Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1813-07-22


posite extreme, determination 70 DC
lieve every thing right which Is cohhee.'
ed with authority, and to applaud WIN
out examination, all that has been or may
be done py the powers that be, Is TIE
| charac eristic Of sersillty and ioiy. "
this te inner it has been truly SAID, thai
"it is the skreen bv which power IS con
cescd in its gradual progress 10 dsspe'
| ism. its most dangerous, ii not It's only
dangerous approach. And even wien
| nothing worse than in'becahfy "!eius me
reins, it is by this it is upheld IN rs
/ course from blunder to hlupder, antn it
converts national mtsf0Ttu"es iplo ma
tioDal ruin"
A position, said Mr.. C. has been taken
by the friends OF the proposed resotu-
tons, which ha. given great dissatistac-
ton to the advocates OF the adm'n'stra.
ton, and against which all the force OF
assertion and of argument has been d.
rected. No proposition can be more
completely established. Iii supported
by evidence little short of demonstia-
ton. The proposition Is this, that mao
the French repeating decree OF the 20 n
/ April, 1911, been promulgated at the
time of its date, or at any time before
the fatal resolution had been taken, to
plunge this once happy country INTO war
| it would have averted this dire Calamity.
Gentlemen in vain attempt TO put this
| question to rest, in vain forbid this posi-
ton to be taken. 1t is tnkes, and 1t VIII
be maintained with all the obstlnacy OF
right, in the face Of the nation, and IN
defiance of every effort that Can be used
to expel Us.
1t is not my design to proceed step by
step through all the documents WHICH
are supposed to be connected with this
subject. Few empioymcnts can be more
stale, fiat aud Improbable, either to the
Speaker or TO tho bearer. Indeed, Sir
howey yer it may be with others, l am
weary of documents. They are so mul-
tiplied as 10 involve every obj ect in OBJ
| scurity, and to afford 10 every man, who
knows how to wrest sentence from ITS
| plain meaning, text on which to preach
a political sermon, according to his own
fancy. / am sick of these documents,
because their perusal too plainly she"s,
what is not untre9uent in private con-
| troversies. that We have been Wr1tfen into
! a war. But it i. necessary to take ra-
pid comprehensive view of the state OF
our foreign relations, and OF our course
of policy in regard to them, Tor few
years before the date of this suppressed
| decree. This will enable US to ascer-
tain the effect which its PRONUNCIATION
would have produced.
The Berlin and Milan DEGREES were
permanent parts OF gigantic systems
invented by Napoleon for the desir"c-
ZION of MS adversary. Tie aro"ed OBJ
iect of this system was t" establish
code of maritime laws, IN support OF
which every commercial Ration was TO
be arrayed in a coniederacy, whereof he
was to he Protector, Legislator and
| Judge. Of this code the elementary
| princIDlcs we're, that the neatral flag
should protect II that Ii covered-that
arms and munitions of war should alone
be deemed contraband-thst fortified
places could alone be blockade d-and
| that no blockade was cfectnal which was
not alsoI siege. Great Britain was to
be deemed an enemy of the human race,
and Get off from human intercourse, un.
til she acknowledged the new Napoleon
code. The nation that declined TO &C
cede to this conle deracy, was viewed as
| the ally of Britain, and subjected to the
most rigorous and barbarous usages OF
war. Her ships were burnt on the ocean,
and confscated it port--her property
| plundtred W berever tound-her ciuzens
made prisoners, & her territories lnVad-
ed. Britain refused to acknowledge this
code; and protesting to retallate on
France the consequences OF her own IN
science, issued orders prohibiting neu-
trail intercourse with part of thcFrench
dominions so long as France enforced
these monstrous DEGREES. These Or
ders she proudly declared should last
while the DEGREES lasted. In the revo-
cation of them she would proceed step
by step with the repeal of the DEGREES.
1t is foreign from my present purpose to
enquire how far the retaliatory plea had
anv foundation or if founded, whether
it went in justification, or in mitigation
Only. of the attack on neutral rights
What was the ground taken by our 60
vernment? On this point there cannot
be mistake. The celebrated report Of
the committee OF foreign affairs OF No
vember 1903, unquestionably approved
by the executive, and by both branches
Of the legislature, for on it was founded
the law Of non intercourse with France
and Britain, shews it fully. France and
Britain were viewed as equal aggressors
on our rights. The wrongs OF both
must be resented, and equally resented,
or the wrongs of neither. Any measure
| ait kar nh