Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1810-01-26

dances Of Mr.. Smiths ofensire, snd a
Ear a. we can see unproyoked harshn IS:
toward. Mr.. Jackson, the representative OF
his Britannia majesty. =, -.
M Smith. most unaptly and unfortu-
.na,elv, had cited a case from Vatset' to
.bsw that Great Britain had no right 20 re-
;rcr the arrangement with Mr.. Erskins.-
Tha, case was, uphappily most directly, 4
rainss our side: 1t went to prove that
q where bargain was made BY minister
IN virtue of fun bowers it could not DC re-
;.,,.d without solid and ne ghty reasons"
MIR. lack son turned bah parts OF this
n,o,at;op agains, Mr.Smith, and with uu'
arswerabie force - ..'..- -,
1s,. That Mr.. Erskinc had not as Mr..
ya,ts suppose. in his s,otation, JuA p07o'
eYs. %, ,
ad,y. That his majesty had solid an4
,v.;pitv reasons for the rejection-!o wit,
the total violations Of ins,ructions--'he tat
lure to obtain any of the conditions or OBJ
iec,, expected by the agreement.
How does Mr.. Smith reply to these for
chile ob;ections? By a sarcasm which par
take, as much of temper as of weakness-
" I understand sir; (says hsto Mr.. Jacksan)
for the first time, that you object to Mr..
Erskincfs want of fill powers. If that Dr.
an objection, the same applies to yourself,
and we ough. no. to have heard you as long
as we have done, because you have sxhl-
bitcd no full powers.
This was an admission of the principle |;
for if it had been true that minister pie
nipo,entiary &c eG:'9 hSd right in all cases
to bind his sovereign, j, would have been
the most natural, the most perfect, and Ger.
taalv less insulting answer.
But Mr.. Smith'sreply was defective on
snsther ground, as proved by the CORES
ponderce between Mr.. Jefferson and Mr..
Hammond, cited by me- in a former num-
Der: For though Il. full power is requisite
to conclude and sign, yet general letter OF
credehce is ,suairient to negotiate. Thus
ia common life we are satisfied to make a
bargain with a rt,o4te3 attorney, but when
we come to take the deed or contract, we
require and We examine the letter Of attor.
ncy-In this case M. Jackson was only
| paving the wa! to treaty: 1t was there.
fore premature and INDIGENOUS TO demand
his powers 1T was still more than that to
demand them in SO taur:inC manner; but,
what i. still worse, Mr. Jackson declares
| that he had !a,.g b:yore this verbally stated
to Mr.. Smith ,ha, h= Poss-ss-d such full
powers. To these very irritating remarks
of Mr.. Smiths, which one would have cx.
pected weeld have reused the utmost re-
sentiment Of naughty man, as Mr.. Jack
son has becn represented by orr democrats,
he calmly replied, in his letter of the 4:h
OF Novsmbsr--
"I'hat he was surprised at the transition
by which it appeared to Mr.. Smith that
this part Of the subject was connected with
the authority empowering him to negotiate
with Mr.. Smith. l, will not, Says Mr..
Jackson) escape your recollection that in
formed you, at a very early period, tia. in
| addition to the usual credsntiGi letter his
Majesty had hcen pleased to invest me with
a full power under the great seal Of bis
kingdom for the express purpose Of conelu-
ding treaty OF convention. I:veN remcm.
Der your testifylng your sa'isfation at the
circumstance and now add, that when
ever i, suits your convenience an ready to
exchange my full ps1rsr against that with
which you shal' be provided for the progress
Of the negotiation.
Thus we see that the decorating taunt Of
Mr.. Smith, was no: only an unprovokcd,
but in face Of a positive knowledge, thar
Mr.. Jackson was furnished with special
and Plcnary powers.
{ One would imagine tina, it would be i'm.
possible, in a free country, a country en-.
joying the privileges OF the press, for a mi
mister to question, after sur,', declaration,
Mr.. Jackson's powers, which such minis
ter had right at the very moment to de-.
mand end examine. But We shall find that
it is more easy to palm of an impostu,s in
this enlightened country. than We could
imagine and the result: Of this affair will
shsw, that even when detected, its effects