ffairs prevailed throughout the session of 1808, which began on January
31, and though a large number of acts were placed on the statute book in
this and succeeding years, the mass of them, including many relating to
Ireland, were essentially of a local or occasional character. An
exception must be recognised in the partial success of a motion for the
reform of the criminal law, which was proposed by Sir Samuel Romilly,
famous for his efforts in the cause of humanity, and which resulted in
the abolition of capital punishment for the offence of pocket-picking.

During this critical period, when Great Britain was gradually drifting
into a position of isolation, the course of parliamentary history
becomes inseparable from the progress of those mighty events on the
continent, which Grenville's government would fain have treated as
outside the sphere of British interests. For, notwithstanding Windham's
schemes for a reconstruction of the army, that government had allowed
the naval and military establishments of Great Britain to fall below
their former standard. The leading idea of their policy was
non-intervention, and at the opening of 1807, there was no longer any
thought of sending a force to cope with Napoleon's veterans on the
continent When in 1805 a British force was operating in North Germany,
it was possible that if Prussia had been faithful to her engagements,
the disaster of Austerlitz might at least have been partially retrieved.
It was otherwise when, after the collapse of Prussia, France and Russia
stood face to face with each other. The drawn battle of Eylau in East
Prussia, marked by fearful carnage, was fought on February 8, 1807. This
check, breaking the spell of Napoleon's victorious career, had a
remarkable effect in raising the spirits of the allies, Russia, Sweden,
and Prussia, some remains of whose army were still in the field. These
powers now drew closer together, but they received a lukewarm support
from Great Britain, which might have done much to save Europe by timely
reinforcements and liberal subsidies. In reply to an urgent appeal from
the tsar for a loan of L6,000,000, the Grenville ministry doled out
L500,000 to Russia, and a still more pitiful gift to Prussia. No troops
were sent to aid Sweden on the Baltic coast, although, when, at
Napoleon's instigation, Turkey declared war against Russia, expeditions
were despatched to Alexandria and the Dardanelles. The notion of making
war on a large sca