cillity, combined with the wickedness of their servants, the very name of an Englishman is detested, even to a proverb, through all Asia, and the national character is become degraded and dishonoured. To rescue that name from odium,' and redeem this character from disgrace, are some of the objects of the present Bill; and Gentlemen should indeed gravely weight their opposition to a measure which, with thousand other points, not less valuable, aims at the attainment of these objects. Those who condemn the present Bill, as a violation of the chartered rights of the East-India Company, condemn, on the same ground, I say again, the Revolution, as a viòla, tion of the chartered rights of King James II. He, with as much reason, might have claimed the property of dominion. But what was the language of the people? No, you have no property in dominion; dominion was vested in you, as it is in every chief magistrate, for the benefit of the community to be governed: it was a sacred trust delegated by compact: you have abused the trust; you have exercised dominion for the purposes of vexation and tyranny not of comfort, protection and good order; and we therefore resume the power which was originally ours: we recur to the first principles of all government, the will of the many; and it is our will that you shall no longer abuse your dominion. The ca se is the same with the East-India Company's government over a territory, as it has been said by Mr. Burke, of 280,000 square miles in extent, nearly equal to all Christian Europe, and containing 30,000,000 of the human race. It matters not whether dominion arises from conquest, or from compact. Conquest gives no right to the conqueror to be a tyrant; and it is no violation of right, to abolish the autho rity which is misused. 2) MR. FOX AGAINST THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER *). - But, Sir, I should, think that it is the interest of Bonaparte to make peace. A lover of military glory as that Ge *) Bruchstück einer von Fox den 3ten Februar 1800 gehaltenen Rede gegen W. Pitt, über die, in des letztern (zum Theil oben S. 533 mitgetheilten) Rede enthaltene Weigerung, unter den damaligen Umständen mit Frankreich Frieden zu schliefsen. Es fortune neral must necessarily be, may he not think that his measure of glory is full that it may be tarnished by a reverse of - and can hardly be increased by any new laurels? He must feel, that, in the situation to which he is now raised, he scan no longer depend on his own fortune, his own genius and his own talents, for a continuance of his success; he must be under the necessity of employing other generals, whose misconduct or incapacity might endanger his power, or whose triumphs even might affect the interest which he holds in the opinion of the French. Peace, then, would secure to him what he had atchieved and fix the inconstancy of fortune. But this will not be his only motive. He must see that France also requires a respite → a breathing interval, to recruit her wasted strength. To procure her this respite would 'be, perhaps, the attainment of more solid glory, as well as the means of acquiring more solid power than any thing which he can hope to gain from arms, and from the proudest triumphs. May he not then be zealous to gain this fame, the only species of fame, perhaps that is worth acquiring? Nay, granting that his soul may still burn with the thirst of military exploits, is it not likely that he is disposed to yield to the feelings of the French people, and consolidate his power by consulting their interests! I have a right to argue in this way, when suppositions of his sincerity are reasoned upon on the other side. Sir, these aspersions are in truth always idle, and even mischievous. I have been too long accustomed to hear imputations and calumnies thrown out upon great and honourable characters, to be much influenced by them. My hon. and learned Friend (Mr. Erskine) has paid this night a most just, deserved and honourable tribute of applause, to the memory of that great and unparallelled character, who is so recently lost to the world. I must, like him, beg leave a moment to dwell on the venerable George Washington, though I know that it is impossible for me to bestow any thing like adequate' praise on a character which gave us more than any other human being, the example of a perfect man; yet, good, great, and unexampled as General Washington was, I can remember the time, when he was not better spoken of in this House than Bonaparte is steht in der zuletzt angeführten Sammlung der Parliamentsreden von Fox, Theil 6, S. 416 u. ff. now. The right hon. Gentleman who opened this debate (Mr. Dundas *) may remember in what terms of disdain, of virulence, even of contempt, General Washington was spoken of by gentlemen on that side of the House. Does he not re collect with what marks of indignation any member was stigmatized as an enemy to his country, who mentioned with common respect, the name of General Washington? If a ne gotiation had then been proposed to be opened with_that great man, what would have been said? Would you treat with a rebel, a traitor! What an example would you not give by such an act? I do not know whether the right hon. Gentleman may not yet possess some of his old prejudices on the subject. I hope not: I hope by this time we are all convinced that a republican government, like that of America, may exist without danger or injury to social order, or to established monarchies. They have happily shewn that they can maintain the relations of peace and amity with other states. They have shewn too that they are alive to the feelings of honour; but they do not lose sight of plain good sense and discretion. They have not refused to negotiate with the French, and they have accordingly the hopes of a speedy termination of every difference. (Am Schlusse dieser Rede setzt er hinzu:) Where then, Sir, is this war, which on every side is = pregnant with such horrors, to be carried? Where is it to stop? Not till you establish the House of Bourbon! And this you cherish the hope of doing, because you have had a successful campaign. Why, Sir, before this you have had a successful campaign. The situation of the allies, with all they have gained, is surely not to be compared now to what it was when you had taken Valenciennes, Quesnoy, Conde etc. which induced some gentlemen in this House to prepare themselves for a march to Paris. With all that you have gained, you surely will not say that the prospect is brighter now than it was then. What have you gained but the recovery of a part of what you before lost? One campaign is and in this way, successful to you another to them animated by the vindictive passions of revenge, hatred and *) Gegenwärtig Lord Melville. 1 rancour, which are infinitely more flagitious, even than those of ambition and the thirst of power, you may go on for ever; as with such black incentives, I see no end to human misery. And all this without an intelligible motive all this because you may gain a better peace a year or two hence! So that we are called upon to go on merely as a speculation. We must keep Bonaparte for some time longer at a war, at a state of probation. Gracious God, Sir, is a war a state of probation? Is peace a rash system? Is it dangerous for nations to live in amity with each other? Is your vigilance, your policy, your common powers of observation, to be extinguished by putting an end to the horrors of war? Cannot this state of probation be as well undergone without adding to the catalogue of human sufferings? But we must pause!" What! must the bowels of Great Britain be torn out her best blood be spilt her treasure wasted that you may make an experiment? Put yourselves, oh! that you would put yourselves in the field of battle, and learn to judge of the sort of horrors that you excite. In former wars a man might, at least, have some feeling, some interest, that served to balance in his mind the impressions which a scene of carnage and of death must inflict. If a man had been present at the battle of Blenheim *) for instance, and had inquired the motive of the battle, there was not a soldier engaged who, could not have satisfied his curiosity, and even perhaps, allayed his feelings they were fighting to repress the uncontrouled ambition of the Grand Monarque **). But if a man were present now at a field of slaughter, and were to inquire for what they are fighting ,, Fighting, would be the answer; „ they are not fighting, they are pausing. Why is that man expiring! Why is that other writhing with agony? What means this implacable fury?" The answer must be, You are quite wrong Sir, you deceive They are not fighting they are merely pausing that man is not dead Do not disturb them - 66 this man is not expiring with he is only pausing! Lord help you, Sir, they are not angry with one another. They *) Blenheim oder Blindheim ein Dorf bei Hochstädt, wo den 13ten August 1704 die Französische und Bayersche Armee von dem Herzog von Marlborough und dem Prinzen Eugen auf's Haupt geschlagen wurde. **) Ludwigs XIV. but their country thinks All that you see, Sir, is no have now no cause of quarrel that there should be a pause. thing like fighting there is no harm, nor cruelty, nor bloodshed in it whatever it is nothing more than a poliit is merely to try an experiment to see tical pause whether Bonaparte will not behave himself better than heretofore and in the mean time we have agreed to pause in pure friendship.“ And is this the way, Sir, that you are to shew yourselves the advocates of order! You take up a system calculated to uncivilize the world to destroy order to trample on religion to stifle in the heart, not merely the generosity of noble sentiment, but the affections of social nature; and in the prosecution of this system, you spread terror and devastation all around you. - RICHARD SHERIDAN. ICHARD BRINSLEY SHERIDAN wurde im Oktober des Jahres 1751 zu Dublin geboren. Sein Vater, welcher 1788 starb, war ein vorzüglicher Schauspieler, und hatte sich auch durch einige pädagogische und grammatische Schriften rühmlichst bekannt gemacht; dahin gehört unter andern; a general Dictionary of the English language; Lectures on the art of reading in two parts; a Course of Lectures on elocution; the Works of the Rev. Dr. Jonathan Swift, arranged, revised and corrected. Die Mutter unsers Sheridan schrieb verschiedene gute Schauspiele, als: the Discovery, the Dupe, a Trip to Bath, und lesbare Romane, als: Sidney Biddulph; Nourjadah an oriental tale etc. Der junge Sheridan, welcher in seiner ersten Jugend keine grofsen Fähigkeiten zeigte, wurde nebst seinem ältern Bruder Charles Francis, der Sorgfalt des Herrn Sam. Whyte zu Dublin übergeben. Nach einem achtzehnmonatlichen Aufenthalt allhier, brachten beide Brüder ein Jahr bei ihren Ältern zu, welche damals bei Windsor wohnten. Richard Brinsley kam hierauf 1762 in eine öffentliche Schule, und hier war es, wo er durch Ehrgeiz angespornt, seine Talente zu entwickeln begann, und sich so eifrig und glücklich auf Wissenschaften und Sprachen legte, dafs sein |