The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1815-06-03

try. The hostility to us which appears to en-
ter into the composition of the character of a
Briton, Is, on the part OF the enlightened edi-
tors of that work, lberalized by generous e.
ducation, practical conversation with the at
fairs of government, and actual knowledge OF
the nature of our constitution and the state of
our country. The national pride, which we
call arrogance, of the British nation, in them
cha stised by the wisdom of experience and
observation, subsidies III laudabie attach
ment to their country. The Edinburgh Re-
view, therefore. has been, uniformly, The warm
advocate of reform and liberation i'll the IN
ternal administration of its own government,
and, III its foreign affairs, of due respect to
the rights and privileges Of other govern
ments. Antecedent to the war, we had no
enemy in the Edinburgh Reviewers: on the
contrary they were distinguished for the lib
crafty with which they treated our neutral
claims, or prctensions, as 1t WAS then the
fashion 70 call them.
Since the commencement of the war, the
number for November last is the first of the
Review which has fallen into cur hands At
that time, let us remember, Information had
lust reached England OF the repulse OF the
British armies before Baltimore and Platts-
burgh, and of their bloody defeats in success
sive battles on the Niagara. At that mo
nens, it was, that, through the medium of
our prints, the insolent demands of the Bri-
American people demands which the min
istry of that nation have not yet thought pro-
per 20 place in an official shape before the
British people, on which they have never
vet dared to meet their adverSaries on the
floor of Parliament. At that instant it was,
that rational discussion of the Justice and ex-
petlicncy Of war with this country began to
be listened to-. Before this critical moment.
the whole nation appears to have been deaf
TO every suggestion but that of oloated pride,
calIous 90 every feeling but of revenge. The
natural hatred of republican government had
fcrmented into an almost cxtermiuating rage
when, as their writers modestly express
themselves, we had the insolence to declare
war against our Oetters, against the legitimate
sovereign of the seas. And, by the way, we
doubt very much whether the wisest act of
their present ministry, that of making peace
with us without hazardng another campaign,
Is not the most unpopular Of the Prince Re
gents administration. Unpopular, we mean,
among that party, being . large majority of
the nation, by whose support he has, since
his accession, administered, with a success at
least equal to his fathers before him, the al
fairs of the British government.
1t WAS ~ this moment, when first the ear
OF the British people was open to reason, that
the Scotch Reviewers, and others like them,
who were in their hearts averse to a contest
that was, from the beginning, palpably a war
against free government, began 20 urge dis
suaSives against the continuance OF strug-
gle which vas now absolutely without object.
But such was tn prejudice still existing that
the first half of Ill. article now before us, is
occupied with q solemn aburatou Of All parS
tiality to the nation Ci me United States and
particularly to the republ!cau part of it. We
must confess, we are not little mortified to
perceive how much pains is taken to djstort
the history Of the origin OF the late war, and
how necessarily absurd the reasoning is, by
which it is attempted to put us in the wrong
as to the commencement OF IT. But, i'll the
remaining part of the article, there is SO much
sound reasoning and practical good sense, as,
appealing To the feelings and mere parLicu-
larry the il. rest OF the British nation, could
aot have failed OF its effect, if writings of this
character had time to operate, which they
had not, before the conclusion of the peace.
1t has always appeared to US, however, that
the treaty was due to the force of thos, con-
celebrations which the Reviewers i'll this arti-
Gle so very ably and eloquently point out as
recommending it..
On the palpabIe insufFiciency of the Justice
o. the pretensions on which Great Britain re-
fused to terminate the war, the writer re-
marks, that when we declared the war, we
had that color for it, at least, that Great Br-
tain had no right, when the grounds of the
war had vanished, to continue it from the
mere motive OF revenge, and then forcibly
adds
sit was not a war of mere depreciation or
Conquest-an unprovoked and wanton ag-
gression on her part, for the qualification of
Cupidity or revenge--but an ordinary case Of
taking up arb.s for the redress of specific &
considerable grievances, which we cannot de-
ny TO have existed though we are cf Opt
Mon, that she Anne RIGA was not fully justi-
He'd, in the circumstances of the case, in tax
ing that way to redress them. Alter short
period of hostilities, attended with various
succesS---certainly not with such decided adj
vantaCe on our side rs could have entitled us
to di tate terms to the enemy, had the original
subject OF contention remaiued--the occasion
OF dSsentlon is fortunately remove 4 by the res
toration OF peace III Europe, and the conse-
queut disappearance both ofueutrals and bel
lgerents. America, then agrees to wave all
farther discussion Of claims which are no Ion
ger to be asserted in practice and England
refuses to lay down her arms till she has pot
large portions of land and water from her
antagonist. The war which goes on after this.
we conceive, is just clearly n war Of mere
conquest and Aggression upon our part, as if
we had at first signed pesce OH the accom-
mediation of the orly points that had occasion
ed the war--and next day declared war q
new, for the avoTcd purpose OF adding part
OF her territory to our possessions"