convinced, not only deliver this country from danger, but carry it to the greatest pitch of glory?If any body were to take the trouble to examine the infinite differences of opinion which have existed upon past measures (not to speak of prospective measures) between the members and the supporters of the present ministers, it would be found that, if coalitions are culpable, those who blame others for a bare report of coalition, must themselves be very culpable too. To examine the opinions and principles of the present ministers, and some who have joined them, would indeed be difficult, because, in some instances, it would be almost impossible to find out what their opinions had been, but, as far as they are known, they are known to have been as various as may be expected in a nation of free discussion, and of conflicting parties. Were it to be inquired how the various particles of the present ministry, and those who have coalesced or wish to coalesce with them, agree on prospective measures, it would be found that their difference in many instances is most essential. It would be found that some are pledged to support parliamentary reform, some to oppose it; some are friends to the rights of the Catholics of Ireland, while Mr. Addington confesses that he is minister by opposing them. Indeed such a whimsical administration as Mr. Addington, Lord Castlereagh, Lord Hawkesbury, Mr. Tierney, Mr. Hobhouse, &c. who differ, or have differed, so widely ia religion, politics, and finance, should not encourage their friends to rail too much against coalitions. In censuring others for what they intend to do, they condemn themselves for what they have done. PUBLIC PAPERS., PAPERS RELATIVE TO THE PROHIBITION OF THE ENTRY OF NEUTRAL VESSELS, FROM COUNTRIES OCCUPIED BY THE FRENCH. Copy of a Letter from his Excellency Lord Hawkesbury, one of his Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, to his Excellency Baren De Silverhjelm, his Swedish Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary at the Court of Great Britain, by him transmitted to Claes Grill, Esq. his Swedish Majesty's Commercial Agent General: Dated Dec. 23, 1803. I have the honour of informing you, that in consequence of the peculiar circumstances of the moment, it has been judged expedi ent to issue orders, preventing all ships under Swedish or other nentral colours from entering any port or place on the coast between the Humber and the Downs, with the exception of Yarmouth Roads and the Downs, to which places they will be still permitted to resort. I have lost no time in enabling you to make an early communication of the measure which the King has thought fit to adopt, as it is his Majesty's anxious wish that the trade of neatral nations may be subject to no unnecessary impediment or inconvenience. I have the honour to be, &c. HAWKESBURY. Copy of a Letter from Lord Harvkesbury to the Danish Minister Count IVedel Jarlsberg, by him transmitted to Mr. Wolfe. the Danish Consul.Downing Sereet, Dec. 26, 1503. SIR,As nothing would be more contrary to his Majesy's intention, than the imposing unnecessary restraint on the navigation of neutral vessels, I have the honour of in- · forming you, in addition to what I notified in my letter of the 23d inst. that the limita tion to Yarmouth Roads and the Downs, is applicable to no other vessels than to those which may come to our coast directly from the Ports of Holland, or of countries occupied by the Arms of France. The necessity which exists for laying down a distinction of this nature will of course render ships of every description, liable to such search or inquiries as may enable the Commanders of his Majesty's ships of war to ascertain that the regulation now established, is in no instance evaded; but this will cause no detriment whatever to the trade of neutral nations, as the whole of our coast will continue to be open to all such vessels as may be engaged in the fair purpose of trade, and which have not become objectionable on the ground above mentioned.-I have the honour to be, &c. &c. &c. HAWKESBURY. INTELLIGENCE. FOREIGN. According to the last accounts. from France, Buonaparté continued at Paris, and the consular audiences were held as usual: it was reported, however, that he was to leave the capital in the course of a short time, on another visit to the coast; whither an additional detachment of h's guards had already been sent.---The German papers assert, that there have been other points in dispute between the Emperor, and the Elector of Bavaria, which arose fom a demand made by the latter, that the mem bers of the Equestrian Order of the Empire, domiciliated in his territories, should do homage to him as their sovereign: this they refused, and some of the Electoral troops being sent to do military execution on some of their castles, they appealed to the Emperor, who, as Chief of the Empire, inter, fred in their behalf. It is said, that the difference will be amicably adjusted between all the parties.- The malignant fever which has been raging with so much virulence at Malaga, begins to abate; but the mortality is yet very great. On the 26th of October, the Legislative Body of the Republic of the Seven Islands, was installed, with great pomp, at Corfu, underthe auspices of the Emperor Alexander. The Spanish and French ministers at Washington, have been engaged in a correspondence relative to the cession of Louisiana to the United States; and it is said that the former has declared it to be the intention of his Catholic Majesty, not to surrender that province; alledging, that by the articles of the cession to France, she had no right to give it up to America. -The epidemics which prevailed, during the summer months, in Philadelphia, New York, and Alexandria, have subsided; and those persons who had been compelled to fly from their habitations have returned. DOMESTIC.-The account given in a former sheet, (p. 893) of an insurrection of the negroes in Jamaica, appears to have been unfounded; as letters have been received from that Island, to the 9th of October inclusive, which make no mention of the circumstances there stated-The inhabitants of Bristol, at meetings held in their different parishes, have expressed their determination not to furnish the funds necessary for placing that city in a state of defence: they acknowledge the necessity of measures being immediately taken for its protection; but urge that it is the duty of government to provide them. The report of the decision of the judges in the case of Astlett, which was inserted in the preceding sheet of the Register, upon the authority of a morning paper, Lord Alvanly has declared to be incorrect; as their lordships bave not yet given their opinion on the subject.---The following is selected from the most curious of the disputes which dally occur in the volunteer corps, respecting the imposing and collecting of fines for nonattendance. A person who had entered a volunteer corps in August, and attended drid until the end of September, received a notice from his officer, in October, informing him that there would be a certain number of drills during the mouth, and that if he did not attend, he would be dismissed. Being unable to attend, he wrote to his captain, and tendered his resignation.. This was not accepted; and after having received several notices to attend, he was subpoenaed to pay the whole amount of the several forfeits for non-attendance. The bench, at Union Hall, where the affair was tried, de cided, after much consultation, that as his resignation had not been accepted, he must be considered as a member of the corps, and was therefore liable to the fines. Upon his refusing, he was told that if he did not pay within two days, the sura would be levied by a distress. The proper officers were accordingly sent, for that purpose; and the amount of fines, &c. being stated at 51 15s., they seized his swords, pistols, uniforms, and helmet, which being estimated only at 41. 10s., they took two silver spoons, The person intends to bring the matter be fore a jury.Elfi Bey, the Mamaluke Chief, attended by several British officers of distinction, was introduced to the King, at Windsor, on Sunday the 18th--instant : since then, he has left the metropolis, and embarked on board an English frigate, on his return to Egypt.--There has been a meeting beween the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the principal bankers of London, upon the scarcity of specie, and particularly of small coin, throughout the kingdom.-Several persons who had dividends to receive, as agents for others, doubtful how they ought to act relative to the payment of the property tax on those dividends, applied to the commissioners, for information, but were referred to Mr. Lowndes, who told them that they were bound to pay at the rate of 5 per cent. on every such dividend, under a penalty of twenty pounds for each warrant of attorney. Not satisfied with this, they applied to Mr. Addington, who, upon their representation of the risks to which they would be subjected by pursuing that mode, agreed to introduce a clause of indemnity in a bill which he would bring forward after the recess.One of the late London Gazettes contains a proclamation, offering a reward of one hundred pounds, and his Majesty's pardon, for the discovery of the author of a treasonable and inflammatory paper which was addressed to the volunteers of Durham, and posted up in that city on the 2dnstant, recommending them to lay down their arms, and make no opposition to the French.The Gazette of the 24th instant, contains an Order in Council, dated on the 21st, prohibiting the exportation, and allowing the importation of provisions, from and into this country till the 25th of March, 1804:-also, an Order for constituting la Valette, in the Island of Malta, a free port, upon the same footing and condition as Gi braltar; and to be so considered until six months after the signing of a definitive treaty of peace.-A letter from Lord Hawkes bury to the Swedish Envoy, has been posted | up at Lloyd's, stating, that orders had been issued, for preventing all ships under Swe dish or other neutral colours, from entering any port or place on the coast, between the Humber and the Downs, with the exception of Yarmouth Roads and the Downs. ---Another letter, explanatory of the former, has since been written, stating, that the prohibition extends only to such vessels as come directly from the ports of Holland, or of countries occupied by the arms of France. ---The King has been pleased to appoint John Philip Morier, Esq. to be Consul General in Albania, the Morea, and adjacent territories of the Ottoman Empire. MILITARY.-Letters which have lately been received from Bombay, state, that the Seindeah and Berar Rajah have joined Holkar against the Feishwa, who is supported by thirty thousand troops in British pay, under the command of Major General Wellesley. The progress of the war carried on by Great Britain against the King of Candy has been greatly interrupted by the appearance of a malignant disease in the Island of Ceylon, which has carried off a great number of British as well as native troops.It appears that the French army, assembling in the neighbourhood of Bruges, has become greatly in want of provisions, &c.: the Prefect has issued a pressing request to the district, for the supply of those articles, assuring the people that it is the intention of government to pay the full value of every thing which may be obtained by this requisition, as soon as possible. Notwithstanding this earnest demand, the inhabitants are very loth to bring for ward their articles on such.security. French and German papers of a recent date have been received, but they afford no ferther interesting information relative to the military operations on the continent. NAVAL. The naval preparations in the ports of Batavia, Belgium and France, are carried on with the same industry as heretofore; and detachments of gun-boats, and flat bottomed boats continue to pass along from one harbour to another, under the protection of the artillery upon the shores: several however have been driven on shore and destroyed by the late storms. -Dispatches have been received from Lord Nelson, dated off Toulon, on the 19th of eptember; at which time the port of Toulon, and the Island of Elba were closely blockaded a guard ship was, also, stationed in the Bay of Naples.--On the 28th of November, Capt. Winthrop, in the Ardent, attacked, and drove on shore, in Finisterre : Bay, the French frigate Bayonnaise, of thir ty-two guns and two hundred men; the enemy apprehensive of her being taken pos session of by Captain Winthrop, blew her up, at midnight. On the 8th instant, Lieut. Browne, in the Vixen gun brig, cap. tured the French cutter privateer, Le Lionnais, of two carriage guns, besides small arms, and carrying twenty-one men: she had been four days out from Dunkirk, but had made no capture.On the 12th Mr. Gunthorpe, in the Badger, excise-cutter, captured the French cutter privateer Vigilant, of one gun, besides small arms, and carrying thirty-five men: she had been out one day from Ostend, without having taken any thing --On the 18th Lieut. Shepheard, in the Basilisk gun-brig, captured the French gun-boat, No. 436, mounting one 18 pounder forward, and a howitzer abaft, and having on board seven sailors, besides the captain, and twentyseven soldiers of the 36th regiment of the line she left Dunkirk on the day before, and was bound to Boulogne.--On the 19th, Lient. Young, in the Speculator lugger, attacked four French gun-boats, full of troops, running from Dunkirk to Calais, be succeeded in driving them all on shore, where, notwithstanding a heavy fire from the shore, two were destroyed: the others got off. According to an account which I was lately published, the Channel · fleet consists of twenty sail of the line, of which three are of 110 guns each, one of 98, three of 80, and thirteen of 74, and about an equal number of frigates, which are cruising about in various directions: in the North sea there are ten sail of the line and about twenty frigates: on the Irish station, twelve sail of the line and several frigates in the Mediterranean, thirteen sail of the line and as many frigates: on the Jamaica and Leeward Island stations, eight sail of the line and fifteen frigates and, in the East-Indies, six sail of the line and seven frigates.----All the accounts which have been received relative to the effects of the recent gales represent the injury done to the shipping to be very great. Eight of the Channel fleet have got into port, but are so much damaged as to require considerable repairs: the rest have not yet been heard of. SUMMARY OF POLITICS. RUSSIA. From certain articles in the Moniteur of the 10th inst. it appears that Gen. Hedouville was not to leave St. Petersburgh, and, it is certain, that, at the date. here mentioned, Count Markoff was still at Paris. It was observed, at the time when some of the London prints seemed to be building great hopes on the interference of Russia, that Russia might interfere for her own sake, but not merely for ours; and that, the Consul would never find it a very difficult matter to convince the ministers of his Imperial Majesty, that Lord Hawkesbury, the minister who had kept back the important Russian state paper, was not a person likely to propose, or adopt, any measure to which they could with safety accede. INVASION. For the fiftieth time, at least, the ministerial papers now tell us, that the invaders are just about to sail from the ports of France and Holland, and, at last, they may, perhaps, tell us the truth, though we cannot place any reliance on it. The aların has, at any rate, been sounded through the country; but, as yesterday was to be the day of the landing, one may venture to question the correctness of the report, which may, after all, be a mere Tale of a Tub, invented, as Swift says, for the purpose of preventing "formidable inquiries from pick ing holes in the weak sides of government," and from drawing out their "pen, ink, and paper into pamphlets and other offensive "weapons." To be plain, the ministers have, at last, discovered, that their power is not immortal. They begin, indeed, to suspect, that, unless they can, by some means or other, blunt the edge of political inquiry, they must make way for men of talents and character. From this persuasion it is, verily likely, that they are using all their efforts to propagate a belief, that the invasion is now, in good earnest, about to take place; and upon that belief, their intention probably is to build a popular argument for the avoiding of public, and particularly Parliamentary, discussion, upon all subjects of political nature, especially such as are connected with Ireland, the state of which they will endeavour to make the public believe, becomes every day more and more critical. Some persons will, indeed, argue a contrary way, and will insist, that the more critical the situation of Ireland is become under the sway of the present minis ters, the more necessary is an inquiry into those ministers conduct; but, the Addingtons and Hawkesburies, who are very wise in their generation, have perceived, that, amongst the modern English, particularly some of the noisy inhabitants of the capital, that fear to look danger in the face is the prevailing propensity; and upon this propensity they found their hopes of success from the clamour which is about to be raised against every species of political discussion. These hes will, however, fail them: they have cried "wolf! wolf!" too often: nothing short of actual invasion will now turn the attention of either the parliament or the people from those objects, which long ago ought to have undergone a strict examination." When the country is in danger, let us not ask who is the minister, but abere " is the enemy! says Mr Sheridan. "Noble "sentiment!" exclaims Mr. Addington, "I "wish some other gentlemen would adopt "it!" Certainly he does. It is a sentiment, which, though exactly contrary to the sentiments and conduct heretofore expressed and observed by Mr. Sheridan, now suits both him and the minister extremely well. But, every man is not in the situation of Mr. Sheridan: all of us are not, to use a phrase of the Near Observer, "fishing for 86 place" and, therefore, some of us, at least, may, when the country is in danger, be allowed to ask who it is that has brought us into that danger? and, whether the person who has brought us into it is the most likely to get us safely out of it?-But, if it were right for us to refrain from making these very natural and pertinent inquiries, there, surely, can be no good reason for us to shut up our lips as to all o'her matters, involving the tranquillity and safety of the kingdom? Though the prospect of invasion should prevent us from asking "who is the "minister," it cannot one would imagine, be a sufficient ground for preventing us from seeking to discover, how a rebellion came to break out in Ireland, at the very moment when the minister was assuring the parla ment, that a spirit of perfect loyalty pervaded all ranks and descriptions of people in that country. The prospect of invasion cannot be sufficient to prevent us from desiring to know, why a general, who is now entrusted with the protection of the metropolis of England, including the palace of the king, was removed from his station as Commmander in Chief in Ireland. If the prospect of invasion be sufficient to deter us from making any inquiry at all why four millions of our fellow subjects are liable to the operation of martial law, that, too, at the discretion of the very man under whose government the alledged necessity of that law unexpectedly arose; if such be the effects of the prospect of invasion, with truth may it be said of invasion as of death, that in prospect is it most terrible; for, from invasion itself, nothing so disgraceful could possibly arise. The means which these ministers are calling upon us to practice for our defence are in open hostility with the motive: they exhort us to abandon all the principles and eyen all the notions and of freedom, in order that we may be able to resist those, who, should they conquer our country, would make us slaves! But, it is to be hoped, that we shall not be thus scared and inveigled out of our senses; that we shall be prepared, and resolved, to meet and to defeat the foreign enemy, him who would plunder us of our liberty, while we watch and detect those, who would steal it from us by degrees. IRISH PRIESTS-It is very industriously circulated through the ministerial papers, that a pecuniary allowance is to be made by Parliament to the Roman Catholic Priests in Ireland. That they should long ago havk had such an allowance there can be no doubt; but, that it will now produce any very great good effect, is much to be feared. The time is the most unpropitious that could have been chosen. The measure will be attributed to motives of fear, and not of good will; the allowance will be regarded not as a benefaction, but as a bribe; it will either produce a change in the sentiments and language of the priests, or it will not; if the latter, its object will not be answered, and if the former, is there no reason to fear, that the people will suspect their priests of betraying them? that they will raise up. others? that they will give the preference to those who are not paid by government? and, that the stipendiary priests will soon experience the fate of the French constitutional clergy? To heal the wounds of Ireland something must be done for the people as well as for their priests: they must both share in the benefit of some great national measure, or peace and happiness never will again be known to their dwellings. VOLUNTEER CORPS.In the Morning Chronicle of the 26th instant, which is now lying before me, there is a tailor's advertisement, addressed To the Volunteers of "Old England, particularly the gentlemen belonging to their committees." Yet, Mr. Colonel Hiley Addington had never heard of such committees, and had the modesty to assert, that the committee mentioned in the House of Commons was a "solitary instance!" The committees, are indeed, a part of the system, if a system it ought to be called; it is difficult to conceive how the corps, constituted as they are, could have been formed and kept up without committees; and, therefore, the existence of these dangerous bodies is to be attributed to the incapacity of ministers, and not to any evil intention on the part of the persons composing them. The Addingtons exclaim against the committees; brother Hiley abuses them, and declares, that he would not belong to a corps that had oue; the same language is held by all the ministers and their creatures, who, unable to answer the arguments urged against their system, make, as it has been truly observed, "this pusillanimous concession "to their opponents, and reprobate the vo"lunteers for instituting committees, which "became, in some measure necessary, "in consequence of that system," and which are not, as they wish us to consider them, an abuse, but the natural effect, of their institution. This would be the place to offer some remarks on the exemptions from the operation of the ballots, which exemptions are now confirmed by law; as also on the consequences which will result from compelling men to remain in volunteer corps; and, on the improvements lately proposed by Mr. Pitt. But, these subjects must, for the present, be laid aside, in order to make room for one, in which the very existence of the state is involved.---The public have long witnessed, and with no small degree of indignation, the shameful misrepresentation, falshood, and abuse, which the ministerial prints have circulated against Mr. Windham, relative to his opinions as to the volunteer coups; but, their leading print, the Morning Post, has, at last, commenced a species of attack, which, if not speedily put a stop to, will very probably end in the murder of every member of parliament, who shall date to object to the volunteer system, or its committees. In that paper of the 27th instant, there is a letter addressed to the Right Hanourable William Windham, in which letter the writer, after having exhausted his stock of falshood and abuse in order to blacken the character of Mr. Windham, and to represent him as a man without party or friends to support or avenge him, concludes in a set of phrases, which nine-tenths of his readers must regard as amounting to something very little short of an exhortation to murder. "You have," says he, "challenged their" [the volunteers] "patriotism, their courage, "and their honour; and as long as there "shall be in these bodies of citizens, a "manly feeling of indignation, or a gene rous sense of shame, as long as they cleir "the rights, or aspire to the character of "Britons, the name of Windham, will be "the watch-word, that renses them to co"bat-that animates them to valour;-they " are not men who feel not the wrongs "has offered them, and less than men, if they were not resolved to seek a generous Tevenge."- This assassin-like epistle. which is signed:" JUBA, the volunteer," has catched the sentiments and almost the |