lieu thereof, or concerning any payment of money, or loan, to any of the said Mahrattas, made or paid since the 1st of January, 1779." This motion was opposed by Mr. Pitt and Mr. Dundas, on two grounds; first, that the treaty in question was a wise and salutary treaty, and had saved the British empire in Asia; and, secondly, that the production of the papers moved for would discover transactions relative to that peace, which ought to be kept a secret from the country powers in India, insomuch as it would disclose the means by which the several states that were confederated against England were made jealous of each other, and the intrigues by which they were induced to dissolve that confederacy,

Mr. Fox rose, and desired to be favoured with a serious answer to this necessary question, whether the professions of a determination to persist in a refusal of the papers were actually sincere? Surely there was nothing in the rule of conduct which the gentleman of the other side laid down for themselves that did not argue most powerfully and convincingly for their production. If a specific purpose was necessary to be mentioned, and the object of the motion requisite to be explained, there was a pointed and specific charge in the treatment of the Ranna of Gohud, who was allowed, and indeed mentioned in former treaties, as the ally and friend of Great Britain, and neglected in the general peace which terminated the Mabratta war. This was the fact, as it appeared uncontradicted, and the House ought surely to inquire whether such desertion of the friends of this country was justifiable in the governor general. To withhold any information on this subject would be not only unjust to Mr. Hastings, who was accused, but indecent to the House, whose honour was so much concerned in the full and rigorous examination of such a conduct. There was no behaviour whatever which would operate more injuriously to the British interest, either in this or any other quarter, than to find that its friendship was no protection to its allies. An unwarranted desertion, if such it could be proved, must certainly be considered as a great misdemeanor; and nothing was more necessary either to the character or vindication of the person accused, than to explain the grounds on which he was justified. There might possibly exist a plea of necessity for this proceeding, and, for the present moment, he would admit that it did exist. But when there was a certain assurance that the allies and defendants of Great Britain had been abandoned by her in a negotiation, there was a crime prima facie evident, and the proceedings in that negotiation should certainly be laid before the House, in order to convince them of that necessity. It would be very unfair, and indeed very improper, if gentlemen

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should have these feelings barely when their own honour or their own characters were at stake, and seem wholly unconscious of them, when the question was against the character of others. Thus the ministers of the time, when the late peace was concluded, knew the defection from the loyalists to be a conduct so much in need of justification, that they very decently came down to the House, in order to excuse themselves on the ground of necessity. Whether such necessity existed, it was not for him to discuss; but the means of inquiry on the subject were undoubtedly open. Why not, then, pursue the same line of conduct on the present occasion, when positive and direct charges were brought against the measure? If motives of necessity recommended the treachery, why was that necessity not explained? And if principles of policy dictated the conduct, why was not that policy made known? It was indeed alleged, that the interests of the country might be endangered by the disclosure which the papers would make: but in our constitution there were both advantages and defects, and the same must also be true of every other constitution and species of government. We, however, were of opinion, that the advantages which we constitutionally possessed by far outbalanced the disadvantages; it was one of the leading principles, to prefer the responsibility which belonged to our officers and ministers to the secrecy which was deemed so necessary in other countries. Supposing, then, (for he was far from admitting it,) that some injury might be apprehended from the production of these papers, it was only the necessary consequence to which every investigation was liable; and there could be no inquiry of a public nature, in which circumstances did not come out which might better have remained a secret. The House, then, would do well to reflect what a precedent they were laying down, for future public officers to take advantage of. For if this excuse should once be admitted, there was no circumstance, and no situation, to which it would not be found to apply. A right honourable and learned gentleman (Mr. Dundas) had, on this, as well as a former night, endeavoured to play off the conduct of Mr. Hastings, posterior to the reports of the committee, against the delinquency of his former measure, to which the right honourable and learned gentleman had himself borne such full and ample testimonies in the course of those reports. But what was the meaning of this language, or what other sentiment did it express but this? "I think his conduct since that period laudable and good, and I wish you to think so with me; but, in the mean time, I am resolved that you shall have no reason to think so beyond my assertion, and I will deny you the information which is

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necessary to convince you of it." marks of his right honourable friend, Mr. Burke, to prove, that not even the most trivial cause existed for those apprehensions of danger which gentlemen on the other side of the House, for reasons best known to themselves, thought proper to express; and therefore he trusted that the House would call for arguments less frivolous, before they gave their sanction to the withholding of the necessary papers.

Mr. Pitt, in the course of his speech, reminded the House, that the policy of Mr. Fox, at a period when this country was labouring under the pressure of a war against combined and powerful foes, was to detach a part of that confederacy. In answer to which,

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Mr. Fox said, that he felt it necessary to bring into clearer points of view some allusions started during the course of the debate, and which had even been touched upon beyond the walls of parliaments, relative to his negotiation for a separate peace with Holland. He was well aware that the right honourable gentleman did not mention it by way of blame, nor did he wish to impute to him any such intention; but as it had so often been glanced at, he was glad to have the opportunity of speaking two or three words to it in this public manHe was sorry that the House was so thin of members, but he was pleased to see so full a gallery. When this measure, of detaching Holland and America from the confederacy which was formed against us, was first proposed, he had been only three days in office, and consequently was obliged to meet those people in the cabinet from whom he was accustomed to differ upon political subjects; and yet,-what was a circumstance that did not often happen, he had the honour to propose that measure with the unanimous concurrence of all his majesty's cabinet ministers. This he thought himself at liberty to mention, because, though it might be improper to state the dissensions or disagreements in the cabinet, there would certainly be no impropriety in mentioning their unanimity. He would farther observe, that this policy was by no means ineffectual as to some of its objects, though, in others, it certainly had not the wished-for success: for those gentlemen who were then in office might well recollect, that the disposition of some courts in Europe was not then extremely favourable to this country, and that the measure now alluded to had at least the effect of averting those consequences which might otherwise have been apprehended. Having said this much for the allusion, he would next return to the propriety of admitting the present papers. He observed, that it was expressed in the treaty subsisting between the company and the

Ranna of Gohud, that he was to be protected by the powers of Great Britain against their mutual foes. In consequence of which, he had lent his services during the war, and was to have been, of course, included in the peace. There were also, according to Mr. Hastings's own letters, several other rajahs and princes who had the same, or similar, claims upon the protection of Great Britain; and yet it appeared from the Mahratta treaty of peace, that none of them were included in the provisions of it. This was not the time to argue from what motives, or upon what policy this was done. But the omission was prima facie evidence either of treachery or guilt, to obviate, or to substantiate which, was the object of the present motion, and was, in his judgment, a debt claimed as well by the justice due to the sufferers in India, as to the dignity of parliament and the acquittal or condemnation of Mr. Hastings. He agreed that it was not sufficient ground for the production of all papers, to say that one gentleman was the prosecutor, and would pledge himself to prove their application to the object in view. But, in the present case, the production of the papers could not be followed by any political peril whatever, and the strongest reasons existed in favour of the disclosure of their contents.

Major Scott observed, that the difference now subsisting between Mr. Fox and Mr. Hastings was not greater than that which formerly prevailed between him and his noble friend Lord North ; nor were his charges more severe against the one than the other. In all the proceedings against Mr. Hastings, and amidst all the abuse poured out against him, the Major said he had never entertained the smallest apprehensions, nor ever made any overtures of accommodation. On the other hand, when the right honourable gentleman brought in his India bill, an intimation was given, in a private conversation which he had with a person of authority, that matters might be accommodated; and he made no doubt, had Mr. Hastings then come home, he would have heard nothing of all this calumny, and all these serious accusations. soon as the Major sat down,

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Mr. Fox immediately rose, and said, that, on a subject which concerned his honour and character, he would not hesitate a moment to offer himself again to the House. He would first premise, that at no period could he declare that offers were made to him, either by Mr. Hastings or his agents, in order to bring about an accommodation; for if there had, he would instantly have treated them with the most absolute and marked refusal. At the same time he would assert, upon his honour as a gentleman, that no proposal whatever was made to Mr. Hastings or his friends, with either his knowledge or his concurrence; and he was also certain that no such proposal

ever came from any of his colleagues. So that whoever made, or even hinted at such an offer as coming from him, did it without the smallest shadow of authority. In private conversations with his friends it had been frequently suggested by them, that Mr. Hastings being a very powerful man, it might make the India bill go down the easier, if the idea of prosecuting that gentleman was given up: but he had always resisted such advice; and, indeed, so determined was he, to have the governor-general brought to trial, that in his opening speech on his India bill, he had dwelt so much upon the mal-administration of Mr. Hastings, that many of the enemies to that bill had objected to him, that there seemed to be no other remedy necessary for the evils in India, than the recal of Mr. Hastings.

This day Mr. Burke moved, "That there be laid before this House, copies or duplicates of all consultations, instructions, and other correspondence, relative to any negociation at the court of the great mogul, wherever residing, concerning any treaty with the said mogul or concerning any of the ministers of the said court, or any of the chiefs in the neighbourhood of Delhi, or relative to any claims or demands for, or on behalf of, the said court, upon the East India company, since the 1st day of January 1781."-Mr. Pitt refused to comply with the motion, as tending to affect the policy of India, by opening the secrets of negociations in that country, which the peace and tranquillity of Hindostan rendered absolutely necessary should remain undivulged. After a short debate the motion was rejected, on a division, by 88 against 34. A motion being immediately afterwards made for "a copy of a letter from Major James Brown to Warren Hastings, Esq. governorgeneral of Fort William, dated from Delhi, on the 30th of December 1783; also copies of two letters from Warren Hastings, Esq. to the court of directors of the East India company, dated the 30th of April and 16th of June 1784,"

Mr. Fox rose and remarked, that if the papers stated in the question were refused, there was an end of asking for papers, however material to the prosecution those papers might be, and however free from any imputation of being dangerous or likely to affect the policy of India. He could not believe, however, that his majesty's minister would go the length of