MOTION FOR INQUIRY INTO THE STATE OF THE NATION REJECTED.
On the 24th of March Fox moved that a committee of the whole house should inquire into the state of the nation. His speech on this occasion is characterized by Burke as one of the most eloquent ever delivered in the house of commons. In it he showed the necessity for inquiry, from the rapid progress of the enemy and their acquired superiority; from the losses sustained by our armies, and from the vast expenditure and increased taxation. Fox then adverted to the affairs of Ireland; the recall of its lord-lieutenant, which had recently taken place; and to the general irritation of its inhabitants. He then alluded to the dissatisfaction which prevailed in England, asserting that an opinion was gaining ground among the people, that, since the commons complied with every measure proposed by ministers, they could not fairly represent the nation. He asked what were the grounds for confidence in men whose schemes continually miscarried? And, supposing the war to be just, did the succession of plans and events afford any reason for reposing unlimited confidence in his majesty’s present counsellors, as wise, energetic, and effective war ministers? In conclusion, he said, that if ministers really deserved confidence, they would not resist inquiry, as no man, conscious of an able and upright discharge of his duty, would shrink from an investigation into his actions. Pitt allowed that some of the subjects proposed by Fox were of the highest importance; but he objected to inquiry as being incompatible with other parliamentary business. Part of the proposer’s objects, also, he said, were inexpedient and unreasonable; he had exaggerated our losses, detracted from our advantages, and on the whole exhibited an unfair statement of our situation. Mr. Canning followed on the same side as Pitt, and argued with reference to Ireland, that its turbulent situation was a sufficient excuse for declining all such discussions at present. Fox and Sheridan replied, that the minister, instead of meeting, had only shifted the question; that if the state of the country had been misrepresented, the means of refuting this misrepresentation lay in a fair investigation of conduct. The motion was rejected by two hundred and nineteen against sixty-three; and a similar motion made six days after in the lords, by the Earl of Guildford, was negatived likewise by a large majority. Motions were subsequently made in both houses for an inquiry respecting Irish affairs, but with the same ill-success.