tions which were given them, and confequently that any further complaint would be of no avail whatever.

Notwithstanding thefe tranfactions, however, the Sublime Porte, in the hopes of the Directory altering its fyftem of conduct, and laying afide the fenfelefs purfuit of wishing to overturn the univerfe; in expectation of feeing things in France, from the haraffed fituation of that country, at length take a different turn, by the people refufing to bear any longer thofe intolerable evils and difafters which have been brought upon them from the perfonal views of a few upstart individuals fince the commencement of the revolution, and with the view of preventing fecret enmity from producing an open rupture, fhe did not alter her course, but preferred keeping filence.

In the beginning of the war with the other powers, the French government had declared, that their intention was not to acquire new territory, but, on the contrary, to restore every fuch conqueft as might have been made by their arms during the conteft: contrary to which, they not only have kept poffeffion of various extenfive provinces, fnatched by them from the belligerent powers; but not content with this, profiting of the changes which had prevalled among the allied courts through their intrigues, have put off the mafk entirely, and developing their fecret views, without reafon or juftice, have fallen upon feveral free and independent republics and ftates who had held themfelves neutral, like the Sublime Porte; invading their territories when leaft provided with the means of defence, and subjecting them to their will by open force and hoftility.

Thus, no one being left to control them, they tore the veil of all decorum at once, and unmindful of the obligations of treaties, and to convince the world that friendship and enmity are the fame thing in their eyes, contrary to the rights of nations, and in violation of the ties fubfifting between the two courts, they came, in a manner altogether unprecedented, like a fet of pirates, and made a fudden invafion in Egypt, the most precious among the provinces of the Ottoman Porte, of which they took forcible poffeffion at a time when they had experienced nothing from this court but demonftrations of friendship.

Upon the first furmife of the French project to invade that province, Ruffin, their chargé d'affaires at this refidence, was invited to a conference, where he was questioned officially about this bufinefs: he first declared he had no intelligence whatever refpecting it, but he gave it as a fpeculation of his own, that if fuch an enterprise ever proved true, it probably must be to take revenge of the Beys, and to annoy and attack the English fettlements in the East Indies.

In answer to this it was circumflantially ftated to him, that the fmalleft attempt on the part of the French upon Cairo, on whatever

pretext it might be founded, would be taken as a declaration of war, and thereby the friendship fubfifting between the two courts fince the most ancient times, would, both in a legal and political fenfe, be converted into enmity; that the Ottoman empire would not fuffer the lofs of a handful of fand of the Egyptian territory; that the whole Ottoman fect would fet itself in motion for the deliverance of those bleffed lands; and that if the chaftifement of the Beys of Egypt was neceffary, it behoved the Sublime Porte to inflict it on them as her dependents; that the interference of the French in this bufinefs was inconfiftent with the rights of nations; that the court of Great Britain, being the dearest friend of the Ottoman empire, the Sublime Porte would never confent to the. paffage of French troops through her territory to act against their fettlements; that, in fhort, fhould even their expedition to Egypt have no other object but this, it would be equally conftrued into a declaration of war, of all which he was charged to make the earliest communication to the Directory in this very language.

Difpatches, bearing inftructions to the fame effect, were at the fame time written to Aali Efendi, the Sublime Porte's ambassador at Paris, who was moreover directed to demand officially an explanation of the matter upon the spot.

Before the communications fent by Ruffin to the Directory, and the difpatches tranfmitted by the Sublime Porte to her ambaffador before named, a letter of an old date was received by the said Ruffin, expreffing that Buonaparte's expedition to Egypt was true, but that the object was to fecure fome commercial advantages by bringing the Beys to an account, and to hurt Great Britain; that an ambaffador had been appointed to prefer several propofitions favourable to the interefts of the Ottoman Poite, and to adjust the affair in question; with this further ridiculous hint, that, were the Porte to declare war for this against the republic, both courts would lay themselves open to an attack on the part of the Emperor all this the faid chargé d'affaires delivered officially, and he also presented a copy of that letter.

Upon the other hand, in the answer received meanwhile from the Ottoman ambaffador above mentioned, it was ftated, that in conformity to his inftructions, he had had an interview with Talleyrand Perigord, the minifter of external relations, in which he had produced his difpatches, explained their purport, and demanded officially a categorical anfwer: that the faid minifter (forgetting, as is to be fuppofed, the tenour of the letter which had been written to Ruffin fome time before) pofitively difavowed the expedition against Egypt, and faid that Buonaparte's commiffion had no other object but the conqueft of Malta; that the abolition of the order there being a measure conducive to the benefit of all the Turks, the Sublime Porte ought to feel even obliged by it; that VOL. VII. 3 M

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the Directory had nothing more at heart than to maintain the peace exifting with the Porte fince time immemorial, and more and more to ftrengthen the fame, thus barefacedly exhibiting a farce of the most artful duplicity: the wide contradiction between the above two communications being visibly a fresh artifice by which to mislead the Ottoman Porte with her eyes open, and to gain time until intelligence could be procured refpecting the affair of Egypt, the refult of which had not then come to their knowledge. Muft not this moft extraordinary event be taken as a palpable demonftration, that the directors of the French government, to fecond their own ambition and arrogance, have actually lost all recollection of thofe laws obferved and maintained in every regular government, and that no faith whatever is to be placed in their words and profeffions?

From the tenour of their arbitrary proceedings and defpotic conduct, as too well witneffed from firit to laft, it is clear and evident that their project is no other but to banish every orderly inftitution from the face of the world; to overfet human fociety, and by an alternate play of fecret intrigue or open hoftility, as best faits their end, to derange the conftitution of every established independent ftate, by creating (as they have done in Italy) a number of fmall republics, of which the French is to be the parent mother, and thus to fway and to conduct every thing after their own will every where.

Now Egypt being the portal of the two venerable cities (Mecca and Medina), and the prefent operations in that quarter being of a nature affecting all the Mohamedan fect at large, the Sublime Porte, confiftently with her exprefs declarations to the above French chargé d'affaires, and through her ambaffador to the Directory at Paris, feels compelled by every law to refift the fudden and unprovoked aggreflions and hoftilities committed by the French as above, and with a full confidence in the affiftance of the omnipotent God, to fet about repelling and deftroying the enemy by fea and land. Thus to wage war against France is become a precept of religion incumbent upon all Muffulmen.

In confequence whereof the afore-named chargé d'affaires, toge ther with the officers of that miflion, have been fent to the Seven Towers, to be detained there as hoftages until fuch time as Aali Efendi before named, and thofe of his retinue, be arrived from Paris and the confuls, merchants, and French properties in Conftantinople, and in other parts of the Ottoman empire, fhall alfo be kept in depofit and as a fecurity until the merchants, dependents of the Sublime Porte, with their fhipping and properties, as alfo the public fhips, with their equipages, detained in the province of Egypt (prifoners of war excepted), be fet at liberty.

Το

To repel the perfidy of thefe ufurpers, who have raised the ftandard of rebellion and trouble in France, is a measure in which not the fafety and tranquillity of the Sublime Porte alone, but alfo that of all the powers in Europe, is concerned. Wherefore the best hopes are entertained of the cordial co-operation of all friendly courts, as well as of their difpofition to fulfil, by every means in their power, their duties of friendship and of affistance in the prefent cause.

1 Rebuilakhir, 1213 (11 September 1798).

Imperial Decree, promulgated at the Porte, on Saturday, 1ft Sept.

TRANSLATION.

To you, Kaïmakam Pafha, thefe are addreffed.

EVER fince the Supreme Vizir, Izzed Mehemmed Pafha, came to that office, inftructions were conftantly given him to attend to the defence of the Ottoman dominions, and never to be off his guard against the plots of enemies. He however, from felfish motives, has attended to nothing but his own intereft; fo that in the dark himself, with refpect to the evil designs of those brutish infidels the French, from not procuring proper intelligence, he did not apprife the inhabitants of Egypt thereof in good time.

When the unhappy tidings from thence came to our Imperial ear, a full month after that infufferable event had come to pass, fuch were our grief and concern, that we take God to witnefs, it drew tears from our eyes, and deprived us of fleep and reft.

We have therefore immediately depofed him from the office of Grand Vizir, and have appointed in his place Youssouff Pasha, governor of Erzerum, until whofe arrival at our fublime gate we appoint and conftitute you, Muftafa Bey, to be Kaïmakam.

Now it being incumbent upon all true believers to combat those faithlefs brutes the French, and it being become a pofitive duty for our Imperial perfon to deliver the bleffed territories from their accurfed hands, and to revenge the infult which they have offered to Muffulmans, no delay whatever is to take place for the arrival of the new Vizir; but the most vigorous meafures must be pursued to attack them by sea and land.

Wherefore by a deliberation with the illuftrious lawyers, minifters, and chieftains, our fubjects, you muft (with a full confidence in God and his Prophet) fix upon the effectual means of freeing the province of Egypt from the prefence of such wretches. You will acquaint all the true believers in the refpective quarters,

that we are at war with the French; and, turning night into day, will apply your utmost efforts to take revenge of them.

You will adopt the most vigilant conduct towards defending the other Mahomedan provinces, and our Imperial frontiers, from the plots and malice of the enemy, by the due reinforcement of every port and place with troops and military ftores.

You will likewife direct your zealous attention towards the due fupply of daily provifions to the inhabitants of this our Imperial refidence; and will watch over the affairs of all perfons in general, until the Supreme Vizir do arrive.

We fhall obferve your exertions; and may the omnipotent God ordain his divine favour to attend our undertakings, and render us fuccefsful in the vindication of our cause!

Addrefs of the Legislative Body to the French Nation, agreed to by the two Councils, on the 6th Oct. 1798.

A T the moment when the legislative body, penetrated with the importance of its auguft duties, gives to the generous people whom it reprefents, the ufeful inftitution of military confcription, circumftances of great importance demand a speedy application of its provifions, and require the immediate benefit of its effects. By a fudden operation of that law two hundred thousand citizens are called upon to fhare the honour of defending their country. It is not that they abandon the hope, or renounce the defire, of a speedy peace. They never have ceafed to figh for that moment, that happy and glorious moment, when our commón mother, feated upon the trophies of her children, might lay afide the fword, and devote her whole attention to the improvement of agriculture, ta the peaceable purfuit of fcience, to the brilliant inventions of national industry and pacific arts. Too much care, however, cannot be employed to diffipate the clouds which threaten the political horizon of Europe. The French republic has made all the facrifices for peace which her humanity dictated, and which her glory allowed. Wanting nothing but the will to conquer and to fubdue, the republic had the courage to arreft its courfe in the midft of its triumphs. If, however, certain crowned prize-fighters, little corrected by their numberlefs defeats, ftill are defirous anew to open the lifts, then, by the folemn voice of the two great powers of the ftate, it will again give the fignal of victory; and you, Frenchmen, you will anfwer with an unanimous cry, "We are ready! what nation calls for its deliverance? what king is tired of reigning?"

The indulgent republic has left on their thrones kings wha were guilty of aggreffion against it; but it has not left them the right of violating treaties, and continuing with impunity war in

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