Alexandria daily gazette, commercial & political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1808-1812, 1812-04-15
Foy the dleaandria Ea;'y Gazette.

sing YOU, anu through you Ing 'upiits Oh
the subject of our foreign relations: the
Importance of the subject is ielt and com
fessed by all it presents an unbounded
field for the display OF political talents,
and should this short essay furnish us
no useful hints, it must be attributed to
want Of ability in the writer. not the in
suficiency of the subject. The most pro-
minent feature in our affairs with foreign
nations is, that we are on the eve OF a war
with one, which, as respects us, is the
most powerful in the world possessing
| more than any other the ability OF doing
Ius much good, and in still greater de-
gree the power to iniure us. This being
the case, we enquire The causes OF this
extraordinary state of things, and receive
| for answer long list ofinjuriesand insults
inflicted by G.. Britain on our helpless, I'M
offending and unprotected merchants & sea-
men. In vindication of her conduct, she
aIledges our submissive acquiescenee in
the DEGREES of her enemy, which by de-
stroying our neutrality and making our
| commerce subservient to his interest, she
afirms, strikes at the heartstrings Of her
power; thence deducing her right to treat
us as her enemy. would, il he had the
powes to enforce his DEGREES, so long as
we submit to their existence. Passing
over long list OF intermediate efforts on
the part of our government to remove
this state of things, we find that they
withdrew the non-intercourse act against
L. bo7 off ut I'm
time the exclusive benefits of our import
trade to either of them that should first
revoke her offensive edicts, denying it to
her who should despise our calls for jus
tice. until she followed the example of her
enemy.
The French emperor with that subtlety
which has ever distinguished lis clarac-
ter, saw and resolved to improve this OPP
portunity for widening the breach between
our rulers and those of England. To ef-
feet this purpose, he relaxed just enough
to satisfy our craving for concession, yet
so trammelled the favor with conditions,
and expressed his intentions SO obscurely,
as to render it altogether impossible that
the British government should conceive
that he meant to respect our right. With
the eagerness however of a drowning
man, who in despair catches at straws in
the forlorn hope of saving himself, our
government seized the promised blessing,
and proclaimed to the world, that the
French government had so far as respect
ed us, rescinded it's DEGREES, and as a natu-
raj and promised consequence, closed at
the same time the import trade viii, Eng
land and her dependencies, while both
the export and import trade were left
open to France.
This state OF things, though intended
to be compulsory on England, is in fact
advantageous to her in many respects.
Our trade with France affords rich har-
vest to her cruizers, who find it much
more lucrative TO capture defencelcss A
mericans under the orders in council, than
watching the hitherto unfrequentcd coast
Of their enemy, and trayersillg the globe
in pursuit Of every vessel of his that
escaped their vigilance. But another and
more important effect has resulted from
this measure vast amount Of Ameri-
can property has been :tcumulating in
England, without any prospects of our
merchants being able, at least fora length
Of time, to recover any part Of it. I'm
portation is the only means by which it
can be recovered to the country, and our
government have absolutely persisted in
adhering to the non-importation system,1
although no reason can be given why it
should not have been reiinquished at the
commencement OF congress. Ii it was
the intention of the majority to remain at
peace with Britain, no. argument arises
from that disposition for keeping SO much
property locked up en- the other side the
Atlantic; and if war was the iixed deter 4
mination of their minds, they had, to rea-