Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1810-01-06
Frsm me Boston Gase.te.
THE DIPLOMATIC POLICY or
MIR. MADISON UNVEILED.
NO. tit.
M. Erskine's arrangement considered in
ih OriSin, Heyress and Issue.

M. Erstincs arrangement considered in
rs OriSin, Proyress and Issue.
DIFFICULT as the path TO permuucn,
peace aud reconciliation with Great Britain,
appeared to be with such q temper rs that
ol our administration, bet,re Mr.. Ersknr's
arrangement, that measure has not only ~.
peradded new embartassments, but our mi.
n,sters appear to b: resolved to substitute
it rs principal and IN in.urmoun,able oh.
stacle. They not only take credit to them.
selves for the proof which they pretend that
measure afforded OF their desire to concili.
ate Great Brisain--But they addues the
rejection of 'ha, agreement as evidence, not
merely OF insincsrity but Of perhdy. In
their late discussions with MIR. Jackson,
abandoning their cautious policy, and Sc.
cure as they thought themselves in the con.
Gdence of the people, whom they conceiv.
ed they had managed, they adopted high
and offensive tone i'll calculated to restore
friendly intercourss--they repeated and
persisted in direct insinuations of disho.
norable breach of faith, and declared that
Great Britain still persevered ia insolent
and inadm' ssiose pretcnsions notwihstand-
ing the British envoy as repeatedly, in Ian
gu.ge the most unequivocal, denied that
h: was directed to psrssyere in any such
pretenslnns.
Since then, in place of the dispute about
the o,de IN council, the questions of ina
prcs,ncnt, of the colonial trade, and of the
Chesapeake, a new cause of Contest has
been conjurcd up, to which still more Sc
rious air is attempted to be given. Those
OF US who are opposed to war, unless it
be necessary for our honor, and who think
it possible that set of men who have here.
tnlore deceived us, may deceive US again,
viii think it prudent to examine 20 the very
foundation, the late arrangement with Mr..
Erskinr, ard see whether it affords an ad
dilional Just ground for dissatisfaction with
Grca; Britain, AMI whether it does not Of
fer new reasons to doubt the sincerity Of
our government.
Our ministers appear to place great reli-
ancc on llir testimony Of Mr.. Erskine, who
having oncc d, ceived them, and having be-
rayed an uncommon share OF weakness,
one would think they would deem little de-
serving of conGd'nLe. For my part | con.
IIdrr this testimony very little relevant 70
shr question in dispute, mhss, as IL ,peHit
ssrO,, our administration mean TO rely on
tee grounds, ~ ailron.ive TO the British
cabinet, as 70 shut tho door forever 70 ne.
goeia,ion. Those points IRE, 1sh Tim.
Mr.. Canning fabricated or voluntarily mis-.
represented the three proposals which in his
letter of the 23d Of January, 1909, he
states, he understood were either proposed
by or were acceptable to our cabnr,--and,
2dly, Tina, although Mr.. Jackson, in behalf
ct the British ministry, solelnnly, on the
honor Of his sovereign, declares that there
rVerc no e,hrr Instructions on this subje
than those contained in the letter Of Mr..
Canning Of January 23d, yet that in iact
ether instructions did exist
Iirpea,, snd beg the public to notice
it, and weigh the farce q the remark, that
it 1U;ah! seem that The object and the only
object of publishing Mr.. Erskine's expla.
natory letters is to give rise to two opinions
That Mr.. Canning voluntarily misrs-
presented the dispatches of Mr.. Erskine as
to the true conditions and that MIR. Err.
skinc had other instructions than those which
the British government declare were the
only ones.
Now if war is intended, and is consi-
dered desirable or inevitable, it may not be
indecent in our government to make such
suggestions; but if not, l can see no mo-
tive in publishing Mr.. Erskine's letters, as