Star.
London, England, 1805-02-04 00:00:00

StthOoling eTen that his Majefty's en,Tagnacnts
with France,. wiih rcfpea to the niLndies, thonid (till
remain a myttery to the Ilritifh Government, it would
not be lets true, that they no lcoger the right
to dem Ind a dittinft explanati.)n
.on this foh;ea, at
lea 4, as 3 conditico•cffc.n ial to the m.tintenance of
peace. lithe 13ritith Govi•rnment a:t idled fo much
impoi lance to this communication. that they tholgt,•
it right to .nuke it a condition, without t.:cy
would not engage to refp-,.t the neat: ality of Spair.,
they ought to have exprefsly declare I fo at the epoch,
when, yielding to the folicitations rny they
fixed the batis of a permanent and folic' neutral.. v. Nit

having, their ancd manner, they had no long: r
right to do fo ; for otherwife, that ail, whereby the
conditions tfli:ntial to neutrality were t...t.led, a,:d the
ohjea of which was tvidei•iy to rcmo7e the unc:K•
tautly of thole relations which WW 1:10d Is‘tweett titer
two Omit., would be entirely illufory, Come it w. uld
(till leave to England a facility of continually adding
freffi conditions to thole ;Arcady agreed on. Hercc
it follows, that the Britith Government could no
longer exad a &Una explanation on the lubjea of
the fubfidies, as the price f their refpea for the nett-
traiity of Spain, fo li;ntr, as the two conditions rela
tine to the armaments, and to the fail of prizes, flub
be firialy tulfilled.
. . _ .

Notwithtlanding all ilia,: motives, according to
which the King might have d:fpenfed with anfwering
&tally to this demand, his Majelly, putting himfelf
above all thefe conli:ferations naturally excited by the
irregular conduit of Mr. Frere, has even condeicend•
ed to make an explicit and fatisfadory anfwer, in re-
newing to him a limilar athirance to that which I
bad already given by his order to the Britilh Go-
vernment ; namely, that the fubtidies flipulated by
the Convention are but an equivalent for the fuc-
cours in troops and (hips which he was obliged by the
Treaty of 1796 to fnrnith to France, and that, in that
Convention, there is no article prejudicial to Eng-
land, or contrpry to the laws of neutrality. This
moderate, franl:, and fatisfaaory arf.ver rifmy Court
ferved bat to produce frefi complaints on the part of
the.Bri.dh Charge d'Affaires, ssho did not heitate at
the fame • ime to dema,ni his paffports. His Majefly,
conPantly faithful to his prolciples of moderation,
endeavnured to prevent, by eve' y means cornio.tible
with his dignity, the coiVeo aznces of fo extraordinary
a demand. and did rot ma.:e any difficulty in reitera-
ting to him again the moll arm: able and moat frank
entrance, as well on the fulindies, as on thc arma-
ments ; l.nt all his efforts have been ureters. At lergth,
perceiving that he was obflinate in wilhity; to leave
Madrid, lince in the fpace of !even days he had f .ur
times demanded his paffports, and that, at the fall
folicitation, he had even threatened to remain there
as a private individual, or elfe to depart without paff-
ports, the King found himfelf under the neceffity of
granting them to him, however unplealil,o for hi.
Majelty might be the confequeoce which won'd aril
from fo precipitate a Rep.
At the fame time that this unexpefted flroke de.
prived his Majetly of nearly all the hopes he had till
then entertained, his heart was penetrated with the
deepeft atnielion on learning the dreadful event of
the sth of 061ober, and the difallrous circumstances
by which it had been accompanied. Although the
details, which he received from all quarters, and the
uniformity tif all the accounts, gave to this intelli-
gence all the force of an indubitable fail, his Majeßy,
under the influence of the invariable reititude of his
fentiments, and not having as yet received official
information on this head, flattered himfelf by calling
in queßion the reality of a similar outrage—at
leaf, he could not perfuade himfelf that it had been
caufed by an order Med by the Eritifh Government.
His Majefly has confequently ordered me to demand
of them categorical explanations on the detention of
his frigates, on the inftrations which may have been
fent to the Englifh Commanders, and on the motives
which may have induced the 13ritifh Charge d'A ffaires
to break off all communication with the Spanith
Mi-
nlfry.
Notwithflanding the coincidence of filch alarming
intelligence, with the irregular conduit of Mr. Frere
the King could not refolve to take any meafure which
had the ha appearance of hollility. So much had
he at heart the continuance of peace ! It was not till
after having learnt, in an authentic manner, the aCt
of violence carcifed on the above-mentioned fi igates,
by virtue of an exprefs order of the Britifh Govern-
ment, that hi; Majefl found himfelf tinder the
neceflity,in order to confult the interef of his people,
to order an embargo to be laid, by way of reprifals,
on all Englith property throughout his dominions.
In this Rate of things, if the King can no latNer
flatter himfelf with the hope of an accommodation,
if the &Rem manifeiled for Tome time pall by Eng-
land kerns to render inevitable a rupture between two
nations, of which the reciprocal interef ought to
lead them to live always in good undcrhanding with
each other, his Majefly has not at leaf abandoned
the dente to linen to pacific overtures, and is fill
difpofcd to avail himfelf of all the means of concilia-
tion which may be compatible with the dignity of his
crown, and the fafety of hi. kingdoms.
But if, notwithstanding this conciliatory and paci-
fic declaration, which I have the honour, conform-
ahly to the wifhcs of the King, my meter, to make
to your Excellency, the 13ritilli Government should
decide on taking the refolution to declat e open sear
againfl him, his hfajefly, in that cafe, confiding in
the fidelity of his fuhjeets, and in the.purity of his
conference, will have recourse to thofe forces ash'. h
PROVID&SCI has entriifted to him for the defence of
• his People, and will commit to the fortune of v. ar the
tenth of a eolith& which he has in no degree provok-
ed, and with the confequences of which he will ac-
cordingly not have to reproach himfelf.
I avail mycelia this °Km tunity, &c.
(Signed) THE CHEM. D'AmovAGs.
To his Excrikocy Lord llarrowby, Principal Secretary

of State for FOreign
No. 21—Copy of a Letter from George Ilammood. Efq. to J. H.
Fret, Efq dated Downing ftreet, Dee. 24, t 8 4.

Sit —I herewith inclofe to you the extraft of a
Note from the Chevalier d'Anduaga, dated the 22d
of this month, in which you. will obferve an affertion
of that Miniffer, that the Naval armament carried
on in the ports of Spain was confined to the limits pre-
feribed by an agreement concluded on the 19th Oc-
tober, 1803, between the Britifb and Spina Govern-
ments. No traces of any fetch agreement having
been fonnd in the correfpondence of this offi c, I am
direfied to reque& that you will Rate to me, for the
information of his Majeßy's Govenment, whether
you ever wend into auy agreement, expelled or