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Mr. Sheridan entered his Protest against the proceeding.

The Resolution was then agreed to, the Report brought up,and read a second time.

HOUSE OF LORDS, Jan. 15.

--

About five, the Lord Chancellor, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lord President, the Lord Privy Seal, the Duke of Montrose, and the Earl of Liverpool, having taken their seats as Commissioners to open Parliament, and the Speaker of the House of Commons with a number of Members being in attendance at the Bar, the Lord Chancel lor said, “My Lords and Gentlemen, Forasmuch as for certain causes his Majesty cannot conveniently be present here in his Royal Person, a Commission has been issued under the Great Seal, authorizing the Lords in the said Commission named, to declare the causes of your meeting, and to do in all respects in his Majesty's name, which Commission you will now hear read."-The Commission was then read, after which the Lord Chancellor resumed-"My Lords and Gentlemen, in virtue of the Commission which has been now read, authorizing the Lords therein named to declare the causes of your meeting, and to do in all respects in his Majesty's name, we have only to call your attention to the afflicting circumstance of his Majesty's indisposition, and to the necessity of making due and suitable provision for the care of his Majesty's sacred Person, for the maintenance of the Royal Dignity, and for the exercise of the Royal Authority, in such manner and to such extent as the exigency of the case may seem to require."

In the Commons, the same day, Mr. Sheridan, alluding to the execution of Cardoza, the Portugueze, for murder, on Monday, observed that it had excited considerable sensation respecting the alarming suspension of the prerogative of mercy. He had communicated with the Right Hon. Secretary of State for the Home Department, and had to thank him for his attention. He did not intend to give any formal notice upon the subject now, but should certainly submit the question to the House in some shape or other.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer explained that the Act of Parliament required, that, in cases of conviction of

murder, the execution of the convict should follow within a limited time, which had been strictly followed. The Judges might have respited the prisoner had they chosen; but their opinions had been taken, and no ground was left for supposing, that, if the fountain of mercy had been open to access, any thing would have been submitted in application for its exercise.

Mr. Sheridan replied, that the Royal prerogative of mercy had been twice extended to a convict (P. Ogilvie) in Scotland; for which, however, he did not blame the Rt. Hon. Gentlemen: the same necessity that justified issues of money for the Army and Navy, might justify that likewise. He put the merits of the case altogether out of question; but regretted that the first prerogative of the highest magistrate of the realm should be usurped by a subject.

Mr. Ryder declared himself ready, when called upon, to state the motives of his conduct. He denied, indignantly, that he had usurped the prerogative of mercy; he had merely suspended the operation of the law, until it could be known whether that mercy would or would not ultimately be granted. In the case of the unfortunate person lately executed, the Recorder had reported to him, that the two Judges who had assist- ed him in the trial had entertained no doubt of the guilt of the convict, and had seen no ground that could admit of an application for mercy; it was, in fact, a case of as foul murder as had ever been committed in England.

Jan. 16.

On the motion of Mr. Perceval, the last day for receiving Private Petitions was fixed for Feb. 1; that for Private Bills March 4; and that for Reports, April 29. The Regency Bill was read a second time.

Jan. 17.

A Secret Committee of Nine was appointed to inquire what payments were ordinarily directed by his Majesty to be made out of his Privy Purse.

The House went into a Committee on the Regency Bill; when 13 of the clauses were, after much discussion, disposed of.

Jan. 18.

The House resolved itself into a Committee, when clauses in the Regency Bill were discussed, and the blanks filled up.

ABSTRACT OF FOREIGN OCCURRENCES.
FRANCE.
CONSERVATIVE SENATE. Sitting of Dec. 10.
The sitting commenced at three in
the afternoon; the Prince Arch-Chan

cellor of the Empire presided. Their
Excellencies the Duke of Cadore, Minis-
ter for Foreign Affairs, and Counts
St. Jean d'Angely, and Caffarelli, Mi-

nisters

misters of State, were introduced. The Prince Arch-Chancellor read the following Message:

Message of his Imperial and Royal
Majesty.

"Senators, I have ordered my Minis ter for Foreign Affairs to communicate to you the several circumstances which occasion the junction of Holland with the Empire. The Orders published by the British Council in 1806 and 1807, have rent in pieces the public law of Europe. A new order of things governs the Universe. New securities becoming necessary to me, the junction of the mouths of the Scheldt, of the Meuse, the Rhine, the Ems, the Weser, and the Elbe, with the Empire, the establishment of an inland navigation with the Baltic, have appeared to me to be the first and most important. I have ordered the plan of a Canal to be prepared, which will be executed in the course of five years, and will connect the Seine with the Baltic. Those Princes will be indemnified who may find themselves circumscribed by this great measure, which is become absolutely necessary, and which will rest the right of my frontiers upon the Baltic. Before I came to this determination, I apprised England of it. She was acquainted that the only means for preserving the independence of Holland was to retract her Orders in Council of 1806 and 1807, or to return at last to pacific sentiments. But this Power was deaf to the voice of her interests, as well as to the cries of Europe. I was in hopes of being able to establish cartel for the exchange of prisoners of war between France and England, and to avail myself, in consequence of the residence of two Commissioners at Paris and London, to bring about an approximation between the two countries. I have been disappointed in my expecta tions. I could find nothing in the mode in which the English Government negotiated but craft and deceit.-The junction of the Valais is an effect long intended of the immense works which I have had performed in the Alps within the last ten years. At the time of my Act of Mediation, I separated the Valais from the Helvetic League, foreseeing then a measure of such advantage to France and Italy.-So long as the war continues with England, the French people must not lay down their arms.My finances are in the most flourishing state. I can meet all the expences which this immense empire requires, without calling upon my people for fresh sacrifices. (Signed) NAPOLEON. Palace of the Thuilleries, Dec. 10, 1810. •' By order of the Emperor,

H. B. DUKE OF BASSANO,"

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After the Message was read, his Excellency the Duke of Cadore, Minister for Foreign Affairs, laid the following Report before the Sitting:

REPORT OF THE MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO HIS MAJESTY THE EMPEROR AND KING.

"Sir, Your Majesty has exalted France to the highest point of greatness.› The victories obtained over five succes→ sive coalitions, all promoted by England, have produced these consequences: and it may be said, that we are indebted to England for the glory and power of the Great Empire. At every opportunity ́ your Majesty made offers of peace, and without considering whether it would be more advantageous than war: yout looked, Sir, only to the happiness of the present generation, and you always shewed yourself ready to sacrifice to it the most flattering prospects of the future. It was in this spirit that the peace of Campo Formio, of Luneville, and of Amiens, and subsequently of Presburg, of Tilsit, and of Vienna, were concluded; it was in this spirit that your Majesty has five times sacrificed to peace the greater part of your conquests. More anxious to adorn your reign by the pub lic happiness than to extend the frontiers of

your empire, your Majesty set bounds to your greatness; while England, keeping the torch of war continually alive,' seemed to conspire against her allies as well as herself to create the greatest empire that has existed for twenty centu ries. At the peace of 1783, the power of France was strong in the Family Compact, which closely bound Spain and Naples with her political system.-At that of Amiens, the respective strength of the three great Powers was increased by the addition of twelve millions of Polish inhabitants. The Houses of France and Spain were essentially hostile to each other, and the people of the two countries were removed farther than ever from each other by the difference of their manners. One of the great Continental Powers had her strength less diminished by the junction of Belgium with France, than it was increased by the acquisition of Venice; the secularizations also of the Germanic Body added more to the power of our ris vals. Thus, at the conclusion of the Treaty of Amiens, the relative force of France was less than at the peace of 1783, and much inferior to that to which the victories obtained during the wars of the two first coalitions gave her a right to expect. This treaty, however, was scarcely concluded, when the jealousy of England displayed itself strongly. She took the alarm at the continually increasing prosperity and riches of the interior of France; and she

hoped

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hoped that a third coalition would wrest Belgium, the provinces of the Rhine, and Italy, from your crown. The peace of Amiens was broken; a third coalition was formed; three months after it was dissolved by the treaty of Presburgh. England saw all her hopes blasted: Venice, Dalmatia, Istria, the whole of the Adriatic coast, and that of the kingdom of Naples, fell into the power of France. The Germanic Body, established upon principles contrary to those upon which the French empire was founded, dropped to pieces; and the system of the Confederation of the Rhine transformed into elose and necessary allies the same nations who in the first coalitions marched against France, and united them indis solubly to herself by their common interests. The peace of Amiens then became in England the object of the regret of every Statesman. The new acquisi→ tions by France, which there were no hopes of wresting from her at any future time, rendered the fault that was committed more evident, and shewed the full extent of it. An enlightened man, who during the short interval of the peace of Amiens visited Paris, and had learned to know France and your Majesty, was put at the head of affairs in England. This man of genius comprehended the situations of the two Countries. He perceived that it was not in the power of any State to compel France to retrograde; and that the true policy consisted in arresting her progress. He perceived, that, by the success obtained over the third coalition, the question changed; and that it must no longer be thought of contesting with France the possessions that she acquired by victory; but that it was necessary, by a speedy peace, to prevent those new acquisitions which the continuation of the war would render inevitable. This Minister did not Conceal any of the advantages which France derived from the erroneous policy of England; but he had in view these which she might still acquire. He thought that England would gain much, if none of the Continental Powers lost more. He directed his policy to disarm France, and to have the Confederation of the North of Germany recognised in opposition to the Confederation of the Rhine. He perceived that Prussia could only be preserved by peace; and that on the fate of that Power depended the system of Saxony, of Hessia, of Hanover, the fate of the mouths of the Ems, of the Jade, of the Weser, of the Elbe, of the Oder, and of the Vistula, ports necessary for the commerce of England. Like a great man, Fox did not deliver himself up to useless sorrow for the rupture of the treaty of Amiens, and losses hence

was

forth irreparable; he wished to prevent greater, and he sent Lord Lauderdale to Paris. The negotiations began, and every thing led to hope that they would have ended happily; when Fox died. From that time they languished. The Ministers were neither sufficiently enlightened nor temperate to perceive the necessity of peace. Prussia, excited by that spirit which England infused into all Europe, put her troops to march. The Imperial Guard received orders to set out; Lord Lauderdale appeared terrified at the consequences of the new events that were preparing. It was proposed to sign the treaty; that Prussia should be included in it, and that the Confederation of the North of Germany should be recognized. Your Majesty, with that spirit of moderation of which you have given such frequent examples to Europe, consented. The departure of the Imperial Guard was delayed for some days; but Lord Lauderdale hesitated: he thought it necessary to send a Messenger to his Court, and that Messenger brought him an order to return. In a few days after Prussia no longer existed as a preponderating power. Posterity will consider that period as one of the most decisive in the histories of England and France. The Treaty of Tilsit put an end to the fourth coalition.-Two great Sovereigns, lately enemies, united in offering peace to England; but that Power, who, notwithstanding all the forewarnings she had received, could not bring herself to subscribe to conditions which would leave France in a more advantageous situation than she was after the Treaty of Amiens, would not enter into a negotiation, the unavoidable consequence of which would have been to place France in a situation still more to her advantage.-We refused, it was said in England, a treaty which maintained the North of Germany, Prussia, Saxony, Hessia, and Hanover, independent of France,and which secured all the outlets of our trade; how, then, can we agree at this time to conclude with the Emperor of the French, when he has extended the Confederation of the Rhine to the North of Germany, and to found on the banks of the Elbe a French throne; a peace, which, by the course of things, whatever the stipulations might be, would leave under his influence Hanover, and all the ports of the North, those principal arteries of our commerce ?

[The Exposé dwells at some length upon the Coalitions declares that a proposition was made to our Government to recal the Orders in Council, upon condition that the independence of Holland should be respected by the French, which was rejected-recommends the annexa

tion

tion of the Hanse Towns to the Empire: the repairing the canal between Hamburgh and Lubeck, and the construction of a new canal, which would unite the Elbe to the Weser, and the Weser to the Emms-advises the continuance of the Berlin and Milan Decrees (we thought they had been rescinded), and the opposition of the Continental blockade to the Maritime one, from which the most auspicious results are predicted.]

(Signed) CHAMPAGNY, Duke of Cadore. Paris, Dec. 8.

Buonaparte has ordered, by a Decree of the 14th ult., the formation of Councils of Discipline for the advocates belonging to the different courts of justice, with powers, under certain circumstances, to strike their names out of the lists of those privileged to plead. All advocates, on being admitted to the bar, are to take the following oath :-" I swear allegiance to the Constitution of the Empire, and fidelity to the Emperor: that I will not say or publish any thing contrary to the laws and regulations, good morals, the safety of the state, and the public peace; that I will never violate the respect due to the tribunals and public authorities; and that I will never give an opinion for, nor sup port any cause which I shall not, in my soul and conscience, believe to be just." -It is directed by this Decree, that if an advocate shall, in his pleadings or writings, permit himself to attack the principles of the Monarchy and the Constitution of the Empire, the laws, and established authorities, the Court shall forthwith sentence him to one of the punishments prescribed by the 31st article of the Criminal Code, without prejudice to farther proceedings in the case.

The Conservative Senate, in the sitting of the 15th ult., were presented by Count Caffarelli with an Exposé, which, after stating that the Empire enjoyed the most profound peace-that by the machinations of our Government the horrers of war still desolated the extremities of Europe (meaning Spain and Portugal), it proceeds-" Amidst the calm which his Majesty has re-established in the Empire and in Europe, he is occupied with the amelioration of his marine; and his genius suggests to him efficacious means for opposing to his enemies upon the seas, numerous fleets, animated, like his veteran and formidable phalanxes, with a desire at last to conquer an universal peace. The will of his Majesty shall be always that of destiny; for power and genius never will in vain.-Already, Gentlemen, at the voice of his Majesty, maritime establishments are created; GENT. MAG. January, 1811.

our coasts, the extent of which is augmented, are every where defended by courage, and fortified by art; the arsenals are provided with necessary materials; ships are rising in our ports, and our fleets will one day try their strength with those of the enemy, and reign upon the seas. But to arm these vessels, to equip them, his Majesty has felt that he stood in need of seamen. Those who at present man his squadrons, would not be sufficient for the greatness of his plans; new means are necessary for new views. Commerce and the Fisheries, which were wont to furnish seamen for the State, are at present too inconsiderable, and a new system must be forthwith resorted to for supplying the wants of the country. At the voice of his Majesty, there issues, from the maritime departments, a crowd of young men, who, being at once sailors and soldiers, will shew themselves worthy rivals of those who have raised so high the glory of the arms of the Empire."-[Here the basis of the plan is unfolded-that it is from the maritime departments, and that of the line of coasts, that these men must be selected. The Exposé goes on]" But the profession of the seamen is liable to so many vicissitudes and dangers, that it is necessary to commence it from the most tender age, when the organs are docile, the body flexible, and. habits are contracted without difficulty.. It is necessary that the mariner should be early accustomed to peril, and learn to face it with a smile. Young sailors. shall, therefore, be selected at the age of from 13 to 16; if younger, the State, would-wait too long before it enjoyed their services; if older, the physical constitution of man could only be bent with difficulty to all the toils of seamanship. -His Majesty has formed crews for ships, and crews for flotillas. The former, composed of experienced mariners, will man the ships; for the latter, his Majesty is fitting out in his ports small vessels, commanded by skilful officers; on board which will be exercised in manœu◄ vres, in steering, in the use of arms, those young seamen, whom the Senatus Consultum, which we present, summons to the honour of serving their country."

The Dutch Papers mention, that Gen. Sarrazin, now in England, had been condemned for desertion, and his name struck out of the Legion of Honour.

The following is an extract of a letter from Rodez, department of the Aveiron, dated Dec. 16" The winter has set in here with extraordinary severity, the snow being in many of the surrounding districts six and seven feet deep. But

what

what excites the most dreadful alarms, are the ravages of the wolves. These ferocious animals, unable to subsist any longer in their native mountains, sally forth in flocks of many hundreds, and entering the villages, make the peasant and his cattle their prey. The villages on the open plains are entirely deserted; a number of the poor people having fallen sacrifices in defending their tame animals, and the survivors not choosing to expose themselves to similar danger. Our Prefect, with the humane view of reimbursing the sufferers, and preventing the Department being depopulated, has ordered an inventory to be made of the losses the estimate almost exceeds belief: it is ascertained, that within the last month, 2000 sheep, 400 goats, and 300 horses, have been killed by these ferocious animals. In the departments of the Loziere, and the Higher Loire, the ravages are still greater."

A Gentleman passenger, who was lately washed on shore near Dunkirk out of the Elizabeth Indiaman, lashed to a piece of the wreck, was conveyed to a little hovel by a Frenchman who found bim along shore, to whom he gave 50 guineas, having saved 500: the Frenchman promised to come at night and take him to a place of safety; at night he went back accompanied by two others, each having a shovel; when, dreadful to relate, they beat his brains out with their shovels, plundered the body, then dug a hole and buried it in the sand. Three or four days after which, the principal, being troubled in his conscience, went and confessed what he had done to a Magistrate; when his two accomplices were taken up, and the dead body dug up greatly mangled. The three men have been committed to Dunkirk gaol, to take their trial for murder.

A ball of fire appeared in the commune of Chargouville, France, on the 23d Nov. which, bursting with a tremendous explosion, let fall three large stones, accompanied with smoke, and darted with such force, that they entered the earth to the depth of near 80 centimeters. One of the stones is covered with a crust of greyish black, while the inside is more clear. It is very compact, and hard enough to cut glass. It appears to contain globules of iron pretty large and brilliant.

The substitute for sugar in Brittany (France) is a syrup extracted from the Bedange apple, beat up with the whites of eggs, and boiled till three parts are wasted.

HOLLAND.

A Dutch Paper of last month announces the sale of 77 bouses at Amster

dam; the proprietors of which had shut them up and absconded, being unable to pay the taxes.

SPAIN AND PORTUGAL.

Letters from Cadiz, of the 20th of December, state, that the Cortes had banished the late Regency; and Castanos, the head of it, had been exiled to Gallicia.

On the 16th ult. the Cortes ordered their decree of the 2d, for levying an armed force of 10,000 men, to reinforce the army in the Isle of Leon, to be carried into immediate execution. On the 19th a motion was made for "an eternal monument of gratitude to his Britannic Majesty, and the unconquerable British Nation, for the generous and magnanimous assistance afforded to the Spanish Nation," which was carried unanimously, amidst general acclamations.

The intelligence from Madrid represents the Usurper as busily employed in sending plunder to Paris-a circumstance from which it is not unreasonable to infer, that he thinks he holds his capital by a very precarious tenure.-The accounts from Madrid and Seville represent the situation of the French in those places as truly deplorable. They cannot travel from one part of Spain to another without going in large parties, which have obtained the name of Caravans. In this manner, great numbers of male and female natives of France are daily returning to that country; and the Spanish patriots, like the Arabs of the Deserts, incessantly hover around these escorts, and carry off prisoners and booty to a great amount; in a recent instance it was deemed necessary to send an escort of 1500 soldiers, to protect a convoy consisting of pictures, wool, &c. on its way from Madrid to France.

Extract of a letter from Lisbon, dated Dec. 30.-"Great importance is attached to the seizure of a spy here by the Portuguese peasants, who are ever on the watch. This fellow had been sent on some important errand by Massena, but he was secured before his object was accomplished. As his traitorous intentions were manifest, he would have been shot after a summary trial, but for the important discoveries he made to Lord Wellington. Several of the officers who had obtained leave to embark for England, and were at Lisbon for that purpose, have been suddenly ordered back to the army; which at first induced an opinion, that the British Commander in Chief expected a movement on the part of the Enemy; but it is now said to be in consequence of the discoveries he made by the spy, but of what nature we do not learn."

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