Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1810-04-25
From che ,Viryinia Patriot.

we have no sxissins commercial treaty with
France, 81 having expired soms Ihsnshs
since by special limisaiioA. -. -
, 'Asmitsing the fact - here asaeed--for !
have not the treaty by me &C pressns--fhs
question immediately oceurs: why has the
expiration Of this treaty been 90 cautiously
kept out Of view,l Ifthe treaty really has
expired, why.ssas not the eireumInnes been
Officially and publicly noticed, in ordfrthas
60 many of-our uaerehanss might not IN.
der the supposi,ion and relying upon>shs
faith of an sxissing treaty, risaue their i'm.
mense adventures in the ports Of an sne.
my why were they suffered to 60 with
sheAasss unsuspecsing confidence, into the
very den Of the lion, without being warned
that the chains efvhe monster were knock
ed of and that they were in, danger Of pay
ing for their ternsrity |! Certainly our 60
verumens ought 10 be able 70 accoun, for
this negligence. Millions Of our property
have lately been con6sca,ed in ports under
the control of Napoleon. A considerable
portion of it indeed, has been carried ahi.
Their under capsure from French eruizers ),
but no tri6ing share of it arrived there 10
the regular routine Of friendly commercial
intercourse. Were those merchants who
sent it aware that the, treaty between the
.wo countries had.expired'! Hthey were,
they owe no thanks TO cur government for
the>knowledge. O.. =. .,...H = 49, ..
The whole of our affairs with p rance are
wrapped iRsnyssery and unce rtainty. Ne
thing is suffered to 'transpire, except now
and then sort of demi .rfieial paragraph in
the IntelligsHcer, made up To- suit an elec
pioneering purpose, sent into the world
without responsibility, and left ,d have its
effect upna the popular feeling, without af-
fording possibility Of detecting its false.
hood. " essel after vessel is. sent to that
country with despatches--answers we are
told are received to those dispatches, but
what those answers are We are not per
mi,ted to know. Government tells US moth
ing about thcm.-Aad as we are not
Scotchuien, gifted With second sight. nor
rosues, who, like Diane can bride clerk,
to give US sight of public documents, we
are compelled to remain IL 5gnSEaHMsSSx; HE
a circumstance which executive guggling
could not conceal, must open the eyes of
the most wilfuly blind, to our real situation
lit must convince every candid mind
not only that, Napoleon is our most DANCE
reus Andsdeternined foe but that the poi
son Of French influence. has seized the very
vitals of our government
And how are we made acquainted with
this oon6scation? Does the, president or
secretary of state give us Ihe intelligence
or does 1t come through the medium Of a
despatch from our patriotic minister at the
court Of ST., Cloud 2. No {: theonly infor.
nation I'VE are allowed upon the subject is
from private letters. ---What pity il is
that our king Nqt0leon,," has not already
destroyed the liberty of the press in this
country as well as in France, and we should
then mos, probably have heard nothing at
all about it!
Out Of power, the maxim ofthe demo.
Gratis was--that republics should have no
secrets. But in power, their practice has
been to have every thing a secret which il
did not suit their interest or their convent
ence to reveal. Every one will recolsc,
the hue and cry, which was raised upon this
subject in federal. times. But there has
been more caucus work, more closed door
sessions, and more cabinet secrets in one
year Of democracy, than there was in the
whole twelve years Of federalism. Did fe.
dsralists nominate president in caucus /;
did q federal foreign. minister ever write
trisase efcial lettets upon hubfc affairs /;
or did q federal administration keep the
state Of your relations with foreign DOW.
er, for years, q profound secret, and at the
came time circulate false reports respecting
those relations, in The form Of semi.oiiieisl
paragraphs in the ministerial newspapers
All this, however, has been and consi.
nues to 10 done with the greatest inpuni.y,
by our democratic rulers. ~
III will be recoIlseted chat an extract from
aI.onden paper, given in our last, speaks
with confidence OF the nature Of certain
despa,ches from the French governmen, in.
.s.re~n,ed byr the Rritiah. and so;d =, 81.