Mr. Wilberforce. motion for the adjournment. What could be obtained by fuch a delay, but merely having an opportunity of preventing the operation which the truth and eloquence of his honourable friend's fpeech, fhould, and would otherwise have in convicting the delinquent, and redeeming the debased and forfeited character of the nation? With refpect to the pretence of adjourning for the fake of deliberation, he could not admit in the leaft degree of its propriety. If gentlemen had not come with party prepoffeffions and perfonal partialities, they would not hesitate to vote when their minds were directed to embrace the cause of personal justice and national honour. Whatever might be the prejudices of individuals, it was the cause of humanity, which demanded a union of fentiment in punishment. All should unite in giving a vote which their minds muft now approve for its juftice, and their hearts embrace for its philanthropy. Mr. Fox now obferved, that however he might confider this motion for delay as a compliment to the powers of his eloquence, yet fuch he knew was the anxious defire to obtain justice for the oppreffed, whofe cause he had fo honourably to himself, and fo nobly for the human character, efpoufed, that he would much lament of his honourable friend that all his efforts had failed of their intention. No compliment paid to his merit, he was certain, would compenfate for the disappointment his heart would feel, in finding all his exertions to bring the guilty to juftice, fruftrated by this unexampled delay. Unexampled it was. He never knew of any debate being adjourned, without fome ftrong reafon of neceffity being given: either fome points arofe that required references, or fome doubts that appeared to the Houfe neceffary to be fatisfied by giving a time fufficient for this purpofe. But in the prefent inftance nothing of this nature had been stated as an excufe. Mr. Wilberforce expreffed his concern that the right honourable gentleman fhould have lavifhed away fuch a portion of time upon mere invective; upon infinuations which tended much to weaken the effect of the honourable gentleman's very able and eloquent fpeech, which he confeffed had made a very great impreffion on his mind; but that was a reafon fufficient of itfelf for him to wifh for time to deliberate. He defpifed the imputation of being confidered either as the abettor or the protector of delinquency, nor fhould he shrink from any inveftigation of the reafons which would prompt him to vote for an adjournment, Did the right honourable gentleman wifh to lead the Houfe captive at his chariot wheels? Were they not fitting there as judges on a question of the highest importance? A queftion which involved in its confequences the character and fortune of one of their fellow fubjects? Was it not, therefore, fitting in them to deliberate and inveftigate? He paid many compliments to the eloquence of Mr. Sheridan, which he acknowledged had thrown many new and important lights on the fubject; but though they had in a great degree tended to remove his doubts, ftill he was not ripe for decifion; and he was yet afraid to give his vote, left it should prove er roneous. Mr. Fox obferved, that the honourable gentleman who Mr. Fox. fpoke last seemed to confider every thing as invective which did not convey the groffeft flattery to his right honourable friend, (Mr. Pitt.) If he had ufed words which could be conftrued to convey invective, he was forry for it, and he would be the first to beg the right honourable gentleman's pardon; but, on the prefent occafion, he was not confcious of having ufed fuch words. It was very true, that he had called on the right honourable gentleman, if he had any doubts, to ftate them; for it was, in his mind, highly important to the caufe of truth and of juftice, that he should then give his opinion He had stated too, that all who knew the right honourable gentleman, knew that he poffeffed abilities, and that in those abilities he had fufficient confidence to be able at any time to ftate his doubts. In Heaven's name, then, why did he fhrink from the inquiry? Was he afraid to meet decifion? Or was he afraid to truft his caufe to the prefent temper of the House? He hoped it was a caufe like that of Cheit Sing, in which, though the right honourable gentleman had taken confined ground, yet he had fhewn that he was open to conviction. He hoped that the right honourable gentleman, for the fake of his own character, and for the fake of the reputation of his country, would, on the fide he fhould take in the decifion of the queftion of that day, fhew that he was equally open to conviction. Of all questions which came to that House for difcuffion, India queftions were, of all others, thofe which required prompt decifion; it was dangerous to truft them to the perils of negociation, or the dangers of out-door conversation; and he fcrupled not to fay, that an adjournment, far from affifting, would enfeeble and difgrace the cause of Mr. Haftings. very Mr. Sheridan obferved, that he should not have trefpaffed Mr. Sherion what he was bound to confider as the already too liberal dan. indulgence of the Houfe, had he not felt himself called upon by the honourable gentleman, (Major Scott) who had charged him with wilful mifreprefentation with refpect to Colonel Hannay's evidence. Of the falfity of that charge he appealed to every gentleman who heard him. As far as his own memory ferved him, he declared that he had ftated that evidence. fairly and fully but if he had not, he was perfectly ready to allow the honourable gentleman every advantage which he VOL. XXI. P could Ms. Mar tia. Mr. Mon could derive from the depofition of Colonel Hannay. With refpect to the queftion of adjournment, the Houfe would fee the propriety of his faying nothing on that fubject. Mr. Martin faid he had liftened with admiration, and with the utmost attention, to the fpeech of the honourable gentleman who had opened the debate: he really felt himself on that account very much fatigued, and was therefore an advocate for the adjournmet. Mr. Montague faid that he came down to the House rather prejudiced in favour of Mr. Haftings; but, he confeffed, that the very masterly and eloquent manner in which he had that day heard the charges ftated, had ftaggered, nay, almost convinced him of the juftice of it; ftill, however, he was not prepared to decide, and therefore he was convinced of the propriety of an adjournment. Mr. St. John, the Chairman of the Committee, was then proceeding to read the motion of adjournment, when Mr. Mr. Sheri- Sheridan rofe and faid, that if gentlemen really meant to press Jun. it to a decifion, he did not wifh to take the fenfe of the Houfe on the question of adjournment. The motion was now read, and paffed without a divifion. Thursday, 8th February. The question being moved by Mr. Francis, for the refumption of the Committee on the Eaft-India charge' against Warren Haftings, Efq. the Speaker left the chair, and Mr. St. John took his feat at the table. When Mr. Francis was on the point of fpeaking, Mr. Dempfter rofe, and defired that, before the Committee fhould proceed upon the continuation of the adjourned debate, he might be fuffered to trouble the House with a requifition from Sir Elijah Impey. Mr. Francis now fat down, and Mr. Dempfter ftated, that Sir Elijah was waiting without the door, extremely defirous of being permitted to be called to the bar, for the purpose of delivering in a written paper, containing an explanation and correction of fome few of his answers when laft examined. He was the more powerfully induced to make this request, because he had difcovered his errors by a reference to some papers at home. Mr. Dempfter read the paper, and moved, That the request of Sir Elijah Impey be granted." Mr. Francis declared his earnest defire to have the paper in queftion laid on the table, if it could be done with propriety, and confiftently with the rules of the Houfe. That it conftituted a very important queftion, which he defired the learned gentlemen oppofite to him to confider, whether a cor correction of evidence given in a judicial and a criminal proceeding, after a confiderable interval from the time when it was given, could be received confiftently with juftice, and with the rules established, not only in the Houfe of Commons, but in every court of justice, and in all judicial proceedings whatsoever. That it was perfectly true, that he had yesterday readily confented to the paper's being received, because he was not at that moment aware of the confequence, and because he really wifhed to have it on farther confideration he faw the danger of the precedent. That this was not a correction of information given, which the oftener it was corrected the better, but of evidence offered in the course of a criminal profecution, the alteration of which might proceed from other motives as well as a real conviction of the truth. He believed there was no precedent of fuch a correcton being admitted in fimilar circumstances, and therefore, very much against his inclination as to the immediate inftance, and merely for fear of eftablishing a dangerous precedent, he muft oppofe the motion. Mr. Dundas obferved, that in the full confidence that Sir Mr. Dundas Elijah's explanation was of no material confequence either one way or the other, he was happy when the cafe was fo circumftanced to lay down a general rule. He then contended, that if every witnefs could come one day and contradict what he had said the day preceding, the confufion would prove not merely inextricable but endless. The Solicitor General faid, that the House would be at once The Solici led to a decifion upon the matter, by fuppofing, as a cafe in torGeneral. point, that two witneffes were examined the fame day, and both agreed. If in that cafe, one came the next, defired to re-examined, and contradicted what he had before faid, then the facts established by their concurrence would be let loose, and the task of adducing evidence could not poffibly approach to a conclufion. Mr. Dempfter's motion was negatived. Mr. Francis having now rifen a fecond time, was inter rupted by Dolben. Sir William Dolben, who defired leave to explain and juf- Sir W. tify his conduct in moving for the adjournment of the night before. Mr. Francis at laft was permitted to proceed. He began Mr. Francis, with obferving how often he had been interrupted, and that so many interruptions were enough to difcompofe and embarrass a better practised speaker than himself. That, however, he had no thoughts of making a formal, regular speech; certainly, not a long one, That he hoped the few points which he meant to fubmit to the Committee, would appear to be material, notwithstanding any disorder in Aating them; P 2 and and if they did, gentlemen would undoubtedly give them their due weight, and make a proper arrangement of them in their own minds. With refpect to the adjournment, he frankly acquitted Mr. Pitt of the intention attributed out of doors to that measure. His own mind, his own fenfe of honour, would not fuffer him to fufpect that right honourable gentleman of intending a ftratagem fo unworthy of himself. That, nevertheless, the effect and impreffion of the adjournment on the public mind and judgement certainly was, that it was deliberately contrived to gain time for calling in new power, and that power to decide, which had not heard Mr. Sheridan's speech; or, at leaft, to counteract by delay what could not be refifted by argument; namely, the inftant impreffion made by that fpeech upon the minds of all who heard it; as if the hour of conviction ought not to be the period of decifion. That he had wished to pay his tribute of applaufe to that wonderful performance at the moment, when the impreffion of it was ftrong upon him; that he doubted much whether he fhould have been able to do it even then, in the inftant of feeling, nor fhould he be able to do it now, after many hours of reflection. That to do juftice to the ability, to the industry, to the arguments, and to the aftonishing eloquence of his honourable friend, would require a power of ability and eloquence approaching to his own; he fhould therefore leave that talk to others; that he himself looked higher-to the moral mind, that created and directed the intellectual power; to the honourable, generous, and virtuous heart, which was the true fource of all thofe fplendid efforts and brilliant operations of intellect, which the Houfe had only admired as acts of the understanding; to that he attached himself. That he had always confidered the human heart as the real fource of hu man wisdom and folly, as well as of virtue and vice; that therefore the Book of Wisdom, to exprefs the extremity of all folly, had declared, the fool faid in his heart. If this were true, the world would measure the virtues of his honourable friend by his abilities; they would judge of the pure and copious fountain by the magnificence of the ftream, and give him a higher and more honourable place than even among the greatest of mankind. That his virtues, and, of course, his abilities, fwelled and expanded, according to the occafion that brought them into action, and fpontaneously rose to a level with the new office which they were called upon to execute. To him, indeed, that day had decreed a glorious triumph; a triumph independent of victory; and, if defeat were poffible, victorious in defeat. Mr. Francis then entered upon a statement and explanation of fome particulars relative to the queftion, which were not, |