the first consul could so far gain upon himself as to sacrifice a false punctilio to the certainty of a war, of which no one could foresee the consequence, nothing could possibly prevent my departure to-morrow night. He hoped, he said, this was not so near; that he would communicate my letter, and what I had said, to the first consul immediately, and that, in all probability, I should hear from him this evening. I thought it, however, right to apprise him, that it was quite impossible I could be induced to disobey his majesty's orders, and protract a negotiation on terms so disadvantageous to ourselves, unless he should furnish me with such a justification as would leave me no room to hesitate; and that I did not see that any thing short of a full acquiescence in his Majesty's demands could have that effect. He repeated, that he would report the conversation to the first consul, and that I should shortly hear from him.

In this state the business now rests; I am expecting either a proposition, or my passports, and am consequently taking every measure for setting out to-morrow night.

Inclosure referred to in No. 65. Sir, Paris, May 2, 1803. When I had the honour, on Tues. day last, of communicating to you, officially, the last propositions which I was instructed by my court to submit to the French government, for the sake of removing the present difficulties, I had the honour to announce to you, that, in case the first consul should not consent to these propositions, I should find myself under the necessity of leaving Paris in eight days. We are nearly arrived at the end of this period, with

out my having received any answer to this communication. It remains for me only, therefore, to obey the orders of the king my master to return to him; and, for this purpose, I entreat you, sir, to have the goodness to furnish me with the necessary passports.

I seize this opportunity of renewing to your excellency the assurances of my high consideration. (Signed) Whitworth. His Excellency M. de Talleyrand.

No. 66.

Extract of a Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury, dated Paris, May 4, 1803.

Soon after I had dispatched the messenger, the night before last, with my dispatches of the 3d, I received a communication from M. de Talleyrand, of which I inclose a copy, the purport of which was so completely short of every thing which could be satisfactory, that I did not think myself authorized to enter into any discussion upon it; and, as early as I could on the following morning, I returned the answer, of which the inclosed is a copy.

After this I concluded, of course, that there was an end to the nego tiation. I had, for some days past, been preparing for my departure; every measure was taken for setting out at four o'clock this morning, and we were expecting only the pass. ports which I had demanded, for the purpose of ordering the post horses. The day and the evening passed without the passports having been sent; and whilst we were deliberating on the motives of such a delay, about twelve o'clock at night, a gentleman who was with me received a communication, which con3 A 3 vinced

vinced me that it was not meant to give me my passports without another attempt, and I was, therefore, not surprised when, about one o'clock, I received the inclosed note from M. de Talleyrand.

In this situation I am waiting the hour of rendezvous with M. de Talleyrand.

First Inclosure referred to in No. 66.

The undersigned has reported to the first consul the conversation which he had with his excellency lord Whitworth, on the 6th of this month, and in which his excellency announced, that his Britannic majesty had ordered him to make, verbally, in his name, the following de

mands:

1st. That his Britannic majesty should retain his troops at Malta for ten years.

2d. That the island of Lampedosa should be ceded to him in full pos

session.

3d. That the French troops should evacuate Holland.

And that if no convention, on this basis, should have been signed within a week, his excellency lord Whitworth had orders to terminate his mission, and to return to London.

On the demand made by the undersigned, that lord Whitworth would, in conformity to the usage of all ages, and of all countries, give in writing what he himself called the ultimatum of his government, his excellency declared, that his instructions expressly forbade him to transmit, on this subject, any writ

ten note.

The intentions of the first consul being entirely pacific, the undersigned dispenses with making any obscrvations on so new and so strange

a manner of treating on affairs of this importance.

And, in order to give a fresh testimony of the value which he attaches to the continuance of peace, the first consul has directed the undersigned to make the following notification in the accustomed style and forms.

As the island of Lampedosa does not belong to France, it is not for the first consul either to accede to or to refuse the desire testified by his Britannic majesty, of having this island in his possession.

With regard to the island of Malta, as the demand made respecting it by his Britannic majesty would change a formal disposition in the treaty of Amiens, the first consul cannot but previously communicate it to his majesty the king of Spain, and to the Batavian republic, contracting partics to the said treaty, in order to know their opinion; and besides, as the stipulations relative to Malta have been guaranteed by their majesties the emperor of Germany, the emperor of Russia, and the king of Prussia, the contracting parties to the treaty of Amiens, before they agree to any change in the article of Malta, are bound to concert with the guaranteeing powers.

The first consul will not refuse this concert, but it belongs not to him to propose it, since it is not he who urges any change in the guaranteed stipulations.

With regard to the evacuation of Holland by the French troops, the first consul has no difficulty in directing the undersigned to repeat that the French troops shall evacuate Holland at the instant that the stipulations of the treaty of Amiens shall be executed in every quarter of the globe.

The

The undersigned avails himself of this opportunity to renew to his excellency the English ambassador, the assurance of his high consideration.

Ch. Mau. Talleyrand. Paris, 12 Floreal, Year 11, (2d May, 1803.)

Second Inclosure referred to in No.66. The undersigned, in answer to the note which M. de Talleyrand transmitted to him yesterday evening, has the honour to observe to him, that the king has had no other motive in seeking to accelerate the proceedings of the negotiation, than to relieve, as soon as possible, the two countries the most interested, and Europe in general, from the state of suspense in which they are placed. It is with great regret that he perceives nothing in his excellency's note which can correspond with this intention, and consequently nothing that can justify him in delaying to obey the orders of his court. It remains, therefore, only to request the minister for foreign affairs to give him the means of obeying them, by furnishing him with the necessary passports for his return. It is, however, necessary for him to rectify a mistake which has crept into M. de Talleyrand's note. The undersigned did not say he was expressly forbidden to transmit any written note on the object of the discussion, but that he was not authorized to do it, and that he would not take that responsibility on himself.

He avails himself of this opportunity to renew to his excellency M. de Talleyrand the assurances of his highest consideration.

(Signed) Whitworth Paris, 3d May, 1803.

Third Inclosure referred to in No. 66. My lord, Paris, May 3, 1803.

Having to-morrow morning to make to you a communication of the greatest importance, I have the honour to inform you of it without delay, in order that you may not expect this evening the passports which you had demanded. I propose that you should call to-morrow, at half past four, at the foreign department.

Receive, my lord, the assurance of my high consideration.

(Signed) Ch. Mau. Talleyrand.

No. 67.

Extract of a Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury, dated Paris, May 4, 1803.

I am this moment come from M. de Talleyrand. The inclosed note will shew your lordship, that the idea which has been thrown out, is to give Malta to Russia.

My only inducement for having undertaken to refer again to your lordship, is to avoid every reproach of precipitation. The difference will be but five days, and I have declared, that I see so many objections to the plan, that, although I would not refuse their solicitation to send it, I could give no hope whatever of its being accepted as a ground of negotiation.

Inclosure referred to in No. 67. The undersigned has submitted to the first consul his Britannic majesty's note of the 3d instant.

After the last communication, addressed to his excellency, it is more difficult than ever to conceive, how a great, powerful, and enlightened nation can be willing to take upon itself to declare a war, which would be accompanied by such heavy cala3 A 4 mities

mities, and the cause of which would be so insignificant, the object in question being a miserable rock.

His excellency must have been aware, that the twofold necessity of making an agreement with the guaranteeing powers of the treaty of Amiens, and of not violating a compact, in the execution of which, the honour of France, the security for the future, and the good faith of the diplomatic intercourse between the nations of Europe, were so deeply interested, had imposed a law upon the French government, of discarding every proposition diametrically contrary to the treaty of Amiens.Nevertheless, the first consul, accustomed for two months to make every species of sacrifice for the maintenance of peace, would not reject a mezzo-termino of a nature to conciliate the interests and dignity of the two countries.

His Britannic majesty appears to have been of opinion, that the Neapolitan garrison, which was to be placed at Malta, would not afford a sufficient force for securing the actual independence of the island.

This motive being the only one which can explain his majesty's refusal to evacuate the island, the first consul is ready to consent that the island of Malta shall be placed in the hands of one of the three powers who have guaranteed its independence-either Austria, Russia, or Prussia, with a proviso, that, as soon as France and England shall have come to an agreement upon this article, they shall unite in their requisitions, to engage other powers, either contracting or acceding to the treaty of Amiens, to consent to it.

Were it possible that this proposition should not be accepted, it would be manifest, not only that

England never intended to comply with the terms of the treaty of Amiens, but that she has not been actuated by good faith in any of her demands, and that in proportion as France conceded one point, the British government advanced another. If this should be demonstrated, the first consul will at least have given another proof of his sincerity, of his anxiety to devise the means of avoiding war, of his eager ness to embrace them, and of the value which he would place on their being adopted.

Paris, 14 Florcal, Year 11.

No. 68.

Dispatch from Lord Hawkesbury to • Lord Whitworth, dated May 7,

1803.

My lord,

Your excellency's dispatches have been received, and laid before the king.

The propositions which have been made to you, on the part of the French government, and which have induced your excellency to delay your departure until the return of the messenger Sylvester, are in every respect so loose, indefinite, and unsatisfactory, and fall so short of the just pretensions of his majesty, that it is impossible that the French government could have expected them to have been accepted. During the whole of the discussions which have lately occurred, his majesty has had a right to consider himself in the character of the injured party. No means have been omitted, on his part, to induce the French govern. ment to make a full and carly explanation of their views, and to afford to his majesty that satisfaction and security to which he considered himself to be entitled. It was in consequence of the apparent deter

mination

mination of the French government, to evade all discussion on the points of the difference between the two countries, that his majesty was induced to state the grounds on which, according to his views, an arrangement might be concluded satisfactory to both governments; and he be accordingly authorised your excellency to communicate the three projects which, at different times, I had forwarded to you.

Until the very moment when your excellency was about to leave Paris, the French government have avoided making any distinct proposition for the settlement of the differences between the two countries; and when, at the very instant of your departure, the French government felt themselves compelled to bring for ward some proposition, they confined that proposition to a part only of the subject in discussion, and, on that part of it, what they have brought forward is wholly inadmissible.

The French government propose, that his majesty should give up the island of Malta, to a Russian, Au. strian, or Prussian garrison. If his majesty could be disposed to wave his demand for a temporary occupation of the island of Malta, the emperor of Russia would be the only sovereign to whom, in the present state of Europe, he could consent that the island should be assigned; and his majesty has certain and authentic information, that the emperor of Russia would on no account consent to garrison Malta. Under these circumstances, his majesty per severes in his determination to adhere to the substance of his third project as his ultimatum: as, however, the principal objection stated by the French government to his majesty's proposition is understood

to be confined to the insertion of an article in a public treaty, by which his majesty shall have a right to remain in possession of the island of Malta for a definite number of years (being in no case less than ten), may be stated in a secret article ; and the public articles may be agreed to conformably to the inclosed project. By this expedient, the supposed point of honour of the French government might be saved. The independence of the island of Malta would, in principle, be acknowledged, and the temporary occupation of his majesty would be made to depend alone on the present state of the island of Lampedosa.

You may propose this idea to M. Talleyrand, at the same time assuring him that his majesty is determined to adhere to the substance of his ultimatum. And if you shall not be able to conclude the minute of an arrangement on this principle, you will on no account remain in Paris more than thirty-six hours after the receipt of this dispatch.

I observe by your dispatch, you did not consider yourself authorised to deliver to the French government any note or project in writing. The words of my dispatch were, that you were to communicate the terms officially, which left it at your own discretion to communicate them verbally, or in writing, as you might judge most expedient. You were certainly right in communicating them, in the first instance, verbally; but, as so much stress has been laid by M. Talleyrand on this distinction, it is important that I should inform you, that his majesty neither had, nor has, any objection to your delivering the inclosed project as an ultimatum, accompanied by a short note in writing.

I cannot conclude this dispatch, without