The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1809-06-09


the proposition of the embargo. 1t cannot
be gotten over, unless gentlemen are willing
to admit. which !. tofis riri6i,s, deny. that
the President of the United States was def
Gent in his duty, or that the newspapers of
this place have earlier and more correct in
formation ON the subject Of our foreign re-
iations than our government. s:v that by
a recurrence to that message Of the presi-
dent OF the United Staes it will be found,
that there was no knowledge i'm the cabinet
Of the existence of these orders i'll council
for, although we received the British pro-
clamation, we ditl not receive any informa-
ton of those orders in council, though Ipre-
sumo that something might have been APP
pretended without distinctly knowing what
it was. The non-importation act was pas
sed previous to the orders in council, and
consequently did not grow out of them; and
the embargo, though posterior. was recon-
Tended and received by this House before
they were known either to the President or
to this House, as the journal and a compa-
rison OF that file of the National Intelligent
Ger brought into this House on former oc-
casion will shew. The non importation &c
embargo acts we're passed. They no Ion
ger ekist-the one no longer exists at all !;
the other no longer exists as to Great Bri
tain--and the removal of these obstructit.,s
vocation OF the orders in council; which were
not moving considerations to passing the nom
importation act or laying the embargo
This is the truth. The withdrawal Of the
orders in council, out of which the non-im-
portation and the embargo did not arise, may
be considered as the cause of doing away both
the non-importation and the embargo, and
the non intercourse act besides-for the
non intercourse act did grow out of the or
ders in council and the affair of the Chesa-
lpeake-there is no doubt about that--,or
more properly speaking, sir, the non inter-
course act grew out OF the embargo; for,
really, smarting under the fortunes OF that
most wretched measure, this House and the
nation were goaded to that pitch of madness,
that declaration of war from any quarter
would by many have been considered better
than our then situation. We were i'm Sit
uation. in which if something be not admin
| istered to the suffering patient, he must die
| and we took the non intercourse act We
rejected, and Qhank God for it y not with
out some little of my instrumentality, the
proposition tn issue letters of marque and
reprisaL, which, If adopted, ] leave to YOU
and the House to decide whether we Should
nave met IN our present agreeable situation.
Yes. sir, with the embargo like, a blister
plaIster upon our backs, we were in such a
situation that the committee of foreign re
lations said. and we affirmed their decree,
we must be disgraced or: fight all the natl
ons OF the earth-hght all, fight nobIy, fight
like demi-gods. A worthy gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. ID. II. XVilliams) now
not a member of the House, also thought
that we must fight every but he
thought better of it. and was Content to fight
one, and to chuse his Antagonist. Gentle
men IN the other House were Of the same
opinion and as they alledged they could not
get at France, they chose to fight Great Bri
tam This was the situation in which we
were placed by the operation of the embar
so on the public mind Sir, if we were not
quite cool, like Sir Anthony Absolute who
has been quoted OH the floor of the British
House OF Commons as the prototype of the
british minister, we were something like
honest Bob Acres-6ghting Bob, who was
not sensible, till he was put tn the pinch
how little he really liked fghting-our
lighting disposition, like his. oozed out
OF our finger ends or rather out of our tongues
ends-and we are at peace. 1t is for these
reasons that i hope this slur will not be
cast on the government of the United
States, though do not conceive that they
greatly overreached their antagonist. But
i am willing to concede they have done
their duty, and to give them my approbati
on for hav.' :, so done.
Mr.. Canning, to be sure, most dextropsly
seizedupon our situation, but still our govern
ment have shewn how easy it is for men.
when they set about it bona fde with honest
intentions to make up a difference-and I
nave not the least doubt, that if his majesty
the emperor OF France and king of italy
VIII meet our PACIFIcUS, a much more ho-
norable designation than any in the long list
oil his majesty's titles, that we shallbc plac-
cd IN the same state of amtv in relation to
France in which we are in relation to Great
Britain /; in which we were five wears ago.
and from which we have, for reasons which
gentlemen no doubt are prepared to give, so
wantoDly straye1l. After all eur friskinps
and curvetings, we have come back to the
same point. All my fear is, sir, lest the
cure be not complete-lest some political
wizard should discover that, inasmnch as
VI 1905. prior to the existence of the orders
Ill council, we stood in need Of the non-im
porta,ion act, and as in 1907 8. prior to a
knowledge of the orders in council, we stood
IN need CT an embargo, for the same reasons
we now stand in need of some other substi
tute-not the same, sir for undertake tn
say that we never shall have another embar-
go without limitation Of time--it was indeed
horse medicine, bun it has worked a COM
Piete curc.--Really, sir, if we could have
been brought to believe in 1865 6, that we
Gould do as well without non importation
as we can now :; Nv 1907 8, that we could have
dispensed with the embargo as well as we
can now-and, more especially, if we could
nave been brought to accept the treaty nego-.
Grated by our commissioners at London.
winch treaty, to say the worst of it, that its
enemies ever pretended tn alledsre ,uac o,l,,