Jenks' Portland gazette. Maine advertiser. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1802-1803, 1803-02-14
Frsnl tie NE#roRk HERx1D.
No. VlI....-predSrnt's aerGsge.

MagIitr ate that cedfon OF the valuable
and important province Of Loufiana
70 France took place in the courfe Of
the late war but We are not told at
what period Of the war, nor under what
conditions, nor when the Executive be-
came officially poiIsled Of the informa-
ton nor whether be has had any official
information r. all. Surely the people
had reafon to expea iomething little
more particular, from an naturalization
who have for years been clamoring thar
Government ought to have 10 Eeras-
that there ought 10 BE- no cabinet fecrets
whatever We would then ak, has
France received the cetfion expressly
iubj 60 TO the conditions and POPULATIONS
OF the Spaniih treaty with the United
States And is il not al any rate, high
time that our Government was duly
and officially informed whether this be
70 or not /? becauie if not it becomes
great and inerteliing queaion, how far
we thould be jutiied in waiting Till the
enemy has taken pod-ilion Of the coun
Try, and. by entertainments and FORTH.
cations Rrengthened himfelf 70 much as
70 render II difficult 10 approach him
Would not this be the extreme Of weak
nels and bad management Without
yielding to the fuPpoiition Of writer
in the Morning Chronicle, that The
French Conful, when called upon for
our right to free navigation, as grant
ed and guaranteed by the Spaniih
treaty, might fay, that that was az
affair between US and Spain, becauie If
he takes it, he ukss il fubiea 10 all
exiting membranes and itipslations,
ftill we would fnggea whether it is the
part Of prudence for the administration
TO wait paiively till he had fairly poi
fefed himielf Of The country Blu, here
we beg leave to be exPrefly under
food, as not meaning TO advocate de
cilively war for while in common
with our fellow citizens We CLAIM the
privilege Of expecting our opinions or
al iublects Of common national concern,
We are free to acknowledge that it BE-.
longs TO the Government, who have the
whole map Of our European relations be
tore them,to determine on peace or war.
If, however, war is 70 be ultimately
reforted to, We would ak, was there
ever, can there ever be more favorable
moment for it than the prefent ? A
inall body OF troops could march to
New Orleaps, and take pohriIion of it
without ths Leaf danger Of being re
pulled. and il would not require very
large eRablithmeht of regulars to keep
the pof-flion againf any power France
or Spain could iend. Ii would, how
ever require an Establishment, and now,
when this bslineis brings the fnbjea
within The perception Of every one, it
viii, spehaps, be feen, how well the
Executive could on this occaIion avail
him!elf Of that much illuminated mea
lure, which was 70 little undertook. 70
greatly miiTeprefented. and finally rem
dered aborSiye by the ill.fourded clam
ors Of blind prejudice. How much
would the Executive find himiclf
areng;hened had he at This moment
he aid Of that pro0ifon4l army. which
has 70 often bren made uf- OF equally
BY the artful and the ignorant, as a
bugbear to fcare thu. people, and make
them believe thar de6gns were harboTed
inimical TO their liberties. 1t will be
remembered, that the meaiure here al
ludsd 10, was adopted ar a moment
when it was believed We were at the
very eve of a war with France, and
when we ought TO have been more than
on the eve. In that eventthe frif liep
would have been, TO have taken pohei-
fion Of all The country eat Of The Milf
iippi, including New Orleans and from
that time, forever, we fhould have had
in our own keeping the key of our own
treafury, inaead of tamely fnffering it
to be kept by others, and as often ihift,
cd hands as interea or caprice may
ohufe. Inaead therefore, Of carefully
and itudiouly ihunning holiili,ies, would
not good policy lay hold of the very
ira jgQifa5!s occafon TO go 10 war 2
Would nor war put us at once and
forever in the poiieilion Of that traa Of
country which, it may be pronounced
without much hefitation, ought to be
exclufively ours, and which we venture
TO add, mutt certainly become 70, before
we can be conGdered as having aequir-