:./rf.i::'r
 
 esTc
 
 AUTHENTIC 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE 
 
 WITH 
 
 M. Le BR UN, 
 
 THE 
 
 FRENCH MINISTER, 
 
 AND OTHERS, 
 
 TO 
 
 FEBRUARY 1793, INCLUSIVE, 
 
 FCBLISHED AS 
 
 AN APPENDIX 
 
 TO 
 
 OTHER MATTER NOT LESS IMPORTANT; 
 
 WITH A 
 
 PREFACE, 
 
 ANB 
 
 EXPLANATORY NOTES, 
 
 By W. MILES. 
 
 HonDon: 
 
 BRETT, O 
 5B, PICCA 
 
 b Z 4:^ 8 1796. 
 
 FRINTED FOR J. DEBRETT, OPPOSITE BURLINGTON* 
 HOUSE, PICCADILLY. 
 
 I
 
 K\4 y9L 
 
 1 
 > 
 
 Oi 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 2 IT is entreated as a favour, that before any 
 
 ^ conclufion is drawn refpedling the princi- 
 
 S pies or the motives which decided the 
 
 "' author of the following pages to deliver 
 
 his fentiments and flatement of fadts to 
 
 the world, at this eventful moment, that 
 
 the whole may be attentively read, and 
 
 impartially coniidered. It is his wifh to 
 
 <o avoid being mifunderftood or mifrepre- 
 
 fented ; and where his feverity has been 
 
 provoked by the fad:, he trufls it will be 
 
 pardoned in confideration of the motive. 
 
 
 'fe
 
 -.>;ii" 
 
 4
 
 PREFACE, 
 
 ADDRESSED TO MY DAUGHTER, 
 
 T UNDERSTANt) It to be an invariable rule 
 -*- with mercantile men^ before they retire from 
 bufinefs, to wind up their accounts with the 
 world, that nothing may break in upon theif 
 quiet, after they have exchanged trade, and the 
 Royal Exchange, for lawns^ fifh-ponds, and fer* 
 pentine walks ; having never made a trade o 
 fcribbling, or of patriotifm ; having never oiFef- 
 ed my pen to fale, either to mrniflers or to their 
 opponents, or pretended a regard for the freedona 
 and happinefs of mankind which I did not fin- 
 cerely wifh them to enjoy ; as I never engaged 
 in any caufe but from the fulleft convidlion o 
 its jufiice, I have no great account to fettle with 
 the world I owe nothing more to mankind than 
 that urbanity which they reciprocally owe to each 
 other, and which I am ready to pay in much 
 larger proportions than I have of late been accuf-* 
 toraed to receive ; yet, little as the account is, 
 ifeisjuftthat it fhould be fettled before I feek^ 
 
 9k lA
 
 ( ii ) 
 
 in the more rational charms of retirement, that 
 enjoyment which the riot of public affairs, and 
 the ruinous diflipations of the age, peremptorily 
 refufe to thofe who engage in them. As you 
 have ever been the objedl of my fondeil folici- 
 tude (and it is at once my confolation and my 
 boaft, that my folicitude has been fo worthily 
 beflowed) ; as you have been the conltant and 
 atfedtionate companion of my fortunes ; as we 
 have rambled together over a conliderable part 
 of Europe, and been joint fpeSiaiovs of thofe 
 vaft and aitonifhing changes which have defaced 
 thofe countries mofl, in which we enjoyed the 
 moH: felicity, I feel a kind of melancholy plea- 
 fure in bringing hack to your remembrance the 
 recollection of paft and happier times ! You 
 well know, that the fociety of a well-felecled 
 few has ever had a decided preference in my 
 ciiimation to that of the many, and that a refi- 
 dence in the country has ever been the favourite 
 with of my heart. Far from being an old man, 
 and with a fufficient flow of animal fpirits to 
 enable me to engage in the tumultuous fcencs of 
 falhionable pleafures, I prefer even folitude to a 
 crowd, and have long cherifhed the idea of a re- 
 treat from its buftle. Thirteen years are elapfed 
 iince I formed and realized the fame projedf ; 
 but it was my misfortune, perhaps yours, for our 
 fortunes cling together, to fcle6t for my reli- 
 
 dence 
 
 r/^
 
 ( "i ) 
 
 dencc the dominions of a prince, whofe vexa- 
 tions were as injudicious in point of time, as 
 they were certainly iniquitous in pouit* of equity 
 and right. I do not with to fpeak with afpcrity 
 of crowned heads ; on the contrary, it is very 
 much my wifh to refpc61 them ; but this can lio 
 longer be done than while they refpe6l them-^ 
 felves. 
 
 To talk of homage to crowns and coronets, 
 when they only decorate crimes or imbecility^ 
 is an affront to the underflanding, and implies 
 great ignorance or greater fervility. My loyalty 
 is not of that flamp. It is limited like my faith, 
 and reafon muft mark the . boundary : the only 
 boundary that fecures us from the inroads, of 
 civil or ecclefiaftical tyranny. 
 
 The precipitate and ill-advifed meafures of 
 Jofeph the Second could not fail rendering the 
 Revolution in America an interefling and in- 
 ftru6live lefTon to his diflatisfied fubje(5ls, and 
 on our arrival in the Low Countries, in January 
 1783, I found it had already become an object 
 of ftudy, as well as admiration, and very likely 
 to become an example of faccefsful imitation in 
 the Netherlands, if the Emperor, blind to his 
 own interell, perfevered in vexing the people 
 with experiments which varied on the arrival of 
 a 2 each.
 
 ( iv ) 
 
 each courier from Vienna, * and which deprived 
 them of all hope of refpite from the wild vaga- 
 ries of a mind diilenipered beyond the lunacy of 
 Bedlam. Experiments in government are at 
 all times extremely hazardous, and require 
 not only a perfecf^ knowledge of human na- 
 turCj, and of the various complicated interefts, 
 that are knit and interwoven in the very 
 fi-ame and texture of civil fociety, but a well- 
 digefled knowledge of its relative interefts, 
 and the whole minutiae of its intercourfe with 
 foreign nations, conducted with great difcretion, 
 
 * Many a morning was confumed during the whole period 
 of a reign, ftlort, melancholy, and inglorious, in writing edicts, 
 many of which never came into exiftence or even reached the 
 knowledge of a third perfon. The fketching of ordinances and 
 regulations for every department in his widely extended domi- 
 nions, occupied no inconfiderable portion of Imperial time. 
 No clerk in ofEce could have laboured more afliduoufly at his 
 defli, than the emperor at his table. Sometimes in his palace, 
 fom.etimes at General Lacy's, where he was accuftomedto go, 
 and >vhpra he principally confulted. If a ftranger had entered 
 the apartment, it would have been the General to whom tliey 
 would have refpeftfully bowed, as the fovereign of a great 
 empire. Indolently reclining in an eafy chair, with his two 
 feet thru ft almoft into the fire, this veteran occupied one fide of 
 the table while his royal mafter, with indefatigable induftry, 
 ^cribbled edicts at the other. Thefe were inftantly fubmitted 
 ,to the infpeftion of the General, and many of them without 
 ceremony, and without faying a word, were almoft as inftantly 
 deftroyed. It v/ould have been fortunate for the fovereign and 
 libe people, peri^aps, if the whole had been thrown into the 
 
 ***' and
 
 { V ) 
 
 and arlling from the circumilances of the mo* 
 ment, rather than from a wanton and chlldifii 
 impatience to exercife a power delegated for 
 purpofes very different, than to enable the polTef* 
 for to make baubles and playthings of mensT 
 patience, inter efls, and liappi uefs. 
 
 Amidft the many errors of a brain diforga- 
 nifed by the multitude of its projeds,tlie moft fa- 
 tal to the credit of the Emperor's underfianding, 
 was that of expe(^ting a tree to bear fruit before 
 it was planted, and to this fatal error may be at- 
 tributed all the devaftations with which a coun- 
 try, for the moft part a garden in appearance, 
 and in facJil, an unexplored mine, has unhappily 
 been afflitSled. As I forefaw, fo it has happened, 
 and if my correfpondence has been thought 
 worth preferving by thofe who folicited it, and 
 who were bound by their fituations, as well as 
 from the circumftance of having requeflcd it, to 
 have refpedcd it, they will find it predidled in 
 the fummer of 1787, that the Aujirian Nether- 
 lands and PrincipaJity of Liege would nltimately 
 fall under the dominion of France ; that the Britijh 
 Channel, in the event of fuch a revolution, 
 would lofe its tiame-, that the enemy, pofj'effed 
 of Brefi at the iveji end, and of the Scheldt 
 tit the eafl end, the moft ferious eonfequences woidd 
 inevitably follow from fuch an extent offea coa/t, 
 and the ac^uifition of fo rich a territory, and of fo 
 
 much
 
 ( vl ) 
 
 much population to the maritime force and trade of 
 Great Britain^ It was at that epocha that I 
 conceived the project of preventing fo great a 
 calamity by giving independence to the Leige 
 Country, and the Auftrian Netherlands, without 
 the intervention of France, from a convidlion 
 that as fuch an event was more than probable it 
 was the intereft of Great Britain, that they 
 ihould owe their emancipation to her generous 
 interference, rather than to the intrigues of the 
 Court of Verfiiilles. K very favourable oppor- 
 tunity prefents itfelf in the Autumn of the very 
 year that I took the liberty to fuggeft it ; but a 
 much better occaiion arofe from the events that 
 took place in the winter of- 1789, when this 
 great change might have been accompli fhed 
 without the efFulion of blood, and tins country 
 have been benefited by a meafure which, under 
 the circumftances that have fince produced it,' 
 may become altogether as mifchievous, as in the 
 former inflance it would have been advanta- 
 geous. The neighbourhood of five millions of 
 people, indufi:rious and rich in reiburces, renders 
 their friendfhip or enmity an obje6l of impor- 
 tance. The former was ofTered to us in 1790. * 
 The policy of our Court thought prudent to 
 reje<it it, and I am much afraid that it did not fiif- 
 
 * A'ide Appendix. A, 
 
 ficiently
 
 ( vii ) 
 
 ficiently deliberate on the confequences of refuf- 
 ing it, at a moment when a powerful rival was 
 a candidate for the fame diflin6lion, and under 
 circumftances that ihould have awakened us to 
 reflection. This friendftiip, prodigally oflfered to 
 us, has lince been given to the nation with which 
 we are at war, and who were ftrenuous fuitors 
 a't the above period for the union which we 
 fpurned. Time will prove how far that policy 
 . was founded in wifdom or in indifcretion. lappeal 
 to the acknowledged candor of a nobleman (de- 
 fer vedly beloved by all thofe w^ho have the fe- 
 licity of his acquaintance, for the urbanity of 
 his manners) to do juilice to the well-intention- 
 ed zeal with which I fupported the meafure, I 
 was authorifed to propofe early in February 
 1790, when I entered fully into the detail of the 
 many political and commercial advantages likely 
 to arife from declaring the independence of the 
 Low Countries, and the Principality of Liege, 
 under the guarantee of Great Britain, Pruffia, 
 and Holland. It was through the channel of 
 his department alone that the offer could with 
 propriety be fubmittcd to the Cabinet, and there 
 my miflion ended. I trult it will not be deemed 
 a breach of confidence, when I fiatc that his 
 Grace was decidedly of a very different opinion 
 to the one I entertained at the time, and in which 
 I have been confirmed by every fubfequent event 
 
 that
 
 f viii ) 
 
 that reTafes either to the Aufirian Netherlands, 
 or to the war, which I am fully perfuaded would 
 not have happened, if this country' had cheerfully 
 accelerated a mcafure that was tendered to them 
 for acceptance, and to which it will be compel- 
 led to aflent, for it has no longer an alternative. 
 We Ihall then, perhaps, be enabled to eflimate 
 what we might have gained, by what we fhall 
 mofl probably lofe. The very fincere perfonal 
 refpedt that I have for the chara6ler of the Duke 
 of Leeds will ever make me regret that I fhould 
 have differed in opinion with his Grace, who 
 thought that the Auflrian Netherlands ought not 
 to be taken from under the dominions of the 
 Emperor. But conne6ling my opinion (no other- 
 wife important or worthy of notice) than as it is 
 conne6led with the higher obje(5ls of national 
 honour and profj^erity, I feel confoled for the 
 difappointmcnt, by the events that have iince 
 juftified that opinion, and which events might 
 have been forefeen and guarded againft. Con- 
 neding the Revolution in the Low Countries 
 with the happinefs and freedom of five millions 
 of people, whofe interells and repofe ought cer- 
 tainly to have counted for fometbing in the ca- 
 binet of princes. 1 cannot but rejoice in their 
 complete emaneipatioB from the t}Tanny of the 
 Houfe of Auftria, aiid the no lefs vexatious 
 tyranny of the Imperial tribunals. 
 
 If
 
 ( ix ) 
 
 If the Duke of Leeds fpoke the language oi 
 the Cabinet, when he honoured me with an in- 
 terview, in 1790, I will take upon me to affirm, 
 from authentic papers in my pofleffion, that it 
 was under a delulion, which has very materially 
 and very deeply affedled the power and com- 
 mercial interefts of the country ; and this delu- 
 iion is the more extraordinary, as the Minifter 
 had been apprifed in time of the little depen- 
 dence to be placed in the good faith of the 
 King of PruiTia, or that of his minifters, who 
 were neceffitous adventurers (parvenus), to the 
 full as deflitute of principle as their mafter, 
 and as venal as he was faithlefs. At this epoch 
 (1790J it was the declared policy of this court 
 that the Low Countries fhould be reftored to 
 the Houfe of Auftria, and it was at this epoch 
 that the King of Pruflia, that ftain and dishonour 
 to royalty ! acting or p-etendmg to a61 in concert 
 with the Britifh Cabinet, was avowedly oi a 
 different opinion. 
 
 He had been called upon, as one of the co- 
 directors of the Circle of Weflphalia, to furnifh 
 his quota of troops for the purpofe of enforcing 
 a decree of Wetzlaar, * to which the Liegcois 
 
 had 
 
 * It will be neceflary to inform thofe who are not ac- 
 quainted with tiie conftitutions of the Germanic Empire, that 
 each Circle has three dire<5tors, to whom the Imperial Cham- 
 fa ^er
 
 ( ) 
 
 had refured obedience. In compliance with this 
 requifition a Pruffian army entered Liege. The 
 conduct of the Court of Berhn towards the 
 people of that country, the perfidy of its fove- 
 reign, qjid the venality of his minifters and 
 agents in that tranfaclion, I have in referve for 
 
 ber at Wetzlaar, or the Aulic Council at Vienna, addrefs 
 their requifition for troops, whenever it becomes neceflary to 
 enforce, by military execution, an obedience to their decrees. 
 After a revifion there is no appeal from either of thefe tribu- 
 nals ; and whenever prince or people are refractory an army 
 is directed to march and coerce them into fubmiffion, the 
 whole expences of which are levied on the offending party, 
 and in a manner to make them repent the confequences of 
 their refinance. It was for this purpofe that a body of Pruf- 
 fians, under the command of General SchliefFen, and Itrong 
 enough to controui thofe fent by the other directors with the 
 fame intent, marched to Liege, and pretending to efpoufe the 
 caufe of the revolters, delayed the execution of the decree 
 until the poHtical objects of the Court of Berlin were accom- 
 plifhed. I cannot immediately find the particular paper, re- 
 fpedting the arrival of M. de Schlieffen at Liege from Maef- 
 tricht, where a fractured leg had detained him ; but I believe his 
 army confifted of about feven thoufand men, who made a point 
 of treating with marked contempt the Palatine troops, and 
 ihewing an abhorrence for the miffion on which they were 
 jointly employed. They even allowed of hoftilities between 
 thefe troops and the patriots of Liege without interfering, and 
 partook of the triumphs of the latter. After this farce had 
 been played as long as it fulted the convenience of his Pruflian 
 Majefty, his army was ordered to withdraw, and the deluded 
 people of Liege, abandoned to their fate, were delivered over 
 to their mercilefs perfecutors, to be a fecond time pillaged and 
 fcourged for a refiflance founded in juftice. 
 
 a future
 
 C xi ) 
 
 a future day. I was on the Ipot at the time, 
 and from my intimacy with thole who were 
 the vi<5^ims of his matchlefs duplicity, I had 
 accefs to all the papers and voluminous cor- 
 refpondence on that occalion^ and can well 
 appreciate the character of a man, whofe 
 guilt and treachery, more than infernal, would 
 make the devil change colour and appear 
 white. Would to heaven that 1 could pu- 
 nifh them as well ! The approach of an array 
 fo near to the frontiers of Brabant and France, 
 excited alarm in the former, and jealoufy in 
 the latter. The oflenfible reafon of its march 
 was in a great meafurc contradicted by the 
 prote61ion publicly given by the Pruffian ge- 
 neral and miniflers to the offending party at 
 Liege, and by the number of agents which the 
 Court of Berlin employed at Bruxelles at the 
 time. France could ill bear to fee the lady, 
 whom flie wooed with unremitting ardour, on 
 the part of being wrefled from her by the in- 
 trigues of a fovereign, with whom it would 
 have been imprudent, at that time, to have 
 quarrelled. The French had recourfe to cabal, 
 and all Bruxelles refounded with reports that 
 the King of Pruffia had a defign upon the Low 
 Countries, and meant to invade it. The known 
 projects of Van Eupen and Vandernoot gave 
 credit to thefe reports, and they, in their turn, 
 excited fuch clamours againfl the French, that 
 
 b 2 it
 
 ( xii ) 
 
 it became hazardous for them to {peak on public 
 affairs. Thofe who offered to ferve in the 
 patriot army were refufed ; and in order to dif* 
 credit the reports in circulation, to the di fad- 
 vantage of the Court of Berlin, the agents in 
 Brabant and Flanders were authorized to con- 
 tradict them in the fullefl manner.* 
 
 I have rapidly retraced fom6 of thefe occur- 
 rences which forced me from the tranquillity of 
 retirement into the vortex of public affairs ; and 
 in tracing them the memory involuntarily mar-, 
 jhals into form the whole feries of events in 
 chronological order which have marked the full 
 period of our refidence on the continent. 
 
 This is but a gloomy occupation for a mind 
 like mine. It is little elfe than rambling among 
 tomb-flones, and reading of epitaphs ; it is rov- 
 ing through an immenfe and dreary cemetery of 
 departed. friends, whofe names flrike incefFantly 
 on my bewildered fenfes, and fubf^racl mucl> 
 from the plcafures of exiftence ; of friends, my 
 dear child, who were once as we are, whofe 
 wild but inojffenfive pranks ftand blazoned to 
 jny view, and whofe merry jefts, that fet the 
 table in a roar, Itill vibrate on my deluded ear ; 
 when we have furvived thofe with whom we 
 
 * Vide B in the Appendix. 
 
 J h^ve
 
 ( xili ) 
 
 have lived in the fondeft intercourfe of mutual 
 afFe(9:ion, who have been the partners of oar 
 franfports and of our forrows, whom we have 
 tclt torn from our affeClionate embrace, and 
 whofe full value can only be eftimated by their 
 lofs ; it is tlien that life lolcs one of its itrongeft 
 attractions, and that the mind, in its direful 
 conflici:, with unavailing grief, has full occalion 
 for all itsc vigour and exertion to fortify itfelf 
 againft defpondcncy. 
 
 How hard is the lot of humanity 1 when 
 our beft refuge from defpair, under the preflure 
 of the fevereft and moft bitter of misfortunes, 
 is that of ftating our mifery againft the mifery 
 of others, in the poor 'and comfortlcfs hope of 
 finding our fum of woe lets than ijvdt of our 
 neighbours ! Combining what you know of my , 
 tajfte, habits, and inclinations, with all thefe 
 jnournful reflections, in which my mind, be- 
 come the alTaffin of its own tranquillity, de- 
 lights to rove, you will not be furprifcd at my 
 impatience to quit the metropolis for the coun- 
 try, and exchange activity for indolence. I 
 want repofe, and I am the more defirous of the 
 refpite I crave, not only for the purpofe of ar- 
 ranging a voluminous correfpondence, but that 
 "whenever my refurre61ion into political life may 
 be neceffary, I may come forward, not only 
 recruited with fpirits, but prudence, and appear 
 
 a neiv
 
 ( xiv ) 
 
 a new man to thofe who thought the old one too 
 warm and impetuous. 
 
 Whenever a man profits by vvhat.he reads, 
 he has no right to complain of the price of the 
 t>ook. The memoirs of Mr. Gibbon, fo dear 
 to every body elfe, has been a very valuable 
 purchafe to me. I am a greater gainer by it 
 than even Lord Sheffield, who, converting his 
 friend into a mint, has coined three thou- 
 fand pounds from bis drofs. The note at page 
 104. vol. 1. was of more value to me than the 
 whole work. It completed the reformation I 
 had long propofed, by ihcwing me my own 
 character moi^ accurately drawn. There is to 
 be fure that in it whioti might make any itian 
 proud ; but there is alfa that in it which muft 
 make every man blufh. The mirror fpoke 
 truth; and afhamed of my likenefs, I refolved 
 to amend. It fhall, therefore, be my care 
 to check the intemperance of a mind that has 
 hitherto been too warm in the purfuit of right 
 ever to think of expediency ; I will profit by 
 the fober council of thofe who really vvifh well 
 to me, and even profit by the malevolent im- 
 pertinence of time-ferving writers, with names 
 or without, who would praife me, with the 
 fame facility that they have abufed me, if 
 they were paid for it. I am aware of the re- 
 proaches I may incur from both thcfe defcrip- 
 
 tions
 
 ( ^v ) 
 
 tious of writers by fpeaking on my own fubje6l ; 
 but the cujftom of the theatre authorifes the 
 performer, on his taking leave of the ftage, to 
 fpeak his farewell, and in my cafe it is tecome 
 neceflary to fay fomethitig in extenuation, at 
 leaft, if not in vindication of that warmt)i 
 which has occafionally marked my writings, 
 and which has unfortunately been mifunder- 
 ftood by fome, and as malicioufly reprefented 
 by others. This is the account that I have to 
 lettle with the world. When men are agreed 
 as to the merit or demerit of others, the degree 
 of admiration in which they hold the one, and 
 of averlion in which they regard the latter, will 
 depend, in a great meafure, on the force and 
 vivacity of their imaginations. Men, whofe 
 minds are flrong and ardent, will naturally ex- 
 prefs themfelves with warmth, and if the mat- 
 ter appears to them enormous, with intempe- 
 rance, in order to prevent the repetition of what 
 they conceive to be crime, and crime, perhaps, 
 of a^vcry dangerous tendency. We are apt to 
 cxprefs as we feel, and this applies no lefs to 
 the man^ whofe mind is cold and phlegmatic, 
 than to the man who is animated and impatient. 
 The one, conftitutionally indifferent to confe- 
 quences, and regardlefs of pofterity, pafles a 
 cold unimpreffive reproof that is more likely to 
 encourage than to reprefs the vice it condemns. 
 Both extremes are bad, but furely the former 
 
 has
 
 ( xvi ) 
 
 has a claim to indulgence in eonfideralion of 
 the motive, and may poffibly produce the de- 
 lired effect. It may put guilt to fhame, and 
 prevent the repetition of crimes ; but the latter 
 never can. In a word, I have, at all times, eX- 
 preffed the abhorrence that I have really felt, 
 and my condu6t has correfponded vi'ith my 
 profeffions. I have ever oppofed, with all the 
 ardour peculiar to my chara6ler, the do61rine of 
 equality in the perverted and impra61icable fenfe 
 given to it by bad men for verj^ bad purpofes ; 
 I never was an advocate for the promulgation of 
 abflra6l principles among a clafs of men, barely 
 rational, and whofe intelle6ls are not likely to 
 be improved by education ; for where the mind 
 wants compreheniion, culture is ufelefs ; yet 
 though it would be imprudent, and, perhaps, 
 not very humane, to engage them in the invefti- 
 gation of matters foreign to their purfuits, and 
 certainly hoflile to their interefts and their hap- 
 pinefs, I cannot approve of that enormous dif- 
 proportion between animals of the fame fpe- 
 cies ; do not mistake me I do not with to fee 
 the elephant deftroyed,becaufe he confumesmorc 
 grafs than a flieep ; but I will ever ftrenuoufly 
 contend that the fhcep has an equal right to, 
 graze with the elephant; and as the earth is 
 fpacious enough to afford fufficicnt pafture for 
 both, why abridge the latter of his little portion ? 
 Let the peer and the peafant vegetate and am- 
 bulate
 
 ( xvli ) 
 
 bulate this globe happily and cheerily together, 
 let them refpe<Sl: andnot infult each other, policy 
 as well as hpmanity di6^ates this language ; for 
 when men are made to feel a difference of con- 
 dition they are apt to reafon on the caufe, not 
 with a view to acquiefcence, but to complaint 
 and reliftance, belides where the difproportion* 
 is in the extreme, it engenders vice ; poverty is 
 the parent of crime as well as of meannefs, arid 
 hunger will ever cancel the obligations of mora- 
 lity : the laborious multitude are, par itat, ex- 
 cluded from partaking of thofe luxuries which 
 grace the tables of tlie affluent, nor do they re- 
 quire fuch expedients to fharpen their appetites ; 
 but though they cannot reach, and perhaps do 
 not defire dainties, they Ihould not be forced to 
 feel too fenflbly the prefTure of want, for it muft 
 lead to confequences, again fl which the wifdom 
 of government cannot too cautioufly guard. Pea- 
 fants are not over- gifted with capacities any more 
 than they are with fortune. 
 
 Beggars alike in intellcift and purfe. 
 Purblind they feek their homely, happy courfe, 
 In rags and tatters, friendlel's and forlorn. 
 Objects at times orf pity and of fcorn ; 
 From their hard toil the ftate receives fupport, 
 And e'en its fafety in the laft re fort ; 
 In peace or war, the peafant's ample aid. 
 In wealth or courage to the world's difplay'd; 
 
 * Vide C in the Appendix. 
 c 
 
 Bv
 
 ( xviii ) 
 
 By them the whole, the vaft machine ftidvcs oui 
 And as the father toii'd, fo toils the foA ; 
 Curfetl with noforefight, fenfelefs of thepaft. 
 Unmoved they hear loud faftion's impious blaft ; 
 M ^ Paflive arid dull, fubniiffive to each law, 
 
 And, yok'd like oxen to the team they draw. 
 
 I do not pretend to be a poet, but I am apt to 
 ramble, truant like, fometimes at the call of the 
 mufes, and play at the foot of ParnalTus without 
 daring to climb the hill. No great violence is 
 neccflary to engage my mind from graver and 
 more effcntial purfuits. I anticipate the fummons 
 and obey it. There is certainly fomething very 
 bewitching in poetry. There is a melody in 
 meafured language that argues a corre(?b ear. I 
 would willingly perfuade myfelf that it argues 
 a corre6t mind, and that a love of verfe is necef- 
 larily connected with a love of right ; in my own 
 inltance I know it is, and that the latter has ever 
 been ray Itimulus and guide in all the poli- 
 tical tranfaciions in which I have taken 
 part ; had the conli derations of felf-intereit in- 
 fluenced me at any period of my life, it is fair 
 to prefume that my pen would have fetched as 
 good a price in the market as that of others. I 
 have {cen the prodigality of former times. Ifawu 
 man, whofe melancholy catafirophc forbids me 
 to mention his name, placed by a corrupt minif- 
 ter at one of the revenue boards, for a publica- 
 tion, the object of which was to turn the argu- 
 i " mcnt*
 
 ( XIX ) 
 
 raents of oppofition into ridicule, by anticipation; 
 a pamphlet that evidently tended to Jowcr the" 
 legiflature in the public opinion. If Lord North 
 liad preferred the dignity and honor of i^ 
 Houfe of Commons to tlie prefcrvatlon of his 
 place, he vvould not have rewarded, but punilh- 
 ed the profligacy of the writer who had dared to 
 infult the dignity of parliamentary debate. A 
 minifler's favor upon luch terms is too extrava- 
 gant for me to afpire to ; it is a price that I can- 
 not afford to give ; it is a price to which no man 
 will accede who knows the full value of reputa- 
 tion, and I have philofophy enough not to regret 
 what cannot be obtained without a furrender of 
 that which is dearer to me than any thing in the 
 gift of the crown. I am very far from inlinuat- 
 ing that the prefent miniiler experts any fuch 
 conceffion, nor do I believe that he would be 
 plcafed to fee that part of the Houfe of Com- 
 mons which is the moft hollile to him, lilenced 
 by means which have a tendency to leflcn in 
 the remoteft degree, that refpe^^ which is due 
 to the whole. I do not believe that Mr. Pitt 
 wifhes to have the aid of any w riter by any other 
 line or meafurement than that of the conftitu- 
 tion, and his fpecch on the debate lall Novem-- 
 ber, refpe^ling the pamphlet of Mr. Reeves, is 
 my voucher to the world for the jufticc of that 
 opinion, even if I had no other evidence qf the 
 fe6t ; but I have heard him hold the fame lan- 
 P ? guaje
 
 ( ^^ ) 
 
 giiage, and profefs the fame principles in ptivat<*. 
 The two fecretaries of the trealury have inva- 
 riably adhcilsd to the Tame line of condu6l in tbe- 
 ^Wterent conferences that I have had with them ;^ 
 they have repeatedly declared it never was thcr- 
 wifh of government, that- any man fhould fup4 
 port its meafures by a facrifice of principle, and' I' 
 have every reafon to believe, from the general tenor 
 of their conduct, as far as I have been a fpecTtator 
 or concerned, that the pra6lice they have obferved, 
 has correfponded with their profeffions. I am not 
 afraid in making this declaration, of being re- 
 proached with" a fervility, of which, it is well 
 known, I am incapable. My zeal in fapport of 
 Mr. Pitt's adminiftration when he came into 
 office, arofe entirely from the ftrong attachment 
 I felt and- fiill feel for whatever is dorine^lcd 
 with the honour, profperity^ and independence 
 of my country.^ My zeal arofe from a convidr 
 tion of his fuperior talents and integrity, and- 
 that a permanent adminiftration could alone at 
 tliat epoch (1784) fave the, empire. We were 
 then at a diftance from our native fhore, but 
 diftant or near, my country, you know, has ever 
 been uppcrmoft in my thoughts, and if I had en- 
 tertained a different opinion of the miniftcr, I 
 fhould, with the fame ardor and freedom, have 
 declared againft him as I have declared for him. 
 This may not perhaps be the language of a pru- 
 dent man, yet I feel it to be that of an honeit one, 
 ^t;/- and
 
 ( xxi ) 
 
 and that contents me. When I could no lon- 
 ger Eipprove of his meafures I declined to fupport 
 them, and lubTequent events have leparated us 
 for ever.* I have no favor to expedl from Mr 
 Pitt, I certainly will not afk any ; but as I am 
 making up my account, not with the minifter, 
 f6r that has been clofed fince 1794, but with 
 th^ world, it is a juftice due to the rectitude and 
 magnanimity of Mr. Pitt to acknowledge that 
 he difclaimed every wifli to be fupported but on 
 conftitutional principles. On thefe principles 
 alone I h^ve fupported him with more warmth 
 than difcretion I own, for among the many er- 
 rors of my life, and indeed the principal one, 
 is that of my efpoufing with ardor whatever I 
 undertak,e. 
 
 :? ! 1 '.i >iJ I f J > 
 
 It is thy misfortune to feel an intereft as great 
 as if my life was at flake in all queftions of mo- 
 ment to the general happinefs of mankind, and un- 
 der the dominion of a zeal which may have mif- 
 led my judgment, I may as frequently have given 
 offence ; but as the offence is in the intention 
 more than in the a6V, I hope for the indulgenpe 
 due to a mind very apt to take fire on beholding 
 crime triumphant, and impatient when engaged 
 in the purfuit of right. I feel this apology due 
 as an atonement for my warmth, where my 
 
 Vide D in the Appendix..,, ., ... ^ 
 
 warmth
 
 ( xxii ) 
 
 warmth has been imprudent or unjafr. It has 
 ever been my opinion that whatever is feriouily 
 Kiifchievous to the interefts of fociety, ought tpt 
 be cenfured with the utmolt feverity, and if l 
 am wrong in this opinio-n, it is an error of the 
 onderHanding, and not of the heart. Although 
 I; have lived much and mixed much with man- 
 tind Although I have received much the fame 
 eduication, I am inclined to think that I have 
 drawn very diflfcrent conclufions from the pre- 
 cepts adrainiflered to us in early life, and tliat 
 my principal error has been " d'en avoir pris 
 chaque article trop a la lettre." Experience has 
 taught me, that the profeffions of n>cn are not 
 to be conflraed, nor the productions of genius 
 tranflated literally ; yet, though this latitude is 
 perfe(5lly jufl in the latter inftance, I deny the 
 utility of it in the former, and fhould be ill dif- 
 pofed to think favourably of thofe, who would 
 cither exa6t or contend for it. My idea is, that 
 men fhould be what they profcfs themfelvcs to be. 
 One moral for pradlicc, and another for precept, 
 is fubverfive of all morals, and it is no lefs fub- 
 vcrlivc of morals, when the higher orders in fo- 
 ciety brave the public opinion, and impudently 
 difpenfe with what they exact from others. In 
 alt the gieat moral duties of life, a pcrfeA ac- 
 cordance Ihould prevail. If one man claims ex- 
 emption, another has an equal right to difpenfa- 
 tior^. To prevent this irregiilarity, and its con- 
 
 fequences.
 
 ^ xxiii ) 
 
 lequeflces, princes fhould be curbed as well as 
 pealtats, and deeply impreired with this truth I 
 h^ve in fome inllances, pcrliaps, exceeded the 
 limits of that temperance fo convenient to the 
 inlidious purfuits of bad men, and fo acceptable 
 to thofe vvhofe cold lethargic blood, drowfy al- 
 mofl to flagnation, paces flowly through their 
 veins, and renders them alike incapable of in- 
 terell or exertion. 
 
 I have no obje6lion to make every reafonablc 
 allowance for follies that are inoffenlivc or un- 
 important. But the vice that impudently braves 
 public jaflice, and exadls homage from virtue; 
 that gigantic vice, which from the proud and 
 infulting pre-eminence of rank, has the audacity 
 to fet the magiflrate and the laws at defiance, 
 and that we know to be as incorrigible in its na- 
 ture, as it is mifchievous in its confequences 
 That deicription of vice I will ever maintain 
 ought to be felled to the ground by the club of 
 Hercules. What ! fhall we court, fawn, and 
 attend like a gentleman uflier upon vice in em- 
 broidery, while we loath, deteft, and conlign to 
 the gibbet, without pity or remorfe, the vice that 
 we behold in rags ? Shall the unhappy female, 
 driven by neceffity, not luft, to the bitter and 
 kumiliating refource of proftitution, Ikulk; in 
 -holes and corners, afraid of the beadle and his 
 lalli^ wliile the dignified proftitute, more fortu- 
 nate
 
 ( xxiv ) 
 
 tiafe and infinitely atrocious, confideAt of prof^- 
 tion, and honoured where fhe fhould be fpi*xTied, 
 triumphs in her turpitude, and infults neglected 
 firtue with impunity ? Shall the tame cuckold, 
 proud of his difhonour, turn bawd to his wife for 
 favour or for hire, and lending her firil to my lord> 
 and then to his Highnefs, opening an account 
 current v/ith infamy, himfelf the meaneft of the 
 firm, dare to claim homage as his right ; while 
 the man, who from a fenfe of public duty, holds 
 6ut fuch treble guilt to public fcom (anxious to 
 fave a falling empire from deflruc^lion) is brand-* 
 ed as libellous or difaiFe<5ted ? O, Ihamelefs, 
 runious inconfrf^ency ! fubverfive of all govern- 
 ment as well as of all morals, and that cannot 
 be defended even by thofe who prad^ile or ap- 
 plaud it. If, in defiance of decorum, duty, and 
 public opinion, the titled harlot will play the 
 wanton ; if at her time of life Ihe will allow her 
 Iiot blood to run riot in her veins, and fcanda- 
 Hze her age and fex, let the rank that fhe un- 
 worthily holds in fociety be deemed an aggrava- 
 tion of her infamy, and while an indignant world 
 hails her ftnimpet as fhe pafTes, let her feel thofe 
 pangs which fhe has bafely inflicted on virtuous 
 innocence ! ' " " ^^ ' ' 
 
 But of what avail, jufl Heaven ! are truth, 
 argument, and eloquence combined, againfl the 
 
 3 more
 
 ( XXV ) 
 
 more powerful counteradlion of felf-intereft, ha- 
 bit, and the vitiated manners of the times ! 
 
 If I fhpuld be deemed reprehenfible for hav- 
 ing exprefTed, in f^rong language my abhorrence 
 of offences, \yhich, by their tendency to bring 
 one part of the confiitution into hazard, en- 
 danger the whole ; if it fhould be deemed crimi- 
 nal to have reprobated, with an indignation 
 proportioned to the magnitude of that danger, 
 the flagrant mifconducft of one defcription of 
 men, and the bafe ferviHty of another, it is in 
 vain for an obfcure unprote6led individual like 
 myfelf, to relift the impetuous ruthlefs torrent, 
 vice and virtue muli: have exchanged places, and 
 I am content to fhare the beggared fortunes of 
 Jhe latter 1 
 
 d' PRELI'
 
 ..f E R RJ TJ. 
 
 PREFACE. 
 Page vi Line I a r^rf prefented/or prefents 
 
 viii 14 nffl<^ dominion /or dominions 
 
 xvii fifth line of the verfe read derives/ir receive* 
 
 PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 I 6 for or read of 
 
 51 9 /or ability r^a^ inability 
 
 - .53 19 /or counteract r^-flt/contradlcd 
 
 - 56 12 far rights read right 
 
 REVIEW, &c. 
 
 70 8 read transferred it 
 
 70 15 for (lain read tinge 
 
 70 laft line but one r^a^ remembered /or ren)embcr 
 
 76 16 at the note, r^rarf are /or is 
 
 89 10 rf<2^ its/or their 
 
 " ' 91 9 for perfon read friend 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 " ' 60 for reducing government read to reduce 
 70 for declaratant read declarant 
 
 113 4 from the bottom, for Pitt read Pit 
 
 113 9 from the top, /or marches rifarf demarches, r< 
 
 diilees pour difte 
 
 113 18 from do. /or puifTe read puit 
 
 ' 1^7 3 from the bottom, for a porter read ^ portef 
 
 127 2 from do. /or ji read ]e 
 
 127 do. /or fuccinCl; et de leurs read (ucc'm6\c de leurs 
 
 128 4 from the top, for nourrer read nourrir 
 
 128 7 from do. /or pafture rf(i parteur 
 
 12S II from do. for un raifon read eu raifon 
 
 I28 22 from do. for qui read que 
 
 ~ I29 5 from the top, /or Chatelain r^arf Chretien 
 
 I29 15 from do, for forteroit r^a^ fortirait 
 
 131 14 from do. /or tender read (heer 
 
 13 1 22 from do. /or ought read was 
 
 132 II from do. for the limits, read the fame limits 
 
 13a T2 from do. for as ihey hanje done to the departs 
 
 ments, read as to the departments. 
 
 The author of the following pat^es alfo requcfls the favour 
 of his readers to pardon the numberieis inaccuracies with which 
 this publication abounds; it was produced in three weeks, and 
 Jhe neceility of perpetually referring to various manufcript 
 papers, which he has never had leifure to arrange, and whicli 
 could not be confided to the infpedion of others, joined to his 
 anxiety to produce w hat he wifhes to be confidered as an epilogue 
 to all his political labours, before the meeting of Parliament, are 
 the beff, and, indeed, only excufes he has to offer for the incor, 
 ft"l manner in which he has given this volume to the woirkl.
 
 PRELiMiNAkY 
 OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 TF men would reafon from fa(5ts, and not froili 
 ^ prejudice; if they would allow their judg- 
 ments to take the lead of their paffions, and in 
 conlideration of thofe who may come after them, 
 combine the interefis of pofterity with their own, 
 they would learn to form a right eflirriate ot 
 things, arid prevent the neceility of thofe violent 
 commotions, which arming the fon againft the 
 father, and brother againft brother, diflblve 
 all the endearing ties of friendfiiip and affection, 
 and plunge the civilized world into a ftate of 
 anarchy, infinitely more lavage and deplorable 
 than that of nature; bul the mild dictates of rea- 
 fon, and the equitable faggeiiions of truth, ap- 
 pear to have little ir.fluence on the condu(5l of 
 human affairs, and man, a phsenomenori almoft 
 to his Creator, perpetually at variance with him- 
 felf, and in contl:ant hoftility with his judgment 
 and deareft interefis, feems deflined by fate to 
 
 B have
 
 ( ) 
 
 have what is at once a blefling and a curfe, per- 
 verted or abufed without the refolution to amend 
 what is alternately his pride and fhame, his 
 happinefs and mifery ! It is owing to this abufc 
 and perverlion of the underftanding, that the 
 progrefs of all governments has been arrelted in 
 their courfe to that ftate of perfedtion of which 
 they are unqueftionably fufceptible, whenever 
 they fhall be founded in principle, and conducted 
 with equity. It is owing to the fame caufe that 
 governments, in many inftances, have been 
 liibverted and deitroyed ; and to this account majr 
 be placed the fcandalous alacrity with which a 
 conliderable portion of mankind bend their pliant 
 necks to the difgraceful yoke of paffion or of pre- 
 judice, and that a portion no lefs conliderable, 
 but far more abjccSl, lacrifice all that is noble- 
 or dignified in manhood, to the temporary- pur- 
 luits of the moment, without any regard to the 
 cluty they owe to themfelves, or others, and in 
 ^defiance of the odium, derilion, and contempt 
 which never fail to accompaiay their turpitude 
 and meannefs ; but for this wide and dangerous- 
 departure from the fixed principles of right, the 
 ilifFerent civilized nations of the earth might 
 look confidently forward to centuries of domeftic 
 peace and felicity. The legiflatoF wouW, be 
 eonfoled in his defcent to the grave, by the re- 
 flexion that his labours, lefs perifhable than 
 himfelf, would not be defiroyed, but meliorate* 
 
 by
 
 ( 3 ) 
 
 by time, and that each fucceffivc gejncratlon, 
 profithig by the errors of that which preceded it, 
 would improve its inheritance, and bequeath a 
 richer legacy to pofterity than it received. Such 
 is the language of philofophy and of truth ! It is 
 the unavailing proteft which common fenfe and 
 common honefly incefTantly enter againfl the 
 ruthlefs inconliftencies of men in all ages, to 
 whom the public intereft has been confided. 
 Unhappily the few who have the virtue to fpurn 
 a fubjedlion as ruinous as it is difgraceful, are of 
 too little account in fociety to influence its deci- 
 lions or its deftiny ; neither their precepts nor 
 example are of any avail. Their voice is too 
 feeble to be heard, their power too trifling to be 
 felt, and however much they may fuffer from the 
 delulion, they muft abide by the event. It is held 
 to be an inflance of piety and reflgnation to fub- 
 mit without repining to thofe heavy calamities 
 which are infeparable from our nature ; but it 
 requires fomething more than the paffivenets of 
 relignation ; it requires the combined efforts of 
 religion and of heroifm, to bear with fortitude 
 and in fllent fubmiffion the various calamities 
 produced by the wild projects of men, whom 
 fortune, not merit, has inveftcd with the fate of 
 nations, and whofe career through life can only 
 be traced by the defolation they have occalioncd. 
 
 B2 It
 
 ( 4 ) 
 
 It is, however, a confolation to the wounde4 
 mind, fmarting under the double preflbre of pri-? 
 vate and public mifery, that though vanity and 
 ambition, the impious rivals of Omnipotence ! 
 would faihion us to their will ; that though mil- 
 lions bleed at their fell command, and the beauty 
 and harmopy of the univerfc feem inverted as it 
 were by their pernicious influence, that the lii- 
 perintending vigilance of Heaven, in mercy to 
 opprefTed humanity, counteracl their iniquitous 
 deflgns, and defeat their foul projedls, by the 
 very means that are employed to obtain them I 
 Every page in which the ereat contefts of this 
 world are recorded, prefents this awful, this in- 
 flruc^ive lefTon to mankind, but the ftrong hold 
 taken of their faculties by immediate purfuits, 
 often trifling, fometimes criminal, and as tempo- 
 rary as they are trifling and atrocious, renders 
 them alike infenfible and indifferent to future 
 events. ]Every fl:ruggle into which mankind at 
 different periods have been forced by opprellion 
 (and hiltory does not furnifh one folitary inftance 
 to the contrary) has finally terminated in favour 
 of liberty, while tyranny^ at all times a curffe 
 and burthen to itfelf, every where humbled, de- 
 feated, and abafhed, has never had a lingle tri- 
 umph to confole itfelf with in misfortune or dif- 
 grace, whenever the caufe between defpotifm 
 and freedom has been fairly brought to an 
 jflTue, 
 
 What
 
 ( 5 > 
 
 What a misfortune it is, that thofe well at^ 
 tefted inftances, fo numerous in hiftory, and fo 
 animating to thofe, who, fcnlible of their 
 rights, are ever ready to alTert them, fhould be 
 of fuch little benefit to thofe who are the moft 
 intcrefled in attending to the admonitions they 
 convey ! i{ the evidence of hiftory, however, 
 fhould appear doubtful to fome, and be de- 
 nied by others ; if the proofs which this coun- 
 try, '^ ihe clajjic land of liberty^', (as the elder Mi- 
 I'abeau called it) exhibits of the fadl fhould be 
 contefled, we have the llronger and unequivocal 
 teltimony of experience to convince and guide 
 us ; an appeal may be made to events ftill frefh 
 in our memory, which belong to our own age 
 and nation. An appeal may be made to events 
 ftill more recent, and which are perpetually oc- 
 curring in the great and momentous flruggles in 
 which France is actually engaged. They abun- 
 dantly and moft woefully demonftrate thofe 
 truths which I would willingly bring home to 
 every man's feeling and recolle(51ion, and moft 
 particularly to thofe, whofe immediate duty it is 
 to preferve the prefent order of things, whofe 
 particular intcreft and perfonal fafety imperioufly 
 call on them to avoid whatever has a tendency 
 to revive thofe contefts, which conligned one 
 fovereigA to the fcafFold, and another to beg- 
 gary and exile. The hiftory of the laft century 
 jBontains many ufeful IciTons ; lellbns that ought 
 
 to
 
 ( 6 > 
 
 to be ftudied with a clofe and unremitting at* 
 tention, in conjundlion with thofe which prefs 
 daily on our notice, and which may be confi* 
 dared as comments upon the texts of our an-* 
 ceftors, differing, however, very materially 
 from all other comments, inafmuch as they 
 are itroi/ger, lefs prolix, and more conclulive 
 than the texts they illaftrate. 
 
 It is in the nature of man, in all tranla(^ion8 
 that relate perfonally to himlelf, to prefer cer- 
 tainty to rifle, and where he can only pofTefs a 
 life intereft at the beft, it is policy, as . well as 
 juftice in the government he fupports, to avoid 
 whatever may endanger the fecurity. Among 
 the mofl valuable of our pofTeflions may be 
 reckoned that prote(5lion which he derives from 
 equal laws faithfully adminiflered, and whatever 
 tends to weaken that proteiSlion, or to bring it 
 into hazard, renders his property lefs. valuable, 
 and takes from the various felicities of domeflic 
 life, the better part of their attra^ions. The 
 tenure by which they are held is precarious, in- 
 deed, whenever the government, weak or vexa- 
 tious, difiurbs his enjoyments, or expofes them 
 to the inroads of civil tumult and wild uproar. 
 
 He expe<^s (and is entitled to it, for it is one 
 of the implied conditions of the fecial compa<^) 
 a better pledge for the peaceable enjoyment of 
 
 aU
 
 ( 7 ) 
 
 ali the comforts of his exigence, than the difcre- 
 tion of others ; and when this cannot be aflured 
 to him, or when either guilt or imbecility in the 
 executive power, excite diltruit, or provoke 
 combinations among the people for the preferva- 
 tion of their unalienable rights, his refpecfl and 
 attachment to a government no longer ade- 
 quate to the purpofes of its inftitution, will 
 ceafe ; his fubmiffion will be a matter of necef- 
 fity rather than of choice ; and his loyalty, de- 
 prived of all the wholefome ftamina produced 
 by the invigorating influence of felf-intcrefl, 
 confidence, and affection, will become con- 
 verted into a leaven of the-mofl mifchievous qua- 
 lity. This is not the place, nor is it my inten- 
 tion at prefent, to inveftigate the caufes which 
 led to the two great revolutions in the laft cen- 
 tury. 
 
 But that awful interval between the reftoration 
 of Charles, and the final expullion of James ; 
 that interval which difplayed a kind of watery 
 funflune profperity on royalty for a moment ; I 
 mean that interval in which thefe mifguided 
 princes, with a parliament at their devotion, 
 . Vainly imagined they had crufhed the proud 
 fpirit of liberty in Britain, and eUabliflied their 
 arbitrary dominion throughout this glorious 
 happy ifland, is perhaps of all periods in Britifh 
 jbiftory the raiaft inftructive to kings and mi- 
 
 niflers.
 
 ( 8 ) 
 
 nifters. It is a period that contains a world di 
 ufefuly pradlical knowledge, and which I defy 
 cither prince or people to read with indifference, 
 or without profit. The one will be taught to 
 guard againfl the fallacy of appearances, and to 
 behold irretrievable ruin to himfelf and family^ 
 at the very infiant that a gaudy exterior an* 
 nounces the mofl^ perfect fecurity around him. 
 He will learn in the cataflrophe of the laft of the 
 Stuarts, the very little protection that an abje<5t 
 venal parliament, and a mercenary army, can 
 give him in the moment of general difcontent, 
 and learn to refpe6i: thofe rights which he can- 
 not infringe with impunity; while the people^ 
 no lefs inftru6led by events than their fovereign, 
 will difcover in the condud: of their anceftors, 
 that a remedy for all the evils of defpotifm may 
 be found in the refources of courage and unani- 
 mity. Thefc truths, fo interefting at all times, 
 are rendered ftill more fo by the circumflances of 
 the moment, nor can they fail to flrike raofl for- 
 cibly on the fenfes of every man who refle^ls on 
 what he reads, and who is not a carelefs obferver 
 of events. The misfortune is, that hiflory 
 makes but a feeble impreffion on the human 
 mind, and that even experience cannot teach 
 men wifdom : if they would avail themfelves of 
 ever}' advantage that hiflory and experience of- 
 fer to their acceptance, the fum total of crimes, 
 blunders, and misfortunes, which embitter their 
 I exiflencc^
 
 1 9 ) 
 
 exigence, and defolate the world, would be dl- 
 minifhed, and our civil inftitutions ultimately 
 obtain that force and folidity which can alone 
 ehfure them a permanency ; it is from the full 
 convi6lion I feel, that in proportion as men ac- 
 quire a perfect knowledge of their true interefts, 
 they will pra6life right, in preference to wrong, 
 that I wifh knowledge to be univcrfally diffufed, 
 and the morality we pradlife to be in flridl con- 
 formity to the morality we profefs. When fuch 
 an example is given to mankind, and they be- 
 come every where inftrudled in what it mofl be- 
 hoves them to know, the fecurity they pofTefs 
 for the full enjoyment of all the comforts of their 
 exiflence in civilized fociety, will be unquef- 
 tionable, and the machine of government thus 
 mounted and regulated will not require the tur- 
 bulent remedy of revolutions to corredl its abufes 
 or defe^^s. The aphorifm that mankind are 
 happy in proportion as they are ignorant, Is an 
 error which every man's experience, if properly 
 underfloojd, muil refute. It was the bafe expe- 
 dient of an overbearing prieflhood, to obtain, 
 dominion over the mind, and hold it in eternal 
 fubjedtion. The film that obfcured the mental 
 vilion of the bigot in the 15th century, was 
 removed the very inftant that our anceftors, pro- 
 voked by the exactions, and fcandalifed by the 
 profligacy of churchmen, examined into the 
 jufticc and legality of th^ir prctenlions. Men 
 
 C 9IQ
 
 Srt very apt to ^{Cctt their rights whenever they 
 underftand them. Out delufion in refpe6l to 
 fccclefiaftical matters hegan to fubfide at the pe- 
 tiod of the Reformation, but our advances to 
 fcivil liberty are of a later date. They were ne- 
 fceifarily poltponed until the mind, emancipated 
 from the thraldrom of monks, became capable of 
 fc'xertingits powers. It was not until the clofe al- 
 inoif!: of the i 7th century, that the ignorance and 
 Selulion which enyelopped our intellects in regard 
 to civil liberty were diflipated, and in part de- 
 flroyed. The quctlion of political right has not 
 yet been fully debated, and with rcipcCl to the 
 improvements and farther difcpverieg to be made 
 in the two other ht>'lefs important objects, it 
 may be fufficicnt for tlie prefent to obferye, that 
 the motto ilampcd on the filver coin of Spain,* 
 applies moil forcibly to both of them. The 
 mine that has been difcovercd, can always 
 be explored. The proud boaft is burs, of having 
 given thfe nrll example of liberty and reform to 
 the tardy nations of Europe, as it is alfo our af- 
 ilidlion and regret, that when France, roufed 
 Suddenly from her lethargy, .ilarted for the goal 
 of freedom, flie fiiould have ran beyond it. I dp 
 not mean .to mveffigate the origin and progrcfs ot 
 thofe various commotions which finally pro- 
 duced that temperate and judicious mixture of 
 
 ^ Plu ultra. . 
 " "* * royalty.
 
 ( ) 
 
 royalty, ariftocracy, and democracy, of which 
 our conftitution is compofcd, and under whicl^ 
 it is our happinefs to live ; experience has demon- 
 ilrated it to be perfe(5lly compatible with that 
 high fpirit of freedom which animated pur gal- 
 lant anceflors to oppofe the ufutpations, and to 
 rehfl the extravagant preteniions of the banifhe4 
 Stuarts. 
 
 But though it is fuperfluous to recite what 
 biflory has fo faithfully recorded, it may anfwer 
 many very ufeful purpofes to obferve, that any 
 future infurredbion in this country could not pof- 
 iibly arife from the fame caufe, neither would it 
 have the fame objedl:, or be marked by the fame 
 iflue. The interefling flruggles in the laft cen- 
 tury with Charles thp Firft, and his deluded off- 
 spring, whofe guilt or misfortune it was to bcr 
 Jieve, that '* Divinity doth hedge a King,' wcvp 
 merely for the purpolb of prefcribing lipiits to 
 undefined prerogative. In \yas, in fadV, a con,- 
 tefl between dcfpotifm and libiertyj in which the 
 latter was as it ought to be, and as I trufl it ever 
 will be, triumphant ! It was, a matter of indiffe- 
 rence to our anceflors from what quarry the key- 
 il^ne was brought that bound the arch together ; 
 they felt no blind and fuperftitious attach;ment to 
 perfons or to names, and the '-efledlion that t^ie 
 means which placed the prcfcnt family on tlic 
 throne, placed themi alio ii> our hearts, is not 
 
 C a the
 
 ( .2 ) 
 
 the Icaft glorious of the many advantages which 
 his Majefty happily derives from the errors of his 
 predecelTors, and the troubles in the laft century. 
 The quarrel of our anceflors was not with mo- , 
 narchy, but with the monarch, whofe pride they 
 humbled, and whofe delinquencies they punilh-. 
 ed. Intricate as the navigation, and tempeftu- 
 ous as the ocean was, they did not wifh to cut the 
 rope and fend the boat adrift; yet, though it 
 was kept in tow, it was clearly their opinion that 
 the veflel in danger of fhipwreck fhould not be 
 impeded in its perilous courfe, by a fruitlefs en- 
 deavour to preferve what ought never to be pu^; 
 In competition with the cargo. 
 
 When princes become at once infolent, oppreA 
 live, and incorrigible, they fliould be degraded ^ 
 and difmiffed from a Ration they are no longer 
 worthy to occupy. It was not the office, but tho 
 man, that our gallant anceilors difliked ; yet, 
 though they had no averlion to the former, James 
 the Second might have difcover^d ir^ the cataf- 
 trophe of his father, and in his own haplefs def-^ 
 liny, that the fceptre is held by no other tenure 
 than opinion, and that it can always be with-^ 
 drawn at the pleafure of thofe who beftovv it-. 
 The prerogatives of the crown being afeertained 
 in 1688, there is certainly no longer any danger , 
 to be apprehended from the power of th^ fove- 
 rei^n. He mufl ^govern according to the Known
 
 ( 3 ) 
 
 and eflablifhed laws of the land. The tyranny 
 of an individual governing by his own arbitrary 
 will, has no longer an exiflence in this country ; 
 and as every ground of jealoufy in this refpedl 
 has been efFecSlually removed by the recognifed 
 limitations of the bill of rights ; it will, perhaps, 
 be inquired, what can poflibly excite any com- 
 motions in thefe kingdoms of fufficient magni- 
 tude to endanger the prefent order of things ? 
 Thofe who propofe fuch a queflion have yet to 
 learn, that difturbances rtiay arife in a flate from 
 other caufes than a wanton exertion of undefined 
 authority. Whenever the preffure of public 
 taxes is ilrongly felt, and ferioufly complained 
 of by the middling and lower orders of fociety, 
 as humiliating, vexatious, and burdenfome ; 
 whenever the expences of a country confume the 
 w^hole of its entire overtrained revenue, and 
 that thefe expences are known to be much greater 
 than are neceflary to defray the fair and honell 
 purpofes of government ; ^^vheneve^ it becomes 
 a matter of public notoriety that a confiderablc 
 portion of thefe expences is applied to anfvver 
 the claims of venality, or to maintain ufelefs 
 eftablilhments which impoverifli the Hate, while 
 they evidently tend to the corruption of private 
 and public morals ; whenever truths are deemed 
 criminal becaufe they are oJfTenlive, and that 
 well-intentioned admonitions to oeconomy and 
 reform, are received with ill-humour, and at- 
 tributed
 
 ( 4 ) 
 
 tributed to difafFe^lion ; whenever government, 
 deeeived into a belief of its omnipotence, exa6l5 
 an unqualified acquiefcence with its blunders an4 
 extortions as the criterion of loyalty, and im- 
 proving upon the relentlefs barbarity of Procruf-r 
 tes would ftretch the people to the full meafure 
 of its rapacity or ambition on an iron bed of all 
 dimenlions, every fober and dij^afBonate mau 
 will perceive with forrow and alarm, that a con-? 
 ducb fo criminal or indifcreet, muH ultimately 
 lead to revolt, and that a government conimits 
 fuicide, and becomes its own affaffin, whenever 
 its vexations force the people into infurrection. 
 But when to this criminality, or rather indifcretion^ 
 for I am unwilling to place to the account of 
 guilt, what may have refulted from folly or igr 
 norance, a marked indifference is fhewn by go- 
 vernment to public and private morals, under 
 the fallacious idea that a people becgme diffolutc 
 and corrupt, will be attentive only to their ple^- 
 fures ; when the hazard table and the counting- 
 lioufe alternately polfefs the merchant or fhop- 
 ieeper, and pimps, gamblers, and prize- 
 fighters, become the affbciates of peers and 
 miniflers of flate ; when every Ipecies of 
 vicious diflipation is conryved at by tna- 
 giftrates, venal from principle as well as in- 
 digence, and who are more folicitous to re- 
 ceive the miferable ftipends that feed and 
 clotlie them, than to xejjre^ the profligacy that 
 
 4 muit
 
 ( >5 ) 
 
 muil finally overwhelm them ; the danger af- 
 fumes a graver afpedl from its proximity, and 
 cannot be guarded againft with too much force or 
 vigilance. If to the evils refulting from a general 
 depravity of manners, fhould be added the pain- 
 ful and humiliating operation of taxes on the 
 middle and lower orders of fociety, combined 
 with the fcandalous indecorum of a man to whofe 
 fortunes they are to a certain degree attached, 
 every intelligent and candid mind will confefs, 
 that thefe accumulated mifchiefs will lead as ef- 
 fecSlually to a revolution as the wildefl efforts of 
 the wildeft defpotifm. I am very far from af- 
 ferting that the morals of this country arc arrived 
 at that deplorable flate of licentious degradation 
 which eradicates from the mind all fenfe of pri- 
 vate honour and public virtue, or that the taxes 
 are become fo intolerable to that part of the com- 
 munity which affords the beft fupport to govern- 
 ment, and whole morals are the lafl to be in- 
 fected by the taint of profligacy ; but though the 
 condu6t of thofe, who, bound by their high rank 
 and fplendid fortunes to give the beft example, 
 have unhappily given the worft, has not yet 
 reached that iie plus ultra in vice, which forbids 
 all hope of reclamation or amendment, it has a 
 manifeU tendency to that ruinous point, and 
 the progrefs has already been fulliciently great to 
 alarm even confidence itfelf. It is therefore 
 pardonable, if not laudable, in tiiofe who feel 
 
 this
 
 ( t& ) 
 
 this convl(^ion, and dread the effects of ati oir- 
 flinate perfeverance in wrongs to exert thei? 
 beft efforts to arreft, if poffible> an evil of fach 
 magnitude in its deflrudlive courfe, and prevent 
 an exploHon that muft prove fatal to millions. Ifc 
 is with this view, and no other, that I have ear-* 
 nellly befeeched thofe whofe duty it is to fuperin- 
 tend the befl: and dearefl interefts of fociety, to 
 examine with attention the ilate of the country ; 
 nor can they be too often, or too forcibly re- 
 minded, that a nation without morals travels 
 pofl hafte io deftrudlion. Whoever is im- 
 prefled with the importance of this fa6l, and 
 anxious to avoid its application to this happy fa- 
 voured ifland, mufl behold with infinite regret^ 
 that this truth, fo woefully confirmed by the ex- 
 tindion of monarchy in France, has made no 
 imprefiion on thofe who are mofi: interefled, to 
 take warning, and profit by the difaftrous event. 
 It mufi; furely be matter of equal forrow andfur- 
 prife, that men to whom it offers a leffon at once 
 fo terrible and infi:ru6livc, fliould remain infen- 
 lible to their danger, amidft " the wreck of mat^ 
 " ter and the crujli of worlds /" Is it that their 
 fenies, 
 
 *' Duller than the fat lueed 
 ** Tliat rots it/elf in eaft on Lethe's ivharf^* 
 
 requires to be ftruck upon with the force and ve- 
 hemence of a fledge hammer, to roufe their 
 
 fluggard
 
 ( 17 ) 
 
 fluggard minds from a ftupor as difhonourablc 
 to themfelveSj as it may eventually prove fatal to 
 others? If, influenced by an education, either 
 vicious or erroneous, and to which princes in 
 all ages have owed their deftru6lion, they fliould 
 count equally upon the virtue of forbearance, 
 and the exertions of force ; or, if difdaining all 
 medium, they Hiould prefer the dcfperate re- 
 medy of ruined gamefters, and flaking the re- 
 mainder of their fortunes on the caft of a die, 
 play double or quits, it may be an aS: of charity 
 to attempt to reclaim them from a deluflon fo 
 fatal, by reminding them of the fad defliny of 
 the Bourbons, to whom Europe, vexed, ha- 
 raflTed, and defolated by their intrigues, follies, 
 and infatuation, denies with almofl one accord, 
 afylum or fupport ! The fltuation of France, at 
 prefent, is precifely the fame as that of England 
 in 1688. The fole objed of her revolution, like 
 that of our's in the lafl: century, was to curb 
 and pinion tyranny ; and all the great infurrec- 
 lions in this country have been uniformly in fa- 
 vour of civil liberty ; but if any ferious tumult 
 jfhould again occur amongfl; us, it will be in fa- 
 vour of morals and oeconomy. Its obje(5l will be 
 to curb licentioufnefs and prodigality, and to re- 
 florc to the mofl: valuable part^of the community, 
 thofe comforts and that quiet which will have 
 been wrefled from them by oppreflive taxes, 
 (the baneful effeds of improvident councils) by 
 D the
 
 ( j8 ) 
 
 the exceflive dearnefs of all the neceflaries of 
 life, and by the expeniive mode of living, coun- 
 tenanced by the example of the higher orders, 
 and perhaps encouraged by the ftate itfelf, with 
 a view to render thofe dependent from poverty, 
 who might have refilled from virtue. The quef- 
 tion of what can fbake the internal peace and 
 quiet of this country, is of very wide aqd impor- 
 tant extent, and well deferves reflection. It in- 
 volves in it a vaft variety of very complicated 
 matter, connected not only with the honour, 
 profperity, and independence of the empire, 
 but with the domellic comfort and fecurity of in- 
 dividuals. 
 
 It is a queflion fo interefMiig at this moment, 
 and of fuch confiderable magnitude to pofterity, 
 that it behoves every man in thefe times of peril 
 and univerfal alarm, to difcufs it fully and delibe- 
 rately ; not in the tumult and wild uproar of 
 popular afiemblies ; not in clubs and field meet- 
 ings in the firft inftance, but in his clofet, 
 where the mind cannot be irritated, poifoned, or 
 inflamed by malice or mifreprefeutation ; where 
 it is free from every fpecies of infe('Hon, uncon- 
 taminated by the gangrene of prejudice, and un- 
 diflurbed by the tempefls of the paflions ; where 
 it can reafon and refled at leifure and in peace, 
 and where alone it can expedl: to marfhal its ideas 
 with accuracy, and decide with juftice. 
 
 The
 
 ( '9 ) 
 
 The comprehenlive and well informed mind 
 that goes into the clofet thus fortified and pre- 
 pared, with a view to reflect on the paft, and 
 meditate on the future deftiny of nations, with 
 fuffideiit vigour to behold undifmayed the vafl 
 changes that are in preparation, will find abun- 
 dant exercife for all its faculties, and be ftruck 
 at the portentous revolution that has already 
 taken place, not only in the different flates 
 which have been forced out of their politions 
 ''by the fubverfion of the French monarchy, but 
 in the minds of men ; for that is the revolution 
 which is the mofl formidable in its nature and in 
 its confequences, the progrefs of which it is the 
 duty of minillers to watch with all the vigi- 
 lance that alarm and danger infpire, and with 
 that prudence and magnanimity which know 
 when to yield without Jilhonour, and when to 
 refifl without defeat. Whoever examines the 
 prefent ftate of affairs on the continent, will per- 
 ceive that the fyftem by Avhich this country has 
 hitherto conducted itfelf in its relations with fo- 
 reign powers, muft undergo a full and entire 
 revifion ; and if the difaftrous events of the 
 prefent contefl fhould happily convince us of the 
 folly of fubfidiiing foreign princes, we fhall have 
 the lefs reafon to execrate the impudent fraud 
 and perfidy of the King of Pruflia, and ceafc 
 to lament a prodigality that has eventually 
 taught us wifdom and oeconomy. Our infular 
 D 2 lituation
 
 ( ^ ) 
 
 Situation exempts us from the neceflity, and pru- 
 dence fhould preferve us from the folly of fubfi- 
 diling foreign powers. 
 
 The hiftory of the late, as well as the prefent 
 War, proves the abfurdity and inutility of a fyf- 
 tem which has anfwered no other purpofe than 
 to adminifter to the pride, the avarice, or often- 
 tation of that clafs of beings who are the leafl en- 
 titled to veneration and refpedl. Of men who 
 hate and defpife us, while they live by our 
 bounty, or profit by our profulion, and who 
 (it may be faid, without much exaggeration,) 
 
 Owe all their flate, their raiment, and their food, 
 To the vile merchandife of human blood ! , 
 
 I do not mean to recommend the conduct of 
 France as worthy of our imitation in every in- 
 ftance, but however difgufting or mifchievous it 
 has been at different periods of the war, it is due 
 to her magnanimity to admire that courage and 
 fortitude which enabled her to relifl, and finally 
 to triumph over the mofl powerful confederacy 
 that ever exifled. 
 
 Thofe who are difpofcd to withhold their little 
 tribute of well-merited applaufe, to fuch wonder- 
 ful exertions and perfeverance, have yet to learn 
 that the juflice which is exacted, lofes half its 
 value, and the whole of the effc6l that ought to 
 
 flow
 
 ( i> ) 
 
 flow from good example. France alone has not 
 only refilled the combined force of Auftria, 
 Pruffia, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Holland, a part 
 of Germany, and Great Britain, but fhc has 
 compelled all her aflailants, without exception, 
 to fue to her either direcftly or indircdlly fol* 
 peace. France has obtained all thefe triumphs 
 without the aid of a lingle ally, that was either 
 difpofed, or had the ability to take part in the 
 quarrel ; and as France has fully demonftratcd 
 by her unexampled achievements, the falfehood 
 of treaties and the nonfenfe of alliances, it is to be 
 hoped that adminiftration will profit by the woe- 
 ful but inftru6live leffon they have received^ 
 and clofe the account for ever with Landgraves 
 and Ele6lors. It is not, however, to a change of 
 fyftem in regard to the continental powers that 
 the minifter mull confine himfelf, the reform 
 mufl be o;eneral, and extend to domeftic as well 
 as to foreign politics, if he wilhes, which by the 
 bye cannot well be doubted, to preferve the peace 
 of the country. When the deftiny of millions is 
 at flake, there is equal cruelty and guilt in hav- 
 ing recourfe to fallacy ; nor can it be too feri- 
 oufly lamented, that while one party holds out 
 the mofl pofitive alfurances of national profperity, 
 with the no lefs pofitive afTarances of an happy 
 ifTue to the contefi in which we are engaged, 
 that the other fhould magnify each difaflrous 
 event, however trifling and accidental, into an 
 I irretrievable
 
 ( " ) 
 
 irretrievable calamity, and aflert that the fc- 
 fources of the country are exhaufted, and that 
 we have no refuge from bankruptcy and ruin, 
 but In an immediate peace, however fhort its 
 duration, or degrading its condition. It is im- 
 poffible to argue from either of thefe premifes ; 
 they are neither of them founded in fa6l, nor 
 does it redound to the credit of minifters, or of 
 their opponents, that they Ihould have departed 
 fo widely from truth, in order to difcredit each 
 other in the public opinion. The confequences 
 refulting from declarations and ftatements fo dia- 
 metrically oppolite to each other, muft not only 
 be delulion, but productive of much animolity 
 and ill humour ; and if the objcdt of that delu- 
 lion is to obtain the confidence of the people, 
 the condudl of both parties is extremely reprehen- 
 lible, and cannot be too feverely cenfured ; for if 
 the oppolition pofTefTed that credit with the na- 
 tion, which is due to men whofe province it is 
 to fuperintend the executive power, much feri- 
 ous mifchief might refult from ftatements fo di- 
 re61:ly contrary to each other, and particularly at 
 a time when the force, magnitude, and proxi- 
 mity of the danger that threatens us, call loudly 
 and imperioufly for energy and union. Every 
 refpetl is due to the rank, talents, and attain- 
 ments of the noble Lord who has publifhed a 
 fpeech in anfwer to that of the Marquis of 
 Lanfdown. His means of information are cer- 
 tainly
 
 in) 
 
 tainly great, nor is it meant to queflion the 
 fidelity of his different ftatements, when I alTert 
 that the application of them is not always fair, 
 and that I am afraid his zeal has been greater 
 than his difcretion. There are alfo other conli- 
 derations which cannot be unknown to his Lord- 
 Ihip, that expofe him to the fufpicion of hav- 
 ing departed from the candor he profelfes, and 
 ought certainly to have obferved. Every fpe- 
 cies of delulion in the prefent lituation of the 
 country is wrong; it leads to a fecurity that 
 may prove fatal in the event, and to diflemble 
 under fiich circumftances is in fadl: treachery to 
 the nation. The more honefl part would be to 
 come forward and own difficulties that are con- 
 tinually augmenting and cannot long be con- 
 cealed. The more manly part would be to meet 
 the danger, and not fhun it by Ikulking behind 
 Venal majorities until an explolion involves a.]\ 
 parties in one common ruin. 
 
 It is almoft impoffible that Lord Auckland, 
 with the lligma attached to his political chara6ler, 
 Ihould be thought impartial, and the fufpicion is 
 rather flrengthened than weakened by the pub- 
 licity of his future expectations and his a6lual 
 lituation with the minifter. The ftatement given 
 by his Lordfhip of the price of flocks in 1783 
 and 1796 is fallacious; the periods were neitlier 
 exactly taken nor fairly feleded. 
 
 At
 
 ( n ) 
 
 At the former epoch the funds had experienced 
 their loweft ilate of depreilion, and unlefs his 
 lordfhip can alTure us that they will not defcend 
 during the prefent conteil below the price they 
 bore at the latter period, it would, have been 
 more prudent to have been iilent. It would alfo 
 have been more candid to have affigned tlie true 
 caufe of the difference of price in 17 S3 and 
 1796 : and as the caule is no fecret, the conclu- 
 iions he has drawn from the difference are the 
 lefs excufeable. The extreme attention which 
 Mr. Pitt has invariably fhewn to the tj-ade and. 
 commerce of the country deferves the highefl 
 commendation, and it is a juftice due to his zeal 
 and exertions to acknowledge, that his unre- 
 mitting efforts to reftore public credit were 
 crowned with that fuccefs which ought ever to 
 await on great ability well diredted. The com- 
 parative high price of our funds to what they 
 were in the American war proceeds in a great 
 meafure from events which could not be fore- 
 ieen, and which were never expected. It is 
 merely a cafualty on which a corre6t and intelli- 
 gent ftatefman would difdain to reckon, and 
 which a virriter jealous of his reputation for faga- 
 . city and rcdlitude would never have produced 
 .as an argument of national profpcrity. This 
 matter deferves elucidation, and if Lord Auck- 
 land, in attempting to impofe upon the country, 
 Ihould really haye impofed upon the minifter, it
 
 { ^5 ) 
 
 is an aggravation of his guilt that he fhould have 
 betrayed his friend and benefadlor into an error, 
 which, conne6led with other meafures of govern- 
 ment, may have a ferious efte6l on the general 
 interefls of the country. It is almoft needlefs to 
 obferve, that France and England were the two 
 great powers whofe credit flood higheft in the 
 eflimation of foreign nations, and that they ob- 
 forbed a very conliderable part of that fuperflu- 
 6us wealth which conftantly overflowing from an 
 immenfeand wide extended commerce, in an abun- 
 dance that required other drains and refervoirs 
 than what trade could furnifh, was vefted in the 
 public funds of both kingdoms at an intereft far 
 inferior to the profits arifing from commerce in 
 preference to the rifque and inconvenience of leav- 
 ing thefe enormous fums a ufelefs flagnate mafs 
 without circulation. Some idea may perhaps be 
 formed of the faith of foreign nations in the 
 French funds, and of the extent of their inveft- 
 ments, from the city of Geneva alone receiving 
 the fum of eighteen millions of livres annually 
 from France as the interefl due on its capital; 
 the geographical pofition of France and her ex- 
 tenfive intercourfe with all the flates of Europe, 
 joined to that politenefs and urbanity of man- 
 ners which marked all ranks and defcriptions of 
 people as completely as if they had ifTued from 
 the fame mint and been coined by the fame dye, 
 were ftrong attradions, which, contralled with 
 E the
 
 ( 6 ) 
 
 the lefs Engaging and fometimes uncouth as wdl 
 as infolent manners of this country, had every 
 advantage that could be expelled from more 
 fohd but lefs plealing qualities by which that 
 confidence and preference were obtained, for po- 
 litenefs and affability, which the blunt rudenefs 
 of artlcfs integrity had vainly imagined were due 
 only to itfelf. At the conclufion of the late war 
 a decided preference was given to the funds of 
 France, and it became at that period a very fe- 
 rious objecf with the Court of Verfailles to im- 
 prefs all the fiates of Europe with an idea that 
 the bankruptcy of Great Britain was inevitable. 
 * The government that had recourfe to an ex- 
 pedient fo difhonourable, in order to ruin a na- 
 tion with which it was no longer in hoflility, 
 has been woefully punifhed for its bafenefs and 
 perfidy, while thofe who confided in the faith of 
 fuch affurances^ have been beggared by tbeif 
 credulity. 
 
 Public credit in France was completely anni- 
 hilated by the revolution, and to this event, as 
 terrible in its confequences as it was totally un- 
 forefeen and unexpe(51:ed, may be afcribcd in a 
 great mcafure the prefent price of our funds. On 
 the diflblutioh of the French monarchy, dating 
 k from the 14th July 1789, the fuperfluous 
 wealth of Europe flowed impetuoully into this 
 country, and thofe who forefaw that the tempefl 
 
 was 
 
 * V^idtE in tht Appcnlix..
 
 ( 27 ) 
 
 was not at the highefl in France, or who were 
 perfonally alarmed for their own immediate 
 fafety, fought an afyhim from tumult and dan- 
 ger, perhaps from jufiice, under the mild and 
 equitable dominion of the Britifh government. 
 Thefe fugitives brought what property their 
 fright enabled them to colle6l, and the fums that 
 were afterwards tranfmitted at different periods, 
 until the war put an end to all > amicable inter- 
 courfe between the two countries, have been very 
 confiderable. This is one of the caufes that pre- 
 vented our funds from feeling a depreffion limilar 
 to that which they experienced in the American 
 war ; but what has mofl contributed to keep up 
 the price was the great influx of money not only 
 from thofe nations which formerly from igno-r 
 ranee, convenience, or political motives pre- 
 ferred the French funds to thole of England, but 
 from thofe powers which have alfo been drawn 
 into the terrible vortex of the revolution, Lord 
 Auckland is too well acquainted with the princi-t 
 pies of trade not to know that the value of any 
 commodity depends in a great meafure upon the 
 demand there may be for it in the market, np 
 fair exception can be taken to his Itatement qf 
 the prefent price of the funds, if he had properly 
 accounted for it, and which was cxpcd^ed from 
 his candor. No man is better veiled in the prinr 
 ciples of commerce than his Lordihip, it would 
 te illiberal as well as unjuft to. v/ithhold from
 
 ( 28 ) 
 
 him a tribute that is To unqueftionably his due, 
 nor can it be denied, that whenever he is candid 
 and explicit in proportion to his talents and 
 knowledge, his affertions become authorities 
 from which it would argue ignorance or imper- 
 tinence to appeal. Lord Auckland muft be fen^ 
 lible that the comparative high price of flocks is 
 the efFed: of accident, the advantage of which 
 to public credit can only be temporary, nor can 
 he be ignorant, that whenever peace is happily 
 reftored to affli6led Europe, other confidences 
 will arife, and other nations obtain a portion of 
 that wealth which the unfettled ftate of the con- 
 tinent, and the circumflances of the times had 
 configned for greater fecurity to his country. 
 This acknowledgment was expedted from a man 
 who profefled to be candid. His Lordfhip is 
 yet to learn, perhaps, that it is difrefpedlful to 
 leave off in the middle of a llory ; he fhould 
 either finifh, or not begin it : Lord Auckland in 
 his diplomatic character may have found it ne- 
 ceffary to deal in half truths and half fentences. 
 The policy of different nations in their tranf- 
 . ftdtions with each other may require fuch pre- 
 cautions, but as tbcy belong exclufively au de- 
 fartement des affaires etrangereSy it is to the 
 foreign office they fhould be confined, and his 
 Jx)rdlhip will do well in future to leave them 
 where he foimd them. When he a6ls minifte^ 
 rially all refponfibility is in a great degree re- 
 moved*
 
 ( 29 ) 
 
 moved, and he may claim indulgence even for a 
 grofs indecorum of language, but in the prefent 
 inftance he has come forward, not in the cha- 
 ra<5ler of an envoy pompclled to fpeak as he is 
 inflru(^ed by thofe who fent him, but in tlie 
 more dignified character of a Peer of parliament, 
 as a legijQator, by whom candor and truth (much 
 better fupporters to his arms than any he can obr. 
 tain from the heralds) fhould be prized as attri- 
 butes. If any thing could render his obligatioa 
 to refpe(5l them more facred, it is the circum- 
 ftance of his having come voluntarily forward, 
 uninvited and unfolicited, for the avowed pur- 
 pofe of reproving a departure from them in 
 others. When a man accufes another of mif- 
 reprefentation, it is doubly incumbent on him 
 to be fcrupuloufly cxa6l himfelf, nor is it per- 
 fe6lly honeft to miflead us under the pretence of 
 informing us. The Marquis of Lanfdown may 
 have been wrong in his ftatements, and admit- 
 ting the facft. Lord Auckland was under the 
 greater obligation to be accurate, when he arofe 
 for the avowed purpofe of correcting the errors 
 of his Lordfhip, and giving an example of can- 
 dor. A fa6l that has been communicated to me 
 relative to the price of land by a very qld and 
 intimate acquaintance, on whofe veracity I can 
 depend, would authorife a conclulion very dif- 
 ferent to that which his Lordfhip has drawn, if I 
 were difpofed to avail myfelf of the advantage it 
 
 afibrds
 
 ( 3 ) 
 
 alTords me. But it is not triumph that I feek 
 vanity and ambition never had at any period of 
 my life any very firong hold on my mind, and 
 they have lefs now than ever. 
 
 In fubmitting thefe facSls and reflexions to my 
 country, I have no other obje6l in view than to 
 promote its interefls according to my compre- 
 henlion, or rather according to my conception of 
 things, thofe interefts cannot be properly fecured 
 unlefs they are perfcdly underftood, and to im* 
 prefs the nation with an idea of profperity and 
 fecurity at the very inftant that an obftinate per- 
 feverance in error will fpeedily and infallibly 
 produce its deftrudlion, is a fallacy of fo dange- 
 rous and criminal a nature, that it ought to be 
 inftantly refuted and cannot b^ too feyerely tct 
 probated. 
 
 It was a limilar delufion that finally conducted 
 Louis the XVIth to the block, and his family to 
 beggary.* There is in the fad fate of that haplefs 
 
 It is a well-knpwn fa(fl, that the gentleman who arrived 
 at Verfailles on the 14th of July, 1789, with an account of 
 the defif uftion of the Baftile, to whom fright gave fpeed, was 
 treated with marked contempt by the whole Court, and the 
 information confidered as too improbable to be true. All the 
 thanks he received were, ce rCeft pas >vraif Monfieur, which is 
 tantamount to yeu lir^ Sir. Such was their infatuation even 
 when the game was up. I appeal to M. de Breteuil to fay if 
 this was not the h(\. 
 
 z monarch.
 
 V 31 ) 
 
 monarch, and In the degradation of his bankrupt 
 profligate court, volumes of wholefome inftruc- 
 tion to kings, miniflers, and people, and above 
 all to thofe ruthlefs fpendlhrift princes, whofe 
 fall and extirpation, if they could fall ALONE^ 
 would neither excite pity nor regret ! If how- 
 ever Lord Auckland has made the moft of the 
 documents to which he has had accefs, with no 
 other view than to enliven and animate us to the 
 mofl vigorous exertions in a conteft the moft 
 perilous of any that have occurred iince the days 
 of Carthage, it is but fair to acknowledge, that 
 the exaggeration lofes all its criminality in con- 
 iidcration of its motive, and that it is at all 
 events lefs mifchievous in its immediate confe- 
 quences than the Itatement of fa6ls which, with 
 an air of malicious triumph over the fuppofcd 
 incapacity of the minifter, defcribes the country 
 to be on the verge of inevitable deiirudlion, 
 linking under the enormous preffure of accumu- 
 lating difficulties, and no longer able to oppofe 
 an enemy with whom it is adlually at war for all 
 that is valuable or "delirable in pofTcflion. If it 
 is deferving of cenfure to hold out the profpedt 
 of better times to a people too apt to defpond in 
 adverhty ; if it is criminal to infpire them with 
 hope, and excite them to frefh efforts in a war 
 probably of life and death, with a people whofe 
 brilliant exploits are ill calculated to infpire them 
 with fentiments of moderation, it is furely much 
 
 more
 
 ( J2 ) 
 
 inore criminal to encourage that defpondenc}^, 
 and to unnerve that arm raifed to defend itfelf in 
 the moment of danger. What is this exaggerated 
 account of our preffures and misfortunes, but an 
 invitation to the enemy to invade us, with a 
 pofitive afTurance of being able to accomphlli 
 our utter extin(5lion ? 
 
 What is it, in fa(5>, but to reprefent us bound 
 hand and foot, weak, crippled, and debilitated, 
 incapable of any farther refiftance, and ready to 
 receive the law from a nation that erroneoufly 
 imagines it is her interefl to annihilate us ? It is 
 far from my intention to attribute any fuch mo- 
 tive to the ingenious and elaborate author of 
 *' Additional Fads'* No man can ellimate 
 more highly or more fincerely than I do, the 
 very great abilities of Mr. Morgan ; neither do 
 I mean to undervalue the induftry Vk'ith._ which 
 he has entered into the whole detail c3^8jj|pub- 
 lic debt. His arithmetical calculati^^iS^o infi- 
 nite credit to his genius and application ; they 
 prove that his mind, vigorous and comprehen* 
 iive, is profoundly veried in the fcience of finance, 
 but notwithf^anding his unqueflionable claim to 
 the juftice I have rendered to his talents and at- 
 tainments, I cannot but think his pamphlet ex- 
 tremely injudicious and ill-timed, and that how- 
 ever correal his ftatcments may be, they are more 
 likely to produce a bad effedt than a good one. 
 
 I do
 
 ( 33 ) 
 
 I do not perceive how it can poflibly have any 
 other operation. If credit is given to the melan- 
 choly picture drawn by Mr. Morgan of our in- 
 ternal fituation, it mufl occafion diflruft, alarm, 
 and defpondency at home, in the fame proportion 
 that it infpires contidence, courage, and a fpirit 
 of enterprize abroad. If Mr. Morgan is lincere 
 in his wifh for peace, and I have no reafon to 
 doubt it, the warmefl of his admirers, and I clafs 
 myfelf of the number, muft confefs that he has 
 precifely adopted the very means the motl likely 
 to prevent it, and by preventing it,, he may pof- 
 libly accelerate the very ruin that he predicts 
 and laments. If the French confide in his ftate- 
 ments, it is not likely that they will enter into 
 negotiations for peace on the only terms upon 
 which one independent nation can treat with 
 another. 
 
 If our ftrength is finally exhaufled ; if we are 
 really arrived at that wretched ftate of diltrefs 
 and debility which lead to bankruptcy and di(^ 
 folution if the happy influence of peace, com- 
 bined with the efforts of the moft vigorous and 
 rigid oeconomy can alone refcue us from impend- 
 ing ruin, it was furely imprudent to reveal a 
 truth pregnant with luch important confequcnce 
 to our happinefs and independence, to thofe who 
 have it in their power to make a very terrible ufe 
 of it. If the combined influence of peace and 
 F CEConomy
 
 ( 34 ) 
 
 t&tonomy can alone fave us from perdition, it is 
 not likely that France, apprifed of the fadi, and 
 bent on our deftruclion, will difregard the infor- 
 ination, or neglect an opportunity fo favourable 
 to her wilhes. It is not likely that the power 
 from whom we muft abfolutely receive one of 
 the means of falvation, and that thinks itfelf in-f 
 terelted in our extindlion, will negleft the occa- 
 ^on our impotency offers to accompliih our 
 TfUllX. 
 
 1 feel affured that Mr. Morgan was not aware 
 when he publilhed his Facls, of the mifchiefs they 
 n^ight produce. It ceriainly did not occur to 
 |iim at the time that he was prolonging the 
 ealarpiti^s he deplores, and enfuring the calamity 
 he would avert, by a ftatement which the nearer it 
 approaches to truth, the more criminal and dire- 
 ful its efFedls will be ; what is it in fa6t but en- 
 couraging a nation, inviiKible almofl from en- 
 thufiafm and animated by the fplendor of her 
 triumphs, to purfue with unabated vigor her ca- 
 reer of qnexampled glory, with the certainty of 
 adding in the event the only country Ihe dreads, 
 to the exhilarating catalogue of her rich tTQ* 
 phies ? ,.; .,,., 
 
 ' i ' -' ' 
 
 If the French are indifpofed to treat with qs, 
 the expofure of our weaknefs and infolvency ia 
 ^ C^lcjyil^te4 to ohapgq thftt di^poiition their 
 
 f fentiments
 
 ( 35 ) 
 
 fentiments are not likely to become pacific, 
 while they believe us unequal to the profecution 
 of the contcft, and as peace cannot be obtained 
 without the mutual accord of both parties, who- 
 ever endeavours to prevent either of them from 
 liilening to reafonable terms of accommodation 
 is decidedly an enemy to both. 1 certainly do 
 not conlider Mr. Morgan in this light, I acquit 
 him of every fuch delign ; but his writings will 
 have that tendency in proportion to the credit 
 they obtain in France, and to the degree of re- 
 fentment with which fhe may be animated 
 againfl us. It is not crime that I reproach Mr. 
 Morgan with, but imprudence. If he is not 
 criminal, he is indifcreet, and his indifcretion is 
 unhappily of a nature to produce the very worft 
 efre6ls that can poffibly arife from the moft 
 atrocious guilt. I am concerned that a gentle- 
 man fo profoundly verfed in the fubjedt on which 
 he has written with very great and evident 
 ability, Ihould have been fo injudicious as to give 
 publicity to what muft operate to the difadvan* 
 tage of his country by diftufing a diflruft of its 
 own flrength and refources, at the fame time 
 that it infpires her enemies with the hopes of an 
 eafy conqueft. Such muft be the efFedl of the 
 pamphlet, if it is read and believed, and my re- 
 gret is augmented at beholding a mind at once 
 enlightened and benevolent, perverted and jaun- 
 diced by the fpirit of party. The minifter is fre- 
 F 2 quently
 
 ( 36 ) 
 
 quently treated with an afpcrity that Ihews there 
 is foraething perfonal between him and the au^- 
 thor. 
 
 It IS poffible that the latter may liave had rea- 
 ibn to complain, yet whatever offence may have 
 been given by the former, either to Mr. Morgan 
 or to his venerable relation, whofe virtue and 
 talents were at once exemplary and uleful, and 
 whofe memory muft ever be dear to every man 
 who values wifdom united with the ftridlefl in- 
 tegrity ; I Hill aver, that it was injudicious and 
 impertinent to the queltion before us, to blend 
 private refentment with public complaint. It 
 was extremely wrong to have fhewn any animo- 
 fity to the yyian, at the inftant that the capacity 
 of the Minifter was arraigned. In proportion as 
 the Author w^as influenced by a wifh to promote 
 the interefts of his country, the more fludioufly 
 he fhould have abftained from every appearance 
 of perfonal diflike, anger, and refentment. 
 
 Whatever his motives may have been in pub- 
 lifhing his llatemcnt, its credit for corrednefs 
 becomes imj^eaclied by its alperity ; its purpofe 
 will mofl probably be defeated by the little tem- 
 perance he has fhewn in the difcuflion of mat- 
 ters which do not admit either of declamation 
 or conjecture, and which, ought to have been 
 
 treated
 
 ( 37 ) 
 
 treated with the gravity and prcciiion of mathe- 
 matics. The mind, involved in all the nice in- 
 tricacies of numbers, where the fevcreft and 
 moft unremitting attention is required to feel 
 their force, and comprehend their various com- 
 binations, cannot be well pleafcd on being in- 
 terrupted by impertinent farcafais which prove 
 7ioth'ifig, aiid which are alike unworthy of the 
 Author and of the fubje^l. It is owing to this 
 caufe, jointly with the imprudence of publifh- 
 ing fach a ftatement at this time, tliat the purity 
 of Mr. Morgan's motive has been impeaclied, 
 and the accuracy of his ftatement denied. Nor 
 is it an argument of his impartiality, to brand 
 indifcriminately every man with being in the 
 pay of the Treafury who differs from him. 
 T'here is a want of candour in fuch reproaches 
 that facts do not require to give them force. *'Is 
 a difference in opinion with Mr. Morgan a proof 
 of venality, or is it liberal to infer, thii^t the 
 man, who is not convinced by the arguments 
 advanced by Mr. Morgan, muft be a miniite- 
 rialift r Is there no medium between the ex- 
 tremes, and muft every man who writes on pub- 
 lic affairs yoke himfelf, flase-like, to one party 
 or the other, go in harnefs at their good plea- 
 fure, and pace in no other track than what they 
 point out ? That there are Swifs writers as well 
 as Swifs of another defcription, is certainly true, 
 and a truth that is fcrioufly to be lamented, 
 I becaufe 
 
 . ' I* 1.
 
 C 38 > 
 
 bccaufe talents fhould honour, not degrade the 
 pofleflbr, and be employed, not to hoodwink 
 mankind and prejudice their minds, but to en- 
 lighten, confole, and benefit them. Such arc the 
 fes to which talents ought to be dire6ted : fuch 
 the applications that fhould be given to enlarged 
 underflandings, cultivated and improved by 
 fludy and experience. But though there are 
 men who proilitute the nobleU gifts of nature ;* 
 though there are men who take their pens to 
 market and meanly offer their fervices at one or 
 the other houfe of call, willing on all occafions, 
 and even foi* the bafefl purpofes, to furrender 
 their judgments, and facrifice their principles 
 to their interefl. I feel afTured that Mr. Mor- 
 gan is not of that defcription ; and while I la- 
 ment that a mind fo comprehenlive fht>uld have 
 been warped by perfonal refentment, I honour 
 its vigour, and anticipate much future good to 
 the country from its exertions. It is not, how- 
 ever, from the commerce, or the revenues of 
 this country being a million more or a million 
 lefs at one period than at another, that can ma- 
 terially afTedl the general interefts of this country, 
 or decide its dcfliny. Thefe flu6luations are 
 unavoidable. ^They refult from the very nature 
 of commerce, and as revenue is the efFedl, and 
 not the caufe of commerce, the former muft ever 
 partake of the fortunes of the latter. While 
 
 this 
 * Vide Appendix a.
 
 ( 39 ) 
 
 this is preferved to us, all apprehenlions for the 
 fafety of the other are childifh. 
 
 It Is a wife and faithful application of the re- 
 venue that demands our vigilance and folicitude. 
 The flate has nothing to fear from the temporary 
 trifling flu6Kiations of commerce, but its irreco- 
 verable depreflion, or total extin61ion. While 
 the markets are open, and our manufa61:ures are 
 in demand, the country muft not only be fol- 
 vent, but powerful, at leail as far as ftrength is 
 conne6ted with finance ; and if the common 
 fluctuations of trade admitted of any certain rule 
 of judging, the arguments they afford on the 
 prefent occaflon favour mofl potently fome of 
 the conclulions which Lord Auckland has drawn, 
 and banifh mofl decidedly and efTeCtually from 
 the mind every idea of national bankruptcy. 
 The exertions of the country are flupendous; 
 they certainly exceed the efforts of paft ages, and 
 compared with thofe of former wars, mufl flrikc 
 the mind with wonder ; but enormous and un- 
 exampled as our exertions have been, our 
 ilrength is far from being exhauflcd. There are 
 yet very great and abundant refources in the 
 country ; refources fully adequate to the pref- 
 fure of the times, and which, if temperately 
 called forth, and judicioufly applied, will enable 
 us to relifl with a certainty of fuccefs, whatever 
 |he enemy, even in the delirium of his triumphs, 
 
 dare
 
 ( 40 ) 
 
 dare oppofe to the loyalty and valour of the 
 Britifh nation. It is not. from a deficiency of 
 means that we fhall become bankrupts and beg- 
 gars, but from a wanton abufe of that ftrength, 
 and an improvident expenditure of thofe means. 
 That ftrength and thofe means, to have an ef- 
 fect, fhould be concentrated, if poflible, into 
 a focus, and if this plain, fcientific truth had 
 been attended to in the commencement of the 
 conteft, the great exertions of the prefent mo- 
 ment would have been unneceJTary. It is not 
 from a trifling incrcafe or decreafe of our annual 
 exports and imports that any ferious calamity can 
 ariie. The mifchiefs with which we are threa- 
 tened will not refult from the variations of fo- 
 reign markets, nor from our manufactures being 
 m greater demand in Germany than in Italy, but 
 from our numerous cxpenfive, and in fome in- 
 ftances, unncceifary eflablifhments, and our no 
 lefs numerous linecures, the mifcrable expedi- 
 ency to which indolent or incapable minifters 
 were formerly driven in order to govern tlm 
 country, and retain their employments, and to 
 which their fucceflbrs, with better intentions and 
 without fuch excufes, have unhappily adhered, 
 rather than expofe themfeJves to the oppofi- 
 tion, or hazard the -refentment of thofe whom 
 it is at all times.e^fi^Qt tO'/7?^thani^oi^'i?ii^j?, . > 
 : v j.;:i.v /c: : a 'io ytaixJii.:) i; Jt;// i^iln (jt'^.n 
 
 i-.iiunii.i L.d)o mmiihh jdj tii uuv^ yu^jf^i .'il||.
 
 ( 41 ) 
 
 It IS from the venality and profligacy of indi- 
 viduals, who ought to have nobler fcntiments, 
 and a conduct more correct, that we have the 
 moil to fear, and if I forbear expatiating on the 
 confequences that muft inevitably refult from 
 this profuiion, in complaifance to infatiate va- 
 nity or avarice, it is that the tafk is ungrateful 
 and would be thought inlidious by thofe who 
 are fuppofed to have joined the Miniller, lefs 
 from a fenfe of common danger than for the pur- 
 pofe of obtaining the patronage, emoluments, 
 and confiderations attached to high official fitu- 
 ations, 
 
 I deny that the country is playing its lafl 
 ftroke, as Lord | Auckland has imprudently af- 
 ferted, or that it is at its laft gafp, as Mr. Mor- 
 gan pretends, provided that the Minifler refolv- 
 ed on right, dares fhake off the vile trammels 
 of fav^lion and cabal, and truft to the refources 
 of his own mind, to his country, and to God 
 for fupport. I deny that the nation, vexed, ha- 
 rafled, and milled as fhe has been, is irrecover- 
 ably loft, provided that the Minifter has the virtue 
 to come forward and adopt thofe reforms, and 
 infift upon thofe retrenchments, which policy 
 and common fenfe point out as the only means 
 of falvation, and which are as pra6licab!e as they 
 are known to be expedient and equitable. If 
 Mr. Pitt has the courage to emancipate himfelf 
 
 G frora
 
 ( 41 ) 
 
 from the dirgraceful fhackles which have curved 
 and reftridled his wcU-intentioncd march^ and 
 which thofc who itroft refpedted him have moft 
 lamented ; he will immediately find, aiid the 
 nation will as inftantly feel the happiell efFedis 
 arife from a liberation too long poftponed, and 
 worthy of the reputation attached to his name. 
 By a proper exertion of the vafl: powers of his 
 mind, by a manly and dignified rejection of the 
 pitiful means by which men with' corrupt hearts 
 and pitiful minds imagine th-e complicated inte- 
 refis of a great empire arc to be condu(5led, he 
 will become fuch a miniiter as the exigencies of 
 tlie moment require ; and which the fatal 
 crooked policy, that has influenced our councils 
 of late, has rendered indiipenfably neceflar)' t(^ 
 enable us to meafure baclc. our ground and reco- 
 ver the pofition we have lofi. It is the mofi: ef- 
 fedlual, perhaps the only means of infufing new 
 life and vigour into a conftitution, enfeebled, 
 not through , any inherent defe61s in itfelf, but 
 from the folly and turpitude of thofe who have 
 abuled and per^'crted its befl mllitutions and 
 vvifefl provifions to the woril of purpofes ; but 
 if the favourable opportunity fhould be loft by 
 timidity or delay 
 
 If Mr. Pitt, alarmed at the'magiiitude of the 
 danger before him, or from diftruft of his own 
 powers, Ihould prefer temporizing with men to 
 
 whom
 
 < 4^ ) 
 
 whom he ought to give the law, lie will cxppfc 
 liis country to the heavicft of calamities, and 
 trifle with his ownfafety; he will find himfclf 
 loft paft redemption, and eventually fall, per- 
 haps, the haplefs victim of his own pufillanimity. 
 Something more than ten years are elapfed, 
 flnce I took occafion, in fome letters publicly 
 addrefied to a perfon, whom it would be pollu- 
 tion to mention, and who, in addition to our 
 other misfortunes, appears to be as loll to all 
 fcnfe of Ihame, as he is infenlible to all fcnfe of 
 virtue, that every new tax is an advatice towards 
 a revQlution ; and this is a truth that cannot be 
 too often enforced upon the notice of thofe who 
 have moil to apprehend, and the motl to lofe 
 from fuch an event. It is impoffible that any 
 tax, however dire6l and trifling it may be, can 
 have a flmple operation ; every man feeks to in- 
 demnify himfelf, for what the ftate takes from 
 him, by fome means or other ; arkd wdiatevcr 
 the obje6l taxed may be, it will ultimately af- 
 fecl, in a greater or lelfer degree, all thofe ar- 
 ticles which arc indifpenfably neceffary to the 
 fupport of animal exillence. Every tax under 
 the prefent enormous load of public debt has 
 an infectious quality. Its contagion pervades 
 and corrodes the whole fyflem of finance, and 
 its accumulating force, like tlie multiplying 
 powers in mechanics, fet calculation at defiance ; 
 while men find the means of indemnifying them- 
 
 G a fclvcs
 
 ( 44 ) 
 
 felves with more than ufurious intereft for what 
 they contribute, by enhancing the price of the 
 commodities which they Tend, or in the more 
 laudable refources of felf-denial and economy, 
 the prefTure will not be felt to any alarming or 
 very painful extent, but the inflant that the va- 
 lue of the article bears no proportion to its price, 
 the means of indemnity are mofl: woefully dimi- 
 nifhed, and the tax fails in its effe6t. It will 
 not only counteradl its own purpofe, but be- 
 come a mifchief to the ftate, by expoiing the 
 poverty of its refources, the incapacity of its mi" 
 niiler or the tjTanny of its government. 
 
 This fa(5l cannot be better illuftrated than by 
 recurring to the late tax on port wine, any ad- 
 ditional impoil on that article would mofl pro- 
 bably amount to a prohibition, and when men 
 are compelled to reliriquifh what they have long 
 ceafed to conlider as a luxurj^, their loyalty is 
 apt to give way to their feelings ; it is then that 
 the reign of clamour commences : and this cla- 
 mour will afTumc a very fcrious afpedt whenever 
 the firil neceffaries of life are beyond the eafy 
 reach of the laborious part of the community. 
 It is the nature of evil in general to propagate 
 itfelf without tlie intervention of fexual enjoy- 
 ment. Clamour is of this defcription It is the 
 forerunner of revolt, as revolt is the precurfor 
 of a revolution ; and ^ wife government, fenfiblc 
 
 of
 
 ( 45 ) 
 
 of this important truth, will ever bear in faith- 
 ful remembrance, that whatever provokes cla* 
 mour, juftifies in fome degree the confequences. 
 If nothing was to be taken from individuals but 
 what the exigencies of the ftate, or even its pro- 
 fullons required, the burthen would fcarce be 
 felt ; but we are not only called upon to admi- 
 niiler to the neceffities of government, but to the 
 avarice and rapacity of the merchant or trader, 
 to whom the opening of the budget, or what is 
 ftill worfe, a calamitous event is very often the 
 fource of fortune or of wealth. Thefe men ia 
 general double every tax that Parliament ira- 
 pofes ; in fome inttances they more than qua- 
 druple it, and as the inconfiftencies of mankind 
 appear to have no limits, and their forbearance 
 pn fome occafions keeps pace with their abfurdi- 
 ties, they clamour and revolt at a folitary far 
 thing levied by the legiflture, while they fubmit 
 without murmuring to the mercilefs exactions of,, 
 Shopkeepers, and allow the avarice and rapacity 
 pf trade to pillage-them with impunity. 
 
 But the moft ferious evil that has refulted from 
 the rapid increafe of taxes^ and the increafed 
 price of all the immediate necefTaries of life, is 
 the impoverifhed ftate to which their baneful 
 influence has reduced all thofe whofe incomes 
 extend from fifty to five hundred pounds a year. 
 The people comprifed within thefe two fums, 
 4 ar^
 
 < 46 ) 
 
 are very numerous, and they are no lefs formic, 
 dable from their numbers than from their cha- 
 racters. They not only polTefs coUedively the 
 grcateft portion of the wealth of the country, but 
 by far the greatell portion of rectitude. There is 
 infinitely lefs vice and profligacy in the middling 
 ranks of life, than in^ the higheft and in the 
 loweft. 
 
 The firft of thefe are apt to claim an exemp- 
 tion from the obligation of morality, in confe- 
 quence of that arrogance which fortune and high 
 birth are fometimes apt to engender ; and what 
 tends to confirm minds naturally depraved in 
 their vicious propenfities, is the abje6l fervi- 
 lity of thofe, who, from a bafe attention to 
 their own milerable interefts, pay homage to 
 the dignified reptiles in fociety, whom chance 
 has made rich, royal, or noble, and who muft at 
 the very moment they receive the vile incenfe of 
 fulfomc adulation, defpife the parafite that flat- 
 ters their vanity, or adminifters to their vices. 
 If the highefi ranks are above all fcnfe of fliame, 
 the lowcll arc below it. It is therefore to the 
 middle orders that government fhould invariably 
 look for fupport, for wlifen this invaluable, this 
 f<MTnidal>le body of men, this true and only 
 efi'ei^ual cement of fociety, are by the advanced 
 price of provifions reduced almoft to the condi- 
 tion of pauj)crs, and complaining of the difficulty 
 
 of
 
 ( 47 ) 
 
 of living, call loudly for an'alleviation of the bur- 
 thens that opprefs them ; their grievances muft 
 be redreffedj or tliey may be provoked to make 
 a common caufe with thofe who have nothing, 
 and diflblve the compact. 
 
 I do not fay, that this is precifcly the lituatioa 
 of the country at prefent, it, however, feems to 
 be rapidly advancing towards that terrible critis 
 which cannot be contemplated without alarm, 
 and in proof of which I appeal to the candor of 
 every man whofe memory and experience caji 
 carry him back twenty years, to fay whether 
 thofe who have at this time an annual income of 
 two hundred pounds, can enjoy more of the com- 
 forts of life than thofe who, antecedent to the 
 American war, had only half that fum ? confe- 
 quently the man who has only one hundred 
 pounds a year, is, in fa(5l, reduced by the change 
 of circumftances to live on fifty. His privations 
 muft of courfe be confiderable, and each new 
 tax will neceirarily diminifh his comforts. When 
 it is recolle6led that fome of thefe privations may 
 have been exa6led in order to fupport fenfelels 
 folly and incorrigible guilt, in difhonourable 
 fplendor ; he feels the injury aggravated by in- 
 fult, and is led to inquire how it is poffible that 
 an extravagant maintenance of profligacy and 
 bad example, fhould be connedled with a prefer- 
 vation of morals with which they are at variance^ 
 
 and
 
 ( 48 ) 
 
 and with the Interef!s of fociety, which they a^ 
 unqueftionably tend to undermine and ruin; It 
 is not right that any man living in fociety ihould 
 be a dead weight on the community j the laW 
 that configns an idle worthlefs vagabond to the 
 houfe of correction, recognifes this falutary, equi- 
 table principle ; and as it cannot be contefted, 
 it fhould be applied indifferently to all, without 
 refpet^ to perfons. In this inftance, the beggar 
 claims equality with the prince, and whenever 
 the latter degrades himfelf to a level with the 
 former, he fhould be made to feel, however cal- 
 lous he may be, the confequence of his mean-, 
 nefs and turpitude the equity of this maxim, 
 and the propriety of its application, are fo evi- 
 dent, that a truth which is feldom attended to in 
 time by government to profit by it, muft in- 
 flantly occur to every refledling mind, and even 
 obflinacy itfelf confefs, that the ilrongefl cable 
 may be fnapped by tanfion. 
 
 Whether the miniftry, apprifed of the fadl, 
 have found leifure to give it the attention it 
 loudly demands, I know not, and if I have pre- 
 fumed to expatiate on the probable confequences 
 of rendering fo confiderable a body of men dif- 
 contented, it is from a very lincere wifh that the 
 quiet of the nation fhould be preferved, not by a 
 military dcfpotifm, to which fome men, with 
 hearts as obdurate as their minds are arrogant, fo 
 
 confi-
 
 ( 49 ) 
 
 confidently look up, and againfl: which I would 
 be the firfl to arm ; but by the mild and perfua- 
 five influence of policy and right, fan6lioned 
 and proteded by the conftitutional laws of the 
 land.- 
 
 The fmalleft pebble thrown into a river, will 
 expand for a moment the broadeil furface. Every 
 new tax touches with more or lefs force each 
 particular item in the voluminous account, and 
 fwells the fum total, not only of produce^ but 
 of wretchednefs and woe. 
 
 It is fcarce poilible to reflect on the extcnfive 
 and mifchievous operation which the enormous 
 fum of five millions additional taxes mufi have 
 on the common comforts and neceflarics of life, 
 without being ferioufly alarmed for the confe- 
 quences. Thefe are not times to trifle with the 
 paflions and underfl:andings of mankind. Other 
 expedients than force and fraud muft be em- 
 ployed to. govern them, and the fooner this 
 wholefome confolatory truth is felt, and prac* 
 tifed by miniflers, the more honourable it will be 
 for thcmfelves, and the better for their country. 
 The revolution that has taken place in the 
 minds of men, calls loudly on thofe who arc 
 intruded with the executive government, to ex- 
 crcife their authority with great circumfpe(5lion, 
 
 H an(i
 
 ( 5 ) 
 
 arid to obferve the moU rigid oeconomy In the 
 expenditure of the public money. 
 
 If any commotions fhould unhappily arlfe in 
 the country, it will not be for the purpofe of 
 prefcribing limits to prerogative, as in the 
 laft century, but to exterminate that profu- 
 fion and corruption which abforbs all public and 
 private virtue, and whofe baneful influence, as 
 Mr. Morgan vcrj' juflly obferves, tends to an- 
 nihilate the middle order of people, and leave 
 only two clafTes in fociety, the very rich and the 
 very poor. I think more highly of Mr. Pitt's 
 judgment than to attribute to him any fuch in- 
 tention ; but in the prefent ftate of the country, 
 and temper of the people, it will be wifdom, as 
 well as jultice, to bind by the double ties of in- 
 tereft and afl^ection, that clafs from which he 
 mult draw fupport, and to which he muft ulti- 
 mately look for protedlion in the hour of necef- 
 lity. A marked indifference to their comforts 
 will be attributed to a criminal contempt of their 
 rights, and he will authorife the murmurs that he 
 excites. The tranfition from difcontent to difaf- 
 fe6tion is not very diflicult or diiiant, and from 
 thence to revolt immediate. The melancholy 
 hiftory of the times confirms this awful and mo- 
 mentous truth; nor does it require an extraordi- 
 nary degree. of penetration todifcover, that in the 
 CA'cut of another revolution, it is not the dynafly 
 
 that
 
 ( 5' ) 
 
 that will be changed^ but the monarchy that will 
 be fubverted. 
 
 It is alfo incumbent on nations, poficfling a 
 pre-emineiice in rank, and dcfnons ofpreferving 
 that pre-erninence, to be careful not only that 
 her impofls are produt^livc and acceptable at 
 home, but that they do not excite derifion, or 
 difcredit her abroad, by authoriling the idea of 
 penury and ability. 
 
 I do not mean to fpeak difrefpc(5i fully of the 
 talents of the gentleman who propofed the dog- 
 tax ; but if he had been accufiomed to behold the 
 great interefls of a wide extended empire, through 
 a larger medium, I do not think he would have 
 propofed a meafure fo extremely ill calculated to 
 imprefs foreigners, and efpecially the nation 
 with which we are at war, with an;/ very exalted 
 ideas of the abundance of our refources ; the 
 reafoning of the gentleman in iiivour of his plan 
 had not even the poor merit of being plaufible. 
 It abounded with contradictions, and proved 
 that its author is as yet at a very confiderablc 
 diflance from the office of Chancellor of the 
 Exchequer. 
 
 One of its allowed objects was to eafe the pa-^ 
 rifli rates throughout the kingdom, and this it was 
 thought would enfure it great popularity, and 
 
 H a ^iye
 
 ( 5* ) 
 
 give it a kind of pafiport to the gracious recep- 
 tion of the country gentlemen in Parliament, 
 while the rich farmers, and country 'fquires who 
 are out of it, would be no lefs captivated at the 
 aflurances it held out of putting an entire end to 
 the worrying of Iheep, to the horrible effe<5ls of 
 the hydrophobia, and above all, to the abomi- 
 nable practice of poaching. In the one inflance 
 it was a meafure of finance; in the other, of po- 
 lice ; two objects diiFcring very widely from 
 each other, which the gentleman wlio propofed 
 the tax ought to have known, fhould always be 
 kept perfedlly dillind. On this occafion they 
 are in direct hoftility to each other ; the tax as a 
 meafure of finance, defiroys the tax as a meafure 
 of police. In the former infiance, the breed of 
 (Jogs (hould be encouraged to render it produc- 
 tive ; in the latter, they ihould be deftroyed, 
 or our fp,ortfn;en will become furious on finding 
 game lefs'plentiful, and the Omlkirk medicine in 
 greater demand than ever. Tliis dilemma woul4 
 probably not have happened if the gentleman 
 had not been as indificirent a logician as he is a 
 financier. I have no doubt but he loves mutton, 
 in a fenfe very different to that which Congreve 
 has affixed to it in liis play of the Old Ba- 
 chelor; but whatever may be the defcription of 
 haunches thai he prefers, whether thofe of mut- 
 ton, or thofe that are fo dt^licious to the ta6V, 
 there certainly will not be a iheep the lefs de- 
 
 firoyed
 
 ( 53 ) 
 
 ftroyed at the year's end, if the tax Is produ^lWc, 
 and if it is not, the poor rates will lofe the pro- 
 mifed relief, and the Chancellor of the Exche- 
 quer, who cried halves, and claimed the fourths 
 of it for himfelf will be woefully difappointcd. 
 
 But the tax is highly exceptionable in other 
 refpedls, it mufl infallibly operate as a fentence 
 of death againft animals who are examples of 
 gratitude and fidelity to mankind, to whom they 
 arc at once guardians, companions, and play- 
 mates ! It is the duty of a legiflator to abllain 
 "moft carefully from whatever has the moft re- 
 mote tendency to brutalize the mind, and fami- 
 liarize it with blood, for the objecl of Icgiflation 
 is to civilize men, and reclaim them from the 
 favage ferocity of a ilate of nature. It is a poor 
 and pitiful benevolence that does not extend be- 
 yond our own fpecies ; limited to that narrow 
 felfifh fphere, it will daily counteract itfelf as we 
 advance in life, until it becomes confined en- 
 tirely to ourfelves, and as flirivelled, cold, and 
 forlorn, as avarice itfelf can wifh. 
 
 Mr. Dent is an entire ftranger to me, I fcarce 
 know his perfon, or his chara6ler ; but though I 
 have no reafon to impeach cither his humanity or 
 his urbanity, I cannot but condemn the tax he 
 indifcreetly propofed, and that Parliament as 
 indifcreetly adopted, as extremely injudicious 
 
 and
 
 ( 54 ) 
 
 and impolitic, even in a political point of view ; 
 for it gives the femblance of truth to the malici- 
 ous afTertions of Mr. Paine, and authorifes a be- 
 lief that the refources of this country muft be 
 nearly at their lafl ebb, when it is compelled to 
 tax animals of domeftic ufe, in order to provide 
 for its numerous poor; and the argument derives 
 additional force from the avidity with which the 
 minifter darted forth, and grappling with tlie 
 pauper, wrefted from his feeble gripe almoft the 
 whole of the miferable pittance that was deilined 
 exclulively for his fupport. 
 
 Such is the imprcffion that this tax, and the 
 mode of applying it, muft make on the minds, 
 not only of France, that is in determined hofti- 
 lity with us, but on the other powers of Europe, 
 not one of which but hates us to the full as cordi- 
 ally, though in a far lefs dignified manner, as the 
 nation with which we are at war. I am far, very- 
 far from being a rich man ; I have merely a com- 
 petency, with which, however, I am perfe6lly 
 fatisfied j but fcanty as my income is, I would 
 cheerfully fubfcribe half of it, rather than thai 
 the enemy fhould receive an impreflion of our 
 weaknefs, fo unfavourable and unjuft, and that 
 may ftimulate him to continue hoftilities in the 
 vain and fallacious hope of obtaining a fpeedy 
 and complete triumph over this country. It is 
 no fecret that every art has been employed to fe- 
 "'* duce
 
 ( 55 ) 
 
 tlucc the direclory into an fucli opinion, and formi- 
 dable, not to fay invincible, as the obftacles arc to 
 the fuccefs of fuch a wild and impolitic cntcrprife, 
 it appears to have made a ferioiis imprcflion on 
 men from whom we fhould have expedled more 
 vvifdom, and whofe knowledge and experience 
 fhould have better informed them. But govern- 
 ments, as well as individuals, are fometimes 
 under the influence of the paffions, and, like in- 
 dividuals, infenlible to their true intcrefls. The 
 interefts of France require that Great Britain 
 fliould retain the rank fhe holds among the na- 
 tions of Europe ; it is for the interefls of Europe 
 that this rank fhould be afTured to her. The po- 
 licy that would annihilate the power of this coun- 
 try, muft be fhort-fighted indeed, and much nearer 
 allied to the vindi6live refentment of an impla- 
 cable individual, than to that wifdom which, 
 ought to chara6lerife the councils of a great 
 nation. 
 
 It is full time that France and Great Britain, 
 recovered from a delirium that has too long ef- 
 tranged them, fhould be more juft to each other, 
 and exchange their animoflty for amity their 
 holtility, for union. It is full time that the direc- 
 tory, with a magnanimity worthy of that energy 
 which a love of liberty infplrcs, and which has 
 made tyranny, fhrinking within itlelf, tremble 
 
 for
 
 ( 56 ) 
 
 
 
 ' for its exiflence, Ihoiild fpurn the vile efforts of 
 ian alien to impofe upon their underftandings, 
 and millead their judgment ; of an alien who has 
 k revenge to gratify, and whofe unnatural ha- 
 tred to his native country requires that his affer- 
 tions- Ihould be received with caution and 
 difirull. 
 
 It is unworthy of France, and abore all, of th6 
 glorious animating caufe in which fhe is engaged, 
 the caufe of liberty ! that a fi^ranger to her man- 
 ners, genius, and language, fhould influence 
 her councils, inftead of policy and rights, and re- 
 gnlateher inarch to grandeur and repofe. It is time 
 that both nations, taught wifdbm, by adverlity 
 Ihouldfpurn the treachcrouscouncilsof their dead- 
 lieft foes, and that Great Britain, convinced of her 
 follies, fhoald ceafe to be miflead by a committee 
 of French exiles, fitting in judgment, not only on 
 foreigners but on natives. * A committee, com- 
 pofed of that defcription of priefls, bifhops, and 
 nobles, who are the leaft entitled to the credit 
 they have obtained, and the leaft defcrving of 
 the alms they receive, whofe pernicious influence 
 has difhonoured our councils, and prolonged 
 the calamities of war, and from whom all confi- 
 dence will be inflantly withdrawn, if miniflers 
 confult either their duty or their fafety. In a 
 word, it is full time that both nations, invited 
 
 J * Vide Appendix t^^ 
 
 3 ^y
 
 ( 57 ) 
 
 by policy as well as magnanimity, to fricndlhip 
 and to peace, fhould bury in eternal oblivion all 
 remembrance of paft wrongs, and clofc a fangui- 
 nary conteft, as deftru6live to tlieir interefls as it 
 is aiflidling for humanity ! . 
 
 A REVIEW
 
 iVjl^j:' 
 
 .;: A
 
 3=2 
 
 A 
 
 REVIEW 
 
 or 
 
 Mr. PITT's administration. 
 
 'T^HE man who pronounces on the wifdom or 
 -* folly of public meafurcs, from their failure 
 or fuccefs, places a greater confidence in events 
 than they medt, and makes his judgment a 
 lacquey on the accidents of fortune. The mind 
 that has no other* rule to go by, is more liable 
 to commit injuftice than to applaud defert, and 
 in matters of high national import^ a better 
 ftandard fhould be reforted to. This cannot be 
 better explained than by Hating a cafe, and be- 
 fore I flatc it, it is neccflary to premifc, that I 
 have purpofely taken very diftant ground from 
 what I conceive to have been the real obje6l of 
 the war, in order to avoid thepoffibility of being 
 xnifreprefented, or fuppofed to mean any inde- 
 cent allufion to the King's fervauts ; I will fup- 
 , . I z pofe
 
 ( 6o ) 
 
 pofe that tile miniftei*, authorifed to believe froirt 
 the information tranfmitted from France, corro- 
 borated by the deplorable Hate of that country 
 within> that the complete deftru6lion of a rival 
 kingdom was an obje6l eaiily to be attained, and 
 that its accomplilhment was an obje6t of great 
 public utility, and highly advantageous to the 
 country, whofe interefts were confided to his 
 care ; let it be fuppofed he was fully perfuaded 
 "that the political exigence of a powerful and 
 dangerous neighbour could be extinguifhed, and 
 that fuch an event would not only leave us with- 
 out an enemy capable of contending with us, 
 but infure to us the entire commerce of the 
 world, admitting the poflibility of the enterprife, 
 and fuppoling it to have been completely fuc- 
 cefsful : that France, no longer a vaft and well- 
 compa6led nation, was broken into a variety of 
 fragments, with fcarce fufficient left of her antient 
 domains to afcertain her former ex:tent of territory ; 
 her power irretrievably deftroyed, and the pre-emi- 
 nence of the Britifh empire aflured for ever ; if 
 fuch an event had been the iffue of the prcfent 
 contefl, what opinion would have been enter- 
 tained of the minifter ? He would have been 
 extolled and idolized until the vaft arch above us 
 re-echoed to our captivated ears the vile plau- 
 dits he received t The event would have juftified 
 the bafe attempt of re-plunging a people juft 
 emerging from darknefs, defpotifm, and defpair, 
 
 into
 
 ( 6. ) 
 
 Into the brilliant atmofphcre of liberty, to fharc, 
 in common with ourfelves, the bleflings of a free 
 conftitution. The bold and indecent violation 
 of all right would have been lol in the fplcndor 
 of his triumphs, and in the fame degree that he 
 would have been applauded in victory, we find 
 liim defamed, execrated, and blaftcd in defeat. 
 
 Is this the boafted jufticc of mankind ! and is 
 a minilier criminal, becaufe he is unfortunate ? 
 Yet thus it is in the great code of nations ! the 
 morality of their a<5lions is a contingency on 
 events, and meafures become equitable or wife, 
 rafh or iniquitous, as they happen to prove 
 ultimately fortunate or unfortunate. There is 
 nothing forced, cpnflrained, or afTumed in this 
 reafoning. The ftatement is fair. The fdS.s 
 upon which it is founded are recent within 
 every man's memory, and cannot be contro- 
 verted ; all the proud tics of national honour, 
 combined with juftice and policy ; all the 
 milder and more immediate relations of private 
 duty and afie^lion, together with the whole of 
 the multifarious barriers creeled by religion and 
 morality, in the vain hope of prcfcribing bounds 
 to the rapacity of nations and of men, were fcan- 
 daloufly, not to fay impioufly oveilcaped, and 
 Heaven itfclf braved, when the attempt was 
 made to dragoon three millions of our fellow 
 fubjedls mio imcouciitio?uil fubnViflion. Three rail- 
 lions of people, and thcfe people our brethren, 
 
 our
 
 ( 6t ) 
 
 bur friends, and brothers, dragooned into uni 
 conditional fubmiffion ! It was the fiat of ail in* 
 dividual, and a worthlefs fenate was an accom- 
 . plice in the infamy. Unconditional fubmiffion 
 was the language of the minifler ; it was that of 
 parliament and of the nation. The laft taught 
 wifdom by adverfity, compelled the fecond to 
 meafure back its ground, and put an end to what 
 it ought never to have fan6lioned, and the firfl 
 was difgraced and driven from the power he had 
 fatally abufed, not becaufe he was culpable, but 
 becaufc he was UNFORTUNATE. My mo- 
 tive for referring to this dilhonourable conteft, is 
 not for the purpofe of palliating the difafters of 
 the prefent war, or to abfolve minifters from any 
 guilt they may have incurred, either in the ob- 
 je6ls they propofed to themfelves from the con- 
 teft, and upon which I am incompetent to judge, 
 or from the mode in which they have condu<51ed 
 that conteft, upon which every man is qualified 
 to fpeak. 
 
 The purport of this reafoning is to counteracS^ - 
 infidious hypocrify, which avails itfelf of difafier 
 to promote its own intercfi:ed views, and that pi- 
 teoufly, afFedls to bewail an event, while it en- 
 deavours to turn its unpopularity to a profitable 
 account. I am warranted by experience in the 
 belief, that many who call the war unjuft and un- 
 neceflary, would have called it equitable and 
 
 expe-
 
 ( 63 ) 
 
 expedient if it had been glorious, and, above 
 all, if it had fuited their purpofe. Tlicir object 
 is io get into office, and every calamity, every 
 failure or unfavourable event becomes a lever 
 in their corrupt hands, with which they labour 
 with an induflry proportioned to their ne- 
 ceflities, in the hope of ultimately forcing the 
 xniniflcr out of his place. I beg this may not 
 be underftood as applying altogether to the pre- 
 lent times, or to every man indifcriminately who 
 oppofes the meafures of the crown. I have no 
 doubt but there are many who are influenced by 
 a fenfe of right, and diredled by a judgment ca- 
 pable of deciding ; but I alfo know, and fo does 
 every man elfe, that there are others who are not 
 a6luated by fuch honourable motives, and who 
 only join in the cry in the hope of coming in for 
 a fliare of the fpoiL Such men are unworthy of 
 the confidence to which they afpirc, and they 
 trefpafs very much on our forbearance by their 
 boaft of public virtue. The mifchiefs done to the. 
 public jntereft by this defeription of people, is npt 
 eafily calculated ; their jnotives being known, 
 their clamors only give additional vigour and ef- 
 fect to the very ruin they oppofe, and if the mea- 
 fures of men in power are either v?ak or wicked, 
 the evil is without remedy. When repeated 
 experience has convinced the people that the 
 clamor againfi: rainifiers ig the refult of cabal, 
 ^ A and
 
 ( 64 ) 
 
 and that though their meafures are the pretexts, 
 their places are the ends ; when the people, de- 
 ceived by thefe pretexts, become indifferent to 
 thofe clamors, and feeling the mortifying convic- 
 tion, that whichever party is the vidlor, they 
 alone are the dupes ; when gamblers and 
 adventurers of every defcription come forward 
 with an impudent boaft of public virtue, and 
 pretending an attachment to the intereit of 
 the people, claim their confidence and fup- 
 port, the honefl man, afhamed of fuch com- 
 panions, difdains to partake their triumphs, 
 and leaves the field of patriotifm to the 
 mock combatants that engrofs it. Under [fuch 
 eircumftances, no wonder that all confidence 
 and fupport are withheld, and that the people 
 infulted, harafTed, and their patience exhaufted, 
 behold the efforts of fuch men with indifference, 
 and their profeffions with fcorn. When an oppo- 
 lition, fallen in the public opinion, has had all 
 confidence withdrawn from it ; when its cha- 
 ra6ler counts for lefs in the public eflimation 
 than even its numbers, all conftitutional check 
 on the fervants of the crown is removed, an(J 
 an apathy favourable to defpotifm is preferred 
 rather than refort to the terrible expedient of 
 civil war and anarchy for relief, 
 
 ;m
 
 ( 65 ) 
 
 I am very far from aiTerting that this applies 
 in its whole extent to the prcfent oppolition ; 
 I know that there are many very dcferving, 
 and moft excellent charadt^crs in it men, no 
 lefs eminent for their public virtues and inde- 
 pendent mindsj than they are for their talents 
 and amiable manners ; but I hazard no contra- 
 didliou, and I am not afraid of giving offence 
 when I affcrt, that the oppofition has not that 
 credit with the people which an oppofition ought 
 to have, and which can alone enable it to be sn 
 efficient check on the condu6lof minifters. This 
 is precifely the misfortune, or rather the evil, of 
 which I complain ; it is an evil which every 
 friend to peace, order, and liberty muft lincerely 
 deplore, and it well defcrves to be traced to its 
 fource and explained. It was after many jfierce 
 efforts in the Houfe of Commons, in which wit, 
 argument, truth, policy, and right, had to con- 
 tend again ft corrupt influence, that the former 
 obtained a temporary triumph over the latter, 
 and drove Lord North from a lituation to which, 
 from the natural indolence of his temper, he wa 
 only equal in times of profound peace. 
 
 It was at this epoch that Mr. Fox firft dif- 
 played thofe aftonifliing abilities to which pane- 
 g}Tic cannot do fufficient juflice; but having 
 enlifted under the banners of a minifter, de- 
 fcrv^ly unpopular for the part he took againft 
 
 K Mr.
 
 ( 66 ) 
 
 Mr. Wilkes, to whofe zeal, courage, and pcr- 
 feverance this counlryhas very ferious obligations, 
 Mr. Fox partook of the difgrace attached to the 
 obnoxious naeafures he fupported, and the diili- 
 pations into which he was feduced by fafhion 
 and example, did not contribute to give him 
 that kind of popularity which in maturer life 
 could alone have been worthy of his purfuit oy 
 choice. 
 
 I do not mean qny illiberal refle(5lion on the 
 early manhood of Mr. Fox, when I aflert that 
 the hazard or pharo tables ought not to be the 
 channel to high pffacial trufl, and that gaming 
 is a vice as mean as it is mifchievous, for it con- 
 founds the fifft and beft characters in the flate 
 with the loweft and moft vile. It refembles 
 death by levelling alidiftin6lions, and frequently 
 by its confequences cqndudls its votaries to fui- 
 cide, or ^n ignorpinious exit. Pharo tables and 
 pharo men fhould be qbje6ts of vindi<5live juftice \ 
 the former thould be configned to the flame?, 
 and the latter (o the beadle, to be fcourged into the 
 wholef<^me habits pf honelt induftr}-. It is impol- 
 lible that Mr. Fox can have forgotten the 
 pjripd to which I allude, and be muft have 
 
 perfe(5t rccplleclion of the animated fupport 
 ^'hich Lord North derived from his wonderful 
 eloquence, in meafures which were to the full 
 as hoftile to the liberties of the people, as thofe 
 
 which
 
 ( 67 ) 
 
 which he has lately oppofed with an ardor wor- 
 thy of his great abilities, and of the facred caufe 
 of liberty ! worthy of an Englifliman ; with an 
 ardor which leaves no doubt in my mind of the 
 iincerity of his contrition, and which juftifies his 
 claim to the applaufe he has received. 
 
 I do not wifh to travel out of my way to difco- 
 ver matter of reproach againft a man whom I am 
 pleafcd to behold anxious to atone for the errors 
 of a life molt prodigally mifpent. I pafs over his 
 quarrel, and the caufe of that quarrel with the 
 minifter; I fhall only obferve, that an event 
 wliich foon afterwards happened, gave to private 
 rcfentment, jcaloufy, and ambition, all the 
 force, fame, and efficacy of public virtue. The 
 American war, fortunately for Mr. Fox, hap- 
 pened foon after he broke with Lord North, 
 and the fteady manly oppolition that was given 
 to a meafure at once iniquitous, impolitic, and 
 impradticable, effaced from remembrance all that 
 had been deemed offenlive in his chara6ler. The 
 exceffesin which he had indulged were no longer 
 condcnnicd, and it was matter of exultation to 
 his friends, and of admiration to every one eiib, that 
 fo much knowledge fhould be acquired, and mat- 
 ter of fuch vafi variety and import, ftudied and 
 underftood, amidft the diflipations in which lie 
 waspkmgedand retained as in a vortex. In propor- 
 tioa as the obftinate perfevcrance of Lord North 
 K 2 angered
 
 ( 68 ) 
 
 angered men's minds, it added to the popularity 
 ot Mr. Fox, and this popularity was augmented 
 by the Iblemn pledge he had given to bring the 
 minifter to juftice ; convinced of his lincerity, it 
 was expedled when he came into office, that the 
 promiie repeatedly given would have been as 
 faithfully realized, and the delinquent punifhed. 
 But Mr. Fox had acquired his great objedl, and 
 the people who before had been every thing, 
 were taught to feel the mortifying and infulting 
 diflindtion between a man in office and a man 
 out of it. They found they were no longer of 
 that atcount in the eftimation of Mr. Fox in 
 power, as they had been while he was in oppo- 
 fition. He had obtained, by the aiTurances 
 he had given, their conlidence on certain posi- 
 tive conditions, virtually agreed upon by both 
 parties, unfortunately it was only ful filled by one 
 of them. It was due to tlie manes of flaughtered 
 thoufands ; it was due to the millions wantonly 
 fquandered in a dilhonourable contefl ; it was 
 due to public jultice that a delinquent minifter- 
 Ihould have been made an example of, and Mr. 
 J^'ox was bound to have put Lord North on Ins 
 trial. But Mr. Fox in power paid no attention 
 to the promiie^ he had repeatedly made when 
 out of it. 
 
 ' When the de-jil rvas ill, the devil a monk -joould b^^ 
 '* When t} devil was roell, tlie defil a monk ituu he" 
 
 On
 
 ( 69 ) 
 
 On this occafion Mr. Fox may be faid to re- 
 femblc a thing that is good in the middle, but 
 rotten at each end. 
 
 If the people were furprllcd and offended at 
 the impunity granted to a man whom tlicy had 
 been taught to believe would be impeached, 
 their anger and furprife were much augmented 
 on beholding this impunity aflured to him by tiic 
 very man waio flood pledged to bring him to 
 juflicc by the very man who had publicly de- 
 clared this guilty miniftcr to be fo infamous, that 
 that he would not truft himielf alone in the fame 
 room with him I What the particular infamy was 
 that rendered his Lordihip fo dangerous, I know 
 not, but I cannot even yet account for the faci- 
 lity with which Mr. Fox forgot that infamy, and 
 braved that danger, on any other principle than 
 that of getting again into office ; and however 
 delirable the obje<5l itfelf may have been, I am 
 fure the means by which he obtained it, were 
 far from honourable or julliiiable. 
 
 The people were alfo pf that opinion, and 
 thofc who are in the habit of thinking rightly, 
 think fo yet. It revealed a very melancholy 
 truth to the world, and a very fatal one to the 
 reputation of the gentleman himfelf ; it fhewed 
 the very little confidence that ought to be repofed 
 in tlie profefiions of public men, and that the 
 
 f public
 
 ( 1 ) 
 
 pobliG goiod is lefs the object of their'ptirfults, thaii. 
 emolument, power, and diflindion. 
 
 It was in the midft of tliis general and well- 
 founded difcontent, that the people, angered 
 almofl to madnefs, with a man who had ira- 
 pofed upon them in the firit inftance, and in- 
 fulted them in the fecond, withdrew their confi- 
 dence, and transferred to the prefent mini ft er, 
 whofe youth, uncontaminated by the vices of the 
 age, was an argument of his integrity, and 
 pleaded mod eloquently in his favour whofe 
 perfon and whofe name were alike unknown on 
 the turf and at the gaming tables, arid who 
 feemcd ft;udioufly to avoid thofe excefTes which 
 flain the infant chara6ter of manhood, and leave 
 a flain for life. 
 
 The pardonable irregularities of Mr. Fox, at a 
 very early period, had injured him in the opi- 
 nion of thofe who efiimate the merit of men by 
 their parlimony ; there were others, who, with- 
 far niore liberal ideas, were ill difpofed to con- 
 fide tlie honour and'^nterefts of a great empire 
 to a man v/ho had been fo ihamefully improvi- 
 dent of his own. The linccrity of Mr. Fox's 
 profefTions in favour of the rights of the people 
 was denied by fome, and conlidered as very 
 equivocal by all thofe who remember his vio- 
 kncc towards the printers, and his attachment 
 
 .'u.:-'- to
 
 ( 7' ) 
 
 ;to a miniiler who was certainly no friend to 
 civil liberty. 
 
 It is not my \v\(h to do injufticc to any man, 
 but the mofl: partial of thofc who are attached 
 to the gei)tleman ip queflion, mufl acknow- 
 ledge, thai: the brilliancy of his aurora was 
 very much fhaded by difljpated habits, and an 
 alacrity to fupport arbitrary meafures, at that 
 period of his life when mankind are fuppofcd to 
 have the beft and pureft afFedions, with the 
 fewcll: vices. With a chara6):er, which to fpeak 
 favourably of it, is at leaft equivocal, it was the 
 height of indilcrction in Mr. Fox to have coa- 
 lefced with the man whom he had threatened to 
 bring to the block, and whom he had alternately 
 courted and fpurned ; to thofe who attentively 
 conlider the proicHions and condudl of public 
 men, and by comparing the one with the other, 
 judge of their merit and redlitude, there was lefs 
 in tliis part of his condudl to furprife than to 
 offend, while the nation, indignant at the in- 
 fult, or rather flab, which had been given to 
 public morals, by this more than fcandalou^ 
 union, appreciated the condu(5l as it dcfervcd, 
 and withdrew all conlidence from the man who 
 had deceived and infulted them. 
 
 It was at this epoch that Mr. Pitt, flow riling 
 aboye the horizon in all the majcfly of confcious 
 
 dignity^
 
 ( 72 ) 
 
 dignity, was hailed by bis wounded countrj'^ as 
 its faviour and prote6lor. The engaging lim- 
 plicity of youthful innocence gave brilliancy to 
 his dawn, while his degraded, fallen advcrfary, 
 cclipfed by ihG lufire of a triumphant rival, 
 funk into darknefs and oblivion ! O God ! it 
 was a moment that virtue herfelf might have 
 nvied him it was a moment worth centuries 
 of fame, and if the fenfibility of Mr. Pitt fliould 
 (unhappily for his repofe !) bear any proportion 
 to the vigor of his underftanding, the recollection 
 of the rich poficffion he has loft, muft render 
 him the moll wretched of mankind ' I fhall not 
 ran into the unjuftand illiberal extreme of vulgar 
 indifcriminate cenfure ; I fliall not pronounce in 
 .union with a fenfclefs multitude, that a minifter is 
 culpable becaufe he is unfortunate ; thofe, how- 
 ever, who would abfolve Mr. Pitt from all blame, 
 may mean well, but their zeal holds no place 
 with difcretion, and is likely to do him mif- 
 rhief, while thofe who attribute the whole of 
 onr difafters to his criminality, infli61 a wrong 
 that ill accords with the jufticc and generolity of 
 ?in enlightened nation. 
 
 It is a lamentable truth, that mankind have a 
 propenfity to precipitate dccifion in matters of 
 the greatefi moment, while in the trivial concerns 
 of common life, they fubmit to the fatigue of 
 painful and accurate invelligation before they 
 
 pronounce.
 
 ( 73 ) 
 
 pronounce. If deliberation is necefljiry in the 
 latter inftance, it is furcly much more lb in the 
 former, where their dearefl interefts are no lefs 
 concerned than the fame, fortune, or life per- 
 haps of a miniftcr, an admiral, or a general, 
 who, in the event of a defeat or calamity, are 
 often declared culpable, or perhaps denounced 
 as traitors or as cowards, on the very arrival of 
 difaflrous intelligence. This is unfair. It is an 
 evil of very wide extent and diffuiive opera- 
 tion ; it tends to eradicate every principle of 
 juftice from the human mind, and to make men 
 little folicitous to deferve a reputation which 
 may never be accorded to them, and which, 
 when obtained, after many years honeft toil 
 and inceffant application, may be torn from 
 them by the calumny of a vindictive rival, or 
 the accident of a moment. The fame of a mi- 
 niflcr, or of a commander in chief, ought not to 
 be a contingency on chance. Each may have de- 
 ferved well in difappointment and defeat, as 
 w^ell as in viiSlory or fuccefs ; each may have aSicd 
 wifely and done the bed, but fuccefs is a thing 
 that reje(5is all difcipline ; it fpurns command, 
 and is as often, if not more frequently, the com- 
 panion of fortune than of merit. It is too much 
 the practice of the world to applaud the fortu- 
 nate, and while it inflids on adverfity all the 
 odium due to crime, it forgets that events are 
 not within the grafp of power, and that dif- 
 L appointment
 
 ( 74 ) 
 
 appointment and defeat do not require the addi- 
 tional aggravation of injuftice or reproach, to 
 make them more bitter and calamitous. 
 
 To form a jufi: idea of the adminiltration of 
 Mr. Pitt, it will be necelTary to examine the 
 whole of it in one compact entire mais not in 
 pitiful detail-r^not any particular meafure that 
 the malice of party may feize and faften upon 
 ^s mofl favourable to their purpofe. It will 
 alfo be neceirary to recolledt the lituation of the 
 country, when the united voice of that coun- 
 try vociferoully called on him to ^fTume the 
 adminifiration of her deareft interefts. The 
 difgraceful circumftances that marked that pe-- 
 riod are not yet beyond our memory and obfer^ 
 yation ; they are yet very diftinift to our vilion, 
 3nd ^ye are in fome fort the victims of their tur^ 
 pitude, for the lof^ and bankrupt, ehara61er of 
 Oppoiition at that moment, releafcd miniilers 
 irom the reftraint they would have been under. 
 If their opponents had held that dignified rank 
 in the public mind, which can alone render an 
 pppoiitiQn a check on weak and guihy men, 
 ^nd which an oppofition iniluenced by public 
 virtue, ^nd intent folely on the public good, 
 will ever poflefs ; but the confidence was for- 
 feited almofl as foon as it was granted. The 
 people beheld with equal anger and furprife, that 
 gj:), adminifiratioft pret^ndipg to public virtue, 
 r ^ ' had
 
 ( 7i ) 
 
 ^d commenced its career by a marked contempt 
 of one of the cor^ditions on which it came into 
 power, and by fuperfeding an admiral * command- 
 ing in chief, in the very moment and fplendor of 
 vi<flory, not to reward merit of equal pretenlions 
 in another, but to enable a man f to repair his 
 ruined fortunes who had been begrsared at the 
 gaming table. The coalefcing with Lord North, 
 whom they had fupplanted and flood pledged to 
 punifh, completed their difgrace, and defiroyed 
 in a great degree the credit of future oppofitions. 
 The nation, difgulled and difheartened, re- 
 fented the deception, and gave to miniflers a 
 confidence which they have of late almofl as 
 ill managed as their predeceflors* 
 
 The fubfequcnt condu61: of a part of that op- 
 pofition has not contributed to infpire the people 
 with much confidence in the pTofeffions of 
 public men, nor with much reverence for men 
 decorated with great names. J .The marine phrafe 
 
 introduced 
 
 * Lord Rodney. -f Admiral Pigott* 
 
 X If fome men of this defcrlptlon ; men whofe only inhe- 
 ritance is their wealth or coronets ; whofe education, conduft^ 
 and capacities would difgrace a ftable yard, and who have the 
 folly to expeft, and the infolence to require the homage due only 
 to talents and integrity, {hould reprefent me as an enemy to arif- 
 tocracy; if, (for there arfe fuch chara<3ers even in this country) 
 they fhould be joined in this calumny by thofe who ci'inge and 
 dangle on nobility ; by thofe whofe prollituted n)inds, inca- 
 
 L a pable
 
 ( 76 ) 
 
 introduced as a device by a'profellional man o^ 
 the party, was no longer the lignal of union. 
 
 pable of elevation, run after titles, and give them the attributes 
 of divinity ; if thefe men, thel'e he-goffips, who barter their 
 freedom for a dinner at the table of a peer, and who at onc 
 fycx)phants and tale-bearers, trot about the ftreets from morn- 
 ing till night, picking up anecdotes, fcandal, or news for his 
 Lordfliip or Grace ; if thefe men fliould join in the malevo- 
 lent vvhifper, and propagate by faint echoes, for they have not 
 the courage to fpeak out, the flanders of their mafter, it is to my 
 general condu(ft it is to my converfation and my writings it 
 is to the honefl teftimony of an impartial world that I appeal, 
 , to vindicate me from their vile and injurious falfhoods. 
 
 I agree with Mr. Burke, that the nobility are the Corin- 
 thian order in the ftate, and as fuch, I am ever ready to refpefl^ 
 and in cafe of necelfity, to defend them with all the vigour that 
 a feeble arm can exert ; but when the miferable imitations of a 
 bungling carpenter which uphold an ill-conftrufted pent, is 
 prefehted to my vifion as the rich columns ofVitrivius, which 
 ought alone to grace and dignify the grand portico of the Britifh 
 temple, my indignation is excited in proportion to the infult 
 offered to my underftanding, and I pity the fool that miftakes 
 apofl fo^a pillar. 
 
 High founding titles may have operated as a talifman oa 
 the uninformed minds of our rude anceftors in the extinguilhed 
 days of feudal vaflalage, but in thefe more enlightened times, far 
 different ideas are annexed to titles. Men have learnt to form a 
 "better eftimate of things, and it is reafon, not prejudice or igno- 
 rance, that appreciates their value. In men who are noble; 
 cither by defcent or creationy we expeft to fee the noblenefs of 
 virtue and of talents juflifying their proud claim to diftinftion ; 
 but when the blockhead or the knave, vaiii of his corgnet, pre- 
 fents that bauble as a certificate of his fenfe or of his honeflry, it is 
 not merit that we behold rewarded, but vice or folly dignified .
 
 ( 77 ) 
 
 ** A full, a Jirong pull and a pull all together y^ 
 Was certainly good council. They pulled, and 
 pulled Urongly, but not all together; they pulled 
 in different directions, the rope broke, and down 
 they all fell, forae fcrambled one way, fome ano- 
 ther; one man got fnug into the Admiralty; 
 another, curbed by age, avarice, and difeafe,* 
 hid himfelf and one of his children under a larcre 
 table ; a third ftole oif for the Horfe Guards ; a 
 fourth ran into the Treafury ; a fifth fet off for Ire- 
 land, and came back again, alhamed of what he 
 had done ; a lixth fncs.ked off quietly away to 
 Lincoln's Inn , while a leventh, more crafty tiian all 
 the rcfl, made a dart at the Exchcqutr, and feiz- 
 ing in his mercilcfs gripe all he could find, fcani- 
 pered off with his pelf to Beaconsiield. 
 
 * What confidence or refpecl can the people have in it* 
 minivers or in parliament, when they find, by lainentabie ex- 
 perience, that the former cannot carry on the public buliaefj 
 without fubmitting to the exaftions of avarice in the latter. I 
 do not like to recur :^o names, nor is it neceflltry ; but what ier- 
 vices can the fecoii.i fon of this wretched niiiVr ivve rendered to 
 his country, to entitle him to the enormous hnc cure obtained 
 for him by his fether ? If it (hould be faid that the mmiftcr could 
 not have had the fiipport of the latter without this arrangement, 
 or rather donation to a boy at fchool, I anfwer, that it was one 
 of thofe abufts that call loudly for remedy, and that muft be re- 
 medied, if it is meant to preferve the conftifjtion ; aiid if his 
 Lordlhip had the indecency to exaifV fnch a conceffion as the 
 terms upon which he would alone agree to quit oppofition, and 
 fupport the fervanis of the cfown, it is a ward in Bridewell tlut 
 he fhould occupy, and not a feat in the Britifli cabinet. 
 
 i The
 
 ( 78 ) 
 
 The reft were left on the pave, but taught 
 Wifdom by experience ; I hope they feel the ne- 
 cefiity in this perilous moment of a condu6t 
 more corre6t:, fend hereafter prove, that what they 
 want in numbers, they will make good in zeal^ 
 talents, and integrity. In repeating what has 
 become hiftory, I mean no offence to the indi- 
 viduals of any party; my obje6l is to account for 
 the prefent deplorable Hate of the oppofition in 
 this country, and not to compliment the prefent 
 adminiflration with having acquired confidence 
 in proportion as their opponents have loft it. No 
 fuch thing, the fccurity of the former arifes lefs 
 from the juftice of their claims, than from the 
 difficulty of replacing them ; the queftion is not 
 fo much whether they deferve their fituations, aS 
 who can be found worthy of the public confi- 
 dence to fucceed them. If minifters have lately 
 loft ground, oppofition has not gained any, and 
 but for the extraordinary events which have 
 ihaken the repofc of tlie world for a century per- 
 haps, the latter \vould long lince have glided 
 down the ever ebbing flream of time, and have 
 been totally forgotten. The eddy of a current 
 is always in proportion to its rapidity. 
 
 The innumerable events which have occurred 
 fince Mr. Fox refumed the dignified and impor- 
 tant flation of a chief of a party, have by their 
 wonderful velocity and fucceflion, forced him 
 "back again upon our notic.e, to fomething like 
 
 the
 
 ( 79 ) 
 
 tbe pofition he held before the clofe of the Amo 
 rican war. It remains with minifters to exclude 
 him from the honours of a fccond triumph, by 
 adopting wifer councils, and purfuing better 
 ineafures. If my information is corrcdl, he has 
 no objc6tion to fuch a compromife ; I am allured 
 that if he can gain fometbing for the country, 
 he will defire nothing for himfelf, and I am in- 
 clined to believe him fincere in this declaration, 
 from what I have heard of his general habits. 
 
 Having rendered this ju ft ice to Mr. Fox, I 
 feel it a duty to repel a calumny, to which, by 
 fupporting it, he has given a degree of credit 
 highly unworthy of his jufticc, if his information 
 on the fubjedl; is complete, and difgraccful to 
 his candor and liberality, if he has taken the 
 matter upon truft, as an expedient to affccft a 
 change in his Majefly's councils. An unpopular 
 war is at all times a very hazardous meafure, 
 a,nd it was more fo for Mr. Pitt than than for 
 any former minifter; his reputation was pledged 
 to a fyflem of ceconomy, and it was decidedly 
 the objeft he had moft at heart, and to which 
 he had evidently given the moft unremitting at- 
 tention. Ilis intereft, his duty, his own parti- 
 cular bent of mind, the purfuits the moft accep- 
 table to him, all confpired to difpofe him to 
 peace in preference to war, and (exclulivc of 
 fa6ts and documents from which no appeal can 
 \>e made) flrongly prove, that he was relu61antly 
 
 forced
 
 ( 8o ) 
 
 forced into meafures obnoxious to his inclina-* 
 tions, and which of all others was the mofi fatal 
 to his favourite objedl, and the moft hazardous 
 to engage in. Thefe are fac^s well known, and 
 with thefe in our memory, there is fomething 
 worfe than calumny in alferting that he 
 fought the war, and travelled out of his road to 
 find the ftrumpet, and bring her home to hig 
 dwelling. It was not for the purpofe of replacing 
 tlie head of Lewis the Sixteenth op his mutilated 
 body, that an Englifh minifler would have dared 
 to have gone to war ; n( ithpr was it to extricate 
 the haplcfs Queen, whofe fortitude in affliclion 
 eclipfes the boafled heroifm of man, from the la- 
 byrinth of a prifon and the afTalTins of her huf- 
 band ; morally fpeaking, fuch an attempt in an 
 individual would have been laudable, and, if 
 fuccefsful, entitled to all the honours of chivalr}'^, 
 but nations are not to turn night-errants, and 
 run v/ild after adventures. Kingdoms have one 
 policy and individuals another ; what would be 
 heroic in a man, might be vicious and unpar- 
 donable in a flate. The latter has the happi- 
 nefs of millions in charge, and muft confult the 
 fecurity and profperity of the whole ; the other 
 expofcs only himfelf or his family, and may be 
 permitted an a6l of extravagance in favour of 
 diftreffcd humanity, without incurring much 
 ccnfure, or producing any calamity of ferious 
 extent to the community. It is abfurd to fup- 
 
 pofe
 
 ( 8x ) 
 
 po(e tliat miniflcrs could ever have been fo in- 
 difcreet as to attach any fcrious importance to 
 names; it is of little confequence what name the 
 man bears to whom the interefts of a nation are 
 confided, whether it is Legendre or Burke, pro- 
 vided thofc intcrefls are faithfully adminiftered ; 
 nor can I believe that it was ever an object for 
 which miniflers would have hazarded a contefl, 
 whether France was a monarchy or a republic; 
 and though for very obvious reafons they miglit 
 prefer the former, they ought not, and could not, 
 in juftice, have made any obje(51ion to the latter. 
 How far they might have been difpofed to go to 
 war, I cannot take upon me to decide, but from 
 what I had occafion to obfervc towards the clofe 
 of the year 1792, and the commencement of the 
 year 1793, and fo far as my penetration enabled 
 me to judge of the intentions of Mr. Pitt, I have 
 every reafon to believe they were perfectly pa- 
 cific. I am even perfuadcd that he was averfe to 
 hoftilities, until the executive council left him 
 i?o other alternative. 
 
 The great ground of argument with oppofi- 
 tion is, and it would be very high and inaccef- 
 lible, if they could keep it as ealily as they have 
 taken it, that M. Maret came over to this coun- 
 try to treat, and that minificrs refufed to treat 
 with him. This airertion is in all its parts the 
 very reverfe of truth, and it has always been 
 
 M matter
 
 ( 8V ) 
 
 matter of very great concern to me, that Mr. 
 Fox, whom I wifli to fee regarded as an autho- 
 rity, fhould have perlifled in aflertions which ! 
 have it in my power fo completely to eontradi6^. 
 The origin and conducl of the war are two very 
 diftindl tilings, and as the latter has certainly- 
 been at once erroneous and difaftrous, it' is an- 
 a6t of juflice to keep them feparate and diitin6t; 
 that minifters fliould not have more to anfvver 
 for than is confiftent with fadls. If the war was 
 unavoidable, as I trull it will hereafter appear, 
 minifters will be abfolved from a great portion of 
 blame, and all the criminality annexed to ag^- 
 greffion. 
 
 It is not probable that I hold any place in the? 
 afFedions of Mr. Fox, perhaps I hold as little in 
 thofe of Mr. Pitt. If the feverity with which I 
 have cenfured a condu<51: which appeared to me 
 highly reprehenlible, excludes me from his 
 friendfhip, I have certainly a claim to his juftice. 
 I think too highly of his mind, not lefs manly 
 than fplendid, to believe it capable of intentional 
 wrong, and differing with him as I have done, I 
 feel aflured he will give me credit for veracity, 
 and pay that attention to the information he will 
 Receive, which is due to truth. 
 
 At the period the moft awful for this country, 
 and the moil difficult for her minifters, Mr. F*oX 
 
 was-
 
 ( 83 ) 
 
 was in the habit of feeing M. Chauvelin, who^ to 
 his other indifcretions, mnde it an argument of 
 merit with bis employers, that he was in confi- 
 dential intercourfe with thofe who were in dire6t 
 hoitihty to the meafures of the fovereign to whom 
 he was accredited, and with whofe minifters alone 
 he ought to have communed on public affairs 
 retjpecting the interefls of the two nations. 
 
 The folly and impropriety of this condu61: in 
 the French envoy would not have had any impor- 
 tance annexed to it, if it had not been counte- 
 nanced by the French executive council. If M. 
 Le Brun and his affociates had wifhcd well to 
 this country ; if it had really been their willi to 
 avoid hoOilities, they would carefully have ab- 
 flained from whatever niight have given umbrage 
 or excited the jealoufy of government ; and, 
 above all, the y would have reprimanded their en- 
 voy, if their difpofitions towards Great Britain 
 had been pacific, when he made a proud boaft, 
 and urged it as an argument for his being conti- 
 nued after they had recalled him : that though he 
 was ill with minifters, he was well with oppolition. 
 They did no fuch thing ; on the contrary, they 
 admitted the plea, and allowed him to remain. 
 
 I will not diftrefs Mr. Fox by afking him the 
 interpretation that ought to be given to this con- 
 duct in the executive council, but I call upon 
 him to fay what he would have thought, while 
 M 2- he
 
 ( 84 ") 
 
 ht was iii office, of any foreign min'ifl r who 
 would have a^ed as M. Chauvelin, and what 
 confidence he would have had In the pacific de- 
 clarations of the court that employed and counte- 
 nanced him ? At the period to which I allude, 
 the French envoy in England fhewed his in- 
 ilrudlions to a gentleman who is much in the 
 confidence of Mr. Fox, to whom I am well 
 known, and who is in Parliament, and thefe 
 inftru6lions pofitively fiated that the " Scheldt 
 *' would not be given up, and that Le Brun was 
 *'' refolved to hififi upon the acknowledgment of tJie 
 *' French repuMicin the per/on of M.Chau'veIin,pre' 
 *- Vwi'mary to all explanation of the differences that 
 " had arifen.*' As to M. Chauvelin, he made no 
 fecret of declaring, that if he was not received at 
 St. James's, the height of his ambition would be 
 to leave this country with a declaration of war. 
 
 If there was any real caufe for a mifunder- 
 fianding between the two nations, this gentleman 
 had nothing conciliatory In his temper to have 
 foftened matters, and to have difpofed the two 
 governments to peaces and if it was the mutual 
 wifh of each party to feek a pretext for quarrel, 
 France certainly could not have lcle6led a better 
 obje(5l for the purpofe. The condu(l of the exe- 
 cutive council in chufing at fuch a moment a 
 man witli fuch little capacity, dignity, and tem- 
 per, will ferve, I hope, as a negative lelFon of 
 
 advice
 
 ( 8i ) 
 
 advice to Lord Grenville in his diplomatic ar- 
 rangements. 
 
 The communication made by the French mi- 
 niftcr of his inflrucSlions, to a gentleman in 
 avowed hoftility to government, argued no fa- 
 vourable difpolition towards that government. 
 That Mr. Fox fhould have every information 
 in my power to give him, I will ftatq in detail 
 the entire hi/tory of the irregular communications 
 which afterwards enfued through other chan- 
 nels than that of M. Chauvelin, at leaftas far as 
 I was concerned in them, and I will prove to 
 him by the authority of M. Maret, of whom I 
 Ihall ever fpeak with affecSlion and refpedl, that 
 at the time he obtained the interview with Mr. 
 Pitt, he had neither miflion nor authority to fee 
 the Chancellor of the Exchequer, nor any 
 other minifter, nor to treat on public affairs. 
 Mr. Fox, on what authority I know not, has 
 always pertinacioufly aflerted the contrary, and 
 on a late debate, when he propofed a change of 
 fyftem,* this charge was renewed, and the mi- 
 nifter accufed in direcl terms of having provoked 
 the war, by refufmg to fee M. Maret, when he 
 came over authorifed to treat. 
 
 It fhall be my bufmefs to prove, that M. Maret, 
 in the firfl inftance, had no fuch objev2: ; and in 
 
 * In May 1796, a few days previous to the diflblution of 
 
 Hrliament. 
 
 the
 
 ( 85 ) 
 
 the iecond, he declined applying for an intef- 
 view, until he had received frefh inftrti6^ions, 
 which he fuppofed would have been neceffary, 
 from the circumftance of M. Chauvelin having 
 been ordered to quit the kingdom. 
 
 This is not the place to enter into the obje6ls 
 of the war, or of the condudl of it. On the one 
 ^ I am not competent to decide, and as to the other, 
 it is before the world, and unfortunately needs 
 neither herald nor hiftorian. My object is to 
 prove that France was more difpoted to war than 
 to peace, and that Ihe not only declared the war, 
 but provoked it. 
 
 When I returned to this country, after a re- 
 lidence of many years on the continent, I pre* 
 ferved by correfpondence the intimacies I had 
 made, and my attachment to a rational, well- 
 ordered liberty was well known in the different 
 countries where I had refided ; it procured me 
 the friendfhip^ and an epiftolary intercourfe with 
 thofe at Paris, who, as well as myfelfj contidered 
 revolutions as neceffary, only in the degree that 
 they are conducive to the happinefs and free- 
 dom of mankind. A miflion with which I had 
 been charged to the Prince Bifhop of Liege^ and 
 which proved 1 had been in relation with the 
 minifler, was nofccret at Paris, and the known 
 circumftanccs attending that million were very 
 
 1 far
 
 ( 87 ) 
 
 far from iiijuring me in the opinion of thofe with 
 ^hom 1 correfponded. 
 
 In the month of September I faw a perfon from 
 Le Brun, who wifhed to obtain, through me, an 
 interview with the minifter, but having reafon 
 to lufpecl the good faith of the principal, and 
 having no perfonal knowledge of the agent, I 
 declined interfering. Some other applications 
 were made to me, which, from the little impor* 
 tance annexed to them, I did not think myfclf 
 authorifed to communicate to government. Much 
 about this time, a perfon whofe father has had 
 an high official lituation in F'rance, and witK 
 whote family I had lived in habits of intimacy, 
 called frequently upon me, and as he had been 
 in the diplomatic line, and to a very excellent 
 underftanding, added a very lincere love of 
 peace and good order, our converfations were 
 without referve. Towards November they af- 
 fumed a confequence which made me more atten- 
 tive to them than ufual, and on the 13th of that 
 month it flruck me as fo very important, that I 
 begged leave of my friend to commit it to paper.* 
 
 This is the origin of the interview which M. 
 
 Maret afterwards had with Mr. Pitt, and it de- 
 
 fcrves attention, not only from its matter, but 
 
 its date, for it was at that period that the llorm 
 
 * Vide Appendix. No. I. 
 
 which
 
 ( 83 ) 
 
 M'hich has lince fatally bdrfl upon both countrleS3 
 affuraed a very ill foreboding afpedl. It is alfo 
 worthy of obfervation, that the executive coun- 
 cil had made up their minds at this time on the 
 part they had refolved to take. It is alfo very 
 evident, that unacquainted with the force and 
 genius of our language, they attributed every ar- 
 dent expreffion in favour of liberty, to an impa- 
 tient deiire to fubvert the government ; and as 
 our debating focieties at this period held bold, 
 animated language, wliich appeared to the 
 French as the extreme of violence, the execu- 
 tive council looked upon a revolt as inevitable. 
 This error arofe no lefs from the diiference of 
 the two languages, than from the exagge- 
 rated accounts which were fent to Paris, of 
 the flate of the public mind in this country. 
 The warmth with which an Englifhman ex- 
 prelTes himfelf is very liable to be ntifunder- 
 flood and mi (interpreted by thofe foreigners 
 who are not well acquainted with our manners 
 and our language ; and hence one caufe of the 
 error into which Le Brun and his colleagues 
 were betrayed, and hence the caule of the un- 
 deferved reproaches which fome of thcfe debating 
 Ibcieties incurred. I have printed the note ex- 
 adly as it was taken in the prcfcncc of the per- 
 /pp v^ith whom I copvcrfcd, omitting nothing 
 but fome wild aiTertions refpedling the views and 
 influence of tbefe,-focieties, which he, as vyell as 
 
 the
 
 C 89 ) 
 
 tJic reft of his countrymen, conlidered as means 
 in the lafl: relbrt, to force the Britifh cabinet to 
 chufc between difhonourable conceflion and a 
 war^ which they confidered would place the mi- 
 niftcr fo completely between two fires, that go- 
 vernment, affailed at the fame time by civil infur- 
 reclion and foreign hoftility, would inevitably 
 fall, and this country, incapable of mifchief, 
 would fall into irapotency and ruin by their own 
 diftradlions. 
 
 Such I a,vcr on the faith of an honeft man, 
 were the delulive hopes entertained by Le Brun, 
 and many others, who, unfortunately for both 
 nations, had more power and influence at that 
 moment than {en{e and difcrction, and whofe 
 fatal errors mofl probably accelerated the terrible 
 crilis that foon after happened. It unquefiionably 
 was the policy of this country to obferve the 
 Uridteft neutrality, and this policy was fo obvi- 
 ous, that miniflers would certainly not have de- 
 parted from it, if they had not been compelled, 
 ce n efi ^as ajfez qu^une naUofifoit pacijiquej il faui 
 que tollies les deux lefoient, 
 
 I had frequent interviews after this period 
 (the 13th November) with the faraeperfon; he 
 came to me very often, and on the return of the, 
 courier he had difpatched to Paris, he alTured- 
 xxie he was authorifed . to rcqucfl an interview 
 " N with
 
 ( 9^ I 
 
 Tvith Mr; Pitt, and delired iny good offices io 
 obtain it. I defired him to ftate himfelf to the 
 minifter that he had Ibmething to communicate 
 on the part of the executive council^ and begged 
 to know when be could be honoured with ah in- 
 terview. This he dechned, affuring me that fo 
 many unfuccefsful efforts had been made to get 
 accefs both to Lord Grenville and Mr. Pitt^ that 
 he was difcouraged, and again urged me to ufe my 
 interefl in conlideration of the great ftake at iffue. 
 No lefs ardent than himfelf to prevent the cala- 
 mities of war, I defired him not to deceive me, and 
 lead me to an error, which he would do, if he 
 was not really authorifed by Le Brun. He fo- 
 lemnly protefted that he was, and having fome 
 reafon to believe that he had been prefTed to 
 make ufe of my agency by Le-Brun, I communi- 
 cated the information to Mr. Pitt, that a perfon was 
 in town who had a matter of importance relative 
 to the two countries to communicate to him. 
 I was requcfted to name him, but this I declin- 
 ed, until I had a politive afTurancethat he would 
 be received,* and a rendezvous given ; but be- 
 fore the meeting took place, I again preffed the 
 perfon not to deceive me, that it would prevent 
 my interference again, and defeat the very pur- 
 pefe it was his wifh to obtain. I Hated the ridi- 
 cule he would draw on himfelf, and the anger 
 he would incur, if he was not really authorifed by 
 
 * Vide Appendix, No. II. 
 
 the
 
 ( 9' ) 
 
 the executive council to requeft the interview I 
 had obtained for him that there was fufficient 
 time to obtain inftru^lions, and that the inter- 
 view, under pretence of indifpofition, might be 
 cafily poftponed for a few days, in which a 
 meiTenger might go to Paris and return. 
 Mr. *** again protelled that lie was autho- 
 rifed to fee Mr. Pitt, and we pafted. 
 
 A confidential perfon of the minifter law him 
 at my houfe ; what I had fufpedled was then 
 evident, it was not him, but another that was 
 authorifed to confer with the minifter, and when 
 this fecond perfon was produced to Mr. Pitt, 
 he had no more to flate, and had as Httle autho- 
 rity from the executive council to enter into any 
 difcuffion as the firft.* This perfon is the very 
 gentleman whom Mr. Fox has pofitively and in- 
 variably alTerted came over to treat with mi- 
 nifters, and that miniflers refufed to fee him. 
 
 The miffion of M. Maret to England at this 
 time related folely to the domeftic concerns of 
 the late Duke of Orleans ; and it is a juftice due 
 to the integrity of the former, to fay, that he 
 never pretended to have had any other. It is alfo 
 a juftice due to this gentleman to declare, that 
 he was ftrenuoully againft the war, and as 
 anxious as it was poffible to preferve a good un- 
 * Vide Appendix, No. III. 
 
 N 2 derftanding
 
 ( 9^ ) 
 
 derilanding between the two nations. He had 
 a Ixncere unaffe6^ed refpe(5l for the Enghfh na- 
 tion, and was well calculated to have prevented, 
 by his conciliatory and engaging difpolition, the 
 fatal extremity to which both countries have been 
 driven, if he had been allowed to return, after 
 his interview with Mr. Pitt, charged with full 
 powers to difcufs the important objects which ir- 
 ritated the two nations to madnefs. 
 
 :; ' --''--'m -f}---'-: V ^ 
 
 I do not know upon what authority Mr. Fox 
 has taken upon him to charge, in diredl: terms, 
 the minifter with a decided averfion to enter into 
 an amicable difcuffion with the French govern- 
 ment, of the matters that feemed ofFenlive to 
 both, previous to the unfortunate conteft that 
 infued. Mr. Fox had the means of better infor- 
 mation, if M. Chauvelin had been either faithful 
 to his truft, or explicit ; and to have gone upon 
 random report ; to haye brought a charge againft 
 a minifter, which, if true, fhould render him 
 rcfponfible as far as his forfeit life can atone for 
 crimes fo great, for all the blood that has been 
 ibed, and the millions that have been fquan- 
 dered, without flrong and fufficient evidence of 
 the fa6t, may be the vile expedient of a diftrefled 
 and hungry fadion, impatient to get into of- 
 fice, upon any terms, and by any means ; but it 
 is unworthy of a great and dignified mind afpiring 
 to the government of % vaft empire, and fully ca- 
 4 pable
 
 < 93 ) 
 
 pable of conduiS^ing its various complicated in- 
 terefls. Whatever may have been the fources of 
 Mr. Fox's information ; whoever may have been 
 Ills correfpondents, either in this country or in 
 France, I will take upon mc to aflert, and I 
 have it under the hand of the party,* whofe 
 anger for expofing his letters, I will hazard in a 
 caufe To jufl, and truil to his generolity for pardon- 
 ing, what under any other circumftanccs, or 
 from any other motive, would have been a grofs 
 indecorum. I am fatisficd from the manner in 
 which M. Maret has always cxprefTed himfelf of 
 Mr. Pitt, that he would have authorifed the 
 publication of the letter I have produced, and 
 done juftice to the cordiality with which he was 
 received, and to the pacific fcntiments of the 
 miniiler, at the conference into which he was 
 betrayed. 
 
 I have already flated that the perfon who had 
 repeatedly applied to me to obtain an interview 
 with the minifler, under repeated aflfurances that 
 he had a communication to make from the exe- 
 cutive council, had no fuch authority. 1 have 
 alfo ftated, that the perfon whom he produced 
 when the rendezvous was given, was M. Maret, 
 and that M. Maret had as little authority as his 
 friend ; and on penetrating through this intrigue, 
 J had reafon to be offended at the faUchood 
 
 * Vide Appendix, No. IV. 
 
 pra61ifed
 
 ( 94 ) 
 
 pradtifed upon me in the firfl inltance, and on 
 the minifler in the fecond. In confequence of 
 this deceit, . the caufe of which I will explain at a 
 future period, I wrote to Le Brun, and to the 
 party that had impofed upon me; M. Maret, in a 
 letter dated Paris, January u, 179 J, in anfwer 
 to a warm remonfl ranee on the condu6l of his 
 friend, very candidly acknowledges that he was 
 neither a fecret agent, nor charged with any mif- 
 fion. (Vide Appendix, No. IV.) 
 
 > That fuch was not his objecl is certainly true, 
 and I have his authority for aflerting, that Mr. Pitt 
 acknowledged it would give him great pleafure 
 to " treat with him (M. Maret) as a confidential 
 *' p erf on from the French executive counc'iV This 
 certainly did not look like an infolent contempt 
 of the French nation, or an unwillingnefs on the 
 part of the minilter to treat with the French go- 
 vernment. M. Maret was fo well pleafed with 
 his reception, that he fully expected to have been 
 authorifed, by the return of the courier, whom 
 he. difpatched to Paris, to treat confidentially 
 w:ith government ; and if he had ax^ed with lefs 
 franknefs towards M. Chauveliii ; if he had 
 not informed the French envoy, already alarmed, 
 and jealous of every Frenchman that arrived, 
 of the interview, it is very probable that Le 
 Brun would liave acceded to the folicitations 
 of M. Maret; but M. Chauvelin, jealous that 
 
 a con-
 
 ( 95 ) 
 
 a conference fhould have been granted, and 
 apprehenlive that he would be fupplanted, 
 counteracted the projects of the man whom he 
 coniidered as his rival, and exerted himfelf 
 fo fuccefsfully on the firft information of what 
 had happened, that the anfwer tranfmitted 
 from the executive council contained a fevcre 
 reprimand, and forbidding M. Maret, in ra- 
 ther angry terms, to enter into any explanation 
 whatever, or even to fpeak to Mr. Pitt on the 
 fubjedl of public affairs, ordered him to refer 
 the Englifh minifter to M. Chauvelin, who 
 was furniflied with the proper explanations, 
 and to return to Paris immediately. He was 
 at my houfe when the difpatch arrived, and 
 I read it with the more furprife and indig- 
 nation, on finding that Le Brun had reported 
 to the convention, that Mr. Pitt, alarmed, 
 liad folicited an interview with the fecret agents 
 of the executive council in England, but that he 
 
 (Le Brun) had cxprcfsly forbidden them to have 
 any communication with the Englifh minifter, 
 but to refer him to the ambafTador of the re- 
 public. 
 
 It was In confequence of this report, as Infolent 
 as it was unjufl, that I wrote to Le Brun,* that 
 he might retracl an error in which I found my- 
 felf involved, and which altered very materiill/ 
 
 * Vide Appendix', No. V. 
 
 the
 
 ( 96 ) 
 
 tlie poiitlon of the two governments, and might 
 have a very mifchievous influence on their re- 
 ipeclive proceedings. I will fubmit it to the can- 
 dor of Mr. Fox, to fay whether Le Brun, if 
 he had been well difpofed towards this coun- 
 try, would have fo fcandaloufly milinterpret- 
 ed that conference ; or if the executive council 
 would have permitted it, if they had not been 
 well inclined to irritate and provoke minifters 
 into a conteft, and which it was the firm belief 
 inParis would inftantly occalion a revolt through- 
 out this country ? 
 
 Tliis I aver as a fa6t, and fo fully aflured were 
 the French of the fact, fo fatally deceived had 
 they been, either by bad men of their own coun- 
 try, or bad men in this, that one of the fecret 
 agents, for there were a conftant fupply of them, 
 alTured me, that *^ fuch was t/ie atlual Jlate of 
 " Great Britain, thcit we did not dare to call out 
 ** the militia y If I had reafon to be offended 
 with the firft report of Le Brun, I had much 
 more caufe of difpleafure at the fccond ; nor did 
 I till this epoch defpair of peace, notwithfland- 
 ing my letters from Paris were calculated to pre- 
 pare me for an event which my friends forefaw 
 was inevitable.* The whole of M. Le Brun's 
 condu(5t throughout tliis corrcfpondcnce, was 
 marked with fuch ilrong duplicity, and fuch 
 
 Vide Appendix, No. VI. 
 . i evident
 
 ( 97 ) 
 
 evident averfion to an amicable arrangement with 
 this country. He was fo eager to feize on every 
 trifling occurrence, and to make the mofl of 
 every trifling event, that, incenfed at his per- 
 fifling to inflame the people againfl: this coun- 
 try, I wrote a very fevere reproof to the perfon 
 whom I confldered as the caufe of the errors into 
 which Le Brun, Briflbt, and others had fallen, 
 and efpecially as I found the French Minifter 
 obflinately refolved to bring forward the falfliobd 
 of which I complained, on every ocralion where 
 he thought it would anfvvcr his purpofe. 
 
 It is rather extraordinary that there fliould be 
 fuch little agreement on this occafion between 
 the declarations of M. Le Brun, and the aflTer- 
 tions of Mr. Fox. The former of thefe gentle- 
 men goes to the French convention in the cha- 
 racter of fecretary of flate, and exultingly tells 
 them that the Englifli minifter, humbled and 
 alarmed, has provoked a conference with the 
 fecret agents of the republic in London, but that 
 they had been forbidden to enter into any dif- 
 cuffion with him on public aflTairs ; while the 
 latter gentleman as obflinately maintains that 
 Mr. Pitt refufed to fee a perfon who had been 
 fent over on purpofe to treat with him, and which 
 (hat perfon as peremptorily denies.* 
 
 * Vide Appendix, No. IV. 
 
 O It
 
 ( 93 ) 
 
 * rit does not become me to decide which of the 
 two gentlemen on this occalion is worthy of 
 credit. Mr. Fox is equally unfortunate in af-* 
 fcribing the war to the minifter, and no lefs fo in 
 aflerting, that the French nation was difpofed to 
 ]peace. If he will give himfelf the trouble to refer 
 to the Appendix, No. I. he will find a contrary 
 difpofition announced, even in November, i 792, 
 and if any credit is due to the information of 
 M. Maret, it will be {cen that England only 
 furnifhed one caufe of war in the 'abulive lan- 
 guage of two gentlemen in the Houfe of Com- 
 mons, (MelTrs. Burke and Windham) while France 
 was fVimnlated to qitarrel withus by her enthufiafm 
 and her victories; by her pride, by her courage, 
 and by her refources, all of which M. Maret very 
 candidly acknowledges, on the 5th of January, 
 1793, are the great obllacles that he finds to an 
 amicable arrangement, but which he oppofes with 
 a boldnefs and a freedom worthy of his talents 
 and his virtues.* The day previous to his writing 
 to me I had written to him, and my letter proves 
 that it was to the folly, or fomething worfe, of Le 
 Brun, that I imputed the war, which it was eafy 
 to forefee was inevitable. -f- I have other docu- 
 ments in my poflefiion, which all tend to prove 
 that France v/as too much intoxicated with her 
 fuccefs, and too confident that fhe was invincible, 
 to keep any meafures with a nation whom it was 
 
 * Vide Appendix, No. VII. t Vide Appendix, No. VIII. 
 
 licr
 
 ( 99 ) 
 
 her misfortune to behold in no other light than 
 as a very powerful neighbour and rival, and 
 whom flie thought it was neceflary to humble, 
 if not to crufli. As January advanced, my 
 hopes of peace decreafed, yet my efforts were 
 continued, and in confequence of a communica- 
 tion from M. Le Brun, accompanied by a num- 
 ber of queftions, I wrote to him on the 2d of 
 January, 1793,* very fully in anfwer to all that 
 Iiad been- demanded. 
 
 My letter, dated the nth of January,-}- was 
 another exhortation to peace, in the vain hope, 
 that Le Brun would have feen by my repeated 
 remonftrances, how very much his own fortunes 
 depended on the preferv^ation of peace, indepen- 
 dent of far more important confiderations. Dif- 
 hcartened at the gloomy profpe6V, and offended at 
 his duplicity and ralhnefs, I wrote to him for the 
 lafl time, on the i8th of the fame month, and 
 clofed a fruitlcfs correfpondence with him for 
 ever. I I did not, however, renounce all in- 
 tercourfe with M. Maret, in \yhom I had the fa- 
 tisfa61ion to behold united great talents with 
 great franknefs, and a very ardent and unaffeeied 
 wifli that the two nations ihould live in peace 
 and amity. The wifcfl courfc that this country 
 could have taken, and the policy to which fhc 
 long lince fhould have reforted, was an alliance 
 
 * \'ide Appendix, No. IX. f Vide Appendix, No. X. 
 I Vide Appendix, No. XL 
 
 02
 
 ( 100 ) 
 
 witli France. It was the wifli of feveral with 
 with whom I had lived in habits of intimacy, 
 and a meafure that I took the liberty to fuggefl 
 to Mr. Pitt in 1786, when the commercial 
 treaty was under conli deration ;* whether an 
 union fo delirable in itfelf, and fo neceffary to 
 the interefl, not only of the two nations, but of 
 
 * I do not arrogate to myfelf the merit of this idea, although it 
 had ftruck me as politic and practicable early in 1 78 1. It was 
 evident, that if fuch an union could be afFefted between the two 
 greateft nations in Europe, that the peace of the world would be 
 affUred for ever, and that both countries would be at liberty to 
 cultivate the arts of peace ; in the courfe of my rambles on the 
 continent I met, in 1785, with a French nobleman who was on 
 the eve of coming over from the French minifter, the Due 
 d'Aiguillon, (father to the prefent Duke) foon after the peace 
 of 1763, with a fimilar projeft to our government. He had 
 the goodnefs to tell me the outline of the meditated alliance, and 
 as a proof of the fincerity of the French Court, and to avoid 
 giving any caufe of jealoufy to England, France would have of- 
 fered to limit her navy to fifty fail of fliips of war. A change of 
 councils prevented this offer being made, and with the permillion 
 of the perfon who communicated it to me, I fent the account to 
 Mr. Pitt. Would to heaven he had adopted the idea ! It is a 
 lamentable refleftion that the two greateft, and by far the moll 
 civilized and intelligent nations in Europe, Ihould live in ran- 
 corous arid perpetual hoftility to each other, contrarv to their 
 own happinefs and intereft, contrary to the happinels and in- 
 tereft, perhaps, of all the world ! That a wifer policy may re- 
 fpeftively influence their future councils, and that they may 
 foon ceafe to be enemies, will ever be the ardent prayer of a 
 man who offers his reflexions to the world, for perhaps the 
 the laft time, on a variety of topics, which have long engaged 
 bis attention, and whofe wifli it ever has been, that mankind 
 fhould be free and happy ! 
 
 all
 
 ( -01 ) 
 
 all Europe, will ever be reallfed, I know not, Lut 
 if ever this country fliould feci the importance of 
 fuch an union, and take any ftep towards it, I 
 feel aflurcd that it will meet with every afli (lance 
 from M. Marct, who, refcued by tlie valor of 
 his countrymen from the power of a defpot, and 
 returned to France, may hereafter, perhaps, have 
 the glory of happily accomplifhing, what he mofi: 
 ardently wifhed, and unfuccefsfully attempted in 
 1792. This is not only a tribute of private perfonal 
 regard, but of truth due to his philanthropy and 
 talents.* 
 
 Having demonflrated that this gentleman, by 
 his own confefTion, had no mifTion to the Britifh. 
 government, nor any authority to treat with Mr. 
 Pitt at the period that the interview took place 
 between tliem, it only remains to fpeak of his 
 journey to this country towards the latter end of 
 January 1 793, when alone he could be faid to have 
 been authorilcd to make any propolitions, and 
 here I will admit the flatement of Mr. Fox to 
 be correal, as far as it relates to the mtjfion of 
 M. Maret, but that all intercourfe with him was 
 refuted by the King's fervants, T poiitively deny, 
 and for the beft of all poffible rcafons, becaufc 
 it had never been folicited. On the fame au- 
 thority that I contradidlcd the former afTertion, 
 I deny this. The authority of M. Maret, who 
 
 * The neutrality of the Swifs territory was indecently as 
 well as impoHtically violated, and the perfon of this gentleman 
 and that of M. Senionviile illegally feized, on their way to 
 
 Naples and Coaftaiuinople. 
 
 may
 
 ( 1 02 ) 
 
 may certainly be allowed to know as much of the 
 matter as thofe who on fuch little foundation, have 
 fo repeatedly urged it in Parliament as a fadl wor- 
 thy of its attention, worthy its highefl cenfure, and 
 which if true, would juftify the feverejft punifhment 
 that national vengeance could inflicl on a guilty 
 minifter. That M. Maret was difpatched to 
 England preparatory to the projefted embafiy of 
 M. Dumourier, who, invefted with full powers^ 
 was finally to have arranged all differences and ta 
 have returned immediately, is moft certainly true, 
 and it is worthy of obfervation, that on the very 
 day, and I believe at the very hour, that M. 
 Chauvelin fet off for Paris, M. Maret departed 
 for London. Apprehenlive that the fudden. 
 appearance of M. Chauvelin in the Convention, 
 aggravated by inflammatory mifreprefcntations,, 
 would make it neceffary for the executive coun- 
 cil to change the inftruclions they had given, 
 and, impreffed with this idea, M. Maret wrote 
 to Le Brun> that he Jhould not defire an intervieiD 
 %vith the EngliJIt mhiijier, jmtil frejh hiJirutTions. 
 arrived. His flay in London was eight days,, 
 and it was on his landing at Dover, that lie wrotc 
 in very preffing terms, to the executive council for 
 thefc inftrudions, Tlie only official notice that^ 
 Lord Grenville had of M- Maret's arrival ih town,, 
 was a note merely to apprife his Lordfliip, that ho 
 (M. Maret) had come over to take charge of the 
 4 di plain alio
 
 ( ic)3 ) 
 
 diplomatic papers in the houfe of the French 
 nvoy. This was all the interoourfe that palled, 
 and all the communication that was made to 
 any of his Majcfty's mhiiflers, except a letter, 
 which was fent by M. Maret at the inflant of his 
 final departure from London, addreflcd to Lord 
 Grenville. 
 
 It is a juftice due to the unafFecled anxiety 
 of M. Marct for peace, to fay, that he depre- 
 cated the fatal obftinacy and filence of the exe- 
 cutive council ; and on our taking leave of each 
 other, at midnight, previous to his departure, 
 he expreffed the deepeft concern at not hav- 
 ing received a linglc line or direction during 
 the whole time of his flay in England. My 
 wifh was, that he fliould have paid no at- 
 tention to the departure of M. Chauvelin, but to 
 have been guided by the inftrutStions he had, 
 and this I inccflTantly urged to him every day ; 
 it was a line of conduct that I would have ob- 
 ferved, under limilar circumftanccs, in order to 
 prefervc, if pofTible, a communication ; but the 
 fa6l was, M. Maret Jiad verj' little to fay, and that 
 little w^as partly rendered imimportant by fubfc- 
 quent occurrences ; this plain fa<5l, however, is 
 cleady evident, that if the executive council had 
 not been refolved to avoid all explanation 
 with this country, it would, as they had a 
 confidential perfon on the fpot, and charged 
 
 with
 
 ( 104 5 
 
 with a particular raiffion, have availed theni- 
 felves of his miniftry to have preferved, if pol^ 
 fible, a good underflanding between the two 
 countries ; and what gives additional force to 
 this conje^lure is, that one of the offences for 
 whicli Le Brun buffered death, was that of hav- 
 ing involved his country in a war with England^ 
 and this fentence of the French nation againft 
 their own minifter I hold to be a virtual acquit- 
 tal of the Englilh one.* 
 
 I ihould fuppofe that M. Maret was to the 
 full as likely to know whether Mr. Pitt declined 
 all intercourfe with him, as Mr. Fox, and if the 
 teftimony of the firft gentleman, whofe veracity 
 I have no reafon to qucftion, is entitled to credit, 
 the charges fo indecently urged againft the fe- 
 cond by the third, fall inftantly to the ground, 
 and under fuch circumftances of odium and fuf- 
 picion, that muft make him blufli at having 
 aflerted what has been fo completely refuted. 
 When the ralh meafure which gave a triumph 
 to M. Chauvelin, and a wound to both nations, 
 put an end to all negotiation, 1 wrote a letter -f- 
 to one of the very few agents of the executive 
 council, with whom I lived in habits of intimacy, 
 and whofe ardor to preferve peace equalled my 
 own. He was one of the very few who exerted 
 
 * It was alfo one of the charges againft BrifTot, aiid for which 
 he fuffered death. 
 
 t Vide Appendix, No. XII. 
 
 themfelves
 
 ( iOS ) 
 
 themfelves to refcue the executive council from 
 that delulion in which it was artfully kept, and 
 which may be leen by the reports of Le Brun* 
 -to the Convention ; all France was perfuaded 
 that a general revolt throughout this country 
 would inftantly follow a declaration of war, and 
 I will do jullice to the underftanding of Le Brun, 
 by faying that I firmly believe, that this delulion; 
 was a very great ftimulus to the war that enfued, ; 
 Ruminating upon the additional fcenes of horror 
 into which Europe was by this fatally wild and 
 atrocious a6l to -be deeper plunged; combining 
 the various threats which had been thrown out 
 in various ways, and the impudent reflections on 
 the known loyalty of the Britilh nation, witli 
 the afflidlions of the fatherlefs, and of the widows 
 whom hoftilities would throw on the cold charity 
 of the world, I endeavoured to alleviate the af- 
 fiidlions of the latter, and to repel the injurious 
 flanders of the former, by opening a fubfcription 
 for the relief x)f the widows and children of fuch 
 foldiers and feamen who fhould fall in the con- 
 tcfl". It was the fuggeftion of the moment in 
 the courfe of a converfation with an only child, 
 over our humble and evening repafl:.;-j- the idea 
 
 * M. Le Bnin not only accounced that we -were on the eve 
 of an infurre^ion, but threatened to appeal to the people 
 againft their government, in the criminal hop^ of fetting the 
 former againfl the latter. 
 
 t Vide Appendix, No. XIII, 
 
 P was
 
 X io6 ) 
 
 'Was adopted, and a meeting held at the Crowh 
 and Anchor Tavern, and to give it all poffible 
 pubhcity, I wrote circular letters to the magiftrates 
 in the great towns throughout the three king- 
 doms, to the commanding flag officers at all the 
 fea ports, to the commiffioners at the dock yard, 
 and to all the officers on the^ imprefs fervicc. 
 The gentlemen at Lloyd's CofFee-houfe, with 
 a munificence worthy of the flrft city in the 
 world, adopted, on the firft fuggeftion, a limilar 
 idea, with a view to reward valor and patri- 
 otifm in the naval fervice of their country ; arid 
 I feel an honeft pride in declaring that the i^afe 
 of both funds, prefent the moft flattering proofs 
 J f the wealth and fplendid liberality of the Britifh 
 : nation. Having vindicated -the miniller, arid ^ 
 ' trufl: fuccefsfully, from the charge of having de- 
 clined all intercourfe with M.. .Matet, and of 
 having involved the country in war ; I truft this 
 ^ a6l of common juflice, due to truth as well as to 
 i Mr. Pitt, will not be attributed by the gentlemen 
 * Who are not in the habits of focial intercourfe with 
 'him, or who do'-not fupport him in theHoufe of 
 ? Commons, to any motive but the one that I have 
 this inflant alligncd. If they do,, it will be an 
 -.hijuflicc. that. will afle(5l my rcputa.tion much Icfs 
 i than their own,c;and oGGafion me no^ other re- 
 *^*gret,-<h^ft that they fhould have fo very much 
 forgotten what they owe more to tbemfelves 
 than to me.-- -4^ - 
 ?^" I do
 
 ( 1^7 ) 
 
 I do not think ill of Mr. Fox becanie lie is in 
 oppofitiou to Mr. Pitt ; I would as little con- 
 demii the former when he is in the right, as I 
 would fupport the latter when he is in the wrong. 
 Both thefe men are but fhrubs on the vaft j)lain, 
 and would never have been known but for the 
 accident that tranfplantcd them from the crowd ; 
 miriifters are not to be looked at diftiniStly from 
 their meafures, nor their meafures diliin^lly from 
 the conftitution. They are all to be viewed, ex- 
 amined, and judged of together, not feparately, 
 but by the relation which they have to truth, to 
 common fenfe, and to the common intercfts of all. 
 I have no other rule to go by ; but if perfonal af- 
 fection is permitted to decide or influence, our 
 judgment on the conduct of public men, in the 
 high and important concerns of public truft and 
 duty ; if we are to eftimatc their integrity and 
 their capacities by the conviviality or the facility 
 of their tempers, or their liberality in compli- 
 menting their followers aqd depeiidants v/ith 
 what was intrufted tQ thpm for far diifcrent pur- 
 pofes, adieu to public virtueradieu to all fair 
 and honed pretenfions adieu to that great and 
 powerful check, which even bad men teel, when 
 they know tliat others are not as fervile or as 
 corrupt as they are unprincipled. There may, 
 perhaps, be much warmth in my writings ; a, 
 warmth approaching even to intemperance, but 
 ^ny writings arc as far removed from pcrvcrlity, ^s
 
 ( io8 ) 
 
 they arc from venality, and fliall never have the 
 miferable interefts of party for their objed. 
 
 I feel no ambition to be affociatcd with thofe 
 time-ferving pamphleteers who write for the pur- 
 pofe of keeping one faAion in office, or of driving" 
 another out j dill lefs will I deferve to be con- 
 founded with that defpicable banditti of itinerant 
 fcribblers who compel timid virtue to ranfom itfelf 
 from unmerited ilander, or that, exads from the 
 pockets of fplendid infamy the price of that filence 
 which fecures it from public fliame. Let thefe 
 men derive a guilty maintenance by fuch foul and 
 diflionourable means ; let them rife from bank- 
 ruptcy to affluence by the iniquitous contributions 
 they forcibly levy on private families, as the pur- 
 chafe of domeftic felicity and repofe ; while the 
 former defcription of writers, lefs atrocious perhaps, 
 but not lefs mifchievous than the latter, having no 
 fixed principles of civil governilient in their own 
 minds, do no great violence to their feelings, ^r 
 injury to their chara6lers, by alternately appear- 
 ing as the champions of liberty, or the apoftles of 
 defpotifm, as either may happen to accord with the 
 interefts of their refpedive employers. 
 
 In the hiftory of Mr. Fox's public life, I fee 
 much to bewail, and little to admire; while the 
 dawn and meridian of his happier rival has more to 
 cxhileratc, actid lefs to offend, than ufually falls to 
 
 the
 
 ( I09 ) 
 
 the lot of men in high officiaJ truft. Before the counw 
 try finally pronounces its irrevocable fiat on the fame 
 of Mr. Pitt, it is incumbent on its juflice to recal 
 ihofe periods of his adminidration which difplayed 
 the greateft energy, combined with the pureft pa- 
 triotifm, and above ail, of the two periods which 
 obtained hina ihofe triumphs, which are alone 
 worthy of a mind rich in its own refources, and 
 confcious of its reftitude ; it is incumbent on the 
 juflice of the country to recal to its remembrance 
 that period, when it was happily refcued from a coa- 
 lition* that dilhonoured it in the firft inftance, and 
 
 would 
 
 * If I had been perfonally the enemy of Mr. Fox, or if I had 
 a malice to indulge, the late conteft for Weftminfter \vouId 
 have gratified me to the fulleft extent. 
 
 Placed between the two candidates, he was compelled to dif- 
 own both, not with the confiflent dignity of manhood, but from 
 the aukward dilemma in which he was placed by the oppofite 
 principles of his rivals ; his former habits'naturally inclined him \ 
 to the court candidate, but popularity, that l:as jilted hira 
 through life, forbid the banns, and beckoned him to Home 
 Tooke, who, confidering hira as a penitent, would have- given 
 him abfolution for paft offences, and received him within the 
 pale of his religion. The Admiral, far lefs civil, returned his 
 kindnefs with the cold and infulting offer of a negative prefe- 
 rence, '^ I luill accept of you. Sir, if I cannot get a ifttcr."- 
 Such was the diftrefling and afflicling fituation of Mr. Fox on 
 the huflings at Covcnt-gardcn : motionlefs, like the pendulum 
 of a clock when the weights are down, fixed to the centre, inert 
 and witlwut power to move to either fide, he flood, a monu- 
 ment of pride mortified, and ambition humbled ! The whole 
 
 of
 
 ( no ; 
 
 would have cnflaved it in the fecond ; it is incum- 
 bent on its juftice to turn back to that awful, thac 
 
 melancholy 
 
 of this election was a whimfical exhibition of the biflory of paii 
 and prefent times; but the circumftance in which it diiFers 
 moft from all other eledions, and that too in their moft efTential 
 part, was, that the candidate who is not returned, has tlje ho- 
 noar of the triumph. The viiory, in faft, nei-her belongs to 
 Sir Alan Gardner,' nor to Mr. Fox it is exclufively Mr.TooIce's. 
 His more fortunate opponents have met with defeat, not con- 
 quefl, and however much the fuccefsful candidates may exult 
 uoon the occafion, I aver that there is in the iffue of this bufi- 
 nefs^ matter that calls xnoii. imperioufly on irJuifters to look 
 before them. Truths that are unpleafant, are fometimes apt to 
 offerid. I believe thofe that it has fallen to my lot to pubhfh, 
 have been altogether of that.defcription, although my intecition 
 lias been to ferve, not oiTend ; but v/hej;-e the internal tranquillity 
 of an entire nation is concerned, forms are not only imperti-. 
 nent, but dangerous. I aver it again, that the triumph in this 
 eleftion belongs exclufively to Mr. Tooke. It is 3, triumph of 
 fucli a nature that it anticipates hiftory, and enables Minifters 
 to read poffible events not yet arrived, in which they may be 
 pcrfonally interefted. Take the fa<5t as it is a private gentleman 
 without a fortune equal to a conteft, offers himfelf as a candidate 
 for a feat in Parliament, jn Qp})ofition to twQ other gentlemen 
 who have a fufficient ftock of popularity ariiing from their re- 
 fpe^iive merits, to juftify their claim to the diftin<5tion they fo- 
 Hcit ; in addition to thefe ftrong perfonal recommendations to 
 the favour of the elei^ors, thefe gentlemen belong to the two 
 great leading parties in t^e country, who maj' be fai,d to have 
 monopolized its adminiftratiou, and are moft powerfully fup- 
 ported by both : and what is a Angular circumftance in thia 
 eleftipn, both thefe candidates, who are as hoilile to each other as 
 poffible, feel, however, a coironon intereft in excluding the 
 third candidate. , Si? Alan Gaifdner.exprefsly feid, "I woiil^ 
 
 rather
 
 ( "I ) 
 
 mdanchol)'period,when with one accord it muSizled 
 the youDg Qiallift'thac would have fnapped the hand 
 
 that 
 
 rather have JVIr. Fox tliao Mr. Tobke :" this laft gentleman was 
 happily relieved from the neceffity f making any fuch declara- 
 tion, and the liience of Mr. Fox upon the occafion was a mea- 
 fure of prudence, from the ciixuniftance of his being compelled 
 to keep well with the friends of the other candidates, whofe othar 
 vote was abfolutely neceflary to enfure him Aiccefs. The 
 friends of Mr. Tooke would rather Live Mr. Fox for his col- 
 league, than the Admiral ; the friends of the Admiral laid the 
 fame of Mr, Fox ; but I do not believe that the friends in gene- 
 *al of this gentleman were fo well diipofcd to the popular, as 
 to the cmirt candidate; yet after p'^lling for a fortnight, the 
 candidate without any of the powerful fupport which his rivals 
 derived from their fituation, credit, and connections landing 
 ibiely on his-own pretenfions, and fupported by his great abill*. 
 ties, obnoxious to the party in power, And vtry far from being 
 a fevouf ite with the party that is out j the wb.ole court, and the 
 whole force of government exerted againft him ; all the great 
 families, with their numerous dependants, employing all their 
 influence to exclude him : yet with all thcfe great ^d various 
 combinations of ciafiiing interefts, united for the moment againit 
 him as their common foe, Mr.Tookcfoundnear three thoufand 
 people in Weftminller well difpofed to depute liim their repre- 
 sentative to Parliament. There is more in this e%'ent tlian meets 
 the eye. If he liad polTefied any one of the rcfources of bis 
 opponents, or even if fear had not operated againft him on the 
 minds of dependent men, it is not Sir Alan Gardner, but Mr. 
 Tooke, that would have been declared duly elcdied by the 
 returning officer. 
 
 If Miniflers feel that this nettle has a fting, and fufFer from 
 
 the fmart, it is their own fault ; the man whom they thought ft 
 
 pigmy, ea^ly tot be cruflied by the giant arm of power, has 
 
 3 rifen
 
 (1T2 } 
 
 fed hiin ; when the manly dig^nified refiftance d 
 the Miniftcr to a <ilaim neither decent nor juft, 
 
 refcued 
 
 rifen triumphant from the blow, and ftands a coloffiis above 
 them. I know very- little of Mr. Tooke ; he has not feen me, 
 by his own confeffiori, fince I was a boy, and I have never had 
 any communication with .him fince that period, either direftly or 
 - indirectly ; but I refped his abilities, and when weH directed, they 
 refleft equal honour on himfelf, his country, and the age we live 
 in. On the fubjeft of his guilt or innocence when arraigned at the 
 Old Bailey, on a charge of high treafon, I have nothing to fay. He 
 has been abfolved by the laws of his country, and the decifion will 
 be refpefted by all thofe who have a proper refpecft for thofc laws. 
 It was a poor and pitiful, revenge, a revenge that argued equal 
 'impotency and malice, to call him an acquitted felon. It was 
 an infult to the jury that pronounced the verdift, for it implied 
 "tiiat they had perjured themfelves. The event of this and^the 
 - other profecutions of the fame kind, fhould teach Minifters cau- 
 'lion, for indictments of this defcription of high treafon, fhould 
 " never be preferred without ftrong and fufficient evidence of 
 guilt; for when charges of this nature are not brought home to 
 'ihe full conviction of thofe who are to decide up>on them, govern- 
 ' inent becomes weakened, not ftrengthcned, and lofes fubjefts in a 
 much larger proportion than it would have made victims. The 
 accufed party returns to the attack with redoubled vigour, 
 authorifed in fome degree by the very laws which were to have 
 Configned him to the gibbet ; he comes back to the charge with 
 ' a much greater and a far dearer intereft in its iflue than ever ; 
 he comes back armed with a perfonal revenge for a perfonal in- 
 'jury, levelled at his charaftcr and life; and^ humanity entirtly 
 out of the queftion, it argues little difcretion in the government 
 that expofes itfelf to the confequences of fuch a defeat. It is 
 one of thofe contefts which admits of no compromife. There 
 is no qualifying medium, no middle courfe or way, where the 
 two parties can meet, explain, fliakc hands, and be friends ; on 
 
 Ac
 
 ( "3 ) 
 
 rcfcued it a fecond time from a worfe than Egyp- 
 tian bondage, and gave the people an additional 
 
 fecurity 
 
 the contrary, they are bitter irreconcileable enemies for ever. 
 The verdict of guilty or not guilty leaves nothing in view but 
 life or death, difgrace or triumph. Tlie man who puts an halter 
 round the neck of another, moft probably means to ftranglc 
 hira ; and if it fhoukl appear in the event, that he had no right 
 over his life, it will hardly be faid that he has any to his grati- 
 tude or affection. 
 
 I do not know what Lord Loughborough had in view in ad- 
 vifing thofe profecutions, which turned out fo beneficial to thofe 
 whom they were meant to deftroy, and (o unfortunate for go- 
 vernment. But the attorney general muft have known that the 
 evidence he had was not fufficient to enfure conviftion, and un- 
 lefs conviftion was brought home to the parties, Minifters fiiould 
 have known that the caufe of government muft be injured. In 
 a word, ftates fliould never war with their own fubjeifts, with- 
 out the certainty of vii^ory ; the more prudent line would be, 
 not to hazard a defeat, by provoking an unneceflary conteft. 
 
 I have no doubt but there are many men in this country 
 whofe minds are ill difpofed towards its government, it would, 
 be afFe<^tion to difltmble what caimot well be daiied ; if the 
 abufes in the government juftify complaint, they fhould be cor- 
 rected, or they will become weapons of very dangerous potency. 
 in the hands of tJiofe, whofe obje<5t is to march to " Wind/or^ 
 injlead of hatting at Houttflow.^* 
 
 It is the common error of all governments, whether free or de- 
 fpotic, to prefer fyftem to expediency, and to fpurn good council 
 yntil it is too late to profit by it. The jjenury of its refources is 
 pverlooked or forgotten in the rich difplay of prefent mejins. 
 They forget that their Itrength is not their own, ajid that s^ ww 
 
 Q, with
 
 ( "4 ) 
 
 fecurity for thofe liberties which it is their proud 
 boail they hold not from the bounty of the fove- 
 reign, but by right divine ! Nor has Mr. Pitt 
 been lefs attentive to the commerce and revenues, 
 of his country, than to its internal tranquillity and 
 the conftitutional rights of the people. He has a 
 large and voluminous account of high and impor- 
 tant public fervices to plead : his deftroying the 
 coalition ; his firmnefs in the affair of the regency, 
 which fecured to virtue the triumph ihe deferved, 
 and faved the empire ; his commercial treaty ; 
 the whole of his arrangements refpeding a filler 
 kingdom; his confolidation a<ft ; his meafures to 
 reftrain a clandeftine traffic, that drove the fair 
 trader from all competition, and materially injured 
 the public revenue ; together with the whole of his 
 
 vail 
 
 with the people cuts off the refources by which that ftrength is 
 fed, furtained, and vivified, I do not like to fee even the ap- 
 pearance of ill humour between the government and the people, 
 much lefs fquabbles and acrimonious difputes. They fhould 
 live in afFeftionate and confidential relation with each other, dif- 
 playing the ec^ifying, animating fpeftacle to furrounding nations 
 of a mind united and indillblubly bound together for ever ; agree- 
 ing ever conflantly and purfuing cordially, ardently, and fuccefs- 
 fully, the fame objefts. Their interefts are the fame, and Mcdded 
 to each other, their attachment fiiould be ftrong, mutual, and eter- 
 nal ; for they have no civil law to refort to in caf? of difagreement ; 
 no alimony ; no feparation a men/a et thoro ; but a final irrevo- 
 cable ruinous divorce to one party, without the poffibility of 
 feeking happinefs, confolation, or refuge in a fecond marriage, 
 while full pow er remains to the other to chufe again, and take 
 another venture.
 
 ( i>5 ) 
 
 vafl and complicated fyficm of finance, the great 
 obje(5ls of which were to extinguifh the national 
 debt and to ameliorate the condition of the people 
 by relieving them from the intolerable burthens 
 which opprefs and curb them to the earth. What 
 account had his opponents to prefent, or that 
 could pofhbly come in comparifon with fo many 
 proud claims to national confidence and applaufe ? 
 None ! What was the folio of his adverfary ? 
 ** A blank, my Lord!*' a foul, dark leaf; 
 black beyond the complexion of Erebus ! 
 
 Such were the dignified pretenfions of Mr. Pitt 
 to the confidence of his country ; fuch the grand 
 career in which he was proceeding with a rapidity 
 worthy of the exalted mind of his father; worthy 
 of the mild, beneficent, and extenfive proje<5ls 
 he had propofed, when the French revolution, in 
 an ill-fated moment, as if devifed by malice to 
 blafl his fame and curfe this land, deliroyed his 
 hopes for ever 1 My pen falls from my hand, my 
 faculties are fufpended, and I dare not contem- 
 plate the vafl ruin of his fame and fortune ! for 
 ruined they are pafl redemption, if he docs not 
 inftantly recede : not by paltry intrigue, the weak 
 refource of little minds, but by an entire change of 
 lyflem, fomething fimilar to that propofed by Mr. 
 Fox, whofe advice in what relates to continental 
 politics, he will do well to follow. Mr. Pitt has 
 Gil been
 
 I iiS ) 
 
 been the vvorfl of prodigals, for he has allowed a 
 legion of ad venturers to trade upon a popularity all 
 nis own ; he has lent them his credit, not to improve 
 his fortunes, but to bankrupt them ;, not to exalt 
 his fame, but to blafl it ; and will he allow thofe 
 men to traffic tvith the poor remnant they have 
 left him, until his name lofes all currency ? O 
 God ! that a man who was 6nce fo high, fo de- 
 iervedly high, fhould have fallen fo low ! He 
 hangs fufpended mid way down a precipice, on 
 whofe proud fummit he flood erecil, the arbiter 
 of Europe and the world ! He dare not contem- 
 plate the ftupendous height from whence he has 
 fallen ; his feht'es would forfake him, and all 
 below him is darknefs, horror, and defpair ! A 
 manly avowal of his errors, accompanied by a 
 determined refolution to correA the multiplied 
 mifchiefs rcfulting from obflinacy, inexperience, 
 and delufion, may yet reftore to him a portion of 
 what he has unhappily loft : he ftill pofTefTes a 
 fuperiority over his rival, which the fituation of 
 the country requires fhould be hufbanded, not 
 fquandered ; not that I wifh them to remain in 
 battle array, drawn out in direct hoftility to each 
 other ; for this is not a moment to trifle, the 
 deftiny of the nation is in fome fort in their 
 hands : my wifh is to fee theili united, not di- 
 vided ; their common fafety requires it ; the 
 fafety of the country depends upon it, for the 
 
 country
 
 ( "7 ) 
 
 country is in danger, and other means mufl be 
 teforted to, if the fame councils and the fame 
 meafures fhould be pcrfiftcd in. It is vigour, 
 union, and probity among ourfclves, that can 
 alone fave us ; it is time that Mr. Pitt (hould re- 
 nounce all the dlfgraceful alliances he has formed 
 with madmen and bad men. It is not to decre- 
 pid age, that would avaricioufly pilfer for himfelf 
 or his fon, the lall guinea from an impoverifhed 
 country, that' a Britifh Minifler fhould look for 
 fupport at any period, much lefs fhould wifdom 
 ally itfelf to phrenzy, and wage war with opi- 
 niotis. It is time that Mr. Pitt fhould feek other 
 refources than thefe ; it is not from the crooked 
 underhand craft of that foul and bitter legacy 
 bequeathed to us in an haplefs moment by the 
 late Lord Bute, our primal curfe, that good 
 counfel can ever flow ; it is not to fuch a man, 
 whofe very touch is poifon, who has wriggled 
 himfelf, God knows how, into the confidence of 
 his fovereign ; and who, confcious of the odium 
 attached to his name, feeks refuge in vain from 
 public opprobrium in the alias of titles, that Mr. 
 Pitt fhould refort, under our prefcnt exigencies, 
 for fuccour or advice. That man might furely 
 be content with the rich paflure and richer har- 
 vefl of Lancalhire, and allow us to compound 
 with him for our fafety and peace, on the terms 
 we would willingly grant him. It is to other 
 
 men
 
 ( "8 ) 
 
 men the Minifter fhould refort in this awful, 
 this eventful moment. It is to retrenchments ^ and 
 not to intrenc/miefifSf that he muft have recourfe, 
 to fave the conflitution. I fpeak thus harfhly of 
 individuals who have too long influenced our 
 public councils, froih the full convidlion that 
 innumerable mifchiefs have refulted from that 
 influence, and the no lefs fl:rong conviction I feel 
 that other men muft be feledled and other mea- 
 fures adopted, to extricate us from our prefent 
 difliculties. My attachment to eflablifhed go- 
 vernments is as flrong as my averflon to grofs and 
 flagrant abufes is great ; nor will that attachment 
 be queftioncd but by thofe who have an interefl 
 in the prefervation of thofe abufes, or who are 
 fervilely devoted to party, inftead of the profperity 
 of their countrj% My love of order and of peace 
 will ever incline me to give the executive authority 
 every fupport in my power, and though lam very far 
 from approving of all the meafures of government, 
 I cannot attribute the errors which threaten to ren- 
 der the latter part of Mr. Pitt's adminiftration as 
 gloomy and afl^lidting, as its meridan was brilliant 
 and happy, to the motives which have been afcribed 
 to him. It has proved a very ferious calamity 
 to the nation that its Minifter has never travelled, 
 or received, from obfervation and perfonal in- 
 tercourfe with foreign princes and their minifters, 
 a knowledge of their characters and of their 
 
 . views.
 
 ^ "9 ) 
 
 views. His information on the fubje^l of foreign 
 politics mufl neceffarily be circumfcribed and 
 compelled to receive information at Jecond hand^ 
 and fometimes from the very worli kind of fecond 
 hand, it ought not to furprife us, if he has been 
 deceived, or even mifled, by men who had an inr 
 tereft in degrading him in the public opinion to a 
 level with themfclvcs. If he had made the tour 
 of Europe, or if he had only viHted a few of the 
 foreign Courts and mixing with foreigners, had 
 adapted himfelf to their eafy habits and manners, 
 he would have acquired more ufcful knowledge 
 in twelve months, than the correfpondence of the 
 whole corps diplomatic could furnifli in as many 
 centuries. Men muft live with men to know 
 them ; not in diftant form and vlliting by cards, 
 but by that focial intercourfe in which the offices 
 of friendfhip are mutually given and received, 
 and which infpire confidence, while they concili- 
 ate efteem. A knowledge of foreign courts acp 
 quired by fuch means would have been of inefti- 
 mablc value to the Miniftcr and the nation, but 
 as Mr. Pitt, unfortunately for himfelf and much 
 more fo for his country, has never had this ad- 
 vantage, it fhould have been his care to felecSl 
 thofe only for foreign miflions, who have talents, 
 difcernment, prudence, probity, and a turn for 
 bulincfs. Men of induftry as well as of abilities, 
 in vvhofe truth and vigilance he could confide. r 
 
 Such
 
 ( lao ) 
 
 Sueh a lele<^ion would have been neceflary, even 
 if he had relided at foreign courts as many years 
 as ho has lived in the world. It is not altogether 
 Mr. Pitt's fault if he has not always made fuch a 
 feledlion. I firmly believe that he has been com- 
 pelled in a variety of inftances to cede to imperi- 
 ous neceflity, and that parliamentary influence 
 has frequently made him act contrary to his better 
 judgment. This reproach does not belong exclu- 
 lively to him, but to all Minifters ; his predecefTors 
 have been forced to yield to this humiliating ne- 
 ceflity ; and it is an acknowledged truth, that if 
 the prefent oppoiition were to come into office 
 to-morrow, they would be obliged to adopt 
 and follow the fame pra6lice, or go out of it the 
 day after. Such is the actual degraded flate of 
 our reprefentation ; fuch the evident and imperi- 
 ous neceflity for that reform, which Mr. Pitt ftands 
 pledged and bound in honor to accompUfh ; yet as 
 the oppofition, even by their own confeffion, 
 would be under the neceflity of recurring to the 
 fame means, and of conducing the public bufinefs 
 on the fame principle as the prefent and former 
 adminiftrations, what advantage would the nation 
 derive from a change ? This is a fair and honefl 
 queflion, ariling from fadls before the judgment 
 of the world, and I propofe it, not to thofe who 
 expect employments at home or raiffions abroad ; 
 it is not to pharo men, gamblers, and adventurers 
 3 th^t
 
 ( ti' ) 
 
 that I addrefs this qucilion, but to the really in- 
 dependent gentlemen, who in Parliaqnient or out 
 of itjOppofe from confcientious, honorable motives 
 the meafares of the minifter with a view to benefit 
 their country; of fuch men I afk, what good will 
 refult to the countries which they love and whofe 
 pro fpcrity they would enfure, what CEConomy there 
 would be in a change of Minifters if the fame 
 pernicious and expenfive fyftem ; if the fame dif- 
 honourable parliamentary traffic muft be conti- 
 nued in order to carry on the public bufinefs ? 
 Under circumftances fo afflicting, and no lefs true 
 than lamentable, what good would the people 
 derive from a change ? In what degree would 
 their lituation be meliorated, or the country be- 
 nefitted when the fucceflbrs of the prefent men in 
 power would not dare to depart from the fame 
 corrupt manners of their prcdecefTors ? On the 
 fcore of oEconomy we can have nothing to hope 
 from fuch a change ; and as Mr. Fox would l^e 
 compelled to travel in the deep and filthy rut 
 with which the road has been torn, cut up, and 
 fpoilt by indolence and incapacity, as well as by 
 vice and profligacy, the country can have no mo- 
 tive towifh a ufelefs unprofitable exchange of mere 
 names ; but that it has an abundance of motives 
 for wifhing a change of meafures, and that thefe 
 motives are accompanied by a i ic^ht to demand 
 fuch a change, will not be contcfted by tbofc.who 
 
 1\, under-
 
 ( 122 ) 
 
 linderlland the full value of our excellent confti-* 
 tution, and who dread its falling a facrifice either 
 to defpotifm or to anarchy I 
 
 There is not a man in the kingdom that does 
 not feel the force of this truth. There is not a 
 man in the kingdom that will not own fuch a 
 change, can be efFe6led by the prefent Minifter, 
 as well as by any other ; and if he is wife^ if he 
 has any refpecSl for his own engagements, any 
 regard for his own honor, he will not allow fo 
 glorious an undertaking an undertaking that 
 the nation expedls from his virtue and his talents> 
 to be wrefted from him by others, who may be 
 lefs capable, and in whom the country has cer- 
 tainly lefs confidence. Mr. Pitt cannot have for- 
 gotten his promife on the terms upon which he 
 was admitted into office, and the fate of his ri- 
 val Ihould teach him what he may expedl: by a 
 departure from his word, and a violation of the 
 contradV. 
 
 It is from the fincere and unafTeelcd pcrfonal 
 refpe6l: which T ilill have for him ; it is from the 
 riecoIle6tion of the various effential fervlces which 
 the country has unqtiefllonably derived from the 
 difplay of his wonderful abilities. It is that my 
 country, to whofe fortunes I am wedded, ihould 
 flouriih to the very end of time, that I am anxious 
 
 Mr.
 
 ( 123 ) 
 
 Mr. Pitt iliould lioneftly and meritorloufly retain 
 the high poft he occupies, and that a third epoch 
 Ihould be glorioufly added to his adminiflration, 
 infinitely more brilHant than the preceding two ; 
 a cHmax at once to his fame and our felicity ! 
 It was at a very early period of his life that he 
 came into office ; the times were turbulent, the 
 public mind afflidled by public calamity almoft 
 to defpondency, was aggravated by having its 
 credulity impofed upon, and its confidence abul'ed 
 by men who had acquired it for purpofes very 
 different to that they pretended ; the tide of 
 faction flowed flrong and his great talents with 
 all the zeal, ardour, and integrity, the happy 
 chara6teriflics of ingenuous youth, were inflantly 
 and unavoidably abfqrbed in domeflic political 
 intrigue ; th^t fink of public and private virtue 1 
 Mr. Pitt found himfelf obliged to give into a fyfiem 
 repugnant to his profefiions, I fliould hope to his 
 principles, in order to retain the power he had ac- 
 quired, 4nd to manage the Houfe of CommqnS;, for 
 as to the Houfe of Lords, their prqvince in the lirft 
 inflance being of lefs importance, and their vena- 
 lity neither fo confp^cuous nor fo great, little op- 
 pofition is given to thofe whom the reprefcntatives 
 of the people propofe. The one, however, follows 
 the other as the hind wheel of a carriage does the 
 fore one ; but the Commons require tlie- in- 
 CcfTant vigilance of a Minifter to keep all tho.fe 
 
 R 2 \i\
 
 ( 124 ) 
 
 in good humour, who, different to thofe who are 
 ready to go in harnefs with every Minifte'r, either 
 with Mr. Fox or with Mr. Pitt, affe^l to have 
 opinions of their own. when they only covet the 
 places of others, and who are noify and clamorous 
 in proportion as the tide of oppofition flows 
 Itrong or weak. Thus involved in domeftic cabal 
 and entirely unacquainted with the politics o 
 the continent, Mr. Pitt was ill cjualitied to crols 
 the channel, and go in fearch of foreign adven- 
 turers. 
 
 It is, however, but juftice to Mr. Pitt to fay,* - 
 that in the affair of the Ruffian bufinefs, the 
 meafure was wile and juft, and if the nation had 
 known its true interefts, it would have fupportcd 
 him, but httle verfed in foreign politics ; fenli- 
 ble of the advantages refulting from peace and 
 recently refcued from a difaftrous w^r, the prof- 
 fpecl of hoftilrties fpread a general alarm, and 
 Mr. Fox taking advantage of the fears of the Mi- 
 nifter, as well as of the ignorance of the country, 
 excited the clamor which has ended in the total 
 difmemberment of Poland, and thefacrificeofas 
 many lives as would more than flock a Germain 
 principality. An unfuccefsful attempt was made 
 to relift the artful interefted cry that fa6\ion raifed 
 to drive the Minifter from the proud eminence 
 be held. It was not generally known to the peo- 
 ple
 
 ( '25 ) 
 
 pie In this country, too much occupied with do- 
 meftlc poUtics, and too much engaged in com-^ 
 mercial cntcrprifcs, to examine what was tranf- 
 atled at the Court of Vienna, that it was one of 
 the extravagant projects concerted between the late 
 Emperor Jofeph IL and the Emprefs of Ruffia td 
 annihilate all the fmall ftates in Europe, and divide 
 them between three or four great powers. The 
 ambition of the one and the avarice of the 
 other, ftimulated by jealoufy and envious of the 
 profperity of Great Britain, looked forward to 
 the Empire of the Black Sea, and as France 
 was to have been joined in the confederacy, to a 
 ihare in the dominion of the Mediterranean ; in 
 a word, they expe61:cd to march to London by 
 Conflantinople, and ruin its trade with India by 
 pofleffing themfelves of Egypt ; all this was 
 fully detailed at the time, * but unhappily with* 
 out cffe6i. The clamor proceeded, and the Mi- 
 nifter, apprehenlive that he had no alteriliative 
 but to concede or refign, preferred the former. 
 Mr. Fox took advantage of the moment to re- 
 pair his ruined fortunes and recover the confi- 
 dence he had lofl ; the hiftory of that difgrace- 
 /.: Gi rji: ' ; -'^^^ 
 
 r ' :.. ;,;? , :. i^^'''^'-- 
 
 ,* Vide the expediency and juftice of prelcribing 
 
 boonds to tlie Ruffian Empire." Printed for R. Faulder, Bond-. 
 
 ftreet, 1791. c. 
 
 denCe
 
 ( 126 ) 
 
 ful buiinefs cannot be forgotten or forgiven while? 
 the terrible confequences refulting from it ftrike 
 moft forcibly on our minds, or while our attention 
 is dire6led to any part ofthe European Continent. 
 I will not inquire whether the Emprefs of Ruflia 
 preferred the buft to the proxy or the proxy to 
 the million, knowing the partiality of her Ma- 
 jefty for athletics, they might have better fuited 
 her tafte ? neither will I alk whether the gentle- 
 man preferred the million to the ring or the ring 
 to the lady who pilferred it from him at Bruxellcs ? 
 all thefe are idle queftions, and would only pro- 
 voke laughter, but for the fad remembrance of 
 the matter connedted with them. The buft, the 
 proxy, and the ring would deferve little notice, 
 they would even have efcaped obfervation, but 
 for the great and important circumftances an- 
 nexed to them. They are mere parachutes, and 
 but for the vaft balloon which in its rapid afcent 
 into the high regions of the political atmofpherc 
 expofed them to our vilion, they would never 
 Ji^ve been fecn or heard of. ; q 
 
 This balloon, as balloons are apt to do, 
 pleafed the million. They followed with loud 
 and ruinous acclamation. An attempt was made 
 to recall them to reafon and reflexion, by ftat- 
 Jng to them in detail the ambitious views of the 
 2 Court
 
 ( ^27 ) 
 
 Court of Peterfburgh ; but without efFe<ft. * It 
 was a moment for the Minifler to have difplayed 
 his firmnefs. He ihould have flood undaunted, 
 
 one 
 
 H 
 
 * The political fituatioh of ijkuffia is very different to what 
 It was at the commencement of mis century. The old adage of 
 tempora mutantur was never more applicable than it is in the pre- 
 fent inftance ; and he muft indeed be a very fliallow politician 
 who does not feel that flates, as well as individuals, mufl adapt 
 their conduft to times and circumftances. A fpirit of conqueft 
 has uniformly marked the conduft of Ruffia fince Peter the Firft 
 laid the foundation of that greatnefs which threatens to overwhelm 
 us. A fpirit of commercial enterprife has joined itfelf to that 
 of conqueft ; and nothing lefs than the full poflefSon of Con- 
 ftantinople and the Black Sea, at leaft, will fatisfy her inordinate 
 ambition* In pofleffion of the Euxine at one extremity of Eu- 
 rope, and of the Baltic at the other, her immenfe domains will 
 encircle the faireft and beft-cultivated portion of the globe. She 
 will embrace as it were all Europe, not to carefs and fofter it with 
 the tender and animating preflure of afFedion, but to ftifle and 
 deftroy it by the favage and remorfelefs hug of the bear the hug 
 of death ! Let the partifans of Ruffia demonftrate that this coun* 
 try has nothing to apprehend from the vaft acquifition of 'terri- 
 tory to which fhe afpires ; and then we will debate on the equity 
 and propriety of prefcribing bounds to her empire. In the 
 language of all nations, expediency is right ; and this language 
 will ever be held and maintained by thofe who have the means 
 of enforcing it. The fole queftion to be confidered is, how far it 
 is confiftent with the fafety of the Britifh government to permit 
 the Ruffians to extinguifli the Turkifli empire, and eftablifli their 
 dominion on the Bofphorous. If it fhould appear, on examination, 
 that the commerce and power of this country would be endangered 
 by fuch an event, the expediency of preventing its taking place 
 can no longer be difputed ; and that it would be attended with 
 
 much
 
 ( 12S ) 
 
 one foot in Britain, and the oth^r in Oczakow^ 
 firm to his purpofe, and prefcribing bounds to 
 the guilty ambition of Ruffia. Unfortunately he 
 
 yielded 
 
 mucE mifchief lo cur trade with India, and abfdlute rtiin 
 in particular to the trade we carry on with Perfia by Bom- 
 bay, will not be denied by thofe who recolleft the happy pofition 
 of Conflantinople, and that in the hands of an enterprifing peo- 
 jple it would infallibly unite Afia to Europe. If the Ruffian 
 government, in its hitherto confined fituation and fcanty means 
 of extending its commerce, has invariably direfted its attention to 
 that great objeft, how much more expanded will its views be- 
 come ! how much more exalted its hopes and impatient its de- 
 fires, wiien all Afia burfts, as it were, upon its ravifhed fight, and 
 difplays the riches of the eaftern world ! A canal of little more 
 than a hundred miles in length will conn eft the Red Sea with 
 the Mediterranean. The commerce of Afia will revert into the 
 channels through whrch it pafled into Europe before the difco- 
 very of the Cape of Good Hope, and under circumftances infi- 
 nitely more advantageous than ever Venice and Genoa poflefied. 
 It is not perhaps generally known, that, by means of the vafl 
 rivers which difcharge themfelves into the Black Sea, Ruffia can 
 tranfport every fpecies of merchandife by water from Cherfon to 
 Peterfburgh, and even into Siberia. 
 
 The Danube will enable her to fiirnifh the more fouthem 
 ftates ; and our trade to India may be eventually deftroyed. Thofe 
 M^o fuppofe that the Court of Peterfburgh will not extend its do- 
 minions to Egypt after the Turk is driven out of Europe, or that 
 it will not attempt a communication -which may be accompliflied' 
 with much lefs expence than fome of our navigable canals in 
 Worcefterfliire or Lancafhire, mull have been a very carelefs ob- 
 ferver of what is tranfafted on the grand theatre of the world, and 
 extremely inattentive to the prefent fovereign of Ruffia. If 
 ever a commercial and enterprifing nation (hould eflablilli itfelf 
 
 at
 
 '( 129 ) 
 
 yieWed to the clamour ; and, by yielding, he 
 tacitly acknowledged that Mr. Fox was the 
 better flatefman, and ligned his own death 
 Vvarrant. In this inftance Mr. Fox was not the 
 better flatefman. I am even perfuaded that 
 he mull have been lince convinced of the ex- 
 pediency of the meafure he oppofed ; yet his 
 condu{5l oil that occafion anfwered, in fome 
 degree, the purpole he feemed to have in view, 
 and to have obtained that fuccefs, which was 
 due only to the wifer and more corre6l condu6l 
 of the Minifler. If it did not bring Mr. Fox 
 into power, it brought him again into notice, 
 
 ;at Conftantinople, it will become a ColofTus of greater magni- 
 tude and of more teal confequence to Europe, Afia, ahd Africa, 
 than ever the famous one of brafs was to Rhodes. The defpond- 
 mg prophecy of Lord Lanfdown, * refpefting the ifTue of Ame- 
 rican independency to this coimtry, will then be realifed ; and his 
 Lordfhip may exclaim, in all the force and elegance of metaphor, 
 ^at the futi of England is fet for ever ! 
 
 Expediency of frefcribing Bounds to the Kujfian Umpire^ 
 page 19 to 23. Printed for R. Faulder, 1791. 
 
 f Having mentioned Lord Lanfdowii, I avail myfclf of this opportunity of 
 correcling an error into which I r/as imprudently led in a former publication, 
 and as there is injuftice in the error, I owe it to his Lordlhip and to truth, to 
 make the only atonement in my power by publicly retracing the aflertion : as I 
 liave had no intercourfe with Lord Lanfdowni fmce 1 790, as I have not even fccn 
 him fiHce that period, I defirtd a friend of mine who lives in habits ot inti- 
 macy with his Lordlhip to make this acknowledgment ; but I am better pleafcd 
 V/ith an opjKirtutiity of making reparation as publicly as the wrong was com- 
 fWttcd. 
 
 S and
 
 ( 13^ ) 
 
 and reftored him, in fome degree, to that credit 
 which he had forfeited. - 
 
 I have already obfei'ved, that eddies are al- 
 ways in proportion to the vigour of their cur- 
 rents ; Mr. Fox efcaped into a kind of dead 
 water, from the ft ream that was hurr}^ing him 
 with rapidity into total obhvion ; and the velo- 
 city with which fubfequent events fucceeded 
 each other, converting this dead water into an 
 eddy, brought him and his companions back to 
 the tail of the mill, from which fome of them 
 have fince had the good fortune to efcape into 
 the mill dam. 
 
 *' There is a tide in the affairs of men, 
 
 *' Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune : 
 
 *' Omitted, all the voyage of their lives 
 
 ' Is bound in Ihallows, and in miferies." 
 
 The tide on which Mr. Pitt's * fortunes were 
 embarked flowed rapidly and triumphantly. It 
 was, indeed, a moll full and glorious fea ; and if 
 he had taken the current as it ferved, he would 
 have faved his ventures ; but harafled and af- 
 failed by faftion at homc^ and little verfed in 
 foreign politics, he was compelled to follow as 
 he was led in all matters that related to the 
 latter, while his whole flrength, vigour, and 
 
 * Vide Appendix, No. ^TV. 
 
 attention,
 
 ( 1.31 > 
 
 atlentlon, were neceflUrily engaged' to defend^ 
 Ills wife and beneficent meafures of domefiic, 
 polity from the artful attacks of his. angry and, 
 difappointed opponents. But for the fatal trou- 
 bles that broke out in. France, and Ihook the- 
 rcpofe of nations, Mr. Pitt would have continued 
 the idol, of hi& country, and the admiration of 
 t]ie world ; but his inexperience, or rather his 
 entire ignorance of the Continent and its people, 
 rendered it a,neafy matter to impofcupon his wnr- 
 dcrfianding, and miflead his judgment. At a, 
 crilis fo important he fhould have fought otheri 
 alliances and other guides than thofe to which 
 he reforted ; and, beholding the Frencli Revolu-^ 
 tion, not through the miferable optics of little 
 minded noen, to whofe imperfect vifton all ob 
 je6l3 appear inverted^ but in that enlarged point 
 of view, as a ftatefman, philofopher, and le- 
 giflator, in which events of fuch magnitude 
 only fhould, be confidered, he might have 
 avoided, perhaps, the fatal dilemma in which 
 he is involved, and preferved his country^ if not 
 from war, at; leafl. from the difgrace and humi" 
 liation^ it lias woefully received* 
 
 It was cafy to forefec, that the efre(Sls of the 
 French Revolution \y.ould fpeedily pafs the boun- 
 daries of the French territory, and extend be- 
 yond the details of domefiic government. Its 
 operation i^as inftantly felt in the moll powerful 
 S z of
 
 ( 13^ ) 
 
 of the Ecclcfiaftical Electorates, where I hap- 
 pened to be at the time, and from whence I 
 compared it, in a letter to an Englifh Peer, * 
 " to a violent earthquake that would extend, t(y 
 *' andjhake each extremity of the globe,*'' 
 
 How far my predi6lion in September, 1789, 
 has been verified is within every man's know- 
 ledge. It was, indeed, impoffible that a revo* 
 lution in France could have had any other 
 efFedl. Her locality, in the very centre of Eu- 
 rope, with an extent of fea coaft in both oceans ; 
 her immenfe armies and powerful fleets ; her 
 cxtenlive commerce, and diftant pofTeffions, 
 which connect her, as it were, by lb many dif- 
 ferent ramifications, with all the known regions 
 of the earth ; her fplendour, power, and hi^h 
 renown ; refpedied and often imitated by other 
 nations ; her high-finifhed literature ; her known 
 love of the arts, and knowledge in the fciences ; 
 and, above all, the univerfality in her language; 
 all confpired to give her revolution a very ex- 
 tenfive operation, and render it, in its confe- 
 quences, far different to any former event of 
 a fimilar nature. It was eafy to forefee, from 
 the wide and conftant intercourfe of France 
 with other flates, and the vafl influence of her 
 manners, that as foon as her revolution went 
 
 * The Marquis of Lanfdown, 
 
 ta
 
 ( 133 ) 
 
 to other obje(5ls than to corre6l abufes in the 
 Government ; that as foon as it extended itfelf 
 to religion and morals, it 'would operate very 
 materially on other nations, and finally produce 
 the great changes that have happened in the 
 minds, manners, and principles of mankind. 
 
 Such were the confequenccs likely to refult 
 from a revolution of fuch wonderful, fuch dire- 
 ful extent ; but it was referved for the guilt, 
 madnefs, and obflinate folly of her neighbours, 
 to render that revolution a curfe and mifchief 
 to this country ! The little forelight and iirm- 
 nefs with refpcdl to foreign powers, which mark 
 almoft the whole of Mr. Pitt's meafures lince 
 July 1789, can only be attributed to his little 
 experience in foreign politics, and to 'the flill 
 greater misfortune of his allying hirafelf to mad- 
 nefs inllead of difcretion, and liflening to the 
 fanguinary counfels of a man, whofe imagination 
 is as brilliant in conception, as his judgment is 
 weak, and his temper irafcible ; whofe mind, 
 poor, pitiful, and revengeful, wants all the 
 properties of true grcatnefs. 
 
 Mr. Pitt mud: have been ftrangely bewildered 
 or infatuated when he confulted Mr. Burke on a 
 fubje6t of fuch magnitude and importance. It 
 \vas the Atlantic flying to a puddle as its refer- 
 voir. Danger to be fubdued muft be faced, not 
 
 fhunned.
 
 fhunned, Greatcvents are to be met and encoun- 
 tered, or they will tread us down in their gigan- 
 tic march. When the haplefs monarch, at whofe 
 fad fhrine the tear of fenlibility will ever flow, 
 was brought in difgraceful bondage to Paris from 
 Verfailles, the revolution loft its moft eflential 
 and diftinguifhing feature in the minds of men, 
 whofe lituations required that they fliould have 
 had more enlarged views. They loft light of 
 the great obje(^& which that revolution actually 
 embraced, and what was ftill more lamentable, 
 they do not appear to have had any clear and 
 diftin(^ ideas of the ftill greater objeeis to which 
 it pointed* The thirty millions of men, who 
 were immediately intercfted in that great event, 
 and the innumerable millions, whofe interefts 
 muft ultimately be involved in the confequences 
 of fo great a change, feem to have been over- 
 looked, in order to provide for the fecurity of 
 monarchy and of ariftocracy, which were confi- 
 dered- to be univerfally endangered by the con- 
 finement of the king and of the abolition of 
 titles in Frauce. 
 
 From this period it appears that the revolu- 
 tion was rather regarded as a pcrfonality thau as 
 an event on which depended the fate of Europe 
 and the world. The fortunes of a few indivi^ 
 duals arc^but fmall items in this large account, 
 and muft not claim precedencv. 
 
 4 ' The
 
 ( ^3S ) 
 
 The inftant that the nobility of this country 
 made the caufe of the French nobles their 
 own, they gave the very ftab to ariftocracy 
 which they wiflied to have prevented. This 
 was an error ; but ^the greater error was when 
 the fovereigns of Europe, forgetting they were 
 delegates, made a common caufe with Louis 
 XVL They were not aware that fuch a mea- 
 fure, in its confequences, might give a death 
 wound to monarchy ; and that the caufe of 
 kings was no otherwife interefling or important 
 than as it was connc6led with the interefts of 
 their fubjecls. They had no other concern with 
 the revolution, in the iirft inftance, than as a 
 lefTon of advice, and if they afterwards dreaded 
 fuch a calamity in their own dominions, the 
 way to prevent it was obvious ; they had only 
 to avoid thofe excefles, that indifcreet exercife 
 of power, from which alone all revolutions re- 
 corded in hiftory have rcfulted. If, after fuch 
 an admonition, tlicy fliould perfcvere in the 
 fame ruinous condu6l, which has plunged France 
 in blood, and beggared her princes, nobility, 
 and clergy, * they can only blime themfelves, 
 for the fame caufes will always produce the fame 
 ffe<5l. The cataf^rophe of the French King is 
 indeed a terrible leflbn ; and I am inclined to 
 hope, from the wifdom as well as from the fpirit 
 
 Vide Appendix, No. X^/F 
 
 of
 
 { 136 ) 
 
 of the timeSj that the lefTon will not be without 
 cfFe6l. The proximity of France to this country, 
 their known jealoufy of our power and commerce, 
 gave to her revolution a very confiderable degree 
 more of importance to us than fuch an event 
 could have had, if it had happened at Vienna or 
 Berlin ; and it was the duty of Minifters to 
 have formed a dyke in time, to keep the vafi: 
 torrent within bounds. I have already obferved, 
 that Hates fhould adapt their conducl to times 
 and circumftances. The great event that had 
 happened in France, required a bold and decL- 
 vlive condu6l in this country, and without Ihew- 
 ing or even meaning any hoftiiity, to take care, 
 by precautionary meafares, that the revolution did 
 not operate to the injury of this country. A very 
 favorable opportunity offered itfelf in the univer- 
 fal difafFe6lion of the Flemings to the Houfe of 
 Auftria. They had made offers to this country, 
 which it would have been wifdom to have ac- 
 cepted. Tlie revolt had taken place, their in- 
 dependence was, in fadl, accompliihed, and 
 only required our fandion to confolidate it. The 
 giving freedom to one nation could not have 
 given umbrage to another, which was at that time 
 in the adl of giving freedom to itfelf, and too 
 much engaged with its own affairs, and too 
 weak at the moment, from its divifions, and at- 
 tachment to the old fyflem, to have given any 
 oppoiition, if it had been fo difpofed. The 
 
 Auflrian
 
 ( 137 ) 
 
 Aufliian Netherlands, under the pretence of fe- 
 tiiring their newly-acquired liberties ap;ainll the 
 Emperor, misrht have re-fortified its difmantled 
 towns, and phiced garrifons in them that would 
 have compelled France- to rcfpecl the neutrality 
 of an independent flate. Luxemburghj Namuj'^ 
 Mons, Tournay, Menin, Courtray, Oflend, Bru- 
 ges^ and Ghent, would have become formidable 
 barriers, which muft hai^e been each of them be- 
 (fieged and taken, before a French army coul.d 
 have marched into the country* 
 
 Tiie Flemings, attached to their religiorl, 
 would have had an additional motive for defend- 
 ing their independence, had France been difpofed 
 to invade the republic ; and we know from ex- 
 perience, with what ardor men will defend A 
 government of their choice and contrivance^ 
 
 This mealiire might have been accomplifhed 
 in February, 1790, if it had, this countrf, 
 perhaps, would have efcaped the fatal conteft in 
 which fhe is involved, and Holland have re- 
 mained our friend and ally. There was fufficient 
 time between the above period and 1793, to havf: 
 rendered the Low Countries invulncral)le, and 
 if this event had taken place^ the French execu- 
 tive council could haVe had no pretext for agi- 
 tfiting the fatal queflion of the Scheldt, which 
 gave a pretext to both parties for qui arrel ling ; 
 T and
 
 ( '38 ) 
 
 and as the Emperor would have been driven 
 totally out of the Netherlands, and Liege ref- 
 cued from the jurifdi6lion of its bifhop and the 
 empire, the French would have had no motive, 
 or even colour of motive, for marching into the 
 Netherlands. This I took the liberty to ftate in 
 a letter to the Marquis of Buckingham ;* nor 
 were the commercial advantages that would have 
 tefulted from fuch a meafure lefs important, 
 than the many political ones that muft have 
 cnfucd. 
 
 Under thefe circumfiances, I do not fee how 
 it was po^ble for France to have warred witii 
 this country, while Holland, fecured from danger 
 by an impenetrable barrier, would have left us 
 without any juftifiable motive for plunging into 
 hoftilities. 
 
 1 have proved by a letter from General de 
 Schlieffen, that the King of Pruffia was decidedly 
 againft the Low Countries returning to the court 
 of Vienna ; and as to the views of the Princefs of 
 Orange,-)' they ought not to have influenced the 
 
 councils 
 
 Vide Appendix, No. XV/ 
 
 { Her object was to have her fon Stadtholder in Brabant and 
 Flanders. Vandernoot and Van Eupen were her agents, and 
 in this hope (lie encouraged the fubjels of the Emperor in 
 their revolt; allowed them to aflemble at Breda, and was care-
 
 ( 139 ) 
 
 councils of this country In a matter which was Co 
 clofely connecled with itsdeareft intercfts. This 
 I conceive to have been the firft important error 
 committed by adminiftration after the fubverfion 
 of the old fyftem in France, and to which the 
 deplorable conteft in which we are engaged may 
 in a great meafure be attributed. The fecond 
 error was immediately after the commence- 
 ment of hofiilities, when government might 
 have had the powerful aid of a very nume- 
 rous party in France, at that time in credit, 
 many of them in official lituations, poffefled 
 of great influence, until, by the ferocious 
 energy of Robelpicrre, they were either but- 
 chered or baniflicd, or compelled to conceal 
 themfelves. Thcle men, attached to the confti^ 
 tution of 1 79 1, as accepted by their late king, were 
 anxious for the efrablifhment of a limited rno^ 
 narchy; they were diilributed all over France, 
 and were to be found in the convention, in the 
 departments, and in the army.* A declaration 
 from the coalcfced powers, that they would be 
 fatisfied with a limited monarchy, would have 
 armed legions in favour of the fugitive priqccs, 
 
 fill to have them fupplied with arms, ammunition, and what- 
 ever they wanted. There is a great deal of hiftory attached to 
 the traufaiflions in the Low Countries, which I may perhaps 
 hereafter detail more fully. 
 
 * Vids Appendix, No. XVI J 
 
 T 2 and
 
 ( H ) 
 
 and Lyons, that defended itfelf with a ferocity 
 worthy of the animals whofe name it founds 
 like, would have cfcaped the horrible malTacres 
 that afterwards depopulated it, and all the dif- 
 graceful and deplorable circumliances attached 
 to the evacuation of Toulon, would have been 
 prevented. Thefe true, thefe dignilied, thefe 
 rational friends of royalty, required neither mo- 
 ney nor ammunition. This party, from ihe cir- 
 cumftance of their being on the fpqt, and in the 
 very heart pf the country, more than from theic 
 numbers, which were certainly very confiderable, 
 would have been more formidable and certainly 
 ranch lefs expenfive allied than thofe infatuated 
 gentlemen, who, by being exiles, and profcribed, 
 had difficulties to encounter before thpy could 
 take pofi: any where on the French territory, 
 and which of courfe muft have made the fuccefs 
 of any cnterprife extreniely doubtful. 
 
 The Secretary of State for foreign affairs per- 
 fectly underflands to what I allude, and fubfe- 
 querit events have enabled his Lordfhip to form 
 a tolerable juft eftimate of what this country 
 has unfortunately loll by his indifcretion. 
 
 I believe that the miniller wasapprifed, late in 
 January, or very early in February, 1794, of 
 the unfortunate iflbe pf the campaign of that 
 yeac in the Low Countries. The intelligence 
 
 came
 
 ( 141 ) 
 
 came from a fource that could not wcUh.t)C 
 doubted, and T know to a certainty, that an af- 
 furancc from Bade was tranfmitted to him in Ja- 
 nuary, 1795, that " the ConventtDn was ready to 
 *' recei've propofitions for peace^ provided they were 
 '^ contpatible with the dignity, fecurity, and int^^ 
 " rejis of the French republic T* Elated with the 
 profpe^t of afpccdy termination of the direful con- 
 flicl, and all its attendant horrors, the perfon who 
 feceived this important communication, offered 
 to go to Baflc, without any expence to govern- 
 ment (except for the poft-horfes) and avail him-r 
 fclf of the refources in his power, to learn from 
 Paris the nature of the conditions on wliich 
 France would make peace. 
 
 This perfon was induced to make this offer 
 from the pofitive information he had, that the 
 gentleman -j- who had been placed at Baflc on 
 the recommendation of the Duke of Portland, 
 gave too eafy credit to that clafs of Frenchmen 
 who had an interefl, or at leaft were anxious 
 for the fartheir profecution of the war. 1 have 
 even reafon to fufpc<ft that the miniflry are in- 
 
 * La Convention eft pret de recevoir des propofitions 
 ** pour la paix, pourvu qu'elles foient convenable a la dignit^^ 
 "* a la furctc et aux interefts de la repub'ique Franijaife." 
 
 Extras of a letter from Bajle, January 1795, a copy ef 
 which "wasfent to Mr, Pitt on the l^d f that month. 
 
 + Mr. Wickham. 
 
 dined
 
 ( i4a ) 
 
 clmdK^P t^iis opinion ; at leaft they have had 
 fufficient evidence of the facSl to convince them. 
 Be it as it may, the perilous ftaie of the country 
 requires a more than common degree of vigilance, 
 prudence, and accuracy in thofe who are on 
 miflion in the very focus as it were of pohtical 
 intrigue and cabal. 
 
 I do not mean to throw any reflection on the gen- 
 tleman on million in Switzerland at this important 
 crilis ; I merely ftate a fa6t, and with it a reflec- 
 tion, the juftice and propriety of which cannot well 
 be queftioned. A friend with whom I was then 
 in the habit of converfmg, and who is in an of- 
 ficial lituation, hinted it to me merely as his 
 private opinion, that he fuppokid the reafon why 
 the offer was not accepted, was the apprehenflon 
 that the perfon meant to infinuate himfelf into* 
 the negotiation for peace, and as it was poflible 
 that fuch an idea might have obtained a currency 
 with thofe whom he wiflied to lerve, without any 
 tIcws of emolument to himfelf, he inftantly dif- 
 daimed all pretentions to reward, and even the 
 mod difl,ant intention of making whatever fer- 
 vices he might have it in his power to render go- 
 vernment, a foundation for any future claim ; he 
 declared that he had no other ambition than to 
 promote," as far as he could, at this momentous 
 crifls, the intcrefts of his country, in a private 
 Ration, without falary or CQlat. ^ 
 
 It
 
 ( H3 ) 
 
 It Is impoiTible to fay what reafons the minlftcr 
 niight have had for declining to enter into a ne- 
 gotiation at that period ; it is a candor to which 
 he is entitled, to fuppofe that he had fufficient 
 ground for the lilcnce heobfervcd.* Yet allow- 
 ing him to have a61ed under the influence of 
 what he thought better information, and to have 
 judged it better for tlie intereits of the country 
 to continue the war, rather than to have made 
 overtures for peace; it is no reflection on his 
 wifdom to obferve, that fubfequent events, if 
 they have not convinced him of the delulion 
 under which he acted, have at leaft changed 
 the relative Htuations of the two countries, in 
 fuch a manner as to preclude him from expell- 
 ing in our prefent circumflances, as good terms 
 as would probably have been accorded to him at 
 the above period, when Spain and Sardinia ftill 
 hung to the confederacy, and Italy now prof- 
 trate and degraded at the feet of France, gave 
 us at leaft her good wifhes for fuccefs. 
 
 * It appeared, however, to have had one good effect ; 
 Mr. Pitt declared in the courfe of the debate on Mr. Grey's 
 motron for peace, January 26, 1795, that '' the form ^ go- 
 " "vtrnment in France jhoiild not be anv objection to enter into a 7U' 
 gotlatlon for peaceJ'^ Tlie extract had been fent to him a few 
 days previous to tiie motion of Mr. Grey, and has already been 
 cited. It -came from a quarter that the minifter might have 
 refpeiled, and that coulil not have written unatithorifed. 
 
 la
 
 ( 144 ) 
 
 In this Hate of affairs, de^krted, plundered, and 
 laughed at by the King of Pruflia,* forfaken by 
 Spain and Sardinia, with the probability of lotin^ 
 the very feeble fuccour of the Emperor, humbled 
 and incapable as he is of any effectual refiflance, 
 and, above all, with the fenfe of the country 
 decidedly againft the further profecution of the war, 
 (provided it could be concluded upon any honour- 
 able terms) it well behoves minifters to make an 
 experiment, which, whatever may be its event, 
 muft terminate to their advantage ; and by ab- 
 folvingthem from the reproach of obflinacy, in a 
 matter where obftinacy may be a crime, reftore 
 them to that confidence which it is fincerely my 
 wifh fhould ever be fully accorded to thofe who 
 are entruttcd. with the adminiflration of public 
 
 * It was the Impudent boaft of this flagitious fovereign, in 
 the winter of 1794, that he would have another fubfidy from 
 the Englifti. Our engagements with the Emperor, to a cer- 
 tainty, defeated his hopes, and tlie Dutch^ who were much 
 prefled to take this part of the burtlien off our hands, declined 
 it, fo that his Pruflian Majefty has only the boaft of having 
 plundered this country, with all the infamy attached to a 
 conduft fo atrocioils. 
 
 f The French, after the affair of the loth of Auguft, and 
 in hoftility with Auftria and PruiTia, had no refource but in war, 
 and the anfwer that Mr. Roland g^ve to a friend of mine, at 
 that time irt credit and power in France, deferves notice. 
 *' Peace is out of the qucftion we hare 300,000 in arms we 
 muft make them march as far as their legs will carry them, or 
 they will return and cut our throati.'* 
 
 X affairs.
 
 ( H5 ) 
 
 affairs. The experiment is at leafl worth try- 
 ing ; if it lliould fucceed, Mr. Pitt will have the 
 glory and the confolation of concluding a contell 
 which he could not have avoided, and his abili- 
 ties are a futHcient warrant that the peace will 
 not be a diflionour to his name or nation. 
 
 It is an injuilice of the moft malevolent de- 
 fcription, to reproach Mr. Pitt with having re- 
 nounced all thofe profeflions, on the faith of 
 which he obtained the power and confidence of 
 his country ; I cannot fufpedl him capable of ib 
 wilful, fo indecent a departure from right ; of fo 
 fhameful a dereliction from his former principles 
 and profefiions. I am ftill difpofed to believe 
 him an advocate for parliamentary reform, and 
 that, convinced of its neceffity, he will, when- 
 ever the great prefTure of the moment is removed, 
 fcrioufly give his attention to the only meafure 
 that can effectually fecure the conllitution from 
 the terrible contagion of the times, a contagion 
 which even mercury cannot reach. This mea- 
 fure is no lefs the intereft, than it is the duty ofs 
 the crown and of the ariftocracy to accede to, 
 and they will do well to remember, that there is 
 prudence as well as juflice.in coriceiiion. 
 
 Forced as Mr. Pitt has been, by the ftrong 
 current of events, from all his wile and benevo- 
 lent purpofes, it is unfair to reproach him with 
 
 U havii^g
 
 ( 146 ) 
 
 having perfidioufly abandoned, what he had 
 promifed to perform. Hurried by events, whofe 
 violence has confounded, disjointed, or defaced 
 thrones, ftates, and empires ; whofe wild fury 
 has changed the very nature almoft of mian ; all 
 but the phylical poiition of the globe, which 
 alone appears beyond their reach, it was not pof- 
 lible he could counteract or forefee the wonderful 
 revolution that has taken place, or be prepared 
 for the more wonderful efFedts that have refulted 
 from it. Under fuch untoward, fuch extraordi- 
 j\cLTy circumftances, every excufe fliould bemade; 
 every indulgence is due ; and it ought neither 
 to offend nor flirprifc us, if he has not been 
 enabled to accomplifh the vaft, the intricate, not 
 to fay hazardous enterprife of parliamentary re- 
 form, for hazardous it certainly is, and mud not 
 be attempted on a fudden, but by means flow 
 and gradual, almoft to imperceptibility, or tl>e 
 mifchiefs it is meant to prevent, will be accele- 
 rated. 
 
 This very ronfideratlon fhould operate mod 
 powerfully wiii; Mr. Pitt in favour of peace, and 
 difpofe him to make the attempt ; if he fhould iiap- 
 pily fucceed, it will enable him to rcfurac and ac- 
 complilh the various proje(5ts he has planned for 
 the improvement of the revenue, and the redemp- 
 tion of the national debt ; for the giving itill 
 greater vigor ar\d extent to our wide-extended 
 
 com-
 
 ( 147 ) 
 
 commerce; and, above all, he will be enabled ^o 
 purfue, with a certaint}' of fuccels, the great ob- 
 ject he has long had at heart, and to obtain for the 
 lower orders of Ibciety that amelioration in their 
 condition, which, wliile it refle6ls honour on 
 his wifdom and humanity, will not only add to 
 the comforts of the people, but enfure the inter- 
 nal tranquillity of the country. 
 
 "Such are the advantages; fach are the honours 
 that Mr. Pitt will infallibly dcriv-c from peace-; 
 and it well behoves him to reflc6t on the confe- 
 quences that are likely to refult from a fruitlefs 
 perfeverance againJft a nation that mufl become 
 formidable the very inflant IKe ceafes to be vul- 
 nerable. 
 
 It is in vain to difTemble that this country 
 flands on the very brink of ruin, but minifters 
 are much nearer the edge than any one elfe, and 
 will be the iirfl hurled down the tremendous 
 precipice. Mr. Pitt has it in his power to fave 
 himfelf and the empire. The minds of the peo- 
 ple are already angered with a fucceflion of dif- 
 aftrous events in a war, the condudl of which 
 does little credit to the wifdom of thofe who have 
 directed it ; and it is a queflion that defcrves the 
 attention of the minifter (for his head is at itak.e) 
 how far it may be prudent to increafe that ar^ger, 
 by an obilinate and unavailing conteft, which 
 V 2 muft
 
 ( 148 ) 
 
 ibuft heavily add to the burthens of the people, 
 and lead eventually perhaps to infurrection. 
 
 This truth may be ofFenii ve, but as the happinefs 
 of millions is an objetil of far greater importance in 
 ftiy cftimation than the pleafure or difpleafure of a 
 minifter, it difdains the balance that would place 
 them in oppofitefcales. LetalinccreandunafFecled 
 difpofition for peace be as publicly announced as 
 it is univerfally delired, and the proper means 
 taken by a frank and unreferved communication 
 of terms, worthy of the two nations to accept. 
 If, after this advance on the part of Great Bri- 
 tain, France, intoxicated with fuccels, Ihould 
 reject the proffered boon, the minifter becomes 
 juflified by her guilt, and will be fuppbrted in 
 his efforts to punifh her temerity and injuftice 
 by the invincible energy of the whole country. 
 Rapid as her tide of glory flows beyond the Alp 
 and on the Rhine ; fplendid asher viftorics have 
 been on the continent, her internal fituation is as 
 deplorable as crime and folly combined can make 
 it. The affli6ling fcene excites the mingled 
 fenfations of horror, pity, and difguft ; her feat 
 of empire is a prey to contending fadlions, while 
 the whole furface of her wide-extended territory 
 refembles an agitated Tea, whofe tremendous 
 waves, torn up by fucceffive tempefts from the 
 very bottom of the ocean, rife furious and indig- 
 nant as if jealous of dominion, and rolling on each 
 
 4 other
 
 ( 149 ) 
 
 other in wild confufion, are dallied and fplit to 
 atoms ! 
 
 If, under fuch diflrciring circumflances ; if, 
 amidft thefc complicated fcenes of horror and 
 dcfpair, torn and diflra6led by civil broil, the 
 government almoft a wreck, France, blind to 
 her interefl and her duty, fhould prefer calamity 
 to peace ; if fhe fhould Ipurn the mild didlates 
 of humanity and right, and from a madnefs, all 
 her own, in the vain hope of blotting Great Bri- 
 tain from the nations of the earth, refolve on a 
 war of defolation and of death, our's be the tri- 
 umph and her's the curfe ! fhe fhall find that 
 Britons elated, not depreflcd by the fierce con- 
 flidl to which they are driven, are equal to the 
 glorious animating conteft ; a conteft worthy of 
 their valour and their virtues, and that their ef- 
 forts and their heroifrn, proportioned to the great 
 emergency, will rife to an altitude that fhall 
 make France tremble a,t her perfidy and pre- 
 fumption ! 
 
 APPEN-
 
 * ^r .i ii-' ii j i I " i I I , " -^iil f 
 
 APPENDIX A< 
 
 t HAD redded feveral years at Liege, and oft qblU 
 ting it, had preferved a conftant correfpondence 
 with the venerable, faithful magiftfate the bur- 
 gomafler Fabry. It was in confcquence of fome 
 letters from him on the retreat of the Bifhop that 
 I returned early in January, 1790. It was in the 
 moment of its revolution ; and my opinion being 
 alked as to the line of conduct necelTary to be 
 purfued in their prefentcircumftances, I repeated 
 the advice I had formerly given, and rccom-' 
 mended an- aUiance with the Aiiftrian Nether- 
 lands, and the union to be inftantTy followed by 
 a declaration of independence. To thofe wha 
 love patch-work, and arc fatisfied if they can get 
 through the great concerns of a nation from day 
 to day, by trick and contrivance, as fome fneii 
 live from hand to mouth, and ift whofe coii*^ 
 traS.cd minds the ideas of magnitude and futu- 
 rity never found admittance,^ this project may 
 appear bold ; but a man entrufted with the in- j 
 
 ^ terelts
 
 ( 2 ) 
 
 terefls of an entire people is ill qualified to 
 conduct them, if he does not provide for cen- 
 turies to come if poffible, for their prefervation 
 and improvement. It is the duty of minifters, 
 and I am fure It would be wifdom in them, t 
 look conflantly forward, and never backward, 
 but by way of reference to experience for good 
 counfel. This proje6l, which I feel a fatis- 
 fadion in refledling, I was the firft; to fug- 
 geit in that country, and which I took the 
 liberty to recommend in this, would have been 
 adopted in Brabant, if thofe wretched bigots, 
 Van Eupen and Vandernoot, the one a weak 
 and rancorous prieil, and the other a lawyer, 
 had pofTefied any thing like a mind between 
 them : I feel the utmofl concern that it failed ; . 
 for I had objec^ts in view far more important 
 than thofe which were declared, and which at the 
 time would not have been difficult to accomplifh. 
 1 was no flrangcr either to the intrigues of the 
 Pruffian agents, or of Mr. Semonville, who had 
 been fent from Paris to Bruxelles to treat with 
 the chiefs of the infurgents, and this made me 
 the more anxious to have my proje6l executed. 
 To do juftice to my friend, no efforts on his 
 part would have been wanting ; and if Bra- 
 bant had been lets blinded by fupcrftition, it 
 would have fucceeded. If it had happily 
 fuccecded, a ilrong and impenetrable bar- 
 rier, extending one hundred and fifty Englifh
 
 ( 3 ) 
 
 miles, in a d'lrcS: line from Oftend to Alx-Ia- 
 Chapelle, and, in fome places, as many in. 
 breadth, would have been given to the Dutch 
 on the tide of France, while Cleves would 
 have fccured them from infult on that of the 
 Empire. It would alfo have prevented, by ino- 
 culation as it were, five millions of people from 
 receiving the contagion of their powerful neigh- 
 bours, in the very worft ftage of their difcafe, 
 or from throwing themfelves in defpair into the 
 arms of France, as the only refuge from Auf- 
 trian defpotifm ; and, finally, it would have 
 produced very conliderable commercial advan- 
 tages to this country, well worthy of the attention 
 of Miniflers. I had long been apprehenlive that 
 the Auftrian Netherlands would ultimately fall 
 under the dominion of France, either by conqueil, 
 exchange, or the difaffe(51:ion of the people to 
 the Emperor ; and as fuch an event would be 
 of ferious confequence to the maritime power of 
 Great Britain, by giving to her natural enemies 
 and rivals the command of both ends of the 
 Channel, 1 was rejoiced at an opportunity of 
 preventing a calamity of fuch political extent. 
 What I dreaded in 1785, and predi6led in 1787, 
 a61ually happened in j 792 ; the French had 
 rendered themfelves mafters of the Low Coun- 
 tries, and even of Liege and Aix-la-Chapelle ; 
 and if they had been lefs intoxicated with their 
 victories, and more attentive to the obligations 
 
 ^2 oi
 
 ( 4 ) 
 
 of morality, or even to the fuggeftions of policy, 
 in her firit invalion, they would have preserved 
 their conquefls agajnfl all the force of Europe, 
 and the inhabitants of the Lw Countries would 
 have efcaped the horrors of the two campaigns 
 that have again deluged them in blood, and 
 again wreiled them from the Houfe of Aullria. 
 
 APPENDIX B. 
 
 IT was one part of the mlfBon of the Che-s 
 Valier Dpnceel from Liege to Brabant, who 
 was alfo employed as a fecret agent by the 
 Court of Berlin, to propofe the alhance 1 lugr 
 gefted, and to engage the Auftrian Netherlands 
 to follow the more wife and prudent councils of 
 Monfieur Vonck, in preference to thofe of Van- 
 dernoot, who was merely an inflniment in the 
 hands of an intriguing woman, allied to a fove- 
 reign >yho has fucceffiyely, and, what is ftill 
 more to be lamented, fuccefsfully betrayed all 
 parties and all nations whom he pretended to 
 iferve, and engaged to fupport. If I forbear tq 
 fay more upon this fubjec^, it is out of comr 
 paffion to a female in advcrfity, though her ad-r 
 verlity has been occafioned by her pailion for 
 political intrigue and the fottifh imbecility of 
 
 her
 
 { J ) 
 
 her hufband. The obje<5l of this note is merely 
 to prove, that the Court of BcrHn was decidedly 
 of opinion in 1790, that the Low Countries 
 Ihould be wrefted from the Emperor. What the 
 opinions of the King of Pruifia have been fincc 
 that period, we all know from wretched expe- 
 rience, but vvhaf they may hereafter be, Om- 
 yiifcience alone can foretcl. <# 
 
 " II ne fut jamais queflion de faire entrer les 
 troupes etrangeres dans le Pays Bas ; vous 
 pouvez dire hardiment que ni PruHiens, ni 
 Heflbis, ni les troupes de Brunfwic n'y entrcr 
 ront ; il nous fuffit, mon cher Chevalier, que 
 Jes Pays Bas, ne retombe pas entre les mains de 
 J'Empercur. 
 
 Etait ligne, 
 
 Lc General de Schlieffen.** 
 A Liege, 
 
 pevrier, .1790. 
 
 Au Chevalier Donceel a BmxeJks, 
 
 Translation. 
 
 *^ It was never meant to march any foreign 
 troops into the Low Countries ; you may, 
 therefore, boldly contradict fuch a report, and 
 as boldly aiTcrt, that neither the troops of 
 
 Pruffia,
 
 ( 6 ) 
 
 Pruffia, Hefle, nor Brunfwick, will enter the 
 Auftrian Netherlands all that we require is 
 that they do not return again to the houfe of 
 Auflria. 
 
 Signed, 
 
 Le General Schlieffen/* 
 Liege, Feb, 1790. 
 
 To the Chevalier Donceel a Bruxelles, 
 
 It is neceffary to obferve that this is an an- 
 fwer to a letter from M. Donceel, Hating the 
 general apprehenlion at Bruxelles of an inten 
 lion of the King of Pruffia to march his troops 
 into the Low Countries, in order to force the 
 people to receive a Stadtholder, which the Prin- 
 cefs of Orange had propofed, and to which they 
 were as averfe as to a governor and minifler 
 from Vienna. M. Vandernoot was the inftru- 
 ment who undertook to prepare men's minds 
 for this fubftitute for the Archduchefs ;* but the 
 good fenfe of the country would alone have 
 fufficed to defeat the fuccefs of any fuch project, 
 even if they had not been Simulated by the 
 cabals of the French to reje(5l it. France was 
 no lefs alarmed than the Flemings at the idea 
 of a foreign army marching into the Low Coun- 
 
 * *' Nous n'avons pas befoin des marionettes" Jf^e do ntt 
 vjant puppets was the obfervation made to me, at tliat time, 
 by one of the ableft men in Brabant. 
 
 obje6ls
 
 ( 7 ) 
 
 tries. The neighbourhood was too .near her 
 frontiers, and the invafion might have other 
 objects befides the guarantee of the transfer of a 
 nation from one defpot to another. The French 
 are as vigilant as they are intelligent, and thofe in 
 tliis country, who imagine that the proportion of 
 intellect: in France bears no proportion to that in 
 England, deceive themfelvcs very much, and are 
 cither ignorant or illiberal in the degree that they 
 entertain, and propagaate an opinion fo diHant 
 from truth, and that reflecfts fuch little credit on 
 their juftice or their underllanding. 
 
 APPENDIX C. 
 
 " THE milcrable peafant, deftitute of every 
 refource but induftry to fupport his wretched 
 offspring, and even that refource, (poor and 
 fcanty as it is) a contingency on his health 
 and capacity for labour, muft toil hard for the 
 folitary (hilling with which he daily feeds and 
 clothes his helplefs family. It has repeatedly 
 fallen within my obfervation fince the commence- 
 ment of this letter, to behold, in a variety of in- 
 fiances, this extreme difircfs aggravated by the 
 illnefs and infirmity of the children, to whom, as 
 Well as to their haplefs parents, cxiitence appears 
 to be every thing but a blelling. Contraft their 
 
 deplorable
 
 ( 5 > 
 
 deplorable condition with your 6wn exalted 
 Hate ! Recolle6l how miich you are indebted toi 
 chance for the fuperiority of your fortune, andre- 
 membering thtit thefe men are your fello^v crea- 
 tures ; pofleffing in commoii with yourfelf, A 
 right to the common neceflaries and enjo}-ments^ 
 of hfe, let me alk you. Sir, if you can without 
 blufhing demand, excluiive of the very ample 
 income allowed you by the nation, a fum that 
 would comfortably maintain in perpetuity, one 
 THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED of thcfc Very people j 
 whofe aftli6lions you would increafe^ and whofe 
 morfel of bread you would embitter and render 
 more difficult to obtain, in order to defray your 
 extravagance ? Sir, it is againlt reafon, it is 
 againft juftice, humanity, and right ; it is againft 
 your pcrfonal intereft and fecurity, that a difpro- 
 portion fo fcandalous fhould exill between man 
 and man ! God never dcfigned it, and the go- 
 vernment that anthorifes or connives at the abufe^ 
 hazards its tranquillity or exiltence. 
 
 *' It is no abatement of the fufferings and 
 agonizing furrows of the famifhed cottager, that 
 the portion of happinefs is not more difFufcd 
 among the higher, than it is atnong the lower 
 orders of focicty. It is no alleviation of his dif- 
 trefs, that while he is pcrifliing of hunger, yout 
 Royal Highnefs is cxpofed to numberlcfs vexa- 
 tions and difappointments. The chagrin and 
 I anger
 
 ( 9 ) 
 
 anger provoked by pri(l6 defer vedly mortified, or 
 your ill healtli arifing from intemperance, afford 
 him no confolation in the hour of calamity ; 
 they adminifier no comfort to his mind, and af- 
 ford no drawback to his grief or misfortunes. 
 They furnifh neither food nor raiment to his 
 flarving, ragged offspring, nor fhield his ill- 
 thatched hovel from the rude blafls of winter. 
 It is fophiflry to fay, that the magnificence in 
 which you live is but fplendid mifery, which am- 
 ply revenges him for the difference of his for- 
 tune ; nor is it argument to fay, that becaufe 
 you are wretched, he ought to be happy, for it 
 is only a bafe and vindidlive mind that can de- 
 rive confolation or joy from the miferics of 
 another." 
 
 ExiraSi of a Letter addrejfed to his Royal ITighiefs 
 the Prince of PFales, May 1796. Page 13. 
 lith Edition. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( lo ) 
 
 APPENDIX D. 
 
 IT is unimportant to ftate the caufes of my dif- 
 agreement with the Minifter. Whatever my 
 opinion on any of the great quellions that agitate 
 men's minds at this awful crius, may be, it is of 
 too little moment to juHify its publiration to the 
 world. I cannot, however, but regret that he 
 fhould have given force and activity to a mind as 
 malignant and vindi<5tive in its very nature, as it 
 is fplendid in its endowments ; J did not feel ray- 
 felf pledged, either by my confidence in the Mi- 
 nifter, or my perfonal regard for him, to refpe6l 
 ever}' man whom the circumflances of the moment 
 might force him to receive to his bofom. If Mr. 
 Pitt, for great political purpofes, was compelled to 
 go into bad company, he mull take the confe-^ 
 quences; I felt no fuch neceffity, and was not 
 obliged to follow him, 
 
 I ncT^i'er ventured to give an opinion on the fer- 
 vices for which Mr. Burke was employed, and 
 for which he has been fo profufely paid. It is, I 
 think, very evident, that if he had continued to 
 a6l with his old friends until be retired from Par- 
 liament, that he would not have had his retreat 
 enlivened by a crowd of penlions which Hood fq 
 
 jnuch
 
 ( II ) 
 
 much in each other's way, that he was lindet 
 the ncccffity of parting with fome oi" them at 
 
 au6tion to the highcil bidder.- This being 
 
 the cafe, every man is quahfied to judge ot 
 his quantum 7neruit, and may " fit on the 
 " inqueftr But when Mr. Burke, with a ma- 
 levolent e all his own, at leaft I hope fo, and 
 which was as unprovoked as it was unquef- 
 tionably inhuman, attacked an unfortunate man, 
 confined many fathoms below the furface of the 
 earth, in a damp and dreary dungeon, whom I 
 had known in better times, and whofe public vir- 
 tue is as tranfcendent as his fate is deplorablcj I felt 
 it a duty that I owed to the facred call of private 
 friendfhip and alFe6lion, as well as to the glorious 
 and animating caufe of liberty, to vindicate him 
 from his mercilefs and co%vardly aflaffin. 
 
 If any thing could aggravate the charge, moft 
 impudently falfe, that Mr. Burke had the unfeeU 
 ing atrocity to advance again ll M. de la Fayette, 
 it is the circumftance of the impoffibility of this 
 vi6lim to the double infamy of tyranny and flan- 
 der, refuting the calumnies of his proteded 11-, 
 beller. It was not M. de la Fayette only that I 
 defended, but the caufe of freedom and humanity 
 over the wide extended furface of the earth. I^ 
 was the caufe of every man, except the wretched 
 being in whom it originated; andean this man 
 ever expe(5l either refuge or comfort ? O, no ! 
 
 B 1 Beacon-
 
 ( 12 ) 
 
 Beaconsfield can afford him no afylum, nor the 
 proud Exchequer of Britain adminifter to him ei- 
 ther eafe or confolation; with all its enormous 
 mint of money he would be poor, and his exif- 
 tence (embittered by the reflexion of having 
 fwelled and aggravated the calamities of war) 
 rendered wretched even in Paradife. 
 
 That Mr. Burke fhould have gone charged- 
 with uncommon wrath to Mr. Pitt, and in the luft 
 and delirium of his rage, have called for venge- 
 ance on my devoted head, I can well conceive, 
 and even pardon, but I cannot fo readily account 
 for, or excufe the unkindnefs and indifcretion of 
 the Minifter for interfering in a matter in which 
 I Was at perfe6l liberty to judge for myfelf, and' 
 above all, as it is not in this country, thank God, 
 that malice or defpotifm can felccl vi61ims at dif- 
 cretion, I could have wifhed that the Minifter 
 had not exprefled any dilfatisfaction at the part I 
 took; but if his conduct in that inftance was ill-; 
 advifcd, it was altogether as manly in the lilencc 
 he has lince obferved, and in his relifting the male- 
 volence that would have beggared me and an 
 only child, dear to me in every refpedl, by with- 
 drawing from me, if it could, what I have dearly 
 a'iid honourably earned. 
 
 The following letter will explain this, and as 
 this is the concluHon of my labour in the political 
 vineyard, I feel no difficulty in publilhing it. 
 
 Mr.
 
 ( '3 ) 
 
 Mr. Miles /o Air. Rose. 
 
 * Sir, 
 
 London f March 6, 1796. 
 
 *' MY letter to Mr. Duncombe is not a depar- 
 ture from the intention I had formed of not wri- 
 ting any more, unlefs the occafion fhould be ur- 
 gent ; 1 fay this, left you fhould fuppofe that I am 
 tickle. In March 1794, I pledged myfclf to meet 
 Mr. Burke if he ever came forward again. He 
 has come forward, and 1 have kept my word. 
 If he was the \ erfon to whom you alluded as ha- 
 ving advifed Mr. Pitt to violate his engagements 
 to me, he will be more adtive than ever in his ef- 
 forts to feduce the man, whom I ftill refpecl and 
 wifh to fervc, into an a(?l:of injuftice. Mr. Burke 
 knows nothing of my quanliim meruit, and cannot, 
 muft not, be upon the hiqueft. The moderate in- 
 come that I receive under the lign manual, and 
 from the treafury, is the reward of many years cre- 
 ditable, faithful, and ackno\\ lodged fervices,. in 
 which my private fortune was impaired to a 
 greater amount than my penfion v.'ould fell for at 
 Garraway's. 
 
 *' Feeling my right to tlie one and to the other 
 to be indubitable, the former cannot be with- 
 drawn
 
 ( 14 ) 
 
 drawn during my life, nor the other withheld 
 during the continuance of Mr. Pitt in office, but 
 by an iniquitous perverlion of power, again!!: 
 which I feel the moil perfe6l fecurity in the jultice 
 of the Minifter. The- man, therefore, that you 
 fay counfelled Mr. Pitt to fuch a meafure, wanted 
 integrity, if he knew the conditions of the bond, 
 and if he did not, he was impertinent. 
 
 *' Allow me to repeat the afTurances of efleem 
 with which I am, 
 
 * Sir, &c.'* 
 
 APPENDIX
 
 ( 15 ) 
 
 APPENDIX E. 
 
 A LTHOUGH it was the policy oftlie Court 
 of Verfailles to have the foreign journals 
 at her difpolition, and to have as many of them 
 as pofTible conduced by French editors ; France 
 was not the only power that watched with pain- 
 ful vigilance and fufpicion, every paragraph or 
 efTay that had the mofl diflant relation to her 
 government, admin iftration, or affairs ; it was 
 in conformity with this principle, fo rigidly ad- 
 hered to, that Monfieur Sabaticr, the Envoy 
 from his moll Chriftian Majelly to the Prince 
 Bifhop of Liege, received a fevere reprimand 
 from his Court, for not having infifted on the 
 Liege Gazette being taken from the printer, and 
 the editor difmilTed, for having prcfumed to re- 
 tort in June, 1782, a bravado of the marine 
 minifter in France, who, on taking leave of M. 
 de GrafTe, whom he had accompanied to Brcft, 
 recommended in a very audible manner the 
 Britifh Admiral, Sir George Rodney, to his par- 
 ticular care. The Eraprefs of Ruffia, animated 
 by the fame fpirit, fcnt inflrudlions to her Con- 
 ful, Mr. Fabius, at Bruxelles, to make a formal 
 complaint to the fame Prince Bilhop, agairjft a 
 fi journal recently eftablifhed in the city of Liege, 
 
 I by
 
 ( 6 ) 
 
 by a native of France, who had fought refuge in 
 that principality from his own country, and as 4 
 refource had fet up a newfpaper. The Bilhop, 
 in compliance with the wifhes of the Court of 
 Peterfburg, infifled upon the " Journal Politique 
 et General de V Europe^'' fubmitting to have an 
 imprimateur, or to quit the Liege territory ; he 
 chofe the latter, and retired to a town twelve 
 miles off, in the duchy of Limburg, on the road 
 to Aix-la-Cbapelle, called Herve, and his paper 
 from thence was afterwards diftinguifhed by tho 
 name of " La Feuills de Herver 
 
 As the editor of this journal has made a very 
 confpicuous figure on the great and aftonifhing 
 fqene yet before us, and as by the extraordinary 
 occurrences of the times, it has fallen to my lot to 
 have correfponded with him at the two epochs 
 in which his fortunes, no lefs whimlical than 
 malicious, were in the greateft extremes, it will 
 be permitted me, I hope, to fay fomething of a 
 roan who, for one fhort moment of his life, ap- 
 pears as if he held the deftiny of Europe in his 
 hands, aqd whofe extravagant ambition, com- 
 bined with ignorance, and, perhaps, with fomc 
 degree of perfonal refentmcnt againfl: the minify 
 ter, for not having accorded him in 1788, an 
 allowance of fifty pounds a year, accelerated the 
 fatal declaration that involved France and Eng- 
 land in their prcfent dreadful conflict. This 
 
 mai^
 
 { 7 ) 
 
 man liad received a regular education, but wild 
 and diffipated, after having been a lludent, fol- 
 dier, and vagabond in fucceffion, was finallj^ 
 profcribed his native country by order of Mon- 
 iieur de Vergennes. In his talents he found a 
 refource which atoned for the poverty of his 
 fortunes, and would have repaired the injuries 
 produced by mifcondudl, if he had pofTelfed at 
 any one period of his life, either prudence oc 
 re6litude. His firft endeavour, on fetting up 
 this journal, towards the clofe of the American 
 war, was to ingratiate himfelf with the govern- 
 ment that had fpurned him, by contrafting the 
 grandeur and profperity of France, with the 
 penury and degraded ft ate of Great Britain, 
 humbled, as he faid, to be a nation only of the 
 third rank in the fcale of Europe. It was the 
 conflafit burthen of his fong, that this country 
 was on the eve of bankruptcy, that no exertion 
 of wifdom or oeconomy could reftore her fhat- 
 tered credit, and that France alone was the only 
 power in whom foreign flates could with fafcty 
 confide their property. The magnanimity and 
 difcretion of the French minifler, with the fallen 
 and impoverifhed condition of England, torn and 
 divided by cabals of contending factions, were 
 the themes that conllantly occupied feveral 
 pages of La Feuille de Ilerve^ and as the conclu- 
 Hons drawn from thefe eJcaggerated mifreprefen- 
 tations were alooc attended to, the falfehood, ab- 
 
 C furdity.
 
 jfurdity, and impudence of the ptemifes wet^ 
 thrown altogether out of the account. Indeed it 
 was hardly poffible for an Englifhman to mix-in 
 fociety at that period without hearing fome un- 
 pleafant animadverlidns on his country and its 
 government. 
 
 " It is an argument with foreigners who nevet 
 travel, that a man can have no very great love 
 for his country who quits it, and from thence 
 they conclude that every Engliihman on the 
 continent is happier abroad than at home. It is 
 under this impreflion that the que ft ion, IVhaf 
 makes you Jo fond of trai:ell'mgf is fo often 
 propofed, particularly when an Englifhman 
 among foreigners has the indifcretion publicly to 
 extol his own nation as fuperior to all others. 
 This fubje6l was occalionally handled with an 
 happy and mifchievous efFe(5l, by way of a plea- 
 fant relief to the drj' details of political oecono- 
 my, in which it was proved to the entire convic- 
 tion of all thofe who know nothing of the mat- 
 ter, that the Britifli funds, could not poffibly 
 hold their groun^, and that England, ruined and 
 undone, would fpeedily become a bankrupt. 
 The generality of foreigners, excepting the 
 French, know little more of other nations than 
 what they read in the public prints, and it is in 
 the public prints that they place the greateft con- 
 fidence; if the truth Is contefled, the only an- 
 
 fvver
 
 < 19 ) 
 
 fwer they gave is, iJ faut que cela foit vrai, car il 
 eft hnprhuL A perlbn in high rank, and in high 
 official fituation, on being told that almoft 
 every houfe in London had a lamp at its door, 
 exprefled his aflonifhment, and could fcarce be- 
 lieve it poiiible ; addreffing himfelf to me, he de- 
 manded, eft ilvrai, Monftmr, que les rues de Londres 
 font ft bien eclair ees ? Oui, Monfieur, (I anfwered) 
 les rues et les liOMMES y font tres eclaires. The 
 fame perfon could not eafily belicvQ that Mr. 
 Pitt was not a Lord. I have merely mentioned 
 thefe trifling circumftances, and this extreme ig- 
 norance of foreigners, to account for the extreme 
 credit given to all that is afferted in the public 
 prints. 
 
 I had obferved with much impatience the in 
 ceflant mifreprefentations of The Journal General 
 et Politique de VEurope^ refpe(Sling the public ere-* 
 dit of this country, and this impatience was ra- 
 ther increafed than diminifhed by the frequent 
 appeals that were made to me with an air of ma- 
 lignant triumph for a confirmation of the facSt, 
 and efpecially by thofe whom I knew to be pen- 
 fioners of the Court of Verfailles. As I fre- 
 quently met the French minifter at dinner and 
 at parties, I took occafion to mention, in the 
 courfe of familiar chit-chat, the illibcrality of his 
 countryman, and to wifh that he would confine 
 himfelf to fa<Sts, for that a great nation, like 
 
 C 2 France,
 
 France, did not require to be propped by falfe- 
 hood and fcurrilities. M. St, Croix, reprobat- 
 ing the man, his paper, and his conduct, de^ 
 clared he was fo worthtefs, he had nothing to fay 
 to him. Vexed at thefe daily libels, I conceived 
 the project of writing a private letter to M. Le 
 Brun, in which I lamented that a journal fo uni- 
 verlally and fo defervedly read, fhould have fal- 
 len into the grofseft errors, and that anxious for 
 the credit of his paper, I had taken the liberty tok 
 fend him an hafty Iketeh of our public debt, 
 taxes, and refources, on the fidelity of which he 
 might venture to rely, and that I trufled to his 
 love of truth to give it the reception it deserved;..' 
 
 In the courfe of a week I received a very flat- 
 tering acknowledgment of its having been re- 
 ceived, and that every attention fhould be paid 
 to my information that I could wifh. It did not 
 occur to roe at the time that this ofRcioufnefs 
 might expofe me to the fufpicion of being in fe- 
 c et correfpondence with the Englifh minifter^ 
 and if that had really been the fadl, it is iiioft 
 probable that I fhould not have written, left 
 fuch a fufpicion fhould have expofed me to dan- 
 ger. The truth is, that not having fuch a cor- 
 refpondence, I thought only of rendering a Ser- 
 vice to my country by eorre6ling mif-ftatements 
 that I perceived imprefTed foreigners with a very 
 unfavourable ojg^niou of Biitilli fccurity, and 
 
 BritiiU
 
 ( 21 ) 
 
 Britlfh faith. I had no other motive, I had not 
 even communed with a lingle creature on the 
 fubje(5t, and was far from being equal to the 
 tafk of explaining myfelf as fully as I wifhed to 
 do in either the French or Englifh language. 
 The reception however, that my communica- 
 tion met with, gave me a very high idea of M. 
 Le Brun's candor, and I was flill more charmed 
 with his condudt when I found that his abufe was 
 converted into paneg.yric, and that the finances 
 and refources of England were the conftant 
 themes of his admiration. Little read in humao 
 nature, and allowing truth to pofTefs a much 
 larger empire over the minds of men than Ihe is 
 ever likely to obtain, I attributed, without hefi^ 
 tation, the change that had taken place entirely 
 to a love of jullice jn the editor. It was under 
 this conviction, that, feveral months afterwards, X 
 wrote him the following letter, in confequence of 
 Jiis having been compelled to fly, at only half an 
 hour's notice, from his wife and children, de^ 
 pendent on his induftr}' for fupport, to claim the 
 protection of the Emperor againfi an unjufti- 
 fiablc exertion of power in the States of Brabant, 
 lately revolted from the jurildicSlion of their fo- 
 vereign. I was at this time an entire flranger to 
 the perfon of M, Le Brun." 
 
 f^ Z%^,
 
 ( 22 ) 
 
 *' Monsieur, 
 
 '* JE viens d'apprendre par M. Fabry Tevc- 
 nement facheux qui vous eft arrive, et qui vous 
 a force de vous Ibuftraire fur le champ a ua 
 pouvoir nouvellement acquis, et tres indecem- 
 ment exerce a votre egard, 
 
 * n m'a dit que vous etiez parti pour recta- 
 mer la proteclion de FEmpereur contre Tinjuf- 
 tice des etats du Brabant. Votre depart precipite 
 ne vous a pas fans doutc permis de vous pour- 
 voir de I'argent neceflaire pour les frais d'uu 
 Yoyage peniWe et difpendieux. Cheque de cette 
 conduite de la part des Etats, que la liberte naif- 
 fante auroit du rendre plus confornae aux prin- 
 cipes de la juftice, et fentant combien une de- 
 marche li peu mcafuree, pour ne pas dire ii ty- 
 rannique, a du vous occaiionner d'cmbarras, je 
 me flatte que vous ne trouverez pas mauvais 
 qu'un Anglais, anime par I'amour de la liberte, 
 qu*il ne perdre qu'avec la vie, ait jointe ici une 
 traite de yingt Louis de MelTrs. Naglemackers 
 fur leur correlpondents a Ratisbonne. J'efpere 
 que cette petite fomme vous arrivera a tems pour 
 
 4 vous
 
 ( 23 ) 
 
 Vous etre utile, et furtout que vous obtiendrcz 
 de YOtre fouverain la juftice qu'il vous doit. 
 
 " Je fuis. Monsieur, 
 
 " Avec conlideration, &c. 
 
 " w. miles;* 
 
 A MonJie7ir, 
 
 Monjieur h Brun, 
 
 Poji rcftante a Rahjhonne, 
 
 Translation. 
 
 " Liege i June 30, 1787. 
 ' Sir, 
 " I AM this inflant Informed by Mr. Fabry 
 of the unpleafant event which has happened, 
 and which has forced you to iiy from a power 
 lately acquired, and very indecently exercifed 
 towards your perfon. 
 
 '' I am told you are gone to Vienna to claim 
 the protection of the Emperor again ft the injuA 
 tice of the ftates of Brabant. I am afraid, Sir, 
 that your precipitate departure did not allow 
 you fufficient time to provide yourfelf with mo- 
 ney for a long and expenlive journey. Incenfed 
 at the condu6l of the flates of Brabant, to whom 
 the riling fpirit of liberty fhould have didlated 
 principles more conformable to juftice, and feel- 
 ing how very much this meafure of their's, io 
 
 imprudent.
 
 ( H ) 
 
 imprudent, not to fay tyrannical, mufl hav^ 
 embarrafled you, I hope you will not be of- 
 fended at an Englilhman, animated by that 
 love of liberty which he will relinquifli only 
 with his exigence, intreating your acceptance of a 
 draught for 20/. on a banker at Ratifbon. I hope 
 this trifle will reach you in time to be of ufe to 
 you, and that you will obtain that juftice from 
 jour fovereign to which you are entitled. 
 
 " I am, 
 
 Sir, &c. 
 
 w. miles;* 
 
 To Mr, Je Bnm, 
 To he left at the Poji Office^ Ratijbon. 
 
 To this letter I received the following anfvver. 
 
 " MoNSIEtJR, 
 
 *' AH ! fans doute vous etes Anglais, et vous 
 xneritez de I'etre ce trait et genereux, et la no- 
 blefle dont vous I'accompagnerez, annonce une 
 ame toute brulante de Tamour de la verite, et 
 de fenlibilite pour les infortunes, et vous craig- 
 nez encore homme incomparable, et vous avez 
 la delicatefle de craindre, que je ne prenne en 
 mauvaife part le bienfait que vous m'offrez. 
 Non, Monlieur, j*en fuit au contraire tout pc- 
 netre de reconnaiffance, et j'accepte votre don 
 avec plaifir. Quand ce ne feroit que pour nc 
 
 paa
 
 ( 45 ) 
 
 p^s priver votf& ame de la feule recoiripetiGo 
 dignd d'elle ; ntirus comptons etre h Vienne fur 
 la fin dc la femaine, et je he doute pas que nous 
 ne trouvions toufc la latisra<5!ion qui nous efl^ 
 due aupres du fouTiefain. J'aurai jole ^t j6 
 m* en fei^ai un dtevoir de voiis informer d^s.pfo* 
 gr^^s des nos folicitations, ne defirant rien tantj 
 ^ue dte pouvoir reprendre au3t plutot nos tr* 
 vatix, et vous pmuvet d^urie maniere plus ecla- 
 fante, les fentimens d'eftime, d'admiration, et 
 de reconnoiflance, que VoUs m'ave2 iiifpii'es, et- 
 avec lefquels, j'ai Thonrieur d'etre, Monsieur^ 
 votre tr^s huHabk, tr^s obeifant ferviteur, 
 
 LE BRIJN." 
 " Rati/bonne, k 7 Juiikt, 1787.'* 
 
 A Monfieur, 
 Monfteur MileS^ 
 Gentilhomme jlnglais a Liege, 
 
 Translation* 
 
 '* Sitti 
 '' AH ! moii certainly you are an Englifiv 
 man, and well you deferve the name of onc^ 
 This noble and generous a<^ion announces a 
 foul fired by the love of truth) atid companion 
 for the unfortunate, and you ^rc afraid of ofv 
 fending me by ydur generofity 1 No, Sit ; oil/ 
 the contrary, I am- penetrated by your kindnefs^ 
 
 D and
 
 ( z6 ) 
 
 aod accept your offet with gratitude. VVe c?^' 
 TpcSi to be at Vienna towards the end of the 
 week, and I do not doubt but we ihall find 
 every fatisfaction that is due to us from the fove- 
 reign. I fhall feel it my duty to inform you of 
 the refult of our foHcitations, deiiring nothing 
 more than to be enabled to refume our labours 
 as foon as poflible, and to prove to you in 
 the ilrongcft manner the fentiments of efteem, 
 admiration, and gratitude, with which you have 
 ififpired us, and with which we have the honour 
 to be, 
 
 " Your moil obedient humble fervaatsy 
 
 LE BRUN." 
 
 ** Rahjbon, July-'jf 1787." 
 To Mr. Miles, Liege. 
 
 In the month of Oftober or r^ovember follow- 
 ing, Le Brun refum'ed his journal, and recom- 
 mended bis labours by accufing the Englifli Cabi- 
 net of having excited the Turk to declare war 
 againft the Mufcovite, and his animadverfions on 
 that fuppofcd fad vj^trre well calculated, as they 
 were meant to do, to imprefs the world with that 
 opinion. I wrote to M. Le Brun that I was forry 
 he had fo fuddenly changed his opinion of Mr. 
 Pitt ; and was forry to fee him fo pofitive in a 
 charge which I had every reafon to believe was 
 iil-found6d, . Upori.thcreceipt^pf my letter, every 
 Ijm: ^ things
 
 ( 29 ) 
 
 thing that had beenaflerted wasinftantly retraced, 
 and the next number vindicated thcBritifh Cabinet 
 from what I thought a calumny. It gave me great 
 pleafure to find afterwards, that Sir R. M. Keith, 
 the King's Minifter at Vienna, had formally con- 
 tradicted the charge, by order of his own Court. 
 This was, in fome fort, a confirmation of what I had 
 done, and would, as I thought, give me credit for 
 veracity. My triumph, however, was of (liort dura- 
 tion, the Emperor Tofeph, who was at once vehement 
 and implacable in his refentment, fent orders to the 
 government at Bruxelles to reprimand the Journal 
 Politique, and to infill upon its renewing the charges, 
 and throwing the whole odium of the war upon the 
 Englifh Cabinet, or on the EngHfh Minifter at Con- 
 flantinople; in obedience to this command, the 
 attack was refumed, and in confequence of its 
 being refumed, I wrote the following letter to Le 
 Brun :* 
 
 ^ Monjieur I^e Briin* 
 
 ^* BriL-iellcs, March 12, 1788. 
 
 " Monsieur, 
 
 *' APRES vous avoir afllirc que la guerre qui 
 
 s'eft malhcureufemcnt declaree cntrc la Porte ct 
 
 la Ruflie, n'etoit p^s I'puvragP do rAnglctciTC ; 
 
 jD 2 j<^ 
 
 * In looking over my correfpondencc, I met with fcveral of 
 M. I^ Bnin's letters. The following exrract from one of 
 them is in anfwer to a requcft 1 made him to be impartial in his 
 
 account
 
 ( 28 ) 
 
 je me fUis flatty qm vous m*a.uriez cru, et furtout 
 puifque vous eutes la coruplMifance de retra6ter 
 d'abard cc que vous venie* d'avancer dans c 
 mouient la^ dans votre difcours preliminaire. 
 
 *' Je ne puis que fentir beaucoup de chagrin, 
 en vous voyant donner plus de credit a une lettre 
 
 account of the politic? of the different courts. In a converfation 
 with him on the iubjeft of the foHowing paffage, he explained 
 il me/era iiifficiU d^applaudir, by defiring me to read it as he 
 meant, but did not dare to write it // m'a iti deffndu 
 4*apflaudlr, adding; Oefi la catin du nord qui s^ea mtle aujji^ 
 and exclaiming, ' Ah ! Monjieur^ c'efi dam votre Jflf feule^ 
 qu'onpeut beurter du front le dtfpotifme.'* 
 
 ExtraB of a heitar from M, Le Biiun to Mr. Miles, dated 
 
 Hervtf Janvier le hy 1 788. 
 
 " Je commencerai cette femaiite., Monfieur, l^article de la 
 
 Grande Bretagnet ouje chercberai Voccafion de rfndre au premier 
 
 Minijlre^ le trihut d'elogc et d^ejlime {lue je crois qu^il merite^ par 
 
 fa qualites perfonellei et parliament aires ; mais il mefcra toujourx 
 
 dificih d'applaudir au fyfltme politique du cahinff de St. James,'* 
 
 Translation. 
 liLxtra^ ef a Leitft from M^LeBrun to Mr. Miles, dflted 
 
 Herve, Jan, 6, 17&8, 
 
 * I Hull begin this week, Sir, the articles refpefting 
 Great Britaii), and \ will take an opportunity to render that 
 tribute of juilice which is due to the great parliamentary abili- 
 ties of the Firft Lord of the Treafury ; btt it will be extretpely 
 difficult for me to approve of the politics of the Britifh Q,^'^ 
 
 particuliere
 
 { *9 ) 
 
 fjfflxticulierc de Parisj <iu*auK declarations for* 
 aaelles de la Cour dc Londres, je nc m'arretta-ai 
 pas fur rindccence dc doiiner im .dementi fi tbrt, 
 a une autoiitc auffi relpedlaible, et certainement 
 plus digne de foi que votre qorrelpondcnt nc 
 pcut Tetre. Mais j*en appelle a votre humanite, 
 S'il eft jufte d'expofcr iion feuleraeut la vie d'un 
 iiomme innocent, mais meme fa reputation ; car 
 fi votre journal par hazard penetroit jufqu'a 
 Conftantinople, Ic Chevalier Ainflie eft infalliblc- 
 ment perdu. Ce que vous venez de lui attribuer 
 lui couteroit la vie, et il faut avouer qu*on ne 
 devroit pas fc permcttre des accufations fericufes, 
 fans etre bien alTure de leur vcrite. Le Cheva- 
 lier Ainflie * jufqu'a prefent ne s'eft pas permis 
 de pafler les bornes de fon devoir. 
 
 *' S'il avoit, comme vous ic dites, excite la 
 guerre entre les Turcs ct la Ruffie, fans la par- 
 ticipation de fa Cour, il feroit rappellc, et une 
 pareille demarche Tauroit expofc a etre mallacre 
 a Conftantinople. D'ailleurs, Monftcur, vous 
 publjez Ja maxime qui fert d'cpigraphe a iiumero 
 30 de votre journal, 
 
 * I iave not the booour of knojving Sir Robert Ainflie, 
 or of being known to him, but finding him the object of 
 very ferious charges by the Court of Vienna, through the 
 mkiiiflTy of the Journal Politique, and appreheufive it might 
 expofe his perfon to danger, I took upoa me to contradift 
 the calumny, from a love of that juftice which is due tp all, 
 ^nd fliould be afTured to ail. 
 
 2 '* Sans
 
 ( 3< ) 
 
 " Sans aucune preuve quelconquc vous pro- 
 noncez hardiment centre un homme revetu d'un 
 cara6lerc public, et dans un affaire ou il y va de 
 fa vie, et de fa reputation, 
 
 " J'eipere qu'aprcs cette remonftrance ami- 
 cale (ecrit par un homme, qui vous a deja donne 
 des preuves de fon amitie, et qui fera heureux 
 de vous etre utile) vous lerez plus circonfpe6l a 
 Favenir, et que vous rendrez juftice au Cheva- 
 lier Ainflie, dans votre prochain numero. 
 
 ** Je fuis, he. 
 
 * W. MILES." 
 
 Translation. 
 
 To Monjieur Le Brun. 
 
 " BruxeJles, March ii, 1788. 
 " Sir, 
 *' AFTER having afiured you the war, which 
 has unfortunately been declared between the 
 Porte and Ruffia, was not the work of Great 
 Britain, I flattered myfelf that you would believe 
 me, particularly after you had had the complai- 
 fance to retradl immediately what you had jufl 
 before advanced in your preliminary difcourfe. 
 
 ** I cannot but feel great concern in feeing 
 you give more credit to a private letter from Pa- 
 ris than to the formal declaration of the Court 
 - . of
 
 ( 31 ) 
 
 of London. I will not dwell on the Iftipropricfy 
 of giving fo flatly the lye to {o refpedtable an 
 authority, who certainly is more worthy of credit 
 than your corrcfjpondent can be. But I appeal 
 to your humanity. Is it jufl to expofe not only 
 the life of an innocent man, but even his cha- 
 ra6ler ? For if your journal fhould by chance 
 find its way to Conftantinople, Sir Robert Ainf- 
 lie would be undone. What you impute to him 
 would coft him his life, and you mull own that 
 fuch ferious accufations fhould not be brought 
 againfl him, unlefs the truth of them were 
 known with certainty. Hitherto Sir Robert 
 Ainflie has not attempted to go beyond the li- 
 zoits of his duty. 
 
 *' If he had, as you have faid, excited a war 
 between Rufiia and the Turks, without the parti- 
 cipation of his Court, he would be recalled, and 
 fuch a meafure would expofe him to be maffa- 
 cred at Conftantinople. Belides, Sir, you forget 
 the motto you have taken for Number 30 of 
 your journal. 
 
 " Without any fort of proof you boldly con* 
 demn a man veiled with a public chara6ler and 
 in circumftances where his life and reputation arc 
 at flake. 
 
 ** I hope.
 
 ' t hope. Sir, that after this frrcndly rcrtioii^-* 
 flrance, tranfmitted ro you by a man who his al- 
 ready proved his good vvi(hes to ferve yoi), yod 
 will be more cautious in future, atid do juilice t6 
 Sir R. Ainflie in your next number. 
 
 I am, &c. 
 
 " WiLtiA*! Mixes***. 
 
 -. . , r f f 
 
 But inftcad of retracing, as he had dOftd 
 bcfoi'e,. he intimated to me that his authority ^a 
 un^qneft'ionablc, and he muft refpeft it. At an i-< 
 tervievv with him afterwards in my way to Aix-ls- 
 Cltapelie, he revealed the whole hiftory of this in- 
 trigue, and {hewed me fome curious correfpoir-' 
 dence, which proved how very apt governments 
 arc to be indifcreet, when they believe rhemfelves to 
 be omnipotetit. The Journal Politique, conftrained 
 to write in the fenfe that was di(5\:ated to him by 
 the council at Bruxelles, and vexed', at the fame 
 time, that fome efforts to obtain him an annual 
 allowance from England, were not fuccefsful, he 
 tio longer kept any meafure with the Englilli go- 
 vernment, and this country became the objed of 
 malevolent animadverfion, until the expulfion of 
 the Imperial troops from Bruxelles, when the Em^- 
 peror not only loft Brabant, but M. Le Brun : it 
 was then that the chara^er of this man became de- 
 veloped ; it was then that I difcovered that his 
 ready attention to my firft communication in 1785 
 
 was
 
 ( 53 ) 
 
 xvas In confcquence of a peremptory refufal from 
 M. de Vergennes to allow either him or his journals 
 to traverfe France. 
 
 The accident that made my letter travel in com- 
 pany with this prohibition to Herve,* enfured to 
 the former the reception I wilhed. The Emperor, 
 twice expelled the L-ow Countries, and twice fuf- 
 fered to return to it, obliged M.LeBrun to evacuate 
 the Low Countries, and take (belter in Paris, which 
 became at that epoch the refort more than ever of 
 innumerable fwarms of adventurers. It was in the 
 winter, 1790, that he arrived, and being informed 
 that I was in town, he defired pcrmiflion to wait 
 on me ; apprifed of his character, I declined the 
 interview. His project was to add another journal 
 to the million that the prefs incelTantly brought out 
 at all hours of the day and night, for the horrid 
 purpofe of inflaming and mifleading the million 
 into the commiffion of all kinds of crimes and ex- 
 cefles. He fent me the profpedlus, by one of the 
 deputies from the principality of Liege, Monficur 
 Regnier, who folicited permiflion to fet me down 
 as a fubfcriber, to which I confented ; but he was, 
 as it were, infulated and alone, a ftranger even 
 m his native country, without friends to patronife, 
 or money to fupport him. The journal advanced 
 no farther than the profpeftus, and as a dernier 
 refcurce, he made an offer of his ferviccs to the go- 
 
 E plicity, 
 
 * The refidcnce of M. Lc Brun.
 
 ( 34 > 
 
 vcrnment of Bruxclles. Leopold had all the dtv 
 plicity, and fome of the avarke of his deceafed 
 brother, without his turbulence or impatience : 
 aware of the influence of a popular writer, with 
 men whoTc minds were yet in a ferment, he offered 
 to give Le Brun a hundred piftoks a year, and 
 allow him to return and fet up a journal, if he would 
 fupport the houfe of A\ltflria ; but it was required 
 that thefe piftoles fliould be made louis-d'ors, the 
 demand was refufed, and the treaty diffolved for 
 ever. The Emperor, from a miferable eeconomy, 
 in order to fave about twelve guineas a year, fpurned 
 the man who afterwards became, in fome degree^ 
 the arbiter of his fate ! It was at this period, in 
 the fpring of the year 1 791, that as another laft re- 
 fource, M.LeBrun obtained admiffion into the Jacoi 
 bin club, I was prefent at the time, and beard it re- 
 marked, that at no period fo many members had beea 
 defied, and fo many candidates refufed. The 
 intrigues, buftle, and convulfions of thofe times, 
 whofe ftorms, great as they were, were but pre- 
 eurCbrs to ftill greater tempefts, raifed hi-m nearer 
 the furface, aTkd Dumourier finding him ufeful, 
 i.ltelligent, and indefatigable, employed him in 
 the department for foreign affairs^ After the tranf- 
 aftions of the loth of Auguft, 1792, he became 
 fecretary of llate ;. in January following, he (igned 
 the death-warrant for the ex'^cution of his fove- 
 leign, and foon afterwards propofed that war Ihould 
 be declared againft Great Britain and Holland,. 
 ,3, and
 
 t 3i ) 
 
 which he had long aimed at, and for which he was 
 afterwards denounced. In May or June, i 793, he 
 was difcovered concealed in the Fauxbourg St. Mar- 
 tean ; having been previoufly declared an outlaw, 
 nothing more was required than to identify his 
 perfon, and being conduced from the cavern to 
 which he had fled for fecuritv, to the fate which his 
 crimes had long deferved, he perifhed on the 
 Icaifold where his King had recently been mur- 
 dered ! *- 
 
 Their direful fare a moral leflbn brings, 
 
 To upftart greatnefs, and to thoughtlefs Kings; 
 
 Their direful fate to full-blown pride makes known, 
 
 How very little man can call bis own. 
 
 Vain all the buftle of this fleeting life, 
 
 Vain all our pleafing hopes and anxious ftrife. 
 
 Vain all our joys I fince to one common end, 
 
 Hope, ftrife, and joy in wond'rous hafte defccnd ! 
 
 I do not know that I reafon better in verfe than 
 in profe ; but fuch are the train of reflections which 
 the extraordinary events in the French revolution, 
 never fail to excite in my aj[fli(fled mind, whenever 
 the painful fubjeft occurs; and fuch the brief 
 hiftory of a man whom the turbulence of the times 
 had lifted from the loweft almoft of all poffible 
 fituations, to the higheft. The fudden rife and 
 rapid fall of this man furnilh a world of matter for 
 very ferious reflecflion, and if the Tad deftiny of Lx)uis 
 fhe XVIth proves the inftability of human gran- 
 
 JE 2 deur
 
 ( 36 ) 
 
 deur, I am fiare the chequerM hiftory of this maa 
 abundantly fhews how very much we are the fport 
 and ridicule of fottune ! It may not be improper 
 to obferve again, before 1 terminate this long note, 
 that one of the charges which brought Monf. Le 
 Brun to the block, was his having provoked the war 
 with England. The condemnation of the French 
 minifter on this occafion, by his own countrymen, 
 is (as I have already faid) a virtual acquittal of the 
 IkigliQi one, and will, I hope, refcue him in future 
 from this calumny, and its intended effe<fls. The 
 letter fubjoined was addrclTed by M. Le Brun in 
 1789, to the Comte de Trauttmanfdorff, the Im- 
 perial minifter at Bruxelles. 
 
 It will fhew the profound diffimulation and in- 
 genuity of a man who feems only to have obtained 
 a momentary triumph over his fortunes, that he 
 might afterwards feel more bitterly and more con- 
 fpicuouily their fierce reverfe, and fall unlamented 
 a vidim to his pride, vanity, and guilt ; his ilrange 
 hiftory renders whatever relates to him interefling, 
 and under this impreflion it is that I have givea 
 publicity to the letter in queftion. 
 
 The Government of BrufTelles, after the troubles 
 had fubfidcd in 1787, became a fcene of impu- 
 dent and fcandalous intrigues of various kinds : 
 neither the MiniHer, Mr. de Trauttfmandorff, 
 
 nor
 
 ( 37 ) 
 
 roT the Commander inChiefM.D'Alton, had the 
 talents and moderation necelTary for their ele- 
 vated fituations at any period, and leaft of all 
 in times of civil diftraftion. The former of 
 thefe was vain, ignorant, and weak ; the latter 
 was equally ignorant, brutal, and haughty, from 
 the protedion he received at Vienna, through the 
 influence and credit of M. De Lafcy, with the 
 Emperor. The man, with whofe wife the Mi- 
 nifter lived in equal intimacy with the hufband, 
 afpired to the chief command, and was aflifted 
 in his pretenfions with all the intereft of the 
 man who dilhonoured him. The Commander 
 in Chief was no lefs occupied in ufmg his credit 
 with the Emperor to get the Chancellor Crum- 
 pippen appointed Minifter ; and thus the two 
 men who ought to have held moft together, for 
 their fortunes were, by the circumftances of the 
 times, united, caballed againft each other, and 
 mutually labored to defhroy each other. The 
 confequence was, that the troubles in the Low 
 Countries increafed under their adminillration, 
 and as the civil and military departments were 
 in known hoftilityto each other, the Government 
 not only became weak and contemptible, but loft 
 all its elafticity as well as energy. The conduft 
 of thefe two men offers another whokfome leflbn 
 to Princes not to confide the adminiftration of 
 public affairs to men with differeot views, and 
 who have as httle capacity as union. M. D'Al- 
 
 ton
 
 ( 38 ') 
 
 tort, to excufe a condu<5^ more thafl criminal, and 
 to throw the whole blame on his colleague, at- 
 tributed in a memoir, written in juftilication of 
 the Commander in Chief, the entire lofs of the 
 Belgic Provmces to the mifcondudl of the Count 
 de TrauttfmandorfF. This memoir was written, 
 at Mr. D* Alton's requeft, by Le Brun, who 
 having an antipathy to both men, thought it a 
 very fair opportunity to draw money from both, 
 and for this purpofe he add relied the following 
 letter to the Imperial Miniller, which not pro- 
 ducing the defired effedt, the memoir was in- 
 ftantly publilhed. 
 
 From Monjieur Le Brun to Count de Trautts- 
 
 MANSDORFF. 
 
 Liege, le 20 Decemhre, 1789, 
 
 " Monsieur le Comte, 
 ** IL fut un temps heureux ou yotre influence 
 immediate fur le gouvernement general des Pays 
 Bas, vous laiflbit tous les moyens de faire reparer 
 line injuftice a notre egard.* II n*y a pas un an, il 
 nV a pas meme huit mois, votre Excellence pou- 
 voit encore nous aiTures fans obftacle, et nous faire 
 
 pbtenir 
 
 * Alluding to his having defended the Emperor in 1787, 
 wnen he fled for prote<ftion to Vienna. He had two interviews 
 wiih the Emperor, who did no^ even defray the expences of his 
 journey ; and, but for the trifle I fent him, both he and his 
 colleagxic muft have begged their way back. All that they ob- 
 feincd was permiffion to refume their journal.
 
 ( 39 ) 
 
 obtenir fans delai le rembourfement de tout ce qi>c 
 nous avons perdu pour avoir epoui'e trop chaude- 
 ment la caufe de feu I'Enipereur. Si vous I'aviez 
 fait Monfieur ie Comre, ce fervice n'eut pas cte 
 perdu pour votre Excellence : nous aurions la 
 douce fatisfadion aujourd'hui de lui prouver que 
 nous ne fommes pas ingrats. 
 
 " Nous ne chercherons pas a perfuader ici votre 
 Excellence qu^il ctoit de I'interet de la Maifon d'Au- 
 triche que nous fuffions con^plettement fatisfaits k 
 cet egard. Au befoin nous pourrions en donner les 
 motifs, et prouve que fi Ton nous euc mis k 
 couvert de nos pertes pafTces, et dcs rifques futurs, 
 nous euffions fu alors employer des moyens propre* 
 a fixer la fermentation en faveur de Souverain> 
 malgre les intrigues des deux partis. 
 
 " Non, ce n'eft point le moment d'agiter cette 
 queftion, mais le temps eft venu de vous dire M, 
 le Comte, qu'il eft toujours de Tinteret du gou- 
 vernement, furtout quand il doit compte de fes ac- 
 tions a un chef fopreme, de ne point dedaigner les 
 reprefentations fondees^ des gens de lettres, et prin- 
 eipalement de ceux qui ont fu s*emparer de I'opi- 
 nion publique. rLe gouvernement du Pays Bas, 
 votre Excellence le fait mieux que perfonnc, a mar- 
 que envers nous a cette maximc politique. Si 
 nous etions haineux, I'occafion de nous en domma- 
 
 ger
 
 ( 40 ) 
 
 ger {e prefente, et nous en profiterions, -mals Id 
 fiel de la vengeance netroubleua jamais la ferenite 
 de nos ames ; cette paffion ell au deffous de nos 
 caraftcres ; il eft plus doux d'etre utile ; nous avons 
 toujours cherche a Tetre, et cejl le parti que nouspren- 
 drons a I'egard de voire Excellence, dans une affaire 
 tres delicate qui Wconcerne^ et qui implique ferieufement 
 duality es perfonnages importans. Mais comme il ejl plus 
 que temps que nous penjions ferieufement a reparer la 
 hreche faite a nntre fortune, il faut un accommodement 
 entre les inter effes et nous, a fin que nous co-operions a les 
 Jauver d^une difgrace certaine. Aujourd'hui furtout, que 
 pour avoir parle en faveur de Leopold, pour avoir 
 travaille a lui conferver des partifans, nous nou3 
 trouvons de nouveaux les vidimes de norre devoue- 
 ment a la Maifon d'Autriche, et que pour recom- 
 penfe, notre journal eft encore interdit, prohibe, et 
 arrete pour toutes les provinces ; ce qui depuis 
 deux a trois mois nous occafioniie une nouvelle 
 pertede 4 a 500 louis. Voici Monfieur le Comte 
 de quoi il eft queftion de vous a nous une perfonne 
 que vous devinerez peut-etrc, mais que nous ne 
 pouvons encore vous nommer, nous a propofe de 
 rediger un memoire pour feu le General Comte 
 D*Alton*et nous a remis en confequence des papiers 
 de la plus grande importance. Entre autres il fe 
 irouvc bcaucoup de lettres originals, partie votre Ex- 
 cellence, partiede ccrtaines autres perfonnesattachees 
 ades interets qui n'etoient pas trop, ceux du Souve- 
 rain. Des depeches minifterielles, des rapports, &c. 
 
 nous 
 * M. Jaubert,
 
 C 41 ) 
 
 nous nc vous cacherons pas M. le Comte qu^wie 
 main habile pourroir faire un terrible ufage de cet 
 enfemble do pieces qui toutes potrent avec elles 
 un caradere irrccufable d'authenticite. Elles peu- 
 vent non feulement fervir a I'entiere juftification dc 
 Comte D'Alton, mais encore a perdre pluileurs per- 
 fonncs dans ropinion publique et dans Tefprit da 
 Roi d'Hongrie, & a en denoncer plusd'unCj comme 
 lelponfable de la perte adiuelle des provinces Bel- 
 giques. On peut aifement conje(5lurer d'apres tous 
 les renfeignemens que nous avons, que vous avez 
 Ore, M. le Comte, entraine dans une cabale dont 
 vous ignori.ez peut-etre encore les projets et le but, 
 Cette cabale exiftoic avant votre nomination au 
 Minidere ; et celui qui la conduifoit, I'homme le 
 plus adroitment ambitieux, avoit tout prevu pour 
 s^emparer de votre Excellence a Ton arrivee aux 
 Pays Bas, c'etoit le plus difficile ; il a aifement alors 
 continue a vous diriger, l*ecueil etoit peut-etre in- 
 evitable. 
 
 ^' Tout autre qu'un homme nourri des l*enfance 
 dans les grands principes d'adminiftration, dans 
 ceux de cette philotbphie eclairee qui conduit au- 
 jourd'hui TAflemblee Nationale de France, tout au- 
 tre y auroit fuccombe ; & fi la Revolution n*eut 
 pas etc confommee, votre Excellence et le General 
 d'Armes euflent probablement etc facrifies c'etoit 
 |e but Les affaires ayant pris une tournure toute 
 
 F differente
 
 ( 4^ ) 
 
 diiferente de cc qu'on efperoit, il n'a pas etc dc 
 I'interet de vos alentours de vous compromettre, 
 & on a crn plus aife et plus court de facrifier le Ge- 
 neral D*Akon et il eft mort ! Mais pas affez tot 
 pour fes ehnemis ; car il a en le terns d'inftruire un 
 vengeur^ et de remettre entre fes mains de terribles 
 monumens des intrigues des cours ; heureufement 
 celui-ci s'eft addrefle a nous pour en etre feconde. 
 Vbs interets M, le Comte exigent d'ajfoupir entierement 
 cette affaire i et d'empecher a taut prix la publication du 
 memoire dont nous nous fommes charges. Mais vous 
 fentez bien qu*il en coutera pour y parvenir. i . II faut 
 gagner rami de M. jy Alton y^ car il a imagine toutes 
 les precautions pour ne point etre pris au depourvu. 
 
 *' II a depofe une copie authentiquc de tous fes 
 papiers en Hollande. II en tient une autre, nous 
 en avons une auffi, et les originaux vont etre mis 
 fous peu en lieu de furete. Maisfi nous fommes fe~ 
 condeSy nous pouvons promettre de Vamener a nos vues, 
 et de terminer r affaire a votre fatisf action. 2. Pour fa- 
 crifier les avantages que nous fommes affures de retirer 
 de la compofition et du debit de ce memoire, il faut que 
 nous en foyions largement dedommages. Nous vous 
 avouons cependant qui fi nous avions obtenu dans 
 
 * Jaubert, this friend of Mr. D'Alton applied to me to pro- 
 cure him permiffion to go to Botany Bay in 1788. 
 
 VV. IM. 
 
 A. Ic
 
 ( 43 ) 
 
 
 
 le temps nos indemnites, nous aurions rougi, de 
 mettre iin prix a ce fervice ; mais le tort que ce 
 refus tacice de la part de votre Excellence nous a 
 occaiione eft incalculable, & nous fommes dans 
 Tembarras ; confultez vous M. le Comte, et con- 
 fultez les autres perfonncs egalement interefle a ce 
 que rien ne tranfpire ; et faites nous fans delai con- 
 noitre vos intentions. Mais entre-tems, comme 
 I'doignement ou vous vous trouverez les uns des 
 autres laifleroit un trop long intervale entre vos re- 
 ponfes, reciproques, et celle que nous attendons de 
 votre Excellence, nous vous prions de nous accu- 
 fer la reception de la prefente, courrier par courrier, 
 et nous vous promettons de tenir la chofe en fur-fiance 
 jufqu (i ce momet, et a tous evenemens fi I'ami de 
 Monfieur D'Alton ne vouloit pas capituler II y 
 aura d'autres moyens de fervir votre Excellence, 
 que nous nous refervons de lui develloper au befoin, 
 
 *' Etoit figne, 
 
 *' Le Brun.'** 
 
 * Vide the end of the Appendix for the Tranflation to the 
 above Letter. 
 
 Fq, appen.
 
 ( 44 ) 
 
 APPENDIX a. 
 
 It has been my misfortune to have incun'ed 
 this reproach, and mofl certainly without having 
 ever deferved it ; writing has been an amufement 
 to me from my infancy, but if it was even my re- 
 fource for a maintenance, I would rather re- 
 nounce my cxiftence than difhonour literature by 
 fallifying my principles, or writing to gratify pri- 
 vate pcrlbnal revenge. The one I hold to be in- 
 famous, and the other both infamous and un- 
 manly. 
 
 Among the many tales that malice has 
 whilpered, and folly beheved, is that of my hav- 
 ing received jive hundred pounds from the Duke of 
 Bedford, for the letter %vhich I addrejjedy through the 
 medium of the prefs, to Mr. Henry Duncomhe! Thole 
 who have fpread fuch a report would have ap- 
 proached nearer to the confines of probability, if 
 they had faid, that the haggard antiquated rival 
 of her Royal Highnefs had been penfioned by 
 Mother Windfor to keep her in countenance- 
 but it is not only on this occafion that I have 
 been mifreprefented, every paflage in which I 
 
 have
 
 (. 45 ) 
 
 have endeavoured to do jufilce to the former mca- 
 lures of government has been afcribed to fomc 
 unworthy motive, in which it has even been aflcrt- 
 cd, that on a recent occafion I had written at the 
 infiigation of the Miniller for a purpofe that I 
 trufl he would difdain as much and as vehemently 
 as myfclf. This flandcr was in fuch currency, 
 from theunufiial induflry ofthofe whofe obje<9: it 
 was to render Carleton Houfe once more a tower 
 of ftrength to their ambition, that the minifter, I 
 am told, formally contradiclcd it to the perfonagc 
 whom it was moll neceffiiry to preferv^e from de- 
 lufion. 
 
 I do not hold this'facfl from any perfon 
 conne(5\ed with government, but from a gentle- 
 man with whom I have the honour to be ac- 
 quainted, a perfon of rank, who is very much at- 
 tached to his Royal Highnels, and I believe in 
 his confidence ; and who certainly is not in the 
 habits of intimacy with the Miniflcr, or favour- 
 ably difpofcd towards his mcafurcs, I had flattered 
 myfclf tliat a note in the preface to a former pub- 
 lication * would have preferved me from a re- 
 proach 
 
 * " That tl e various defcriptions of people who have at- 
 tached themfelves to the fortunes of Mr. Fox, with a view to 
 the improverrrent of their own, fliould infiiiuate that the author 
 of this letter is a miiiifterial fciibbler, becaufe he has cenfured 
 
 the
 
 ( 46 ) 
 
 proach fo illiberal and unjuft; a reproach which 
 no penury of fortune ihould ever force me to de- 
 ferve: but as an opinion fo injurious to my charac- 
 ter 
 
 the conduft of oppofition, has nothing in it to furprife or of- 
 fend. It is perfeftly in the order of things, that they fhould 
 draw fuch an inference. It is the common and difgraceful 
 logic of all parties, and appertaining no lefs to the fkftion in 
 power, than to that which is out. There is no doubt but it 
 will be made ufe of by both, without the leaft regard either to 
 ht or decency whenever it fuits their refpeftive interefls. 
 
 *' The attempt that has been made to difcredit the following 
 pages, and deftroy their intended efFeft, by reprefenting the 
 author as a venal partizan of the Minifter (as if the charge of 
 venality could controvert fafts !) certainly deferves notice : not 
 on account of the author, for he has no fchemes of perfonal am- 
 bition to gratify; he neither covets wealth norpopularity, and feels 
 no other flimulus to aftion than the love of right : but on this, 
 occaiion the caufe of letters appears to be, in fome degree, 
 cxjnnefted with the quelHon of his guilt or innocence ; and he 
 hopes, by vindicating the purity of his intentions, to refcue 
 literature in fome fort, from the contempt and ignominy into 
 which both parties feem anxious to involve it, in order that it 
 fliould be formidable to neither, and that its exertions in the 
 caufe of truth or freedom fliould be without efFe6l. 
 
 *' The flrong internal evidence of truth and independence 
 which every page of this pamphlet offers to the unbiafled judg- 
 ment of mankind, would have preferved the author from a re- 
 proach fo foul and unmerited, if the extreme profligacy of 
 venal writers, hired by contending faftions to praife what they 
 approve, and to decry what they condemn, had not thrown a 
 general odium on almoft every fpecies of political writing. 
 
 "Tho
 
 ( 47 ) 
 
 ter and offensive to my feelings, may yet, perhaps, 
 be kept in malevolent circulation by the ingenuity 
 iof thofc who devifed it, it is a juftice that I owe to 
 
 myfelf, 
 
 *' The forlorn and haplefs female, compelled by the perfidy 
 of her feducer, to fcek refuge from famine and defpair in the 
 refources of proftitution, has an excufe in her misfortunes for 
 the infamy of her calling, and claims at once the pity and for- 
 givenefs of the world ! But man, with numberlefs avenues to 
 honeft honourable competency before him, and free to chufe! 
 that he fhould become a willing proftitute, a flave to faction, 
 or a pander to authority, is as lamentable as it is vile and in- 
 cxculable ! 
 
 " That he, whofe talents and attainments enable him to pro- 
 mote the general happinefs of fociety, fliould degrade, pervert, 
 and facrifice man^s no^k^ faculties to ferve the purpofe of for- 
 did avarice and irregular ambition.; that he fliould proftitute 
 thofe talents and attainments to the caufe of fadion, and dc- 
 fcending to flatter guilt or imbecility, become an inftrument, a 
 mere automaton, in the hands of clerks, fitted by nature to the 
 defks they write at, is as incomprehenfible, as it is humiliating 
 and ofFenfive ! Nor is it lefs humiliating and ofFenfive to refleft, 
 that thofe whofe duty it is to cherifli integrity and talents fliould 
 have an intereft in debafing them, and feek, in the degradation 
 of Uterature, the means of aggrandizing themfelves and their de- 
 pendents, as if their paltry intercfts were fuperior to thofe of 
 the community, or that government was beft fupported by trick, 
 fraud, and violence ! 
 
 " It is fill! time that literature fliould vindicate jtfelf from fuch 
 afperfion. A reftitude of conduct, as well as of intention, can 
 alone entitle it to refpeft, and this charafter once eftablifhed, it 
 will refume its proper rank in fociety, and obtain tliat influence 
 
 over
 
 ( 48 ) 
 
 myfelf, as well as to the Mlnlfter and his friends, 
 to declare, that he never fuggefted to me any one 
 of the fubje6ls on wliicli I have prefumed to pub- 
 
 hlh 
 
 over the public mind, which will operate as a check on the ar- 
 rogant and prefumptuous ignorance of one party, and on the 
 finifter and mifchievous defigns of the other. The author of 
 the following pages, whofe charader, habits, and language, 
 place him equally above the calumny of thofe who are enriched 
 by human calamity, and of thofe who, under the malk of pa- 
 triotifm, would throw the nation into anarchy, feels it incum- 
 bent on him to declare, that it is his firm and unalterable opi- 
 nion that an oppofition is as necefTar)' to the prefervation of 
 liberty, as an adminiftration is to that of order ; but he will 
 never condefcend to decorate with an epithet fo dignified the 
 confpiracy of a few individuals, whofe indifcriminate oppo- 
 fition to ever)' meafure of the Crown is well known, and from 
 melancholy experience, to be nothing more than an interefted, 
 felfifh conteft for power, for the fake of the emoluments and 
 patronage of office j he will never countenance the impudent 
 pretenfions of men, who having already deceived the people, 
 have forfeited all claim to their confidence, and ought not to be 
 trufted ; whofe fcandalous and diflionourable fcramble for 
 places has brought oppofition iuto difrepute and contempt, from, 
 which it can only be extricated by other men coming forward, 
 with other principles, and with unblemifiied chara(51:ers. Nor 
 is the author of the following letter confcious that any thing^ he 
 has ever written can be conftrued into a fulfome or an \ii\' 
 merited panegyric of the Chancellor of tlie Exchequer, whofe 
 conduft, capacity, and meafures, fliall, when neceflary, be in- 
 veftigated with the fame freedom and inflexible regard to juflice, 
 which charaftcrize this pamphlet. 
 
 " la
 
 ( 49 ) 
 
 lifK my fentiments, nor has he ever been in any 
 one inflance whatever, apprifed of my intentions 
 before they were executed. 
 
 I am little verfed in drawing declarations ; it is 
 the bufincfs of a fpecial pleader, to which I con- 
 fefs myfelf unequal, but I wifh it to be fully and 
 unequivocally underftood, and at the fame to be 
 received with all the honcft welcome due to truth, 
 that neither Mr. Pitt nor the Secretaries of the 
 Treafury, nor any particular friends of the Mini- 
 fter, ever were confulted by me, or faw either the 
 letter in queftion, or any other of my pamphlets, 
 
 *' In fpeaking of him comparatively with Mf. Fox^ on the 
 ftibjeit of the unjuftifiable application to Parliament on the part 
 of his Royal Highnefs, to difcharge debts improvidently con- 
 trafted, and in breach of a folemn promife, voluntarily given 
 to the nation, the author has done nothing more than render a 
 juft tribute of praife to the former wliich was due to him ; and 
 if the conduft of the two gentlemen on this occafion had been 
 reverfed, the merit (which by the bye was merely negative) 
 would have been acsorded without hefitation to the latter. For 
 the author of this pamphlet is the lall man in the world to go 
 to market for opinions or applaufe. He difdains the unworthy, 
 the difgraceful traffic, and rigidly attached to principles which 
 cannot be controverted, he will never condemn Mr. Fox when 
 he is in the right, nor fupport Mr. Pitt when be is in tlie 
 wrong. 
 
 Pre/ace to the Letter addrejfed to the Prince of ffaleSf 
 paj^e 8. 
 
 G untU
 
 ( s= ) 
 
 until they were printed and expofed to the ccil- 
 :fure or tlie approbation of the world. 
 
 It is at all times painful to be mifunderftood, 
 and infinitely more fo to be mifreprefented* I 
 afpire to no dignities, I look forward to no em- 
 ployment, nor is it my intention to folicit any 
 favours, either from the prefent adminiflration, or 
 from any future. I do not mean to affail the 
 Treafury with a piftol in one hand, and a pen in 
 the other ; and I do not think that either party 
 will compliment me from afFe(51ion. My lot is 
 humble, but it contents me ; I am happy, and 
 fhall be more fo when my mind emancipates itfelf 
 from the gloom in which the folly and perfidy, of 
 j)olitics has too long enveloped it. All that I 
 delire of mankind is jultice, but unfortunately for 
 thofc who wifli it, and who have nothing to fear 
 from it, there is nothing in nature more difficult 
 to obtain ! 
 
 APPEN-
 
 .( 51 ) 
 
 APPENDIX b. 
 
 A FRENCH bifhop, wbofe name I forbear to 
 mention, in compaffion to his misfortunes, re- 
 quired Government fome time lince to punifh the 
 author and printer of fome paragraphs which ap- 
 peared in a daily paper, lamenting the dangerous 
 irjcreafe, and condemning, in general terms, 
 without any mention of names, the condu6l of 
 that clafs of Frenchmen, who, inftead of flying 
 in all diredtions from their country on the firft 
 alarm, ought to have flaid at home, as Englifh- 
 men would have done under limilar circum* 
 flanccs, and have defended their acres, their 
 wives, and their children. I will not comment 
 on the impertinence of men, who were cowards 
 at that time, and have been traitors of the very 
 worft dcfcription ever lince, and who have jDroved 
 an equal curfe to this country and their own ; 
 neither will I expatiate on the folly which ima- 
 gined that Miniflers, who are daily cxpofcd to 
 the moft fevere animadveriions in the public 
 prints, could prevent the appearance of iimilar 
 flridures on the condu6l of others. I will 
 G z rnerely
 
 ( 5* ) 
 
 merely fuggcft to thefe tenacious gentlemen, 
 whofe prejudices feem to gather llrength from 
 difgrace and misfortune, and who are neither to 
 be taught wifdom by experience, nor philofophy 
 by example, whether their having applied thefe 
 general allulions to themfelves is not a ftrong 
 prefumption that they felt the juftice of the re- 
 proach, and that it was their confcience that 
 fpoke through their vanity ? they are yet to learn, 
 that it is a maxim in equity, that thofe who vin^ 
 dicatc themfelves before they are accufed arc 
 guilty ; but whether thefe men, fitting in vindic^ 
 tive judgment on fuch of their haplefs country- 
 men, who, anxious to preferve a medium be- 
 tween defpotifm and anarchy, have failed in the 
 laudable attempt, and become outcafts, are in-- 
 nocent or guilty, their application was imperti-- 
 nent, and proves they are not to be corredled 
 even by the fevcreft lefTons of adverfity. Surely 
 thefe gentlemen have been long enough in Eng- 
 land to know, that Minitlers have neither the 
 power nor the right to interdict any animadver-' 
 fions ; that the laws alone can take cognizance 
 of them, and eyen thefe are without adlivity, 
 however fevere the animadverfions may be, when^ 
 ever they are founded in truth and juflice. Let 
 this officious pricft be told (for it is never too late 
 to learn) tl^at if he reads his breviary more, and 
 meddles lets with the affairs of this world, it 
 
 will
 
 ( S3 ) 
 
 will belter fult his age and furi(5tions ; while his 
 companions in this ridiculous and fruitlefs expe- 
 dition to Wliitchall (would to God I could call 
 it the funeral proccffion of their vanity and ar- 
 rogance!) may learn from its failure, that truth 
 is not to be lilenced in this country by the rude 
 hand of power ; and that no clafs of men, how- 
 ever exalted in rank or fortune, are exempt from 
 cenfure when their condu6l deferves it. 
 
 Should ever the prctenfions of this worft defcrip- 
 tlon ofemigrants to the hofpital ity they have received 
 be examined ; Ihould ever the pretenfions of thefe 
 men to our confidence be invefligated ; of thefe 
 men whofe unrelenting vengeance exa(5ls from 
 the valour of this country, in oppolition to its 
 juflice the full refioration of tyranny and fuper- 
 ftition, on the fhores they have abandoned, and 
 who fondly believe that the fole obje<5l: of the 
 war is to reinftate them in the power they have 
 forfeited, and in the pofTeflions they have difho- 
 noured,* it will be found that the confidence 
 they have received, has been abufed to the very 
 
 * " Pourquoif Monpeur^ voulez vous qu'on fajfe la paixj ncus 
 ti'avmu pas encore nos Hens ?'* Such was the anfwer of an emi- 
 grant of tins defcription to a gentleman, who exprefled a wifh 
 for peace ; and thefe men, like the Jews, ftill believe in a Mef. 
 
 fiah! 
 
 a extent
 
 ( 54 ) 
 
 extent to which it has been given, and rainiflers, 
 awakened from their dream of unconditional fub- 
 million, will ultimately execrate, as I do, the 
 blind infatuated objects who have fo fatally mifled 
 them. 
 
 I aver it as a fa6l, founded on the authority of 
 French hiflory, and confirmed by the knowledge 
 of every candid and well-informed man, that it 
 is owing to the French nobility (laity and clergy) 
 and to the unexampled profligacy in which feve- 
 ral of them lived, that the French revolution is 
 to be attributed. It is to thofe who rendered this 
 dreadful expedient, this terrible remedy, a mea- 
 fure of ncceflity, by tlieir prodigality and vexa- 
 tions, that all the mifchiefs and all the horrors 
 that have enfued are to be attributed : they are, 
 in fa6l, the authors of the revolution, and not the 
 blind mifguided rabble, or even the factious and 
 unprincipled few who headed that rabble in 
 1789. The direful change in France has been 
 produced by the higheil orders in fociety ; men 
 who, with their families and dependents, lived 
 in fplendor and in pomp on the plunder of their 
 country, whofc diflblutc manners were a fcandal 
 to religion and morals, and who balked in the 
 funthine of the Court of Vcrfaillcs, and Iharing 
 its profufion, partook of its crimes ! ^The hiitory 
 of France is another woeful proof, that revolu- 
 tions
 
 ( iS ) 
 
 tlons do not originate with the people, but In vi- 
 cious and corrupt governments ; but for thele 
 vices and thefe corruptions, the huge and terrific 
 mafs which cannot be contemplated without hor- 
 ror, would have remained paffive and inert. 
 It is now in motion with a force that appears ir- 
 reliftible, and an irregularity that defies pre- 
 fcience to afcertain its direction. Hence, my 
 great caufe of quarrel ; hence, the contempt and 
 abhorrence in whicli I hold this remnant of a 
 worthlefs and perfidious Court, whofe bank- 
 ruptcy has produced calamities of an extent and 
 duration unexampled in hifior)--, and which, after 
 having deluged France with blood, has plunged 
 my country in a war, the iflue of which it is im- 
 pofiible to forefec. But for the wanton abufe of 
 power in the Court of Verfallles, but for its fcan- 
 dalous profufion, rapacity, and profligacy, the mo- 
 narchy of France would have been in cxiftence, 
 while Europe, prcferved from the dreadful con- 
 vulfions which agitate it from one extremity to 
 the other, would mofl probably have continued 
 in the full enjoyment of peace, order, and 
 fecurity. 
 
 It is to thofe to whom the caufe of humanity is 
 dear ; to thofe in whofe virtuous minds the hap- 
 pinefs and freedom of mankind have an honour- 
 able, permanent hold. It is to thofe in whofe efi:i- 
 
 mation
 
 ( i6 ) 
 
 inatjon the people count for fomething, and thofc 
 who govern them for no more than they deferve, 
 that I appeal, to pardon the warmth and intem- 
 perance with which I have execrated the fatal, 
 treble confequences of guilt, folly, and ignorance, 
 combined ; and not to the cold-blooded few who 
 WILT, millions to death as caprice, intereit, or 
 ambition dictates ! 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( 57 ) 
 APPENDIX, No. I. 
 
 MEMORANDUMS. 
 
 Tuefiky, November 13, 1 792. 
 
 Athalfpaft i, P.M. 
 
 -JVTONSIEUR **** called on me, and in- 
 ^^^ formed mc that a minifter would be named 
 very loon by the executive council at Paris, to 
 this Court, and that if he was not inftantly re- 
 ceived, war would- be declared againft this coun- 
 try. That if he was received, an alliance would 
 be propofed, and if this fhould be reje(5led, ill 
 confequcnccs would refult. 
 
 I afked him if he was authorifcd to fay as 
 much : he faid, not abfolutely, but that he foon 
 iliould be. 
 
 I inquired if he knew for a certainty that it was 
 the wifh of France to be united to this country. 
 He anfwered, that the debates in the Committee 
 of Minifters proved it, if he had not other alTu- 
 rances, but that he knew from his correfpondence 
 with thofe minifters, that it was their wilh, and 
 that it was their intention, to put the good or bad 
 difpolition of tliis country very fpcedily to the 
 tell. 
 
 H I men*
 
 ( 58 > 
 
 I mentioned the poflibility of being deceived 
 Ly France, and that the diftrufl which prevailed 
 in England might operate again ft any treaty of 
 alliance with France. He replied, that the adlual 
 government could be better depended upon than 
 that of Vcrfailles. 
 
 I then inquired if he thought the French go- 
 vernment would pledge itfelf not to attempt any 
 revolution in this country by intrigue and cabal, 
 and whether it vv^ould engage itfelf to guarantee 
 the internal tranquillity of the nation, as well as 
 its independence arid pofleffions without. He 
 aflured me that he could anfwer in the affirma- 
 tive, and that France at this time felt herfelf fo 
 powerful, and at the fame tirtie fo well difpofed 
 towards this country, that fhe would make the 
 offer of friendlhip for the purpofc of fecuring the 
 ^ peace of the world, but that fhe as little dreaded 
 England as llic did the republic of Ragufa.* 
 
 In 
 
 * The perfon with whom the above converfation pafled 
 poflefTed a mind wonderfully intelligent, but heated or rather 
 infefled, in common with the reft of his countrymen, with 
 that enthufiafm which could alone enfure fuccefs to the revolu- 
 tion, againft fo many powerful aflailants. He ftated to me in 
 a detail which I thought, favoured 'more of prejudice than of 
 fail, tlie refources of his country, and the fittiation of 
 France with fonie of the Courts of Europe. The events of 
 the war have proved his information to have been perfe(flly 
 iuft; a;id it li fcrioudy to be lamented, that his countrymen 
 
 trymea
 
 ( 5? ) 
 
 111 the courfe of the converfatlon he acknow- 
 ledged that the intention of this country would 
 be demanded, under the idea that in the fpring 
 it intended to take a part againfl France. I found 
 lliat the council at Paris was much alarmed, and 
 I alfo difcovered that people have Ix^cn employed 
 to ftart queflions in the debating focietics in Lon- 
 don, for the purpofe of inflaming the minds of 
 the people againil a neutrality that is confidered 
 as dangerous and fufpieious. I was given to 
 underftand that this was the luvourable moment 
 for an union with France, and that as it was 
 known that I was a friend to liberty, and 
 known to minifters, the offer v/as made to me 
 to pave the way for this defirable alliance, if I 
 would undertake It ; and that I fhould receive 
 every confidential communication I could defire, 
 relative to the views of France, and the particu- 
 lars of the bafis on which it was propofed to form 
 a treaty. The queflions I alked are to be tranf- 
 
 in England, who are fufpefted of pofleffing a credit with 
 adminhtration which they do not deferve, had been as well 
 verfed in political arithmetic, and lefs under the influence of 
 their original fin which, no baptifm can purify. If niy intel- 
 ligence is correft, I believe that Mr. Pitt received much about 
 the fame tihie information of a fimilar nature from a gentle- 
 man worthy of credit, who had been a member of one of the 
 Ephemery. adminiftrations in France. I certainly do not 
 mean M. Bertrand. The perfon, however, did not receive, 
 as I have been told, that credit which was due to the accuracy 
 of his ilatemeut. 
 
 H 2 mittcd
 
 { 6c. ) 
 
 mitted by tVie meflenger this evening to Paris^ and 
 1 am promifed to be told rhe refult. 
 
 It appears to me that the French are playing a 
 very ariful, but fure game, with this coiiniry. 
 Their objecl is to enlift the people in their intereft, 
 to alienate men's minds from monarchy, and to 
 reducing government to the necefiity of coming 
 into their views. The queftion lately ftarted at a 
 debating fociety in the city, proves that indifcreet 
 nieafiires are taking to force miniflers into an 
 avowed approbation of the French revolution, and 
 an alliance with the Republic ; and if the French 
 are not powerfully checked in their career of vic- 
 tory ; if even this country will have no alternative 
 but war; and if war, it will be the mod furious 
 that ever exifled : it will be the hiftory of Rome 
 and Carthage revived, and Great Britain, in that 
 cafe, may poffibly experience the fad deftiny of 
 the latter ! 
 
 APPENDIX,
 
 ( 6i ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. II. 
 
 Londres, le aS NovembrCy folr, 1792, 
 ran ifr. de la Repuhlique Fran^oifi* 
 
 ** Monsieur, 
 
 ** JE re^ois a I'inftant votre billet dc ce marin, 
 ct je m'emprefle d'y repondr6. Je fuis infiniment 
 fenfible a la delicatefle avec laquellc vous avez 
 tcMq de me nommer a Monfieur Pitt ; vous con- 
 naiflez la purete de mes principes, et des motifs 
 qui m'ont engages a vous parler de I'utilite qu'il y 
 auroit_ a un rapprochement trcs prochain entre nos 
 deux pays. Vous pouvez d'apres cela dire au 
 Miniftre que ce fcra avec empreflement que je 
 faifirai roccafion de lui prouver mon zele a fervir 
 ma patrie, et mon defir d'etre utile a la votre, en 
 m'occupans des moyens les plus prompts d'operer 
 une reunion fi neceflaire, et que les circonftances 
 ou les prejuges one fi long tems eloignee. 
 
 '^ Croyes, Monfieur, a la fincerite de Tamitie 
 que je vous ai depuis long tems voues et a Teftimc 
 qu*on a fi aifi^ment pour vous des qu*on a le bon- 
 heur dc vous coiinaitre. 
 
 A Monfieur Miles, 
 Ckvelartd Row, St, James's. 
 
 Trans*
 
 ( 62 > 
 
 Translation. 
 
 S( 
 
 London, iZth of Novemhery at night, 1792, 
 the fir ji year of the French Republic. 
 
 Sir, ^ 
 
 " I HAVE this inftant received your note, and 
 fiy to anfwer it. I am extremely fenfible of your 
 delicacy in refufing to name me to Mr. Pitt ; you 
 know the purity of my principles, and the motives 
 which engaged me to fpeak to you upon the utility 
 of a proper underftanding between the two coun- 
 tries. You may. Sir, on the receipt of this, in- 
 form the Minifter, that I (hall feize with avidity 
 this occafion to convince him of my zeal to ferve 
 my country, and the great defire I have to be ufe- 
 ful to your*s, in ftudying the beft means of ac- 
 complilhing an union fo neceffary, and which ei- 
 ther the prejudices or the circumftances of the times 
 have fo long prevented. Confide, Sir, in the 
 fincerity of that friendfhip which 1 have long felt 
 for you, and that efteem which thofe who have 
 the happinefs to know you. 
 
 *' I am, &c. 
 
 To Mr. Miles. ''^ 
 
 . :: *".'"' ? 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( ^3 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. m. 
 
 To Mr. Le Brun. 
 
 A Londres, i^ Dec. 1792. 
 
 ^' JE vous ai deja ecrit par Monfieur Maret qui 
 ell parti hier pour fe rendre a Paris. Je vous ecris 
 encore aujourd*hui confidentiellement et c*eft Monf. 
 Noel qui aura la bonte de vous faire pafler ma 
 lettre. 
 
 " Je ne fais pas de quelle maniere Mr. ***** 
 s'eft explique, fur ce qui s'eft pafle ici ; mais il 
 me femble que vous etes dans une erreur qui pour- 
 rait vous faire agir tout autrement que vous ne ie 
 devez. 
 
 ** On vous a fait croire que c'etoit Mr. Pitt qui 
 avoit provoque la conference qu'il a eu avec M. 
 Maret, ct c'eft probablement dans cette croyancc 
 que vous avez pris un ton peu convenable aux cir- 
 conftances, et qui pourroit eloigner au lieu de rap- 
 procher les deux nations. 
 
 > " C'eft mol qui fus la caufe de cette conference, 
 c'eft moi qui Tai fait propofee au Miniftre, et c*eft 
 moi qui I'ai obtenu. Mr. ***** depuis quelques 
 mois lailTait echapper quelques mots de terns en 
 terns qui me faifoicnt croire qu'il avoit des relations 
 
 dire(5les
 
 ( 64 ) 
 
 dire(?^es avcc le pouvoir executif a Paris, et fi- 
 nalement qu'il etoic autorife a iraiter fecrettement 
 avec notre gouvernemenci comme j*ai toujours de- 
 fire, et peut-etre plus que perfonne, la reunion des 
 deux pays comme j'ai toujours mis un grand 
 prix a une alliance fi convenable a la France et a 
 TAngleterre ; je me fuis determine, des que je fe- 
 rai aflure de la miflion de *****, de me mettre en 
 avant pour realifer un objet que j'ai eu trcs fincere- 
 ment a coeur depuis Tan 1781, apres que cette refolu- 
 tion fut prife : j'ai demande ***** a la premiere fois 
 qu'il eft venu che^ moi, s'il etoit vraiment auto- 
 rife a traiter confidentiellement avec le miniftre ? 
 il me repondit qu'oui ; alors j'ai pris les mefurcs 
 neceffaires pour obtenir la conference qu'il defirait 
 avoir. Apres beaucoup de peine de mon cote, et 
 beaucoup de pour parler : on m'a demande le nom 
 de celui qui etoit autorife par le pouvoir cxecutif a 
 traiter avec le gouvernement, j'ai refufe net de le 
 nommer fans une afTurance pofitive qu'il feroit re- 
 ^u, et meme avec cette aflurance je ne voulois le 
 nommer fans fa permiffion. 
 
 *' J'ecrivis enfuite a Mr. **"f** la lettre dontjc 
 vous envoye ci-inclufe la copie. Mr. ***** m*a 
 toujours jure qu'il: etoit autorife a voir le Miniftre, 
 et je vous lailfe a juger de ma furprife, quand j'ai 
 vu fortir de dsrrierc le rideau M. Maret, comme 
 charge d'une miflion fecrette, et que c'etoit lui, et 
 non Mr. ***** qui devoit voir Mr. Pitt. Si j'ai 
 3 cte
 
 ( 6s ) 
 
 te etonne cle tout ce qui s*eft pafTe, j'ai du I'etre 
 bien d'avantage quand j'ai appris que M. Marc 
 n'ctait pas autorife de traiter des affaires poli- 
 tiques entre les deux nations, mais un autre ! 
 
 " Voila riiiftoire abregee de cette ridicule avan- 
 ture qui m'otera a jamais peut-etre les moyens d'en- 
 tamcr une negotiation fi vous n'autorifez pas Maret 
 ou Noel a donner des explications fuffifantes fur les 
 points qui femblent donner, et avec raifon, de Tin- 
 quietude a notre gouvernement. Vous verrez par 
 ce detail avec combien de delicatefle, de bonne foi, 
 t de fermete, jc me fuis conduit dans cette affaire, 
 et que ce n'a ete nullement M. Pitt ; mais Mr, 
 Miles, qui a provoque Tentrevue qu'a eu M, 
 Maret avec le Miniftre. Je fuis tres mecontent de 
 ce que le *****. Vous ait induit e:i crreur, ce qui 
 pourra avoir des fuites facheufes, et je vous prie de 
 bien reflechir fur les inftances queje vous fais encore, 
 de ne pas perdre un moment a reparer la faute qu'un 
 mal-entendu me paroit avoir produite. M. Maret 
 vous donnera, fans doute, des eclairciffemens fur 
 bien des chofes que vous ne pouvez favoir que par 
 lui. 11 ne vous diffimulera pas i'attachement du 
 peuple pour la conftitution, et fa loyaute pour le 
 Roi et fon gouvernement. 11 vous dira, que loin 
 de vouloir adopter les reveries bizarres qui font a 
 la mode aftuellement en France, il eft determine, 
 coute qu'il coutc, de laiffer chofes comme elles 
 font, et de ne permettre qu'on porte a la conftitu- 
 
 / tion
 
 ( 66 ) 
 
 tlon aucun^ atteinte fous pretexte de reforme, par 
 confequent on vous a cruellement trompe, en vous 
 aflurant " quekpetipleAnghis mecontent et opprime n at- 
 *' tend que le ftgnal pour fe revolt er '"* au contraire,il 
 eft content, heureux, et attache au Roi, aux loix,et 
 a fa patrie, et pret a les defendre jufqu'a la der- 
 niere goute de fon fang. 
 
 *' Voila le vrai etat des chofes. Jugez d'apres 
 cela s'il vous convient de declarer la guerre a unc 
 nation fi unanime et fi puiflante? JVtens votrc 
 reponfe avec cmpreflemenr. 
 
 *< W. MiLEs/^-^ 
 
 A MoHjieur Le Brun, 
 Minijlre pour des Affaires EtrangheSy a Farts* 
 
 Translation. 
 
 London f Dec. 19, 1792. 
 
 *' I HAVE already written to you, by Mr. 
 Maret, who left this yefterday on his way to Paris; 
 I write to you again to-day, in confidence, and it 
 is Mr. Noel who will have the goodnefsto tranfmit 
 my letter to you. 1 do not know in what manner 
 Mr. ***** explained what has pafled here ; but 
 it appears to me that you are in an error, which 
 may make you adt very' differently to what you 
 
 * Repoit of Le Brun ta the Convention, 
 
 ought ;
 
 ( 6? ) 
 
 ought ; you were made to believe that Mr. Pitt 
 dclired the conference which he had with Mr* 
 Marct, in confequence of which you have ufed a 
 a (tile which is certainly ill adapted to the circum- 
 ftances of the moment, and which may feparate 
 inftead of uniting the two nations : it was owing to 
 me that that conference took place j Mr. **^* 
 for fevcral months paft, had thrown out hints that 
 he was in correfpondence with the executive power 
 at Paris, and finallyj tliat he was authorifed to 
 treat fecretly with our government : as I have 
 always defired, perhaps more than any one elfe, 
 an alliance between the two countries, as I have 
 always eftimated very highly an alliance {o neceflary 
 to France and England, I refolved, the inftant I 
 was affured of the miffion of Mr. *****j to do 
 every thing in my power to accomplidl a project 
 which I have had fincerely at heart fince the year 
 1781 ; this refolution taken, I afked Mr. *****, 
 the firft time that he came to me afterwards, if he 
 was really authorifed to treat confidentially with the 
 Miniftcr, he anfwered in the affirmative; it was 
 then that I took the neceffary meafures to obtain 
 that conference : after much trouble, I was afked 
 the name of the perfon whom you had authorifed* 
 and I rcfufcd to name him without a pofitive afTu-' 
 ranee that he would be received, and even with 
 this affurance, I would not name him before I had 
 his permiffion. I wrote immediately to Mr. ***** 
 a copy of which I inclofc you, Mr. ***** always 
 / 2 protcftcd "
 
 ( 68 ) 
 
 prdtefted to mc that he was authorifcd to fee Mr* 
 Piit, and I leave you to judge of my furprife when 
 I beheld Monfieur Maret produced from behind 
 the curtain, as charged with a fecret miflion, and 
 that it was him, and not Mr. *****, who was to 
 fee Mr. Pitt : if I was aftonifhed at what had hap- 
 pened, 1 was much more fo when I was informed 
 that it was not Mr. Maret, but another, who was 
 author ifed. Behold, Sir, the real hiftory, which 
 may deprive me for ever, perhaps, of the means 
 of opening a negotiation, unlefs you authorife either 
 Maret or Noel to give fatisfaclory explanations 
 upon thofe points, which appear, and with reafon, 
 to have given great uneafinefs to government : you 
 will fee by this detail, with what delicacy, firm- 
 nefs, and fidelity I have condu(5ted myfelf in this 
 bufinefs, and that it was not Mr. Pitt, but Mr. 
 Miles, wJio was the occalion of the interview which 
 Mr. Maret had with the Minifter. I am very 
 much difpleafed that Mr. ***"a* has led you into 
 an error which may have very unpleafant confe- 
 quences, and I beg of you to reflect upon the re- 
 queft I have made you, not to lofe a moment of 
 time to repair the mifchief that this miftake may 
 have occafioncd. Mr. Maret will give you all 
 thofe explanations, which you can only know by 
 him ; he will not conceal from you the attachment 
 of the people to the conftitutlon, their loyalty to 
 the King and his government ; he will tell you, 
 that far from adopting the wild reveries which are 
 a ' in
 
 ( 69 ) 
 
 in fafhion in France, they are determined at all 
 events, to remain as they are, and not to fuffer the 
 leait attack againft the conftitution, under any 
 pretence whatever. From hence you will perceive 
 how very cruelly you have been deceived, on 
 being alTured, " that the EngUfh people ydijfatisjied and 
 *' opprejfed, only attended thejignalfor a general revolt-*** 
 fo far from it, they are contented, they are happy, 
 attached to the King; to their country, to its laws, 
 and ready to defend them to the laft moment of 
 their lives. Such, Sir, is the true (late of things, 
 and I will leave you to judge how far it is prudent 
 to declare war againft a nation fo unanimous and 
 powerful. I wait your anfvver with impatience. 
 
 W. Miles." 
 T^o M. Le Brun, 
 Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, at Farts, 
 
 * Difcourfe of Lc Brun to the Convention. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( 70 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. IV. 
 
 Paris f II Janvier f ^793* 
 Extract of a Letter from M. Maret to Mr* Miles. 
 
 " JE conviens avec vous que fon annoncia- 
 tion fur les conferences de nos agens fecrets 
 n'eft pavS exa6le ; je n'etais point agent lecret. 
 Je n'avais ni autoriiation, ni miflion, et jai dit 
 la veritCj en le declaratant a vous et a Monlieur 
 Pitt." 
 
 Translation. 
 
 ** I Agree with you that his * report of the 
 tonferences with Our fecret agents -f* is not con- 
 formable to truth. I was not a fecret agent, I had 
 no authority to treat, I had no million, and 
 when I declared this to Mr. Pitt and to your- 
 fclf, I declared the truth." 
 
 * Monfieur Le Brun, Secretary of State for Foreign Af- 
 fairs. 
 
 t Conferences faid to have been had with Mr. Pitt, but 
 falfely faid. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( 70 
 
 APPENDIX, No.V. 
 
 Lojidres, No. 7, Cleveland Row, Sl James's, 
 le id Decemhrey 1792. 
 
 *' JE fuis au defefpoir, Monfieur, de voir 
 tous mes efforts pour conferver la paix et rap- 
 procher les deux nations prets a s'echouer par 
 des preventions mal-fondees, des mal-entendus 
 et des intrigues fourdes et dangereufes autant, 
 qu'elles font contraires aux veritables interets 
 des deux pays. 
 
 *' SiM. *** vous a rendu uncompte fidele etde- 
 taille de tout ce quis'eft palfe entre lui et moi, re^ 
 Jativement aux grands objets qui intereflent noo 
 feulcment la France et TAngleterre, mais Tuni- 
 vers entier, vous ne pouvez ignorer la loyaute et 
 la franchife de mes proccdes. 11 ne s'agit cepen- 
 dant ni de ma franchife ni de ma loyaute; mes 
 principes politiques (dont je ne m'ecarterai 
 jamais) vous font bien connus, ainli que Feflime 
 pcrfonelle que vos talens et vos malheurs me 
 firent concevoir pour vous. Je vous dirai feulc- 
 ment, que, n'ayant d'autre but que le bonheur 
 du genre humain, ni d*autres guides que le fens 
 commun et la probite, je ne crains nullement 
 d'cxpofer mes principes et ma conduite au plus 
 grand jour. Permettez done que je me faflfe 
 un devoir de vous cclairer fur quelques objetls 
 
 ties
 
 < 7^ ) 
 
 ties importants, et fur lefquels il me femble que 
 vousavez des idees peu jufles. 
 
 " J'entreprens cetfe taclie d'autant plus vo- 
 lontierSj vous connoiirant pour un homme trop 
 iufle pour ne pas ecouter la raifon et la verite. 
 Pendant mon sejour a Paris en 1790 et en 1791, 
 3'ai obferve avec beaucoup de regret et nicme 
 d'inquietude des Ibup^ons tres mal fondes a I'egard 
 des intentions de la Cour Britannique enrers la 
 France. Ces foup9ons furent tres fortement 
 appuyes par les menees des ar'ijiocrates qui cimrent au 
 faluty ceft a dircy au retahlijfement de Vaiuien go- 
 vernemenf par un guerre, contre V Angle terre. Animes 
 Sun effo'ir phis que crimitiel, Us o?it travatlle avec 
 une lachete d'lgne de lew condu'ite toujours hifame, a 
 faire accroire au peuple toujours facile a tromper 
 par fa honte, que nos armemens pour faire entendre 
 raifon a^fx Efpagnols etoient defiines a enlever a la 
 France les l/les du Vents, et operer une contre re- 
 volution. * II n'eft point furprenant, Monfieur, 
 
 qu*un 
 
 * I was at Paris at this time, but an accommodation taking 
 j'lace with Spain, the counter-revolution was necelTarily fuf- 
 pcnd<d uptil Mr. Burke publilhed his Reflections on the French 
 Revolution. It w as cxpe*5tcd that this celebrated work would 
 cffedually prove that gabelles, corvees, lettres de cachet, 
 baftik's, flavcry, and prlcflcraft, were not fuch bad things as 
 the people had, from their incompetency to judge, and little 
 capacity to feel, been taught to believe ; if obftinacy is a proof 
 pf ignorance, the French arc very much impregnated with the 
 
 latter
 
 ( 73 > 
 
 qu'un peuple ^chappe des fers, el toujours en- 
 
 toure dc ces anciens tyrans la noblefTc et le 
 
 clerge, qui travaillent fans relache a le replonger 
 
 fous 
 
 latter commodity ; for all the fine writings, nor all the fine 
 fpeeches of Mr, Burke made no more impreflion on them than 
 if he had whiftled Lillibulero. " Nil defperandum" will ever 
 be the motto of a people whofe gaiety is never at the higheft, 
 until their fortunes are at the loweft. What the RejUclkns on the 
 Fraich Revolution could not efFec!^, the RtgU'ule /*f/rff,(whichl 
 hear is in the prefs) it is faid, will infallibly accomplifli. This is 
 the great and comprehenfive miracle which is to work the com- 
 plete reftoration of abfolute monarchy and fuperftition. The 
 Regicide Peace is the vaft miracle that is to operate all that is 
 neceflary to enfure the immediate return qi beads, relics, crofTes, 
 and friars, together with an ocean of holy water, from their 
 difgraceful pilgrimage ! Such are the expeflations formed from 
 the wonder working pen of Mr. Burke; ^fi<i as all thefe are 
 matters in which we have no right to meddle, for they relate- 
 entirely to the internal management of an eftate that does not 
 belong to us, the proprietors of which being of age and in pof-. 
 feflion, are furely at liberty to aft as they pleafe ; but if the 
 wonder-working pen of this gentleman has other obje^ls in view, 
 and if one of its objefts is to give the lie to the divine precepts 
 of Chriftianity, by preaching war and defolation ; if its prin-^ 
 cipal defign is to ftimulate the Britifti nation to become an un- 
 worthy auxiliary to flaves and fanatics in their impious attempt 
 to reftore defpotifm and fuperftition, I will recommend it ta 
 my country and to its miniftcrs^ to follow the wifer policy of 
 Spain and France, that acknowledged the Proteftor Cromwell^ 
 rather than war with a people refolved to be free. The Court of 
 JVIadrid was the firft to acknowledge theEnglifh Republic in the 
 ialt century, and Cardinal Mazarine, (who was at leaft as good a 
 flatefmanas Mr.Burke,)madenoobje<^iontotreatwith regicides. 
 Even Mr. Burke himfelf,at one period of his life, corrt^fponded 
 with regicides^ and in the very height of the fierce coaflict between 
 K thi&
 
 ( 74 ) 
 
 fous le defpotlfme, ajoute foi a des menlbnges 
 inventes par des mal intentiones, et foutenus 
 pour ainfi dire par la crainte ; mais que des gens 
 
 inflruits, 
 tins country and her colonies, reeommende<l a peace with re- 
 gicides ; for what elfe was the recommending the Sovereign to 
 acknowledge, the independence of America, than a ftab to 
 royalty which America had fpurned as a thing unfit to 
 be retained, and unworthy of its acceptance ? I faw Mr. 
 Burke go up in proud proceflion, and proud of the em- 
 hafiy, to the Britiili throne, with an addrefs to the King, ben 
 fceching his Majefly to infiift whh his own hand, the very 
 wound of death lo regal authority ; to give, as it were, iiiQ 
 foup-tle-grace to expiring royalty, proflrate-and bleeding on the 
 diftant Ihores of the Atlantic, nor can it be denied that the mOt 
 narch would liave fhared .the fate of the monarchy, at almoft any 
 period of the unnatural conteil, if his perfon had unliappily 
 fallen into the hands of his revolted fubjefts. Mr, Burke knows 
 this h&. at leaft as well, if not better than any man in England, 
 and with this knowledge of liimfelf, and of paft events, what 
 nmft his effrontery be, to come forward and declaim againft 
 rebels himfelf a rebel, of the very won't defcription I 
 For it is rebellion againil humanity 1 It is worfe, it is rebels 
 lion againft heaven and earth ! It is rebellion againft God 
 and man ! for Mr. Burke to council minifters not to make 
 peace with regicides himfelf a regicide ! Ail-gracious Hea- 
 ven, when will men learn to be confiftent ! Or rather, when 
 will they ceafe to be unjuft ! Whether it is the delirium of 
 madnefs, or the delirium of vanity, that ftimulates this indifcreet 
 champion of an infatuated priefthood and nobility, to liatch, in 
 his foul den, evils of the fouleft nature ; whether it is charity or 
 folly to leave him at liberty to throw forth at random his wild 
 and malignant foam, is for thofe to decide who have bloated him 
 into a confcquence that he neverdeferved ; all that I contend for, 
 is, that if liis opinions are hkely to influence our pubhc councils 
 in favour of war at this eventful moment, at a moment wh?u
 
 ( 75 ) 
 
 mftruits, en foient les dupes, et que le gens 
 t?cl aires foient aflez credules pour croire les 
 mille et un contcs repaiidus contre le gouvcrne- 
 ment Anglais, c*cfl un de ces evenemens qui 
 m'ctonnent et m'affligeut 
 
 '* Le rapport egalement denue de tout fonde- 
 ment que M. Pitt etait Tennemi jure de la re* 
 volution, fut re^u avec cette facilite aveugle, qui 
 donne toujours aux menfonges, la vi<51:oire fur la 
 verite. J'ofe vous renyoyer a toutes les. declara^ 
 tions publiques et reconnues du miniflre Anglais, 
 depuislecommenccmcntdela revolution pour vous 
 convaincre qu'il s'efl fait un devoir de ne point fe 
 mclcr dcs affaires interieures de votrc gouvcrnc- 
 ment. Je crois qu'il a toujours rejette avec fer-^ 
 mete toutes les propolitions d'attaques qui lui ont 
 
 our deareft Interefts are at ftake, there will be occonomy in 
 purchafing his filence at even quadruple the pricfc at which the 
 country has rewarded his labours and his apoftacy< 
 
 It is not my wi(h to uie an afperity of language unworthy of 
 inyfelf, or of the caufe I have efpoufed, but confidering Mr. 
 Burke to have provoked, by his injudicious r^fleflions on the 
 French revolution, the execrable libels whicii have difgraced the 
 prefs, and unhinged the public mind in this country j beholding 
 him as the man who gave at once exiftence and celebrity to the wocft 
 of incendiaries ; and that if it had not been for Mr. Burke, we 
 ftiould never have heard of Mr. Paine, I throw myfelf Upon the 
 candour of thofe who feel as warm an intereft in the prefervation 
 of the conftitution as myfelf, to pardon whatever may appear to 
 tlicm to be rafli or intemperate. 
 
 K 1 etc
 
 ( 76 > 
 
 cte faites contre les Fran^ais, et qu'il n'a jamais 
 voulu s*engager en aucun projet de contre revo- 
 lution ; s'il s'eft fait un devoir de ne jamais fe 
 melerdevos affaires, il fe fait auffi une gloire d'etre 
 reile attache a fes principes fages ct equitables. 
 
 " Non cotitent de lui feprochcr de vouloir vous 
 faire la guerre non content.de I'avoir accufe 
 d'etre Fennemi jure de la France, on a pouflc la 
 calomnie au point de dire qu'il y a envo}'e de 
 Targent pour exciter et fomcnter les troubles. 
 L'impoffibilite dc la chofe, fuffit pour toute 
 reponfe a unc accufation aufii ridicule qu'atroce. 
 Aucun miniftre Anglais ne peut diffiper, de cettc 
 maniere, le trefor publique, il efl oblige de ren- 
 dre compte de tout ce qu'il depenfe. Rappellez 
 vous auffi le fyfleme d'ceconomie que M. Pitt a 
 adopte, et les cpargnes qu'il a faites, et vous 
 conviendrez avec moi, qu'il ne peut avoir pro- 
 digue de I'argent de la maniere qu'on le dit. Au 
 refie je vous prie de bien examiner I'etat dcvotrc 
 pays et du notre, fans confulter ni la jufrice ni la 
 politique. Croyez vous qu'il y auroit de la pru- 
 dence a aj outer TAngleterre au nombre de vos 
 cnnemis ? La premiere fois que je vis M. Noel, 
 ct qu'il m*eut appiis I'objet de Ton voyage, je 
 lui promis de lui procurer le moyen d'obtenir 
 une entrevue avec M. Pitt, des qu'il cut I'auto- 
 rifation du counfeil executif, la conduite qu'il 
 'ell prefcritc a cte tres prudente, tr^s fage, et s'il 
 
 eut
 
 ( 77 ) 
 
 tut cte ici il y a quinze jours, il auroit probable- 
 ment eu la conference que j'ai obtenue pout 
 Maret. 
 
 *' J'ai a me louer de Icur condulte honette k 
 toon egard, et loyale envers leur patric, et fi 
 vous euffiez permis au dernier d'achever ce qu'il 
 a li bien commence, je crois que vous auriex 
 eu lieu d'en etrc tres fatisfait. Aprcs vous avoir 
 aflurc que je n'ai aucun interet perlbnnel dans la 
 negotiation que j'avois prefqu'entame, j*clperc 
 que vous vous preterez a des confeils fages et 
 prudents, et que vous ne perdrez pas Toccalion 
 qui fe prefente d'aflurer le bonheur de votre 
 pays, et la tranquillite de I'Europe. N'imaginea 
 point que le peuple Anglais foil difpofe a fe 
 revolter contre le gouvernement n'imaginez 
 -.pas qu'on delire la guerre ici point du tout 
 nous defirons de vivre en bonne intelligence 
 avec la France. 
 
 ^* Aprcs les demarches que j'ai faits pour obtenir 
 pour Maret une conference avec M. Pitt, je 
 fus tres etonne que vous euffiez renVoye M. Pitt 
 a M. Chauvelin pour des explications. Monf. 
 Maret vous expliqucra bien des chofes qui nc 
 peuvent s*ecrire. 
 
 *' Je vous prie de vous perfuader, que je nc 
 pcrdrai pas dc vue pendant fon abfence du grand 
 
 objct
 
 ( 78 ) 
 
 objet qui m^interefle. -Salut et Amltle. 
 
 Bon foir. 
 
 <* W. Miles.'* 
 ^ Monfieur Le Brun, 
 Mtniftre pour les Affaires Ejir anger eSy 
 a Faris^ 
 
 Translation. 
 
 Londo7iy No. 7, Cleveland Row 3 Sl Jamei S 
 i^tli December, 1792. 
 " I AM fincerely grieved to fee all my efforts 
 for preferving peace, and uniting the two na- 
 tions, likely to fail through ill-founded pre^ 
 poffellions, mifconceptions, and under-hand 
 manoeuvres, as dangerous as they are contrary to 
 the real interefl of both countries. 
 
 <c If * * * l^as given you a faithful and 
 particular account of all that pafled between 
 him and me concerning the great objedls which 
 interefl, not only France and England, but the 
 whole world, you cannot deny the candor and 
 loyalty of my conducl. My candor and loyalty 
 are, however, out of the queftion. My political 
 principles, from which I never will depart, are 
 well known to you, as well as that perfonal 
 efleem with whicji your abilities and misfortunes 
 long fince infpired me. I ihall only tell you, 
 that, having no other objedl but the happinefs of 
 mankind, and no other guides but common fenfe 
 
 and
 
 ( 79 ) 
 
 and common honefly, I am not afraid of having my 
 principles andcondu6l expofed to the whole world; 
 permit me therefore to conlider tt as my duty to 
 undeceive you concerning fome very important 
 ohje6ls, your ideas of which do not appear to me 
 to bevery jufl. I undertake this tafk the more 
 willingly, as 1 hope you are too juft a man not 
 to liflen to reafon and truth. 
 
 *' During my flay in Paris, in the years 1 790 and 
 1 791, I faw, with great concern and unealinefs, 
 the ill-grounded fufplcions entertained of the 
 intentions of the Britilh Court towards France. 
 Thefefufpicionswere Itronglyfupportedbythe in- 
 trigues of the ariftocrats, who thought they iaw 
 their falvation, that is to fay, the re-eltablifh- 
 ment of the antient government, in a war with 
 England. Animated by hopes more than cri- 
 minal, they flrove with a perfidy worthy of their 
 condu6l, always infamous, to pcrfuade the peo- 
 ple, who are always eafily deceived through 
 their credulity, that our armaments againfl 
 Spain, were really deftined to wreft from France 
 the Leward Iflands, and to bring about a counter- 
 revolution. It was not furpriling, Sir, that a 
 people, jufl: freed from their chains, and ftill 
 furrounded by their late tyrants, (the nobility and 
 clergy, who ftrive inceflantly to replunge them 
 into flavery) Ihould give credit to lies invented 
 ])y ill-deligning perfons, and fupported as it 
 4 were
 
 ( 8o ) 
 
 were by fear ; but that well-informed men 
 ihould be their dup^; that enlightened minds 
 :fhould be fo credulous as to adopt the endlefs 
 tales propagated againft the Englilh government, 
 is one of thofe events which aftonifh and 
 grieve me. 
 
 ** The report, equally groundlefs, that Mr. 
 Pitt was the fvvorn enemy of the revolution, was 
 received with that blind confidencewhich too often 
 gives falfehood a fuperiority over truth. I dare 
 refer you to all the public and avowed decla- 
 rations of the Englilh minifter, to convince you> 
 that from the beginning of the revolution he has 
 made it a point not to meddle with the internal 
 affairs of your government ; that he has always re- 
 3c6ted with iirmnefs, every propofal made to him 
 for attacking the French, and always refufcd to be 
 concerned in any project for a counter-revolu- 
 tion ; as he has made it his duty not to meddle 
 with your affairs, fo he has made it his glory ta 
 remain attached to his own wife and equitable 
 principles. 
 
 ** Not fatlsficd with having Imputed to him a 
 defign of making war againft you ; not content 
 with having accufcd him of being the enemy of 
 France, they have carried their calumnies to 
 fuch a degree as to fay that he font money ta 
 France in order to excite and foment diftur- 
 banccs there. The impoffibility of the thing is a 
 
 fuflicient
 
 ( 8i ) 
 
 fiifficient anlvver to an imputation, as ridiculous 
 as it is atrocious. No EnJlifh minifter can 
 fquander the public money in that manner; he 
 is obliged to give an account of what he Ipends. 
 Remember, betides, the fyftcm of oeconomy 
 which Mr. Pitt has adopted, the favings he has 
 made, and you will agree with me, that lie cah- 
 not have lavifhcd money as it has been (aid. 
 Moreover I beg you will confider attentively the 
 ftate of your country and of our's, independent 
 of either jaftice or policy, and fay, do you think 
 it would be prudent to add England to the num- 
 ber of your enemies ? The firft time that I faw 
 M. Noel, =* and when he informed me of the ob- 
 je6t of his journey, I promifed to find means of 
 obtaining for him an interview with Mr. Pitt, as 
 foon as he fhould be authorifed by the executive 
 council. His behaviour has been very wife and 
 very prudent, and if he had been here a fortnight 
 ago he probably would have had the conference 
 which I obtained for Marct. 
 
 *' I cannot but approve of their civility 
 towards me, and their loyalty towards their coun- 
 try ; and if you had permitted the latter to com- 
 plete what he had fo well began, I believe you 
 
 * Mr. Noel, I believe, had been at the fame college with 
 M. Le Brun, and there was a friendfliip between them. It is 
 a juftice due to this able and intelligent envoy, to declart that 
 he was extremely anxious to prefei"ve peace. 
 
 Z would
 
 ( 8^' ) 
 
 would have had reafon to be fatisfied with hi9 
 conduct. After having afTured you that I have 
 no perfonal intereft in the negotiation for which 
 I had nearly paved the way, I hope you will 
 yield to wife and prudent counfcls, and that you 
 will not mifs the opportunity which offers of fe- 
 curlng happinefs to your country and tranquil- 
 lity to Europe. Do not imagine that the people 
 of England arc difpofcd to revolt againfl the 
 government do not imagine that war is wifhed 
 for in this country on the contrary, we wifh 
 to live on good terms with France. * 
 
 '' After the mcafures I had taken to obtain of 
 Mr. . Pitt a conference with M. Maret, I was 
 much furprifed that you fhould peremptorily 
 refer Mr. Pitt to M. Chauvelin for explanations. 
 M. Marct will explain to you many things which 
 I cannot commit to paper. 
 
 " I hope you will be perfuaded, that during" 
 his ablence I will not lofe light of the great ob- 
 
 jedl which intcrefts me. Plealth and Friend- 
 
 Ihip. Good night. 
 
 '' W. M/LES." 
 
 7o i\/. LeBiiun, 
 
 Mhnjhr for Foreign Affair s^ 
 Paris: 
 
 * I fpeak generally of the whole country. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( 85 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. VI. 
 
 To Mr. Miles. 
 
 ** Paris, Dec. 17, 1792. 
 " Dear Friend^ 
 *' IT is through the intrigues of Edward Walc- 
 kicrs, the Brullells banker, that our executive 
 power will require, as a preliminary Jlep to any 
 exjiJatiation ivhatever, that the Re public Jliall hcac- 
 hioivlcdged in the per/on of MonJ. Chatrcerm, 
 
 *' This gentleman was abfolutely recalled on 
 the return of Lord Gower. Mr. Noel was charged 
 with the official letter to that purpofc, and Mr. 
 Rcnard* was to have remained Charire dcs Affaires. 
 
 ^o 
 
 " Mr. Chauvclin, alarmed, entreated Noel not 
 to deliver him the letter of recall, and entreated Le 
 Brun to conlider the confequences that might at- 
 tend his abrupt departure That the Court of 
 London^ in that caje^ ivould certainly demand an 
 explanation^ and a rupture between the tivo nations 
 ivould mfuc ; that though he ivas not ivell ivith the 
 FjUgViJli. ninujler, yet he ivas perfectly Jo with Mr. 
 Fox, and fume other members of oppoJJtion ; ajid 
 ivould it be prudent /';/ France to lofc the fruit of 
 
 * The fecretarj' of M. Chauvclin, M. Renard, is now at 
 Hamburgh, as envoy, I believe, from the French Republic, 
 and was very anxious that peace fliould be pi^efeD'ed* 
 
 L Z all
 
 ( 84 ) 
 
 all his labours^ with thefe gentlemen, and their fuhfe- 
 quentfervices, for a vain form of diplomatic etiquette ? 
 Thefe, and fome other reafons alledged at the 
 time, induced Mr. Noel to enter into the views 
 of Chauvelin, and even to enforce his arguments, 
 and to recommend his remaining in England, 
 In return for this franknefs, Chauvelin endea- 
 voured to fortify himfelf by his intrigues among 
 ns. Walckiers is his relation by marriage, and 
 as this latter has the ear of Le Brun, and has 
 been all the time at Paris, he has employed his 
 credit with the minifter for foreign affairs, and 
 every engine he could put in motion, to have 
 Chauvelin continued in his public chara6ler. 
 
 *' Among other things it was reprefented to Le 
 Brun, by this party, that it was incompatible 
 with the dignity of the Republic to treat with the 
 BritiJIi minijier in private, or by afecret agent ; that 
 nothing lefs 'than a public acknowledgment of the Re^ 
 pKblic Jhould induce the French executive council t^i 
 ettter into any explanation with the Britijh Court, and 
 that it Jhoidd be infified upon, that as M. Chawvelin 
 was on the fpot, and had credentials, he Jhould be 
 formally invited by your Minijier to appear at St. 
 Jcimt's's in his public charader. While this Ian- 
 gunge was inliiled upon by the friends of Chau^ 
 vcHn here, limilar advice, I am told, was tranf- 
 mittcd from your country, and hence the reafon 
 that Marct is prevented from acling, and that Lc 
 
 3 Bruii
 
 ( 85 ) 
 
 Brun forbid him to enter into any detail with 
 your minifter. 
 
 Noel, I am afraid, will have caufe to repent of his 
 candor to Chauvelin. There is a combuliion in 
 the hive ; and Noel, who, I affurc you, is a per- 
 fect lionell man, very d liferent to diplomatic men 
 in general, and very anxious to prevent the war, 
 has incurred much difgrace for endeavouring to 
 undeceive Le Brun, with refpe6l to the ftrength of 
 oppolition, and the internal flate of your coun- 
 try ; (which latter was believed to be in a flate 
 of infurre(9:ion), until he wrote to the contrary, 
 and on that account it is that the executive council 
 has gone fuch lengths, and may ftill go greater. 
 
 It is propofed to fend Noel * to the Hague as 
 Minifler, and if this fhould take place, it is pro- 
 bable the ftorm raifed againft him, may blow 
 over. You may be affured that Noel is very 
 anxious for peace, fo is Maret and Young Mour- 
 gue ; rely upon it, they will exert all their influ- 
 ence and credit to preferve it ; as far as they can 
 conliftent with what they owe to their own coun- 
 try. Do not defpair and yet I muH not bid 
 you hope. Adieu, adieu, 
 
 *< Your Friend." 
 
 * * # * 
 
 * This gentleman is at the Hague, and I avail myfelf of this op- 
 portunity to do juftice to the reftitude of his conduct in this coun- 
 try, as well as to his talents, and the philanthropy of his dif- 
 pofition. 
 
 APPJEN-
 
 ( 86 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. Vir. 
 
 From Monf. Maret to il/r. Miles. 
 
 *' Tans, 5 Janvier Tan idde Ja Re^ublique. 
 
 '' VOUS avez ecrit, mon cherMiles, a *** avec 
 une fenfibilite un peu trop vive fur le premier 
 rapport de le Brun. Je crois bien que f\ j'etals 
 arrive avant qu'il fut fait, le Miniftre aurait con- 
 fenti a quelques changemens afl'ez effentiels 
 M^is que voulez vous ? J'etais en route et I'opi- 
 nion etait abufe fous beaucoup de rapports. De- 
 puis mon retour j'ai parle hautement et franche- 
 pient^ mais j'ai trouve des grands obJftacles. 
 
 Les infultes du Parlement Britanalque ; Torgueil 
 national des Fran^ais ; leur courage; leurmoycns; 
 rimmcnlites des leurs refources ; voila des faits, 
 voila des raifons, auxquels, renthoufiafme de la 
 libcrte et dc la vicloire donnent une "Cnergie qu'on 
 ne pcut ni modifier, ni reftreindrc. Si par im- 
 pofiiblc, nos nations parvenaient a fc rapprocher 
 et a s'entendre, le Brun verrait avec une grande 
 joie Toccafion decommuniquer et de travail ler avec 
 vous a cet ouvre iklutaire et pacifique. AiTure- 
 
 mcnt
 
 ( 87 ) 
 
 ment votre gouvernement ne pourrait clioillr 
 pcrfonne dans auciin circonftance, avcc qui Lc 
 Bmn eut plus de plaifir a parler d'affaires. 
 
 '* Adieu, adieu.'* 
 
 Translations 
 
 *' Paris, Jan. 5, 2d Year of the RepuhlJc. 
 
 " YOU have written, niy dear Miles, to * * * 
 with rather too much warmth on the fubjecl of 
 the firft report of Le Brun. * I have no doubt 
 but many effential alterations would have been 
 made in it, if I had happily arrived in time. But 
 what would you have me do ? I was on the road, 
 and the public opinion had been impofcd upon 
 in many inftances. I havefpoken with great frank- 
 nefs and boldnefs lince my return, but I have 
 found immenfe obftacles. The infults of the 
 Britifh Parliament, -f- 
 
 The 
 
 * To the Convention. 
 
 f Strong remonftrances were tranfmittcd to me againft the wild 
 and flippant fcurrilities of Mr. Burke and of Mr. Windham, the 
 hitter of whom gave extreme offence, by aflerting, t/iat a French- 
 man mv.Ji change his nature, before he could /peak truth.* A va- 
 riety of letters that I received at that period refented this inde- 
 cent outrage offered to an entire nation, nor was it confidered 
 as an extenuation of the offence, when I afTerted that the govern- 
 ment of the country, not the country itfelf, ought to be refponfi- 
 
 * In debate in the Houfe of Commons; I79i. 
 
 fible
 
 ( 88 ) 
 
 ** The pride of the French nation, its courage, 
 means, and iramenfe refources ! Behold thefe 
 faAs ! Behold thefe reafons, to which the enthu- 
 liafm of liberty and of vi6lory give an energy 
 which cannot be modified nor reltrained. If by 
 great efforts the two nations could be made to 
 underfland each other, Le Brun will behold with 
 great joy the opportunity it may give him to com- 
 municate and a6l with you in this falutary and 
 pacific undertaking. 
 
 " Your government certainty could not feledl a 
 perfon at any time with whom Le Brun would 
 have more pleafure to converfe on public affairs. 
 " Adieu, adieu." 
 
 ble for the indifcretions of individuals ; nor did I fail to remind 
 them that privilege of fpeech belonged to Parliament as a right, 
 and that the Convention itfelf had not been deficient in exer- 
 cifing this right, in its turn, refpe<Sing this country, with an il- 
 Kberality ftill more indecent, if poflible, than that of the gentle- 
 Ken above-mentioned. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( S9 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. Vm. 
 
 Mr. Miles to M, Maret. 
 
 C(? 4 Janvier iTfi^. 
 " JE n'ai qu*un moment pour accufer la recep- 
 tion de votre lettre. II faut que vous me difpen- 
 liez d'y repondre, jufqu'a ce que j'aie plus de 
 tems. Quant au bill de Miloid Grenville, les 
 mcnees de vos compatriotes ici et en Irelande, & 
 CCS mcnees appuyees, pour ne pas dire autorifces 
 par les decrets de la Convention, femblent avoir 
 provoquce une mefure li dure, mais neceffaire. 
 Si vous faitcs attention au bill, vous verrez que 
 les negocians & les commer^ans y font exceptcs, 
 
 " j*ai le coeur navre de voir que tou^ mes efforts 
 pour ecarter la guerre, n'aboutiflent a rien & ^a 
 a caufe de Topiniatrete de Le Brun qui eft allure- 
 ment trcs mal inftruit de la fituation interieure 
 de ce pays. Ditcs a Monf. ' qu'en con- 
 
 lequence de fa conduite a mon egard, relative- 
 ment aux affaires publiques, toute liaifon entre lui 
 & moi doit fe rompre. Vraiment je ne vois d'autres 
 moycns d'eviter la guerre que par des declarations 
 tres precife de la France fur ces conquettes, fur 
 I'Efcaut, et fur la paix generale. Soyez Francs ; 
 La France ne s'cxpliqueroit elle pas, ii elle deliroit 
 
 M dc
 
 ( 90 ) 
 
 de bonne foi conferver la paix ? Toute tracaflerie 
 m'afflige, tout va de travers, j'eh fuis defole, et 
 penfe a rgnpncer a tout et a m'enfeT^ii: a la cami 
 pagne. 
 
 " Ecrivez moi je vous prie un mot de reponfe a 
 cette lettre^ et mandez moi, fr vous voulez vous 
 prater a un accommodement. 
 
 " Je vous fouhaite le bon foir. 
 
 "WM. MILES." 
 
 a Mm/. Maret. 
 
 Translation* 
 
 Jan. 4, 1793. 
 " I HAVE but one moment to acknowledge the 
 receipt of your letter. You muft excufe my not 
 anfwering it, until I have more time. As to Lord 
 Grenville's Bill, the manoeuvres of your country-' 
 men here, and in Ireland, and thefe manoeuvres 
 fupported, if not authorifed by the decrees of the 
 Convention, feem to have provoked a meafure fo 
 harfh, but neccflary. If you pay attention to the 
 bill, you will fee that merchants and people in 
 trade arc excepted. 
 
 '* My heart is torn to fee all my endea- 
 vours to avoid war, come, to nothing, and that 
 - ' through
 
 ( ^t ) 
 
 through the obftinacy of LeBrun who is certainly 
 very ill informed of the fituation of this country. 
 Tell Mr. * * * that on account of his behaviour 
 to me relativfe to public affairs, all colnmunica- 
 tion between him and me mufl ceafe. In truth 
 I fee no other means of avoiding war but by ex- 
 plicit declaratrons on the ]^"rt of France concern- 
 ing her conquefts, the Scheldt, and a general 
 peace. Be lincere. Would not France declare 
 her intentions DfJenly, if fhe iincerely wifhed to 
 preferve peace ? Squabbles always affli6t me. 
 Every thing goes wrong. I am grieved and giving 
 up all hopes of peace, mean to bury myfelf in the 
 pountry, 
 
 ^* Write to me, I pray you, a few words in an- 
 fwcr to this letter, and tell me if you will liflen to 
 tefirts of accommodation ? 
 
 " I with you a good night, 
 
 W. MILES." 
 M, MareL 
 
 M 2. APPEN-
 
 ( 9*) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. IX. 
 
 Cleveland-row i Londres, 
 le 2 Janvier, 1793. 
 
 ^' VOUS exprimez toujours, Monfieur, dans 
 vos difFerens rapports a la Convention, et dans 
 les depeches c^ui me font tombees fous les yeux le 
 defir de conferver la paix entre TAngleterre et la 
 France. Mais comment fe fier a des protefta- 
 tions d'amitie dementies par les faits ? Comment 
 croire vos intentions pacifiques tandis que votre 
 conduite eft hoftile ? Vivons nous dans an lieclQ 
 ou les enigmes font en ufage, on faut il pour 
 vous comprendre lire a rebours ce que vous 
 dites ? 
 
 " Pendant quatre mols confecutifs vos emiflaires 
 fecrcts ont fait mille tentatives pour obtenir vine 
 cntrevue avec M. Pitt, et des qu'il s'y eft prete 
 fa condefcendance a ete attribue non a la Fran- 
 chifi ; non a Tinter^t qu'il eft cenfe prendre a la 
 profpcrite de fa patrie ; non pas a une principe dc 
 bonne politique, fond^ fur les bafes de la probite 
 ct de riiumanite, mais a la foiblefle, ou a un 
 xnotif encore moins excufable, qui ne lui fcroit 
 3 jamais
 
 ( 93 ) 
 
 Jamais attribue que par des hommes fans vcrtu et 
 qui etant depourvus de tout fentiment d'honneur, 
 ne croyent pas que des tels fentimens puiflent 
 exifler chez Ics autres. 
 
 " Selon eux; c'etoit a la crainte ou a la perfidic 
 que Monf. Maret devoit fon entrevue avec Mr. 
 Pitt. Grand Dieu ! quelle crainte auroit il pu 
 avoir ? Une feule peut-etre ! Le polgnard d'ua 
 aiTaflin ! Et qu'avoit-il a gagner par la periidie 
 envers une nation qui efl dans ce moment non 
 feulement fans pouvoir, fans credit, et fans une 
 torce fuffifante pour atlenter aucune enterprife 
 etrangere, mais, felon toutes les apparences, fans 
 les reflburces militaires indifpenfables pour fou- 
 tenir une guerre generale. Enfin, une nation que 
 fes follies et fes crimes precipiteront t6t ou tard 
 dans une abime dont elle ne fortera que par des 
 moyens qui doivent vous faire trembler ! Le peu 
 de credit que la Convention Nationale femblait 
 conferver apres la trifle journee du dix d'Aout 
 (1792) auroit rendu toute explication fur les 
 grands objets qui interreflbient les deux nations, 
 tres imprudentes, tres unutiles, et peut-etre trcs 
 dangereufes pour TAngleterre. Menace d'une 
 armee qui etoit deja fur vos frontieres et toute la 
 machine du gouvernement ainli que tous les efprits 
 deforganifes par les convulfions interieures, la 
 crainte vous a fait tenir un langage peu veridique, 
 et (jui fut bientot changie en un ton tres deplace, 
 
 en
 
 ( 94 > 
 
 en des termcs que vous n'auriez pas du vous per- 
 mettre, et que nous devious encore moins en- 
 tendre.. 
 
 Cefl une trifte verite, Monlleur, que la prof- 
 pctiii ^blouit et les nations et les hommes, et 
 qu'il fiaut des malheurs tr^s conliderables quelqUe- 
 fois pour ^pprendre aux uns et aUx autres la 
 juftice et la modcfation ! la rapidite de vos con- 
 quetes dans les Pays Bas Autrichiens, en Alle- 
 magne, et dans la Savoie, vous a fait perdre de 
 me ce que vous vous devez a voUS m^mes et kujt 
 autres, et parceque vous reuffites par Tauclace de 
 vos armes fur quelques gouvernemens naturelle- 
 Hient foibles, et deja infe6les des vices conta- 
 gieux du temps, vous croyez pouvoir di61er la 
 Jot a toute- TEurope, et la forcer dadoptef les 
 jndmes principes d'anarcbie dont vous avez et6 
 les vi^limes depuis le 14 Juillet 1789. Vrai- 
 ment, Monlieur, je fuis au defefpoir de trouver 
 un rapprochement li parfait entre la conduite de 
 ia. France libref et celle de la France efclave, 
 comme li c'etait fa trifle deflin^ de gemir fou-* 
 jocirs fous un defpotifme plus on moins affretix. 
 Mais pour revenir a notre fujet. Je tous ai 
 trace la route que vous avez a firivrc, et li 
 vous fuivcz mcs confeils, le Cabinet Anglais lie 
 s'avifera pas de vous declarer la guerre mais foyez 
 de bonne foi ; ne me trompez pas ; n'ecoutei 
 pas ces pel its meilicurs qui vous cntourrent, 
 
 t
 
 ( 95 ) 
 
 et vous flattent, et qui aimeraient mieux jouer au 
 plus, fin, que de marcher droit; rappellez vous 
 toujours, que vous tcncz entre vos mains par le 
 hazard Ic plus extraordinaire et le plus bizarre 
 la dcllinee pour ainli dire de I'Europe entierc, et 
 tju'en vous ccartant des principes que je vous ai 
 trace dans une lettre precedente, et que Marct 
 vous a ccrtainemcnt repetes felon les inftru(5lions 
 que je lui ai donnees, vous prononcercz un arret 
 de mort contre des millions peut-etre de vos fem.- 
 blables ! pouvez vous ofez vous y penfcr fans 
 fremir ? La paix, je vous le repete, eft facile a. 
 conferver, et la paix une fois afluree, voila la 
 pierre fondamentale pofee de cette alliance entrc 
 nos deux pays ; alliance que j'ai tant deliree, 
 et que pour I'obtenir je fuis pret de facrifier ma 
 vie. La Nation Anglaife eft bien difpofee vers 
 Ja France, et comme la nation compte pour 
 beaucoup dans ce pays-ci ; le gouvcrneraent 
 n'ofera jamais marcher en fens contraire ; mais 
 de votre cote il ne faut pas efFaroucher ni fati- 
 guer Ic pcuple en decriant une Conftitution a 
 laquelle die eft attachee d'unc maniere que riea 
 ne pent ebranler. Voila cependant Tccueil furlc- 
 quel jc crains que vous n'alliez echour, et fans 
 parler de I'indecence qu'il y auroit a vouloir 
 s'immifcer dans les affaires interieures d'une autre 
 nation, il faut convenir qu'une demarche ft pea 
 mefuree feroit auffi indecente, qu'injufte et dange- 
 reufe le malheur eft que vous fcmblez avoir 
 
 U
 
 ( 96 ) 
 
 la manie de vous meler de tout, et fouvenez: 
 vous, mon ami, quen fe melant de tout,- on 
 gate tout. 
 
 Rappellez donctous vos emiflaires; que la pro- 
 pagande finiffe ! et ne cherchez plus a troubler la 
 tranquillite publique dans ce pays. ^Vos decrees du 
 19 Novembre et du 15 Decembre font des menaces 
 qu*aucun gouvernement ne peut entendre, fans 
 prendre des precautious fur le champ pour fa pro- 
 pre furete, et vous devez fentir que tandis que des 
 pareils decrets exifteront, nous ne pouvons nous 
 fier a vos affurances pacifiques, d'ailleurs quand 
 vous parlez dans un fens contraire aux declarations 
 cxplicites de la Convention, vous ne pouvez etre 
 confidere que comme un particulier. Au nom de 
 Dieu, fi vous voulez eviter un embrafemcnt univcr- 
 fel, ne vous melez pas de notre gouvernement ; fi 
 nous fommes moins libres que vous, me me fi nous 
 etions dans I'efclavage le plus aflfreux, laifTez nous 
 nos fers, et puis qu'ils ne nous genent pas, pour- 
 quoi vous inquietent-ils ? Je m'etens d'autant plus 
 fur cet article que je n'ignore pas les efperances 
 malfondes que vous avez con9ues d'une revoke 
 generale, et pendant que vous encouragez de tels 
 projeis, il me fera impoffible devous aider, et mcme 
 d*entretenir aucune correfpondence ni avec vous, ni 
 avec le confeil executif. Vous me demandez fi mi 
 Lord Hawkefbury et Mr. Dundas ne font pas pour 
 Ja guerre. Je ne les connois pas du tout,^ et j'ig-^ 
 
 no re
 
 ( 97 ) 
 
 nore abfolument meme leurs perfonnes et leurs fen- 
 fimens. II ne m'eft jamais arriv6 d'avoir aucunc 
 relation avec ces deux meflieurs, et je vous avoue 
 franchement que leurs confeils aufli imprudent que 
 ruineux dans la malheureufe guerre de I'Amerique, 
 m'otent toute confiance et dans leurfagefle, etdans 
 leurs principes. Ecoutez moi encore une fois, ct 
 line fois pour tout, ne rendez pas la guerre necejjaire, 
 ni comme mifure de precaution^ ni par rrecejfite, pour re- 
 poujfer une aggreffioa de votre parr, et vous ne 
 l*aurez pas ; comptez la defTus, et je repondrai dii 
 refte. J'entrevois meme des difpofitions tres favor- 
 ables en faveur de la paix. Ne le forcez done pas 
 Mr. Pitt par votre imprudence a fe declarer contrc 
 vous J foyez fages, et vous rendrez la liberte aux 
 Beiges et aux Liegeois. L'EmpIre et TEmpe- 
 reur n'auront plus rien a dire, ct un peuple loyal 
 et brave fera affranchi d'un joug qui l*a trop long 
 tems opprime. 
 
 *' On n'eft pas du tout eloign^ d'un ar- 
 rangement, que les circonftances imperieufes ont 
 peut-etre di(5le beaucoup plus que la juftice. j'ai 
 propofc cette arrangement, comme la feule condi- 
 tion fur laquellc vous confentirez ^ revenir fur 
 I'affaire de I'Efcaut, d'abandonner vos conqu^tes, 
 et d'accordcr la paix a la Prufle et a I'Autriche. 
 Celt au pouvoir executif a decider. Mais fongez 
 je vous en prie, que ii on refufe a Paris de fe pretcr a 
 
 N Uii'
 
 { 98 ) 
 
 un arrangement fi raifonable, une guerre afFreufe 
 b'enfuivra ; vous aurez a combattre toute I'Europe, 
 et les deux nations pour lefquelles j'ai tant travaille 
 retomberont dans Tefclavage. Vous etes maitre 
 de leur deftin. 
 
 " W. Miles." 
 
 A Monfteur Le Brun, 
 Mintftre pour' les Jffaires 
 Etrangeres a Fans. 
 
 Translation. 
 
 London J January i, 1793. 
 
 Td Mr. L.E BruNj Mmljler for Foreign Affairs at 
 Paris. 
 
 *' YOU always exprefs, Sir, in your different re- 
 ports j:a the Convention and in the difpatches which 
 I have feen, the defire of preferving peace between 
 England and France ; but what reliance can be had 
 on proteftations of friendfhip contradi6ted by fads ! 
 How is it poffible to believe your intentions pacific, 
 while yourconduct is hoftile? Do we live in age when 
 enigmassLTQ in vogue, or is it neceflary in order to com- 
 .prehend your meaning to read what you write back- 
 wards > 
 
 Your
 
 ( 99 ) 
 
 "YourfecretemliTaneshavejduringfourrucceffivc 
 months, made a thoufand attempts to obtain an in- 
 terview widi Mr. Pitt, and he no fooner granted it, 
 than his condefcenfion was attributed, not to can- 
 dor, nor to the intereft which he is known to 
 take in the profperity of his country; not to a prin- 
 ciple of found pohcy founded on the bafis of honefty 
 and humanity ; but to weaknefs, or a motive ftill 
 more unpardonable, which could have been imputed 
 to him only by men without virtue, and who be- 
 ing deftitute of every fentiment of honor, cannot 
 comprehend its exiftence in others. According to 
 them it was to fear or perfidy that M. Maret was in- 
 debted for his interview with Mr. Pitt. Good God ! 
 what had he to fear ? perhaps the dagger of an aflaf- 
 fm ! What had he to gain by perfidy towards a na- 
 tion, which is at this moment not only without power, 
 without credit o'r a- force fufficient to form any 
 foreign enterprife; but even, according to all ap- 
 pearances, without the military refourccs indifpen- 
 fably neceffary to fupport a general war ; a nation, 
 in a word, which its follies and crimes muft fooner 
 or later plunge into an abyfs, from which it can 
 Only recover by means which (hould make you 
 tremble ! 
 
 ^' The little credit which the National Conven- 
 tion feemed to poflefs after the melancholy loth 
 of Auguft, 1792, would have rendered at that time 
 
 N 2 every
 
 ( 1^0 ) 
 
 every explanation, concerning the great objedls 
 which intereftcd both nations, very imprudent, 
 very ufeiCfs, and perhaps very dangerous to Eng- 
 land. 
 
 *' Threatened by an army already on your fron- 
 tiers, the whole frame of your government as well as 
 the minds of the people deranged by interiorconvul- 
 fions, fear nnade you ufe a language far from truth, 
 which was foon changed into a very improper tone, 
 and exprefled in terms which you ftiould not have 
 in^^uiged, much Jefs fhould we have heard. It is a 
 melancholy truth, Sir, that profperity dazzles nations 
 as well as individuals, and that great calamities are 
 fometimes neccflary to teach them juftice and mo* , 
 deration. 
 
 " The rapidity of your conquefts in the Auftrian 
 Netherlands, in Germany and Savoy, made you 
 lofe fight of what you owed to yourfelves and to 
 others, and bccaufe you fucceeded by the intrepidity 
 of your arms againft fome governments naturally 
 weak and already infedled by the contagion of the 
 times, you thought you could didate laws to all 
 Europe, and force it to adopt the fame principles 
 of anarchy, of which you have been the vidims 
 fince the i4ih of July, 1789. 
 
 1 am
 
 ( lOI ) 
 
 *' I am fincerely grieved. Sir, to find fo per- 
 feft a fimilarity between the conduft of France 
 become free, and that of France in llavery, as if its 
 unhappy deftiny was always to groan under a more 
 or lefs horrible defpotifm ! 
 
 ^' But to return to our fubjecl, I have drawn 
 the line which you are to follow ; and if you take 
 my advice the Britifh Cabinet will not venture 
 to declare war againft you ; but be fmcere, and 
 do not deceive yourfelf or me ; pay no attention to 
 thofe little gentlemen who furround and flatter you, 
 and who prefer low cunning tg an open and upright 
 tondud. 
 
 " Confider, that by a very fingular and a very ex- 
 traordinary chance, you hold in fomc meafure, the 
 deftiny of Europe; that in departing from the prin- 
 ciples which I laid down for you in a former letter, 
 and which Maret undoubtedly repeated to you 
 5,ccording to my requcft, you will pronounce a 
 Sentence of death, perhaps, againft millions ! Can 
 you. Sir ; nay, dare you. Sir, refle(5t on it with- 
 out (huddering ? Peace, I repeat it to you, is cafily 
 preferved, and peace once fecured, the foundation 
 is laid for an alliance between our two countries r 
 an alliance I fo ardently wifti for, that to obtain it 
 I would readily facrifice my life. The Englifti na- 
 tion is well-difpofcd in favor of the French, and as 
 
 % in
 
 f 102 ) 
 
 in this countr}' the will of the people- is of great ' 
 weight, government will never venture to (leer in 
 an oppofite courfe ; but on your part you muft nei- 
 ther alarm nor infuk the people by crying down 
 the conftitution for which their attachment is in- 
 violable. This, however, is the rock on which I 
 fear you may fplit; and not to mention the in- 
 decency of m.eddling in the interior concerns of 
 another nation, you muft acknowledge that fuch 
 an inconfiderate meafure would be as u'njuft as dan- 
 gerous. The misfortune is, that you feem to be pof- 
 fefled with the mifchievous madnefs of meddhng 
 with every thing. Remember, my friend, that by 
 meddling with every thing you may fpoil every 
 thing. 
 
 *' Recall all your emiflaries, put an end to your 
 propaganda, and no longer ftrive to difturb the public 
 tranquillity in this country. Your decrees of the 1 9th 
 of November * and 1 5th of December are menaces 
 .which no government. can hear without taking mea- 
 fures of precaution immediately for its own fafety; 
 
 and you muft feel that while fuch decrees exift, we 
 
 ^ L ii J.. J 
 
 " I had reafon to believe that thefe decrees Were levelled at 
 this country, in confequence of the delufion which prevailed 
 
 jti France, that we were on the eve of an infurretftion in 
 England, and that the promife of fupport would inilantly pro- 
 duce an explofioq. 
 
 cannot
 
 ( 103 ) 
 
 cannot rely on your pacific aiTurances ; befidcs, 
 when you exprefs fentiments diredlly contrary to the 
 explicit declarations of the Convention, you can 
 only be confidered as a private individual. In the 
 name of God, if you wi(h to avoid an univerfal con- 
 flagration, do not meddle with our government. 
 If we are lefs free than you, if we were even in the 
 molt abjefl (late of Havery, let us and our chains 
 alone, and as you do not feel them, why trouble 
 yourfelves about them ? I dwell the more willingly 
 on this article, as I am no ftranger to the groundlefs 
 hopes you have conceived of a general revolt, and 
 while you encourage fuch fchemes, it will be im- 
 poflible for me to affift you, nor even to hold 
 any correfpondence with you or the Executive 
 Council. 
 
 " You afk me if Lord Hawkefbury * and Mr. 
 Dundas are not for war. I am totally unacquainted 
 with both ; 1 know neither their perfons nor their 
 fentiments. I never had the lead connexion with 
 thofe gentlemen, and I frankly acknowledge to you 
 that their pernicious counfels, in the American war, 
 
 * I do iio: know from what fource M. Le Brun dcrh ei 
 his information ; but it was the opinion of others, as well a^ 
 his own, that both thefe gentlemen were eager for war ; and 
 whenever this language was held to me, my invariable anfwer 
 was, " I/j'o^ ivhy give theniy hy your conJuSI, an aJvantr.ge over 
 youy and faviur thtir v'leivs ? 
 
 infpire
 
 ( i<>4 ) 
 
 iufpire me with no fort of confidence either in theii* 
 wifdom or their principles. 
 
 Hear me once more, and once for all, I conjure 
 you I Do net render the war necejfary either as a mea* 
 fure of precaution^ or as a meafure of necejltyy to repel 
 Ian aggrejjion en your party and you will avoid it. Be 
 affured of it be prudent, and I will anfwer for the 
 left. I even perceive a ftrong difpofition to pre- 
 ferve peace. Therefore do not force Mr. Pitt by 
 your imprudence to declare againft you. Be wife^ 
 and you will reftore liberty to Liege and Brabant. 
 The Empire and the Emperor will have nothing 
 to fay, and a brave and loyal people will be freed 
 from a yoke which has too long oppreiTed them. 
 This country would not be averfe to an arrange- 
 ment dictated more by imperious circumflances 
 than by juftice. ' 
 
 " I have propofed this arrangement as the only 
 condition on which you would agree to give up 
 the Scheld, renounce your conquefts, and grant 
 peace to Pruffia and Auflria. 
 
 " It is for the executive power to decide ; but re- 
 fled, I pray you, that if you decline an arrange- 
 ment fo reafonable, a calamitous war will be the 
 confequcncei you will have all Europe to com- 
 bat
 
 ( 1*5 ) 
 
 bat, and the tv.-o nations for whofe freedom I have 
 toiled fo much will relapfe agaia into llavcry. Their 
 fate is in your hands.* 
 
 ** Farewell, 
 
 ** I have written to you by Noel. 
 
 ., " W. Miles.'* 
 
 * There are two or three letters in this publication, from 
 which I have withheld the names of thofe who writ them, for 
 xeafons which cannot well be explained ; and efpecially as the 
 writers of them are in cxiltcQce, and in their own country. 
 
 APPEK-
 
 
 ' A P P E N D I Xy N^*. X.; '^i a 
 
 .ho y. p Dov ^ Z'cmires%"ii Janvier, 1 793, 
 
 ''^ La depe'cne envoyee par Moniieur Chauvelln, 
 
 Lundi, a I Decemhre, vpus elt certainementpar- 
 
 ^,A ^;.-^.-,'^ ,..,.. ?-n-i. -j.ur. ... --^ " ;r"' 1 
 
 venule, ,cQgpi^aar),t^yojjs.^jae_ ^jcn, ^cculez^ Ps: 1* 
 
 .; . I . .1 Teo ibA ill wi!- ,'vu>iiotf iii yjt n.i,,^ ta i5;.4* 
 
 ** Vous me parlez de Tardeur du Peuple Fran- 
 
 ^d\{e, & de fes reflburces immenfes ; helas ! mon 
 
 cher M^et, il n*eft plus queflion ni de I'une ni 
 
 de Tautre. 
 
 " Apres les griefs detailles dans la reponfe de 
 Milord Grenville a la note de M. Chauvelin, 
 quel autre parti y a-t-il a prendre pour la France 
 que de reculer ou de fe battre. Je n'en connois 
 aucun. Vous me direz, peut-etre, que ce qu'on 
 a exige eft trop humiliant ; mais non cher ami, 
 il n'cft pas queftion d'orgueil, mais de juftice. 
 Je vous ai prie de faire fentir a Le Brun combien 
 il feroit plus glorieux a la France de confentir a 
 une paix generale, apres avoir afFranchi les Pays 
 Bas Sr 1c pays de Liege, que de continuer une 
 guerre, dont on ne peut entrevoir les fuites, & 
 
 3 qui
 
 X 107 ) 
 
 qui expofcra la libcrte nouvellement acquife par 
 les Liegeois & les Beiges, ainfi que le nouvel 
 ordre dcs chofes en France. Le pouvoir executif 
 aura la gloire d'avoir affermi la Revolution Fran- 
 ^aife & Ic loifir de retablir les finances delabrces^ 
 dc rcmonter la machine da gouvcrnement & d^ 
 faire ^-cnaitrc un commerce prcfqu'aneanti ; la 
 tVan quill i te publique fera afluree par la paix, 
 ainfi que la fortune & la gloire de ceux qui tiert- 
 nent a(5luellement le deflin de la France en leurs 
 mains, & pour prix de tout cela ? Rien qui nc 
 foit (^i(5le par la juftice ! 
 
 " Si rAflemblee Nationale dans un moment 
 d'ivrefle fait des bevues ou des injuflices, il con- 
 vient qu'elle corrige les uns & repare les autres. 
 Permittez que je vous repete ce que vous avei 
 di^ia lu dans la reponfe de Milord Grenville; 
 que; les ordres dppncs a vos ofticiers generau:jc de 
 pourfuivre I'enncmie fur les terres neutres efl 
 vuie attcinte contre rindependence des puiiTances 
 qui ne font point en guerre avec vous. 
 
 " L'arrete du confcil furrouvertiATp de r^fcaiit,^ 
 eft une infradlion cles traitcs. r, , v- , 
 
 ^ - ".l^'appToprlatipn de la Savoi^ ^ft centre vos 
 propres principes, yous avez renonce a tputea 
 conquetes, & vous en faites ! Comment fe jfier 
 ^ upie nation qui ne refpedte ni fes traite ni fes 
 2 fermens ?
 
 ( io8 ) 
 
 fermens ? Le decret du 1 9 Novembre ainli que 
 celui du 15 Decembre etant census en termes 
 generaux & invitant, pour ainli dire, les peuples 
 de tous les pays a fe revolter contre leurs gou- 
 vernemens refpedtifs, en leur promettant du fe* 
 cours, font des griefs trop evidentes, & trop 
 ferieux pour ne pas indigner le gouvernement 
 Britannique, & juftifier fes craintes, furtout apres 
 que r\flemblee Nationalc a accueilli, avec un 
 empreflcment auffi peu decent que peu politique, 
 les addreffes de quelques clubs fadlieux en Angle- 
 terre, qui ne diffimulaient pas leurs intentions de 
 tout boulverfer. Voila done, mon cher Maret, 
 oii nous en fommes ! Si vous pouvez engager le 
 confell executif a revenir fur fes pas, relativement 
 aux articles ci-deffus, la guerre n'aura point lieu ; 
 il faut convenir que TAngleterre ne pent que fe 
 fentir comprife dans les decrets qui ofFrent ce que 
 vous appellez fraternite a tous les peuples du 
 monde ; il eft evident aulli que notre exiftence 
 politique ne permettra nullement que la France 
 s'aggrandifle, & vous ne pouvez nier que le 
 traite de 1788 nous oblige a garantir la fenneture 
 de I'Efcaut, & que vous y etes tenu par le traite 
 de 1786. II eft aufli vrai que pendant qu'un 
 traite exifte on doit le refpedtcr. 
 
 Repondez Ic plut6t poffible h. ma lettrc, jc 
 vous en fupplie, & de vive voix, ft vous le 
 voulez, ce qui me plaira infiniment ; ne craignez 
 
 rien
 
 ( ^09 ) 
 
 lien de la nouvelle loi ; je puis vous aflurcr que 
 Ics ctrangercs pcuvcnt voyager auffi librcment en 
 Angleterre k prefent qu'autrefois. Mais point 
 d'intrigucs ; point de commerce avec des fadlieux 
 qui puifle compromettre la tranquillite publique, 
 Je vous crois trop honnete pour vous en meler ; 
 d'ailleurs j'cfpere que vous ferez charge d'unc 
 branche d'olivier, & en ce cas vous ferez re9u k 
 bras ouverts. Venez done fans crainte ; defcen- 
 dez chez moi & coniiderez ma maifon comme la 
 votre. Adieu. 
 
 MILES." 
 
 ui M, Maref, Chef du Departs^ 
 ment pour les Affaires Etrcm- 
 geres, a Paris, 
 
 Translation. 
 
 London^ Jan. ii, 179 J. 
 
 " THE difpatch fentofFby M. Chauvclin, on 
 Monday, 3111 of December, mull certainly have 
 reached you ; but you have not acknowledged 
 its arrival. You tell me of the ardour of the 
 French, and of their immenfe refources. Alas I 
 my dear Maret, it is no longer a queflion of 
 either. After the grievances which are explained 
 in Lord Grenville's anfwcr to M. Chauvelin's 
 
 note.
 
 ioie/tvhat other alternative has France but fa 
 retradt or to fight ? I know of none. You wilt 
 j^erhaps tell me, that what has been required i^ 
 too humiliating ; but excufe me, my dear friend", 
 it is not fr'ide but juflice that you mull confult.' ^^ 
 
 ^"^ '\ begged you to obferve to Le Brun^ how 
 much mo re,*^ glorious it would be to France "fo 
 confent to a general peace, after having giveil 
 freedom io the Low Countries, and to LiegeV 
 than to continue a war, of which it is impoffible 
 to forefce the confequences, and which wijl en- 
 danger the newly acquired liberties of Belgia and 
 Liege, as well as the new order of things in 
 France. The executive power will have the 
 merit of ftrengthening the French Revolutijpn, 
 and leifure to re-cflablifh the finances, to wind 
 up the machinery of government, and to re- 
 eftablifh commerce,, which is almofl annihilated. 
 The public tranquillity will be enfured by peace, 
 as \tdl as the fortune and fame of thofe who are 
 cntruftcd with the dcftiny of France ; and no- 
 tliing is required for this but what juftice di6late;3^ 
 If the National Afiembly, in a moment of ih- 
 foxication, commits injuries or blunders, it is 
 but fair fhc Ihould repair the one and corre<5l the 
 other. Allow me to repeat to you what you 
 have already perufcd in Lord Grenville's anfwer: 
 that the orders given to your general pfficcrs to 
 purfue the enemy on neutral ground, is an at- 
 tack
 
 / . ) 
 
 tack, on tlie independence .. of thoie powers witji 
 Svlioni yen are not at war. 
 
 "' " Hie decree 6^ tlie Council on the opispin^Qf 
 the Scheldt, i3.ari infringement of treaty. - . 
 
 *' The appropriation of Savoy is contrary to 
 
 your pwn principles. . You Jiave, rencHipjced, all 
 
 'conquefls/;ind. you make then;i, , What-confi- 
 
 fi'dence can. te placed in a nati<^^\vho r^eith^j^.?^- 
 
 ipecl's treaties nor oaths ? /' ,.,.i,. . .,-r,Mr"^^ 
 
 . " The decree of the loth of Novcmb,en ajad.ttiat 
 of the' i^tl) Gjf December^ being, conceived m g&- 
 nefal terms, and inviting,^ jn aman^p]^, ?F^^y 
 nation in. the world to rcyolt* with a: proniife of , 
 (Support, are gncvances too tenpusiiot^ to enragP 
 the Britifli Government, and iuftify its fears. 
 Above all, when the Couventipnal AiTembly has 
 received, with an avidity as indecent as it was 
 impolitic, the^ addrefs of fome fa6tious clubs in 
 England, 'who do not conceal their intention of 
 overturning every thing. Here then, my dear 
 Maret, the matter refls: if you can engage the 
 Executive Council to retradl, as far as relates to the 
 above articles, the war cannot take place. You 
 mull; allow that England cannot but confidcr itfelf 
 included in the decree which offers what you call 
 fraternity to all the people in the world. It is 
 alfo .very evident that our political exigence will 
 
 by
 
 ( "2 ) 
 
 by no means allow of France being aggrandized, 
 and you cannot deny that the treaty of 1788 
 obliges us to fecurc the Scheldt, and that you arc 
 bound to this by the treaty of 1786. It is equally 
 true, that as long as a treaty exifts, it ought to 
 be relpedlcd, 
 
 *^ Anfwer my letter, I befeech you, as foon as 
 pofllble ; and if in perfon it will pleafe me the, 
 more. Fear nothing from the new law. I can 
 venture to aflure you that ftrangers may travel 
 as freely in England as formerly ; but no in- 
 trigues, no connection with thofe who may wifh 
 to deftroy the public tranquillity. I believe you 
 to be too honefl a man to interfere in fuch bufi- 
 nefs ; befides, I indulge the hope of feeing you 
 with an olive branch, and in this cafe you will 
 be received with open arms. G)me then with? 
 out fear, and conlider my houfe as your own 
 Adieu, 
 
 WM. MILES.** 
 
 To M. Maret, Chief of the 
 Department of Forei^ 
 Affairs ^ at Paris. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( 113 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. XI. 
 
 1 8 Jan^ 1793* 
 ** A Monsieur Le Brux, 
 " UN evenement m'ell arrive qui m'ote a ja- 
 mais la douce efperance d'etre utile a Ja chofe 
 publique, j'aurais voulu ^carter la guerre, ce ter- 
 rible fl6au du genre humain, mais enfle d'un or- 
 gueil tres deplace vous n'ecoutez ni la prudence 
 ni la juflice. Je me trouve tracafle, &eftropie de 
 tout cote & de toute maniere. Je n'en puis plus, 
 il y a bien des annees que vous connoifTez mes 
 principes ; rmcs marches ont etc dl6le juiqu'a pre- 
 fqi^t par I'amour de la verite et de la liberte ; non 
 pas d'une liberte effrenee et fans bornes comme la 
 votre, mais d'une liberte bien entendue, bien rai- 
 fonncc, et qui rend Ic monde un paradis terreflre ; 
 mais que faire ? L'enthouliafme vous aveugle, 
 et vous ne voyez plus ni la juiiice, ni la prudence. 
 Qiiand il etoit queflion du traitc de commerce, j 'ex - 
 primal mes voeux dans une lettre addreflee a Mr. 
 Pitt que ce traite puifTe devenir labafe d'une alliance 
 cntre les deux nations qui afliireroit ^ I'Europe 
 & au monde entier, la douce jouilFance d'une paix 
 etcrnelle. Mais au lieu de la paix, c'efl la guerre 
 
 P que
 
 ( 114 ) 
 
 que je Yois pret a s'eclater & engloutir Ics deux 
 nations. Le Brun ; vous allez vous charger d'urve 
 terrible refppnfabilite J Song^z y bien^ il eft en- 
 core terns ; vous pouvez toiH reparer, j'ai le 
 coeur gros, & obfede par des idees trifles & lugu- 
 bres, la vie commence a me pefer furieufejnejit. 
 
 " Adieu, 
 
 ^*W. MILES." 
 
 This letter fThifhes my correifpondence \3vith Le 
 Brun, and was fent by a courier difpatched frpin 
 Portman Sc^uare. 
 
 Translation. 
 
 *^ AN event has lately happened which der 
 prives me of the plealing hope of being ufeful !b 
 the caufe of humanity. ' I wifh to prevent the 
 war, that dreadful fcourge to human nature ; but 
 an ill-fated vanity prevents your attending either 
 to prudence or to juftice. I find myfelf thwarted 
 and haraffed on all ftdes. I am tired. You 
 have long known my principles, and my condu6l 
 -has ever been didlated by the love of truth and 
 liberty : not by fuch an extravagant and bound- 
 Icfs liberty as your's, but by a liberty well under*- 
 flood and well condudled, and which makes this 
 
 worlcl
 
 ( "5 ) 
 
 tvorld a tcrrcftrial paradife. What is to be done ? 
 Enthuiiafin blinds you, and you arc equally in- 
 Ibnlible to prudence and to juftice. * 
 
 When 
 
 * Aflurances that I received at this time from Paris, corjf- 
 vinced me that the great object of the executive council was to 
 throw this country into Jnfufreftion, and that the ejiplcfion was 
 expeded to happen firft in Ifeland. The projefled invafion of 
 Holland, preceded by the opening of the Scheldt, as a prepara- 
 tor\- ftep to the fall of Amfterdam, were meafures that would 
 not have been attempted, but for the firm perfuafion that the 
 people in England were on the eve of revolt, Snd a revolution 
 would inevitably happen the very iriftant, if nof fooner, that war 
 was declared. The entire conduifl of the Convention, and of 
 its executive council, the efforts of private individuals, all tend- 
 ed to this folitary but important objeft. An infurrelion In 
 England was fully believed would happen, and It was under this 
 <ieIufion that the decree promifing fraternity, and ordering the 
 French generals to give affiflance to all nations difpofed to re- 
 volt, was paiTed. The writings of Condorcet were addrefFcd 
 to the Dutch, to the Englifh, arnl the Sphnfards, in feparate 
 pamphlets, and recommended them refpei?tively the example of 
 France, the Prefidenr of the National Convention (Gregoire I 
 beliere it was) in anfwer ta an addrefs taken' over from thh 
 country, afTured the bearers of it, that " T/w moment, tvitJiout 
 Houbt^ approaches in ivhich the French ivill bring congratulations 
 /o the National Convention of Great BritainJ" This was on th^ 
 twenty-eighth of November 1792, and the very date, as weH as 
 the language of this anfwer proves, that the French eonfidcred 
 a revolution in England as certain.- The addrefs from this 
 country deferves neither reproof nor notice. Hut the attention 
 paid to it by the French legiflature deferves both, and proves 
 *he duplicity of a government that was endeavouring to accomf- 
 
 P ^ pliil*
 
 . ( "6 ) 
 
 " Wlien the Commercial Treaty was in agita- 
 tion, I exprefled my wifh in a letter to Mr. Pitt, 
 that it might become the balls of an alliance be- 
 tween 
 
 pllfh our deftruiHon by the fouleft means, at the inftant it was 
 exprefling a defire to live in peace with us ; thejr objeft was not 
 hoftility at the moment, becaufe they counted i>pon a civil war 
 which would anfwer their purpoie moft completely, and fe- 
 cure them from the rifle and expence of an open rupture. 
 The inflammatory harangue of Monf. Gregoire was followed 
 by flill more inflammatory decrees, evidently levelled at this 
 country (the decree >f the'igthof November and 15th of De- 
 cember) in order to ftimulate the difaffected to declare them- 
 felves, and to tell them who their -o/Z/Vj would be. On the loth 
 of January following Monf. Briflbt announced publicly that 
 France muft declare war. Mr. Paine had previoufly declared 
 that flic would not be fafe until fiie was furrounded by revo- 
 hiticns ; and conformable to this principle, Monf. Briflot re- 
 ported as follows to the National Convention; and when it was- 
 imagined in France tlxat the people were fufficiently inflamed and 
 ripe for revolt in England, Monf. Le Brun went to the Na- 
 tional Convention with the declaration of war, that was to give 
 full effect to all that had been tranfafting for months, and with- 
 out which it was thought the infurrection would not happen. 
 
 *' II importe que la nation Anglaife, qui n'eft qu'cgarce par 
 fon gouvernement foit promptement dtfabufce. Cell par re-- 
 fpeft pour LK Fratehnite, qui nous unit, que nous 
 devons lui peindre avec franchife, les manoeuvres de fon gou-^ 
 vernement." 
 
 " It is nece.flary that the Englifli nation, which is only mif- 
 led by its government, fliould be inftantly undeceived. Ther 
 jtfpeft which is due. to the Fp.ateenity that unites us* 
 
 requires'
 
 ( "7 ) 
 
 twecn the two nations, that had it in their power to 
 enfure an eternal peace to Europe and the world. 
 But inflead of peace, I lee a war on the point of 
 
 being 
 
 requires that we (hoiild frankly dirdofe to it the manoeuvres of 
 its government." 
 
 Brijjofs Report to the National CowveJition^ Jan. I2, 1 793, 
 
 This note brings a feries of very important events into a 
 very fmall compafs, and thefe events prove that the intentions 
 of France were evidently hoftile, and a hoftility of the, very 
 w'orft kind ; for it was meant to make us war on each othei" 
 in the firll inftance, and in the fecond with her. 
 
 Thefe manoeuvres ftiew the neceflity of keeping the people 
 in good humour with its government. The don:rines of re* 
 volt became articles of faith in Brabant and in Holland, becaufe 
 the Dutch and Flemings were diinitislied with their refpedivc 
 governments. The people in this country are certainly fecurc 
 from any a6l of defpotifm in the crown ; but they are not fitf* 
 ficiently fecure from the arbitrary exactions, and fraudulent 
 pra(ftices of commercial enterprift. A monopoly of corn al- 
 raoft excited an infurreftion throughout the country laft yearj 
 an infamous combination between graziers and forefiallers may 
 poflibly endanger the public tranquillity, by placing animal food 
 beyond tiie reach of the artifan, as well as of the day labourer, 
 and by rendering beef and mutton articles of luxury even to 
 the middle ranks. An advance of twopence a pound in two 
 years on butcher's meat, is an alarming increafe, and would 
 make Minifters tremble if they looked forward to the confe- 
 quences. Men in high official fituations, who have a monopoly 
 of lucrative places, fome of them finecures, and thofe that arc 
 not, moll liberally appointed, do not feel this prcfllire, and may 
 perhaps attribute thefe remarks to difaffeftiov, but it is to pre- 
 vent
 
 ( 1-8 ) 
 
 l)emg declared which will fwallow up both n^* 
 tions. Le Brun ! you will become refpon- 
 
 vent difafFeftion that they are rtiade ; and It is even more their 
 intereft, tlmn it is their dut)- to attend to them. 
 
 Some of the newfpapers, who are known to fell them- 
 felves to any bidder, and for any pufpofe, were abandoned 
 enough laft harveft to fay it was very deficient, and to maintain 
 that there was a fcarcity of corn in the country. The contrary 
 is known to be the fat, and it is a faft of that nature of which no 
 minifter can plead ignorance, without acknowledging he either 
 wants capacity or vigilance. An infamous combination is again' 
 in force to advance the price of bread; and it is not the poor and 
 pitiful expedient of renouncing penny tarts and cheefecakes; 
 that will fatisfy mens', minds if government allows to the worft 
 and mofl inhuman of all extortions the full career which the tur- 
 pitude of avarice would give it. 
 
 The necefTaries of life are at a j)rlce that can with difficulty be 
 paid by thofe who are in middling circumftances, and it i^ 
 wifdom, as wdl as juftice, to keep this defcription of people in: 
 good humour. OpprefTed by thefe combinations, which take from' 
 them the immediate necefTaries of life, they find thefe oppreffions 
 aggravated by the piinful operation of taxes, the difaflers of 
 war, and the proud difplay of unfeeling, incorrigible profligacy, 
 that infults the diftreffes of the country, while it is fed, cloathed, 
 and fupported by its bounty ! All thefe tend mof^ powerfully to 
 anger men's minds, even of thofe whofe loyalty is the pureft, 
 and cannot be qucftioned ; and it does mere ; a conduft fo indif- 
 trect, not to' fay atrbciou*, has made it a quefllon even among 
 the mofl tcmj)erarc ni^n in the kingdom, whether royalty, thuS 
 dlflionoured, can be worthy of a throne; while the people, with 
 one accord, execrate the infatuated objeft, felf-baniflied from ih^ 
 ijietropolis, whofe guilt and depravity were alone neceflary to 
 '"omplcte the full fneafure of nationr.l calamity. 
 
 I fiblc
 
 ( "9 ) 
 
 iible for all its horrors ! rcfieSi upon it, I be- 
 feech you ; it is yet time, you can yet repair all. 
 My heart is full, and opprcfTed by dark and 
 melancholy ideas. Life begins to be burtjien- 
 fome. 
 
 *' Adieu, 
 
 " W. MILES/' 
 Clevela?id Row, Jan. i8, 1793. 
 
 ToM. Z^Brun, 
 
 Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, 
 at Paris, 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( I20 ) 
 
 APPENDIX No. Xlt 
 
 London, Feb. /if, 1796. 
 " I HxWE received your different letters as far 
 as No. 8, and while I acknowledge your perfonal 
 kindnefs, lament that you lliould feel fo invete- 
 rate a prejudice againft the Britifh government, 
 and attribute to the intrigues of the Er>glith ca- 
 binet the war in which you are engaged. It is 
 incumbeivt on me to undeceive you in another 
 very important matter. 
 
 *^ 1 have perceived, in the three lail letters that 
 you have fent me, a conviction on your part that I 
 have fpoken to you on the fubjec^: of peace at fe- 
 cond hmd, and that I am merely an inftrument of 
 the Minifter to found the intentions of the French 
 Convention. I confefs to you very candidly, that on 
 an occafion fo glorious as well as confolatory, I 
 would have no objeclion to be the inftrument of 
 men in office. Peace is an object fo eftimable in 
 my opinion, that I would make every facrifice 
 that a man of honour can make to obtain it. An 
 
 * The confidential fituatisn which this perfon has held dur- 
 ing the whole of the terrible tempefts which have raged in his 
 country fince the war, is one of my motives for not publifliing 
 his name. The whole of his correfpondence with me doej, 
 equal honour to his head and heart ; and his condud has been 
 in- tti^fdn tiTtli his profeflioas. 
 
 agency
 
 ( " ) 
 
 agency, therefore, of that defcrlption, I would nei- 
 ther refufe nor dcuy. It is, however, a jiiftice that 
 is due to your country and to mine, as well as to 
 thofe who are entrufted with the public admini- 
 ftration of affairs in England, to declare that they 
 are totally ignorant of this correfpondence, and 
 that I do not even wifh they Ihould be informed 
 of my efforts for I feek no reward for a<5^ing 
 right, 
 
 " The fuggeftions that 1 have occalionally com- 
 municated to you, are certainly ray own, and con- 
 fcious of the purity of my motives, I have ven- 
 tured to tranfmit them, notwithftanding the cor- 
 refpondence, and the matter on which we have 
 correfponded, would probably give offence, if my 
 letters were to be intercepted, and ihould fall un- 
 der the infpedlion of your Minifters. 
 
 " I am averfe to war, from a convi(f^ion that 
 wars engender and multiply crimes. The fhed- 
 ding of any blood is a matter that always gives 
 me infinite pain, and never fails to plunge me 
 into a variety of abftradl roetaphylical fpeculations 
 that damp the enjoyments of life, and make mc 
 wifh I had never been, rather than that I am. 
 Any animal in pain affli(5ls me, and the afflic- 
 tion is confequcntly the greater in proportion as 
 the conne(5lion with that animal is nearer to me. 
 I never behold a flock of fheep, driven to flaugh- 
 
 Q , ter.
 
 ( }^^ ) 
 
 ter, but a million of forrowrul reflections occur fa 
 my penfive, and too inquilitive mind. To be- 
 hold the haplefs vi(5lim under the gripe of his af- 
 fallin, bound, bleeding, and expiring, unlamented 
 in the prefence of an unfeeling crowd, plunges 
 me into grief, and wrings my very foul. 
 
 " Such are the fentiments which I have profef- 
 fed from my very infancy, and with fuch fenti- 
 ments it is not extraordinarj' that I fhould have 
 cxprefTed myfelf with fo much horror and indig- 
 nation at the execrable murders which have been 
 committed in France, and that I have declaimed 
 againll with all the vehemence that belongs to a 
 mind naturally ardent, againil the herd of affaflins 
 that have ruined your country for half a centur}-, 
 and diihonoured it for ever ! 
 
 " I know that many of thofe who have fallen, 
 had rendered themfelves obnoxious as well as 
 dangerous, and that the crimes which have marked 
 France for thefe four years, are eafier accounted 
 for, than juftified: but vice in any form, under 
 any pretext, and from any quarter, vexes me ; and 
 I am apt to be warm when I feel that I am right. 
 
 I have touched upon two points, which it was 
 incumbent on me to be explicit upon, left you 
 ihould attribute 'my pacific dilpofition to Mini- 
 
 fters.
 
 ( '23 ) 
 
 ilers, with whofe dilpofition I am, at prefent, en- 
 tirely unacquainted, and without wliofe privity f 
 have written to you with fo much folicitude in 
 order to ft op, if poflible, the effufion of blood. 
 
 *' By the fecond you will perceive ray motives 
 for the intemperance with which I have fpoken 
 of Le Brun and others, whofe irregular ambition 
 or vengeance have deluged an immenfe tra6^ of 
 country with blood. Do not fuppofe, howevcr> 
 that I am partial to the vices of other nations^ 
 and fevere only to thofc of France. The book I 
 gave you, entitled ^^ Reflexions on public Men and 
 public Meafures^'' * fhould convince you how very 
 independent I am in my mind, and that writing 
 from convi6\ion, I refpecSl nothing but the truth, 
 
 " Your letters of late have not contributed to 
 (Cxalt raS' fpirits, or enabled me to look forward 
 with either hope or confidence to a fpeedy iflltc 
 to this fierce, relentlefs war, which you fay muft 
 be a war of death. The hope of peace then is ba-i 
 nifhed, every fach hope would now be vifionary ! 
 All correfpondence therefore, on a fubjecSt which 
 I have had lb much at heart, is at an end. I fhall 
 
 * Written at AfchafFenburg, Mrhile on a vifit to the Ele(51or 
 of Mavence, in Ovftober 1789^ and publiftied by John Stock- 
 dale, Piccadilly ; in which an alliance with France was fbrongly 
 recommended at that time, ?,nd the independence of the Low- 
 Countries. 
 . ^ 2 of
 
 ( 124 ) 
 
 of courfc clofe it. The humble rank which I 
 hold in my country, will not allow my voice to 
 be heard, and the abfolute impoffibility of being 
 ever able to accomplifh my obje(5l, is a difcourag- 
 ing refie<^ion that reduces me to lilence, and al- 
 moft to defpair. 
 
 All that I requeft of you is,* that if you fhould 
 furvivs the tempeiV, you will do juftice to my 
 fentiments, and bear teftimony to my unremitting, 
 but unfuccefsful efforts, to prevent the war that 
 has unhappily enfued between our refpe6tive 
 countries. 
 
 " Adieu, 
 
 "W. MILES." 
 
 * In one of the laft letters which I received from thi*; invalu- 
 able correfpondent, was the following extra<5l, and fublequent 
 events have abundantly proved that he reafoned like an able 
 ftatefman, who had clear and diftinft ideas of things, and who 
 was well acquainted with the force and refources of his country ; 
 ** Noa Monfieur^ on ne calcule pas affez (the coalefced powers) 
 ce que peuvent des millions Vhommes armes^ dont le courage efi 
 tchauffi par un enthoufia/me qui double la force et centuple les bras; 
 on peut vaincre la France^ mats on Jie pent la/ubjuguer." " No, 
 Sir! The coalefced powers have not fuflSciently reflected on 
 what millions of armed men can accomplifh, whofe courage, 
 fired by enthufiafm, doubles the force and multiplies each arm 
 a hundred fold. They may conquer France, but they cannot 
 fubjugate her." 
 
 APPEN.
 
 ( 125 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. XriJ. 
 
 Cleveland-row y Feb. ii, i793 
 
 " Sir, 
 
 ** AS the dye is caft, and the French, no longer 
 able to impofe on the good fenfe of the nation, 
 have declared that hollility againft our country 
 which they have long premeditated, but which, 
 they meant (hould be a contingent event, and to 
 follow thofe internal commotions which they ex- 
 pelled to. excite in different parts of the kingdom ; 
 I have taken the liberty of fuggefting to you the 
 propriety of a fubfcription for the purpofe of afford- 
 ing a relief to the widows and orphans of fcameo 
 and foldiers who may fall in the defence of their 
 country. Such a meafure may operate as a ilimu- 
 lus to the former, and render the dangerous expe- 
 dient of prefs-warrants unneceflary. It may alfo 
 counteradl the arts of the enemy, who will praAifc 
 every poflible method to feduce our feamen into 
 their fervice. Should this idea be adopted, I have 
 no doubt, from the loyalty of the times, but it will 
 produce a fund adequate to a very comfortable 
 provifion for thofe who may become objeds of the 
 intended charity. 
 
 " Should
 
 (( K^^' y 
 
 Should you coincide with me in opinion;^ 
 I (hall beg leave to fubfcribe twenty guineas." 
 
 y 
 
 ' I have the honour to be, ^c. 
 
 , ' , , W. Miles.'* 
 
 To if^illiam Devaynes, Efq. &c. ^c. 
 Dover-Jireet^ 
 
 -L.- 
 
 APPENDIX,
 
 (127 ) 
 
 APPENDIX, XIV. 
 
 fragment d*un Lett re a Mr. Miles, Jur ia , con- 
 duif dii ClergS, 
 
 Patisy Je 20 dAout, 1791. 
 
 " BIEN dcs gens prctcndent que le 
 
 I'rai motif de la refiftancc du clerge, fur tout du 
 haut clerge, a re/labliffement du nouveau Code 
 eccleliaftique a ete la conferva^ion de fes privileges, 
 des fes richefles ct de fon influence politique, mais 
 pour peu qu'on ait de charite chretienne on n'.id- 
 mettra pas une imputation fl injurieufe a un corps 
 auffi vertueux ct aulli ec/iaire que ,\e clerge de 
 France ! Eft il jufte en eiFet de lui attdbucr des 
 motifs qu'il n'a jamais avoucs, tandifque fes veri- 
 tables raifons font 11 bien develeppecs non leule- 
 ment dans Ics difcours eloquents de I'Abbe 
 Maury, mais encore dans les mandements de plu- 
 lieurs eveques fur tout dans celui du pieux cveque 
 du Boulogne qui a ete repandu dans toutes les 
 provinces avec le zele et la profulion que meritoit 
 une caufe li fainte ? Commc vous n'etes peut-etre 
 pas a porter de vous procurer fes differents ouvrages, 
 ji tacherai de vous donner une idee liiccin<5t et dc 
 leurs arguments vidtorieux centre le nouvel ordrc 
 
 qu'oa
 
 C 128 ) 
 
 qii*on vouloit introduire. Par cet ordrc Ics hi- 
 bifante des paroifles devoicnt choifir leur cures ; 
 comme li c'etoit aax brebis a choilir le berger qui 
 doit les conduire, les nourrer, les tondre et les 
 engf aider pour la table de fon maitre ; comme fi 
 des Jimphs jideles etoient capables de juger dcs 
 moeurs, de la vertu et des talents de leur pafture ; 
 et comme li les eveques feuls n'etoient pas com- 
 petents pour juger fi la do6tnne d'un homme etoit 
 orthodoxe ou non. Voila le premier point auquel 
 ils ont un raifon de s'oppofcr. 
 
 ** 2d. Le Confeil de I'Eveque dcvoit etre com- 
 pofe de pretres a I'avis defquels il devoit fe con- 
 former dans I'adminiftration de fon diocefe. C'etoit 
 evidemment mettre VEveque audejfous des pretres, 
 centre la decifion du concile du Trente, qui a de- 
 clare comme article de foi que les eveques font 
 audejfus des pretres, et a prononce anathema cen- 
 tre Calvin et fes fedbateurs qui foutenoient le con- 
 traire. Vous voyez bien qu'en confcience on ne 
 pouvoit pas fe foumettre a un reglement aufli 
 contraire a la foi qui celui la. 
 
 Un troilieme arrangement au quel ils pouvoient 
 encore moins fe foumettre qu'aux deux prece- 
 dents ; c'eft, que les pretendus philofophes com- 
 pofant I'Affemblee Nationale fous pretexte de met- 
 tre plus d'uniformitc et de fimplicite dans le gou- 
 vcrnement et de faire marcher enfemble et d'accord 
 3 Tadmi-
 
 ( 1^9 ) 
 
 radmlniflration civile et ecclefiaftiqne avoient pris 
 <ur eux, fans le conlentement du Pape, de reduire 
 le nombre des eveches et dc donncr aux nouveaux 
 diocefes les menies limitcs qu'aux departements. 
 Tout hon chatelain foumis a TEgtfe coiiviendra 
 que c'etoit la un attentat crimincl contrc I'autorite 
 Ipirituclle, qui doit etre a legard de Tautorite tem- 
 porelle ce que Tame eft au corps ; c'cft a dire, que 
 comme le corps doit toujours etre foumis a I'efprit 
 dont il doit recevoir la loi, dc meme I'autorite tem- 
 porelle doit etre gouvcrnee par le pouvoir fpirituel 
 vener du ciel expres pour cela. Pour s'oppofer 
 comme ils le devoient a cette innovation, nos ver^ 
 tucux prelats ont dit aux peuplc, que I'Evcque ou 
 le cure qui forleroit des bornes fixees par Je pape 
 a leurs dioceles ou de leurs paroiffes pour exerccr 
 leurs fondlione ailleurs, etoient des infrus, des w/r- 
 pateurs, des fchifmat'iquey que les mariages qu'ils 
 beniroient feroient des concubinages, que leurs 
 facrements feroient des facrileges, que les baptcmes 
 qu'ils adminifireront feroient des fades avec It 
 diable, que leur extreme ondiion fervoit un pafle;- 
 port pour aller en enfer ; que ceux qui entendroiei^t 
 leurs melfcs feroient damnes, que ceux qui iroient 
 leur confelfer leurs peches ferpieqt uri plus grand 
 pechc que tons ceux, (\oi\i ils pouvoicnt d'ailleurs 
 etre coupabics ; en un mot que tons c^q^ qvii cpm- 
 muniqueroient avec eux etoient excommunies, 
 chafl'es de I'eglife et perdus dans ce monde et 
 4ajis Tautrc. E|cs arguments de cettc force qe pou- 
 
 H volcnt
 
 ( ISO ) 
 
 voient inanquer de produire de bons efTets et dans 
 la Vendee et alUeurs; malheureufement pour la 
 caufe du throne et de rautel il s'eft trouve quelques 
 membres, fur tout du bas clerge qui fe font crus 
 en droit d'avoir une opinion a eux en matiere de 
 religion et qui n'ont pas regie leurs confciences 
 d'aprcs celles des eveques, leurs guides legitimes. 
 Sans la defedlion de ces malheureux apoftats, 
 rinfurreclion eut ete generale, et I'eglilb fe feroit 
 maintenue dans toutc fa fplendcur ! ^' " -^-^ 
 
 Translation. 
 
 ^ Fragment of a Letter to Mr. Miles, on the Con:- 
 du6l of the French Clergy, 
 
 l^ar'ts, Auguji 20, 1792, 
 
 *' MANY people pretend that \S\^ real 
 
 motive of the reliftance of the clergy, and parti- 
 cularly of the dignified clergy, to the eftablifhment 
 of a new eccleliaflical code, was the prefervation 
 of their privileges, of their riches, and of their po- 
 litical influence ; but thofe who poflefs Chriftian 
 charity will not admit of an imputation fo injuri- 
 ous to a body of men fo relpe61able and enlightened 
 as the French clergy. Is it in fa6t juft to attribute 
 to them motives that they have never acknow- 
 ledged, while their true reafons have been fo 
 
 clearly
 
 < 3i ) 
 
 clearly explained, not only in the eloquent diT" 
 courfes of the Abbe Maury, but alfo in the man- 
 dates of many Bifhops, and particularly in one of 
 the pious Bifhop of Boulogne, which was circu- 
 lated throughout all the provinces with that zeal 
 and profulion fo holy a caufe deferved. As you, 
 perhaps, may not have it in your power to procure 
 the above mentioned works, I will endeavour to 
 give you a concife idea of the unanfwerable argu- 
 ments they contain again ft the new order that they 
 wifhed to introduce. By this order the pariftiioners 
 were to chufe their curate, as if the Iheep were to 
 chufe the fhepherd, vvbofe duty it is to guide, feed, 
 tender, and fatten them for the table of his mafter. 
 As if the pioics brethren were capable of judging of 
 the morals, the virtue, and the talents of their 
 paftor, and as if the Bifhops alone were not com- 
 petent to judge if the doctrine was orthodox or 
 not ; this is the firft point they had a right to op- 
 pofc themfelves to. 
 
 *' 2d. The council of the Bifhop ought to be 
 compofed of priefts, to whofe opinions he ought to 
 conform in the adminiftration of his diocefe ; this 
 was evidently placing the Bifhop belo'w the Priefts 
 againft the decifton of the Council of Trent, which 
 declares as an article of faith, that the Bifhops arc 
 higher than the Priefts, and which has pronounced 
 an anathema againft Calvin and his fe6l, for fupport- 
 ing a contrary opinion. You will allow that they 
 H 2 cQuId
 
 ( 13^ ) 
 
 could not in confcience fubralt to a rule {o con- 
 trary to the true faith. 
 
 " A third arrangement to which they could ftill 
 lefs conform than to the two preceding, is that the 
 pretended philofophers who compofe the National 
 Aflembly, under pretence of putting more uni- 
 formity and limplicity in the government, and in 
 order to unite the civil and ecclefiaftical admin i- 
 flration have taken it upon themfelves without 
 the confent of the Pope, to reduce the number of 
 bifl>oprics, and to afcertain the limits to the diiFe- 
 rcnt diocefes, as they have done to the departments. 
 All good Chriftians, obedient to the church 
 will acknowledge, that this was a criminal attack 
 againft fpiritual authority, which compared to tem- 
 poral authority, ought to be confidered in the fame 
 light as the foul is to the body, that is to fay, that, 
 as the body muft always fubmit to the mind from 
 which it receives the law, fo ought the temporal 
 authority to be governed by the fpiritual power 
 which is exprellly received from heaven for that 
 purpofe. To Oppofe themfelves as they ought 
 againft this innovation our virtuous prelates de- 
 clared to the people, that the Bifhop or the Curate 
 who would go out of thofe bounds fixed to their 
 diocefe or their parifh by the Pope, to exercife 
 their functions elfewhere, were intruders, ufurpers, 
 fchifmatics, that the marriages they performed 
 would only be fornications, that their facraments 
 
 would
 
 ( ^33 ) 
 
 would be facrilegcs, that the baptifms tliey admi- 
 niilered would only be a compact with the devil, 
 that their extreme undlion would be a paflport to 
 hell, that thofe who heard their mafs would be 
 damned, that thofe who confefled their fins to 
 them would commit a greater lin than any they 
 could poffibly be guilty of. In a word, that thofe 
 who had any communication with them woald 
 be excommunicated, driven from the church, and 
 , loft in this world and in the next. Such argu- 
 ments as thefe could not fail of being attended 
 with fuccefs in La Vendee and elfe where. Un- 
 fortunately for the caufe of the throne and the al- 
 tar, fome members, and particularly of the /ow 
 clergy, have created for thcmfelves the right of 
 having an opinion of their own in matters of rdli* 
 gion, without regulating their confciences by thofe 
 of their Bifhops, who are their lawful diredlors^ 
 Had it not been for the difaffe3kn of thefe un- 
 fortunate apoftates, the infurredlion would have 
 been general, and the church would have pre- 
 ferved all its fplendor.'* 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( m ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. XV. 
 
 I CANNOT, without better evidence of the 
 faft, believe that Mr. Pitt is an enemy to the con- 
 ftitution ; the two bills brought into Parliament, 
 which have given fuch general offence, and on 
 wJaich his adverfaries have been enabled to take 
 ftrong ground, are certainly an infradion of the' 
 conftitution, which the motive and the occafion 
 could alone juftify. If the offenfive meafure had 
 been to anfwer any other purpofe than that of the 
 moment, merely as an expedient in the hour of 
 very imminent danger as it was imagined, in 
 order to avert a great and fefious calamity, the 
 Minifter who propofed it would have deferved to 
 have been conduced from the Houfc of Commons 
 to Tower-hill, and left (horter by the head for his 
 prefumption. This is the only plea upon which 
 the law in queftion can be defended ; I am per- 
 fuaded that it is the only pica Mr. Pitt would urge 
 in his defence, were he put upon his trial ; and I 
 am fatisficd, that ading as he did, under the im- 
 prcffion of the moment, that the well-informed and 
 moft temperate of the London Correfponding So- 
 ciety would abfolve him from any criminal defigti 
 againft the conftitution, however much they may 
 arraign his difcreiion, or queftion the neceflity for 
 3 fo
 
 ( 135 ) 
 
 Co harlli a meafure. No one could have reprobated 
 it more feverely than I have done. Every man in 
 this country has a right to exclaim, nolumus leges 
 Jnglitc -mutari ! it is the motto of the great family 
 of England, and every Englilhman is bound by 
 duty, by intcreft, and by honour, to bear it on 
 his banner, and wear it in his heart : I feel affured 
 that it was in conx)fmity with this principle, that 
 Mr. Pitt aded when he propofed the unpopular 
 bill. I feel affured that his intention was to pre- 
 ferve, not to deftroy, the conftitution by that mea- 
 fure ; and that the biackeft guilt, for the fouleffc 
 purpofe, could alone have atti ibuted it to any other 
 delign. Men are accuftomed to view all objeds 
 in a very different light from each other, and if it 
 is meant to take the dimenfions, or have an accu- 
 rate idea of the figure of any objedl, it is not the 
 Tide that prefencs itfelf fiilt to the fight, that is alone 
 to decide our judgment. Mr. Piit, as a Minifter, 
 ftands in a very different predicament to all other 
 men ; he is invcfted with a truftof a very high and 
 folemn nature; it is no lefs than the comfort, fecu- 
 ricy, and complicated interefls of an entire people, 
 and thefe interefts perpetually clafliing difcordant 
 tind dangerous notes. A new fet of opinions are 
 afloat in the world, iind thefe opinions, fome of 
 them very jutt, others of them wild and irapraftica- 
 ble, and fome altogether as atrocious are at warfare 
 with old opinions, and long-ellablilhed prejudices. 
 If the dark ages of ignorance are fit feafons for im- 
 
 pollors.
 
 ( 136 ) 
 
 poflors, times of public tumult are no lefs fo, and 
 without recurring to French hiftory, we may find 
 within the fea-girt fhore of Britain, men of that 
 defcription, who without fortune or honeft induftry, 
 hope to find a lucrative harveft in civil broil, and 
 will labour for that purpofc whenever the occafion 
 offers. The London Correfponding Society have 
 too great a refpefl for truth not to acknowledge 
 that fuch men have infmuated themfelves into their 
 company, and that they have purpofes in view 
 very different from what the Society avows. Thele 
 men have held tenets in debating focieties and at 
 public meetings incompatible with theexiftence not 
 cnhjT of this government, but of all government, 
 and which tenets would be more mifchievous in the 
 event to thofe who liftened to them, than to thofe 
 againtl whom they were principally levelled ; it was 
 under thefe circumftances ;^ it was under the appre- 
 henfion of being involved in civil as well as foreign 
 conieft, that Mr. Pitt, prefTed by the magnitude and 
 proximity of the danger which he dreaded, came 
 forward and encroached upon one part of the conftr- 
 tution, in order to preferve the whole. Such is the 
 impreflion under which the Minifter appears to me to 
 have a6led, and fuch the light in which his conduit 
 will appear to thofe who difpaflionately combine all 
 the extraordinary circumftances of the cafe, and 
 confidering them in this view together, they may, 
 perhaps, think that the mcafure he adopted was 
 the beft he could have chofeti. I very much 
 
 doubtj^
 
 ( ^37 ) 
 
 doubt, and it is a queftion worthy of his prudence, 
 to confider whether it is at all limes good policy tot 
 combat extremes by extremes. It is alfo a queftioa 
 worthy of his wifdom, and no lefsfoof his patriotifm, 
 to inquire, how far it will conduce to the preferva- 
 tion of the conftitution, to refift the equitable and 
 well-founded claims of the people, to that judicious 
 and temperate reform which he promifed to pro- 
 cure, and which he is bound in honour to obtain ? 
 It is perhaps the mod effedlual way to fupprefs thofe 
 clubs and meetings which have fpread fuch general 
 alarm ihroughout the country ; it will at all events 
 take away from bad men, all pretext for cIa-- 
 mour; and while it fortifies the good, infufes a 
 century of new life into the conftitution. When 
 thefe meetings were deprived of their legality, and 
 when Minifters and both Houfes of Parliament 
 pronounced them to be dangerous to the ftate, it 
 was incumbent on Minifters and on Parliament, to 
 have inquired how far the abufes of which thofc 
 meetings complained were founded in truth; how- 
 far they were oppreffive in their operation, and 
 finally, whether the people had a right to com- 
 plain ? If, on inquiry, it appeared that thefe abufes 
 had an exiftence; -that their operation was pain- 
 ful, and that the people were entitled to redrefs, 
 the wifer meafure would have been to have remo- 
 ved the grievances. It was a Hne of condud which 
 was no lefs due to difcretion than to jufticc. 
 
 S Force
 
 ( IJS ) 
 
 Force may, for the moment, ftifle complaint, 
 but never can fubdue it; on the contrary it acquires 
 ftrength from time, and vigour from age; and, 
 finally, fpeaks with moft miraculous organ, for it 
 reverfes the condition of fubjeA and of fovereign, 
 and teaches government the virtue of fubmifiion. 
 To what extent ihat reform, and the retrenchments 
 expeded are to be carried, are not for me to difcufs ; 
 all I contend for is, that the reform had better takeplace 
 within doors than without. I do not mean a rapid 
 reform, a tearing up by root and branch, rofes and 
 weeds promifcuoufly, and without referve ; but 
 that fober gradual reform which gives force, vi- 
 gour, and hcahh, as well as life ; and I am the 
 more anxious that this neccflary reform, which muft 
 fooner or later take place, (hould be accomplilhed 
 by Parliament, froni the convicflion I feel, that 
 matter of fuch high import can only be agitated 
 \vith fafety and effc<5l in a deliberative aflembly, 
 legally convened. 
 
 I have ever been a friend to parliamentary reform, 
 and what might perhaps have been prejudice in the 
 firfl: inftance, is now conviction, refuking from 
 obfervation, and a better knowledge of the mode 
 in which public bufinefs in this country is con- 
 duced J but though I am a friend to the meafure 
 of reform, it is my wilh that it Ihould be temperate 
 and gradual; {bat it fhould be accomplilhed within 
 'be doors of P:irliament, and not out of them. 
 - . * . Main
 
 ( -^39 ) 
 
 Main ftrength can at any period .take jhe heavieft 
 gate off the hinges, but it requires addrefs to put 
 if on again ; a. promifcuous multitude can at all 
 times difplay the former, but the latter belongs 
 ^xclufiveiy to a deliberative aflembly, which com- 
 bining force with ingenuity, can alone avert the 
 evils of infurredioo and anarchy. 
 
 Confidering as I do, the meafure of parliamen- 
 tary reform as one of the means by which a revo-, 
 lution can alone be prevented, it cannot be prelfed 
 too (Irongly on the mind of every man in the 
 Houfe of Commons who has a Qake in the country, 
 and who has any well-founded pretenfions to inde- 
 pendence and rectitude. If the reprefentatives of 
 the people, inattentive to the temper of the times, 
 and infenfible at once to their duty, to their inte- 
 refts, and to the fpirit and letter of the conftitution, 
 fhould fpurn this wholefome folitary alternative, 
 and the Minifter, an accomplice in their guilt and 
 folly, (hoUld perfifl in the fatal error which pride, 
 avarice, and vanity would confecrate to eternity, k 
 will be found that the power will be uhimaiely 
 wrefted from Parliament by a fet of men entirely un- 
 known to us, and whofe anger in puniiliingthe fata! 
 obflinacy that refided the fober councils of right and 
 expediency, will extend beyond the facrifice of 
 tjiofe whom they may ftigmatife as delinquents. 
 
 &2
 
 ( Uo ) 
 
 It is to prevent a calamity of this magnitude, 
 that I wi(h the Houfe of Commons to undertake its 
 own reform. The fyftem of corruption mufi; ceafe 
 if it is meant to avoid an explofion. The venality 
 of Parliament is no longer fuppofed, or cautioufly 
 infinuated ; it is notorious ; it is become the table- 
 talk alike of the drawing-room and night-cellar ; 
 the reprefentatives of the people have the folly and 
 indecency to avow it, and the nation at large repro- 
 bates it in language that proves the Houfe of 
 Commons is very much lowered in the public opi- 
 nion, and very far from being adored as it formerly 
 was, and ought ever to be, as' one of the palla- 
 diums of Britifti liberty. 
 
 I 
 
 APPCN-
 
 ( H ) 
 
 APPENDIX, No. XVi. 
 
 To the Marquis of Buckingham, &c. &c, & 
 
 14/^ Dec. 1792, 
 " My Lord, 
 
 f * I HAVE borrowed the inclofed pamphlets oi> 
 purpofe that your Lordfliip may perufe them, after 
 which I (hall intreat the favour of their being re- 
 turned. The propofal which I made to the Duke 
 of Leeds, in January, 1790, and which I alluded 
 to in the letter I had the honour to addrefs to your 
 Lordfliip, was, that the union of Liege with the 
 Auflrian Netherlands, and the independence of both 
 ihould be facilitated, ackno\yledged and guaranteed 
 by this country, Holland, and PrufTia. The advan- 
 tages refulting from this meafurc would haye been 
 commercial as well as political tputes les entrav^s 
 que la tete mal organijee de Jofeph IL avait fait mettre 
 fur le commerce eurent ete levees, and Holland would 
 have had a broad and impenetrable barrier on the fide 
 of France, while happy to have been emancipated 
 from the odious perfidy and tyranny of the houfe of 
 Auftria, the Flemings would have ratified the dif- 
 3 fcrent
 
 ( 14? ) 
 
 fercnt treaties which condemn the Scheldt to roll 
 its numbering waters difgracefully to the fea, and 
 the French would have had no pretence for inva- 
 ding Brabant. The refulc of my conference with 
 his Grace convinced me more than ever, that the 
 ideas of magnitude and futurity, as well as of right 
 and expediency, are neceflary furniture for every, 
 man's mind, to whom the interefts of a nation are 
 in any degree confided : what I propofed in 1790, 
 and for which the people whofe caufe I pleaded 
 would have been obliged to the Britifh Miniftry, is 
 now accomplifhed, not only without their confenr, 
 but abfolutely againft it ; and with this advantage in 
 favour of the former, that what they have acquired 
 cannot be taken from them ; for whatever may be the 
 tvent of the war, I will venture to predid that the 
 -power of the houfc of Auftria in the Netherlands 
 is extinguished for ever; and for this plain and 
 "unanfwerable reafonj that the people will no longer 
 fabmit to its vexations, or be deceived hy its pro- 
 fcffions ! 
 
 1''. 
 " The Duke of Leeds faid it was going great 
 lengths, but it was eafy to forefee at the time, 
 withoirt the gift of prefcience, that the fpirit of 
 freedom which had bnrft; forth with fuch violence 
 irt France, would force the French into much greater 
 lengths ; and that fis a meafure of prudence, inde- 
 pendent of all other confideration?, it was neceflary
 
 ( n% ) 
 
 to be before-hand, and anticipate what it migh 
 not be in our power afterwards to prevent. 
 
 " I have the honour to be, &c. 
 
 " W. MILES." 
 
 The following fa(5ls will (hew what the Emperor 
 ioft, when his folly or madnefs drove his fubjeds 
 in the Netherlands to renounce his jurifdiftion. 
 
 Maria Therefa received in fubftdies, 
 or rather aids from the Low Coun- 
 tries, during the war that ended 
 in 1763, the fum of feventy-five 
 millions of German florins, which 
 at 1 1 florins to the pound fterling, 
 amounts to upwards of fterhng 6,8 18,181 
 
 The fums annually tranfmitted to Vi- 
 enna from the Low Countries, after 
 all the expences of their govern- 
 ment were difcharged (which feldom 
 exceeded two miUions) amounted 
 to fix millions of Brabant florins, 
 the produce of the royal domains 
 included - - 461,000 
 
 If
 
 ( M4 ) 
 
 If fovereigns would well reflefton what they 
 hazard, bj^ forcing the people into revolt, it is fair 
 lo conclude that they would be more circumfpeit 
 at lead, if not more juft. 
 
 The avaricious policy of Jofeph II. by erafing 
 the works of all the fortified towns in the Low 
 Countries, expofed them to invafion and depreda- 
 tion, and his greater folly in vexing the clergy, the 
 nobles, and the people, all at the fame time, in- 
 difpofed all ranks againft him, and finally lofl: him 
 the Netherlands; yet fuch was the infatuation of 
 the man, that he imagined he could recover them 
 by force, although the tranfport alone of each can- 
 non that he fent from Vienna to fubdue them, cofb 
 ten thoufand Brabant florins, upwards of feven hun- 
 dred pounds fterling; and when the moft ordin-ary 
 defenfivc wafs in the Low Countries with the peo-^ 
 pie in allegiance, coft the Court of Vienna annu- 
 ally one million one hundred and eighty-one thou- 
 iand pounds fterling. 
 
 APPEN-
 
 ( H5 ) 
 
 A P P E N D I JC, No. XVII. 
 
 " THE marked averfion wliich has been 
 ITiewn towards all thofe who were, concerned in 
 the firfl revolution, or that were well difpofed 
 towards it, joined to the very harlh treatment 
 that fome of them have received, gave an ugly 
 feature to the war, and deprived ihis country of 
 a rcfource which it was folly to have overlooked 
 and criminal to have ncgle6led. Thefe men 
 were branded J:)y over-loyal men as rebels, and 
 the whole of the terrible calamities which have 
 lince enfued, attributed to their revolt in the firft 
 inftance. This is the invention of fuperflition 
 and tyranny to prop their falling caufe, and the 
 ilander muft be refuted. There are three grand 
 and glorious epochs in Britifli flory, to which 
 tl>e free-born mind always reforts in triumph. 
 The conceflion of John to the Barons Our 
 emancipation from the vile fetters of Popery ; 
 and the revolution in 1688, to which the prefent 
 family on the throne owe their elevation. Let 
 us fuppofe that our gallant anceftors on all 
 thofe occations had been as unfuccefsful, or 
 that they had as ill-managed each important en- 
 terprife, as~ thofe, who with equal provocation 
 and equal purity of intention, embarked in a 
 
 T fimilar
 
 ( '46 ) 
 
 fimilar atf.empt in France and failed. Would 
 t}}e merit of the enterprife have been the lefs \ 
 would not the caule .of fair and rational liberty 
 have remained as pure and as facred as ever ? 
 Would they, nay could they in juftice, have been 
 confidered as the authors of all the horrible 
 exccfles into which other men, influenced by 
 other motives, and who had ufurped their places, 
 had fatally plunged their country ? All thefe 
 epochs were marked by a fobriety and firmnefs 
 that gave additional luflre to their caufe ; and 
 js there an Englifhman, fo vile a flave, fo loft to 
 every fenfe of virtue, and of ihame, as to dare 
 publicly to avow that the caufe of our intrepid 
 anceftors would have been lefs juft if they had 
 been lefs fortunate ? I am fure that there is not ; 
 I am fure that their honeft natures would feel 
 indignant at the queftion, and refent it as an 
 affront to the proud manes of their anceflors, 
 Thefe refle6lions are meant to awaken thofe to 
 a more liberal conduti, in whom every de- 
 parture from right, is charged with a treble 
 portion of infamy. 
 
 " It appears that all the courts of Europe have 
 confpircd againft the haplcfs victims of the firll 
 revolutions in France, and as far as fuch a con- 
 du(Sfc will admit the inference, againft the general 
 happinefs and freedom of mankind. The roy- 
 al ifts of 1789 are held in* as little eftimation
 
 ( 147 ^ 
 
 at the Britifh courts as at the court of Viennh,* 
 whole maxims and refcntmcnts in matters of. 
 this nature, the former will do well to avoid ; 
 this is not the language of difafFedlion, but of 
 truth, and above all, of that loyalty, which in 
 the hour of danger (pray heaven avert the cala- 
 mity) may be depended upon. I love my 
 fovereign, and it is from the love I bear him 
 that I wifh to lee his reign happy and glorious, 
 and his life prolonged, till life itfclf Ihall ceafe to 
 be defirable; 
 
 *' The conduft of minifters towards thofe 
 gentlemen who efpoufed the caufe of the French 
 xevolution in the firft inflance, independent of 
 its injullice, has been extremely impolitic. The 
 party to which they were attached, included all 
 thofe, who combining a love of liberty, with a 
 love of order, were willing to marfhal them- 
 felves under the fiandard of royalty. Their at- 
 tachment vvas to well-defined, limited monarch}'-, 
 
 the 
 
 * How ftrangely ordered are the affairs of this world ! 
 Thefe gallant men are every where profcribed for having fup- 
 ported their clear and tinaiien:-b!e claim to v.hat they derive 
 fi-om God, not man, wiiiie the Frincefs of On;nge, the 
 legitimate filler of the King of Pnitlia, who encouraged 
 revolt in the fabjcfts of a fovfcreign, her neighbour^ with 
 whom file was in friendiliip, and who was ' ertainly com- 
 petent to prefcrve the accuftomed relations of peace* and 
 
 T 2 amity.
 
 ( 48 ) 
 
 the onily ftionarchy that reafon legitimates, Tor 
 monarchy without refponfibiHty is tyranny. The 
 caufe of M. de la Fayette and his party, was in 
 fa6l, the caufe of every fovereign in Europe. 
 That party was extremely numerous, and its re- 
 fources were great ; -it was the only party with 
 which wifdom would have united itfelf, if it 
 
 ajnlty, has no ftigraa attached to her conduft by thofe who 
 reprobate and perfecute La Fayette ^nd the wretched com** ; 
 panions of his melancholy fortunes I Vandernoot and Van 
 Eupen were in Brabant what La Fayette and his friends were 
 in France j yet what is their fad ftory, and how different is 
 their fate ! I will not inquire of fallen greatnefs if any remorfe 
 is felt on finding that perfidy which had been exercifed towards 
 others, brought finally home to itfelf; but I will afk the Prin- 
 cefs of Orange, with what confiftency Ihe can reproach the 
 French Convention with having excited a fpirit of revolt 
 in the Seven Provinces, charged as (he is with a fimilar guilt,, 
 aggravated by treacher)' ? At the time that fhe caballed with the 
 infurgents in Brabant, and allowed them to affemble at Breda, 
 Ihe iiad a minifter not only on the fpot where flie was in con- 
 federacy with rebellion; but at the court of the Sovereign whom 
 Ihe was endeavouring to defpoil of his dominions! If the 
 conduct of M. de la Fayette, in endeavouring to fecure by pofi- 
 tive written laws, as in thofe happy kingdoms, liberty to his 
 country is crinunal, what ftigma can we find expreflive of the 
 double infamy of the Princefs of Orange ? What language fhall 
 W rcfort to for adequate terms of reproach to this deep in- 
 triguing dame, who, in a partnerflilp worthy of her abandoned 
 brother, has expofed the perfidy of courts in fuch ftrong blazon, 
 that idolatry itfelf, recovered from delufion, Hands aghaft, 
 afhamed of its folly ! 
 
 had
 
 ( '49 ) 
 
 had meant to convert tl>e internal diflrac^ions of 
 France into the means of fpeedily terminating 
 the war, as policy certainly didlatcd ; but their aid 
 was fpurned through the poifonous influence of 
 their haughty and incorrigible countrymen,' 
 awake only to their revenge, and whofe malig- 
 nity was augmented by the wild councils of their 
 impofture of a Meffiah, whom they fondly be- 
 lieved, was working their redemption, while he 
 was only working diflenlions in the kingdom, 
 and penfions for himfelf. All the moderate part)-, 
 forming a vaft mafs, in France, and out of it ; this 
 formidable body of men, difpofed to admit 
 of monarchy on the fame terms as we have 
 done, found themfelves every where fhunned, 
 reprobated, and reduced to the alternative of 
 becoming republicans or flaves, and chofe, as 
 we would have done, I truft, under fimilar 
 circumftances, the former in preference to the 
 latter. But this v/as not the only evil refult- 
 ing from the marked contempt and profcrip- 
 tions with which this party was treated. The 
 condu6l of minificrs gave a prcttrxt to the Dan- 
 der of their enemies, and juftified, in fome de- 
 gree, the report, that the ol)jeift of the war was 
 to reflore the ancient fvftcm, in all its ple- 
 nitude of guilt. The Due d'Harcourt, the 
 Bifhop of St. Fol do Leon, and the whole 
 of the French committee, with whofe views 
 and, manoeuvres I am not totally unacquainted, 
 
 held
 
 ( ISO ) 
 
 held no other language. They difdained all 
 compromifej and played the defperate game of* 
 touf ou rien all or nothing not with their pro- 
 perty but with our's. The countenance given 
 to this defcription of Frenchmen, who were not 
 lefs indilcreet in their converfation than extrava- 
 gant in their pretenlions, expofed Miniilers to an 
 odium which : hope they do not defcrve. Theim- 
 pra<5tical)ilitys not to fay the impoflifcjjility of re- 
 Itoring the ancient defpotifin in France, at any 
 period ^ince the 14th of July 1 789, has been as ob- 
 vious as the iniquity of the meafure itfelf, and 
 this alone (hould refcue Minifters from the in- 
 famy which falfehood would attach to their coun- 
 cils and condu6\. In a word, though they cannot 
 in juitice be charged with crimes, they have been 
 grofsly mifled and deceived, and to an extent, that 
 may preclude the poffibility of repairing the errors 
 they have committed, unlefs their future councils 
 are marked by more juflice and difcretion." 
 
 Trans-
 
 ( >5 ) 
 
 Translation 
 
 Of M. Le BrunV Lefter to f/ie Count 
 De Trauttmansdorff. 
 
 " My Lord, 
 
 " THERE was a happy time when yonr im- 
 mediate influence on the government general of 
 the Low Countries left you every means of hav- 
 ing an injuflice towards us repaired. 
 
 *' It is not yet a year, it is not even eight 
 months lince your Excellcncey could have aflu- 
 red us without obfiarle, and obtained for us with- 
 out delay, the reflitution of all we have loO, for 
 having too warmly efpoufed the caufc of the late 
 Emperor. If you had done it, my Lord, the fer- ' 
 vice would not have been loft to your Excellency, 
 we fhould have at this day the pleating fatisfac- 
 tion of proving to you that vve are not ungrate- 
 ful. 
 
 ** We do not mean at prefent to perfuade your 
 Excellency that it would have been the intereft of 
 the Houie of Auftria to have fatisfied us com- 
 pletely
 
 (. 152 ) 
 
 pletely on this head. If necelTary, we could give 
 our motives for it, and prove, that if we had been 
 indemnified for our pafl lofles and future rifks, 
 wc fhould then have been able to emplo}' proper 
 means to determine the fermentation in favour of 
 the fovercign, in fpite of the intrigues of both 
 parties. No, this is nojt the time for dilcuffing 
 that queftion, but the time is come to inform you, 
 my Lord, that it is always the inLcreft of govern- 
 ment, particularly when it is bound to account 
 for Us anions to a fiipreme head, not to difdain 
 the well-founded reppefentations of iiien of letters, 
 cbieflj of thofe who are in pofTcflion x>f the pub- 
 lic opinion. The government of the Low Coun- 
 tries has, as your Excellency knows better than 
 any other perfon, violated this political maxim 
 with regard to us. If we were vindictive, the 
 opportunity now offers of be^ng revenged, and 
 we mijiht avail ourfelves of it : but i\\c gaJl of 
 revenge fhall never difturb tiie fcrenity of our 
 Hiindsf this paffioa is beneath us; it is much 
 more plcafing to be useful, and we have always 
 endcavouretl to be fo ; and Juch is our deterniinci' 
 tian in a very delicate affair 'which concertis your 
 Excellency, and which Jerioiijly involves other dijiin- 
 guijlied jyerfofis : but as it is full time that ive Jliould 
 J'erioujly think of ref airing the breach m^ide in our 
 fortune, there 7nu[i he ati accommodation bet-ween the 
 Pcrfuns concerned and us, in order that ive may co- 
 operate
 
 y 
 
 operate in re/cuing them from certain difgrace,^ 
 Particularly now for having fpoken in fa- 
 vour of Leopold ; for having ftrove to prelerve 
 partifans for him, we find ourfelves again the vic- 
 tims of our attachment to the Houfe of Auftria, 
 and that as our reward our journal is again 
 prohibited, forbidden, and flopped in all the 
 provinces, which, within thefe two of three 
 months, has oCcalioned us a lofs of from 4 to 
 500 louis. 
 
 " The bufinefs which concerns you, my Lord^ 
 relative to us is this. A perfon, whofe name yoU 
 will perhaps guefs, but whom we cannot as yet 
 mention, has propofed to us to draw up a memo- 
 rial in defence of the late General Count d'Alton, 
 and has for that purpofe remitted to us papers ot 
 the utmoft importance. Amongft other things 
 we find in them many original letters, partly from 
 your Excellency, partly firom certain other perfons 
 attached to interefls, which were not altogether 
 thofe of the fovereign, minifterial difpatchcs, re- 
 ports, &c. We will not conceal from you. Sir, 
 that an able hand might make a terrible ufe of this 
 colle6lion, every piece of which bears an incon- 
 tellable flamp of authenticity. They may ferve, 
 not only to juflify completely the Cbunt d'Alton, 
 but alfo to ruin feveral perfons in the public opi- 
 nion, as well as in that of the King of Hungary, 
 
 U and
 
 \( ^54 ) 
 
 and to imj>each more than one as refponlible for 
 the a6lual lofs of the Belgic Provinces. 
 
 " It IS an eafy matter to conjc6^urej from the ac- 
 counts which we pofTefs, that you, my Lord, have 
 been hurried on by a junto whofe plans and object 
 you were not aware of. This junto exifled be- 
 fore you were appointed minilter, and the perfon 
 who dire(9:ed it, a man moft dexteroufly ambiti- 
 ons, had formed a plan for laying hold of your 
 Excellency on your arrival in the Netherlands : 
 this was the moft difficult partj he then eatily 
 continued to direcl you ; the rock was perhaps 
 unavoidable. Any other but a man bred up from 
 his infancy to the great principles of adminifira- 
 tion, to thofe principles of enlightened philofo{:hy, 
 v-hich at prclent direcSl the National Aflembly of 
 }'Vance, would have fplit on this rock ; and if the 
 fevolution had not been completed, your Excel- 
 lency and the general of the army would have 
 been facrificcd ; fuch was the obje6l. Things 
 having taken a dtfFerent turn from what w^as ex- 
 pecicd, it was not the intereft of your attendants 
 to commit you, .^nd it was thought eafier and 
 
 Shorter to facrifice Greneral d' Alton. He died, 
 
 b'jt not foon enough for his enemies ; for he had 
 time to prepare an avenger, and to deliver into 
 his hands fome terrible inilanccs of court intrigues: 
 happily this man has applied to us for our fup- 
 1 port.
 
 ( H5 ) 
 
 port. Your intereji^ my Lord, requires ' that this 
 iiffii'ir Jhould he entirely quelled, and that at any 
 PRICE the publication of the memoir, intrujied ions, 
 Jhould be 'prevented ; huf you will eajily underjiand 
 that this end is not to he obtained without X- 
 
 PNC 
 
 1 . '* Mr. S Alton s friend muji be gained over, for 
 he has employed every precaution to prevent being 
 lakeji unprepared. He has depolited an authen- 
 tic copy of all his papers in Holland ; he has an- 
 other in his own hand ; we have one alfo, and 
 the originals are loon to be put in a place of 
 l^fety. But if we are fupported we con promife to' 
 gain him over to our views, and to terminate the huji^ 
 nefs to your fatisfadion. 
 
 2. *' For giving up the advantages which we 
 are fure to gain, by compoling and publilhing 
 this memoir, we mufl be handfomely indemni- 
 
 fed. 
 
 We own to you, however, that if we had ob- 
 tained oar indemnification at a proper fealon, we 
 ihould have blufhed to put a price on this fervice . 
 but the injury we have iliflaincd by this tacit re- 
 fulal of your Excellency, is incalculable, and wc 
 are diilreired. Confult with yourfelf, my Lord, 
 and confult the other perfons not lefs interefled, 
 that nothing fhouldtranfpire, and let us know im- 
 mediately
 
 ( 156 ) 
 
 mediately your intentions. But in the mean 
 time, as the didlance at which yon are alunder 
 would leave too long an interval between your 
 mutual anfwers, and that which we expe(9: from 
 your Excellency, we beg you will acknowledge 
 the receipt of this letter by the return of the poft, 
 and zve promife you tofufpend the hufmefs until then. 
 At all events, if M. d' Alton's friend cannot be 
 brought to capitulate, we have other means of 
 ferving your Excellency, which we will explain 
 to yaxx when neceirary. 
 
 (3igned) 
 
 " LE BRUN.V 
 
 FINIS. 
 
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