Americans themselves could not withhold from him the meed of praise, for the temper and moderation with which he exe. cuted the task assigned him. The public buildings alone were destroyed, while private property was in every instance respected. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, he could not help expressing a hope, that this vengeance thus signally inflicted would be the last, and that no aggravation would render a recourse to similar measures necessary. He would also take that opportunity of stating, that instructions had been sent out to the coast of America, to abstain from further inflic tions, unless rendered necessary by fresh enormities; an order which he was satisfied general Ross, had he lived, would have felt sincere pleasure in promulgating. A short time after the affair at Washington, an attempt was planned on the city of Baltimore, and here it was that that event occurred which this country could not too much deplore-he meant the death of general Ross, who, while reconnoitring the force he was about to overwhelm, was struck with a rifle ball, and had only time, ere his eyes closed for ever, to recommend to the protection of his country his wife and family, a protection, in the grant of on the shores of the Mediterranean. In the expedition from Sicily to Calabria, he was also conspicuous; and in the battle of Maida, added new laurels to those by which he was already covered. In this battle, the superiority of British arms, and the superiority of British bayonets over the French, which had never since been withstood, was triumphantly manifested. The 28th regiment, on this occasion, by an admirable movement on the flank of the enemy, commenced that discomfiture which ended in a total rout. In 1807 the gallant general returned to England, and accompanied sir John Moore to Portugal, and from thence attended him in the expedition in which that lamented officer met his death. In the battle of Corunna he again distinguished himself; and having returned from thence to Ireland, he embarked for Spain, and placed himself under the command of the duke of Wellington; was with him in the battle of Vittoria, and exhibited such proofs of innate talent, that he was selected to take the separate command of a brigade. He now had new opportunities of displaying the energies of his mind; and in the battle of the Pyrenees, by his extraordinary abilities, drew down the particular thanks of the commander in chief; who, in speak-which he (the Chancellor of the Excheing of major-general Ross's division, said, quer) was satisfied the nation would feel It had distinguished itself beyond all the most heartfelt satisfaction, [Hear, hear!] former precedent; it had charged four and would not fail to take such steps as were times, and at each time was headed by not alone gratifying to those tender conthe major-general, who had three horses nections, but honourable to the country, by killed under him.' In the attack on St. which the services of the gallant general Sebastian's too, he had borne a full stre were so sensibly appreciated. The right of the éclat which that achieveme had hon. gentleman concluded by moving, gained; and concluded his high and im "That an humble Address be presented portant services in the peninsula by new to his royal highness the Prince Regent, instances of bravery and unexampled ac- that he would be graciously pleased to tivity in the battle of Orthies, and in the give directions that a monument be erectpassage of the Neve. At the close of the ed in the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, war with France, he was one of those London, to the memory of major-general officers who were dispatched to America; Robert Ross, who, having planned with and here, while he brought his renown to the greatest judgment, and executed with the highest pitch, he terminated his trans- equal valour, decision, and conduct, in cendant career. In conjunction with ad- concert with his Majesty's naval forces, miral Cockburn, he planned that attack an enterprize against the city of Washupon Washington, which, in defiance of ington, the capital of the United States of the difficulties which were encountered, America, which was crowned with the and the superiority of the enemy's force, most complete success, was killed shortly was crowned with success. Major-general afterwards, while directing an attack, Ross was, on this occasion, chosen to re- which also proved successful, upon a sutaliate upon the Americans for the out-perior force of the enemy posted near the rages which they had committed on the frontiers; and while he inflicted chastisement in a manner to convey, in the fullest sense, the terror of the British arms, the . city of Baltimore; and thus closed an honourable life, while yet at an early age, and in the midst of a course of the most meritorious services to his country, which deeply laments his loss; and to assure his Royal Highness, that this House will make good the expense attending the saine." Mr. Whitshed Keene apologized for rising a second time on the same evening to offer his sentiments; but, after an attendance of three score years in that House, he was too well aware of its disposition, to doubt its indulgence. He felt a deep interest in the motion which had just been made, for he had been long and intimately acquainted with the brave officer who was its lamented object. He had known his father, who highly distinguished himself in the campaigns of 1757 and 1758, and under whose immediate instruction this young man, his third son, was brought into his military career. No doubt the House would amply recompense his family for the pecuniary privations they must sustain by his loss; but it was not in their power to repair the loss which the country had sustained of such a man. He possessed the happy talent of conciliating by his disposition, and instructing by his example he possessed, indeed, all those private and distinguished qualifications by which alone a commander could acquire the full confidence of his men. His military knowledge was great and complete; for it had been the result of practice and constant experience; while his foresight and example in the field were such as to excite the enthusiasm and reverence of those whom he led to victory. It was highly gratifying to the House to hear the details of his successes, which the right hon. gentleman had so interestingly described; and he was sure that there could be but one feeling on the subject of the motion. Mr. Ponsonby said, it was impossible for any person who had known so much of the character of general Ross as had fallen to his lot to do, to give a silent vote on this occasion. There never lived a man who deserved more, or who had received more of the confidence and affection of those who served under him, than this lamented individual. Whether in the field, or elsewhere, he was alike distinguished for tenderness and gentleness. In private life there never lived a man more distinguished for social virtues, and for all the amiabilities of human nature. The right hon. the Chancellor of the Exchequer having intimated, that it was intended to make pecuniary provision for the family of general Ross, he wished to say a few words on that subject. He was desirous stating, that it was the wish, the ardent wish, of her who had been dearest to general Ross, to have it understood, that she never sought or expressed a hope, in any way, directly or indirectly, that she or her family should stand chargeable to the country. He mentioned this circumstance, because, perhaps, it might furnish additional reasons for yielding that provision to which every individual must allow the family of general Ross were most eminently entitled. It was impos sible to add to the eulogy which had been passed on general Ross: there was one thing, however, which he could not help remarking. He was sorry that the gallant general had been selected as the individual to execute those plans of vengeance, which, he had hoped, had been abolished in civilized warfare. He did not mean to say, that the Americans did not deserve punishment for the outrages of which they had been guilty; but he was sorry, in one sense, that the execution of that punishment should have fallen to general Ross, as there never lived a man who would have felt more pain in executing such an order, unless impelled by dire necessity. In another sense, he was glad that he was chosen on this occasion, because he believed there was not a man in the British service who would have carried the orders into execution in a manner less injurious, or attended with less mischievous consequences. In conclusion, the right hon. gentleman expressed a hope, that the circumstance of the family of general Ross having never expressed a desire for remuneration, would operate as an additional claim on the liberality of the House. The Chancellor of the Exchequer confirmed the statement of the right hon. gentleman, as to the family of general Ross having abstained from making any demand on the government for remuneration for the severe loss they had sustained, and observed, that he considered this as an additional motive for carrying into effect, in the most liberal manner, the wish expressed by general Ross in his dying moments. Mr. Whitbread said, that as he had animadverted upon the attack of Washington, on a former evening, he thought it proper to declare, that he never meant to cast the slightest blame upon the conduct or character of general Ross. On the contrary, he fully concurred with the sentiments of his right hon. friend, that it was happy for humanity, and the credit of the empire, that the extraordinary order upon that occasion had been entrusted to an officer of so much moderation and justice. Mr. C. Grant, jun. passed a high eulogium on the character of general Ross. He compared his conduct to that of a celebrated conqueror of antiquity, and quoted a passage from Sallust, as applicable to his great talents and humanity. It might be said with great justice of the departed general, that although his country could supply others of equal ability in his place, yet his name had been made sacred by his bravery and unfortunate end. The motion for the Address was then put, and carried nem. con. ABSTRACT OF THE ARMY ESTIMATES, FROM 25th DEC. 1814, TO 24th JUNE 1815.] Lord Palmerston presented the Estimates of the Army Services for 25th December 1814, to 24th June 1815, of which the following is an Abstract: ABSTRACT of the ESTIMATES of ARMY SERVICES, from 25th December 1814, to 24th June 1815; both days inclusive. HOUSE OF LORDS. Tuesday, November 15. NAVAL ADMINISTRATION.] The Earl of Darnley rose, pursuant to notice, to move for certain papers relative to the conduct of the naval department in the course of the American contest. This he did for the purpose of affording an opportunity to the noble viscount at the head of that department, to make good the assertions which he had made in his defence on the first day of the session. A very general opinion prevailed, that blame existed somewhere; and, therefore, it must be desirable for those who had the management of the naval department at home, to have an opportunity of shewing, if they could, that the blame did not rest with then. He could, therefore, hardly anticipate any objection to the motions which he was about to submit to their lordships, especially after the candid and fair manner in which the noble viscount had treated the subject on the first day of the session. First, then, in order to give the noble viscount the opportunity of proving, by official returns, the accuracy of his statements with respect to the number of seamen taken from the Americans in the course of the contest, he should move, "for a return of the number of seamen so taken, specifying the years in which they had been taken respectively." The noble viscount had also made a statement respect ing the amount of ships of war taken from the Americans in the course of the present war with America. With respect to the American ships, it was material to observe that their ships had a great advantage over ours of the same class, not only in point of numbers of seamen, but also in the quality of these seamen. The crews on board their ships of war were all prime seamen, while in ours a great proportion, even in the best manned vessels, consisted of landsmen and boys. If this arose from a deficiency of seamen on our side for the various purposes for which they were required, it might be worth while to consider whether a supply might not be procured by putting out of commission a great number of vessels, which, as he understood, though employed, were of very little use; and which, to use the sea-phrase, could neither fight nor run. In order to have the best possible information as to the state of the American ships, he should move for "an account of the number of ships of war taken from the Americans, or destroyed, in the course of the contest; he should now say a few words as to each of these motions, without waiting till they were separately put. The first motion was for an account of the number of sea. men taken from the Americans in the course of the contest, specifying the years in which they were taken respectively. To this motion he had no objection, with the exception of the last part of it, which could not be made out without extraordinary labour and attention on the part of the office which might be called upon to furnish it. Still, if the noble earl insisted upon it, that, too, might be supplied. With respect to the American ships of war taken and destroyed, he had no ob the state of the British armaments at the close of each campaign." There could be no reasonable objection to give this account up to the close of the last campaign. He assured the noble viscount that he should be very happy if the Admiralty could clear themselves, and show that, as far as depended on them, the naval department had been conducted in the best possible manner. But certainly an impression to the contrary very generally prevailed, and therefore it was the more incumbent on the noble viscount to agree to these motions, and to any others that might be necessary for the purposes of full and complete investigation. The noble viscount had candidly expressed his willing.jection to that motion. The noble earl ness to furnish information and meet inquiry, and he hoped no objection would now be made to the production of the papers for which he was about to move; and for his own part, he promised to proceed in the inquiry with an unprejudiced, impartial, and, if he might so express himself, a judicial mind. Viscount Melville said, that the noble earl had done him no more than justice, in admitting that he had always professed himself willing to make out the facts which he had stated on the first day of the session. He was ready to give the noble earl every possible information on the subject; and if he objected to any of these motions, it would not be from any wish to withhold any documents or evidence that could throw light on the points to which the attention of their lordships had been called, but because they required information relative to particulars about which no official information could be given. The noble earl had observed, that a very general impression prevailed in the public mind that the Admiralty had not done its duty, especially as far as respected convoys and the protection of trade and the coasts. That representations on that head had been made to the Admiralty, was perfectly well known; but when the noble earl said, that a general impression of a neglect of duty in the Admiralty existed, he was convinced that, as far as regarded those who were best informed on the subject, the noble earl was very much mistaken. Neither their lordships nor the noble earl himself, he presumed, wished him to go into any detail on that head at present: but he should be fully prepared to justify the conduct of the Admiralty when the proper time arrived. Following the example of the noble earl, had there introduced some observations relative to the manner in which the American ships were manned, compared with the mode in which the crews of the British ships were made up. He had no accurate information as to the method pursued by the Americans, nor as to the number of boys on board their ships, though he had heard something on that subject; but as far as regarded the British ships, it had always been the practice to have a considerable proportion of boys on board the ships of war; and it was a system which ought not to be discontinued, for he was convinced that this was the best source of supply of prime seamen for the navy. The noble earl had also observed, that he understood there were a great number of almost useless vessels in commission, which might he withdrawn, and the men turned over into the more serviceable ships; but the noble earl was very much mistaken, if he imagined that the description of vessels to which he had alluded were useless. Though not employed as cruizers, yet they were very useful on convoys; and the number ought, perhaps, if it were convenient, to be rather increased than diminished. With respect to the motion for an account of the British ships of war taken or destroyed by the Americans, he had no objection to that. The next motion was, for an account of the number of merchant ships taken or destroyed by the Americans, with the number of men and amount of tonnage in each. Here it must be observed, that it was impossible to furnish a regular account of those vessels that had been taken by privateers, of which there were a great number on the American coast. All that could be done was, to present an account of such as had been taken by his Majesty's ships, and reported to the Ad |