The National Register.
London, England, 1812-08-02 00:00:00

463

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accruing from her restrictions of our commerce with oteer natione.
And to entitle those experiments to the more favourable consideraticn,
they were so framed as to enable her to place her adversary under the
exclusive operation of them. To these appeels her Government has
been equally inflexible, as if willing to make sacrifices of every sort,
rather than yield to the claims of justice. or renounce the errors of
false pride. Nay, so far were the attempts carried to overcome the
ateohment of the British Cabinet to its unjust edicts, that it received
every encouracement, within the competeney of the exec wive. branch
of our Government to expect that a repeal of them would be toll,twed
by a war between the United States and France, unless the reach
edicts should also be repealed. Even this crmunttnication, although
silencing for ever the plea of a disposition in the United States to ac
quiesce in those edicts, originally the sole plea fur them, received no
attention.
I f no other proof existed of a predetermination of the British Go-
vernment against a repeal of its Orders, it might be found in the cor-
respondence of the Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States at
London, and the British Secretary for Foreign Affairs in 1810. oft. the
question whether the blockade of May, 1806, was considered in force
Or as not in force. It had been ascertained that the French Govern .
ment, which urged this blockade as the ground of its Decree. was
willing. in the extent of its removal, to repeal that Decree ; which
t eing foil owed by alternate repeals of the other offensive edicts, might
abolish the whole st stem-on both sides. This inviting opportunity
for accomplishing an object so important to the United States, and
professed so often to be the desire of both the belligerents, was made
known to the British Government. As that Government admits that
an actual application of an adequate force is necessary to the existence
of a legal blockade, and it was notorious that if such a force had ever
been applied, its long discontinuance had annulled the blockade :n
question, there could be suffix ient objection on the part of Great Bri-
tain to a formal revocation of it ; and no imaginable objection to a de.
claration of the fact that the blockade did not exist. elle declaration
would have been consistent with her avowed principles of blockade,
and would have enabled the United States to demand from France the
pledged repeal of her Decrees ; either with success—in which case
the way would have been opened for a general repeal of the Belligerent
Edicts,—or without success, in which case the United States would
have been justified in turning their measures exclusively against
France. The British Government would, however, neither rescind
its non-
existence blockade, nor declare its non-existence, nor permit non-
existence to be inferred and affirmed by the American Plenipotentiary.
On the contrary, by representing the blockade to be comprehended in
the Orders in Council, the United States were compelled so to regard
it in their subequent proceedings.
.There was a petted, when a favourable change in the policy of the
British Cabinet was justly considered at e;tablished. The Minister
Plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majesty here, proposed an adjustment
of the differences more immediately endangering the harmony of the
two countries. Tee proposition was accepted with a promptitude
and cordiality, corresponeing with the invariable professions of this
Government. A foundation appeared to be laid for a sincere and last-
ii' reconciliation. The prospect. however, quickly vanished. The
whole proceeding was disavowed be the British Government, without
any explanation which could at that time repress the belief, that the
disavowal proceeded from a spirit of hostility to the commercial rights
and prosperity of the United states ; and it has since come into proof,
that, at the very inomeat when the public Minister was holding the
languitge of friendship, and inspired confidence in the sincerity of the
negotiation with which he was charged, a secret agent of his Govern-
ment was employed in intrigues, having for their object a subversion
of our Goveinment, and a disanemberment of our happy union.
In reviewing the conduct of Great Biitain towards the United States,
our attention is necessarily drawn to the warfare just renewed by the
savages on one of cur extensive frontiers ; a warfare which is known
to spare neither age nor sex, and to be distinguished by features parti-
cularly shod:tog to humanity. It is difficult to account for the acti-
vity and combeeitions which have for some time been developing
themselves among the tribes in constant intercourse with British
traders and garrisons, without connecting their hostility with that in-
fluence ; and without recollecting the authenticated examples of such
ineereeisitions heretofore furnished by the officers and agents of that
Government.
Such is the spectacle of injuries and indignities which have been
beeped on our country; and such the crisis which its unexampled tOr-
bearaece and conciliatory aims have not been able to avert. It might
at least have been expected, that an enlightened nation, if less urged
by moral obligations, or invited by fr'endly dispositions on the part of
the United Stete,,would have tound in its true interests alone a suffi-
cient motive to respect their rights and their tranquillity on the high
seas; that an eelergcd policy would have favoured the tree and gene-
ral circulation of commerce, in which the British nation is at all times
interested, and which in times of war is the best alleviation of its ca-
!plates to herseil, as well as the other belligerents; and more espe-
cially that the British Cabinet would not, for the sake of a precarious
and surreptitious intercourse with lic:tile markets, have persevered in
a course of measures which necessarily put et hazard the invaluable
market of a great and growing country, disposed to cultivate the mu-
teal ad van rage, of an active commerce.
Other Councils have prevailed.. Our moderation and conciliation
have had -no other cfnct than to encourage perseverance and to enlarge