Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1809-02-27


and Great Britain and France, and taesr
dependencies.
fcoNTINuED. -
7 am bound in charity to presume, Mr.
President, that gentlemen must dlilef es-
sentiallv with me in opinion respecting the
causes of war, or It is not possible that we
should differ so much as TO the proPrlet}I
and necessity of resorting to it. | there
fore propose to state with openness and
: candor. the real causes of our suHerings,
the real causes of war. These may prlnci-
spally be summed up in the monstrous and
extrayapant claim set up in Great Britain to
the despotism Of the ocean. The despos,,
ism claimed upon the land by France, aitho
equally rsprehensible, is less injurious to
us. Its felt, no doubt, with great severl-
tv by those nations whose situation has sub
;ected them to its infuence-but 1t has
I pleased kind and benihcent Providence to
place MS beyond the sphere OF Its destruc-
tive influence, whilst the iInpotency OF
France upon the ocean, relieves US from any
great and serious injuries from her upon
that element.
G. Britain has assumed the principle OF
the conquest of the ocean, and as a reward
of that conquest, asserts and maintains the
right to carry on herself the commerce or
rhe world. or to prescribe rules for conduct
imp it by other nations, and thus render 1t
subservient to her own views, and heroWn
interests-this claim of exclusive dominion
upon the ocean by G.. Britain, IS hostility a
gainst the rights of all other nations upon
that element. 1t is in fact, war against all
nations having equal rights to navigate the
ocean. It compels all other nations either
TO surrender to G. Britain the monopoly Oh
the commerce of the world, or to submit to
such rules as she shall prescribe tor con-
tluct;nr IL. This extravaga notion was
conceived by the British jiuyists as early as
the French revolution, and since the de-
struction Of the French fleet at Iou.on, the
3 government has made several attempts 70
Introduce it into practice; sometimes Win
more. sometimes with less restraint or dis
pulse. It's impossible for me to refer to
all the instances of this kind; must there
fore turn the recollection OF the senate 81
morally to the various orders issued since
that time restraining neutral commerce IL
utter contempt of all public law, and &C
knowledged rights. During the latter part
of Mr.. Pitts administration this doctrine
had become popular, and twas resolved to
put it into practice. 1t was however deem
ed proper to prepare the world for the re-
%ception Of the industrious pretenslon ac-
cordingly a pamphlet was written as the
precursor. of this system proposed to be IN
PRODUCED for the government OF the com
mcrcial world. pay but little respect to
pamphlets in general, and should not now,
but the pamphlet alluded to, has always
been represented as written under the di-
rection of the thea British ministry, and
intended to prepare the world for this new
system of commercial warfare and in this
point of view, it is entitled to the most Sc
rrious consideration, and the rather, as the
course of policy recommended by it, has
since been strictly pursued by the British
ministry, and they have even extended the
SYSTEM since, beyond the utmost limit pre-
scribed in that work. The pamphlet aiiud-
cd, TO Is entitled " War in Disguise" L beg
to call the attention of tie senate to two or
three short paragraphs therein. They will
be found in pages eight and alne.
Have we then lost the triumphant means
of such efectual warfare or have the an
Client fields of victory been neglected
6 Neither such amlsiortune nor such fol-
" cal, be alledgcd. Never was our mari
time. superiority more decisive than in the
!. last and present war. We are still the un-
resisted masters of every sea, and the open
|. intercourse of our enemies with their colo
-, - - IL ?, o@,,,>Il.- i I -