Complete Works of Samuel Johnson

by Samuel Johnson

  The fifth clause, my lords, is without any penal sanction, and, therefore, cannot be compulsive; nor is any thing of importance proposed in it, which is not already in the power of the senate. Either house may now demand an account of the stations and employments of the ships of war; nor does the senate now omit to examine the conduct of our naval affairs, but because our attention is diverted by more important employments, which will not by this bill be contracted or facilitated.

  The use of the provision in the sixth clause, my lords, I am not able to conceive; for to what purpose, my lords, should the ships appointed for any particular service be nominated at any stated time? What consequence can such declarations of our designs produce, but that of informing our enemies what force they ought to provide against us? In war, my lords, that commander has generally been esteemed most prudent, who keeps his designs most secret, and assaults the enemy in an unguarded quarter, with superiour and unexpected strength.

  In the seventh clause, many regulations are prescribed to the commanders of those ships which are appointed to convoy the trading vessels. These regulations, my lords, are not all equally unreasonable, but some of them are such as it may, on many occasions, be impossible for the commanders of his majesty’s ships to observe in such a manner as that the masters of merchant ships may not imagine themselves neglected or forsaken. The captain of the convoy may be, therefore, harassed by them with prosecutions, in which it may be difficult to make his innocence appear. The convoy may be sometimes accused of deserting the traders, when the traders in reality have forsaken the convoy, in confidence that they should either arrive safe at the port without protection, or be able, if they should happen to fall into the enemy’s hands, to charge their misfortune upon the negligence of their protector.

  The eighth clause, my lords, is so far from being such as might be expected from merchants, that it seems rather to have been drawn up by men who never saw the sea, nor heard of the violence of a storm. For who that had the slightest idea of the uncertainty and hazard of a sailor’s condition, who that had been ever told of a shipwreck, or but looked on the pictures of naval distress, would propose that no ship should retire to a harbour, or quit the station to which it was assigned, on any pretence whatsoever without permission, which sometimes could not be obtained in many months, and which never could be received soon enough to allow of a remedy for sudden disasters, or pressing calamities. It might with equal reason be enacted, that no man should extinguish a fire without an act of the senate, or repel a thief from his window, without a commission of array.

  It is happy, my lords, that this clause is not enforced by a penalty, and, therefore, can never have the obligatory sanction of a law; but since it may reasonably be supposed, that the authors of it intended that the observation should be by some means or other enjoined, let us examine how much security it would add to our navigation, and how much strength to our naval power, if the breach of it had been made capital, which is in itself by no means unreasonable; for what punishment less than death can secure the observation of a law, which, without the hazard of life, cannot be obeyed?

  Let us, therefore, my lords, suppose a crew of gallant sailors surprised in their cruise by such a hurricane as is frequent in the American seas, which the highest perfection of skill, and the utmost exertion of industry has scarcely enabled them to escape; let us consider them now with their masts broken, their ship shattered, and their artillery thrown into the sea, unable any longer either to oppose an enemy, or to resist the waves, and yet forbidden to approach the land, and cut off from all possibility of relief, till they have represented their distress to some distant power, and received a gracious permission to save their lives.

  Misery like this, my lords, admits no exaggeration, nor need I dwell long on the absurdity of establishing regulations which cannot be observed, and which if they were enforced by any sanctions, proportioned, as all penal sanctions ought to be, to the temptations of violating them, must drive all our sailors into foreign service, or urge them, upon the first distress, to defiance of law, and fill America with pirates, and with rebels.

  By the ninth clause, my lords, nothing is proposed but a relaxation of the present discipline. It requires, that the commanders of ships of war shall send only once in six months those accounts of their conduct and their service, which they are at present obliged to transmit by every ship that returns from America; so that by passing this bill, we shall only be disabled from receiving regular and seasonable informations of the transactions of our distant squadrons and colonies, shall be disturbed with groundless suspicions, and tortured with unnecessary suspense.

  I have arrived at length at the last clause, a clause, my lords, worthy to be the concluding paragraph of a bill like this; a clause in which the power of the admiralty is communicated to the governours of our colonies; men, my lords, not hitherto much celebrated for their superiour wisdom, moderation, or integrity; of whom, at least, it is no reproach to assert, that they are known to be, for the most part, wholly unacquainted with maritime affairs, and very little famed for military knowledge; and of whom it is above all to be considered, that they generally commence merchants at their arrival in America, and may more probably direct ships sent to guard the colonies, to stations in which they may preserve their own vessels, than to those where they may contribute most to the general security of trade.

  Thus my lords, I have examined without prejudice every paragraph of this bill, and believe, that from the objections which I have made, it appears now plainly to your lordships, that all the regulations which are of any use, are such as are already established by long custom, or by former statutes; and such, therefore, as it is unnecessary to mention in a new law; and that whatever is here to be found new, is absurd, unintelligible, or pernicious.

  This bill, my lords, is said to be founded on the act made for the same purpose, in the wars of the queen Anne; but I cannot forbear to observe, that the original law, though not one of those to which much of the success of that war is to be ascribed, was drawn up with more discernment than the bill before us. It was, at least, intelligible; the number of cruisers was limited, and it was, therefore, possible to know when it was obeyed; but of this bill I can confidently assert, that as no man can understand, so no man can observe it.

  I have spoken more largely, my lords, on this occasion, because this bill relates particularly to my present employment, in which, as I desire to do my duty, I desire to know it; and, surely, I cannot be condemned by your lordships for opposing a bill, of which the only tendency is to make my province difficult, to render one part of my office inconsistent with another, and engage me in the task of superintending the execution of impracticable measures.

  What influence my arguments will have upon your lordships, I cannot foresee. As every man flatters himself that his own opinions are right, I hope to find this house concurring in my sentiments; but whatever may be the determination of your lordships, I am so fully convinced of the pernicious tendency of this bill, and the embarrassments which must be produced by an attempt to execute it, that if it be not rejected by this house, I shall willingly resign my office to others of more courage, or of greater abilities; for I can have no hopes of performing my duty under these restrictions, either to my own honour, or to the advantage of my country.

  The duke of BEDFORD spoke next, to the following effect: — My lords, though the noble lord has produced very specious arguments against every paragraph of the bill before us, and though many of his observations are just, and some of his objections not easily to be answered, yet I cannot admit that it will produce those fatal consequences which he seems to foresee, nor am yet convinced that it will be either pernicious or useless.

  It has always, my lords, been the practice of this house, to attend to every proposal for the publick advantage, to consider it without any regard to the character of those by whom it is offered, and to approve or reject it upon no other motives than those of justice and reason.

  The sam
e equity and prudence has always influenced your lordships to distinguish between the several parts of the same bill; to reject those expedients, of which, however plausible, either experience or reason may discover the impropriety, and to retain those from which any real benefit can reasonably be expected. We should never throw away gold because it is mingled with dross, or refuse to promote the happiness of the nation, because the expedients which were offered for that end happened to be conjoined with some others of a disputable nature.

  By the prosecution of this method, a method, my lords, too rational and just to be neglected or forgotten, I doubt not but this bill, which, as I shall readily admit, is not yet perfect, may be improved into a law, from which the nation will receive great advantages, by which our trade will be extended, and our riches increased.

  Many of the clauses, my lords, may, in my opinion, admit of an easy vindication, others may be amended by very slight alterations, and very few are either wholly useless, or manifestly improper.

  The chief defect of the first clause is such, that the noble lord has, by declaring his disapprobation of it, given a very uncommon proof of his integrity, disinterestedness, and moderation; for it is imperfect only by placing too much confidence in the admiralty, which is left in full power to determine the number of cruisers in or near the Channel and soundings.

  The noble lord has remarked, that the act of queen Anne, on which the present bill is founded, exacted a determinate number of ships to be employed in this particular service, and that it was, therefore, more prudently drawn up than the present bill. But I cannot see the wisdom of diminishing the authority of the lord high admiral; for had that act been extended in the same manner to other services, it would have left him only the name and shadow of an office, without power and without use.

  This clause, my lords, rightly understood, is only a declaration of confidence in his majesty’s officers, an evident confession of their abilities to discern the interest of the publick, and of their zeal for the prosecution of it.

  With as little reason, my lords, can it be objected, that the ships are required to be careened three times a-year. The necessity of careening frequently those ships, of which the chief use arises from their celerity, every sailor can declare to your lordships; nor will any man whom his employments or his amusements have made acquainted with navigation, allege that any thing is proposed in the bill, which it would not be detrimental to the publick service to neglect.

  It has been objected by the noble lord, that they are directed to be careened oftener, if there be occasion; terms by which a discretionary power is implied, of which yet it does not appear in whose hands it is lodged. Let us consider, my lords, what inconvenience can arise from the clause as it now stands, and what corruption or negligence can be encouraged by it.

  The discretionary right of bringing the ship into the ports to be careened oftener than thrice a-year, must be, without controversy, placed in the captain; for none but those that are in the ship can discover the necessity of careening it, or know the inconveniencies that are produced by the adhesion of extraneous substances to its sides and bottom.

  I own, my lords, it may be objected, that every captain will, by this clause, be furnished with an excuse for deserting his station at pleasure; that under pretence of uncommon ardour to pursue the enemy, he may waste his time in endless preparations for expedition; that he may loiter in the port to careen his ship; that before it is foul he may bring it back again, and employ the crew in the same operation; and that our merchants may be taken at the mouth of the harbours in which our ships of war lie to be careened.

  But, my lords, it is to be remembered, that in the third clause a commissioner is appointed, by whom accounts are regularly to be transmitted to the admiralty, of the arrival and departure of every ship, and by whom the conduct of every captain is to be inspected; and that he may easily detect such truant commanders, as shall careen their ships only for the sake of deserting their stations.

  Nor can the merchants suffer by any negligence or corruption of the captains, because it is intended that the place of every ship returning into port shall be supplied by another; and that the same number shall be always in the same station, unless more important service makes them more necessary in another place.

  This proviso, my lords, a proviso undoubtedly reasonable, is established in the second clause, but has not had the good fortune to escape the censure of the noble lord, who has inquired, what must be the conduct of the commanders of cruising vessels, if a seafight should happen beyond the cape, which they are in this clause forbidden to pass?

  That the clause may admit of expressions not only more proper, but more agreeable to the intention of those by whom it was drawn up, I cannot deny; for I suppose it very far from their design to limit the operations of our navy to any part of the ocean, and am confident that they meant only that the cruisers should not be despatched to such a distance from their stations, as that our coasts should be left long unguarded, or the enemy have time to collect his forces, and pour his navies or his privateers upon our defenceless traders.

  If by the commissioners mentioned in the third clause be intended a new swarm of officers, the proposition is such as I confess myself very far from approving; for it will be to little purpose that we protect the trade, if we invent new commissioners to devour its profits; nor can we hope for any other consequence from additional wealth, if it be procured by increasing the influence of the crown, but that we should become a more tempting prey to the harpies of a court.

  But, my lords, to accomplish all that is intended by this clause, there is not any need of new officers; for there are not many ports in which ships of war can be commodiously careened, and perhaps there is not one which can be used for this purpose, in which there is not already some officer of the crown, whose employment allows him leisure sufficient for the execution of a new charge, and whose present salary will afford an ample recompense for some casual addition of employment.

  The fourth clause, in which is provided that no commander shall wilfully spring his mast, or desert his station, is such as I should be willing, with the noble lord, to think unnecessary; but must appeal to your lordships, whether the late conduct of the convoys has not too evidently shown the defect of our present establishment.

  The injuries, my lords, which the publick may suffer by the negligence of the commanders of the ships of war, are such as it is worthy of the legislature to obviate with the utmost caution; and, therefore, it is by no means improper to enact a punishment for those who shall, upon any false pretences, leave their station; for though such neglect of duty is, in the present state of our naval establishment, considered as disreputable and irregular, yet it does not appear that it has been censured with the detestation which it deserves, or punished with the severity necessary to its prevention.

  It is observed, my lords, with relation to the following paragraph, that either house may, at present, require accounts of the conduct of the captains of the navy, and that, therefore, it is unnecessary to provide, by any new law, that they shall be laid before them; but if it be considered, my lords, how many inquiries, which we have a right to make, are year after year constantly omitted, and how many may be excited by curiosity to read accounts which lie before them, who yet will not move the house to demand the accounts, or engage in the debate which such a motion may produce, it will not be thought unnecessary to provide, that they shall be subject to examination without the formality of a regular vote.

  As to the sixth clause, my lords, which regards the nomination of convoys at a certain time, I can discover no reasonable objection to such a provision, or none that can preponderate against the advantages which may arise from it. By the certain establishment of convoys, the value of insurance may be nearly fixed; merchants will know what confidence is to be reposed in the force of the ships, and, what they have, perhaps, had of late equal reason to examine, how much trust can be placed in the fidelity of the commanders.

  The no
mination of convoys, my lords, is, in my opinion, more likely to affright our enemies, and to deter their attempts, than to encourage them by the information which it will afford them; for nothing but our own negligence can conceal from us the naval strength of any power on earth; and we may always, while we are careful to preserve our maritime superiority, protect our merchants so powerfully, that none of our enemies shall be incited to attack them by the knowledge of the number and force of the ships appointed for their defence.

  I come now, my lords, to the seventh clause; and surely to ascertain the duties of the captains to whose protection our trading vessels are intrusted, cannot appear superfluous to any of your lordships, who have read the lists of our losses, heard the complaints of our merchants, or made any inquiry into the conduct of our sea captains. There is, I fear, too much reason to believe, that some of them have, with premeditated design, deserted the traders in places where they have known them most exposed to the incursions of the enemy; and it is to the last degree evident, that others have manifested such contempt of the merchants, and such a disregard of their interest, as may most justly expose them to the suspicion of very criminal negligence, of negligence which no community can be too watchful against, or too severely punish.

  It has been affirmed by the noble lord, that it is not equitable to subject the commanders of convoys to penalties for the loss of the trading vessels, which may, perhaps, either rashly or negligently quit their protection. That it is not reasonable to subject them to penalties, is undoubtedly true; but, my lords, it is far from being equally certain, that it is not just to expose them to a trial, in a case in which it must be almost impossible to determine falsely; in a case where the crews of, perhaps, twenty ships may be called as witnesses of their conduct, and where none, but those whose ship is lost, can be under the least temptation to offer a false testimony against them.