Sidebilder
PDF
ePub

by his Swedish majesty.-I. His majesty the King of Sweden engages on his part to employ the said sum in putting into motion, and keeping on a respectable establishment, all his land forces, and such part as shall be necessary of his fleet, and particularly his fiotilla, in order to oppose the most effectual resistance to the common enemies.-III. Their said majesties moreover engage to conclude no peace, or truce, or convention of neutrality, with the enemy, but in concert and mutual agreement. IV. The present convention shall be ratified by the two high contracting parties, and its ratification shall be exchanged at London within the space of six weeks after the signature of the said convention, or sooner if it can be done. -Separate Article. The two high contracting parties have agreed to concert, as soon as possible, the measures to be taken, and the auxiliary succours to be stipulated for, in the case of a war actually taking place between Sweden and the powers her neighbours, and the stipulation which may thence result shall be considered as separate and additional articles to this convention, and shall have the same force as if they were word for word inserted therein.

PORTUGAL. Proclamation issued from the Office of the Secretary of State for the Affairs of Portugal. Dated Lisbon, Dec,

4, 1807.

The rulers of this kingdom being informed, within these few days, that the prices of some articles of the first necessity had been raised to an exorbitant price, order the Senate to check every excess which may in this respect take place, with all due vigilance and severity, in order that, without the authority of government, and without the most urgent motives, the prices of provisions must not be raised; and the Senate will, by proclamation, make this knowr.-In prompt obedience to this injuction, the Senate hereby ordains, that no person of any class or condition whatever, shall raise the prices of all or any articles of the first necessity, beyond the rate at which such article, or any of them, were sold on the 28th of Nov last.-And whoever shall transgress this order shall incur a penalty of 8000 reis, and be confined in prison, where he shall remain ten days for the first offence, and for the second such penalties shall be doubled, and such person to be prohibited from opening a shop, or to sell any article whatever, &c. &c.-(Signed) FRANCISCO DE MENDENZ CARRAISE MULEO.

RoMe-Notice of the Secretary of State

Cardinal Cassoni. Dated Rome Feb. 2, 1808.

His Holiness Pius VII. being unable to conform to all the demands made on him by the French government, and to the extent required of him, as it is contrary to his sacred duties, and the dictates of his conscience; and being thus compelled to submit to the disastrous consequences which have been threatened, and to the military occupation of his capital, in case he should not submit to such demands:-Yielding, therefore, in all humility of heart, to the inscrutable determinations of the Most High, he places his cause in the hands of the Almighty; and being unwilling to fail in the essential obligations of guaranteeing the rights of his sovereignty, he has commanded us to protest, and formally protests in his own name, as well as in that of his successors, against any occupation whatever of his dominions, being desirous that the rights of the holy chair should remain, now and henceforward, uninjured and untouched. As the vicar on earth of that God of Peace wno taught by his divine example humility and patience, he has no doubt, but his most beloved subjects, who, have given him so many repeated proofs of obedience and attachment, will make it their peculiar study to preserve peace and tranquillity, private as well as public, which his Holiness exhorts, and expressly commands; and that, far from committing any excesses, they will rather respect the individuals of a nation, from whom, during his journey, and stay in Parts, he received so many flattering testimonies of devotion and regard.

WESTPHALIA.-Royal Decree, by which it is ordered that the English Goods found at Marburg shall be publicly burned.

We, Jerome Napoleon, &c. on the report of our minister of justice and affairs of the interior, have decreed, and do decree as follows:-Art. 1. The English commodities, which, by orders of the prefect of the Wirra, were seized on the 1st instant, at Marburg, and which have been ascertained to be English manufacture by the merchants and assessors of the deputation of commerce appointed to make the inquiry, and by the printed notices of the commercial house of Wendeker and Co. at Wetzlar, shall be forth with burnt in the public places at Marburg-Art. II. Our mi nister of justice and the affairs of the interior is commissioned to carry into execution the present decree, which shall be in serted in the bulletin of laws, Given in our royal palace at Cassel, the 5th of Feb, 1808, and in the 24 year of our reign.

Printed by Cox and Baylis, No. 73, Great Queen Street, and published by R. Bagshaw, Brydges Street, Covent Garden, where farmer Numbers may be had; sold also by J. Budd, Crown and Mitre, Pall Mall.

VOL. XIII. No. 14.]

LONDON, SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 1808.

[PRICE 10D. "As to the Petition, of which the Sheridans' advertisement talks, nothing can be a more gross deception. "There is no foundation for a petition; there is even no pretended foundation. The Sheridans well "know, that it is impossible for any candidate to observe the laws of election more strictly than Lori "Cochrane has observed them. He despises, as all his friends do, the base and contemptible attempt here "made to cast an aspersion upon his character. The whole is an impudent attempt at imposition. It is a "trick whereby to get money to he pockete ! by the parties. Let the contrivers be prepared, however, for "a revival of the subject."--POLITICAL REGISTER, Vol. XI. page 975.

513]

SUMMARY OF POLITICS. WESTMINSTER ELECTION. At the place, in the Register, above referred to, beginning at page 973, is the whole history of the promised Petition against Lord Cochrane's return, which petition has now seen its end. It will be remembered, that, just after the Westminster contest was over, there was a meeting called, by the Sheridans and their friends, through the means of a public advertisement; that, at this meeting, the celebrated Mr. JOHN FROST was a leading man, and that his health was given as a toast, by the elder Sheridan at one time, and by the celebrated PETER MOORE at another time; that, at the aforesaid meeting, of which Peter was chairman, it was resolved to raise money, by public subscription, for the purpose of prosecuting an appeal to parliament against the return of Lord Cochrane; and, it is well known to all those who had an opportunity' of hearing the language of the Sheridans and their friends, at that time, that they, in the most unreserved manuer, asserted, that they were able to prove, that Lord Cochrane had been guilty of bribery, and that they stated one particular instance, wherein he gave an elector the sum of two guineas for his vote. I have referred to the passage, wherein I contradicted these assertions, in print; but, so well had the base tricksters, the green room gang of impostors, the vile herd of diverting vagabonds; so well had they devised their scheme of calumny, and so industrious had they been in the execution of it, that, almost every person, with whom one spoke upon the subject, appeared to believe, that Lord Cochrane would be ousted in consequence of the petition. Nay, to such an extent did this belief exist, that some of the Electors have had several meetings, in order to come to a resolution respecting the nomination of a person to be chosen in the room of Lord Cochrane, the writ for which they expected about the tenth day of this present month of April. Just as all this

[514

was going forward, out came the following laconic report of the proceedings in the House of Commons, touching the matter in question. On Thursday, the 24th of March, "The Speaker informed the House, "that, as Tuesday last had been appointed

44

66

66

for taking into consideration the petition complaining of the last election and return "for Westminster, and the right hon. Ri"chard Brinsley Sheridan had not appeared "by himself, his counsel, or agents, with"in one hour after the time fixed for taking "the same into consideration, he had cer tified such default to the Court of Exchequer, in order to the recovery of the re"cognizances." Thus has ended this long promised petition; thus are the greenroom impostors exposed, for the thousandth time, to public contempt; and thus are the calumnies, invented and propagated for the purpose of blasting the character of an honourable man, thrown back in the teeth of those from whom they had proceeded. But, it is right that the now undeceived public should be informed of some of the silent proceedings of Messrs. Sheridan, Frost, and Moore, a trio not, perhaps, to be matched in his Majesty's dominions.In the business of the election, Messrs. DAWSON and WRATISLAW of Warwick Street, Golden Square, were Lord Cochrane's agents. Mr. Wratislaw, to whom the business relating to the petition was more particularly committed, always was of opinion, that the Sheridans, notwithstanding the important support of the celebrated Johir Frost, would not proceed to trial, and, therefore, he delayed, til the last moment, the consultation of counsel. On Saturday, however, previous to the day appointed for the ballot, he delivered his briefs to Mr. Dallas and Mr. Warren. On the next day (Sunday), the celebrated John Frost, and, after him, his most worthy associate, Peter Moore, addressed very civil notes to Mr. Dawson, who, of course, delivered them to Mr. Wratislaw, and the latter express

[graphic]

R

his resolution not to suffer a compromise upon any account, notwithstanding his very exalted opinion of the powers of the celebrated John Frost. On the Monday ensuing Mr. Wratislaw called upon the worthy Peter Moore, he (Moore) being confined by indisposition; and, at a conference with Moore and Frost, it was proposed by them, that Mr. Moore should be the nominee of his friend the Right Honourable Richard Brinsley Sheridan; that he should arrange with the nominee of Lord Cochrane in striking the committee; that the petition should be opened; that the counsel for the Right Honourable Sheridan should say, that facts existed to warrant it, but that witnesses were absent; and that the committee would, thereupon, report to the House, that Lord Cochrane was duly elected, and that the petition was NOT frivolous and vexatious. But, Mr. Wratislaw, who felt, doubtless, that the honour of Lord Cochrane (who had reposed implicit confidence in him) was an object of far greater consequence than the seat in parliament, though for the first, and the only independent, city in the kingdom, refused all compromise, and left the celebrated petition framers to pursue their own course. On the day appointed, he attended the House of Commons with Messrs. Dallas and Warren; and, after waiting the whole hour out, heard the order discharged. The subsequent proceeding against the petitioner and his sureties the reader is informed of; and, I think, he will be of opinion, with me, that if ever forfeiture was justly incurred, this is a case of that description.There never was a fouler calumuy than that which these people have propagated against Lord Cochrane. His Lordship was particuJarly scrupulous with respect to the money. matters of the election. He said to his agents: you know what is lawful, and

[ocr errors]

what is not lawful, therefore, to you and "you only, I leave the expenditure." He emptied his pockets of all money, and of no repast, paid for by him, or his agents, did he suffer any one elector to partake. A more honourable, and more truly nobleminded man, does not, in my opinion, exist in the world. His life has been hitherto spent in scenes, which tend little to qualify a man for the wars of faction; but, if he return in health, and with a disposition to remain in England, the electors of Westminster, if they will be content without the base flatteries of the green-room, and will look to character and principles instead of to names and professions, will, I am satisfied, have no need to go a-hunting for representatives.It has been said, and is bilbomis. 1

still said by many, that Lord Cochrane was sent off by the ministers; that is to say, that a ship was given him for the purpose of getting him out of the way; and, I perceive, that Mr. Paull, in a letter of his to the Electors of Westminster, upon the subject of the grant to the family of Lord Lake, has been misled so far as to join in the propagat ing of this notion, than which it is impossi ble to conceive any thing more false. The ship, the frigate IMPERIEUSE, in which his lordship now is, and in which he has fecently performed a feat that would have rung through all Europe, had it been performed by any but an English naval officer, was given him about two years ago ; previous to, and during the time of the Westminster election, he was absent by leave, on account of ill-health, which every one who saw must have perceived that he, laboured under; and, when his leave of absence was expired, he went again to sea, as a matter of course, and indeed, as a matter of necessity, unless he had chosen to quit the service, a step, which, upon no occasion, did he ever promise to take; nor did he, upon any occasion, as far as I have observed, say any thing, tending to encourage an expectation that he would take such a step. The elder Sheridan took almost daily opportunity, during the election, to attribute the promotion, or, rather, the marked preference, which Lord Cochrane had experienced, to parliamentary interest, that is to say, to corruption. But, surely, the distinguished merit of my Lord Cochrane; not his great bravery, perhaps, for that is common, I think, to all our naval officers; but his consummate and well-known skill in all the parts of his profession; his exemplary sobriety; his indefatigable application; that spirit of enterprize which has constantly animated him, and the effects of which have been so grievously felt by the enemy surely these might account for his having had, though a young man, a cruizing station so often allotted him, a station for which his qualities and endowments so eminently fitted him. He has had admirable" luck," they say. Such men as his lordship generally have admirable luck, as have also sober and early-rising and intelligent farmers. Such men have always better crops than the common run of their neighbours; their cattle thrive better; and, strange to say, they have finer weather for their seedtime and harvest. It is the same by sea as it is by land. There are, indeed, such things as accidents and misfortunes and illluck; but, the sluggish have their share of these as well as the active, and the former have, besides, to submit to the natural con

-35

sequences of their sluggishness. A ship is a sort of animate being, moved by the mind of the commander; and, if he be a sluggard, no matter from what cause, his ship will do but little. In this view of the thing, of how much importance is it, that a proper selection of commanders, and particularly of cruizing commanders, should be made? Where, indeed, it would be difficult, if not impossible, as in the case of the younger Sheridan, to point out any public merit, then, the preference given to the party may be fairly attributed to corruption; but, not so in the case of my Lord Cochrane, who has devoted his life to the naval service, and who may be cited as a striking example of success, arising from his merits.As a member of parlia ment, too, he has merit far surpassing that of almost any other man that I know. He entered the House of Commons under a pledge, given in the face of the nation, that he never would, as long as he lived, accept of any sinecure or emolument, either for himself or any relation or dependent; and that he never would touch the public money, in any way but that of his profession as a naval officer. His motion respecting places, pensions, and emoluments, held by members of the House of Commons, or by their relations, was of the greatest public importance; it required courage as great as any that he ever displayed at sea, to bring it forward; he was sure to have an unaccountable host against him; he was sure to leave scarcely any man or woman of fashion his friend; yet he did bring it forward, and did most excellently expose the corrupt views of the contending factions. One would have thought, that, if there had been some few of the electors of Westminster who sincerely distrusted his public principles, that the bare making of this motion must have done away their distrust; but, amongst men, who are capable of being cajoled by the fulsome flattery of the green-room, little good is to be expected.---After all, however, I should cer tainly have preferred a member, who could have been constantly in the House of Commons, where, and where only, good is to be done, if it to be done at all; but, I greatly prefer Lord Cochrane's appearance there once in two years, to the constant attendance of any unprincipled or timid man.

AMERICAN STATES. In a person, whose opinions and statements have been contradicted with so much positiveness and acrimony, as mine, with regard to the effects of war upon the American States, it might reasonably be permitted to indulge a good deal in the producing of proofs, as they pre

sent themselves, of the correctness of those opinions and statements. Nor will I pretend, that I am not actuated, in great part, by this motive, in making the extracts, which I am now about to insert from the late American newspapers. I love to see my opinions confirmed by events, and who does not, especially when they have been treated with contempt and ridicule? In answer to all the alarm, which the Morning Chronicle and the Barings and the Roscoes have been endeavouring to excite in the minds of the people, relative to a war with America, I have said, and, I think, proved, that, without utter rain to the union of America, she cannot make war against England. She is not yet at war; she is at peace, but has adopted one of the measures, the effects of which would have been produced by war; and now let us hear from her own lips, what a state she has been placed in by this one measure. -The first extract I shall take comes from the New York Evening Post of the 5th of February. "Look here

[ocr errors]

upon this picture."-A late Vice President "of the United States tried for treason. "The Chief Justice accused by the execu"tive of mal-administration of the laws. A "senator under trial for being a party in the "treason. The commander in chief under "trial on a charge of being a Spanish Pen"sioner. The writ of Habeas Corpus de"stroyed. The civil magistrate put down;

[ocr errors][ocr errors]

not with impunity alone, but applause, by

a military commander! The country on "the eve of war with Great Britain, with “France, and with Spain! The nation driven to an act of suicide by the embargo, passed by a republican congress, and to use the mildest reproach, without knowing why or wherefore. The nation "weighed down with calamity, and implo

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

ring in vain to know the reason. The "ruthless hand of destruction upon them, "and every one reviled who does not ap

[ocr errors]

plaud it! They look for reasons, and

they are told of confidence! We ask for "bread and they give us a stone! From "such liberty and such republicanism good "Lord deliver us "Yet, observe, reader, that I have been set down for an enemy of liberty, because I expressed my abhorrence of the American government. Will my accusers believe what the Americans themselves say of this their famous liberty? I know them to be the slaves of mean upstart pettifogging lawyers, with here and there a 'cute bleeding doctor; but, if you will not believe me, will you believe themselves? Or do you choose to set them down as liars, because they confirm what I have

said? -The next extract is from a New | President and his government, shall have England paper, the Connecticut Courant.

66

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

Merchants stand idle in the streets, inquiring if there is any news from Washington. They feel the loss of their business; the stagnation of commerce, and "ask what does all this mean?—The "Mechanic is obliged to dismiss his journey"men-his customers desert him, or call to "tell him they cannot pay him on account "of the embargo.- -The Farmer finds no "market for his produce. His notes given "for land will be due in the spring. To raise money, his oats, hay, and corn, were "to be sold, but nobody will buy.-The poor Sailor-generous, honest, and unsuspecting, lies on his oars. His last shilling is gone to aid a distressed ship"" mate, and there is not a shot in his locker. "Poor fellow-he "wants but little, nor "that little long," but he can't understand why the ship's agroundAll-all are exclaiming what do all these things mean? "Congress have laid an embargo. They "have bound their fellow-citizens, hand "and foot. They will not condescend to "tell the people their reasons for this measure, so important, so unexpected, so pregnant with mischief-People of "America-look at your situation-ask your leaders of both parties why the times are so changed? You love your country -you seek her true interest-you will submit patiently to the losses for the good "of the public; but you wish to know what great benefit is to be derived from the

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

"

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

embargo? You ask in vain. All is si"lence and darkness. You are command"ed by the administration to submit. In"deed passive obedience and non-resist

[ocr errors][ocr errors]

ance is your only duty.My countrymen; be not deceived. If the embargo originated in wisdom, it will bear a strict "examination-there should be no secrets "on a subject so deeply interesting to the

[ocr errors]

prosperity of the people-there can be no good reasons for silence and darkness.Legislatures may applaud this measure, but the people want something more sub"stantial than the applause of hirelings be"fore they acquiesce." Did I not say, that this would be the case? Did I not give my reasons for saying so? And did not the Morning Chronicle and its herd of American writers abuse me for so saying? Did they not threaten us that America would starve the West Indies, and did I not answer, that she must starve herself first ?—I said, besides, in case of war, pray shut up the Americans, and proclaim, that any State which will openly throw off the authority of the

66

free trade. Let any one read the following article, and then say, whether my advicewas not good -In Marblehead, that wonderfully patriotic town, there has "been something very much like mobbing. "The fishermen collected in a body to the "number of two or three hundred, set all "the bells a ringing, and paraded through "the streets; then repaired to the stores of "those merchants who supply the fisher"men, and take their fish, demanded pay "for the fish, or the value in such articles as they wanted. On being told it was not possible to pay them, and the fish were "on hand and could not be sold, and that they were not able to supply them with "the articles they demanded, the fishermen "entered the stores and took such articles

[ocr errors]

66

[merged small][merged small][ocr errors]

They went to the wharfs and seized "wood, which they divided among them "and carried it to their houses. The "leading democrats took great pains to "quiet them, and hush up the matter, to

66

66

prevent its going abroad. We are told "the fishermen at Cape Ann are about to "take the same course. There they are also almost to a man democrats. Before next May these fishermen, as well as a numerous class of mechanics, must be in "real distress. The Supplementary Em"bargo Bill, permitting the fishermen to go out, will afford little or no relief, for "the fish will be of no value when taken, 66 nor will the owners of vessels fit them "out. We are told that good fish which "were selling at 3 and 4 dollars per quin"tal, can now be bought for 1 dollar and "50 cents per quintal, and few that will

[merged small][ocr errors]

purchase at this price."Marblehead is a sea port town in the State of Massachuset's Bay. The wharfs are the receptacles for fire-wood, brought down the rivers and along the coast. The fish was generally sent to the West Indies, to Portugal, Spain, and up the Mediterranean. The fishermen are very numerous, and, withou a maiket for their fish, they must nearly starve, forming, as they do, no inconsiderable part of the whole of the community in that district; and, let it be observed, that, if they do not export, they have no market at all. There is no large community to come and take the fish off their hands. All is stagnant at once. The effect is as sudden as that of a hurricane.In various parts of these newspapers, we have descriptions of failures in trade and credit. Four banks

« ForrigeFortsett »