Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1811-11-08

have had the honor of stating to you YER
haily the system of defence to which his Ma
jesty has been compelled to resort for the
purpose of protecting the maritime rights and
interests of his dominions against the new de-
scription Of warfare that has been adopted by
his enemies. l have presented to you the
grounds upon which his Majesty finds him
self still obliged to continue that system,
& conceive that shall best meet yourwishes
as expressed to me this morning, if in more
formal shape l should lay before you the
whole extent of the question, as it appears to
his Majesty's government TO exist between
Great-Britain and America.
beg leave to call your attention, sir, to the
principles on which his Majesty's Orders in
Council were originally founded. The decree
of Berlin was directly and expressly an act OF
war, by which France prohibited all nations
from trads or intercourse with Great-Brltain
under peril Of confiscation of their ships and
merchandise although France had not the
means of imposing an actual blockade In any
degree adequate TO such purpose. The i'm
mediate and professed object of this hostile
decree was the destruction of all British COM
merce through means entirely unsanctioned by
the law of nations, and unauthorized by any
received doctrine of Legitimate blockade.
This violation of the established law of civil
ized nations in war would have justified Great
Britain in retaliating upon the enemy, BY ST.
milar Introduction of all commerce wlthFrance
and with such other countries as might CO.
operate with France in her system of COM
merciaI hostility against Great-Britain.
The object of Great-Britain was not, how
ever the destruction CT trade, bu: its preser-
walton under such regulations as might be
compatible with her own security, at the same
time that she extended an indulgence to TO-
reign commerce, which strict principles would
have entitled her to withhold. The retaliation
Of Great-Britain was not therefore urged to
the full extent of her right, our prohibition OF
French trade was not absolute but modified,
and IN return for the absolute prohibition OF
all Grade with Great Britain, we prohibited not
all commerce with France, but all such COM
merce with France as should not be carried
on through Great-Britain.
Il was evident that this system must prove
preiudicial to neutral nations this calamity
was fore seen and deeply regretted But the
injury to the neutral nation arose from the ag-
gression of France, which had compelled
Great Britain in her own defence to resort to
adequate retaliatory measures OF war. The
operation on the American commerce OF these
precautions which the conduct OF France had
rendered indispensable to our security, IS
therefore to be ascribed to the unwarrantable
aggression of France, and not 70 those pro-
ceedings on the part of Great-Britain, which
that aggression had rendered necessary and
Just.
The object Of our system was merely to
Counterfeit an attempt to crush the British
trade; Great Britain endeavored to permit the
continent to receive as large portion OF COM
merce as might be practicable through Great
Britain and all her subsequent regulations,
and every modification of her system by new
orders or modes of granting or Withholding
licenses, have been calculated for the purpose,
Of encouraging the trade Of neutrals through
Create Britain, whenever such encouragement
might appear advantageous to the general IN
terests of commerce, and consistent with the
public safety of the nation.
The justification of his Majesty's Orders in
Council, and the continuance OF that defence
have always been rested upon the existence of
the DEGREES of Berlin and Milan. and on the
perseverance q the enemy in the system OF
hostility which has subyefted the r'ghts OF
neutral commerce on the comment; ard 1t has
ALWAYS been declared on the part'ot ms Majes-
tvs government, that whenever France should
have effsctuaily repeated the DEGREES of Ber-
lin and Milan, and should have restored neu-
trail commerce TO the condition in which it
stood previously to the PRONUNCIATION of those
decrees, we should immediately repeal our er--
ders in council
France has asserted that the Decree OF Ber-
LIN was a measure of just retsiiation on her
part, occasioned by our previous aggression,
and the French government has insisted that
our system of blockade, as 1t existed preyl-
ously to the decree of Berlan, was manifest
violation of the received law OF nations we
must therefore, sir, refer to the articles OF the
Berlin decree, TO find the principles oil