the French paper, containing the correspondence between sir Sidney Smith and general Kleber. From that paper, published by the French government, for the very purpose of attaching on this country a breach of faith relative to the convention of El Arish, it did appear that sir Sidney, in his correspondence with Kleber, signed himself plenipotentiary of his Britannic majesty. It, however, appeared, from that very correspondence, that Kleber himself did not think that sir Sidney had any powers to negociate; for he expresses his doubts about the efficacy of any pass ports which might be granted by him. How sir Sidney came to think that he had powers, or by what means he convinced general Kleber that he had authority to grant passports, he could not pretend to know; but he did know for a certainty, that he had no such powers or authority. The only points in this question were, had sir Sidney powers, either as a plenipotentiary, or as a military officer, to con clude such a convention? And had ministers any information of such a conven tion being concluded when the instruc tions were sent to lord Keith? The first time that ministers had any reason to think that such a convention might be proposed, was in December 1799. They immedi ately sent such instructions on the subject to lord Keith, not to sir Sidney Smith, for he had no command in chief, but only commanded a detachment of lord Keith's fleet. This country was at that time in alliance with Russia and Austria, as well as the Ottoman Porte; and it was the duty of ministers to take care, as far as pos sible, of the interests of its allies. The evacuation of Egypt was desirable; but it was their duty to prevent, and they saw the importance of preventing, the return of the French army in Egypt to France, where it would immediately have been employed to act against the Russians and Austrians in Italy, or in Germany. The instructions sent to lord Keith therefore were, that if any convention for the evacuation of Egypt should be proposed, he should agree to it; but, at the same time, not to consent that the French army should be sent back to France. Lord Keith did not receive these instructions till February 1800; and before that time sir Sidney had concluded a convention, which, as the ministry were conscious that he had no powers to conclude, they could not anticipate being concluded. He immediately, and with great propriety, sent home sir

sition that this country had been guilty of a breach of faith. He would assure the House, that he felt very easy under all the opprobrium which had been heaped upon his conduct as a member of the late administration, respecting the convention of El Arish, and under all the threats of evil to the country which had been anticipated from that convention not having been carried into effect, because he was conscious, that there existed no ground for them, and that the hon. gentleman was under a complete misapprehension of the whole transaction. There was no breach of the convention concluded for the evacuation of Egypt; there was no violation of good faith on the part of this country. He would repeat what he had said when this subject was discussed last year, that sir Sidney Smith had no powers to conclude any such convention. Sir Sidney had powers only to act as a military officer in Egypt. He had previously a command in the Mediterranean; his brother, Mr. Spencer Smith, was then British minister at Constantinople; and when he was sent to take the command of the British force on the coast of Egypt, it was thought proper, in order to add something to his dignity in that situation, to place him with his brother, as British plenipotentiary for the conclusion of the defensive treaty of alliance between this country and the Ottoman Porte, which had been solicited by the latter power. Special powers were granted him for this purpose; but as soon as that treaty was signed, his powers as a plenipotentiary were at an end, and he had no powers to go beyond that single act. Indeed, he conceived that the thing must speak for itself. For, before the convention of El Arish, lord Elgin had gone to Constantinople as representative of his majesty with the Ottoman Porte; and, of consequence, both sir Sidney Smith and his brother were superseded in any diplomatic character which they might before that have held. But any detail upon this subject appeared to him completely unnecesary, as he would declare from his own knowledge the simple fact, that sir Sidney had no powers whatever, but those which were special for signing the defensive alliance with the Ottoman Porte. He would, however, allow that the hon. gentleman had stronger ground to go upon, in what he had said this night, than he had when he formerly brought the same subject before the House; and this ground was drawn from

John Douglas in a frigate with the intelli- | gence. Ministers remained of the same opinion, as to the policy of such a convention; they were of opinion, that he had acted improperly and without authority, and that the convention he had concluded was unfavourable to the interests of this country. But, as they found that a British officer had interfered, and (whether with proper powers or not) had ratified the convention, they thought it better for the honour of the British name to agree to it. They were guilty of no breach of faith; on the contrary, they confirmed the convention, because they saw that the French, trusting to its validity, might have given up some of their strong posts, which could not be restored to them in the same state. He had seen the French paper from which the hon. gentleman had derived his authority for asserting that this country had been guilty of a breach of faith. But he could assure the House, that the statement which he had now given was the simple history of the case. He knew that pains had been taken to impress a belief that this country had been guilty of a violation of the faith of treaties. He, therefore, if the hon. gentleman would withdraw his motion, would have no objection to the production of all the instructions given to sir Sidney Smith and to lord Keith. He knew that the production of them would vindicate this country from the unjust aspersions which had been thrown upon it. He by no means disapproved of the warmth, zeal, and anger manifested by the hon. gentleman, because they resulted from a jealousy for the honour of the British character; but he conceived it to be wholly unnecessary for him to enter into a minute examination of all the points upon which the hon. gentleman had enlarged, and his fears for our East India possessions; because all that he had said was founded on a misapprehension, which he trusted was now done away. But the hon. gentleman had done more than express his fears, he had displayed his skill in geography, and had chalked out, for the information of the French, all the routes which had been

followed from the days of Alexander to those of Tamerlane, from Egypt to India. He wished the French were out of Egypt; but his apprehensions from their temporary possession of that country, and for our possessions in India, were not so strong as those of the hon. gentleman; and he trusted that the good fortune of this

country, and the skill and bravery of the officers and troops now employed in an expedition for that purpose, would soon relieve us from all apprehensions.

Mr. Sheridan said, he could not help remarking, how extraordinary it was that the right hon. gentlemen should now volunteer what, not many months ago, they had obstinately refused. It was then said that the production of those papers was unnecessary, and would be highly dangerous. But they had been then in office-now they must lower their tone-" Projicit ampullas et sesquipedalia verba." The right hon. gentleman had spoken of the warmth of his hon friend. He did not know whether his hon. friend was always suaviter in modo, but certainly he was always fortiter in re. Of all the acts of the late administration, this was the most disgraceful to the national bonour, and the most productive of public calamity. The right hon. gentleman had complained that his hon. friend had given information to Buonaparte. It was, to be sure, a most atrocious act, to add to the geographical knowledge of the poor, ignorant, pitiful Buonaparté, and to inform him, that there had been such men as Alexander and Tamerlane! He had heard of many state secrets, but that the route from Syria to Indostan was a state secret he never before could have conjectured.-Mr. Sheridan then went into a justification of the conduct of sir Sidney Smith. It must be presumed, he said, that he had acted agreeably to his in structions, till it was proved that he had transgressed them. That he had not, was evident from the pension which had been lately conferred upon him. What! reward a man who had entrapped the enemy, who had incensed our allies, who had dishonoured the British name, and brought innumerable calamities upon his country! If ministers had been in the right, they would not have been slack in laying the blame upon him; but they knew that they themselves were answer able for all that had happened. He must have had these powers: all our comman ders possessed and exercised them. It was universally believed that he acted under them at home and abroad; ministers must have been aware that he might have concluded such a convention. But a rash presumption was excited in their minds by the Intercepted Corres pondence. After reprobating the preface, Mr. S. adverted to the statements

and

of this publication, many of which, he | said, had turned out to be extremely illfounded. Among other things it was said that M. Tallien had lost an eye; but gentlemen must now be convinced that he had a pair of very good eyes [alluding to the eager manner in which members had flocked to the gallery to gaze upon this celebrated stranger]. There could be no doubt that Kleber would have scrupulously fulfilled the convention on his part. He probably would have lost his head upon his return to France; but such was his scrupulous regard to honour, that he would have adhered to his engagements whatever might have been the consequence. The subsequent consent of ministers he attributed not to good faith, but to the successes of the French in Italy, which rendered the acquisition of troops of little value, and to the representations made by sir John Douglas, of the formidable position of the army of the East. The right hon. gentleman wished the French out of Egypt; but would it not be strange, if one man wished another out of a room to bar the windows and lock the door? In Egypt, however, the French were, and there, he feared, they would for ever remain.

Lord Hawkesbury said, that in the course of the last session this same question had been discussed: on that occasion he had thought the explanation of his right hon. friend perfectly satisfactory as to the charge of breach of faith; but circumstances had since come to light which rendered further inquiry necessary. The papers published by the French government, charging this country with a breach of faith, rendered it necessary, that all the papers upon the subject should be produced. He should therefore have no objection to the production of them; and if the hon. gentleman would withdraw his motion, he would move one, the operation of which would be much more extensive. His lordship then enumerated the different documents that he would consent to produce. After which he proceeded to argue, that sir Sidney Smith was not, by his situation, entitled to exercise the powers of a plenipotentiary.

Mr. Pitt said, he hoped that, out of office, he should show himself as ready as ever he had been when in office, to resist the production of any papers for which there was laid no parliamentary ground, or in the production of which there was danger, or any material public inconve

nience. This principle he had uniformly acted upon, and upon it he was determined to act; it had applied to the very subject which was now before the House: but since that time, a difference had taken place, which, whether in or out of office, would have made a difference in his mind as to the course that was to be pursued. There were published certain papers, in which sir Sidney Smith was introduced as having given colour to the idea that he assumed the character of a plenipotentiary, and, as such, concluded a treaty with general Kleber at El-Arish. There was now, in favour of the motion for official information on that subject, what was wanting before-that was, security against the public inconvenience by giving it; and as that was so, he was as ready to grant, as formerly he had found himself bound to refuse, the information called for. The papers upon this occasion should be to the fullest extent, and they were so, as they had been stated by his noble friend. They went to the extent of showing the instructions given to sir Sidney Smith, and also those given to lord Keith. It would also be proper to produce the proclamation issued by sir Sidney during the attack on Acre; by which it was said, he knew perfectly what he was doing, and that it was a strange thing if he did it without instructions. He should be glad that the House should see it, and if he was not mistaken, it would turn out thus: that sir Sidney, commanding at Acre, published a proclamation, signifying, that if any of the French besieging army should desert and come to him, he would give them passports by which they might return in safety to Europe. Now if this were so, all that remained to be said upon that subject was, that if gentlemen on the other side of the House could show that this made sir Sidney a state minister; if they could show, that publishing a proclamation to encourage desertion from the enemy made him a minister plenipotentiary, then their argument was good, but not otherwise. Sir Sidney had no power to be a party to this convention, so much talked of. The power he had was confined clearly within the limits stated by his right hon. friend, and when that was performed he was functus officio. That he was a commander (but not in chief), was true; he had no special or full power; and the question, if there could be any, would be, whether his general power gave him authority to enter into any conven