Feb. 9th.--Lord Egmont, in the course of the Mutiny Bill, moved to have oaths administered to evidences on regimental Courts Martial. He still combatted the giant of military power: Sir Henry Erskine, the old companion of his chivalry, was now the first to oppose him. The consideration, at the motion of Lord George Sackville, was deferred till the report.
13th.--The Duke of Bedford moved to have the accounts of Nova Scotia laid before the House. Lord Halifax added, that all letters to and from the Secretary of State relative thereto should be produced. The Duke of Newcastle opposed this, and desired that only extracts might be brought. The Duke of Bedford artfully inflamed this contest, praised Lord Halifax, and acquiesced.
15th.--Was published the Duke of Newcastle’s answer to the Memorial presented by Mons. Michell, Secretary of the embassy from the King of Prussia. This Memorial and other papers had been presented in November and December of the preceding year, and was a pretended justification of the Prussian King’s conduct in stopping the last payment of the money due to the subjects of Great Britain on the Silesian loan. This money had been borrowed of private persons in the year 1734 by the Emperor Charles VI., and he had mortgaged to them as a security his Revenues arising from the Duchies of Upper and Lower Silesia, for payment of principal and interest, till the whole debt should be discharged, which was fixed to be in the year 1745. But no sooner was the Imperial debtor dead, than the King of Prussia seized the province of Silesia, on the cession of which to him in form by the treaty of Breslau in 1742, he agreed to take the debt upon himself, and to stand exactly in the place of the Emperor; and actually did continue to discharge part of it; but being intent on erecting himself into a naval Power, and as intent on traversing the views of his uncle, he had involved himself in squabbles with England by transporting and furnishing naval and hostile stores to France on board his Embden ships, some of which had been taken by our men of war, some condemned, some restored. These discussions not turning out to his satisfaction, or he being determined not to be satisfied, at length resolved to detain the last payment on the Silesian loan; that is, after a certain balance had been liquidated by his own Ministers, he stopped about 30,000_l._ of 45,000_l._ which were due, and offered to our subjects to pay the remainder, provided they would give a full and authentic discharge for the whole debt: a transaction the more arbitrary and unjustifiable, as his complaints were not dated till 1746, and the whole debt ought to have been discharged the year before. The measure was violent and insulting, and a glaring comment on the inconveniences resulting from our connexions with the Continent. The great superiority of the navies of Great Britain over the baby fleet of Prussia, the only arms by which nations so separated could come to any discussion of interests, was too evident for that Prince to have dared to hazard his infant hopes in so unequal a contest, had he not been sensible that we had a pawn on the continent with which he might indemnify himself for any exertion of British resentment;--and indeed, while we have this pledge staked for our good behaviour, every petty Prince who is a match for Hanover is too powerful for England; nor is it a question any longer what nations can cope with Great Britain, but, what little Landgrave is too formidable to the Electorate?