The National Register. — London, England, 1814-12-18 00:00:00

~,. ;.,~ . gir . .... i, _ , . 4 ve.• It, ' ,rty ••• • • • • EGI A . ST THE NA Darting, Qi mititntion, taint. PUBLISHED AT NO. 11, NEWCASTLE-STREET, STRAND. No. 350. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 18, 1814. our Representative carried to Vienna, were actually founded on an idea that France would have no efficient voice in the Congress. Whether in public or private life, there is nothing so ridiculous as the idea of dispatching an agent who shall have two principles, of both of which he is to obtain, or rather attempt to obtain, the establishment. Except, in deed, there should be a certainty of so much power being possessed, as to enable the party, so endeavouring to esta blish the principles, to effect his purpose by force. This carries with it its own argument. However, no one of common sense either can or will contend, that such was our situation, or such the situation of France, as to ena ble us to enforce, or her to acquiesce, in the establishment of such a principle, as that she should submit to the status quo anic &Mtn:, and ourselves and our alli( s totally abandon it. It is true, as . we observed in the same paper, that " France had contended for the principle, or rather con ceded it in a moment of distress." But the axiom will stand as good in political as in private life, that it is no breach of morality to refuse to comply with a condition which was stipulated ander the influence of fear. France had been betrayed by the ambition of Buonaparte, and her capital hail fallen into the possession of the very Sove reigns who had first been the instruments of his arms ) and - subsequently the victims of his arts. This was the light in which a statesman should haves viewed the question. If, added to this view, another had been taken as to the practicabilitN of carrying the princi ple into effect, the result would have been widely dif ferent. France has, with her usual dexterity, made her tem porary admission of this principle of essential use to her. She made us the cat's paw l and either has or w iil, by these means, instil into the public mind of Europe an idea that to us is to be ascribed the danger, if any of a new war : for, of this new conteit, Belgium must be the corner-stone. Whether this was a bait thrown oat for the purpose, may, with some, be a matter of queition ; but, that it either has had, or wili have the effect, appears certain. The course of reasoning that occasioned the attempt de' - yokeYlanders to Holland sees ,to have arisen either • r :0 v.*A ~-:~,.. POLITICAL DISQUISITION. THE CONGRESS. " To explain the mystery of this Congress, that was to realize the ideas of the Grett Henry, is beyond our power. When the ar mies of the various parties shall be ready kr the field, and the season fit for their operations, we suspect that all their debates will be terminated by an appeal to the ultimaTatioxes rt6•aui."— ( Nat. ►tee. Nov. V 7.) v 4 We retard the events. that have already developed themselves, as indicative of the different Sovereigns . having taken the ground they intend to ocenpy."—(Nat Reg. Dec. 4.) mileimme ' On the 30th of October we endeavoured to impress on 'the minds of our reader, that " the great unanimity about and after the peace of Paris was, it was to be feared, only to be ascribed to the temporary paralysis of the French diplomatic mashine ;" and so early as this period, " the Paris papers very candidly told tie. that the French Go vernment was in no way jealous of any advantages which other states might reasonably expect, and only desired the re-establishment of a just balance of power." This reason and justice were not to us words of any equivocal meaning : they politely but firmly told us, that. France • was determin:-.1 to make every attempt to regain That pre ponderauce which she had lately held and but lately lost on the continent. Pursuing this interesting subject, in an article on the cession of Flanders to Holland, we stated that there ap peared to be many reasons why the Congress at VienUa cc would break up without achieving any useful purpose." We endeavoured to point out the causes that would, in our opinion, lead to its failure. The principal of these was a ridiculous opinion, that because the allies had reached Paris, France was hors de combat. We argued on the extreme folly of trusting to the speculations of The Times, which, before the fall of Buonaparte, con tended that France was in a state of exhaustion, and which, forgetful of her internal system, seemed to insi nuate, that for many years she would not be able to re occupy her station on the political theatre of Europe. In this paper we lamented that such should be the ra pidity with which the current of political error flowed, as to carry with it not only " the coal-heaver in his pot house, but the statesman in his cabinet." For it now should most evidently appear, that the instructionAo4. Vol. No. CCGLIX. 45 > '",..; t .., ti al c .. ,‘ , f? X ' ~'3 ~~.: * - '~ :1 ~_. '.i PRICE 91.