The National Register.
London, England, 1818-08-10 00:00:00

*IA/ "te/X‘o/kt.t) )17
Zd'bt Oationat

No. 5111.--Vol.. XI.

rouneA L DISQUISITION.

SEIZURE OF FLORIDA.

. .
THE seizure of Florida by the Americans has hem
the only recent event of importance which has taken
place abroad. It has not yet excited much difference
of opiaiuu, fur most people must vie* it as prima facie
a.creat outrage and usurpation. The Meriting Ckra-
nick, however, does attempt a sort of defence which it
will put forth at more haegth, probably, when it shall
have farther information toe upon; fur the opinion
of the ofileicl paper of the Americas) President is not
rime decidedly Li favour of American politics than that
oftle Chronicle, whose prejudices, it must be granted,
are any thing but national. TIT lidlowing observations
acl frimt.the Times., and arc worthy of attentinn .
Americun papers now in upon tl3 from all quarters,
but they. do not bring more novel intelligence than
that the contents of whirl we have already given.—
' The order of the day issued by General Jackson to
• his. troops, after the capitulation of Barancas, still
6 Harps upon the outrages of the unflntunqte Seminoles,
•as Itis justification-fix seizin 4 the to%vas and fortresses
'of the Spaniards. He tells his soldiers that they had
;pursued the ludi.tns to Baraneas If so, since he
• got possession of Baraticas, it may be inferred that
.there ass a force of Seminoles captured at the same
▪ line with the Sirattish garrison ; and if it shall appear
by• the next papers, Lt.): no such thing is yet an-
' nounccd), that a circumstance so im2ortant to the de.
• fence of this invasion was mnittcl in the first official
' narrative of the successes of the American army, we
• 1/hall admit that the Spanish Governor provoked the
• siege of.Barancas, by admitting into it, during open
• hostilities, a public enemy of the United States. We
• cannot .help suspecting, nevertheless, that this famous
• Apology fort violent antion, prima fa.:ic revolting and
• alarming to all civilized nations, wit: turn out rather
• lame in point of evidence. exce,g the word of an in-

• terested party be taken tits demonstration of au impro-
• bable fact. It has long been the at:lli:ion of the Ante-
' rican Government to extend tiwir ii•:tninions to the
Gulfof Mexico. The excesses of the savages dispersed
throughout the desert, and incited Iv; they have been
• the dreadful persecution of the reptiLlican back-
' settlers, who treat them like beasts, have not been
either countenanced, excused, or protected by the
' Spanituds. There is no pretext of the 'kind set up
on behalf of the United Jtates, where the Govern-
' went itself takes up the parole. The itmanpetency
' of the Spaniards to repress the Indians WaS not among
' the grounds assumed by the President f►: auticinat-
' ing the expediency of an appropriation of the Florida
•to the federal union. The possihility of their •being
' seized by a third power, and the' chance of their de-
' generating into as: net fur bucaniers anti pirates,
were the princip..l arguments al :aced in support of
• an attack upon these Spanish provinces. Flow should
• feel if the National 11!ellixxcer were to inform us
on the part of the Cabinet of Wasbington, that as
' the British Government was no: strong onou,

' prevent the italians of it dependant territ(
• connaittiug rava,;es on SOU:IC. of the rentJte

' taents of tile United s:::teg, army. eotnin:

some I lannibal (a. Scipio ty: the West, bat
thorized march by Montreal, anti lay siege

• metropolis of Can ilia? Admitting the
I mlian outrage, would the British nation rel
reasoning as that? Aga'•u, Mr. Mintroe sus
• possibility of a tbira sessiaa
' Floridas to be ample gr ation
,
• ventive seizare of them 1, alottna ;stet
' it has for years been inere tha ocr.Sible, it 111
4 4antter off' stiong belief n ty, H.q.! certain t,
• Vlicti,:rnver (namely, the Unf I 444. Staten) Yet
bands upon.. Car Wattlevcr

Our itg, Contititution anb NMI.

MONDAY, AUGUST 10, 1818.

—ergo, uccsrding to the Munroe logic, it was just
' and wise for the British Government to be before-
hand with the Republic in bringing those provinces
under her own dominion. It will not Lc arved that
the law of expediency is not alike fur Loth; but
• there is nn end to the monstrous evils and miseries
• which sprit; from the substitution of that atrocious
• for the manifest rig:its and moral obligations of
• men in political society.'
We believe that the plain English of the water is,
that the ambition of the United States longed., Cr Do-
rida, and the weakness of Spain could not 1:4 it
however, may be the justice of this pro-
ending, it is a separate question, what aught, under all
the eiruemstaneeF, to Le the conduct of Greatt Bri-
tain. The possession of the Ploridas gives easy access
to the twabitious Republic to our West India ponies-
sions, and the unblushing violation of the law of na-
tions, though directly committed upon the Spaniards, is
indirectly au attack on all neighbouring nations. But,
if there are strong motives for our interecrenee, there
arc other:. which withhold our arm. The last Ame-
rican war, in which we were every where foiled, will
probably make us avoid another mcnt seth2ously, though
the saiiAy of our West India possessions bo thereby es-
sentially compromised.

By the Account laid on the tab!c of the House of
Commons, it appears that the following is the amount
of corn and grain, meal and flour, imported into Great
Britain in the years ceded the sth of January, 1817,
and 1818 :

Corn anti Grain

Year ended the sth of Jailor'',
1817. 181 s.
. 1,141.907 Qu. 2,148.751 Qu•

Meal and Flour .

9.8

141,763- Cwt. 1.168,-31V

From this statement will be seen that the new Act
has not prevented the influx of corn ana flour. From
the enormous increase of importation in the second year,
IL will be seen that we have paiJ betwecu and s:•veil
milli !1:s sterling rit least for grain, since th.it law was
enneted.

Extract of's letter to a mercantile house in the City
from Nassau, Now Providence, dated June 1.5 We
have. a report in cireulation. here, which, we fear, is
too well founded, that General Jackson, on overpowering
the Indians in West Florida, caused Alexander
Arbuthnott, who was fixed there us a harmless trader,
and Mr Lewis Felix, the master of a vessel of his
called the Chanee, to, be hung, and the body of the
farmer to be mutilated. Surely, if this turns out to
trite, the British Government will not pass it over in
silence. We have known Mr. Arbuthnott for years,
but never, we assure you, did we know a more harm-
less or more innocent mu. You have been in the
habit of shipping, through our medium, for some years,
the goods made nit of by Mr. Arbuthuott in his trade."
A New York paper of the 9th ult. contains a dread-
ful order, issued in the American army of the South,
to an officer, who is authorised to pat to death. eecry hoe_
tPe Warrior that may bee loom'. is to scour the
country lietwe,ni Mobile and Pensacola, and is to use
his own judgment, as to who may be lota. trarriors ;
provided, we suppose, that they be bilious. Such is
one of. the first abuse!: which the .Atactitoms make
of their- superiority in the South. Thei.nre to show
no quarter. If the- Indians should destroy the party
whi4ll has this suoluinary order, how would New
_
tours about Julian barbarity !
the battle of ,Malpo, in Chili,
rov..lisis, dated heal-:plarters,
been received. The' contest
le most &Mgt) itutry nature, and
favour of the patriots without
:ral, Joseph St. Martin, in !As
patriots In killed and winnided
force of the royalist army coot-
of these 2,004) were counted
lautlu, and above :),000 Were
the small renialtuler, with their
0, effected their :tscalle•
4.,000 men, being 400 less hi
dists. This is, perhaps, one of
ttles ever faa,glit, for the near
ohs;.inoicy of the conflict, and
...nu:bilation, of Ouc p 1: t;'•

1..

netted to. ""'"01"--
York resotma with dam(
errs.toy frato :A=.••• .
• ••..: •-••-• A detatted.aceunnt of
Est• -
et ." bet wen the patriots and
llinatxkitY April 9, late
beetran-• .Itrierns' to have been of 'lb
we to the tv4is, •at determined in fi
tv
fact
s. The Getter• -
, p.t the p
aliult such: wse•-••, •
• ' 4' " Ihe fin
[•iposeit the.. ;t man 0
o of th• oa the Old or hit
fur a prey brought in prautters ;
th
tcs. Jut (:ettiN4.llt ' t; (),•irio
pocr e 4,
T 1 Irma n
namaer lit the • rOyali
tY, that a the inostlibitarkable butt
vetAti lay t '
' n,trllvrs the
#-k • .
: 4c,...; It ,C. .31,icr