residence opposite tendency. This difference of or occasional movements, might be noto- opinion was not respecting a particular rious. For the same reason it was also measure, so as to afford him a hope that intended to distribute those who received they might again reconcile their difference support into certain districts, where also of sentiment, and be able to act together they would be more liable to the cogni--it was a difference of such a nature as zance of the civil power. Finally, it was proposed to pay particular attention to those foreigners who have come within the present year, or who may hereafter come without obvious reasons, and thus be rendered more liable to suspicion. He then entered into a detail of the particu

to affect their whole turn of thinking, and rendered their views respecting the mode of conduct which ought to be adopted in the present crisis diametrically opposite. He considered it as the duty of every man to stand forward in support of his majesty's government, and thus to

who had condemned his former friends to banishment in Sinope, it might have been expected, considering the desolateness and sterility of the land, would have paused, would have thought that a sufficient punishment: but he had not done so. All that he could say was, that nothing should be wanting on his part, nothing that was yielding or complying, nothing that was conciliating or friendly, no submission that friendship and old habits of intimacy could suggest, that he should not be ready to enter into, if, in his opinion, it could operate for the public good. Upon the present bill, as nothing had been alleged that could justify the principle, which he had no hope of opposing with success, and as it contained many provisions that could be better debated in a committee than in any other stage, he should reserve what he had to say until it came to that stage.

- Mr. Burke said, that although party connexions were extremely proper for mutual arrangement in private, and convenience of public business, they were seldom fit to become the subject of public debate. No man was more unfit than he was to enter into any discussion of the state of parties. To talk of parties was, he remarked, a matter of particular delicacy, as the confidence of private friendship was often so much intermixed with public duty, that the transaction of

by him, that he could not express what he felt in speaking of him; a nobleman with whom he had lived seventeen years on terms of friendship, and for ten of those seventeen had been in habits of the great est intimacy and affection; and he would venture to say that he esteemed him at least as much as the hon. baronet. He could not bring himself to believe that that nobleman entertained the opinion professed by the hon. baronet; for he had heard that that nobleman, in giving his support to the present bill, had expressly declared that he could not forget the manner in which the present administration came into power, and that great part of the difficulties in which the country was now involved was owing to their misconduct. He therefore believed that no essential difference existed between that noble person and himself.-If differences did arise from doubts that were entertained, he asked only for a fair discussion, that it might be distinctly known wherein it was they differed. He firmly believed, that on all the principles of liberty, they not only agreed in motives but in actions; that they agreed in every thing except the bill. He disapproved of this bill, and they approved-which was all the difference of which he knew. But as to other differences (and he was conscious of no other), that subject must be farther discussed, and better understood between them. He had long acted, and he wished to continue to act, with cha-parties required a sort of sanctity which racters whom he esteemed and loved; but if he should be driven, which God forbid! to the situation of acting without, or even against those characters, he hoped and trusted he should have sense enough to discern his duty, and fortitude to perform it. Painful as such a separation would be to him, and requiring as it would do his utmost fortitude to bear, he must then consider whether he should act alone, or not act at all. He trusted, however, he should act according to his own sense of duty, if he was compelled to do the one or the other. If, on the other hand, the difference on the present bill should be the only material difference between them, they might still act in conjunction, as they had formerly done, and he hoped that all attempts, to magnify accidental differences, while they agreed on one general principle, would fail of their effect. There were other persons from whom he expected an entire difference on certain questions, and he had not been deceived. The right hon. gentleman (Mr. Burke),

precluded any disclosure. This delicacy was particularly increased, when friends, who loved and esteemed one another, were compelled, in consequence of a difference of opinion, to pull different ways and felt all the distraction natural to virtuous minds in such a situation. If he might be allowed to talk of himself, he might state, that ever since he came into parliament, his doors had been open to all; none had been refused admittance, though the practice had been attended with much inconvenience to himself. To the allusion about Sinope, he had nothing to an swer. The phalanx had sent him, not to Sinope, but in the common phrase, to Coventry. What endeavours had been used to make him odious to the public, and to his private friends, all the world knew. Yet this Sinopian, this dog of Athens, had not barked from his tub. He had violated no principle, he had betrayed no secret, he had not attempted to come between the resolution and the act; and farther he had not to say. With regard