The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1814-07-06


tiiiable cause OF war. Their impressing
our natural born seamen into their SER
vice, was the greater crime of the two,
and increased the cause of war; there
fore, that the war was founded in false
hood, is untrue. The declaration itself
is falsellood and ought to be blotted
from the Answer. AS Great Britain per-
sisted in those wrongs year after year,
without redressing them, or giving us
encouragement that she ever would, how
does it appear that the war was declared
without necessity
Before war was resorted to, both po-
litical parties in Congress voted almost
unanimously, that there were but three
alternatives for the American nation to
choose out Of; EMBARGO, WAR, or
Submission. Averse to war, as the last
resort OF nations, they laid an Embargo.
This measure excited much clamor, and
was abandoned. AS one alternative was
rejected, the number was reduced to
two WAR or Submission. They
wisely preferred and selected the former
and had the latter, submission to these
injuries, been put and tried, doubt whe-
ther there would have been five men in
the Congress who would have voted for
it. Instead, therefore, of the War be-
ing declared without necessity, there was
necessity of resorting to it, or of aban-
doning our national rights by base and
shameful submission to the continual vi
olation of them. Such AN act would have
merited the execration of all our citizens,
and the contempt of our enemy.
That the war was declared without ne
cessity, is another false declaration, that
ought to be erased from the Answer to
the Speech of His Excellency. Should
this declaration, by the Legislature of
Massachusetts,, go forth to the world,
what will they think of US? What effect
will it have in negotiation with our ene-
my? If the declaration be true, we have
no claims Whatever on the justice Of G.
Britain. We have only to ask permission
to come into her presence, and there hum
bly, confess our errors, and redress to her
the wrongs we have done her, by prosecut-
ing war against her without any cause.
hope, sir, we shall never more hear
of the injustice Of this war.
Nor is it true, sir, that the real ob-
jecf of the war was the extent Of terrific
ry by unjust conquests. If we had re-
ceived no injuries from Great Britain, can
any man believe we should, unprovoked,
have waged war against her for the sake
of adding the Canadas to our territories?
And because the injuries we received
from Great Britain were not committed
IN Canada, that therefore they are exemp-
ted from the effects of war waged a.
gaihst the nation to which they belong +?
Ii you declare war against nation, the
declaration includes ali its dependencies,
and you may direct all your operations as
you please.-How, then, in the nature of
things, could you be at war with Great
Britain, and at the same time be at peace
with the inhabitants of Canada, who be-
long to it? If we had not fought with
them, they might have fought with us.
Because his majesty's subjects in Ca
NADIA were not the identical persons who
did us injuries, they are represented as
innocent, and therefore, it is unjust and
sinful to attack them Confine the oper-
ations of the war to the ocean only, and
you meet with the same objection on the
watery element that you meet with OH the
land. How many merchant vessels, and
even armed vessels and their crews, who
had done us no wrong. Unless, there
fore, you attack the identical ships, and
their crews, who did us injuries, you
would attack innocent persons, who had
done us no wrongs. As you cannot