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not to commit any aggression, but to resist if any aggression should be attempted on the part of the Americans; and if the Americans should actually declare war, then not to wait for further instructions from home, but to consider war as declared by this country, and act accordingly. In a few weeks after, the Orders in Council were abandoned. Whatever might be the opinion of Government as to that measure, it was right that, if these Orders were to be abandoned, this country should have the full advantage of it. Instructions, therefore, were sent out to Mr. Foster, that in case America should have declared war, he should propose an armistice, until it was

and independence for them.-May they be- | American station, in contemplation of the come our friends.The acceleration of possibility of the occurrence of hostilities, peace will depend on your conduct. You are Russians. You are Christians! Is it necessary, in addition to those names, still to put you in mind, that it is a soldier's duty to be valiant in battle, and peaceable on the march, and during your residence in peaceable countries? I do not threaten you with punishment though I know that many among you well deserve it. You have seen in our own country, the robbers who plundered the houses of the innocent peasantry. In your just emotions of revenge against them, you have punished those villains who would resemble them. Should such a one, contrary to expectation, be found, he cannot be a Russian, he will be driven from amongst you!Soldiers, this is demand-seen how the question as to the Orders in ed and expected from you, by your true religion, your native country, and your Czar."

AMERICAN WAR.

HOUSE OF LORDS, February 18. Earl BATHURST moved the order of the day for taking into consideration the Papers relative to the present War with America. The order of the day being accordingly

read,

His Lordship stated, that these papers were very voluminous; but it was not his intention to enter into a particular examination of their contents, because he did not apprehend that to be necessary for the purpose which he had then in view, which was, to call upon the House to declare, whether the Government of this country had acted properly in rejecting the proposition made on the part of America, to suspend the exercise of our undoubted right to search for our own seamen, during the discussion of the question, whether any substitute for the present mode of exercising it could be found, and that, too, without stating any regulation in the first instance, If he could hope to obtain the unanimous concurrence of the House in an Address, approving of the rejection of such a proposition, under such circumstances, he should be sorry to enter upon any collateral matter that might disturb that unanimity.

In support of an Address of the description which he had mentioned, he should, with the leave of their Lordships, submit a few observations to their attention. In the month of May last, instructions had been sent out to our Commanders on the

Council should terminate. But war was soon after declared on the part of America, and Mr. Foster had left America before the last mentioned instructions could reach him; and, therefore, similar instructions were sent to Sir John Borlase Warren, but unfortunately without success. It might perhaps be asked, why the mouths of the Chesapeake and Delaware had not been immediately blockaded: but they had been blockaded de facto, although not by notifi→ cation. The difference between a blockade de facto, and a blockade by notification, was this, that in the former case there was no necessity for preventing any trade which was to our own advantage, in the latter case, it would have been necessary. There was this objection, therefore, to the blockade by notification on the first declaration of war, that on the legitimate principles of blockade, we could not exclude the neutral from a trade which we chose to carry on ourselves. There were, however, several very strong reasons for not interrupting our own trade, with these rivers, all at once. In the first place, a large supply of flour was expected from them for our army in the Peninsula: in the next place, our West India islands had not made the necessary arrangements with a view to a state of hostility between this country and America; and, lastly, British manufactures, to the value of five millions sterling, were on the way to America, which, in case of a regular blockade, would have been liable to be stopped. An early blockade, therefore, would have only interrupted our own supplies. We had a full right to choose the most convenient time for our blockade. The Americans had certainly chosen the most convenient time for her

American Government had been finding fault with its exercise, and yet they had never attempted to state any such regulation. Why did they not bring forward their regulation, that it might be seen, whether it was really calculated to answer the purpose? Why did they call upon us. to suspend the exercise of so essential a part of our maritime rights, without some security at least for a proper substitute? We did not claim the exercise of the right as far as respected national ships. Why did they not try the efficacy of their regulation in regard to these ships? But they had adopted no such regulation: on the contrary, in that country where the practice of taking the seamen of this country into their ships had most prevailed, all representation on the subject had been treated with the most marked and uniform neglect. He would state one or two instances of this neglect. In the first of these instances, some blame had attached to ourselves, and a proper acknowledgment had been made. He alluded to the affair of the Chesapeake, with the nature of which their Lordships were no doubt acquainted from the discussions in the newspapers. Some of our seamen had deserted their

self, in her declaration of war against us. There was no particular reason why it should not have taken place a few months sooner or later than the time when it actually happened. The real cause of the particular declaration having been published at the time when it actually appeared, was the hopes on the part of America, of intercepting our homeward-bound West India fleet; and, accordingly, Rodgers had been dispatched with his squadron to capture that fleet. A squadron of our's, however, having been sent out for its protection, Rodgers returned without effecting his object, and the American Government was disappointed. To this, no doubt, was owing the difference in the tone of the second propositions made by Mr. Russel. But, although the tone was different, the propositions were substantially the same. The proposition made by Mr. Monroe to Sir John Borlase Warren, was also of the same description. The only condition on which the Americans would accede to an armistice, was, that we should suspend our right of impressing our own seamen. Mr. Monroe said, that he had no doubt but some other regulation might be found to answer the same purpose; but he had not stated what that re-ship, and their desertion had been attended gulation was. But supposing none could be found after we should have agreed to the suspension, what then? Were we to be permitted without molestation to resume the exercise of the old mode? No,-if no substitute could be found, then the war was to be resumed; in other words, we were called upon to abandon our right of impressment at all events, or otherwise we were to have war. Such was the proposition on the part of America, and such was the proposition of which he now called upon their Lordships to approve the rejection. What was the right which they thus called upon us to abandon? It was a right which we had always exercised, without dispute in regard to other countries. It was a right which we permitted other countries to exercise in regard to us. It was a right which we had uniformly acted upon, and one which we could not abandon without sapping the foundation of our inaritime greatness. The right which they called upon us to abandon, was essential to the interests of this country; and indirectly essential to the interests of Europe, and even to those of America herself. But Mr. Monroe had said, that a different regulation might be adopted to effectuate the some object. For these 10 years, the

with circumstances of mutiny. They were seen, by our own officers, in the streets of one of the American towns; and it was known that they had entered on board the Chesapeake, American ship. A representation was consequently made to the Captain of that frigate, and the answer was, that there were no such men on board. The Chesapeake sailed soon after, and was met by the Leopard. The American frigate was hailed by the Leopard, and the question put, whether these men were then on board. The Captain answered, upon his honour, that they were not. Liberty was then requested to search the Chesapeake for them, which was refused. Force was then used--the frigate was searched-the men were found on board, under different names, indeed; but it was proved that this was done by order of the Captain, who would not suffer their former names to appear on his books. If our officer was to blame, the American Government could not but have known that their officer was also to blame. But there was no inquiry, -no punishment,-nor any thing that looked as if they considered the taking away of our seamen under such circumstances, as at all an offence. When we applied for redress in another instance,

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our navy.

where the desertion of our seamen had been bricated, especially where there was no encouraged, the reply was, that we had no interest to prove the allegation false. For title to redress, as we had refused redress the small sum of one dollar, any person, to them in the case of an American seaman, upon the attestation of two witnesses, might who had made his escape from the Ame- get a letter of citizenship, which was to be rican ship Constitution, at Spithead. In- prima facie evidence that he was a citizen. quiry had been made, however, by our When some regulation was proposed, Mr. Government in regard to this circumstance, Monroe distinctly stated, that it was not to as he trusted it would be in all cases upon affect people of that description. We were a proper representation being made. Then required then, to suspend our right of imthe story came out the man whom they pressment from American ships, in the stated as having deserted, was, as appear- hopes that some regulation might be adopted by his own declaration, a native of Ire-ed to answer the purpose; and it was to be land, and had served in different ships of distinctly understood, that when it should He had been taken, in a state be adopted, it must not attach upon any of intoxication, on board the American one who might pretend to be an American ship the Wasp; and having afterwards at-citizen. Such a proposition Ministers had tempted to escape, he was seized and put in irons for several months. He was then tried, and on his trial stated the facts of the case in his defence to the Officers. Instead of inquiring into the truth of these facts, or thinking of restoring the man, if they should be proved, they ordered him to be flogged, and he was actually flogged, and ordered to remain. He was afterwards put on board the Constitution, and from thence he made his escape. Not one of these facts was denied on the part of the Americans; and yet such was the case which they stated as a reason for refusing to deliver up our seamen. With such a disposition, and such a system of action, on the part of the American Government, there appeared no chance whatever that any regulation for keeping our seamen out of their service would be really enforced. At the very moment when they tendered some regulation on this subject, they held out unexampled encouragement to desertion. They actually claimed the right of cancelling the allegiance due to this country from its own subjects; and that too in time of war, when such a pretension, if acted upon to a great extent, must be peculiarly pernicious. The condition for becoming a citizen of the United States was a residence of five years, and a residence merely, without any property or interest in that country,-a residence, too, not exclusively in the district where the person might claim to be admitted, but in any part of the United States. Their Lord- "That the House had taken into its seships must at once perceive how easily tes-rious consideration the papers laid before timonials of such a residence might be fa

thought themselves bound to reject; and he trusted their Lordships would unanimously approve of their conduct in that instance. He did not mean to say, that under no circumstances ought we ever to accede to any regulation different from our present mode of exercising our right of searching for, and taking our own seamen; but certainly we ought never to abandon the right itself, nor ought we to give up our present mode of exercising it, till we saw how any other regulation that might be proposed, would operate in securing to us the same result. Whatever, then, might be the difference of opinion among their Lordships, in regard to other parts of the transactions between this country and America, he was confident there could be no difference of opinion as to this proposition. The Americans were industriously informed by their Government, that Great Britain was so much pressed at present, that if they only stood firm, this country must yield to their unreasonable demands. He hoped, however, that their Lordships would show, by their vote of this night, that this country was not so much pressed by the difficulties of the times,-not so weak or divided in policy, as to shrink from going to the foot of the Throne, to express their approbation of determined resistance, when the most essential rights and interests of their country were at stake. In this hope, he proposed that an Address to this effect should be presented to the PRINGE REGENT

(To be continued.)

Published by R. BAGSHAW, Brydges-Street, Covent-Garden.
LONDON: Printed by J. M'Creery, Black Horse-Court, Fleet-street.

COBBETT'S WEEKLY POLITICAL REGISTER.

VOL. XXIII. No. 11.] LONDON, SATURDAY, MARCH 13, 1813. [Price 1s.

321]

TO JAMES PAUL,
OF BURSLEDON, IN LOWER DUBLIN TOWN-
SHIP, IN PHILADELPHIA COUNTY, IN THE
STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA; ON MATTERS
RELATING TO HER ROYAL HIGHNESS THE
PRINCESS OF WALES.

Letter III.

Botley, 9th March, 1813.

My dear Friend,

I

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writing, the terms upon which we are to live, I shall endeavour to explain myself upon that head with as much clearness, and with as much propriety, as the nature of the subject will admit. Our inclinations are not in our power; nor should either of us be held answerable to the other, because nature has not made us suitable to each other. Tranquil and comfortable society is, however, in our power; let our interIt is now seventeen years since I first took pen in hand, with an intention of send- will distinctly subscribe to the condition course, therefore, be restricted to that, and ing the production of it to the press; and, which you required through Lady Cholcertainly, I never did, from that day to mondeley, that, even in the event of any acthis, experience more satisfaction in sitting cident happening to my daughter-which I down to write, than I do at this moment, trust Providence in its mercy will avert— in the full assurance, that the present Num- I shall not infringe the terms of the restricber of my Register will convey to you and tion, by proposing, at any period, a conthorough conviction of the nexion of a more particular nature. I shall innocence of the injured Princess of Wales, now finally close this disagreeable corresand of the baseness, the unparalleled black-pondence, trusting that, as we have comheartedness, of her calumniators. At the out-set of my last letter, having the rest of our lives will be passed in uninpletely explained ourselves to each other, occasion to revert to the period of the sepa-terrupted tranquillity.

to the world

ration of the Princess and the Prince, I observed to you, that it was said, that there was a Letter in existence upon the subject; and I ventured to predict, that, when that Letter should be published, the world would see the falsehood of all the infamous tales, which, up to that period, the tongues of base parasites had been engaged in circulating. The Letter, or, a Letter, dated about the time referred to, and upon the subject referred to, has, since my last, been published in the London news-papers; and also a Letter of the Princess in answer thereunto. I will say nothing myself as to the authenticity of these documents; but, as they have obtained general circulation, through the means of the press; and, as their authenticity has not been called in question, in print at least, I take them for authentic, and, viewing them in this light,

I shall insert them here.

Letter from the Prince to the Princess of

Wales.

Windsor Castle, April 30, 1796. MADAM, AS Lord Cholmondeley informs me that you wish I would define, in

I am, Madam, with great truth,
Very sincerely your's,
(Signed) GEORGE P.

ANSWER.

-I

let

Lord Cholmondeley, neither surprises nor The avowal of your conversation with offends me. It merely confirmed what you tacitly insinuated for this twelvemonth. But after this, it would be a want of delicacy, or rather, an unworthy meanness in me, were I to complain of those conditions which you impose upon yourself. should have returned no answer to your ter, if it had not been conceived in terms to make it doubtful whether this arrangement proceeds from you or from me; and you are aware that the credit of it belongs announce to me as the last, obliges me to The letter which you to you alone. communicate to the King, as to my Sovereign, and my Father, both your avowal and my answer. You will find enclosed the copy of my letter to the King. I apprize you of it, that I may not incur the slightest reproach of duplicity from you.. As I have at this moment no protector but

L

caused by any fault, or even any alleged fault, of the Princess, her case, at this day, would have been very different indeed from what it is. But, the Prince's Letter leaves no room for doubt upon this important

His Majesty, I refer myself solely to him on this subject; and if my conduct meets his approbation, I shall be in some degree, at least, consoled. I retain every sentiment of gratitude for the situation in which I find myself, as Princess of Wales, en-point. It clears all up. If she had been abled by your means to indulge in the free exercise of a virtue dear to my heart-I mean charity.- -It will be my duty likewise to act upon another motive,-that of giving an example of patience and resignation under every trial.Do me the justice to believe, that I shall never cease to pray for your happiness, and to be Your much devoted,

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6th of May, 1796.

CAROLINE.

Upon these Letters I shall first observe, that we have here a fresh proof, and a most striking one it is, of the sound sense, the moderation, and delicacy of sentiment, of the Princess of Wales; and, for my part, I cannot help regarding it as most fortunate for this country, that its future sovereign had her early education under, and is said to entertain a most ardent affection for, such a mother. Another remark upon these Letters will, perhaps, be unnecessary; namely, that their date shows them to have been written within thirteen months after the marriage took place, and, which is singular enough, the Prince's Letter is dated on the very day twelvemonth that the Parliament were engaged in discussing His Majesty's gracious message, relative to the provision to be made for the "august spouse" of his son, including the discharge of his debts, as necessary to his future comfortable establishment. In the midst of these melancholy reflections we must not, however, overlook the substantive fact, that, according to these Letters, it is manifest, that the proposition for a separation originated with His Royal Highness. This is very material. This, together with the cause of separation, as stated in his Letter, clears all up to that interesting period, which is of very great consequence; for there is no just man, who, in viewing the circumstances of the sequel, can possibly overlook the cause from which all has proceeded. You will have observed, too, that the base calumniators of the Princess have said, that the bare fact of her living in a state of separation from her husband amounts to a presumptive proof of her guilt. How material is it, then, to be informed rightly as to the real cause of that separation! If the separation had been

the proposer of the separation, her case would have been very materially affected by it; for, though her innocence must still have been acknowledged, the world might have said, that it was the separation which led to the charges, and that, therefore, she must thank herself for them. As the case now stands, she is quite free from even this imputation; and, instead of agreeing with her enemies, that she has discovered rashness, our only wonder is, that she has, with so good a cause, been able so long to remain silent, especially when we reflect on the endless insinuations that have been thrown out against her.

I must now crave your attention to the' interesting proceedings which have taken place since my last letter to you went from under my hand. In the postscript to that letter, I noticed, and, indeed, I inserted, the Princess's Letter to the Speaker of the House of Commons. It is stated, in print, that a similar Letter was sent to the Lord Chancellor, who is the speaker, or chairman, of the House of Lords; but, it seems, that, for reasons which I attempt not to dive into, the Lord Chancellor did not communicate that Letter to the House. That Letter, as you will have seen, was occasioned by a Report, made to the Prince by certain members of what is called the Privy Council. And here I should give you some account of this Council. sists of whomsoever the King pleases to name, and he generally makes all his Ministers Privy Councillors. Some of the Bishops, too, and of the Judges generally belong to it. So that, especially if there occur frequent changes of Ministers, the Privy Council is rather a numerous body, consisting of persons of all parties, seeing that when once a man becomes a Privy Councillor, he always remains a Privy Councillor, except his name be expunged from the list on account of some flagrant and scandalous offence.

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But, when the Privy Council assembles, it is not to be understood that all the members are present, or that they come promiscuously. In fact, they do not come, unless they be summoned to come; and, of course, the King, or the Regent, causes to be summoned those members, and those only, whom his Ministers advise him to cause tá

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