and, if he cannot now succeed in the adoption of the measures which he has in contemplation, he may, with a conscience perfectly clear, leave the nation to be schooled by calamity.Those who think that these sentiments of mine proceed from any thing of a personal or a party feeling are greatly deceived. That I entertain the highest possible degree of respect for Mr. Windham personally every one that knows me must be convinced; but, I beg my readers to remember, that I was second to no man in urging the necessity of exalting the military profession; and, I beg them now to attend to my words, when I say, that my applause of Mr. Windham will depend upon his measures. They will never see me the blind partizan of any body. My opinions are my own; and, for the promulgation of them to have its fair chance, they must be known to be my own. But, in asserting my claim to my due share of the merit of having prepared the public mind for the great change which will now, in all likelihood, be adopted, I beg to be understood as not putting my judgment upon an equality with that of the gentleman, of whom I have been here speaking; for, most sincerely do I declare, that I am convinced, that no man in the kingdom is to be compared to him in point of knowledge and of wisdom, as far as is connected with subjects of this sort. How to make an army, a real and safe military force, for his country; how to put that country in a state safely to bid defiance to its enemies; these have been the objects of his constant study; and, when we consider the greatness of the mind that has been thus directed, is it wonderful that it should have a claim to preeminence? It is not to be supposed, that his opinions and views are not to meet with any modification in the cabinet. His plans may be improved there I have no doubt; for there is not now a cabinet of noses; but, what I insist upon, is, that, as the person at the head of all plans of this sort, he is entitled to the perfect confidence of the nation. AFFAIRS OF INDIA.From the report of the proceedings in parliament, it will be perceived, that, upon the motion of Lord Folkestone, a statement is to be laid before parliament relative to the number of troops sent to India, subsequent to the renewal of the Company's charter, in the year 1793. When this statement comes, let the public attend to it; for, in it will they see to what an extent this hood-winked nation has been drained for the purposes of commercial ambition. We generally look upon merchants as a sort of peaceable philanthropic creatures; but, we have not found our East India Direc tors to possess much of these qualities. To support them and theirs, our country has been drained to the dregs. At their call we have sent away the means, of every sort, which wa Row stand in need of; and instead of giving us a compensation for those drains, they are now, and I beseech the people to mark what I say, coming to us for money; yea, to us, who are called upon to make sacrifices in order to save our native land from subjugation! The speech of Mr. Dundas, now Lord Melville," from which my motto is taken, is not a singular instance. He went on year after year, making, with a modesty so peculiar to him, assertions of the same sort, in contradiction to the opinions of Mr. Francis. Nou, the truth is come out. It can no longer be disguised, either by him, or by those directors, who, so generously gave him a pension of 2,000l. a year for life, and which pension, observe, we, the cajoled people of England, must pay! In these India affairs, the Pitts and Dundases have left the new ministry a precious legacy. The long score of 13 years of fraud and of profligate expenditure is now to be settled and, shall we settle it, shall we be taxed to pay it, including even the pensions granted by the Company, without a full investigation into the causes of the deficit? Already have we been taxed to the amount of two millions to pay to this Company that owe us seven millions at least; and shall we be again taxed, for the purpose of paying more to them? I would fain see the minister that would have the assurance to propose such a measure. No: if the East-India Company come to us for relief, let us, as parish officers do, inquire into their means; let us see what property they have; let s take their affairs into our hands, and see if we cannot, by the aid of men different frun the Pitts and Dundisses, manage them btter, The deceived people, who were inaced to set up such a howl about "charted " rights," and against Mr. Fox's Ind a Bl, in 1784, will now be convinced of thir folly; they will now be convinced, tat that bill would have prevented their beig loaded with millions upon millions of tax. This may make them think, and put the upon their guard against future attemptst imposture. MR. COCHRANE JOHNSTONE. -T3 gentleman's very serious grievance t briefly stated in the Political Register, V VIII. p. 18 and 55, where a determinati was expressed to renew and more fully, enter into it, upon the opening of the pi sent session of parliament.. Hitherto thir have been in a state to prevent me from a ing upon this determination; but, I certainly adhere to it, and my readers may be assured, that no consideration connected with the change of ministry (other than that of justice being done to the party), shall divert me from it. This is one amongst many cases that require to be seriously considered by the cabinet, in order to render effectual that great change, which they comtemplate in the army. *** The Prospectus of the PARLIAMENTARY HISTORY is again inserted, because, through an error of the printer, the word Register was, in a great part of the impres sion of last week, put instead of the word History.A trifling alteration is, also, at the suggestion of several gentlemen, made as to the mode of binding the volumes; and, a consequent little deduction in the proposed price. PROSPECTUS OF Cobbett's Parliamentary History, Which, in the compass of Sixteen Volumes, royal octavo, double page, is to contain a full and accurate report of all the recorded proceedings, and of all the speeches, in both Houses of Parliament, from the earliest times to the year 1803, when the publication of Cobbett's Parliamentary Debates commenced. cannot, upon an average of purchases, be Whoever has had frequent occasion to recur to the proceedings in parliament, of former tincs, must have experienced those difficnlties, which it is the object of the proposed work to remove. Merely to find the several works, wherein is contained an ac corut of the parliamentary proceedings, is, at this day, no easy matter, some of them being very scarce, and others excessively voluminous. Hardly any of them, those of the last twenty years excepted, are to be purchased regularly at the booksellers'. The far greate part of them are to be come at by accident only; and, of course, sometimes not to be obtained at all. But, supposing them all to be at hand, the price of them is no triling object; and, in many cases, must prsent a difficulty not to be easily, or, at lest, willingly, surmounted. Of these weks, taken in their chronological order, th first is, the Parliamentary or Constitutional History, in 24 volumes; the second, the Oford Debates, in 2 volumes; the third, Candler's Debates, in 22 volumes; the forth, Greys' Debates, in 10 volumes; the fih, Almons' Debates, in 24 volumes; the sih, Debrett's Debates (now in the hands of vious booksellers), in 63 volumes. These wks are not to be purchased, if to be pchased at all, under 1101. sterling. E still, with all these, the information vited is very imperfect, without perpetual-clusive, downwards, that there is a total want having recourse to the Journals of the two Fuses, which Journals occupy upwards of a dred volumes in folio: so that, the price a complete set of the works, in this way, of all that aid, which is afforded by well contrived running-titles, tables, and indexes, and which is so necessary in every voluminous work, particularly if it relate to the transac how much room is saved by the abbreviation of words descriptive of titles and of constantly-occurring phrases of courtesy, the reader will not be surprised, that the whole of the authentic and useful records of the proceedings of the parliament of England, of that of tions of a long series of years.With a view of removing all these difficulties, and of putting the public in possession of an account of the Proceedings in Parliament previous to the year 1803, (when Cobbett's Parliamentary Debates commenced) as complete as that which has met with such general approba-Great Britain, and of that of the United tion in this last-mentioned work, the present publication is undertaken. The Sixteen Volames, of which the proposed work will consist, and the first of which is now in the press, will be printed in the same form and size, and with the same sort of character, as those of the Political Register and Parliamentary Debates, with this difference only, that the character of this work will, in the same compass, introduce one-fifth more of matter. The volumes, respectively, are to embrace the periods here mentioned; to wit: Kingdom, down to the year 1803, will be comprised in the Sixteen Volumes of this work, which will, upon the best computation that can be made, contain as much print as 140 common octavo volumes.- -In relation to the earliest times, the work will be com piled chiefly from the Records, the Rolls of of Parliament, and from the most reputable ancient writers of English History. From the reign of Henry VIII, inclusive, we have the additional aid of the Journals of the House of Lords; and from that of Edward VI. that of the Journals of the House of Commons. As to the Speeches, they will, of course, be collected from the several works, wherein, upon careful examination and comparison, they are found to have been the most fully and accurately recorded. The precise words of motions, resolutions, &c. &c. will be copied from the Journals themselves, and not from unauthorized publications. As a book of Parliamentary Precedents, the work, by the aid of its tables and indexes, will be even more complete than any one hitherto published. These tables and indexes will be constructed upon the excellent plan (with some little improvements) recommended by the Committee of the House of Commons, and afterwards adopted by the persons employed to make the indexes to the Journals.With respect to information relative to those who have, at any time, made a conspicuous figure in par liament, or, indeed, who have been, for any considerable length of time, members of that body, it is unnecessary to observe, that, in the parts of the work which will give an account of the assembling of the several new parliaments, since the time when records of this sort were first made, there will be comto the commencement of Cob-plete Lists of the members of the House of bett's Parliamentary Debates, November the 22d, 1803. Vol. I. From the Conquest, 1066, to the meeting of the Long Parliament in 1640. II. From the meeting of the Long VI. From the New Parliament in 1774, VII. From the New Parliament in 1780, * IX. From the New Parliament in 1784, XVI. From the New Parliament in 1802, Each of these volumes will contain considerably more print than is contained in the whole of Hume's History of England, which occupies eight common octavo volumes. When, therefore, it is recollected, that so large a part of the several works, above-enumerated, are taken up with matter, as before described, wholly unconnected, or having but a very remote connexion, with the proceedings in parliament, and entirely destitute of authenticity; when it is recollected also, Commons, and, from time to time, a state of the Peerage. These, together with an Index of Names, will enable the reader, not only to know, who has, at any time, been in parliament; butalso to trace the parliamentary history and conduct of every distinguished member.Considered as a collection of Public Papers, this work will be more complete than any one extant, in this country. It will contain Copies of all the Treaties, conventions, &c. &c. to which the rulers of this kingdom have, respectively, been parties, and which are, any where, upon record. All King's Speeches, Protests, Conferences, Standing Orders, as well as all Petitions, Remonstrances, &c. &c. will be carefully inserted, in their proper places. At the close of the Parliamentary History of each reign, in the early periods, and of every session of parliament in the latter, will be given a List of the Acts passed during its continuance; also an account of the taxes imposed, of the supplies, of the subsidies to foreign powers, of the state of the revenue, of the value of money in relation to the price of provisions. &c. To prepare the materials for a work of such magnitude must necessarily require much labour and time. Nearly two years have already been, in great part, devoted to it; and, such has been the application bestowed, that a considerable part of the whole is in a state fit for the press. The first volume is actually in the press, and will, at the latest, be published on the 15th of May next. The printer has engaged to complete it by the 1st day of that month; but, in order to avoid disappointment, a fortnight later, as the time of delivery from the publishers' has been fixed on. The second volume will be published m August next; and, so on, a voluine every quarter of a year till the whole be completed. This distance between the periods of publication will have many conveniencies attending it, and particularly that of leaving the young reader me to have gone through one volume before he has another to purchase.The price of each volume, containing, as was observed, more print than eight common octavo volumes, will be 11. 10s. Od., done up in extra boards, uncut; or 11. 11s. Cd. bound in Russia leather, in the same manner as the Political Register and the Parliamentary Debates: to be paid to the the booksellers upon the delivery of each voJume successively.- -The first volume will be published at the time above fixed on, whether there be subscribers or not, and no difference will be made between the price to subscribers and to others; but, as it would be very grateful to the feelings of the compiler to see his arduons undertaking approved of and encouraged by the public, and as the number of copies, of the second volume must, of course, be regulated by the degree of success that he can reasonably count upon, he will not attempt to disguise, that he is very anxious to obtain a respectable list of subscribers at as early a period as possible.The work will be published by Mr. BAGSHAW, Bow Street Covent Garden; and will be sold also by Mr. BUDD, Pall Mall, Mr. FAULDER, Bond Street, Messrs. BLACKS and PARRY, Leadenhall Street, and Mr. ARCHER, Dublin; to any of which persons subscribers are requested to send their names. FATE OF THE 'FUNDS. SIR,I have attentively read your observations on the national debt, and knowing by experience the impartiality of the Weekly Register, I venture to send you my opinions on the same subject. If your proposition was simply that the public welfare of the nation must not be sacrificed for the claims of individuals, I should most heartily concur with you, and when it shall be proved, that the interest of the debt can no longer be paid, without ruin to the country, it must be lowered, and possibly in the end, be altogether done away.- -But, Mr. Cobbett, when you quit the strong ground of necessity, and the only justifiable ground that can be urged for so glaring a breach of national faith, as the extinction of the debt would involve us in; when you talk of loan-jobbers, blood-suckers, and contractors, as not having an equitable claim to their property, and when through them, you endeavour to weaken the claims of the stock-holders in general on the national faith, you strike at the root of every species of property. I have just as fair a claim to my dividends, as I have to the rents of my landed estate, and my houses. But, circumstances may arise, which may compel the legislature to withhold, or materially to tax my dividends, beyond the proportion of taxes which they may place on my land and houses.-If the legislature were to take such a step arbitrarily, or wantonly, most assuredly it would be an act of the grossest injustice, but the act which neces sity compels Parliament to adopt, ceases to be unjust; and, here I agree with you, that such a necessity is likely to arise, if for some time longer the debt shall be increased, at the rate of ten or twelve millions a year. That it has not arisen already, is indeed most wonderful. I am old enough to remember as a boy, the debt of this nation at 70 millions, and to have been told by a county member of that day, that when he heard Sir Robert Walpole affirm that the nation could well bear a debt of 100 millions without a national bankruptcy, he was almost mobbed by the landed interest, both in, and out of the house. In the space of half a century; that is, from 1755, to 1805; this debt has increased from 70 to 600 millions. The annual interest of it in the same proportion, and our expenses, if we had peace to-morrow, must at least be four times greater than they were in 1755.-In considering this subject, however, you must also consider the very great change which in fifty years has taken place, in the relative value of money, and in property of every description. There is scarcely a landed estate in this kingdom which produced 5001. a year in 1755, that does not now pay 1,5001. a year to the proprietor, and many a much higher rent. Houses, generally speaking, pay now treble the rent that they did then, and in the same proportion every necessary of life, servants wages, &c. have been increased.-The only description of persons who suffer by this great change in the relative value of money, are those men, whose property was all in the funds fifty years ago, who then lived up to the interest of their fortunes, and still do so. Suppose a man to have been many years ago possessed of sixty thousand pounds, three per cents, and to have lived at 15001. a year, he now finds his income of no more value than 5001. a year was when he came into life. But a landed man whose rental was 15001. a year in 1755, has now a rental of 4,5001. a year, and can sell, if compelled to do so, for 28 or 30 years purchase, while the stock-holder if obliged to sell, gets 60 1. for what in 1755 was worth 1001.—I can assure you that I never was directly, nor indirectly concerned in a loan in my life. But justice is due to every man, and I cannot see why loan-jobbers should be held up to public execration. We have jobbers of every description in this commercial country. How many are there who have made, and lost large fortunes by purchasing land and houses, in the last fifty years. To my knowledge, estates which in 1770 cost 30,0001. have been sold last year for 80 and 100,0001. And houses for treble what they cost in 1770.-If a speculator in 1783, had laid out 10,0001. at Brighton, in the purchase of land, not worth ten shillings a year to a farmer, he would have gained half a million sterling by the speculation. Without the prescience that would have enabled one man to gain so large a sum, barbers, pastry cocks, taylors, haberdashers, and attornies, have gained amensely by the purchase of land by the foot at Brighton, and at Margate also. Would you deprive these men of their property because they have been speculative jobbers? We well know, that this nation is not able to raise within the year, the sums necessary for the public expenditure in war. Hence arose the funded system, cominenced with the revolution, and continued to this day. Has the nation at any period paid an enormous interest on the money borrowed? I believe in very few instances indeed more than 5 per cent, the legal interest of the country, and in most instances much less than 5 per cent. The profit upon loans, therefore, has not arisen from ministerial fayour, nor from parliamentary carelessness, but from the fluctuations in the market after the loan of each year has been made; and, though it is believed that Sir Francis Baring, Mr. Goldsmid, Mr. Angerstein, and others, have gained considerably by loans from 1793 to this day, yet Benfield lost half a million sterling by the loans that he had contracted for. The houses of Payne and Smith, Sir James Esdaile and many others, it is also believed, lost very considerably by their loans. But this is a question that applies merely to individuals. The only question for the nation is, whether at any period, by a combination amongst monied men, the minister was compelled to borrow at an usurious interest. I believe, upon inquiry it will be found that the nation through the whole of the war, has borrowed upon better terms than any man of landed property could borrow, even though he gave the best security for the interest, with an engagement to repay the principal at a given period. On this subject, it is my misfortune to speak from experience. But, supposing it could be satisfactorily proved that by an artful and wicked combination amongst monied men, the minister and parliament had been compelled to borrow money at an usurious interest, is the stock-holder to forfeit his property for the villainy of loan-jobbers? No! The obvious and the fair mode of proceed ing would be, by a bill of pains and penalties attaching only to the guilty. But, in my opinion, the guilt does not exist. Without being Mr. Pitt's panegyrist, I believe that he, as well as Lord Sidmouth, made the best possible bargains for the public that could be procured. The gambling in stocks, the rise and fall of omnium, is a business amongst individuals, much to be lamented undoubtedly, but the public has no concern in it. The minister who borrows money dear, when he could get it cheap merits impeachment; and, if parliament neglects its duty, by giving its sanction to an improvi dent bargain, I know not with what justice, redress can be obtained. I remember the censures cast upon Lord North for one loan in particular during the American war, when the omnium rose to 12 per cent. immediately after the bargain was concluded. But in that instance, the sudden rise was occasioned by an idea of a general peace under the mediation of the Emperor of Germany, and when the negociation failed, the omnium fell, as suddenly as it rose. From a Auctuation in politics one of Mr. Pitt's loans bore a premium of 16 per cent, and one of Lord Sidmouth's, a discount just as large. Yet it would be unfair to argue, that Mr. Pitt made an improvident loan for the public or that the men who dealt with Lord |