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RALEIGH, N.C.PUBLISHED (eekly ..X-..::"..X, THURSDAY, JULY 2, '1810: No. 'raenoent mind ought to ice l a pricie. "mow aDDears a positive certainty of its beiner le contrary, general Ai-mMrong was so mana- vol v-ed in still greater difficulties with a power 3j nis liiMiuwuuiio wiu wm;i,i.v.. uv. -wimjn ministerialists nave neretoiore attemptea io guarded in Ms communication uirougn iear;persua,e us to believe was acting upon the pnn ft' exposition bi its atrocious conduct to- s America, as to avoid at ali hazards, even itmosts ubmissivenessy inducing U 'to coi ale with the Ihiiish policy-then it may be that he has acted correctly. His language irs. to us however to be full mild for the oc- , unckr almost-any circumstances, but per- notraore so than his instructions warranted. :akng the editor of the court gazette'upon n ground, that general Armstrong has vio- I his government in a firm and lolty tone, he ' unfounded insinuations,' (alluding no to the Due de Cadpre's letter) uttered a- tit, and that every American of independent must feel a pride at thq circumstance, what iask must or ought' every American of m adenttnind to feel towards the editor of the pzet'te, who could pass over ift perfect si for near two months this very letter which lij those unfounded insinuations ? Why it that hiajtrm and lofty tone, was so perfectly W on witnessing those base insinuations, degrading epithets ot the French minister : he fearful of spreading through the. national iture then in session, the flame of honest ption at the insolence and villainy of France talescending to notice" those,.' unfounded in ' tnnst nfominent arts nf flaprafit agression. -This . ... . ... I ' -r " r-0 lions ? What Men suppressed his ire, which ! he h.ns dnnp in snm instances in a forcible and ould now feignavejsbeit$velleJeelsf; If; striking mannerrbnt not more" so than the occa p and lofty- tone is' justly a subject of.com- Firojn the Spirit of '76. , nh ARMSTRONG'S CORRESPQN- "ffitof of the court gazette 1 in his paper ofi ,! from ireneral Armstrong, "remarks, ,verr Amriran, of independent mind must nfi'le at thf nrm mna iojiy tone in wnicn J Armstrong vindicates his government a- . I 4 iwnmiiAf iamb iifam10n'4ini!t . . .i i r . 1 I,, Hation to vuz conuuci generally oi gene- cisHWig Ht tiw court, oi rans, it i impos fir us to say, from.uhe ' imperfect "view h the present ana lace extjpiu vc nave iuiiumi e public botlu ot the 'WStructions given nim,. l,,s 'iomimuiications with them, whether it .i,i.!nJ Kit a .jm. 4wn Itkftil fnhA aihsjets untler the nnmeciiate injunctions L,' fxtcuttve, ana ot coursnis commuTiica- ith the t rench government can oniy j in n relative licht to his instructions. If ral Armstrong s instructions it it mm ai en- herty to repel with just sensioiuty ana maniy iicssj tf'e ' inJUFy aHl insult' ' lawlessness and icted upon. us Dy tne rrencn govern- such 'unloundcd insinuations' as time that he knew he was bound by the constitq Ition of the land to give to congress information J of the state of the'union , General Armstrong's letter which Mr. Ldjtor bjrjrvth tells us JJbshedslus tre oh the proudest days of Roman virtue' applies witlvpeculiar force "to the flagitious conduct of Fiance in the cases just jrecited, all which the ex, ecutive wa3 apprised of at. tjje commencement of the last epngtess, and HF' general Armstrong de serves commendation for"the ' firm and lofty tone which he has assumed in vindicating his govern ment, it is clear as day that the president merits public censure and condemnation for the beggarly notice which he, in his message to congress, ha4erifideneehHhe open and loyal policy i)f a wretch sal' as also it be'utlered by that power against this nation, U ho hesitation in saying tnat there is no- n vfrv extraordinary in the hrmness or tak'envnf:'the unprincipled conduct of France, ot what general Armstrong justly term'the inju ryj, insult and lawlessness' of that power towards America; '. .., N; -'---- -- - From Mr. Madison we never calculated upon any thing either very bold or dignified. We ne ver conceived him qualified for the chief magis tracy ,of the United States, however he might be for a secretary ofi state, a legislator 6r: for some inferior station to that of the president of the uni on, and we are firmly convinced that the - nation wilFconsult Us best interests by dispensing as speTdily asaclicatle'witirhis admtnistrafiofu jss of I'is tone, at which He is a timid, temporising politician, as devoid of decision as of ntrve. He is illy calculated to pre. side over a nation of freemen. His administrati on so far has been Droductive of little else than which every American i embarrasment to the nation at large, and there ght to feel a pride.' If now appears a positive certainty of its being in- seas, without other offencethsm that of belonging to the Unitf-v States ; or other apology, than was to be found in the enhanced safety of the perpetrator ?!' Yet all these acts of perfidious ness were of long standing, are truly characteris tic "of hi&. majesty, and had bur just - been re. capitulated by General Armstrong at the ntonient he is Avowing the perfect confidence in the ofien and loyal policy bf this insatiable, tyrant ! Un er such circumstances we cannot join in echoing his praise,in applauding indiscrirnjnately the con' duct of ; a minister, who ; should so far forget ifce dignity due tojhis sttion, as to express his entire whose deeds have long been marked with the ut most'fligitioiri.ness and . pei hdy towards his go vernment, and from whom it is now suffering the most cruel injuries, the greatest indignities ! ciple of retaliation" and solely in defence of the " freedom of the seas." From England, too there is but little expection that his " administration will never obtain just and ample reparation for her 11 trespasses ' So it seems that we are going on from bad to worse, and how it is all to end, it is not more difficult to conjecture than awful to contemplate. -With respect to General Arms trong's letter of the 10th of March," which has been a subject of such general commendation, we are not prepared to give it our unqualified appro bation, because it contains some sentiments in the highest degree derogatory to the independence of the minister of freemen. However "politic it may have been" deemed to temporise with the French government before, its letter of the 14th of February, there certainly should no longer have remained any doubt or hesitation' with our minister as to the part he was to ad after its ret ceip-t. The measure of our wrongs was' filled to the briin. We had already suLmitteJ to greater indignities than ought to have been borne with. It had become high time that, our minister should " vindicate . his government in a' firm and! lofty tone " . His task was a simple one. The atroci ties of France were notorious. It was not a dif ficult matter heretofore for him to enumerate her sion called for.. Yet his lette'i is -defective1 in o !a now, it was equally so then?. Duane, tj,er parts. He' has no where protested against pver, has fully possessed the public with.ihe ps of accointin g loj much of the conduct . ot mmstenal editor. He has already told the s that it would not comport with the sub- ace of the National Intelligencer' to act with tadence, Its existence' he tells us de- s upoti i its obedience io the temporising -and schemes o the influential members ol His conduct on this occasion, there is by no means unaccountable or to be won 't Mis a true specimen of his 'candor forbearar.ee and dierriined moderation.' ! ! :i us view this subject- in another light and :t for a moment the correctness nf the nre- P of our court gazette, -"-'that the firm arid Ot General Armstrong' letter to the ita'dore, sheds lustre on the proudest days wan virtue,', what must" every American ytfident1mrhdHbink"cf iherwand 3' that part of the president's message, at !Jmg of the second session of the eleventh PJ, which relates to the :a-he barely notices her 4 trespasses arid' its himselfi after a labored-effort tthjastify '. merly arrangtment' with .tht.Br'uish p-ov. N,and to fix upon it the odium of the dis rr -tnertly- infoTmih-v congress "thai: France' the posture .of our rpiri'inr.a rlrtc f.of FPond wifh thfe. LmeastirrR laliVn nri i'K '' H United States to.effect a favorable rhnn1 1 fiothintr : that- hich deserved to be noticed and commu- to the national legislature in a more Tor- ""Q ImnreSOve manner tkon rty when the principal belligerent' who trespasser had received so great a usoa attention ? In th?' - a ul lvrn on the shores ot jr ranee sof weather and the perils of the sea no Was the , nr.A .-.., r i"es nrcutrht to France in ships violating no bhk irjjniHi- tniry at tne imperial npthinp; ? Was "the violation of IP ikt. ... i . aL. :;. consccrmeu as they nave. 'J lTC 80'emn forms of a public treaty no ..m a word, was it nothint? that our shins that r? th- h8hJe!s wfthout other offence tttali belonging to the United States ; ' or, at . r inan wa3-t0 h Ctiind in the eniiaric .7 ct the perpetrator! Yer all this and . UF Was known fn ih rrpsiflpnl -nt I he LSKfe was delivered to congress j ata illicit incarceration of Americans. - He barely no tie'es the u unfounded insinuation'' that the peo ple of. the United States were destitute of policy, of honor and of energy, and passes over in silence other pnssages in that letter, perhaps not less ob jectiqnable. Nor docs lie vouchsafe to call the Frenclrmi ni ster's atten lion to t He'-yer y exceptj onable circumstance of his having first published in the face of all Europe this insolent communica. tion, before Tie condescended to furnish him with a'copy. He could not well Mve acted towards our minister, or eovernment, int.a manner more truly contemptuous. Yet Gen. Arrhstrong deems this a matter ofno momentjoV carefully avoids treatmcr it as,such. Again, what are we to tnin of a minister who in One breath justly excepts to " a measure of reprisal, equally sudden and silent in its enactment and antlication. founded on no previotis wrong, productive of no previouscom plaint, and operating beyong the limits of Jiis ma jesty!sterritorie and within those of sovereigns who had even invited the commerce oithe unueo States to their ports,'' and in the next speaks of f the confidence he feels in Ihe open and loyal policy of His Majesty," who toas authorised those measures of reprisal equally 'sudden and silentt W hat is the plain' import of thos& words. " 6pen and loyal policy", but fairness of conduct and. de votion to-the ririnciDles of rustice,? If this be the plain and natural interpretation of their meaning does it not argue a degree oi extreme inconsisten cy, if not base hypocrisy in our minister to signi fy his confidence in the open a nd. loyal policy of a tyrant who flanctioned those " measures ot . rfc prisal equally sudden and silent in their enact- ment and - application, founded on no previous wrong, productive of no previous complaint, and Operatihg beyod i limits'of ntones and within those of sovereigns', who had even invited the commerce of the United States to their, ports ?" 1 1t might also he,re be asked with crreat propriety whether this " open and loyal po licy" in which General Armstrong places s'uch implicit confidence consisted in " the capture and condemnation of a shit driven on the shores of France'by distress of weather and the perilsofihe sea the seizure and sequestration of many car coes brought to France in ships violating no law and admitted to regular , entry at the imperial custom houses the violating of our maritime riehts." consecrated as thev have been by the solemn forms of a public treatyIn a word, wheth er it consisted in burning our ships oa tahe high . From the AI ,Y. Evening Post. 'Mr, Doolittle's ArarrativeHn given Mrf Doolittle's , narrative to the "public, in his own words; we now proceed to make some remarks and Observations on the subject. . The first thing which presents itself to our view in examining this narrative is the submission of oTarTmmster-atFarisHo-the inju3deerees)fhe tyrant of France Bonaparte had decreed that evei-y neutral vessel which should visit a British port, or that should be visited by a British cruiz er should be denationalized' That is, that the ves sel should lose its neutral characteivand the crews should become Englishmen, and be treated ac cordingly. ... The ship in which Mr. Dqolittle sail ed had visited a British port, the crew therefore, agreeably to the decrees of Bonaparte, iere Eng lishmen, they were taken as Englishmen, and confined as English prisoners of war. - Mr. Doo- little applied to Gen. Armstrong, and requested him to demand these men as Americans. , No law of " nations that ever-existed could denationalize them, unless they had committed some crime; It was what every neutral had a rieht to "do And had they submitted, to Bonaparte's decrees they would at once have lost their neutral charac ter, they would have become his slayes. But what does Gen. Armstrong say in this business- He acknowledged the decree, of Bonapae,tp be just. The emperor has decreed that there shall be no neutrals you have attempted to maintain the neutral character, your punishment therelore is just. This is the sum and substance of Gen. Armstrong's doctrine And on this principle he could not demand these poor devils as Americans. Xbey...wexe Englishmen-they had'violated the decrees of his imperial majesty, ejvery man who does that is an Englishmen of course - and it the Emperor thought fit to punish him as an English man he ought not. to complain. The Emperor, though he was actually making open war on the United States, did not think it policy at thai time to declare it. He knew. if he called these unfor tunate ; men American "prisoners.. of.war,'L the eyes of the people of America would . be open ; and that it would be out of the power of his mini ons in this'country to stifle the spirit, of indigna tion which would be raised against Jiim. 1 hough our government and their ministers were with him, yet he knew that the great mass of the peo ple were against him. It was therefore, neces sary for him to disguise his real views ; and in this deception General Armstrongjias done every thing to assist him. Had the General demanded these men as Americans had he written direct ly to ;ihe minister a cringing tone to the minister of war, Jre would have settled the business at once. 1 he men would have been leleased, or an open declaration of war would have ensued. Bonaparte must have eiven ud the men, or declared his intention of treating us as enemies. In either case. the hojiof of the nation would have been saved, and if Bona parte bad dechired war against us, as in all pro bability he : would have' done, millions of property would also have been saved. But, to theshame ofjVroerican every indignity which foreign nations have seen proper to heap upon us ; and this is not all our ministers, instead of being the defenders of our rights arid protectors of Americans, have conde scended to become spies and intormers to the po lice of foreign countries. They have not only submitted to the laws of tyrants,, made to control and destroy the rights of neutral nations, but they have actually assisted in putting these unjust -edicts into execution. . Another thing exhibits the meanness of Geri Armstrong or some of . his satellites. Mr. Doo-. little sent letters through; Gen. Armstrong, and by his permission, to ,hi parents in America. These letters instead of being fovwafded directly to Mr, Doolittle's father, were sent to Duane to be lised, and then forwarded.', AYhat shalt we thinklpf such a minister a mjnister a represen tative of a great nation, to descend to sucb mean mrrTOai:witJ'bebtte come to this, that a private correspondence is to be kept up between,our minister and a lying prin ter in this country) believed to be; in the pay of trance ; and is every communication.wmcn comes from Trance, to go through the hands of this vile vagabond ? It is well known that no, letter can come from France withbutr being opened by the police of that country i unless it comes under gen Armstrong's cover and it appears that thi; letters forwarded by the general are to go Jhrough the har ds of Duane. An honorable situation of affairs this I Gen. Armstrong's last letter to the French minister was in the style pf a man and an Ameri can, and we are happy to give him credit for the stand he b-takem -We-sincerel hope he has seen the evil of submitting td Bonaparte's de crees, and that .iri future he will maintain the cha racter of a true American. But as "long as he holdva private correspondence with such men as Duane, and exposes td them secrets which co administration think' too sacred for the public eye, we shall look upon him with suspicion. No man- can be a true "American who Jiolds familiar con verse with Duane. .'J. In making our observationi jon our affairs w ith France, and the situation of ihe unfortunate Ap).er ricans in that country, .we Havevjjeen under ilre necessity of censuring CeneratjstrOng, and laying the blame on his ihoulderj as' he was the representative of -the American nation in , that country j and through hinv-every communication from Americans to the French goyernment ougiit to have been made. Bat we are far enough from thinking that generalArmstrong did all that he has done of his own mere motion. We hae a higher opinion of his spirit than to think he could so stoop, and feel no degradation. If e had his instructions from our temporizing great ones at Washington. He, was undoubtedly forbid to in terfere for t"e poor Americans, lest the ' paragon of human nature," the super-eminent" emperor, should take effence,and declare open war. against,, us. Submission to Bonaparte's decrees 'was the policy of Jefferson, and is the policy of our pre sent administration. Napoleon had decreed, the, destruction of commerce, and his friends in this country obeyed ! They manned our fleet and armed the militia against navigation at home, and instructed our ministers to destroy it abroad. Mr. . Armstrong may have, therefore, done his duty as a minister, but as a man and a friend to his coun try he has certainly failed. From the Federal Republican. Messrs. Editors, " -., I have long thought and frequently indulged the remark, that the different ministers of Eng land were not less ignorant of the slate of panics " fin this country, their-character and. views, thau they were mistaken in the policy pursued in theiv negotiations Until the appointment of Mr- Jack son . for many years "they have not had a minister in the United States, -whp was qualified properly to represent bis government, or capable of at- . tending to i s interest. I have never been able to account for this oversight or neglect, unless it be that she docs not think us of sufficient con. sequence in the scale of universal politics to be regarded with a more jealous" and watchful atten tion. 'However vt cannot be denied that after the .v seduction and ruin of Erskinc, she thought fit to puHier bst Toot foremost, arid to compliment it by sending out'the ablest negotiator in her whole -;.' diplomatic corps that, is to say, after the steed was stolen she shut the stable door. The arduous , 8c almost infeasible task of undoing what Erskine did without authority, was assigned to Mr. Jack 500 and although L.much of the evil, was remedied, the affair has terminated in a complete suspension of diplomatic intercour,. .'" Now, before Erskine's arrangement was made, n it is a matter of history, ithat the diplomat it; action was almost under water, without having; a straw to catch at. The ignorance, weakness, or treachery of this boyish minister, induced him to stretch forth hjs hand to save them from drowning. By zcouftde indin they were not only savd, but . actually enabled to place their preserver in their own situation, who might appeal to their magna nimity and humanity, in vain, to extend to him a like assistance. Whose fault is it then that tTfc- avowed and bitter enemies of England, still hold the reins of government in this country? It in England's fault in this way. They permitted a man to reside here as minister, who was net qualified even to be a sub-consul I who if not open to corruption, was at least so torpid as to be the -dupe of the petty tricks and cunning of a common petty-foggingubi-neyi" I hobe'she will profit hjr.' V the lesson, and whenever.diplomatic 'intercourse f1 is renewedrlte -will-ayoid these Tocks-andtjtiTcir' . - sands. Unless she has an eye to the charac ter apd conduct of her ministeis in this country, . the American people will be perpetually humbug ged by the gross and clumsy deception of their own cabinet.. '"' ' . -r-.--r '...',- ' But I begin now to flatter myself that the Ma- . - dison's, Giles's and Smith's are perfectly .uru'er. stood in England, and will be dealt with in n, manner bccommg.1 he occasloii all the palamTner :-x of our philosophical senatorial doctor Logan to the ' r contrary notwithstanding. By ; the wayr"A' sirs. VS"' Editors -you have let ofi this absurd, personage , much tob easy. He is going about the world like r an Itinerant mad Doctor, thinking;' haOy:his c- molliehts, hts potions and his v salves, hct-can re duce all mankind to his own precise level of stn pidity. He is one of those fellows whom the in- 7" imitable ...poetry ot.the Jlnii Jacabin describes . ; That black's not so hlacfc, ; ' r , : v Nor while so veiy white.''. ; :? ' JXyas really an odd mancBuyfi''lol.:ften,i 'tin . political quack ift assort" of derni-official .capacity'. .'''-.J1' to England,-to jabber his horisense in minibterisl, J. circles, and to circulate theiirnplession' that it were, tor by chance would f !) oufj. the AmerVcTui .. cabinet was- not in eoniest in .mtl ire:itiiig -Jackson. As ajkind of passport, )pu I'emeiv.ber, he carried With him a wi dc'CJit, luoold bi.iI I- wouldn't letter, from y.r. Ma'i,cn vnitb he J used no doubt to bother and puzzle yout ppposi- , tionists and BurdeUHe.s -. who.. would ss-U hold of .- : the slightest, pretext to frle the mins?r..irito the . adoption of further cer.eiliaicry ' measure?. The 7 mad Dcctor -w;ill come hpme whhljigfiiicrinhw . - ... ''i;.- A...-., !".'.i '1
The Raleigh Minerva (Raleigh, N.C.)
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July 26, 1810, edition 1
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