Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1808-10-29

haps, majority Of your constituents love
,ybat nleases better than what lnstructs ;-----
would rather pamper their pre]udlcss, than.
nourish their understandings. MANY Of
your opinions, facts, and arguments seem
G, completely calculated to crafty this proPen-
sity to perpetuate; ignorance, and TO rem
der obscurity more obscure.
AGAIN. in contending for the proPriety
and necessity of embargo (that rock on
which your party, in their headlonS ardor
to ruiin Great Britain have split, and may
finally perish) you say, " It is enough to Jus,
tify the embargo to say, that not ship OF
ours can sail which will not be subject to
seizure and confscation, by one or other OF
the belligerents, unless she IS gong to the
barren Kingdom Of Sweden. lchallenge a.
nv man to deny this fact" How bold You
are not holder than I,for hear what | asse'f,
that YOU and /, and the millions besides who
swarm on the earth, are subject to die be-
fore the sun goes down. | challenge any
man to deny this fact. Yet, do you appre,,
bend much danger of this event happening!
We are subject, or liable (words which IN
this case. are synonimous) to many accidents
and dangers which, however, never come
upon us. lobe s<lbject or Liable to specl-
fc accident is one thing, actually to meet
with it is another. Norman has sad, that,
our ships were not subject to seizure, and
ccnhscation, under Boraparte's DEGREES, and
king Georges orders; but has been sad,
and | reiterate the assertion, that the lar
greater part of our surplus produce might,
with little danger Of seizure, have been
transported to market. Although our
ships were subject to be seized by the
French, and their allies, how were they to
seize them? You, yourself talk, and talk
truly, OF rhe British having swept their enc
mics from the ocean, what then was TO cap
-tule our ships going to British ports III hu-
rope, Asia, Africa and America Bus this.
would be giving to Great Britain :" the mo-
nopoly of our supplies )" and rather than 60
this wicked thing rather than do anght th.t
should tend to enable her to keep all the
power of Europe from being at the silspos-
al of one man; our produce should perish
on our hands, our SHIPS rot in our ports, oar
merchants become banArupt, our seanen be
reduced to the condition OF paupers; and
inconvenience, difficulties s distress should
pervade every class ef society. Al this,
however, is nothing, SO G. britain suffer.
We viii freely ainpueate both our hands, Ii,
by doing SO, we can tear from Z. Britain
one.ot hers.
Speaking Of British impressncnts, YOU
say, g it is our clear, and indlsputable right
snay eurhag should proesct from belligerenss
! al, persons except those III the military, CT
,,-,~,e.,l eervice OF tneir enemies" This doc
tome You ind in the new system Of the law
OF nations iatAlys composed by Rlr. Madi-
son. | cannot conceive iiavrcy rise You
could find it. II this be the law why have
nations, when forming treaties OF arity, IN
troduceel articlos specially providing for
what YOU say, was before provided for BY
TIE law of nations i his was done bv
France and Great Britain III their treaty o:
1886, for in the XNtil article of that treaty,
I find it stipulated that free ships shall make
the persons On board free, unles5 they be
soldiers going to be employed in a military
capacity. inG TOO, in Nattel, that G na-
ton being " obliged to preserve Itself, il has
a right to every thing necessary for its pre-
serva.ion," now, there cannot be two coa-
aictirg rights. We cannot possess the right
OF projecting British seamen By cur Gag,
and The British t.ave, at the same time, a
right to take them from us. Vattel SAYS,
moreover, that " every member OF society
is obliged to serve, and defend the state, as
fara he is able and how can a British sea-
man be obliged to defend his stare, if we
nave right to protect him IA. the descrtion
OF this duty
Hthere ever was a case in which nation
could justly claim all the rights resulting
from the necessity Of self-preservation, HAT