means of refcuing from the power of the French the naval force in the Texel, and the inhabitants of that part of Holland were enabled to evince their attachment to the original and ancient Government of their country, and shake off the odious and galling yoke of French tyranny. Among all the various victories and glorious incidents that had attended the British arms during the progrefs of the prefent war, his Lordship said he knew not one more honourable to the commanders, officers and men, than this great and important adventure, and the fuccefs that had attended it in every point of view; it was eminently ferviceable to Great Britain, eminently ferviceable to the common cause of our allies: to the latter every means of diminishing the inordinate power of the French Republic was effential; but to this country it was ftill more effential, to rescue from her gripe the ufurped territories of our ancient friend and ally, and to render the coafts directly oppofite to our fhores no longer fubject to the dangerous ufe that an inveterate foe might make of them against the British interefts. His Lordship concluded with moving the thanks of the Houfe "To Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby, Knight of the moft Honourable Order of the Bath, for the diftinguished gallantry and ability with which he effected his landing on the Dutch coaft, and established his pofition in the face of a powerful enemy, and by securing the command of the principal fort and naval arsenal of the Dutch Republic, afforded to His Majesty's fleet the means of refcuing from the power of the French the naval force in the Texel ;"-which paffed nem. diff.

His Lordship next moved the thanks of the House to Lieutenant General Sir James Pulteney, Bart. Major Generals Francis D'Oyley, Eyre Coote, Harry Burrard, and John Moore, and the several officers of the army under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby, for their late gallant conduct, &c. &c.-which was refolved nem. diff.

His Lordship afterwards moved a refolution, that the House did highly approve of, and acknowledge the fervices of the non-commiffioned officers, and private foldiers of the army ferving under the command of Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby, at the attack of the Helder, on the coaft of Holland, &c. &c.—which was also resolved nem. diff.

Refolved, that the Lord Chancellor communicate the faid refolutions to his Royal Highnefs Field Marshal the Duke of York, Captain General of His Majesty's forces, and Commander in Chief of the allied army in Holland; and that his Royal Highness be requested by the Lord Chancellor to fignify the fame to the general and other officers referred to therein.

Earl SPENCER faid, that what had fallen from his noble friend made it the lefs neceffary for him to occupy much of the time of their Lordships. He rofe for the purpose of moving the thanks of the House to Vice Admiral Mitchell, for his diftinguished fervices in the expedition to Holland. His Lordship spoke of those services in terms of the warmeft praife. He faid a tempeftuous season had arisen at an unusual part of the year, which rendered the keeping together fo numerous a fleet of transports, and conducting them in fafety to the object of their deftination, a very arduous task, and fuch as required the utmost exertion of skill and judgement, but that Vice Admiral Mitchell, by his unwearied vigilance, attention, and good management, had contrived to furmount every danger, to land the troops destined for the fervice, to afford them great aid and affiftance, and effectually to eo-operate with the land forces, so as to contribute effentially to the fuccefs that had attended His Majefty's arms in the course of the expedition to Holland. Exclusive of this diftinguished proof of uncommon zeal and equal judgement, Vice Admiral Mitchell, his Lordship said, had performed a ftill more valuable service to his country; a fervice of the first importance and magnitude. Unawed by the known difficulty and danger of the navigation of the Texel and the Zuyder Sea, the Vice Admiral had kilfully conducted his fleet through thofe feas, and to the astonishent of the Dutch Admirals, had placed them in fuch a pofition ar to the Dutch fquadron, that it emboldened the Dutch feamen declare for the ancient eftablishment, and in confequence obliged commanders to deliver up the whole fquadron to the British and furrender prisoners of war. His Lordfhip dilated on finestimable piece of fervice, and concluded with moving the of the Houfe To Vice Admiral Mitchell, for the diftin84 skill and perfeverance with which, in fpite of great and en difficulties, he kept collected, and conducted to the coaft of and the numerous fleet under his command; for the zeal iness with which he co-operated with the land forces in thei ent on the coaft of Holland, and for the promptitude and which he rescued the naval force of the Dutch Republic wer of the French ;"-which paffed nem. diff.

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next moved the thanks of the Houfe to the feveral

Captal officers of the fleet under Vice Admiral Mitchell, for port and co-operation with the land forces, &c. &c. whic refolved nem. diff.

And

irds moved, that the Houfe highly approved and acknowledg Ofervice of the feamen and marines on board the

ships under the command of Vice Admiral Mitchell, &c. &c.which alfo paffed nem. diff.

Earl Spencer rufe again to call their Lordships' thanks to an officer of the navy for moft diftinguished fervices in a distant quarter of the globe. He had no doubt but that their Lordships already anticipated the perfon to whom he alluded, and felt that it must be Captain Sir William Sidney Smith, to whose brilliant exploits in Syria he meant to do juftice. Such certainly was his intention, and he scarcely was mafter of words fufficiently strong to convey the full force of his feelings on the very interesting subject to which he wished to call their Lordships' attention. The value and importance of every inftance of fuccefs ought to be judged by the proportion of the means with which the victor is furnished to enable him to achieve it; and furely when the fmall fquadron that Sir Sidney Smith had under his command, and the limited force he was enabled to bring into the field, were compared with the numerous and powerful army of the enemy, headed by a leader who had long accustomed them to unvarying triumph and inceffant victory, and the event of a fiege of two months, of a town ill fortified and occupied by a garrifon little ufed to the most ordinary means of refiftance and defence, was confidered, nothing could more forcibly excite general admiration and aftonishment. After an almost inceffant fiege of fixty days, their Lordships had learnt from Sir Sidney Smith's comprehenfive and fatisfactory account of that import ant event, that in fpite of the feebleness of the fortifications, and the weakness and want of fkill of the garrifon, that gallant Captain, y the bravery, affiftance, and fkill of his handful of officers and conpanions, from on board his fquadron, was enabled, not merely to repel the attacks of a powerful and confident affailant, but to oblige them to quit the field, not only under circumstances of disgrace, but under circumstances the moft degrading and calamitous. So uncommon a proof of prowefs, valour, judgement and fuccefs entitled the officers who had manifefted it to every poffible praise, and though, his Lordship faid, he was well aware that it was not usual for the thanks of the Houfe to be voted to a fingle Captain, for his fervices, yet, on this occafion, that very circumftance entitled Sir William Sidney Smith the more to fo fignal a mark of the approbation of his country, as the fervices he had rendered in delivering Africa and part of Afia from the yoke of French Republican tyranny were perhaps equalled by few, poffibly furpaffed by none of the many brilliant achievements that had diftinguifhed the British arms in the course of the prefent war. The Earl concluded by moving, “That the thanks of the Houfe be given to Captain Sir William Sidney

Smith, for the confpicuous skill and heroism by which he animated and directed the efforts of the Turkish forces, and of the small number of British officers and feamen under his command, in their long and fuccefsful defence of St. John d'Acre, on the coaft of Syria, against the formidable and defperate attack of the French army under the command of Buonaparte."

Viscount HOOD faid, he could not, on the prefent occafion, give a filent vote, highly as he approved of the motion of the noble Earl at the head of the Admiralty. He must take that opportunity of doing justice to the extraordinary merit of that brave and gallant officer, Sir William Sidney Smith, to whofe fpirited exertions, he was proud to confefs, he had frequently been a witness, and been highly indebted on various occafions, when he had the honour to have that very deferving and meritorious officer under his command. His Lordship particularifed the affair of burning the French fhips at Toulon, in which important fervice he declared no officer had manifefted a more active zeal, or a more judicious application of undaunted fpirit than Captain Sir William Sidney Smith. Nor was that the only opportunity, his Lordship said, that he had been afforded of afcertaining the merits of the object of the present motion, and great and aftonishing as his conduct had been at the fiege of Acre, he was perfuaded that his country might expect. ftill more important fervices at his hands; he joined, therefore, moft cordially ia fupporting the motion of the noble Earl.

Lord GRENVILLE faid, he was perfectly fenfible that it was unneceffary and fruitless for him to endeavour to add to the force of what had fallen on the subject of the motion then before the House from his noble friend near him, or the noble Admiral who had just sat down; but he could not help remarking in a very few words on the double contraft, that the conduct of Sir Sidney Smith and his adversary General Buonaparte afforded. Let their Lordships compare the modest letter of Sir Sidney Smith, on his fuccefs at the fiege of Acre, with the arrogant and prefumptuous proclamations of the French commander, after every one of his fucceffes through a defenceless country, to which he had carried impiety, hoftility, and devaftation, contrary to every principle of justice and humanity. Let them alfo look at the contraft; Sir William Sidney Smith, made a captive by the chance of war, was refused to be confidered as every other prifoner of war was, but shut up a close prisoner in the Temple at Paris, and debarred of every means of comfort and relief, in direct defiance of the law of nations, and all the established rules of civilized countries. Cruel as the treatment of Sir William Sidney Smith was, it was highly honourable to him, inafmuch as it

proved, that confcious of his high and enterprising spirit, his courage and his skill, the French Republic regarded him as a foe fo greatly to be dreaded, that they were determined, at the risk of their own character, and at every hazard, to deprive his country of his valuable fervices. When Sir Sidney, by his ability and fuccessful exertion, effected his escape from the Temple, what was his conduct on again being entrusted with a command? His very first act on his arrival in the East was to use his efforts to procure the liberation of fome French prifoners who had been taken at the battle of the Nile, and detained in prison at Conftantinople. His whole conduct in Syria was not more diftinguished for bravery and skill than for humanity and tenderness to all at his mercy. It was, his Lordship said, he was perfuaded, enough barely to mention these facts to imprefs their Lordships and the country with a deep fenfe of the exultation and pride which they must feel in viewing the ftrong contrast between the Republican General Buonaparte and the British Captain Sir William Sidney Smith! His Lordship heartily affented to the motion, which was agreed to nem. diff.

The thanks to the officers on board the ships under the command of Sir William Sidney Smith, for their great bravery and unremitted exertions which they manifefted, both on shore and on board, in the fuccessful defence of St. John D'Acre, on the coast of Syria, was moved and voted nem. diff. as was also a vote of approbation and acknowledgment of the services of the feamen and marines belonging to the ships under the command of Captain Sir William Sidney Smith.

The bill, relative to the farther application of the Militia corps was brought up by Mr. Secretary Dundas and others, and, on the motion of the Earl of Weftmorland, read a first time, and notice given, that if the prints be upon the table to-morrow, it was intended to move that the bill be read a second time on the Friday following.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

Wednesday, October 2.

Mr. Chancellor PITT moved the order of the day for the House to refolve itfelf into a Committee of Supply; and that the several eftimates moved for by himself, Mr. Secretary at War, Mr. Sarjent, and Mr. Wallace, fhould be referred to the faid Committee.