Oxford, that it was a critical day.  July 20 was the day by which it had been intimated to Holland by France and England that the treaty must be signed.  This, at least, was understood to be the case.  Documents had been published which contained a threat that force would be applied to compel Holland to give her consent to the treaty.  Holland said that she would ratify the treaty provided the articles to which she objected were altered.  The conference replied, ’You shall ratify first, and try to get the articles altered afterwards.’  Holland very naturally objected to this arrangement, because she thought that, when she applied to Belgium to alter the objectionable articles, Belgium would reply that the treaty had been ratified, and Holland must be bound by it.  This was the state of the case; and the House of Commons ought to have been consulted before any naval armament was undertaken, or any demonstration of a warlike nature made.  The House of Commons had a right to know the causes of war, if war were intended:  and he considered a hostile attack upon Holland, by whatever name qualified, substantially the same as war.  The right hon.  Secretary for Ireland had taken a rather sanguine view of our domestic affairs, and plumed himself particularly on the improved conditions of Ireland at present, as compared with that of 1830.  He should not envy him the merit of any success which might have attended his efforts to ameliorate the condition of that country, if he could bring himself to believe that it had taken place; but, from all the information which he had the means of procuring with regard to the state of Ireland, he was induced to think, that that country was never in a situation calculated to excite greater alarm than at the present moment.  But with respect to foreign affairs, with respect to those countries which were the immediate subject of consideration, we could not long be kept in suspense.  Peace or war had arrived, which must, within a very short time, terminate either in peace or in an interruption of peace.  Again, then, he said, let them consider well the ground of war; if war they were about to have with Holland—­war to compel her, against her will, to do something inconsistent with her honour, or with her independence.  Beware of that; England had before been in alliance with France against Holland.  Remember the relation in which she had stood towards that country—­remember the period—­that disgraceful period—­in the reign of Charles II, from the year 1670 to the Peace of Nimeguen in 1678; look to the alliance between England and France at that disgraceful period, remember the terms of that alliance, and the relations in which we had stood towards France, and towards the House of Nassau.  He remembered the indignant terms in which Mr. Fox spoke of the disgraceful and unnatural alliances which this country entered into with France at that period.  He said that his blood boiled at the contemplation of the disgraceful policy which was pursued by this country.