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the French government. The general result of what passed, impressed me with the conviction, that the French plenipotentiaries no longer thought on making peace, upon the grounds of which France was understood to desire it, at the time of Jord Yarmouth's communication; and I am confident, that the part I bore in the discussion, thoroughly satisfied them, that I was resolved firmly to adhere to the ground which I had taken in the note of the 11th, on which I was invited to hear their remarks.

The hour of dinner terminated our conference, a renewal of which, on any day I should name, was, af ter dinner, anxiously solicited by M. de Champagny. I objected to it, as apparently unnecessary, and only calculated to protract my stay in this country, to no purpose; but, before I left him, expressed my willingness to comply once more with the wishes of the French plenipotentiaries, as a farther mark of my anxiety to do any thing which even they could think had a tendency to produce that peace, which his majesty was so anxious to accomplish on equitable terms and another meeting was fixed, to take place on Friday the 29th at three o'clock.

Late on the evening of the 26th, I waited on the minister for foreign affairs, for the purpose of informing him, that, at the request of the plenipotentiaries of France, I had agreed to a renewal of the conference. He had gone to St. Cloud, and, as by the minister's absence, I had no opportunity of explaining my reasons for not waiting on him, for the purpose of asking passports, as an nounced in my note of the 25th, I thought it right, early next morning

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to send a letter, of which a copy is inclosed, (marked C.)

On the 27th, after dinner, I had a very long conference with the mins. ter for foreign affairs, the substance of which confirmed me in the opin on I had antecedently formed, ia consequence of what passed at the meeting with the plenipotentiaries of France, that there is at present no disposition to make peace on the terms tendered for his majesty's ac ceptance; and I am convinced you will have the same impression, whea I state to you that M. Talleyrand, in the course of our conversation. repeatedly made use of the following marked expression: "Jamais l'Em pereur ne cedera un grain de poussière du territoire François."

In the course of this conference, the minister frequently alluded to the situation of Hanover, and stated that, within eight and forty hours, its fate must be determined for ever. He seemed much surprised that nothing appeared to make any impres sion on me, frequently repeating, that, in getting the Cape, Malta, and his majesty's Hanoverian dominions, I should make a glorious peace; and assuring me, that if this opportunity should be lost, he did not foreses any means by which peace could be ever attained, as the emperor was determined to make war all his life, rather than yield any part of the ter ritory of France, the integrity of which he had sworn to maintain.

Our conversation ended, by my assuring him, at the time I was about to retire, that while these sentiments continued to prevail in this country, it was impossible peace should be made, and that, with the knowledge I now possessed of the opinions entertained by the French govern

ment,

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Paris, 25th August, 1806. The plenipotentiaries of his majesty the emperor of the French, king of Italy, wishing to confer with his excellency the earl of Lauderdale, his Britannic majesty's plenipotentiary, upon the subject of the last note* his excellency addressed to them, request his lordship will call at the office of the minister of the interior to-morrow, about three o'clock in the afternoon, where they will meet, provided the hour is convenient to his excellency.

M. de Champagny has the honour of inviting the earl of Lauderdale to dine with him after the confer ence, and hopes that his excellency will bring with him to dinner, Messrs. Goddard, Stewart, and Maddison.

The French plenipotentiaries have the honour of repeating, to his excellency lord Lauderdale, the VOL. XLVIII.

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(Translation.)

Sir, Paris, Aug. 27, 1806. I called yesterday evening at your excellency's house, that I might have the honour of seeing you, and informing you that, in consequence of the request which was yesterday made to me by their excellencies the French plenipotentiaries, of another conference on Friday next, the 29th inst. I have postponed my demand for passports, which I intended to make this day to your excellency. Their excellencies the French plenipotentiaries appeared to attach so much importance to my consenting to another interview, that I gave with pleasure this new pledge of the pacific and conciliatory spirit by which I have ever been guided; and if I cannot flatter myself that there will result from this demand the prospect of a happy issue to the ncgotiation, I shall at least have the satisfaction of having again manifested, in the most unequivocal man. ner, how much my personal sentiments agree in this respect with those of my government, and with 3 D

* Lord Lauderdale's note of the 11th inst. vide p. 759,

what

place since the negotiation was entered upon and nearly brought to a conclusion, in concert with his excellency the earl of Yarmouth.

The undersigned avails himself of this opportunity to assure their excellencies the earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth of his high consideration.

(Signed)

Fifth Inclosure (E.) Copy of a Note from the Earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth, to General Clarke, dated August 9, 1806.

(Translation.)

rival has brought the negotiation to an unequivocal issue, and has put an end to those misunderstandings, without doubt real, which have taken place, and which never could have occurred if the same method had been adopted at the commencement of the negotiation.

The undersigned, the earl of YarClarke. mouth, finds himself compelled to recur to the manner in which it has been stated to him, that he landed at Calais invested with a public character to treat for peace. He only came to give in person and viva voce the answer to a communication that he had been requested to make to the English government, founded upon the basis of the uti possidetis, in conformity with the following words of his excellency M. Talleyrand: "We ask nothing from you;" accompanied with positive assurances that the restitution of the possessions of his majesty in Germany would meet with no opposition. The same sentiment also recurs in the letter from M. Talleyrand to Mr. Fox of the first of April in these terms: "The emperor covets nothing that England possesses.”

Paris, August 9, 1806. The undersigned plenipotentiaries of his Britannic majesty cannot allow themselves to enter into a detailed consideration of the official note, dated the 8th August, which has just been delivered to them on the part of his excellency general Clarke. From the manner in which the different points which form the subject of this note are treated, it would be impossible for them to discuss them with that calmness and that regard to propriety, which the character with which their sovereign has invested them, demands. But the subject of this note is of a nature, so general and so foreign to the object under discussion, that it would be perfectly useless to take it into consideration at the present moment.

The undersigned, the earl of Lauderdale, far from thinking that the manner of discussing in writing the fundamental points of a negotiation can in any shape encrease the difiiculty of coming to an understanding, is on the contrary of opinion that he already perceives evident proofs of its utility, inasmuch as the official note presented by him since his ar

The earl of Yarmouth.feels himself under an equal necessity of not passing over in silence the remarks made by his excellency general Clarke, on the subject of the delays of the negotiation, and of the frequent communication by messengers. The answers of his Britannic majesty have ever been frank and prompt; and if the number of messengers has been considerable, it can only be attributed to motives foreign to the wishes of his majesty.

The undersigned the earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth, can by no means subscribe to the opinion held out by his excellency general Clarke'

in the said note, that the negotiation "had been begun and nearly brought to a conclusion," in the interval which elapsed between the time when lord Yarmouth officially communicated his full powers, and the arrival of lord Lauderdale; on the contrary, they consider the negotiation as having scarcely commenced. The conversations to which allusion has been made, consisted, on the part of the French plenipotentaries, in making demands which the undersigned, the earl of Yarmouth, has uniformly declared to be inadmissible; and on the part of lord Yarmouth in keeping strictly within the bounds of the uti possidetis, not having any instructions on the part of his government to admit any other conditions of negotiation; conditions suggested by France in the communication made by the earl of Yarmouth, and previously an nounced in M. Talleyrand's letter of the first of April.

The undersigned earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth think it unnecessary, in this place, to repeat the motives set forth in the official note presented by lord Lauderdale, and which induced his majesty to consider the basis of the uti possidetis proposed by France peculiarly applicable to the respective situation of the two countries. It is to them a subject of deep regret that, by so absolute and decided a departure from that basis on the part of the French government, the hopes and expectations of the two nations must be entirely frustrated.

It only remains for the earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth to declare, that his majesty, ever ready to listen to just and honourable conditions of peace, relies with confidence upon the means which he de

rives from the loyalty and affection of his subjects. He will never listen to any proposals of negotiation whatsoever, upon terms incompatible with the honour of his crown and the real interests of his subjects. (Signed) Lauderdale.

Yarmouth.

Sixth Iuclosure (F.) is a Copy of a

Note from the Earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth to M. Talleyrand, dated August 9, 1806.—Demanding their passports.

No. XXXVI.

Extract from a Dispatch from the

Earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth
to Mr. Secretary Fox, dated Paris,
August 11th, 1806. Received
August 13th

Paris, August 11, 1806. In our last dispatch of the 9th instant, we had the honour of informing you, that on that evening we had applied for passports to return to England, and also for a passport for a courier we intended to have dispatched immediately.

We have only now to mention that, on Sunday at eleven o'clock, we sent the inclosure (marked A.) renewing our demand; and that this morning, having received no an. swer to either application, the inclosure (marked B.) was sent to M. Talleyrand's house, Rue d'Anjou. The courier Basilico, who carried the note, returned soon after to inform us, that he was directed at M. Talleyrand's house to go to the foreign office, where he accordingly went, but was told that no communication would be received there till between twelve and one.

We then begged of Mr. Goddard to go himself to the foreign office, and deliver the letter; he found 3 C 3

that

that the clerks had only just arrived, and that M. Talleyrand was gone to St. Cloud, not to return till four o'clock.

At half after five we received from Messrs. Clarke and Champagny an official note (marked C.) Immediately upon the receipt of this note, we wrote the inclosure (marked D.) to M. Talleyrand, and received from him at nine o'clock an answer (marked E.) which is also inclosed. The inclosure (marked F.) is the reply to the official note which we intend to send the moment it can be copied.

Addition by the earl of Yarmouth.

As the French government has in every instance admitted the exactness of the communications made by me, I beg leave, in addition to this dispatch, to remark that the intention expressed to me by the French government, as that which made them prefer communicating through my channel rather than on paper, was the expressing to his majesty's government their readiness to restore his majesty's German dominions in toto, but that for obvious reasons this could not be expressed on paper till every other condition of the treaty should be settled.

First Inclosure (A.) is a Copy of a Note from the Earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth to M. Talleyrand, dated August 10,1806, demanding passports.

Second Inclosure (B.) is a Copy of a Note from the Earls of Lauderdale and Yarmouth to M. Talleyrand, dated August 11, 1806,Stating that passports were demanded for themselves on two several days, and no answer received, and renewing the demand.

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Paris, August 11, 1806. The undersigned ministers plenipotentiary of his majesty the em peror of the French, king of Italy, have read with attention the note dated the 9th of August, addressed to them by their excellencies the plenipotentiaries of his majesty the king of the united kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland, in which they again propose the uti possidetis as the basis of the negotiation.

The French plenipotentiaries know not, whether, by the adop tion of this principle, England would obtain the right of exacting from the French government for herself and her allies, every restitution which may suit her convenience, without being bound to make any restitution to France and her allies of the conquests which she has made. This demand would be so extraordinary, that it would be equivalent to saying that France should sign all the conditions which it may please the English plenipotentiaries to commit to writing. One cannot suppose that such is really the intention of the English ministry. They have not sent over plenipotentiaries for the sole pur pose of requiring the admission of an indefinite basis, which would render them masters of all the conditions of the treaty. In a state of things so obscure, the French plenipotentiaries demand such expla nations as may enable them to understand, and to proceed in the negotiation. These consist in making known what are the conquests

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