Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1811-10-03
For the ALEXANDRA .GAxssrr.
Mr. Third Letter to mr.. Madison.

LEAR DIR,
I've been casting about me to make out
lwhat gives you such hatred to England and
Hove for France lis it because we had fcW
hard knocks with one of them, and the other
Icame in at the eleventh hour, and Joined as!
| If that's the case Ishould have these notions
rather thon uou. You never took "a single
bout with the Regulars, while ] was getting
many hard humping from them: but we
gained our point at last we whipped them;
and must pronounce him an ill-natured boor
with submission) who harbors malice against
his antagonist, after he has beat him to his
hearts content.
But let's look fairly into the nature OF this
sauabble for / remember it as well as tho
it was yesterday, and so do you. We. were
British Colonies she wanted to rule Us un-
conditionally, and make any laws she pleased
for us, without saying, by your leave all ma
tural enough-you hold slaves. so do -
wrong, but quite natural ;-S' feef power and
forget right :"--interest, you know, interest
and custom, will turn wrong Almost into right.
We demonstrated, and offered over and over
again, to continue her dutiful children, if she
would allow US certain privileges, but altho'
she repealed many of her obnoxious laws for
us, she would not repeal all. This would not
do for us !; so at it we went hammer and tongs,
for about seven years. She hated to lose US;
we were the handsomest feather in her cap;
but she gave us up at last, as asset OF tough
fellows. Her language then was, we have beat
me you are independent ; now let us forget
the breach we've had, and begin our inter-
course on equal terms. Well, you know from
that time till about FIVE years ago, trade has
been carried on between them, more prohta-
BILE to both parties, than was ever known be-
fore in the world. / cant see any cause here
for hating England SO horribly, can you 3
Now for this partially for France. Isit, as
asked before, because she came in at the ele-
venth hour, to our assistance? for you and
know that the coward never sent man or
shilIing's worth of help of any kind, till the
fortune Of war was fast turning in our favor,
and it was ascertained pretty well, that we
coald do without her. We both know too,
well enough, that her view In sending at all
(for she declared so herselG was the noble
to fog her enemy with our help,
and thereby serve her own turn. She tried
loo, when we were about treating with Spain,
to keep us off the Mississippi altogether, and
a number Of other dirty, oficious capers, that
/ could mention such as kind of unoff-
cial proposal, to England, to suGdue US, and
divide the ShoH There was something said
to this effect, about the close OF the war
and If my memory serves me, the testimo.
ny is alive now, through which the fact Can
be established. But lest this cannot now be
proved, / throw it altogether out OF the
chapter, and ask you if you think the con-
duct that have mentioned, which can be
proved, ought to draw forth any mighty gra-
titude and love to France But just for talk
sake now, will grant you that she secured
our independence for us altogether, by her
noble, disinterested exertions; and I'll be
one of the first to "render to Cesar the things
that are Caesars" Where is he though
Ave, there's the rub---murder'd Then
let's render to the government, or its de-
scendants that did all this for us: where are
they f-murder'd! imprisoned! exil'd!
And their murderers fill their places all
entire new dynasty. Well now. do you sup
pose am such low-liv'd whcedling spaniel,
as to love, or try to love, those who have kill
led my benefactors Fou may, if you please,
bur would take all the plaques of Egypt on
things wont do Bonaparte is devil incar-
nate, and you know il. He is never content
with seizing all our property that he cali lay
his hands on, but his insolent meddling with
our private national concerns, is most grating
to real freeman: Has he not told us we
must go to war with England that our pro-
perty in his hands was held as hostage for
our behavior that he considered war as de-
clared against England by us that we were
without energy and without honor! Ga home
THRUST at your excellency's teeth y In short,
France has never treated US like an indepen-
dent nation from the days of the Directory till
now, except the year or two that we were aog-
ging them in Adams's time That circum-
stance alone convinces me how soon they
would respect US, if wecould be prevailed up
on to respect ourselves. remember once,
please your Excellency, when was a little
chap, that there was a,quarrelsome young ras-
cal, that was bug-bear to every boy in the
village he was not bigger nor stronger than
the rest of us, but he Was French boy,
and had name .dnfoise these two things,
with little clustering, were enough for us in