The constitutionalist — Exeter, N.H., 1810-10-01 00:00:00, page 2

Europe, which ire talk of so idly at the
present day.
Q In fine, if France benow far strong
!er, and the continental powers far
weaker, than when she first beat them
at the beginning of her revolutionary
career, the latter surely cannot hope to
gain anything by renewing that une
qual contention ;—and, if it be evident
that both the ambition and power of
£France have been chiefly fostered and
encouraged by the irritation and impo-
I tence of those successive attacks
I which have exhausted the strength of
Iher enemies, it seems reasonable to
1 make the experiment, at least of anl
opposite policy; and to try the effects
of that repose which may recruit the
strength and spirits of the vanquished,
and soften down the dicipline, the
force, and the animosity of the vic-I
£ tors.
never be pretended. The Russians
were our friends—they treated us as
such—they welcomed us to their ports,
when our government chose to let us
go: and they permitted no embarass
ment to molest our intercourse with
them.
The British, no doubt, availed them
selves of the practice, common to bel
ligerents, of assuming the neutral char
acter, and traded to Russia under our
flag, or under the protection of simu
lated papers. It was as much the de
sire of Russia as of the English, forit
was no secret. It was a benefit to
both, and the practice was attended
'with this advantage to 'Americans-
While the British enjoyed a portion
of trade to Russia, under our flag, it
Was the means,of keeping the Baltic
i'open to us. Russia was England's
'avowed enemy; and unless some ad
/ vantage was to be obtained by inter
} course, in some shape, it would have
' .been her interest and her unquestion
able right, to have shut up the channel,
and deprived her enemy of all trade
foul without. The Russians were
ixious for commerce both with Eng
land and the United States. Whether
I the property then, under our flag, was
British or American, it was equally
safe. No investigations were made—
no alarm existed—no Americans were
wrongfully seized, on the presumption
that the property was English, because
there was no desire, ifit were English,
to detect the fact. In this state of
things what part does Mr. Adams act ?
He soon made trouble enough.
Russia had been obliged, owing to
her political relations, to keep up ap
pearances with France. Her laws
were severe against the British, but as
there were no French armies in Peters
burg, she could wink at an evasion of
her laws, which her interest so much
fequired.—But Mr. Adams soon sup
plied the place of a French army, and (
French custom house officers. In the
tye spirit of Bonaparte, and actuated,
for aught we can conceive, by no mo
tive but to subserve his views; regard
less of the perplexities in which he
might involve many of his innocent
countrymen ; and the probability of
his.causing the British to shut the Bal
tic against us, if he succeeded in stop
ping their trade with Russia; he went
to work as informer general ; that
Bonaparte might have evidence enough
against Alexander, if the “continen.
system” was any longer evaded
there ; declared the papers of a large
number of apparently American ves.
sels fictitious, and they consequently
„ere seized. But lest he might not
strike deep enough at the c ° m ^^ of
England, a nation which he hates to
We have never made but few re
marks on the policy and views of our
government, in sending a minister to
Russia, and such a minister as Mr.
John Q. Adams, because what we
should havestated as our opinion, some
might have imputed to unfavourable,
prepossessions. Norshall wenow ask
credit for a mere opinion, unsupported
by facts; but the state of American
affairs in the North of Europe explains
the object of Mr. Adams's mission as
obviously as though his conversations
with Mr. Madison, before his depar
ture, had been faithfully published in
the National Intelligencer.
Let abused, insulted and betrayed
Americans attend to the circumstances
which have taken place with respect to
our trade in the Russian and Danish
dominions, and see whether the iniqui
ty of our cabinet, and the base pur
poses for which this man was employ
ed, are not sufficiently evident. If
they are not, we wish some friend of
the government to offer us an explana
tion of appearances and facts, which
shall be satisfactory, or at least plaus
ible, and dissipate our impressions.
Why was Mr. Aa^ms sent to Rus
sia ? Was there any treaty in agita
tion ? We have heard of none. We
know of no occasion for any. Was
American' "trade suffering from any
vexatious proceeding of that govern
ment, for which he went to seek re
lief? This has never been and could
From the Repertory.
the other ; though the sufferings of
our merchants in every State and port
call aloud for redress ; though Mr.
Adams is almost on the spot, he can
not leave the important duty of detect
ing English smugglers at Petersburg,
to protest against theoutrages of Den
mark. What is the secret of this ?
They are notoriously committed at the
instigation of Bonaparte ; nay by his
express orders, and American papers
are sent to Paris for examination. Our
government are perfectly quiet and
patient at home ; Mr. Adams is plot
ting and executing mischief in Russia ;
while he might be protesting against
the wrongs we suffer, at Denmark ;
and whileour frigates ought to be blow
ing their rascally privateers out of
water, they are at anchor in our har
bours.
If these statements of facts are not
just we beg to be corrected. If they
are, in the name of justice and honour,
how long will the patience of the A
merican people tolerate that infernal
policy by which they are insulted,
robbed and degraded in the eyes of all
the world ? ~
From the N. Y. Evening Post.
Ten years have now elapsed since
the reigns of our government have been
held by the Democratic Administra
tion, and in that space of time their
warmest partizans may be boldly defi
ed to point out one single solitary act
which has rebounded totU^ftrOT'
the natioTi. ffiffflo' barren in ev
ery thing good, no ten years have been
more productive of evil; each year,
each month, each week furnishes an
enormous amount to the sum total.
For the retrospective survey of the
patriot there is no object which his
eyes meet with pleasure ; it is distin
guished bul, by its crime, and weak
ness. A little while ago &we were a
flourishing country ; the gallant deeds
of our fathers had gained* us esteem,
and the wisdom and energy &f our ru
lers supported it ; jfe canvass of our
country was reflected on a thousand
waters, and every port embraced us ;
honor and riches were already in our
grasp, and the name of an American
Iwas a passport to respect in every
quarter. England beheld with sur
prise, her once subject colonies, rival
ing herself both in strength and power,
and the rapacious tye of France dared
not settle on our happy borders!—
Such was the state of things ; respect
ed at home and abroad, our friendship
and alliance were courted by all, and.
none insulted or injured us with impu
nity. Fond fools! we thought these
halcyon days would ever last, we im
agined our happiness planted on a
foundation which could not be moved.
But alas! the scene has changed, the
magic wand of Democracy has dissipa
ted our joys, and turned our hopes
into despair. The loud acclamations
of rejoicing, have given way to the
sullen murmurs of despondency, and
the voice of merriment to the sound of
sorrow. Our strength has been par
alized, our prosperity has vanished,
and wisdom departed from our coun
cils. The once towering eagle of our
country has been ensnared by the Bas
ilisk of Europe, his steady gaze has
marked her as his prey, and each flut
tering pinion brings her nearer to his
jaws.—Nations who before either
feared or reverenced us, now raise their
hands against us or treat us-with con
tempt. With stupid apathy we have
beheld people swept away by the be
som of destruction, without one wish,
one impulse to rescue ourselves from
the same fate. We have thrust aside
the extended hand of friendship, and
clasped the scorpion to our bosom.
We have given our property to our
enemies, and our curses to our friends.
The saviours of our country, the men
who poised its liberty, and supported
its strength, have been reviled and con
demned, while the laurels which deck-,,
cd their brows, h& been placed oil
government have been proclaimed, from
one extreme of the United States to
Ifanzy, his luspicfons too were pro.
I claimed ; and thus in a short time, he
gloriously succeeded in rendering A
-Imerrean documents generally discred
ited in that quarter. Every merchant
in the United States knows this to be
a fact, and every informed merchant
knows it is the work of Mr. Adams.
Now let us attend to other facts of
much greater consequence. Mr. Ad
ams stopped at Copenhagen. By that
government we had been injured.
There was business for a minister. —
But what did he do ? Surely no good ;
for from that day to this, the villany
which^as been perpetrated upon our
flag and property by the Danes, has
increased an hundred fold. Whatever
they might pretend at first, they have
long since ceased to make suspicion
of British property a plea for the seiz
ures and captures they have made, and
the monstrous robberies they have
committed. Towards us they have
acted as a nation of pirates ; to be an
American is to be a victim. But though
for a long time, the atrocities of that
Numerous and enlightened as are
the boasting citizens of independent
America - (and it appears that their
population has increased nearly one
fourth part since the year 1800 ;) it
is greatly to be feared that the time
will come, and is now rapidly ap
proaching, when they will dare to haz
ard little upon either consideration!
Xerxes was taught to confide for safe
ty, not in the number, but the bravery
of his soldiers; and it is so in every
like case; for in proportion to the
courage and virtue and knowledge of
the people, is the perpetuity of liberty
and power.
In fact, notwithstanding our vast
opportunities for jnformation & knowl
edge, if not already too democrat
ick and ignorant for liberty ; we are
at least evidently and obstinately pre
judiced and violent and headstrong,
possessing little of the disinterested
polish of the Grecian, or the character
ising and unshaken energy of the Ro
man character. Where, among the
people, more especially where among
"the rulers, shall we look for a display
of those peculiar virtues, for which
Fabius was denominated the shield and
Marcellus the sword of Rome ? Alas !
'' the days of chivalry are gone !" The
American Fabius is no more! and
we search in. vain for the semblance of
Marcellus, that valliant ussailer of
his country's enemies, among such
blighted & refuse reputations, as those
of James Wilkinson, and the deathless
" hero of Carter's mountain !"
We are a strange people; and if it
were not so, it were indeed astonishing
how we can behold with such stupid in
difference the new order of things,
which has sprung up, on the other side
of the Atlantick ; especially, as little
doubt is now entertained by the well
instructed of all classes, that the mys
terious schemes of democracy in this
country, are very intimately connected
with the dreadful system of tyranny in
Europe; and judging, as they do,
from the operation of like causes pro
ducing similar effects, the principles,
upon which they rest their opinions,
are not, as in many political investiga
tions, of a nature vague and unsatis
factory. We have already seen what
yffweening enthusiasm, what fiery
[mi the democrats are capable of,
whilst inculcating the wretched and
The causes which lead to the acqui
sition and consolidation, are not, in
most cases, equally reducible to exam
ination with those, that lead to the ter
mination'of power; the former de
pend more upon circumstances of time
andplace, while the latter relate rather
to an undeviating principle. No one,
for instance, well versed in the history
of ancient times, hesitates in assigning
an immediate reason for the unexam
pled fall of the once great and glorious
Carthage; yet antecedent to experi
ence, how unwilling are men to be
taught! at how dear a rhle is political
wisdom often purchased ! The bloody
achievers of the mighty revolution in
France required an awful lesson of
nine years, to convince them of what
the most common sense might have
demonstrated, and that too, in a single
hour!
TO those, who delight in such spec
ulations, it is curious to observe the
rapid and almost regular gradations of
a people from democracy to anarchy
and confusion, and from confusion to
absolute despotism. How many petty
republicks have in different periods of
the world, sprung up like Minerva
from the head of the thunderer, and
after being objects of the greatest ad
miration and terror, successively de
clined, till their importance was no
longer remembered in their folly, or
their once noble enthusiasm quenched
in blood!
heads too weak to bear them. The
phials of malicious vengeance have been
emptied on the ashes of departed great,
ness, and the evenomed dagger of slan
der has been aimed at those who pur.
chased our freedom with their blood.
We have exulted over the misfortunes
of a suffering country, and sung con
gratulating paeans to the enslaver of
their liberties. These and many more
are the transactions which have mark
ed the course of the last ten years,—
transactions which the mists of forget
fulness will never obscure. The cup
of our miseries is now full—the destin-I
ed goal is already approached—we
have arrived at the brink of the preci
pice, and yet a false security lulls our
fears, and calms us to repose; reflec
tion is discarded, our ears are shut to
facts, and opened to delusion. Im
poverished, insulted, and despised, we
have reached the crises of our fate,
and the next change must either bring
us to a state of convalescence, or seal
our unfortunate destiny.
For the Constitutionalist.
Modern Vandalism.
COMMUNICATION.
OBSERVER.
The Gazette (says the Courier) con
tains the official details of the gallant
action on the Coa, between Gen.
Cranford's advanced guard and the
enemy. The superiority of the lat.
ter in point of numbers was very great,
their cavalry was in the proportion of
six to one, and their guns were more
numerous and of a larger calibre.
But it appears that previously to this
action, Gen. Crauford's cavalry, which
since the capture of Cindad Rodtigo,
had remained in the villages near Fort
La Conception, was obliged, pn the
'' I am informed that throughout
this trying day the commanding officers
of the 43d, 52d, and 95th regiments,
Lieut. Col. Beckwith, Lieut. Col.
Barclay, and Lieut. Col. Hull, and all
the officer's and soldiers of these excel
lent regiments, distinguished them
selves. In Lieut. Col. Hull, who was
killed, his Majesty has lost an able and
deserving officer.
" Geu. Crauford has alsonoticed the
steadiness of the 3d regiment of Portu
guese Chasseurs under the command of
Lieut. Col. Elder.
''Since yesterday the enemy has
made no movement."
" From the 21st till yesterday morn
ing, Gen. Crauford continued to occu
py a position near Almeida, with
his left within 800 yards of the
fort, and his right extending towards
Junca. The enemy attacked him in
this position yesterday morning, short
ly after day light, with a very large
body of infantry and cavalry, and the
Brigadier-General retired across the
bridge over the Coa.z
" In this operation I am sorry to
say that the troops under his command
suffered considerable loss.
"The enemy afterwards made three
efforts to storm the bridge over the
Coa, in ail of which they were repuls
ed. '
The cavalry attached to Gen. Cran
ford's advanced guard remained in the
villages near the fort of La Conception
till the 21 inst. when the enemy oblig
ed it to retire towards Almeida, and
the fort of La Conception was destroy
ed.
LONDON GAZETTE, AUG. 11, 1810.
A despatch of which the following
is an extract, has been received from
Lt. Gen. Viscount Wellington,dated,
" ALVERCA, JULY 25, 1810.
U is lamentable that people will not
reflect that it is the invariable rule of
thfe,„who are rushing to their own
destruction, to disregard all admoni
tion from that quarter, where it ought,
and is most likely to come ; —that they
do not and will not consider, that ig
norance is ever the precursor of anar
chy, a "d the vital and lasting princi
ple of despotism. Among othersources
of instruction, they might learn, if they
would, from Napoleon's late scandal-
Qts edict against printing, how im
portant for liberty is a general diffu
sion of knowledge, and how little this
diffusion comports with that monster's
scheme of first reducing them and the
rest of mankind to a state of barbar
ism, and his consequent dreadful plans
of universal subjugation. It is ever
the policy of the tyrant to darken the
minds of those, whom he intends to
oppress or enslave ; and of the methods
which the great Vandal has taken to
induce a return of the blessings of the
dark ages, unfortunately the late edict
in question is not the least reprehen
sible. CHEOPS.
Sept. 1810.
War in Portugal.
OFFTCL^.
] cat may as well forbid the mountain pines
" To -wag their high tops, and tell them make
" no noise,
" When they are fretted by the gusts of Heaven,”
as to begin a contest with ignorance,
supported by prejudice; as to attempt
enlightening and convincing those,
who act upon the force of borrowed
opinions.
" Wisdom and goodness to the rile seem vile ;”
and
But, however many may agree with
me upon this point; one thing is cer
tain, that among our common people,
chiefly the democratick part of them,
there obtains great indocility, with
great inclination obstinately to perse
vere in error. They do not reason and
act for themselves; and when men arc
determined to be ignorant, fruitless is
the endeavor to convey instruction to
their minds.
abominable doctrine of passive obedi
ence and non-resistance ; and, we trust
we have not sought in vain their mo
tives for such unwarrantable conduct,
since to learn those motives, nothing
more is necessary, than to look at the
manner in which, for two years past,
our rulers have met the unparalleled
demands of the French government ;
and afterwards to peruse the nicely
graduated scale of Bonaparte's in
solence.
foreign ^etos.
COPY OF A LETTER
FROM the Minister of Foreign
Relations to Mr. Armstrong.
"Sir, “ PARIS, AUG. 5,181 CL
'' I have l^id before his Majesty the
Emperor and King, the act of Con
gress of the Ist of May, extracted
from the paper of the United States,
which you had transmitted to me-
His Majesty could have wished that
this act, and all other acts of the Unit
ed States that may concern France,
had always been officially notified to
him. The Emperor applauded the
the banks of the Coa from Sabugal to
Mido. The French force is in eight
divisions, each said to be commanded by
a full General, and consisting of troops
trained to the common exercise of
foot and horse, and acting in either
capacity, as occasion requires.
Revocation of the French
Berlin and Milan Decrees^
at Pinhel ; a third at Guarda ; whilst
Generals Campbell and Slade are on
several strong forts, and advantageous
positions.
Lord Wellington is at Alverca ;
Gen. Beresford's division at Francoso ;
one division is at Celerico ; a second
restraining and garrisoning in its rear
21st, to retire towards Almeida, and
the fort was destroyed. We are not
told whether they retired in conse
quence of being attacked by a large
superiority of force, or whether they
fell back upon the infantry without
risking an action, by which no effect
ual advantage could be obtained.
After the cavalry had fallen back upon
the infantry, the General occupied a
position from Almeida, which support
ed his left column, and Junca, to
which his right extended. He had at
most 5000 men, of whora 600 only
were cavalry. The enemy had nearly
12,000 —3,500 of whom were cavalry.
The immediate object of this force
which we believe was under Gen. Loi
son, was to cut off from retreating
across the Coa, and then to invest
Almeida. The first of these objects
was defeated by the admirable steadi
ness and gallantry of our troops, and •
by the skill of the General. His posi
tion was not an advantageous one,
either for defence or retreat ; the cav
alry and artillery had to pass a long
defile before they reached the bridge
thrown over the Coa. The infantry,
who covered the passage through this
defile, had to support the attack of
the enemy which was directed with
most fury against the 43d and 95th
regiments. These had to maintain the
position in front of the bridge, in or
der to give time to the troops which
had passed to take up a position on
the western bank of the river ; they
had afterwards to defend the bridge
itself, which they did successfully
against three efforts to storm it. This
will account for their superior loss ;
which was five-sixths of the whole-
After a gallant resistance from day
break till the afternoon, the enemy
ceased firing, and the General abandon
ing the banks of the Coa retired to
Carvelhal, leaving Almeida open. We
are not informed whether our troops
were able to destroy the bridge over
the Coa after they had effected their
retreat, or whether the French have
passed to the western bank of that
river. We suppose that Alfaeida has
been invested.
The retreat of Gen. Cranford from
the Coa has not produced any change
in the position of the main body of
the army. Lord Wellington was on
the 25th ult. still at Alverca. The ac
count in the Gazette confines itself en
tirely to the affair of Gen. Crauford,
& does not enable us to decide wheth
er a battle is likely to take place. But
the general opinion was that it could
not be delayed many days. Perhaps
it would take place as soon as the re
spective detachments offccu. Hill and
Regnier had joined the two armies.—-
The'former was, we are glad to hear,
within two days march of Lord Wel
lington when the last accounts carnet
away.
It seems obvious that the French,
in investing Almeida, hope to make us
quit our strong positions and advance
into the plain to relieve it. The same
hope they entertained when they be
sieged Cindad Rodrigo. They are as
likely to be disappointed with respect
to Almeida as they were with respect
to Cindad Rodrigo. The different:
English divisions have taken their po
sitions on the heights, occupying a
chain of land of many miles and look
ing down on the plain thaL leads to
the tents of the enemy ; who accord
ing to late accounts streached his force
from the rallies of Cindad Rodrigo
close up to our lines. The force under
Lord Wellington is in five divisions,
presenting as a whole, a common front
to the enemy ; yet so disposed of as
to secure a retreat upon Lisbon, by
FRANCE.
PARIS, AUGUST 9, 1810.