hour; but Mr. Drake is proud and vain. The profits of his secret missions must have made Him wealthy and covetous.. He will be punished, when he shall know, that the revolt of the four departments, the capture of Huningen, the seduction of the army, the liberation of Pichegru, Moreau, of Georges, and his confederates; the existence of the Diplomatic Committee; in short, the talents, the credit and projects of this demagogue general, by nature endowed with a sublime eloquence, an imposing figure, and who is quite disposed to ef fect, at his call, the overthrow of France, are chimeras, with which the Prefect of Strasburg has liked to feed his simple credulity.He will be punished, when he learns that all his bulletins, which were sent to London, by extraordinary messengers, communicated to every court, hawked about by the English ministers as far as Constantinople, and of which traces are found even in the discussions of Parliament, were fabrications, and contained nothing either true or probable; that before they were transmitted to him, they had been communicated to the agents of the Police of Paris, who blushed on reading them; and could hot recover from their surprise, on seeing that fabies, framed with so little care and trouble, could. charm Mr. Drake, and serve as a basis for the operations and calculations of the cabinet Mr. Drake will be punished, when he shall know, that his bills, his gold, his correspondence, those of His colleagues, the spies at Rotterdam, Abbeville, Paris, and Munich, are the sport of men, who, by ap proaching him and his colleague at Stutgard, by watching their steps; and by studying their character, have learned and can teach Europe, that a ministry, which renders itself despicable by the choice and by the conduct of its diplomatic agents, cannot inspire either fear or confidence in the governments of the Continent; and that the insolence and corruption, which that ministry employ as weapons to intimidate or lead astray the Coun cils of Sovereigns, do now find a powerful antidote in the discovery of the meanness, the immorality. and stupidity of their diplomacy.- -Concerning Mr. Spencer Smith, I have strong reasons to think that the operations entrusted to him are not confined to these plats; that he directs the events which are taking place in the Canton of Zurich; and that the disturbances, by which that miserable district is again agitated, are owing to his gold and his intrigues.Citizen First Consul, perhaps I transgress the bounds of my function; bụt I must tell you, with that truth which you love to hear, France cannot suffer a hostile power to establish; on neutral territory, accredited agents, whose principal mission is to carry discord to the bosom of the republic. You are at the head of a nation great enough, strong, and brave enough; to obtain, as your right, an absolute neutrality. You have constantly commanded me pot to suffer that conpiracies be framed in any part of our immense territory, against any existing government; and already, during the short space of time elapsed since I have been entrusted with the administra tion of the police, have I repeatedly annulled machinations which threatened the King of Naples and the Holy See; I have pursued as far as Strasburgh the forgers of Vienna bank-notes. All these facts have proved how sincere your wish is to secure, established governments against every kind of propagandas and plots. Why should you not have the right to demand an entire reciprocity from the States of the Germanic Empire? Why should Munich, Simtgard, Ettenheim, and Friburg,

have the right of remaining the centre of the conspiracies, which England never ceases to form against France and Helvetia?These objects deserve your utmost solicitude, Citizen First Consul; and I dare to tell you so, because this privilege belongs to the Chief of Justice, and the most serious attention in this respect forms part of your first duties It may be objected, I know, that England, as a friendly power, has a right to send ministers to the Electors of Bavaria, Baden, and Wirtemburgh. But English diplomacy is composed of two sorts of agents, whom all the Continent well know how to distinguish. Such ministers as Cornwallis and Warren, are never ac credited but for honourable missions, to maintain a good understanding between nations, and to regulate the grand interests of policy or of commerce; whilst the Wickhams, the Drakes, and the Spencer Smiths, are known throughout Europe as the artificers of crimes, whose cowardice is protected by a sacred character. I will say more, the presence of these contemptible agents is very mortifying to the Princes in friendship with France; and the Courts of Munich and Stutgard cannot support, without disgust, Drake and Spencer Smith, whom numberless reasons render suspected of a very different mission from that which is announced by their official title. In consequence of the demand that you have made of them, the Electors of Bavaria and Wirtemburgh have driven from their states the impure remains of the French who are enemies to their countty, and whose hatred has survived the calamities of civil war, and the pardon which you have granted. them. Let them equally drive away these artificers of conspiracy, whose mission has no other object but to reanimate the intestine dissentions of France, and to sow fresh discord on the Continent. Ought not our neighbours to suffer an equal alarm with ourselves at the return of political troubles, and of all those horrors of war, which can be profitable only to that nation which is the enemy of every other? I demand, in the most earnest manner, and every duty I owe you, Citizen First Consul, impels me to make the request, that the cabinet may take such effectual measures, that the Wickham's, the Drake's, and the Spencer Smith's, may not be received by any power in friendship with France; whatever may be their title or character; men whe preach up assassina tion, and fomeat domestic troubles; the agents of corruption, the missionaries of revolt against all established governments, are the enemies of all states, and of all governments. The law of na❤ tions does not exist for them. I have fulfilled my duty, Citizen First Consul, in exposing to your view, the facts which prove, that Drake and Spencer Smith, exercise upon the Continent, the same mission with which Wickham was charged during the last war. Your supreme wisdom will

do the rest.

Report of the mission with which I have been charged by the Counsellor of State and Prefect of the Department of the Lower Rhine, near. Mr. Drake, Minister from England to Munich.

On the roth Ventôse, after having received from the hands of the Prefect of the Lower Rhine, the instructions of Mr. Muller, I quitted Strass burgh to go to Mr. Drake, Minister of England, at Munich. On the 12th I arrived at Augsburgh, and sent him two letters, of which I give the copies :

SIR,I have been charged by Mr. Muller, with a letter which I shall very much wish to give

into your own hands. Will, you, therefore, have the goodness to name the day and hour that will be least inconvenient to you. I have the honour, &c.On the 17th in the morning, finding that I did not receive any answer, I departed for Munich; on my arrival I wrote again to Mr. Drake as follows:

SIR,During the four days that I remained at Augsburgh, I have had the honour to address two letters to you, and presume that you have not received them, as no answer has been sent to me; will you, sir, let me know the hour when I may hope to deliver to you in person, that which Mr. Muller charged me to deliver to you. I have the honour, &c.

As soon as he had received this letter, he sent for me to come to him immediately, and that he expected me. I accordingly presented myself to Mr. Drake, as aid-de-camp to a republican general, and delivered to him my letter of introduction, and the tenor of which was as follows:

SIR,The person who will deliver this note to you, has been appointed by the company to address you, some days since, as my organ; he has the entire confidence of those who send him; and I beg of you to consider what he may say as the sincere expression of their sentiments. The most agreeable part of his commission, will doubtless be, to assure you of the devotion of the company. Permit me, Sir, to add, the assurance of the high consideration with which I have the honour to be, &c. MULLER.

He had no sooner read this letter, than he inquired what news there was in France, and how things went on in that country? I answered him, that the moment of triumph for the jacobins was arrived that every one was of opinion that a more favourable occasion to attempt something against the government would not be found, than that which now presented itself. What can I do for you? tell me what are your views? what do you hope to accomplish? have your general and your committee formed any projects?Perceiving this to be a favourable moment, I presented him my plan of operations, which is the same as that noted down in the minute of my instructions. After having read it three times with attention, he said to me- This is a very good plan, but I do not observe many fortified towns among those that you describe, and it is to those, however, we must pay the greatest attention.' I named the place of arms, and the citadel of Besançon. I represented to him that this town was very strong, and that we were certain of finding there a large park of artillery and ammunition of every kind. Have you horses for your artil lery? We are assured of having them. That is very well, but take care to use dispatch, and never strike till you are sure of your blow; but in case it should fail, can you retire to Mount Jura? Can you find a secure retreat there, and be certain of defending yourselves for a long time? In this inserval, the other departments, in which you have already formed a party, will produce a diversion. After having paused a moment, he hastened to fetch his map, to discover what town of Germany was nearest to one of those that we were to occupy, in order (he said) to render our communication more prompt, and to give every necessary assistance. This plan merits, on my part, the greatest attention, and it has my hearty approbation. To-morrow, or the day after, I shall write to your general, and I doubt not but you will he the bearer of a very satisfactory an.

swer.'

Mr. Drake then spoke to me of Pichegru. I asked him if it were his opinion that he was in France? He said, certainly not: I am extremely well acquainted with him, and he is a man of merit; but he is too cold and too heavy to be engaged to take such a step; be assured that he is at this moment in London, and propagate that opinion every where. As to Georges, I positively know that he cannot be at Paris, as I have received letters from persons in London who had seen him the moment before they wrote to me. I have informed him of the reports which have been circulated of a continental war; I have described such an event as the most terrible blow that could happen for the jacobins, as that would establish the government for ever.' He said in answer, that there were strong reasons to justify the expectation, that Russia would be prevailed on to declare against France.' He conversed at considerable length on the projected descent on England, and at the same time was very prodigal of injurious expressions against the First Consul; and it was in vain that he dissembled the fear which affected him, respecting the descent and enterprising genius of the French army. He spoke much of Mr. Muller. I answered him according to my instructions, that I had not seen him, &c. and that I knew positively that he was gone to the army of the coast on a very important mission. He smiled with an air of satisfaction, and said to me—' On my learning the arrest of Moreau, I wrote to Mr. Muller to come to me, with orders to forward the letter to him wherever he might be; nor can I conceive why it has been delayed. I am, however, certain, that he is in Germany; for one of my friends writes me word, that he has not only seen but spoken to him; in short, I expect to see him every day. I am very glad to tell you, that this Citizen Muller does not possess a very great degree of confidence; he goes rarely to the committee, which is a matter of great complaint.

With respect to that, I desire you to tell your general, that when I sent him into France, it was inerely to form a correspondence, but not to remain there as he has done, for he ought to have been returned these two months. He has also informed me by letter, of every thing you tell me, and even more, that the committee had accused him of having received funds for another revolutionary commit ee, of which I have no knowledge whatever. If I have not remitted more funds, it is, I must avow frankly, that I did not clearly understand the project of your commit ce. Some time since it was communicated to me by letter, that four departments might be incited to insurrection, and that I was to send them a plan of operations. I ask you, however, if it were re3sonable that I should do so, as I was not acquainted with their means, and what they were qualified to execute. Now, things are very different, and I have a clear insight into them. I shall, therefore, employ inyself most willingly in giving all the pecuniary aids which are at my disposal; you may have an entire reliance on me; come and dine with me, therefore, on Friday, at four o'clock, and you will find your dispatch ready.'-On Friday I presented myself again to Mr. Drake, when he gave me a most gracious reception. Your business is completed. I have written to your general, and I think he will have every reason to be satisfied with me: the writing is not visible, but I presume that he has a receipt to make it so. If he did not know it, Mr. Mul

ler would communicate it to him. You will also recommend him not to be in too great a hurry, for my first advice was to wait till B. was depart ed for Boulogne, and on the point of embarking. You will make your general feel the necessity of getting possession of Alsace, but principally of Huninguen, and the citadel of Strasburgh; ah! what a blow it would be if you could obtain thos: two places; I could come nearer to you, and could give you pecuniary succour; there would then be no delay in our operations; we could act in concert, and every thing would proceed infi. nitely better; it is also of great importance to have a large party at Paris, for without that the rest is nothing; you must get rid of B—— (1 acknowledge my fears at this moment of betraying the lively indignation which agitated me). He proceeded: It is the surest means of obtaining your liberty, and making peace with England. One thing I recommend to your general, to stir up paries of every denomination; they are all equally important to you, whether they are royalists or jacobins, &c. You must, however, except the friends of B -- whom you cannot trust, from the fear of being betrayed. Your ge neral must also set at defiance the proclamations which the Consul will not fail to have circulated, when your insurrection shall be commenced; he will say, that such and such departments had a disposition to rise, but that it is entirely at an end, which will be done to alarm the other departments, and prevent them from acting, for such were the means employed to extinguish the war of La Vendée. A report was spread abroad that Georges was arrested, and a similar rumour was propagated respecting Pichegru; for though this day's gazette announces his arrest, I do not believe a word of it. It is very possible to seize on some unfortunate person, and say that it is Pichegru; it is a matter of great importance, that you should tell your general to take the earliest opportunity of indicating to me one or two towns, into which I may send confidential persons, who shall be furnished with funds, at the disposition of your general. Two or three thousand Louis may be sent him at a time. It is gold, I believe, that will be most convenient to him, as I cannot send him paper on Paris without giving cause for sus. picion. You will remit to him these four bills of exchange for 9990 francs, or 10,114 livres 175. 6d. ; it is all the paper I have been able to procure on Paris. I have just written to Mr. Smith, at Stutgard, to collect all the funds in his power, in order that the operations may not languish for want of money. If, however, you will wait till Wednesday, you may carry with you a more considerable sum answered him that my general had expressly ordered my immediate return, and that it was impossible for me to wait. If your general sends you again, or any other person, you will tell him to send them directly to me; an apartment will always be ready for them, I live out of the town on purpose, for I am surrounded with spies: every motion of mine is watched.'--. Apropos, I replied, it had escaped my memory to tell you of the report, that you are about to quit this town and return to England; you are, it is said, recalied by your government, and I declare that the news greatly afflicted me. It is true that such a report has prevaled, but I cannot explain the cause of it some time since I furnished my house, and having demanded of the upholsterer the inventory of the goods which he had supplied me with, it was immediately thought that I was

about to take my departure; but never fear, my friend, this report is without the least foundation. -He let me out by a little secret door, and accompanied me to the gates of the town, telling me, at the same time, that he hoped very soon to hear news from my general.Such were the ex-. pressions made use of by Mr. Drake in the conversation which we had relative to my mission. The plan or letter of Mr. Drake, written in sympathetic ink, the letter which was addressed to me by the name of Lefebvre, the receipt of the post-masters of Kanstadt, of the letter addressed to Mr. Smith, at Stutgard, with the four bills of exchange, have been seat to the Prefect.-(Signed) ROSEY, Adjutant-Major, Captain of the 9 h Regiment of Infantry of the Line.- Strasburgh, March 23, 1804.

SUMMARY OF POLITICS.

Mr. DRAKE.-This unfortunate gentleman has, it seems, been ordered to quit the dominions of the Elector of Bavaria, who has caused him to be officially informed, that the honour of the Elector and the welfare of his people have compelled him "to declare "to his excellency, Mr. Drake, that from "this moment" [see the note, p. 678] "it "will be impossible for him to have any "communication with his excellency!" But, the most important passage in this note, is this: the ORIGINALS of the letters published by the French government, as the letters of Mr Drake, were, at the time the note was written, IN POSSESSION, OF. THE ELECTOR. It was, then, rightly conjectur-' ed, last week, [p. 629], that Mr. Drake would not thank his friends for making his guilt, or innocence, as to the charge of abetting assassination, rest upon the issue of an inquiry respecting the authenticity of the letters attributed to him by the French.→→ In the second report of the grand judge, Mr. Spencer Smith, our minister at the court of the Elector of Wurtemburgh, is included in the charge; and, it is stated, in the French papers, that Mr. Smith fled from Stutgard, after having burnt all his papers, while, at the same time, Mr. Drake was fleeing from Munich, on fot, to avoid falling into the hands of a party of gens-d'armes, whom he understood to have left Strasburgh for the purpose of seizing him.--When it was stated, some time ago, in the Register, that our ministers would be chased off the Continent, the expression was used figuratively: it was, only a few months back, scarcely to be conceived, that British ministers at neutral courts would be literally chased from the dominions of those courts; that they would actually be hunted home, as beasts of prey are hunted to their dens.--Nor, if we are to form an opinion from the second report of the grand judge, will this hunting be eoufised to the two unfortunate diplomatists above

named. This high judicial person, this real "truly great character," observes to Buonaparte, that it will be impossible for France to suffer an bostile power to establish, on neutral territory, accredited agents, whose principal mission is to carry discord to the bosom of the republic. "You," says he,

Citizen First Consul, are the head of a "nation great enough, strong and brave "enough, to obtain, as your right, an ab

solute neutrality." Then he reminds the Consul, who, it would seem, has a short memory as to these matters, of the many instances in which foreign traitors and plotters have been driven out of France, since the establishment of the consular power; and, though the judge does, indeed, make no mention of, or allusion to, the Irish gentlemen, of whom Lord Hawkesbury speaks, he roundly asserts to the First Consul, who, he says, dearly loves to hear the truth, "that "the Consul's wish is most sincere to secure "established governments against every kind "of propagandas and plots."--All this, however, seems intended merely to prepare the Consul for what follows; to wit:"Why, then, should you not have a right "to demand an entire reciprocity from the "states of the Germanic empire? Why "should Munich, Stutgard, Ettenheim, and Friburg, have the right of remaining the "centre of the conspiracies which England

never ceases to form against France and "Helvetia?" The grand judge allows, however, that "it may be said, that England, ་་ as a friendly power, has a right to send "ministers to the Electors of Baden, Bava"ria and Wurtemburgh;" but, after having argued the matter a little, he concludes thus: "Therefore, I beseech you, in the "most earnest manner, and every duty I "owe you, Citizen First Consul, impels me "to put up the prayer, that you will take "speedy and effectual measures, that the "Wickhams, the Drakes, and the Spencer "Smiths, may not, under whatever title or "character, be received by any power in friendship with France."If a bag of If a bag of Mr. Drake's guineas had dropped down upon the table before this" truly great character," I doubt whether it would not have interrupted his pious invocation, if not have put a stop to his prattling altogether. But, indeed, who does not perceive, that the paper, entitled a Report of the Grand Judge, is, as in all similar cases in France and elsewhere, the production of the cabinet? And who does not think, therefore, that the passages, above. quoted, prove that it is the intention of Buonaparté not to suffer us to keep ministers, or diplomatic agents of any rank or description,

in any of the countries, over which he has an influence? That such would be the consequence of the detecting of Mr. Drake's little intrigues was predicted, in the Register," the moment the detection was heard of: "These letters," was it observed, (p. 566], "will serve strongly to corroborate the charge, which has been made against

England, which will now be implicitly be "lieved all over the Continent, and which "belief will facilitate the project of the "French for cutting off a connexion, even of a formal diplomatic nature, between Eng"land and the states bordering upon France. "It will draw round the latter another tier "of states hostile to us; and, thus, the project of the "safe politicians" will finally "have no other effect, than that of sinking our country still lower in the eyes of the "world, while it will leave the enemy still more secure on the side of the Contient, "and leave him nothing to provide for but an attack upon these islands, whenever our financial or other distresses or trou. "bles shall render the time favourable for making that attack."

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But, Lord Hawkesbury, the "solid young Lord " Hawkesbury, has written a circular letter. to the foreign ministers residing in London, by way of answer to the circular communication of Talleyrand and the letters which he thereupon received from the foreign ministers at Paris. This is, probably, the "strong means," which, on the 16th ultimo, the Doctor promised the Parliament he would employ, for the purpose of “convinc

ing the world of the purity of the inten "tions of himself and his colleagues ;" and, it must be confessed, that if temerity be a mark of strength, it was a strong measure indeed to commit the defence of the national character to the pen of a poor, dull, talentless man, like Lord Hawkesbury, whose unintelligible and paltry epistle can only tend to decide against us those few persons who entertained any doubts upon the subject.

-To criticise every part of this performance, would require more room than can be here allotted to it; but, there are some few points which must not be overlooked.-The letters, to which the solid young lord was answering, say nothing about the charge of intended assassination; yet, it is that with which the solid lord begins. And, how does he produce an acquittal of himself and clleagues? How does he "convince the "world of the purity of their intentions?" In short, what does he say about this matter? "His Majesty has directed me to de"clare, that he hopes he shall not be re"daced to the necessity of repelling, with

"merited scorn and indignation, the atro"cious and utterly unfounded calumny, that "the government of his Majesty has been a

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party to plans of assassination." The solid lord will hardly think it unreasonable, if we stop here, for the purpose of inquiring what this means; and, whether he really intended to convey an idea, that the King was in hopes he should not be reduced to the necessity of coming forward and denying that his ministers had been concerned in plans of assassination? And further, if the King should be compelled to make such denial, are we to understand that the King hopes, that he shall not be reduced to the necessity of making it with merited scorn and indignation? This is not cavilling; the sentence is utterly unintelligible thus far, and, we shall soon see that the remaining part of it only tends to increase the confusion:-" an “accusation already made, with equal false"hood and calumny, by the same authority, "against the members of his Majesty's go"vernment during the late war-an accu"sation incompatible with the honour of "his Majesty, and the known character of "the British nation, and so completely de"void of any shadow of proof, that it may "be reasonably presumed to have been "brought forward at the present moment, "for no other purpose than that of diverting "the attention of Europe from the contem

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plation of the sanguinary deed, which has "recently been perpetrated by the direct "order of the First Consul, in France, in "violation of the righ's of nations, and in " contempt of the laws of humanity and ho་ nour."Honour! honour! "Where got he that word, trow?" But, without going into a discussion of this curious question, it must certainly be allowed, that the solid lord has, in this place, departed from that candour, for which his sect is so famous, as far, at least, as pretensions go. No man can justify the deed, to which reference is here made; but, it is not true, that the charge of planning assassina. tion was preferred against the English ministers for the purpose of diverting the attention of Europe from the execution of the Duke d'Enghien, because the charge was preferred before that unfortunate prince was arrested. But, observe how anxious these ministers are to draw in every one to be a party with them! What has their cause in common with that of the Duke d'Enghien? And why is his death brought forward in their defence? Might they not as well have made allusion to thousands of royalists of the west, who were murdered in consequence of having been abandoned in the infamous

treaty of Amiens? Buonaparté was a very good sort of a man, notwithstanding the fate of those persons; Mr. Otto was caressed, and the porcelaine de Seve went merrily round; but now, behold, the having com: mitted a murder is to deprive the French government of all pretension to veracity.The same accusation was, says the solid lord, preferred against the members of bis Majesty's government during the late war, and with equal falsehood and calumny. This is so like the well-meaning ministry! So of a piece with that cuckoo cry of having done o ly what the late minister did Jast war, a cry with which the parliament and the whole nation was, long before the debates were put a stop to, completely surfeited.. " Of "equal falsehood and calumny." As much as to say, if we have been plotting, if we

have been engaged in dirty intrigues, Pitt ' and the rest of them shall come in for a 'share along with us, in the eyes of the

whole world, and particularly in the eyes of the English rabble.' How very dif. ferent the cases, how very unequal the ca lumny, admitting it to be calumny in both instances, I shall have occasion to notice hereafter. Such an accusation, the foreign ministers are told, is " incompatible with "the honour of his Majesty and with the "character of the British nation;" but, supposing that the foreign ministers should be able to extract a meaning from this insufferable nonsense; supposing, that they should be able to discover what is meant by an accusation being incompatible with the bonour and character of the persons against whom it is made; supposing that they should find it to mean, that to conceive and abe the crime of assassination are utterly incompatible with the honourable mind of his Majesty, and with the character of the British nation; and, supposing that they should, as, indeed, they certainly will, readily accede to this position, what is that to the solid young lord and his colleagues? It is the British ministry, and not the King or the nation, against whom the accusation has been made. It is truly curious to observe how these men contrive to be nestled in amongst others, to blend and confound their official character, when they are charged with any folly or crime, and when hard driven for a defence. At other times, they are "the ministers," his Majesty's "confidential servants." It is they who act; they alone; and this is clearly pointed out in every word and gesture. But, when there is some disgrace or calamity to account for when, in deed, the discussion looks at all towards responsibility, then, it is bis Majesty; it is