Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1808-10-21

! uor must know the true reasons why some
!n;;,,r;es were, and are done to us by Great
Britain during her conflict with France
No degree of friendship for US; no preca,i-
ton that could be taken could perfectly Sc
cure as. Her ships Of war occupied every
sea and in every sea found our trading
vessels generally engaged in carrying the
,,ront.rtv Of her enemies. This property
her ships had a right to seize and 1t beng
natural that our people SHOULD endeavor p g,
protect it, collisions would necessarily taSe
nlace. and unarmed fraud would yield 70
| armed force. To have avoided such COLI
SONS. two concessions, both OF vital I'M
portance, must have been made to us by
Great Britain. She must have conceded,
that our flag should protect her eneray's
property from seizure, and. her seainea
from being obliged to perform the duties OF
their allegiance. IF she had yielded the
first, of what avail was her naval superlorl-
fy? If the second, that superiority would
be of short duration. Ought zoe to have
expected such sacrifices from her! We
who have showed and still shew such parti-
alities for France. But independently OF
{ this consideration, these were sacrifices
which she could not make. She was bound
by the primary impulse OF nature to take
care of her own preservation, and to sacri-
Ace no right essential to that end, to the
syarice, or accommodation of other natl
ons.
Yet in the enforcement Of her rights, no
doubt, her officers have sometimes done
wrong: but has the nation, in such cases,
/ denied PREPARATION! Before the orders OF
the 18th November, has she said that when
| our property was unjustly taken, it should
mot be restored? or that, when through
! mistake, our seamen were taken for her
own, they should not be discharged: No,
sir, the truth is, have no doubt, that ma
ny millions worth OF property seized has es-
capped condemnation, which truly belonged
10 her enemies and many seanen have
,een discharged as American citizens, who
in fact were British subjects. A know
ledge of the various frauds praciised upon
lsr by American merchants covering to-
reign property and by American officers
in granting certificates of citizenship to her
subjects, must naturally have excited her
TO greater rigor of enquiry, and consequent
~ 70 the more frequent detection of fraud.
But YOU may ask, what say you to the or
der of council OF the 11,h Nov. / say, sir,
that such as they are, they are the almost
necessary offspring OF the noA-i Importation
act OF the quiet submission Of our govern
/ 4 Z. I'll
hostile temper OF our executive towards
Great Britain, fully evinced by many OF his
messages to congress by his rejection OF
the i;te treaty ; and in fine, by the whole
tenor Of his public acts. You say, indeed,
that IF the president had been DESTROYS, as
he has been falsely charged, to 90 to war
with Great Britain, how easy, and with what
little responsibility could nc have plunged
the nation into war;" / do not believe,
sir, that the president wished to plunge as
into awar with Great Britain, | bciievs he
knew too well what that might probably
cost us and himself, rashly to uldelyase l..
No, hi did not wish for war with Great Bri-
tain but he wishedto do every thing Short
at war TO pelpiex and distress her.-He
wished anon-inportation act: he wished 10
protect her deserving seamen in their deser-
ton he wished to exclude her ships from
our ports: he wished to force her to con-
eed9 wat ne knew, that, if conceded, woald
cause her destruction he wished to starve
her colonies and suspend her manufactures !:
and when her ruin was thus wrought, when
her strength hadfalled when he had cut the
hair OF sleeping Sampson Gas he once told Us
Great Britain had done by the Sampson OF
our liberties then, and not till then, would
he have urged war without fear then,
boldly would he set his foot on the lions
| neck and falsely have claimed the double
praise OF VISION and of courage.
1 ~,