The National Register. — London, England, 1809-04-23 00:00:00

THE . No. 69. NATIONAL REGISTER. -t , 4 , t . • .ur tuna; can: tttution, anb.Lazg. • PRICE 9d. been in chief part occasioned by !this origin, much inure w, indeed, 'than by any particular events and circum stances which have subsequently occurred. The fountain of the evil has been in the hostile feeling-4n tho unfriendly mindi which has so loig characterised the intercourse of the two Governments. Lacli, seeing, nni judging through this medium, have.tOrmed the most perverse lingual con clusions;* each has argued that his own peculiar interest was ,directly . coutrar.y .. to the interests of the other, and that America and England, to be in their true political relation, should be natural enemies. . . .. .. As to the immediate cause of the American Embargo, it must not be contended, but that the English Ministry hue apparently committed the grossest errors. France, with the view of destroying the English commerce, issued the Berlin Decree, by which she erected herself into the Sovereip of all neutral nations, and in this asserned cha racter issued an edict for putting a kingdom under block ade. • The promulgation of this Decree was certainly a most outrageous extravagance of despotism. But it had not, and indeed could not have, a practical (Sect commen surate with its Witness of_ menace. It fell, in fact, as a tru Iv n J . :ellen—as a thunder-bolt iu the seas, extinguished as soon us it-fell. it was in vain for those to issue an edict of bluckaile; - who had no-aliiiii .ntwnr to exccute their decree. The English psissesseds . the whole fare of the seas; and Neutrals and English might, therefore, atilse have • contemned tlie'Berlin Order. Ilere, therefore, was the main error of the English Ministry. They looked rather to the despotism of the De cree—to its extra vagaat insolence and haughtiness, than to its prectical effect. If they had considered only the 1 latter quality, as in prudence they ought to have done, they would have passed the French Decree in sileut con tempt--they would have deemed the contrast of its menace with its imbecility, as worthy only of ridicule. Instead of taking it in this point of view, the English Ministry most absurdly regarded it only as an outrageous insult, and acting upon their feelings, instead of their judgments, retaliated, as they thought, by a limiter mea sure. Passion, however, is usually too blind, and too precipitate, to distinguish the exact nature either of its objects or of its instruments. And NO, in feet, it happened in this ca;e ; the retaliation was so only in appearance—it was, in fact, a repetition, an extension, at the mischief upon our own heads. The enemy issued a decree, but could not execute it. hi our precipitate folly we took the execution iu our own hands; we literally swept the seas ; we actually blockaded France,' and by the conditions winch we imposed upon Neutrals, prevented them erectus ally from coining to our own Ports. America, unable to @ell our manufactures, was very indifferent as to buying them. Her possible commerce was !hulled by what was immediately wanted by herself. This bias rowpn rnti sely very little. Two important results immediately follawed— in the first place, ,our English manufacturers suffered most I considerably from the diminished demand; and iu the se- - „,SUNDAY, APRIL 23, 1809. •.: 4. t .. _ • POLITICAL DlSQl;l§rtioN. ktIMBER. SIXTY-SEVEN. RELATIONS OF ARIERICA. The relations between America and England become so critical, and may eventually lead to such important issues, that it is incurpbent upon us to cater into some detail upon a subject so generally interesting. There is something very peculiar in the _general relative situation of America and England. The two countries have-the same language, the same general habits, and we might. almost say, the same mind and understanding. The Americans are not of the common stock, without participating at the same time in something of the common nature. It is .the characteristic pride of Englishmen to think and speak contemptuously of other countries, and perhaps, as compared with our own, this contempt may not be altogether so unreasonable as it may at first appear ; but, to use a vulgar expression, it. I would be defiling._: our own nest, to feel or express a similar contempt of the Americans. With some peculiar I national habits superinduced, they are generally the same with ourselves; they have the• same sensibility under in sult---they have the same vices, and the same virtues. Our political relations with America may he considered t under three heads:—their origin, their actual state, and their probable results. With respect to the origin' of the present relative state of America and England, it may be briefly observed, that the hostile feeling- in the governments of the two people I are coeval with the American Revolution. Nations have I their pride, •as well as individuals. We cannot forget that 1 America was once our subject ; the remembrance rankles , in our mind, and corrupts all the benevolent humours of our temper. We see nothing in America but a successNl repel, and her present tone of equality, as compared with her former relations as a dependency, have to us the ap pearance. of. insolence. America, on the, other hand, feels naturally indignant that we refuse hec the rank and esti- Illation which belong to her; and from this state of feel ill, and indeed of mutual acting, between the two, it cannot be denied, that America and England have uever been amicable at heart. The conduct of the PITT Minis try, moreover, which was so long in power, still further aggravated this original ill-leven ; they almost laboriously insulted America even in their diplomatic appointments. Those men, who have been termed American Loyalists— certainly a very honourable and respectable class, but certainly too, tot men to be in favour with the American Republican Government—these men wore appointed as Consuls, Envoys, and Ambassadors. Their conduct was such a reisht have been expected ; they ostentatiously, and sumetlines outrageously, adopted the most haughty tone, and avenged their former misfortunes by their pre gent contempt. The actual relations of America and Great Britsia have rot. 11.—Ac.