lose their confidence; all that could not save themselves were killed in the battery. The cannon were immediately turned against the second battery, against which marched the chief of battalion Ebrand with a picked battalion. He attacked in front, and at once turned the work, which was carried in a few minutes by the bayonet. The Spanish officer was killed on his cannon with the cannoneers.-A third battery, with a strong entrenchment, yet remained in front of the Convent, and presented the greatest obstacles to us to attack in front; but 50 marksmen had climbed, we know not by what audacity, through the clefts of the rocks, and had reached the summit of the peaks of the mountain; from thence they plunged into the very interior of the Convent and the entrenchments. D'Ayrolas immediately descended with part of his men into the ravines and impenetrable paths, where it was impossible to follow him. Some officers were taken with the rest of the soldiers, and the Convent and thirteen hermitages were instantly occupied by our brave men.-We took two standards, ten pieces of cannon, of large calibre,amillion of cartridges, an immense quantity of ammunition, cloaths, and provisions.--De serters from the fort of Figueras have declared, that there are about 1,000 sick in the garrison, which are reduced to half rations. The English cruisers have disappeared with Campo Verde and his adherents. The merchants of Valencia are carrying off their most precious effects to Alicant and Majorca.

DISTRICT OF THE ARMY OF THE NORTH. -The assemblage of the Gallicians, commanded by Santocildes, has tried a fresh attack upon the posts of Orbigo. On the 2nd July, at two in the morning, Santocildes at the head of all his troops appeared at the village of Vellamor, upon Orbigo. Gen. Bonnet had time to collect three regiments at Villa d'Angas: he marched immediately against the enemy, who, after some moment's firing, were staggered by a fine charge of the 12th dragoons, which determined them to retreat, leaving many dead upon the field of battle.-A reconnoisance pushed on the 10th towards Astorga, announced that the enemy seemed willing to maintain themselves there, and were reinforcing themselves with peasants. On the 14th General Bonnet, with a strong detachment, reconnoitred the position of the enemy, who hastened his retreat over the mountains of Villa Franca,

without its being possible to bring him to an action, which would have decided his fate.

DISTRICT OF THE ARMY OF THE CENTRE. -The town of Cuenca, cleared of the brigands, has been occupied in a military manner, and the province occupied like those of the interior: the greater part of the prisoners desired to enter into our service: those that were dispersed, return successively to their homes all the Commons are loud against the frightful system of these bands, which know neither friend nor foe; they all desired arms and the honour of defending themselves: several have already distinguished themselves by the arrest of some leaders too famous for their atrocities.

SWEDEN.Edict for the repressing of Luxury-July 10th, 1811.

Sir, The King has felt himself obliged, in order to destroy that tendency to luxury and effeminacy which has already, perhaps, taken root in the nation, not only to invite his faithful subjects to renounce such pernicious abuses, but also to renew the ancient ordinances with regard to smuggling, which shall in future be severely punished. Under these circumstances, I think it my duty to invite you to exert yourself with zeal in this important business.-The experience of past times, and the renewal of the ancient ordinances, sufficiently show the inefficacy of laws in attaining the object proposed. When nations the most respectable prefer an empty brilliancy to that which is real, frivolity to gravity, and the thirst of gain to an honest competence, they are led astray; the superfluities of foreign countries injure the native productions of their own, and every one sacrifices the public good to his personal interest. It is in vain that the law opposes its authority to the progress of the evil, while punishment, slowly reaching two or three individuals, gives time for inventing new subterfuges. But there is a powerful mean of supporting the law, of rousing the national spirit, and of re-establishing order, it is the example of submission to authority, of respect for the ordinances connected with decency, morals, and sobriety, which should be given by the first societies of the kingdom, by holding up the dissipated and the selfish to contempt, and by honouring those who practise temperance, and know how to impose upon themselves privations. It

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TO THE PRINCE REGENT:

ON THE DISPUTE WITH AMERICA.

LETTER II.

SIR, Intelligence, received since the date of the former Letter, which I did myself the honour to address to your Royal Highness, makes it more imperious upon us to examine well the grounds upon which we are proceeding with regard to the American States. The President has called the Congress together; and, there can be little doubt of his object being to propose to them, for their approbation, some measure more of a warlike character than any which he has hitherto adopted; nor, can we, it seems to me, be at all surprized at this, if, as is rumoured, it be true, that Mr. Foster, our new minister in America, has made a communication to the American government, making the revocation of our Orders in Council depend upon the conduct of Napoleon as to the Continental System.

The rise and progress of the Orders in Council and of the French Decrees have already been noticed, and sufficiently dwelt upon; it has been shown, that the grounds of the present dispute, namely, the flagrant violation of neutral rights, did not originate with France, but with England, or, if not with England, with Prussia; it has been shown, and no one will attempt to deny the fact, that the French Decrees were passed after the is suing of our Orders in Council; that they were passed expressly in the way of retaliation; that they were to be revoked when we revoked our Orders. It has been shown, that we professed to be animated with a sincere and most earnest desire to revoke our Orders, and, indeed, that we expressly declared, that we would revoke them whenever the French would revoke their Decrees. It has been shown, that the French officially informed the American Government, that the Decrees were revoked, and that, thereupon, the American Government called upon us to fulfil our promises in revoking our Orders; but, that we did not do this; that we

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evaded the fulfilment of these promises, and, in short, that we have not revcked, or softened the rigour of, any part of our Orders. It has, in a word, been shown, that, while the French have revoked their Decrees, while they, in consequence of the remonstrances of America, have ceased to violate her neutral rights, we persevere in such violation.

The pretext for this was, at first, that' the Emperor Napoleon, though he said he had revoked his Decrees, had not done it, and meant not to do it. This, may it please your Royal Highness, was, it appears to me, a very strange kind of language to use towards other powers. It was treating the American government as a sort of political ideot. It was telling it that it did not understand the interests of America, and that it was unworthy to be entrusted with power. And, it was saying to the Emperor of France, that he was to be regarded as shut out of the pale of sovereigns; that he was on no account to be believed; that no faith was to be given to the official communications of his ministers, or of any persons treating in his name. Thus, then, the door against peace, against exchange of prisoners, against a softening of the rigours of war in any way or in any degree, was for ever barred; and, the termination of war was, in fact, made to depend upon the death of Napoleon.

But, this pretext could not last long; for, the Decrees were actually revoked; the revocation went into effect; and those Decrees are now wholly dead as to any violation of the neutral rights of America. It was, therefore, necessary to urge some new objection to the revocation of our Orders in Council; and, it is now said, that Mr. Foster has demanded, that, as a condition of the revocation of our Orders in Council, the French shall revoke all the commercial regulations which they have adopted since the Orders in Council were issued; that is to say, that Napoleon shall give up what he calls the Continental System, and admit English goods into the Continent of Europe.

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I do not say, may it please your Royal Highness, that Mr. Foster has been instructed to make such a demand: I state the proposition as I find it described in our own public prints; but, this I can have no hesitation in saying, that a proposition so replete with proof of having flowed from impudence and ignorance the most consummate is not to be found in the history of the diplomacy of the universe. The Government of America can have no right whatever to interfere with the internal regulations of the French Empire or of any other country; and, the Continental System, as it is called, consists merely of internal regulations. These regulations have nothing at all to do with the rights of neutrals; they do not violate, in any degree, any of those rights; and, therefore, America cannot, without setting even common sense at defiance, be called upon to demand an abandonment of that system.

But, Sir, permit me to stop here and to examine a little into what that system really is. It forbids the importation into the Empire of Napoleon and the states of his allies any article being the manufacture, or produce, of England or her colonies. This, in a few words, is the Continental System. And, your Royal Highness certainly need not be reminded, that it is a system which has been very exactly copied from the commercial code of England herself. Your Royal Highness's ministers and many members of Parliament have spoken of this system as the effect of vindictiveness on the part of Napoleon; as the effect of a mad despotism, which threatens Europe with a return of the barbarous ages; but, I see nothing in this system that has not long made part of our own system. It is notorious, that the goods manufactured in France are prohibited in England; it is notorious that French wine and brandy are forbidden to be brought hither; in short, it is notorious that no article being the manufacture or produce of France is permitted to be brought into England; and, that seizure, confiscation, fine, imprisonment, and ruin attend all those who act in infraction of this our commercial code.

This being the case, it does seem to require an uncommon portion of impudence or of self-conceit for us to demand of the Americans to cause the Continental System to be abandoned as a condition upon

which we are willing to cease to violate their rights. But, it has been said, that Napoleon enforces his system with so much rigour and barbarity. This does not at all alter the state of the case between us and America, who has no power, and, if she had the power, who has no right, to interfere with his internal regulations. Yet, Sir, it is not amiss to inquire a little into the fact of this alledged barbarity of Napoleon. All rulers are content with accomplishing their object; and, in this case, it would not be his interest to inflict greater penalties than the accomplishing of his object required. Our own laws against smuggling are not the mildest in the world; and, we have seen them hardened by degrees, till they answered the purpose that the government had in view. We have been told, indeed, that Napoleon punishes offences against his commercial code with enormous fines, with imprisonment, and we have heard of instances where he has resorted to the punishment of death. These severities have been made the subject of most grievous complaints against him here; they have brought down upon him reproaches the most bitter; they have been cited as proofs indubitable of the intolerable despotism, under which his people groan. But, Sir, I have confidence enough in your justice and magnanimity to remind you, that there is nothing which his commercial code inflicts; that there is nothing in any of the punishments that even rumour has conveyed to our ears; no, nothing, in any of these surpassing in severity; nay, nothing in any of them equalling in severity, the punishments provided for in the commercial code of England, having for their object, towards France, precisely that in view which the Continental system has in view towards England, namely, her embarrassment, and, finally, her overthrow,

In support of this assertion I could cite many of the acts in our statute book; but I

allude particularly to that which was passed in the month of May 1793, at the breaking out of the war against the republicans of France. That act, which appears to have been drawn up by the present Lord Chancellor, makes it High-trea son, and punishes with death, and also with forfeiture of estates, all those persons, residing or being in Great Britain, who shall have any hand whatever, either directly or indirectly, in selling any goods (mentioned in the said act) to the French government,

It was said at the time, by the present Lord Chancellor, and by the greater part of those men who compose your Royal Highness's ministry, that this act, terrible as it was, was demanded, by the safety of the nation This Mr. Fox denied, and he strenuously laboured to prevent the passing of an act so severe. I shall offer no opinion upon this matter; but it is certain that the code of Napoleon is not, because it cannot, be more terribly severe than this act; and this being the case, common decency ought to restrain those who justified this act from uttering reproaches against the author of the continental code. Our Government then said that the act of 1793 was necessary in order to crush the revolution that had reared its head in France, and that was extending its principles over Europe. They justified the act upon the ground of its necessity. So does Napoleon his code. He says that that code is necessary to protect the continent against the maritime despotism and the intrigues of England. His accusations against us may be false, but he is only retorting upon us our accusations against France; and between two such powers, there is nobody to judge. In truth our Government passed its act of 1793, because it had the will and the power to pass and to inforce it; and Napoleon has established his continental system, because he also has the will and the power. It is to the judgment of the world that the matter must be left, and I beseech your Royal Highness to consider, that the world will judge of our conduct according to the evidence which it has to judge from, and that that judgment will leave

To return and apply what has here been said to the case on which I have the honour to address your Royal Highness, what answer would have been given to America, if she, in the year 1793, had demanded of our Government the rescinding of the act of which I have just given a faint description? In supposing, even by the way of argument, America to have taken such a liberty, I do a violence to common sense, and commit an outrage upon diplomatic decorum; and it is quite impossible to put into words an expression of that indignation which her conduct would have excited. And yet, Sir, there appears to me, to be no reason whatever for our expecting America to be permitted to interfere with Napoleon's continental system, unless we admit that she had a right to interfere with our act of 1793. The dispute between us and America relates to the acknowledged rights of neutral nations. These rights of America we avow that we violate. We have hitherto said, that we were ready to cease such violation as soon as the French did the same; but now, if we are to believe the intelligence from America and the corresponding statements of our public prints, we have shifted our ground, and demand of America that she shall cause the continental system to be done away, or, at least, we tell her that it shall be done away, or we will not cease to violate her rights.

The language of those, who appear to be ready to justify a refusal, upon the ground above stated, to revoke our Orders in Council, is this: that it was natural to expect that the revocation would be made to depend upon a real and effectual abolition of the French decrees; that the revocation is merely nominal unless all the regulations of Napoleon, made since 1806, are also repealed; that when these latter are repealed, it will be right for America to call upon us for a repeal of our Orders in Council, and not before; and, it is added, that the American President will not have the support of the people, if he attempt to act upon any other principles than these. So that, as your Royal Highness will clearly perceive, these persons imagine, or, at least, they would persuade the people of England, that, unless the President insist upon the admission of