The National Register.
London, England, 1809-04-30 00:00:00

THE NATIONAL RIP:CUSTER:.

A PRI T, 20.

TO OUR, SUBSCltlitElthi AND HIE eIiBLIC.

The Proprietors of the N dTION L REGISTER this day pre-
sent their Subieribers and the'Puhlic with an authentic Portrait
of his Royal Highness the I;uke of Kent, engraved by SCRIV EN,
from a picture, by Ebit 196 E, in the pussessiOra of the Princess
,igirtiri, who has been Weasel to honour the Proprietors with
the Picture for their sole use.

It was thought adviseahle not to deliver the Portraits to the
Newsmen, but to retain them at the (Vice until sent for—that
idea is, however, retracted, and the Print has this day
been delivered GRATIS, for the purpose of being transmit-
tt-4 to the Subscribers ;--it is hoped, that no disappointments
will occur; to prevent %$ hi:.•11, the most positive demands
mast be made to the Newsmen for :he Portraits.----11 omissions
vrill rest with the New-men, and nut with the Proprietors.—
The Public must he aware of the extraordinary ex pence that is
incurred in the giving awni of Prints, and consequently that
every possible precaution is taken at the Office of the Paper to
prevent complaints. Itesickt,ts at any distance from London,
must scud notice how the Portraits are to he conveyed to them,
ai the Prints cannot with apoij kind of safelj he forwarded by the
Post. All Letters must be forwarded post-paid.

TnE NATLON REGlS'rlift.

Lott Dan,

SUNDAY, APRIL 30, 1309.

.1360 [Jr I C. 4 1. EVE. TS OF TILE WEEK.

A most important chane in the general policy ofthe king-
dom, and a departure from a system adopted hastily, but hi-
therto maintained rigidly , - has occasioned since our last, and
to the astonishment, and we may add to the general satis-
faction of the Mercantile World, has been announced by
Goverment as to comink.nce iu i:nrnediate operation. The
Orders of Council, which so grossly trespassed on all
Neutral Rights, and at once annihilated all American
Tra4lc, have been in great part rescinded, and if any thing
be yet reserved, we may look with expectation that even
that relic of this odious system will be done away.
France considering England as a commercial nation, and
as in fact supporting.; the war, by the profitable results of
her trade, issued the Berlin Decrees, the enactments of
which, for the first time in modern warfare, put a kingdom
in blockade, and amiihilated by a stroke of-the pen all
Neutral Rights. Every nation has an undoubted right, in
a state of warfare with another, to use the most extreme
means to subdue ifs enemy, but these means are nececsarily
limited by the ri;Jits of neutral parties, who ha; in no!hiag'
to say or do with the quarrel, should not suffer a.: a party.
The rights of Neutrals are founded on two principies—in the
first place, that the enjoyment of these rights contrda::e to
the general good of all ; and secondly, that. they do not
counteract ,the main end of the War. The Berlin Decree
was a direct infringement. uPon these rights, it abolished
at once all the public law of Europe, and all the acknow-
ledged and adopted practice and maxims °felt ilized nations,
erected the French Adiniraltrin to the supreme judicature Of
the seas, and destroyed the liberty of nations.
The efficacy of this Decree, however, was not tantamount
to its verbal prof isions. The French outlawed the English
Ration, but wanted that peculiar kind of force which could
alone enable it to execute its sentence. While-France dc-

‘2S I

dared England in a state of commercial blockade, t~ ranee
hdtself was in a state of actual blockade. Every ship of
every nation could at any tune go to and fro the English
ports and coast. There was nothing in their way but the
French Decree, which, as severed from ail poss;bility of
execution, was only an harmless piece of parchment in the
French custom-houses. The Berlin Decree, therefore, was
totally without effect. Under such circumstances, what
should have been the conduct of England, and what was the
conduct of America ? The American President and Con-
gress very wisely considered as nothing what was totally
without any practical effect ; they suffered their ves4el.; to
sail to English ports, and trusted to the interest mid discre-
tion of their captains and proprietors that they would not
needlessly embroil themselves, that they would endeavour
(what was very easy) to avoid any meeting with the few
French cruizers and privateers which were still to be found
in the European seas, and that in any actual circumstances
of attack, they would repel force by force. America herein
acted very wisely ; she eluded the necessity of an imme-
diate war ; she did not embroil herself with the mad and
passionate government of France, for a thing of no practical
result or• importance; she passed it over in the silence
which its actual insigniticarce required and merited.
The English Ministry acted very differently. As if listen-
ing to passion, rather than to prudence, they totally Over-
looked the practical imbecillity of the E'er:in decree, and
regarding only its insolence, its extravagant injustice, and
its outrageous violation of public law ; they deemed it in-
cumbent upon them to retaliate. They totally, however,
forgot that retaliation was not always the retort of a s:ini-
lar act, and.that in aiming an injudicious blow at the ene-
my, it might recoil upon ourselves. And so it happened
in this case. France issued a decree, which she wanted
the power to execute—the English Ministry, under the in-
fluence of a rash, and therefore blind indignation, retaliate
by a decree which gives vigour and execution to the for-
mer. Tile French decree 'was a broom, which was waved
in idle menace on the land—the English decree was a besoin
carried over the face of the waters by the superior force of
the English navy. The French decree, therefore, wherever
it was seen or heard, only moved ridicule ; whilst the Eng-
lish decree, immediately had its effect, and drove CA cry ship
on the seas to their home.

It is almost a truism to assert, that this system was not
suited to a commercial nation, and therefore that the Eng-
lish manufacturers very shortly felt the censetjuence or the
vigorous execution of the English Orders of Council. Ame-
rica, moreover, found it now necessary to assume !lei proper
station,—her neutral rights were now practically, anti net
by mere decree, invaded.—America, therefore, deemed it
her duty to stand to her defence,---she did so, and retali-
ated most effectually.
This system has happily now terminated, and England
and America are about to re-assume those relations,
nature intended, .and true policy, interpreting her, points
out and dictates.

Several foreign papers have arrived in the conrae of the
week, and amongst them Hamburgh journals to the .19th,
which bring down the French intelligence to about the tith
of the incrz►th.--

The .Arch:dolie tßtys left Vienna, the n!la of T. 1.1,1.1, to
join the arms', anil was 1).; Eivia:ror ,c/q.