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tion his majesty's meffage, was moved, in the house of commons, by

Mr. Dundas, who, in confidering the question before the houfe, called their attention to the leading principles of the French revolution, whatever form it might aflume. He stated it as an undeniable fact, that the leading feature of the French revolution was a total difregard to all treaties and obligations, and a fovereign contempt for the rights and privileges of other powers. "If," said Mr. Dundas, "it were neceflary to adduce a proof, I thould refer merely to one tranfaction. Has there been, I afk, any attempt to palliate the French decree of the nineteenth of November? a decree conftituting it a part of their bounden duty to excite ipfurrection and fedition in other states, for the purpose of overthrowing their exifting governments. I contend, that this proclamation contains the code of the revolution, and that its fpirit never has been departed from in a single inftance; and I alfo contend, from its obvious overture, that there is no perfon prefent who would attempt to juftify the publication of that decree. I do not, as I have already ftated, intend to detail the various enormities and offences that have occurred fince the French revolution; but it is neceffary to confider and weigh with due attention how far France has obferved its faith with foreign nations, and whether it has conftantly manifefted a peaceable difpofition. Sir, I know perfectly well, and have no hefitation to confefs, that the French revolu tion professed its object to be purely pacific, and at an early period proclaimed fuch to be its intention. I admit a proclamation to that effect, fhortly after the revolution; but it

is necellary to recollect whether this that was propofed was its real genius and character; and a fingular thing it is, truly, that in the interval between the date of that proclamation and the prefent moment, there is scarcely a nation that has not been either at war with France, or on the eve of being fo; not from any ambition or want of faith on their part, but in confequence of the open violation, of fubfifting treaties, and direct aggreffion by the French republic. In proof of this affertion, I beg leave merely to recite the names of the different nations with which it has been at war within that time; Spain, Naples, Sardinia, Tufcany, Genoa, Geneva, Modena, Venice, Auftria, Ruffia, England, Egypt, (a laugh), aye, and even that creature of its creation, the Cifalpine republic; fo that Denmark and Sweden are the only two kingdoms that have not been in actual and avowed hoftility with it; and even they have fuffered injuries fcarcely inferior to what it has inflicted upon the nations with whom it was engaged in open war. This fhort ftatement fall at prefent fuffice me; and I fhall only observe, that France, which fet out with fuch pacific intentions, has, fome how or other, Lot been able to escape from being conftantly involved in war. Sir, is it nothing that this fhould arife (not from accident, fortuitous combination of circumftances, but) from the inherent principles of the revolution; and that, from a ftrict adherence to them, negociation has been ineffectually tried; or, in cale of its fuccefs, groffly violated by France, with respect to the nations with which he was at war; and that in the cafe of the two countries [G4]

or any

to

to which I have alluded, they have, in confequence of her hoftile conduct and aggreffion, been under the neceffity of recalling their ambaffadors? This, then, being the ftrong feature of the revolution, the peculiar character of the jacobinical government of France, and it being clear and manifeft that a principle hoftile to peace, and in oppofition to the fpirit of peace and treaties, has characterized the French revolution, the queftion, at this prefent day, refolves itfelf fimply into this, whether that conftitution, fuch as I have described it, does or does not exift? In arguing this point, I have no occafion to refort to abftract reafoning, I have only to ftate the authority of the fupporters and advocates of the late revolution, every one of whom is of opinion, that it was impoffible, from the nature and conftitution of the French government, that it would prefent any thing but continual war to all nations within its sphere of action. This is no defcription of mine; it is the account given of it by thofe who have lived under it, who have taken an active part in its adminiftration, and judge, from a ten years experience, of its merits, Having thus afcertained, from the teftimony of the French themselves, what the government cf France was, I am led, by the natural progrefs of difcuffion, to inquire what it is now. Are the practices of which all other nations have complained, now reprobated by France? Are the principles of aggreffion and ambition, on which he has acted, laid afide? Have we any pofitive proof of thefe changes, or any reafonable caute to prelume that fuch have taken place? It is a mistake to fuppofe, that thele principles

were effentially connected with the jacobinical form of and therefore muft ftand or fall government, with fuch form; but, in fubftance, all the other qualities of the revolutionary government are as much in force at this moment as they were in the days of Barrero and Robefpierre.

of the change that has recently taken What, then, the peculiar nature place may be, or whether it be for the better or for the worfe. with refpect to the people of France themfelves, I fhall leave others to decide.

change, in relation to other governBut if we confider the ments, and the degree of confidence which they ought to place in the future conduct of France, the only difference that I fee between the prefent and any of her former gowere derived from republican afvernments is this, that the others femblies reprefenting the people; and though the people always, and thefe aflemblies often, were nothing but the blind inftruments of the executive, the appearance of the conftitution

whereas all this is now at an end. was ftill preferved, Form and fubftance are all now concentrated and confolidated in the hands of Buonaparte, and the government now ftands, with a military defpot at its head, with unlimited power and authority to revive the practice of forced loans and requifitions, to wield the force of the ftate as he pleafes, and refort to all the refources of the revolutionary government. Upon this queftion I may expect to hear it aiked, if, as I have ftated upon the authority of the French themfelves, there was no fecurity afforded by the government of France for a faithful obfervance of treaties with other nations, pre

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vious to the month of November Lift, whether it has not afforded any fince? and here, I contend, if gentlemen will take a review of that interval, and all the circumftances attending it, that they will not find a fingle fecurity in the prefent government of that country, which was not poffeffed by all thofe that preceded it, and that have been condemned as defective in that particular. Under thefe circumftances, recent overtures are made for opening a negociation for peace. This propofition his majefty's minifters have thought proper to reject, affigning, at the fame time, as a reafun, that, as all the former attempts made for that purpofe had proved abortive, or, if fuccefsful, were followed by violation, nothing yet prefented itfelf, arifing out of the prefent revolution, that promifed any other termination to any negociation which we might enter upon, or afford greater fecurity than what we pollelled before. To thefe obfervations I cheerfully fubfcribe. In the first place, we are not certain of the fincerity of the overture; and fecondly, if we were, there is nothing of ftability yet acquired by the prefent government to fatisfy us, that, if fincere, it affords fecurity for the obfervance of the treaty. This, then, is the outline of the argument that I mean to purfue; and I with the houfe to confider, whether it would be confiftent with the line of conduct which it has uniformly followed, and juftified by the dreadful expenfe of blood and treasure, to which we are indebted for our prefent fituation, to ritk it by entering into a negociation with a government of which we have had no experience, and which affords no fecurity that we are aware

of beyond any that preceded it, Laying afide then all perfonal confiderations of Buonaparte, but viewing his government, in a general and abftra point of view, as a recent affumption of power, I afk, what are the circumftances of confidence that it affords? What are the grounds, on which we have fecurity for the due obfervance of a treaty in the event of its conclufion? To afcertain thefe points, we must refort to the power with which we have to deal for a criterion by which to try the queftion. In doing this, we are fometimes decided by the character of the king of a country, fometimes by the conduct of his minifiers, and fometimes by the general conduct and character of the government; but is there any one of thefe criteria to be found in the prefent cafe? Is there any one of its minifters, or any thing in the executive power or government of the country, of fufficient ftanding to afford any of thefe criteria? If, then, in the prefent inftance, we have none of thefe rules, by which experience enables us to judge in treating with other power, all refts upon the affertion of the party himfelf, declaring that he is of a pacific difpofition, accredited, it is true, by his minifter Talleyrand; for, to him he has referred, as appears from the correfpondence, to vouch for this pacific character. It is not this country's business, however, to judge the private character and conduct of Buonaparte. He is the repofitary of the power of France, and it is only as connected with that fituation that we feel an intereft in his difpofition. In this view, then, I fhall confider it; and here let it be understood, that it is far from my intention to enter into any abule

or railing against the character of Buonaparte. I difavow any fuch intention. At the fame time, I muft confefs, I have an old national prejudice about me fo far influencing my judgement, as to make me regard the blafphemer of his God as not precifely that fort of man with whom I could wish to treat; but any objection of this kind I readily wave, and with only to confider him in the character in which he forces himfelf upon the house, namely, as profeffing a pacific difpofition, and propofing a negociation for peace. I fay, I am bound to confider the character of the man as connected with his propofal, before I can feel fufficient inducement to tempt me to enter into negociation. I shall refer merely to the cafes in which Buonaparte has been the only agent, the fcenes in which he has been the fole performer: I shall not place to his account the contribution impofed on Hamburgh, nor the conduct obferved by France towards Spain and Portugal, but I fhall refer you to the Cifalpine republic, Naples, Venice, Genoa,, Tufcany, and Sardinia; for, in the cafe of all thefe, the conduct of France was the conduct of Buonaparte himself. With regard to Venice, what was his conduct to that ftate? He entered it on the faith of a previous proclamation, avowing that his fole object was to protect it from falling under the power of Auftria. What was his first act? The diffolution of its government. What was his fecond? His furrender of it to the very power againft which he declared his only object was to afford it protection. What were the circumftances of his conduct with refpect to the Cifalpine republic? A propofal of a treaty of commerce

and alliance was made to it by France, which the government of that republic had the audacity to decline; and for this free and juft exercife of its rights, the perfons who exercifed it were punished by Buonaparte. With regard to Malta, we have never heard of any aggreffion committed by her againft France, any ground or pretence of hoftility; yet the attack upon that ifland was open, and that attack conducted by Buonaparte. The whole of this queftion would embrace a variety of inftances of fraud and unprovoked aggreffion too numerous in detail; I thall therefore felect only fuch as immediately apply to the proper object. What, then, I afk, has been the conduct of Buonaparte with regard to Egypt? It is not pretended that there was any aggreflion on the part of the Ottoman Porte.→→→ But what has been the conduct of Buonaparte? His laft act, before he left that country, was to fend a memorial to the grand vizier, stating, that he came to it without any hoftile intention; that his only object was to relieve him from the tyranny of the beys; and that he (the grand vizier) had only to defire him to withdraw with his army, and the order fhould be inftantly obeyed. But what does this man, who makes fuch pacific and friendly profeflions to the grand vizier, fay, when writing to general Kleber? He defires him to enter into a negociation with the Ottoman Porte, but to endeavour to prevent the evacuation of the country by the army, until after a general peace (a cry of "hear! hear!"), that he might fill preferve a chance of returning to that country. We have this man flated as a lover of peace; yet all this unprecedented conduct to the Ottoman

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Ottoman Porte, the old friend and
ally of France, is the conduct of
Buonaparte, who, in his propotals
for negociation, plays the double
dealer with that government to
whom he profelles fincere attach-
ment, while the inftructions to the
refpectable officer whom he leaves
behind are of a quite contrary im-
port. These are the views of his
character, of the most recent parts
of his conduct, that I wish to con-
fider; I regard him in the character
in which he wishes to be under-
food, as a negociator for peace;
and I fancy the houfe has anticipa-
ted me in the inference which I
mean to draw from them. This
inference is, that, by the late re-
volution, we are deprived of all the
criteria of fincerity and fidelity
which we ought to find in a power
with which we could negociate,
and are obliged to reft on the fole
character of the French conful him-
felf, with this difadvantage and
firong objection to it, that there is
not a fingle cafe on record in which
he has not violated his faith; and I
fate it again, and I am ready to
prove, that in all this catalogue of
crimes he himself has been the
aftor of the principal parts; and
that not only when acting under the
order of government, but from the
uninfluenced impulfe of his own
mind, and the dictates of his own
confcience, in which capacity he
appears in the feveral tranfactions.
alluded to, and in all of which he
has conducted himtelf in utter con-
tempt of faith or friendship. If I
am right in ftating thefe facts, the
conclufion I draw from them is, that
we should be fure that there was
fomething more of fincerity in the
negociation which he now propofes,
than characterifes that which he en-

tered into with the Ottoman Porte; that there fhould be fome proof, arising out of his conduct in the tranfactions with which he was connected to evince a truly pacific difpofition: but, unfortunately, nothing of this kind is to be found; the current runs the other way. In fhort there is not a fingle ftep on which you can get foot, that you do not find marked with hoftility and breach of faith. But it has been faid, why not make the experi ment? If it should not fucceed, we fhould be juft where we were before. This language I know has been held out of doors. But I afk, does any gentleman who hears me, ferioufly mean to fay, that in the prefent relative fituation of Europe, this would be an experiment perfectly innocent in its nature? If we fucceeded in the laft campaign in calling forth the exertions of foreign power, in exciting the energies of Europe, and in making the most illuftrious efforts-if we have reafon to be proud of the fare we have contributed to thefe atchievements, is it a matter of indifference to diffolve that connection to which they owe their birth, and to fend the other nations of Europe fcrambling for a peace, deferted and abandoned by us, their allies? Is this, I fay, a matter of indifference? and yet this would be the firft effect of an acceptance of the overture. But this question I fhall leave others to decide. I fall only contend, that without fomething to rest upon for fincerity in the propofal, and fidelity in the obfervance, it would be a degree of infanity to open a negociation On this point I may be told, that the prefent reduced fate of France affords an ample fecurity: but this is a double-edged

weapon,

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