The Sun.
London, England, 1812-10-19 00:00:00

ED STATES

More than 1500 of the inhabitants and free elec-
tors of the county of Rockingham, in the state of
New Hampshire, being assembled in an orderly-
and peaceable manner, according to our undoubt-
ed Constitutional rights, at Brentwood, in said
county, on this.sth day of August, 1812, to eon-
stdt on the common good and_public vvelfare, do
now address yon with the respect due to the Chief
Magistrate of the nation. -

In assembling .to expl'ess, our opnion• 91i -the
present_ state' of our national affairs, we are inE
cum! not only oy a wish to contribute, as fa•
inns towards removing the evils which we
feel, and 'averting- the greater evils which. we fear,
but also by a sense of the duty we owe to the Su-
preme Executive 'of the nation.
The Chief M igistrate'of OovernMent, which
rests on public Opinion, and which can only look
for the sup Port of its measures to the approbation
'Of the people, !Nis a right to be informed, distinct-
ly and unequivocally, of the sentiments _entertain-
ed by the eommimity concerning nieasurcr:ofgreat
national importance As one Portion of the com-
munity, deeply interested in the present state of
things, and solicitously concerned about their fu-
ture progress, we beg leave to present you with a
brief view; Of 01.11' sentiments antlsopluions.
We have witnessed with sincere and deep regret
a system of policy pursued by the*G4ieral Goirern-
tnettt, from the embargo,Of iBO7 to the 'present
unit , tendin; most obvionsly, in our view, to the
destruction of the commerce of t3ese States. We
have not been' indifferent spe&atOrs of thii course
of measures. Being inhabitants of the. Atlantic
coast, weregard.continerce as a great and
,-ess_entiL
nl intcret. it is, not only in itself; a leaftiiig pur-
suit, hutit is most intimately Wended With all on
other interests and occupations.
. I Coifs,
_arising
naturally from our local situation, And the nature
of our soil and Sroducts, fillet now con' caned by
the usage of two centuries, are not to be changed.
We bold the right of judging for oiiielves, and
have never yet delegated to. any Gove,ranlent the
power of deciding for Cis what .pursitits; and occu-
pations best comport with our interests and" our
situation.

`When we assented to the National Constitution
it was, among other (but none mote inipartant)
reasons, to the end that our commerce might be
the better protected
.and the farther extended.—
Taught to regard our right of traversing the seas
as - sacred (and it is to us as important) as our
right of tilling tbe ground, we have supposed that
we sliould never be der rived'of the. former, but for
reasons so weighty and important, as would equal-
ly justify the prohibition of the latter. We ori-
ginally saw nothing, and can now see nothing,
either m the letter or the spirit Of the National
Compact ivhich makes it our duty-to acquiescein'a
system tending to compel.us. to abandon our ,na-
tural and accustomed pursuits.. We regard the
Constitution as " an instrument .of preservation,
not of changc. We take its intention to .have
been, to protect, by the strong arm of the whole
nation, the interests of each particular section, It
could not therefore be without • alarm
,and appre-
hension, that we perceived in the-geueral Govern-
ment a disposition to ,embarrass and enthral
commerce-by repeated restricions, and to Make
war by shutting up our own ports. - Still. gteater
Was our concern, wh'en we iieard ourselves admo-
nished finally, to retire from the seas, and to pro-
vide ourselves those, comforts and coeveniencies
of life, for which it would be unwise ever more to
recur to distant countries. * 'We. do not hesitate
to say,.that we deem this langulge equplly uncon-
stitutional and arrogant; and it woUld be with
infinite regret, mingled with other strong emo-
tions, that we should perceive ,a tined and settled
resolution in the General 'Government .-to enforce
this exhortation by the authority •of law, and to
accumulate upon us, in the intervals of a ,w,,zr„, a
ponderous and' crtnbing svStem of Restriction,
Non-Importation, ~Non-Intercourse, and gm-
hargo. •
.The alarni excited in our minds by the favcurite
and long-continued "Aestrictive System"' is rais-':
still _higher Lv the late .declarat:on of war
against Great Britain, an event which, we` believe,
in ;the iresent defenceless state of the country,
Nv li be productive of evils or incalculable magni-
tude.

We are not, Sir, among those who feel an tin-
_
manly rebictance to the privations, or n nervous
sensibility.to the dangers of war. Many of us had
the honour of aiding, by our humble efforts, in the
establishment 'of our'
.independence) and of ex-
posing our lives-, in more, than one field of danger
arid blood, in Our country's service. We are ready
to meet those scenes again, whenever it can be
shewn that the vindication of ee rational honour
or the preservation of our e9sentiql rights deMands
it. We shall not be :none slow than others to as-
pire after distinction in
.any cause in which dis-
tinction would be. honourable.

•
If we could perceive that the present war was
just ; if we could conceive that our
,rights and li-
berties required it if we epuhl conceive that no
Administration, however' Wise, honest, or impar-
tial, could have carried us clear,of it ;.-if we could
perCeive its expediency, atid.a reasonable hone of
obtaining its professed objects ; if we could per-
ceive -these things„ the war would, in some mea-
sure., cease to be horrible. It would grow tolera-
.hte in the idea, as its expediency should be made
manifest. Its iron and bloody features would
soften., as its:justice grew apparent. Give: us but
to see that, this war bath clear justice, necessity,
,and expediency on its . side, and we are ready to
pour out our treasure and our blood ire its prose-
cution; . .

But we are constrained to say, that we cannot,
in conscience ascribe the foregoing character-
iAics to the present war. We arc not, Sir, the
apologists of other nations, nor will our voice
&el- be heard, to varnish wrongs inflicted-either on
the interest or honour of our native land. But

. . .
4 Mr.-Jefferson's Letter to the Legislature of New Hamp-
shire,. August, 1308.

-.ye deem it necessary-to eyeryiestifiable war,enot
only 'that its justice be.as and yirrible
light of HeaVen, but that its 3 objects be distinct:
and .clear,-in order that every man may perceive.
them"; that they be great, in oi-der, that every
Man perceive their importance; that they be pro-
bably attainable, in order that every citizen may
be eneouraxed to contend for thern.--7We are
Wholly mistaken, if the eati.es as,Agried fcr the
present war against
,England will bear the-test of
these principles. - . ,
The hhortitsment of onr seamen,
the most Plausible and popular of the alleged
causes of war, we :Relieve t he.ve been; the-subject
of: great mis,eepresee•lien. We have as, much
sympathy asinthers Who stiffer under tnti
abuse of power. i(e.e there •are instantei
of this abuse. We k!!.e-e.- thee the native Ameri-
can citizens have 'Kee:, '',(2^i2 cases, in too many
bniiressed from Anet...ican ones milt ships
and compelled to ser:e on board British ships of
war... But line number of tim‘S'eases b bCCEI
tra.rlgantly,exag,,,eraitql.. Every inqUiry Vii ,lane
subject strenz,thens our conviction, that the re-
puted 'numberhears, little relation to the true mane)-
her. , We arc among those to, whom I:!,,taLlCes of
Impressment, if they dia to . any
coujderahle .extent, must heknown ; eet we can--
`fintl them out. Smile c time NieniberS of t!lis
Meeting have been cOustantly empioy..el cour-
nircial pur,Joits, and have had ships On the a, can
frotn.the peace of 1783-, until the °CCM} bi;;;;lrUp
untiavieemble, as to us, by the embarr.9 of, l'z',t,"/"_,
and yet, during all that time, have never ;suffered
the -1:7)3s of One. ruitive Xeuerican sec neen im-
pre4sment. Other ."...lemhers or this fleeting: has e,
as masters of vessels, inhabited it Were.;,
the seas, and have been visited hitridtedi' of ti:.nes
'is' British ships of war, and never Amne-.
rican seaman taken from them by impreketient.

(To be continued:)

PO 1, .

GCTILDuALL.-7---On Sn'ttirday the young man witty
:14:u1 been charged by ='l.lr Wyld, ‘vitit
whoin,be had foi-iroy 1;,-cd, with -:qttaling from
'him an order on the assignecs nader a bankrupt-
estate, to pay - a creditor na-me<l, a dividend
amounting to 371:' was brought up fig. 1-,.!.-cy:an.-
natfon, An objection bad been starter on bf4half
of the prisone;, that such an order could not be
considered as goods or chattels, the property Of
The prosecutor contended, there .was"
no possibility of drawing any distinction hetwccrs
such order and" a dividend warrant. The wo'rthy
Mclennan, however, thought otherwise, and
charged the prisone:%

ioN-lhitsE.---Satuaty•'a silversmith was
brought up, charged with having used forged or
connterfelt itamps.'on several pieceS of silt er plate,
thanufaetnred: by him. He was remanded till
Wednesday, whiz the ease 'Milt be fully investi-
gated. '
ITATToN-GARnEs.—OnSaturdayjosephlloipey,
who had been remanded, having been -chirged
with fobbing Mr. HusSey,. of 1.)-evonshire-place,
Mile-End,. of 4001. Sishosgate-stret:t, on the,
evening of the 2.F3th ult. was again brought ay*
but the prosecutor not appearing, in consequence,
as it was understood, of a compromise, by which
the prOsecutor was to have his property restored.
to him, the prisoner was discharged.
G. Robinson, who bad been apprehended in,tle-
act of cutting up some copper vessels, in the -fields
near COpethagen Howe, underwent a second
amination, fully committed for trial.

In addition •to the Life Guards now embarking
at Portsmouth, detach:T.-lents to the, number of
about 61.**horse, are ordered to Lisbon, to jolt*
thu join the following Regiments of Dragoons,
viz. 3d, 4th, and .7th Dragoon Guards j Ist,
nil 4th Dragoons 11th, 12th, and I t.h.
Light Dragoons.

On the first of August, Vesuvius, which Lad
for some time been ttanquil, was much agitated
a continued noise,, resembling thunder, Was heartt
—the base of the .mountain was shaken as if by
an earthquake; and clouds of snv.tke cin-
ders_ darke!wd _the air.: after some hoary the crop -
"lion ceased, when a coluMn of fire burst from the
crater, and attained a very high. elevation. After
burning five hours; the eruption ceased; and tile
y,<?.icano became quiet.