The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1808-07-22
(CoNTINUED.)


The evidence of Mr. Bell, whose distinct
and full testimony must be in the rrcollec-
ton of this House, was very strong tot the
same points. / shall on'v refer to pages %
and SIS, in which Mr. Bell gives us two cx-
tracts from letters which he had received
from his correspondents on the continent
On being asked if he had lately reces-
ed letters from his correspondents i'll Ho,-,
land, touching the execution OF the Com
merCial DEGREES in that country, he stated
| that he had received a letter from his friends
in Rotterdam, dated the 9TH of September,
containing these words " We are able to
assure you the late decree does not affect
Americans that may have called in Eng
land, provided they have not loaded in
England, and that they declare the last
port they came from" The decree here
alluded to was subsequent TO the 1rst Dutch
edict, and was issued for the purpose of eff
tecting more rigorous execution of it. He
was asked. " Have vou received any letter
" since from Holland? 20 To this he answer
ed that he had one dated 22d of September.
from the same house saving :" We repeat,
ships touching in England are received here
&c as before" Subsequent even to this date
it appears that he received one It was da-
ted 29th of October, only fortnight before
our orders in council, and concluded by say
| ing, -" Prices meantime seem at their level
without some new difficulty or brol,"
meaning, Mr.. Bell said " if nothing new
had occurred - From this it IS ol,via,,s .hat
since the writer's last letter, being the one
just now quoted, no new execution of these
DEGREES had been attempted, otherwise pri-
ces could never have kept at their former
level.
So far as to the evidence of Mr.. Bell. I
a. oil 49,
mittee to the testimony of Mr.. Glennie. At
ter mentioning variety of cases, in which
the merchants had been deceived in their
expectations or belief of the execution of
the French decree, by the temporary deten-
ton OF neutral vessels, and afterwards been
unaeceiVed by the subsequent release of those
vessels at first supposed to have been con-
demned, MIR. Glenne said that he knew of
no one instance wherein the Berlin decree
had been carried into execution upon ueu-
tral vessels In France. 1t appears that this
gentleman had various correspondence va
rIous parts of the continent, who wrote to
him, not merely touching his own CONNER
cal concerns, but also upon matters in which
he was indirectly or eventually Interested
they gave him the political neys of tho dav
so lar as they themselves were in possessi-
on OF 1t and so far as it bore UPON the inte-
rests of trade. And Notwithstanding this
extensive correspondence he never had re-
ccivcd any one notice OF condemnation du-
ring the whole year, that had elapsed be-
tween the Berlin and the English decrees-
From Mr. Glennie's evidence then it an
pears, that there was no intention in France
to execute those edicts for this was branch
OF them which she had it in her power to
enforce. The whole Of Mr. Glennie's evil
dence upon this point is to be found in
pages 2S, 81, So, IS and 81, but more par
tlcuiarly in pages 6S and 60, where it will be
found that he gives those pointed excerpts
which ! have before alluded to- 4 decree
had been issued in Holland, cIosingthe Dutch
ports and laying an embargo OH their own
trade for the better carrying those measures
inIo execution; measure framed in some
thing OF the spirit of our own orders In
allusion to this decree, Mr.. Gil nnic's cores
poEdent says on the Goth of February 1903,
mat the sole object OF this letter is to in
" form you that all vessels arrived since the
PRONUNCIATION Of the DEGREES mentioned i,
" our foregoing, are now released, and even
" several which have been for many months
" detained in Flushing, on their way to Ant
= wcrp, nave also got permission 10 proceed
" thlther and discharge their CargOes" In
page 60, there is another extract Of letter
bearing still more directly on the point and
Mr.. Glcnnic states that this information had
been confirmed by letters dated on the 25th
ard Goth of February.
lie Whole of these witnesses, the House
viii remcmbcr, were rot merely examined
by NE, but pretty fully croys-crami1ed and
ia regard TO MIR. Glcnnic in particular al
though 1t might have appeared at first that
he wa watering from his original positions
yet DEFY any man 20 discover one sipple
atom Of contradiction to the broad general
assertion with which he set out He no less
than four times in the course of his exam
natIon, read his eX.ract from the letter
which states that all the vessels arrived
since the PRONUNCIATION q tho decree, had
been released, and ne rigidy adhered Co his
hF5tiUtcrprctatiOno oft, that Il meant thatma-
ny vessels which hadbcen detained at Flush
ing, were allowed to proceed Oh their vow
age previous to the orders in council. but
long subsequent to tile Berlin decree. 'rbe
evidence of Mr.. Mullctt and MIR. Mann
strongly confirms that Of Mr. Bell and MIR.
GIennie, containing, with a few triaing al
teratons, merely a repetition Of what had
been formerly said upon the same point
The testimony of these gentlemen is TO be
toAnd in pages 90 and co.
itthus appears, sir, BY the evidence Of some
OF the most respectable brokers & merchants
OF this country, that the Berlin decree was
50 little executed, that vessels under Anne
Tlcan coiours cleared out to ports of tho
enemy's country in spite Of that, and all the
other DEGREES. But there is of6e~ evide,r.r