not intended to that end (for America can have no real interest in the subversion of the British power, and her rulers are too enlightened to act from any impulse against the real interests of their country), but by some unfortunate concurrence of circumstances, without any hostile intention, the American embargo did come in aid of "the blockade of the European Continent," precisely at the very moment when, if that blockade could have succeeded at all, this interposition of the American government would most effectually have contributed to its success. To this universal combination his Majesty has opposed a temperate but a determined retaliation upon the enemy, trusting that a firm resistance would defeat this project, but knowing that the smallest concession would infallibly encourage a perseverance in it. The struggle has been viewed by other powers not without an apprehension that it might be fatal to this country. The British governmeut has not disguised from itself that the trial of such an experience might be ardous and long, though it has never doubted of the final issue. But if that issue, such as the British government confidently anticipated, has providentially arrived much sooner than could have been hoped; if "the blockade of the Continent," as it has been triumphantly styled by the enemy, is raised even before it had been well established; and if that system, of which extent and continuity were the vital principles, is broken up into fragments utterly harmless and contemptible; it is nevertheless important in the highest degree to the reputation of this country (a reputation which constitutes great part of her power), that this disappointment of the hopes of her enemies should not have been purchased by any concession; that not a doubt should remain to distant unes of her determination, and of her ability to have continued her resistance; and that no step which could ever mistakenly be construed into concession should be taken on her part, while the smallest link of the confederacy remains undisolved; or while it can be a question whether the plan devised for her destruction has or has not either completely failed, or been unequivocally abandoned. These considerations compel his Majesty to adhere to the principles on which the Orders in Council of the 7th. of January and the 11th. of November are founded, so long as France adheres to that system by which his Majesty's retaliatory measures were occasioned and justified. It is not improbable, indeed, that some alterations may be made in the Orders in Council, as they are at present framed; alterations calculated not to abate their spirit or impair their principle, but to adapt them more exactly to the different state of things which has fortunately grown up in Europe, and to combine all practicable relief to neutrals, with a more severe pressure upon the enemy. But of alterations to be made with this view only, it would be uncandid to take any advantage in the present discussion; however, it might be hoped, that in their principal effect, they might prove beneficial to America, provided the operation of the embargo were not to prevent her from reaping that benefit. It remains for the undersigned to take notice of the last paragraph of Mr. Pinkney's letter. There cannot exist on the part of Mr. Pinkney a stronger wish than there does on that of the undersigued, and of the British government, for the adjustment of the differences snbsisting between the two countries. His Majesty has no other disposition than to cultivate the most friendly intercourse with the United States. not for The undersigned is persuaded, that Mr. Pinkney would be one of the last to imagine, what is often idly asserted, that the depression of any other country is necessary or serviceable to the prosperity of this. The prosperity of America is essentially the prosperity of Great Britain; and the strength and power of Great Britain are herself only, but for the whole world, When those adjustments shall take place, to which, though unfortunately not practicable at this moment, nor under the conditions prescribed by Mr. Pinkney, the undersigned, nevertheless, confidently looks forward, it will perhaps be no insecure pledge for the continuance of the good understanding between the two countries, that they will have learnt duly to appreciate each other's friendship; and that it will not hereafter be imputed to Great Britain, either on the one hand, that she envies American industry as prejudicial to British commerce, or on the other hand, that she is compelled to court an intercourse with America, as absolutely necessary to her own existence. His Majesty would not hesitate to contribute, in any manner in his power, to restore to the commerce of the United States its wonted activity; and if it were possible to make any sacrifice for the repeal of the embargo, without appearing to deprecate it as a measure of hostility, he would gladly have facilitated its removal as a measure of inconvenient restriction upon the Ameri can people. The undersigned is commanded, in conclusion, to observe, that nothing is said in Mr. Pinkney's letter, of any inintention to repeal the proclamation by which the ships of war of Great Britain are interdicted from all those rights of hospitality in the ports of the United States, which are freely allowed to the ships of his Majesty's enemies. Extract of a Letter from Mr. Madison, to General Armstrong. Department of State, May 2. Since my last, or which lieutenant Lewis was the bearer, I have received your several letters of the 27th of Dec. 22d of January, 15th and 17th of Feb. with their respective inclosures. That of the 15th of January, from Mr. Champagny to you, has, as you will see by the papers herewith sent, produced all the sensations here which the spirit and stile of it were calculated to excite in minds alive to the interests and honour of the nation. To present to the United States the alternative of bending to the views of France against her enemies, or of incurring a confiscation of all the property of their citizens carried into French prize courts, implied that they were susceptible of impressions by which no independent and honourable nation can be guided; and fo prejudge and pronounce for them the effect which the conduct of another nation ought to have on their counsels and proceedings, had the air at least of an The continuance of an interdiction assumed authority, not less irritating which, under such circumstances, a- to the public feelings. In these lights, mounts so nearly to direct hostility, the President makes it your duty to preafter the willingness professed, and the sent to the French goverment the conattempt made by his Majesty, to remove tents of Mr. Champagny's letter, taking the cause on which that measure had care, as your discretion will doubtless been originally founded, would afford suggest, that whilst you make that gobut an inauspicious omen for the comvernment sensible of the offensive tone mencement of a system of mutual con- employed, you leave the way open for ciliation; and the omission of any no-friendly and respectful explanations, if tice of that measure in the proposal which Mr. Pinkney has been instructed to bring forward, would have been of itself a material defect in the overture of the President. But the undersigned is commanded no further to dwell upon this subject than for the purpose of assuring Mr. Pinkney, that on this and every other point in discussion between the two governments, his Majesty earnestly desires a restoration of a perfect good understanding, and that his Majesty would decline no measure for the attainment of that abject, which should be compatible with his honour and just rights, and with the interest of his people. The undersigned requests Mr. Pinkney will accept the assurances of his Bigh consideration. (Signed) GEORGE CANNING, there be a disposition to offer them, and for a decision here on any reply which may be of a different character. Congress closed their session on the 25th ultimo. For a general view of their proceedings, I refer to the series of newspapers heretofore, and now forwarded, and to other prints which are added. Among their acts of chief importance is that which vests in the President an authority to suspend in whole or in part the embargo laws. The conditions on which the suspending authority is to be exercised will engage your particular attention. They appeal equally to the justice and the policy of the two great Belligerent Powers now emulating each other in violations of both! The President counts on your best endeavours to give to this appeal all the effect possible with the French government, Mr. Pinkney will be doing the same with that of Great Britain. The relation in which a recall of its retaliating decrees, by either power, will place the United States to the other, is obvious, and ought to be a motive to the measure, proportioned to the desire which has been manifested by each, to produce collisions between the United States and its adversary, and which must be equally felt by each to avoid one with itseif. Should wiser councils or increasing distresses induce Great Britain to revoke her impolitic orders against neutral commerce, and thereby prepare the way for a removal of the embargo, as it applies to her, France could not persist in the illegal part of her decrees, if she does not mean to force a contest with the United States. On the other hand, should she set the example of revocation, Great Britain would be obliged, either by following it, to restore to France the full benefit of neutral trade, which she needs, or by persevering in her obnoxious orders, after the pretext for them had ceased, to render collisions with the United States inevitable. In every point of view, therefore, it is so clearly the sound policy of France to rescind so much, at least, of her decrees, as trespass on neutral rights, and particularly to be the first in taking the retrograde step, that it cannot be unreasonable to expect that it will be immediately taken. In whatever degree the French government may be led to change its system, you will lose no time in transmitting the information to this department, and to Mr. Pinkney; and by hired conveyances, if necessary. A correspondent instruction is given to Mr. Pinkney. It is of the greatest importance, that you should receive from each other the earliest notice of any relaxations, as each government is under a pledge to follow such an example by the other. And it is not of less importance that the President of congress should be acquainted with the facts, that the proceedings here may be accommodated to them. That you may know the grounds on which the British orders of November, have been arraigned by this government, I inclose a copy of the answer to Mr.Erskine's note communicating them, a copy of the note being also enclosed, The other documents communicated, will put you in full possession of the relations of the United States with Great Britain, as resulting from the issue of our general negociations, and from that of the mission of Mr. Rose. This dispatch is forwarded by Mr. Baker, who takes his passage from Baltimore, in a vessel engaged, as was the Osege which sailed from New York, for the special purpose of public and mercantile correspondence with Europe. She will proceed, in the first instance, to L'Orient, where she will leave Mr. Baker, and thence proceed with dispatches for Nr. Pinkney, to Falmouth, where she will remain a few days to receive communications from hin: she will then return to L'Orient, in order to bring back Mr. Baker with your communications. PORTUGAL. A PROCLAMATION, By the Intendant General of Police of the Court of Justices District. PORTUGUESE! Where does Do you your fury transport you? suppose that the English are become French? No, my dear countrymen. The English are not come here in the character of conquerors as the Frenchmen did; they came to free us from the slavery that oppressed us. If we deny this truth, we must be reproached as an ungrateful people. The English did not enter Portugal from any mo tives of ambition; their motives are more generous, wise, and poline; they know very well that views of aggrandisement always tend to destroy the equilibrium that forms the fundamental laws of nations. What Great Britain aims at, is only the restitution of all countries to their lawful sovereigns. Ah, incomparable GEORGE! How great will be thy glory in future times! Where is the sovereign in Europe that does not, at present, owe his crown to thee? Thy name shall for ever shine in the Portuguese annals !— Excuse then, O Mighty King! the indiscreet zeal of a people who love their sovereign, and whose feelings are partly analogous to thy views. Remain quiet, then, O ye inhabitants of the most faithful and loyal city in Portugal; it is to you, ye inhabitants of Porto that I speak, for those honourable epithets are indisputably your right. Consider that the glorious cause which you have undertaken can only be obstructed and retarded by vain and tumultuous mobs. This is what the common eneiny wishes for; and a civil war would only retard their total destruction. Let us then unite our selves to our faithful allies, the English and Spaniards, in order to overthrow that hellish monster. The union of these three nations will scorn all Frenchmen's threats; their intrigues and perfidy. We shall then have the glory of being instrumental in the speedy overthrow of the tyrant, in bringing about a general peace, and in restoring our august prince to his lawful throne. This is the just cause that calls a loud for your vengeance, and in which you ought to display all your courage, your love, and your fidelity. Long live Portugal: long live Great Britain: long live Spain. J. F. R. G. The Governors of the Kingdom to the Portuguese Nation. PORTUGUESE. If the governors of the kingdom have hitherto observed in silence the admirable efforts of your memorable heroism, and your fidelity, they have not, for one single moment, omitted to appreciate the exertions made by your patriotism to restore our national independence. From your own impulse you raised Portuguese colours in the north and south, and, with the powerful and decisive assistance of the British armies, the lofty eagles of the tyrant, who wished to impose on you an iron yoke, were VOL. V. fortunately borne down to the ground. In vain his treacherous generals had caused the Portuguese troops to march to France, annihi lated the army, disarmed the nation, gutted the public chests and arsenals, and devoured the fortunes of private individuals; all his perfidious devices were of no avail: your love for your religion, your sovereign, and your country, disconcerted them all. Yes, Portuguese, you have immortalized your names. Spain and Portugal have known how to resist the tyrant, who has subdued the whole north of Europe, and enchained the people of Italy. The Peninsula was the rock where the forces of Dupont were shattered, who, in the delirium of his pride, dared to style himself the arbiter of nations and kings. Portuguese, it is not enough to have conquered once; it is necessary, for the preservation of liberty, to oppose an insurmountable barrier to the fresh exertions of the insattiable Napoleon. Encouraged by his victories in Italy and Germany, and irritated by his defeats in Spain and Portugal, he assembles his armies, and orders them to cross the Pyrenees; he intends, like a mountain torrent, to inundate with blood the provinces of Spain, the safe asylum of the liberty of the Continent. He employs his whole force to avenge his generals, and his beaten and dispersed armies, put to flight or taken prisoners. Nothing obstructs the exertions of a tyrant. To dispeople France is of no moment to him, and he wantonly sacrifices all her youth to gratify his ambition. Fired cities, destroyed towns, fields covered with dead bodies, are sights perfectly indifferent to the feelings of a despot, who appreciates no other interests than those of a desperate family. Such, Portuguese, is the character of the man against whom we have to defend ourselves. What would become of Portugal, if the с French armies, after the conquest of Spain, should enter our provinces? If a twelvemonth back, when they entered our country as friends, they marked their steps with conflagrations, robberies, and crimes the most atrocious; if, after they had usurped the supreme power without opposition, they spoliated the sacred temples, imposed enormous contributions, attacked the liberty of individuals, sacked cities, fired towns, and committed atrocities which only belong to barbarous nations, what will not those devastating armies perpetrate in a country the inhabitants of which gloriously declared, with one voice, in favour of liberty and independence! [The proclamation then proceeds to order all the male inhabitants, without exception, from 15 to 60, to provide themselves with pikes 6 or 7 feet in length, and such other arms as circumstances may permit, and directing that all the cities, towns, and principal villages shall be fortified by blockading the entrances and principal streets with two, three, or more cross beams, in order to enable the inhabitants to defend themselves vigorously against the enemy. -Every person refusing to take up arms to suffer the punishment of death, and every village not defending itself against the enemy to be burnt and levelled with the ground!] SPANISH REVOLUTION. Decree for the Formation of a Militia of Honour, Dated Royal Palace of Aranjuez, Nov. 23, 1808. I would be useless to proclaim to the Spanish people the great obligation they are under, to deliver themselves from the slavery which threatens them, and which is already suffered by their most amiable monarch, and the whole royal family, from the most powerful, cunning, and perfidious of tyrants. Al though the continental powers of Europe, all subdued and held in great subjection, more by the subtle, sordid, and immoral policy of the tyrant, than by the force of his arms, cannot aid us directly by rebelling, or declaring war against the common oppressor, yet they assist us indirectly and passively, by engaging a great part of his armies in the keeping in obedience some of them, and watching the others. All of them, even France herself, have their attention fixed upon Spain, hoping from its intrepid inhabitants, liberty and independence. As soon as the Spaniards shall have shaken the superiority of their opposers, not one of them will fail to take up arms for his annihilation; because not one of them will fail to behold his black intrigues laid bare and frustrated, or to convince himself that the terrifying opinion hitherto entertained of his power, has been more the effect of the artifices, of which he has been able to seduce them, than by the number, skill, and valour of his troops. But upon us is imposed the duty, and to us is reserved the glory of striking the first blow. To us, Spaniards, Providence has left the alternative of being the firs! people of Europe, and the deliverers of all of them, or of being the most wretched of slaves. The general will of all has been long pronounced, in the most solemn and expressive manner. Almost altogether disarmed, our best resources dispersed and disorganized; our marine destroyed; our enemies masters of the capital, and of the most important fortresses; the nation impoverished; social virtue despised, our manners corrupted, and vice enthroned, we have in an instant recovered our ancient dignity and character, and vanquished obstacles which could yield only to patriotic heroism. While we believed that our public disorders might be emphemeral, being accidental, and |