Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1808-04-12
R &c II Nj o N d:

greatly to- the triumph aud exultation of the
federalists and other enemies OF the admit
nistra,ion. 1t was even reported by some
of them that the President OF the u. States
was now convicted of having told a wiliul
and deliberate falsehood to Congress in his
message of March %, i'm which he says
"The papers, which, for these reasons, j
"uow lay before you, embrace all the COM
"muncations, ofiiciai or verbal, from the
"French government, respecting the gene
"ral relations between the two countries,
(which have been transmitted through our
"minster there, or through ssse other ac-
"credited channel, since the last session of
"Congress; to which time all information
"of the same kind, had, from time to time,
"been given them" This declaration of
the President was supposed to have been
untrue for that the very important letter
from Chamhagny had actually been recei.
we'd by him, a. that time, aud was not con-
nuniCa1Gd 10 Congress. The report was
that the persevering Efforts OF MIR. JoHN
RANDOLPH, (wAose Sagactly and friends.
diSfios.tion tO7vards fhe odniinisIratio1
might, very naturally, have led him 10 sus.
pect the President Of telling a lie to the
world, and Of Withholding information, in
his possession, under the pretence that il
had not come to HANDY had, after nine a6or-
GAYS.
at length prevailed, and compelled the pro
ducton OF this Interesting document |!
.>;Ich was the starry which circulated for
day or two, to the infinite qualification of
few individuals who iove theiI. cois1lf,t,
so nell, they would rather rejoice in the Fl :
nal disgrace and cOndemnat on of the men
who now adm mister its government, attcn-
ded with the ruin Of the government and
nation i,seif, than in the successful deliver
ance of the u. States from their present
difficulties, if such dr!,verance is TO be ac.
corlplished By those mea!
According to custom, however, This SLAM
der against Mr.. J.fe-son, like so many o.
Tiers which have preceded it, was only
born 10 die; for another mail from the north
brought information that other dispatches
from france and England both, had been
received by the President, after me god
Of March, and that on the 3Oth of The same
month, he had laid before Congress those
dispatches, in which this formidable letter
IRON ChamhaBay was contained that, at
Gre same time, he communicated one from
MIR Erskise, the British ambassador. to orr
Secretary OF State, OF az ieQss equaL impor-
lance with that of ChamhGgny that both
these letters were, al first, communicated
eo'JidenfaHy that the struggle in Congress
was not to obtain the papers from the Pre-
sldent. but to get the injunction OF secrecv
taken of, and his consent to their pubIica-
ton, which was accordingly granted on the
2d oi April; and they are now before the
w&:,d
AS TO the letters themselves. we will beg
leave to ask Mr.. Ifmothy Pickcring, whs-
Their ChamfagEy's letter, written in Jana
arg 1908, could have influenced cur govern
mcnt to lny the embargo in December 1907
nnd Vl1s4f "a hoo r -.
cu.nent in which the French emperor die
tated to our President, and redoced the q.
>. to province ofhis coDfederated empire
or has that document sHH been concealed
by the President No doubt ITmofHv and
his friends will siR hare The a0desev to
saT 30 but f5T their sak6S, we very much
fear It viii never come to light. MIR. Cham
TaSny's letter, Hniucki u /o1 them, DOGS not
81 TO tho extent that they 7ViShed. 1t does,
indeed. take improper liberties with the y
.. IN declaring the ojtintoH of the French
emperor that their interests and dfenifu.
peculiarly require them TO 20 to war with
Great BrItain; and that he considers the
Y. , as dcfua q at 7var with her since the
date Of her tyrannIcUl DEGREES Of Noyem-
Der 11th
The latter is certainly declaration
winch Bohafnrfc b I'd no right to make :;
49, VIZ StgiS VI dutnOIfNy uasu Oh nus be-
half, towards the u. s. IS HIGHLY reprehen.
sble but we do not perceive that, in ofher
reFecfs, Chamhagny's letter expresses any
thing more than the decree issued from Nj.
ian, had already Expressed. On the con.
triry, 1t seems to modify the operation OF
tha. decree by saying that the vessels and
other properly which, by virtue of It, had
been seized and might have been altogether
colE8caffd, should only be Seguesfered un-
III the determination of the American eo.
vernment relative TO peace or war with En-
gland, should be known. Thus il seems.
tina, althcnSh the emperor Waho'cou has
been pleased to say that he Considers the
y. >. ~ var Tith EHe md, yef, in the sa,,,e
breath, he acknowledges chat event to be
uncertain, and to depend, not on his own
desHofic mi, but on the determination of
the .dmcricaa government to persuade
which government 20 ipin him in the war
against England, he bOids forth, as an In.
duccment, the restoration Of tie sequester-
ed properly, whir!i wou 2, olherwise. have
been immediately condemned. We there
fore md nothing e very alarming in Cham.
f0SHy's letter, nor any thing that leads so
necessarily to war with France, as some
suppose On tie other hand, il is uoaues.
tfonAbly true, lEat, if cur government had
The military tan OF the emperor .Vadoieo
ana, like HIM, would rush 10 arms for the
sake OF poft Of honor, or to acquire addi-
iionfl terrirry, or rcnown, without consi-
derlng Che interest OF the people whose hap