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but will finally grant them such a capitulation as their gallant resistance at once deserves, and renders it absolutely necessary for the conqueror to allow. He will rule Spain with a very light rod, if he ever rules her at all, because he knows, that there is no other chance of rulling her long. We ascribe here nothing to his virtues we only give him credit for some of that prudence which never forsook him before the march. into Spain, and of which, there is too much reason to dread, he has long ere now regained possession.

ADVERSARIA.

Quid est, quod negligenter scribamus adversaria ?—Cic.

LORD GRENVILLE's SPEECH.

THE editor of a certain democratick paper in this town introduces Lord Grenville to our notice as the Chatham of Great-Britain. The obliquity of some people's minds is astonishing: they can see a parallel in a contrast;

Opticks sharp it needs, I ween,

To see what is not to be seen.'

Whether the peculiar eloquence of Lord Chatham and that of Lord Grenville, their sentiments, or their actions be compared, they will be found as entirely contrasted as Bonaparte and George the third. Mr. Pitt began a patriot, and ended in the 'hospital of incurables;' after he was made Lord Chatham, as Chesterfield very pertinently remarks, he was no longer Mr. Pitt, in any respect whatever. Lord Grenville began the most decided of monarchists, and is now united to the Foxites.Lord Chatham's eloquence was sublime, figurative, sentimental. Lord Grenville's is acute, argumentative and didactick. So much for propriety of comparison. We are then delighted with a flaming introduction to his Lordship's 'celebrated' speech, even before it is made known in this country; a speech which is called 'very elegantly to be sure, an illustrious monument, muscular, strong and full to every point of truth, justice and honour. Its strength and symmetry is lost by abridgment, we therefore present it entire.'

Really the editor of this paper seems willing to introduce a novel system of logick and composition; he never thinks of appealing to common sense; but we have no doubt he makes a great display among those who admire splendid similes, and the reasonings of Martinus Scriblerus. Such persons will very readily comprehend the meaning of a strong, muscular monument? And can easily imagine such a ⚫ monument full to every point of truth, justice and honour;' and if

they read Lord Grenville's speech they will be convinced that the 'strength and symmetry' of this muscular monument,' is lost by abridgment.'

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The editor then declares that the famous letter of Mr. Canning which he admits was suppressed by our government, when he elegantly remarks, it did not see fit to blab from its own cabinet the gross calumny of the British minister till it should be confuted by our own.' The phrase not see fit to blab,' conveys a vindication of the turpitude of Mr. Jefferson, equally original and ingenious. The editor very wisely remarks of this very letter, that it now becomes a suppressed document in England. The evidence of its existence cannot be found in parliament, except in an American newspaper; while our diplomatick correspondence' (without the suppressed letter which is contained in a newspaper)' are produced and lie upon the table in the British House of Peers.' We cannot but admire this new instance of obliquity. This editor says that Mr. Canning's letter is suppressed in England, and that the evidence of its existence cannot be found in parliament. It would be very strange indeed if Mr. Canning had ordered the correspondence to be published before parliament convened, or before the papers were called for; but it seems much more strange, how a docu ment can be said to be suppressed before any authority to publish it, had been given. This kind of reasoning, however seems congenial to the mind of certain writers;

All is infected that the infected spy,

As all seems yellow to the jaundic'd eye.

ORATION ON DUELLING.

MR. Ogilvie, who had previously to his arrival in Boston, delivered a course of orations in the various capital cities of the United States, and been eminently distinguished for his rhetorick and elocution, pronoun. ced his first oration, on Duelling, in this town, last Thursday evening.

The success which atttended him on this occasion was decisive. He possesses taste, fancy, method, and an uncommonly attractive manner in delivery. His arguments, upon the subject which he discussed, were closely, logically, but eloquently reasoned, and illustrated by the most vivid colourings of imagination. His descriptive faculties are singularly adapted to aid him in denouncing such a practice, as that which employed him on this occasion; but, we apprehend, all the thunders of eloquence will be insufficient to terrify men from the perpetration of such a crime, or to reduce the frequency of its commission. ertions of Mr. Ogilvie merit reward; and we are confident to predict that he will obtain a very extended reputation, if, in his subsequent essays, he evinces equal powers of thought and elocution, to those which have occasioned the present acknowledgment of their superiority.

The ex

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The pretension of visiting ships of war has never been brought forward, so far as we know, except accidentally in two cases; and in these it was given up, before time had been allowed for discussing the subject. This is the reason why no direct anthority can be found upon the point in writers on the law of nations, and no stipulation respecting it in treaties. But all the general principles which are recognized, both by authors and negociators, most uniformly and positively exclude such a pretension.Ed. Rev.

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THE discussions of the questions produced by the affair of the Chesapeak and Leopard were for a short time suspended by the expectation of the arrival of a special minister from Great-Britain upon the subject; so that when Congress met in October, the American government was still uninformed of the state of the controversy.'. In the VIIth chapter our author informs us of the discussions which took place in Congress before Mr. Rose's arrival, the state of parties, and the measures adopted by Congress in consequence of the President's message, at the opening of the session. We find nothing in this relation which is repugnant to our own views of the subjects he mentions, excepting the following observation respecting France, to which we cannot prevail upon ourselves to assent. Such is the influence of party zeal, that the transactions in the Chesapeak seemed to be hastening to oblivion in the minds of one class of the people, while a deeper animosity was expressed against France than ever, though no very gross and flagrant injustice had been recently committed by that state against us."

Our author does not presume to hazard any political reflections on the various topicks, which the singularly unfortunate situation of our foreign affairs naturally produced; but seems contented to offer an abstract of the arguments used by others, and leaves his readers to form their own conclusions. Whilst an historian should be scrupulously attentive to truth in his narrative of circumstances, yet we think he sinks into a chronicleer, when he proceeds on his course of description withVol. 1. I 1

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out hazarding a single original reflection, or suffering his own opinion to be discovered, excepting by some oversight in expression. It is extremely ludicrous, however, in the impending dangers with which our country was threatened at that extraordinary session of Congress, to observe the efforts of an overweening economy pervade all their resolves. Thus the naval establishment was to be enlarged, as war with G. Britain was thought almost inevitable; and its augmentation is thus related by our author: On the 20th of November a committee of the senate had proceeded so far as to present to that body a bill for defraying the expence of building an additional number of gun-boats. The government had previously notified them that near two hundred and sixty gun boats would be necessary, of which about seventy were already provided. In distributing them, the greatest number, about fifty, was said to be required at New-York. The building of a gun-boat is said to cost about five thousand dollars, so that deducting those already built, and the stores already provided, a sum of eight hundred thousand dol lars was said to be required to raise this species of navy to the force above mentioned.' All these topicks of controversy soon became merged in the great question of the embargo, which was soon after recommended by the President to congress. Innocent of all opinion on this subject, however, our author leaves it to his readers to understand whether government were precipitate in the adoption of that measure, whether it was beneficial to us or not, and whether it was calculated to produce the consequences on foreign nations, to which our administration with more confidence than judgment, looked forward as being so very conciliatory as to end all our commercial difficulties and place us again upon the footing of the most favoured nation. Our author merely relates the arguments of opposition and the replications on the part of the supporters of the administration; but does not advert to any real and intrinsick advantages which resulted from the measure, nor to the overwhelming distress in which the people of the eastern states had been plunged. For our own part we are apt to believe, there nev. er was a great measure adopted by a nation, which on the whole, has operated so little to the detriment of other powers, and which more completely disappointed the expectations of its advocates, than the American embargo. Let us take for example the British West-India interest, which it was said the embargo would entirely destroy. It appears by a report of the committee of the West-Indian Docks, in London, that during the operation of our embargo, many more vessels were unloaded than ever were discharged in any year since the establishment of the institution. The article of sugar too, which before the embargo was established was so low in England, that the price would not pay the cost of cultivation and carrying to market, has risen so high as to afford a large profit, notwithstanding the additional quantity brought in the increased number of ships. One hundred and seventy

four large West-India vessels have unloaded at the West India Docks this season, over and above the average number for the last five years.* The arguments against the embargo have strengthened by time; its advocates have been driven from every ground of controversy, till at length they have been obliged to desert it altogether.

In the IXth chapter the author enters upon the mission of Mr. Rose, relative to the Chesapeak disaster, which it was very probable would be impeded at the outset, by the intervention of two important circum. stances. The nature and extent of the satisfaction demanded by our government, which had been dispatched to Mr. Munroe, were not the least impediment to an amicable issue. This atonement was a formal disavowal of the deed, and restoration of the four seamen to the ship from which they were taken. As a security for the future, an entire abolition of impressments from vessels under the flag of the United States, if not already arranged, is also to make an indispensable part of the satisfaction.'t A compliance with the first demand, as the author well observes, had been rendered impossible by the exécution of Jenkin Ratford, at Halifax. The British proclamation of the 16th of October, 1807, with regard to deserters, presented a formidable obstacle to a compliance with the entire abolition of impressments,' which was stated as an indispensible' part of the satisfaction, to be demanded. These objections to a reconciliation were increased by the opinion of the British Government, that the repeal of the proclamation of the President was a necessary preliminary to any negociation on the subject. Mr. Rose, on his arrival, found insuperable difficulties to encounter. The mingling of the Chesapeak attack with the general claim as to impressments, was manifestly unjust, because seamen in merchant ships, are in every respect differently situated from those on board ships of war. In one case, in addition to the seamen being considered on the national territory of the neutral country, there is a presumption that the government of such a nation will not knowingly retain foreign deserters in her service. In the case of merchant ships no such presumption exists, since it is not understood that a neutral government makes itself a party to the private contracts of individuals, which nevertheless may interfere with the interests and rights of the belliger. ent. The claim therefore of the universal immunity of the American

From this report it appears, that fixty-eight more fhips unloaded at the docks than the preceding season, and one hundred and seventy-four ships more than the average number of the five preceding years. Four hundred and sixty ships were unloaded with the following articles: 159,800 hogsheads and tierces of sugar, 26,900 puncheons and hogsheads of rum, 31,600 hogsheads and tierces and 150,400 bags of coffee, and 13,000 bags cotton [Literary Panorama for February:]

✦ Letters from Mr. Madison to Mr. Munroe, July 6, 1807.

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