clude with would not tend to rob the King of a particle of his prerogative. He would simply propose a Resolution of censure on the commander in chief for not transmitting the memorial of captain Foskett to his Majesty, as he was bound by the articles of war to do, and he should then move an Address to his Majesty, acquainting him of the refusal of the commander in chief to transmit captain Foskett's memorial, and praying his Majesty to order an enquiry into all the circumstances of the case.

The Resolutions having been handed to the chair, the first, which recited the 1st article of the 12th section of the articles of war, having been read,

wish to correct. So far from this being the case, they persisted in the accuracy of their first statement. One of these officers was colonel Grant, who, though not in the regiment at the time the duel took place, was perfectly acquainted with all its circumstances: another was lieutenant and adjutant Jones, who had been 14 years in the 15th dragoons, and desired that his name might be mentioned. To prove that hair triggers were used, contrary to what was stated in captain Foskett's pamphlet, this officer declared that lieutenant Wallace told him that it was in the act of setting a hair trigger that his pistol went off, and which discharge was reckoned as a shot. But granting all General Craufurd said, that having been that was stated in the book, there was no so frequently alluded to by the honoura- material difference between his statement ble member, he felt it incumbent on him and that of the hon. member, He stated to take the earliest opportunity of offering that the principals in the duel had adhimself to the House. His sentiments on vanced three paces, whereas it turned out this subject remained unaltered. Nothing they advanced but two. The hon. mem. he had read, nothing he had heard from ber had asked if persons who went out to the hon. member, produced the least fight a duel on gross provocation, were to change in them. The motion he consi- withdraw or shake hands after a shot or dered as of the most dangerous tendency. two. He thought they should, and he had It went to nothing less than to wrest the seen a great deal more of that business command of the army from the Crown. than the hon. member, though he was not If the allegations in the petition of the half so bloody-minded. Had captain. table should be established against the Foskett been brought to trial for his concommander in chief, and the duke of Cum- duct respecting the duel, that court marberland, the one would be unfit to com- tial would be highly criminal which mand the army, and the other the regi- should not have sentenced him to be ment of which he was colonel. The cashiered. With respect to stopping the House was not aware of the mischief pro- promotion in the regiment, his royal highduced by the publication of these charges, ness the duke of Cumberland admitted and it was for the purpose of arresting it that he had recommended the second that he offered himself on a former occa captain in the regiment for promotion, in sion, as well as the present, to the House. preference to captain Foskett. This he When he took upon himself to answer the had done from the opinion he had formed allegations in the petition, he did so from of captain Foskett's inefficiency; an opidocuments in his possession. He had a nion that was confirmed by the report of written statement of every tittle which he col. Seymour and adjutant Jones. The uttered on the subject in the House. He latter had positively described him as a had also the authorities of the parties to negligent troop officer. Such also was that statement to give up their names if it the opinion of col. Grant, since he had got should be required. He disclaimed, and into the regiment. He maintained that he trusted the House would give credit the succession of the oldest captain to a to the assurance, being actuated by any vacant majority was not always a matter feelings of a personal nature on the occa- of course, for an officer might be compesion; he acted only as the advocate of tent to command a troop, and yet be inthe parties who furnished him with the adequate to the duties of a field officer. documents. When capt. Foskett's pamph- Such was the predicament in which caplet appeared, he read it over with the tain Foskett stood. All the documents in greatest attention, and then went to the his possession clearly proved this. (A pârties and desired them to consider whe-call of Read, read.) He was sorry he could ther some inaccuracy might not have crept into the statement they had authorised him to make, which they might

not comply with the wishes of the gentlemen on the other side, for he had not the documents about him. He had left

For

them at home, upon the conviction that Mr. Whitbread, feeling that captain he would not be allowed to read them; Foskett was a victim to injustice, not only and indeed he was much surprised to see in the matter complained of, but also the House allow the hon. member to from the statements of the gallant officer read letters and pamphlets as part of his who had just sat down, begged to say a speech. There was another charge he few words upon the question. When the also had to make against captain Foskett, gallant general entered into the question and that was his being party to a breach with a view to the defence of the duke of of discipline, in conniving at the two of Cumberland, he appeared to go into the ficers withdrawing from arrest. The in- charges before he was in possession of the tended duel having been rumoured, ad- facts. The hon. general had said that he jutant Jones received orders from the co- should abstain from recrimination, but yet lonel to put the principals under arrest. indulged in a strong course of crimination In proceeding to execute these orders he against captain Foskett, whom he repremet captain Foskett, and asked him if he sented as the public accuser of the duke knew where either of them were to be of Cumberland. Captain Foskett, howfound. The answer was, that he knew ever, so far from being in this instance the nothing of them, though at the very time accuser of the duke of Cumberland, had he was under a promise to attend Mr. applied in the first instance through the Ross to the field. This was an offence regular channels for redress. He was for which captain Foskett must have been sorry the hon. general, before he made broke if brought to a court-martial. With these charges against the gallant officer, respect to refusal of leave of absence, it had not made himself acquainted with would appear from the returns, that there the circumstances of the case, because was not an officer in the regiment who when he should peruse the documents he had less occasion to complain on that would be convinced of his error. score than captain Foskett. Indeed, in himself, he had the originals of many of the conduct of the duke of Cumberland to the documents which had been produced, that officer, he could see nothing but mo and on them he founded his opinion. Sir deration and forbearance, and the very Robert Wilson wrote respecting the merits opposite to injustice. He contended that of captain Foskett in the highest terms. the article of war, which had been alluded Colonels Lamb and Asken appeared in to, was not imperative upon the com- their letters to bear equal testimony to the mander in chief, and if it were, that it was character and military merit of captain not so in the case under consideration. Foskett. As sir R. Wilson had quitted The three grievances which had been the regiment before the duke of Cumbercomplained of, had been redressed. The land was appointed to the command, he commander in chief had shewn himself concluded that if the hon. general had to be a friend and not an oppressor to found any trace of irregularity, or want of captain Foskett. He contended that it discipline, in that previous period, he was not for the House to usurp the com- would have brought it before Parliament. mand and management of the army from He contended that the conduct of captain the crown. He was ready to admit that Foskett was unexceptionable, and that the all good officers ought to be encouraged: testimony of col. Asken was sufficient to and he could assure the House that every establish that fact. But it had been said, officer who had ever served under him, that the article of war was imperative on had looked to him as well as a father as a the commander in chief; still his hon. commander. He had always been of opi- friend required only that the commander nion, that in the regiments where the least in chief should do his duty. The compunishment was inflicted, the best disci- mander in chief might undoubtedly say, pline prevailed; and much credit was due that the application was frivolous. But if to an order of the late commander in chief gentlemen would take the trouble of readon that subject. No man living could being the act they would find that the coma more strenuous advocate than himself for proper discipline; but nothing, not even the fear of dying on the wheel, should oblige him to assent to improper means of establishing it. He should move the previous question on the first resolution, and should give a direct negative to the others.

VOL. XVII.

mander in chief had no option. The petition did not profess to take out of the hands of the King the power of regulating such matters, but to have the avenue to the throne open to all his Majesty's subjects. His hon. friend had dwelt at length, and perhaps longer than was necessary,

2 H

General Loftus thought the House might as well abolish the office of commander in chief altogether, as enter into the griev ances which every individual officer had to bring forward. There would be no end to such petitions. He regretted that the duel bad been mentioned on this affair, but he thought that the duke of Cumberland was perfectly justified in the recommendation he had given.

His

on the circumstances of the duel, and quoted the communications of Mr. Wallace, Mr. Nixon, and Mr. Ross, all of which were in favour of captain Foskett, to shew that he had been blameless in that transaction. But whatever might have been the circumstances or the issue of the duel, they could have been no justification of the conduct of the duke of Cumberland. He should be glad to know when the adjutant asked captain Foskett the private The gallery was then cleared for a di friend of Mr. Ross, if he knew of the in-vision, but the House did not divide. The tended duel, whether any private gentle- motion was then negatived. man, applied to under similar circumstances, would have thought himself justified in divulging what had been communicated to him in confidence? But as no proceeding had been taken at the time, either in a military view, or by the course of law against captain Foskett, or by his col. (Seymour), it was clear no proceeding ought to be sanctioned not consonant to law. He contended that no hair triggers had been used. The hon. gentleman then went into a statement to shew that captain Foskett's troop was fit for service when his regiment had been ordered abroad. In order to prove too that this was a case fit for the interference of the House, he referred to the cases of colonel Cochrane Johnstone, and of lord Burghurst in the last session. The present was not altogether a military question: it did not claim redress of a wrong as to the army, but as to the commander in chief; and if that House should not grant the redress desired, it would by its decision that night sanction a principle which would be extremely injurious to the public service.

Mr. Manning supported the motion and read a letter stating the exemplary conduct of captain Foskett.

[SEAMEN'S BILL.] Mr. Rose, pursuant to notice, rose to move for leave to bring in a bill for the increase of seamen. object was to encourage the increase of merchant seamen. He was aware of the difficulties and jealousies to be encountered in any interference with the impress service; but if ever there was a time when that interference might be more safely admitted, it was the present. His plan was for the establishment of naval seminaries on the coasts, where boys might have a due initiation into the profession of a seaman, for four or five years. The source from whence boys should be drawn, he proposed to be that of the parish pau. pers. Of these there were about 90,000, and their expence would not cost government more than 51. each. This supply would keep up a succession of seamen to the amount of seven thousand every year. He stated, that owing to the severe operation of the impress service, in some instances, the commanders of Indiamen have. been obliged to go out without having a regular bred seaman on board: This might have been the cause of the loss of so many ships in that service. A captain had gone out some years ago with his crew similarly circumstanced; after, however, he had made them all seamen, they were all taken from him. He then concluded by moving that leave be given to bring in a bill to increase the number of

Mr. Manners Sutton regretted that the hon. gent. had thought proper to go into the contents of papers which the House had refused to grant, as not necessary. He thought that the whole of this proceed-persons bred to the sea service. ing was an unwarrantable attack upon the duke of Cumberland. When upon a former night this question was under consideration, he had abstained from entering into the consideration of the contents of these papers, not because he was not aware of their existence, but because it was not for him to avail himself of their contents in point of argument. The hon. gent. then took a review of the circumstances of the case, and concluded by saying, that he should vote against the motion.

Mr. W. Smith approved of the professed object of the right hon. gent.'s motion; he stated that the rigour of the impress service in the Greenland fishery trade had been felt so severely in the Orkneys and the isle of Shetland, as to produce there a general disgust for the service. He recommended some species of commutation by which the merchantmen would bind themselves to the regular supply of a cetain proportion of seamen.

Mr. Wilberforce was friendly to any plan

that was likely to multiply the connection | The learned lords might, in a committee, between the navy and the country.

Lord Cochrane stated as the cause of the severe impress service in the East Indies, the immoderate length of time those ships were suffered to remain upon the same station, until the greater part of the crews had died off.

The motion was then agreed to.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

Friday, June 8.

[DEBTOR AND CREDITOR LAWS.] Lord Redesdale rose to move the second reading of his bill to prevent vexatious arrests. Though it was late in the session, he wished the bill to go into the committee.

compare all their different opinions, and decide on which was best. He liked to see the noble and learned lawyers trim, one another, and it saved him the trouble of trimming them all (a laugh).

Lord Melville remarked on the difficulty noble lords now seemed to discover in altering old laws and forms. He was a friend to the bill, which was founded on a principle which had been happily and conveniently in practice, to the north of the Tweed, for these 150 years.

Lord Erskine applauded the motives and object of the framer and friends of the bill: but reminded the Rouge, that at this advanced period of the session, they could not expect in the committee the assistance of his noble and learned friend, (Lord Ellenborough) whose other necessary avo cations would preclude his attendance; and with whom he entirely coincided as to the impropriety of imposing so impos sible a task upon the judges, who are already overburthened with work. He re

Lord Ellenborough, while he approved of the object of the bill, yet entertained serious objections to it in its present shape: and strongly objected to the proposed plan for sending cases of insolvency before the courts, which had already so much important and necessary business on their hands, as to render it utterly im-membered being admitted a member of possible for himself and the rest of the judges to pay attention to this new task. The bill, he considered, as crude and perfectly impracticable, in such a view of its operation. He therefore urged the propriety of withdrawing it for the pre sent, and giving time to re-consider the subject before next session. He had heard nothing of it till a few days ago he found four copies of it in the judges chambers. He objected to any hasty proceeding on a bill so impossible to carry into effect; and he should feel it his duty to divide the House on the question if it were pressed. At present, it would merely be going into a committee of inventions, where they might speculate on new systems; but he, who must become the drudge in the execution of them, could not give his assent to such a proceeding.

The Earl of Moira spoke in favour of going into the committee.

The Lord Chancellor complimented the great legal learning of the noble and learned mover; but considering the lateness of the session, recommended the postponement of any farther proceedings till

next session.

Earl Stanhope maintained the propriety of committing the bill, when any alteration that was necessary might be made in it. His lordship did not perceive the great difficulty of adopting the principle of the cessio bonorum into the English law,

the royal society, on which occasion a long and learned lecture was read on the subject of a particular fish; and it was gravely shewn, that if that fish had been possessed of another fin in a particular place, it would have been enabled to swim with a far greater degree of velocity, (laughter.) He who made the fish, knew best what was most necessary for its purposes. So, in this case, unless they gave the judges a new fin, some greater powers than nature had bestowed upon man, they never could fulfil the intentions of this bill.

The Earl of Suffolk defended the principle of the bill; and noticed, with much regret, the great delays and expenses that occurred in almost all our law proceedings. There were 300 cases before that House in arrear; and in one case only, that of the Roxburgh peerage, an expense, he understood, had been already incurred, of 50,0001.

The Lord Chancellor said, that such expense was not imputable to him, who sat on that woolsack for two or three hours day after day, without being able to get the attendance of noble lords sufficient to make a House and proceed on any business. That expense, therefore, was more imputable to the noble earl and others, who declined their assistance.

The Earl of Rosslyn spoke in favour of the bill,