article in question to his majesty's attorney-general, for his opinion, whether it is or is not a libel, according to the construction of the law of England, and whether it is such a libel as he would, under all the circumstances, recommend for prosecution. As soon as I receive his report, I shall have the honour of communicating it to you.

I have the honour to be, &c.
(Signed) Hawkesbury.

No. 12.

Note from M. Otto to Lord Hawkes

bury, dated August 17, 1802. The undersigned minister plenipotentiary of the French republic, having submitted to his government the letter which his excellency lord Hawkesbury, minister and principal secretary of state of his Britannic majesty, did him the honour of writing, under date of 27th July, is directed to offer the following observations:

If the British government tolerates censures upon the acts of its administration, and the personal abuse of the most respectable men, it does not suffer even the slightest attempt against the public tranquillity, the fundamental laws of the empire, and supreme authority which arises from them. Every nation is, moreover, at liberty to sacrifice any advantage whatever in its interior, in order to obtain another to which it attaches a higher value; but the government which does not repress the licentiousness of the press, when it may be injurious to the honour or the interests of foreign powers, would afford an opportunity to libellists to endanger the public tranquillity, or, at least, the good understanding that forms the basis of it; and whenever such

serious injuries are continued in a regular and systematic manner, doubts must arise as to its own dispositions.

The particular laws and constitution of Great Britain are subordinate to the general principles of the law of nations, which supersede the laws of each individual state. If it be a right in England to allow the most extensive liberty to the press, it is a public right of polished na. tions, and the bounden duty of go. vernments, to prevent, repress, and punish, every attack which might, by those means, be made against the rights, the interests, and the honour of foreign powers.

This general maxim of the law of nations has never been mistaken without paving the way for the greatest divisions, and has even furnished, in England, a plausible pretext to those who have written volumes to prove the necessity of the last war against France. Are these men now desirous of presenting to the consular government, a weapon which they have wielded with so much address? and can they flatter themselves that the authority which has signed the peace has not power to maintain it?

By the first article of the treaty of Amiens, the two powers agree to afford no protection, either directly or indirectly, to those who should cause prejudice to any of them.

But the greatest of all injuries, doubtless, is that which tends to debase a foreign government, or to excite, within its territory, civil and religious commotions; and the most decided of all protections, is that, which places under the safeguard of the laws, men who seek not only to disturb the political tranquillity U u 3

of

The undersigned minister must moreover observe, that this is not a question respecting some paragraphs, which, through the inadvertence of an editor, might have been accidentally inserted in a public print; but it is a question of a deep and continued system of defamation, directed not only against the chief of the French republic, but against all the constituted authorities of the republic; against the whole nation; represented by these libellers in the most odious and degrading terms. It has ever been remarked, that many of these prints contain an appeal to the French people, against the government and fundamental laws of their country.

If these observations apply to the English writers, who, for these three months past, have deluged the pub. lic with the most perfidious and unbecoming publications, they are still more applicable to a class of foreign calumniators, who appear to avail themselves of the asylum offered them in England, only for the purpose of the better gratifying their hatred against France, and undermining the foundations of peace.

It is not merely by insulting and seditious writings, evidently published with a view to circulation in France, but by other incendiary papers distributed through the maritime departments, in order to excite the evil-disposed or weak inhabitants to resist the execution of the concordate, that these implacable enemies of France continue to exercise hostilities, and to provoke the just indignation of the French go vernment and people. Not a doubt exists of these writings having been composed and circulated by Georges,

These men can no longer be considered but as rebels against both political and religious authority; and, after their reiterated attempts to disturb the good understanding between the two governments, their residence in England militates openly against the spirit and letter of the treaty of peace.

The meetings, likewise, which have taken place in the island of Jersey, and the odious plots which are there framed, in spite of the representations which the under. signed minister has already taken care to make on this subject, also demand immediate measures to be taken by a government, the neighbour and friend of France.

Other persons (attached, by recollections never to be effaced, and by regrets too long fostered, to an order of things which no longer exists in France) find themselves daily implicated by the plots of those who pretend to serve them. A sense of their own reputation will, without doubt, lead them to avoid a focus of intrigues, with which they ought not to have the least connexion.

Peace happily re-established, the mutual desire of the two countries to render it solid and lasting, and the general interests of humanity, require that all these causes of dissatisfaction should be done away, and that his majesty's ministry should, by frank and energetic measures, manifest their disapprobation of all the attempts made to produce new divisions.

The undersigned has, in conse. quence, received especial order to solicit,

1st. That his majesty's govern ment will adopt the most effectual measures to put a stop to the unbe

coming and seditious publications with which the newspapers and writings printed in England are filled.

2d. That the individuals mentioned in the undersigned minister's letter of the 23d July last, shall be sent out of the island of Jersey.

3d. That the former bishops of Arras and St. Pol de Leon, and all those who, like them, under the pretext of religion, seek to raise disturbances in the interior of France, shall likewise be sent away. 4th. That Georges and his adherents shall be transported to Canada, according to the intention which the undersigned has been directed to transmit to his government at the request of lord Hawkesbury.

5th. That, in order to deprive the evil-disposed of every pretext for disturbing the good understanding between the two governments, it shall be recommended to the princes of the house of Bourbon, at present in Great Britain, to repair to Warsaw, the residence of the head of their family.

6th. That such of the French emigrants as still think proper to wear the orders and decorations belonging to the ancient government of France, shall be required to quit the territory of the British empire.

These demands are founded upon the treaty of Amiens, and upon the verbal assurances that the undersigned minister has had the satisfaction to receive, in the course of the negociations, with regard to a mutual agreement for maintaining tranquillity and good order in the two countries. If any one in particular of these demands does not proceed so immediately from the

treaty concluded, it would be easy to justify it by striking examples, and to prove how very attentive the British government has been, in times of internal fermentation, to remove from the territory of a neighbouring power, those who might endanger the public tranquillity.

Whatever may be the protection which the English laws afford to native writers, and to other subjects of his majesty, the French government knows that foreigners do not here enjoy the same protection; and that the law, known by the title of the Alien Act, gives the ministry of his Britannic majesty an authority which it has often exercised against foreigners, whose residence was prejudicial to the interests of Great Britain. The first clause of this act states, expressly, that any order in council which requires a foreigner to quit the kingdom shall be executed, under pain of imprisonment and transportation. There exists, therefore, in the ministry, a legal and sufficient power to restrain foreigners, without having recourse to courts of law; and the French government, which offers, on this point, a perfect reciprocity, thinks it gives a new proof of its pacific intentions, by demanding that those persons may be sent away, whose machinations uniformly tend to sow discord between the two people. It owes to itself, and to the nation at large (which has made it the depository of its power and of its honour), not to appear insensible to insults and to plots during profound peace, which the irritation of open war could not justify, and it is too well acquainted with the conciliatory dispositions of the British ministry, U u 4

not

I send you the copy of a letter which I received some days ago from M. Otto, together with a copy of an official note enclosed in it. I have informed M. Otto, that you would receive instructions to enter into explanations with the French government on the several points to which it refers. It is impossible not to feel considerable surprise at the circumstances under which it has been thought proper to present such a note; at the style in which it is drawn up; and at the complaints contained in it. Whatever may be the general dispositions of the French government towards this country, supposing them to be as hostile as they have been at any former period, or even more so, it would appear so contrary to their interest to provoke a war with us at the preseat moment, that I am inclined to ascribe their conduct, in the whole of this business, more to temper, than to any other motive; but whether their conduct is to be referred to temper or to policy, the effects of it may still be the same; it is therefore become of the utmost importance that a frank explanation

should be made of the line of conduct which his majesty has determined to adopt on reasons of the nature of those to which this note refers, and of the motives on which it is founded; and it is to be hoped that such an explanation will have the effect of putting an end to a course of proceeding, which can lead only to perpetual irritation between the two governments, and which might ultimately tend to the most serious consequences.

The first consideration that naturally arises on this transaction, is that of the peculiar circumstances under which the note of M. Otto has been presented. It cannot be denied that some very improper paragraphs have lately appeared in some of the English newspapers against the government of France; it cannot be denied, likewise, that publications of a still more improper and indecent nature have made their appearance in this country, with the names of foreigners affixed to them. Under these circum. stances, the French government would have been warranted in expecting every redress that the laws of this country could afford them; but as, instead of seeking it in the ordinary course, they have thought fit to resort to recrimination themselves, or, at least, to authorise it in others, they could have no right to complain, if their subsequent appeal to his majesty had failed to produce the effect that otherwise would have attended it.

Whatever may have been the na ture of the prior injury, they have, in fact, taken the law into their own hands; and what is this recrimination and retort? The paragraphs in the English newspapers, the publi

cations

cations to which I have above referred, have not appeared under any authority of the British government, and are disavowed and disapproved of by them; but the paragraph in the Moniteur has appeared in a paper avowedly official, for which the government are, therefore, considered as responsible, as his majesty's government is responsible for the contents of the London Gazette. And this retort is not confined to the unauthorized English newspapers, or to the other publications of which complaint is now made, but is converted into, and made a pretence for a direct attack upon the government of his majesty. His majesty feels it beneath his dignity to make any formal complaint on this occasion; but it has been impossible for me to proceed to the other parts of the subject, without pointing your attention to the conduct of the French government in this respect, that you may observe upon it in the manner it deserves.

The propositions in M.Otto's official note, are six in number; but may, in fact, be divided under two heads: the first, that which relates to the libels of all descriptions, which are alledged to be published against the French government; the last, comprehending the five complaints which relate to the emigrants resident in this country. On the first, I am sure you must be aware that his majesty cannot, and never will, in consequence of any representation or any menace from a foreign power, make any concession, which can be in the smallest degree dangerous to the liberty of the press, as secured by the constitution of this country. This liberty is justly dear to every British subject. The constitution admits of no previous restraints

hose

upon publications of any description; but there exists judicatures, wholly independent of the executive government, capable of taking cognizance of such publications as the law deems to be criminal, and which are bound to inflict the punishment the delinquents may deserve; these judicatures may take cognizance, not only of libels against the government and the magistracy of this kingdom, but, as has been repeatedly experienced, of publications defamatory of those in hands the administration of foreign governments is placed. That our government neither has, nor wants any other protection than what the laws of the country afford; and though they are willing and ready to give to every foreign government all the protection against offences of this nature, which the principle of their laws and constitution will admit, they never can consent to new-model their laws, or to change their constitution, to gratify the wishes of any foreign power. If the present French government are dissatisfied with our laws on the subject of libels, or entertain the opinion that the administration of justice in our courts is too tardy and lenient, they have it in their power to redress themselves by punishing the venders and distributors of such publications within their own territories, in any manner that they may think proper, and thereby preventing the circulation of them. they think their present laws are not sufficient for this purpose, they may enact new ones; or, if they think it expedient, they may exercise the right which they have of prohibiting the importation of any foreign newspapers, or periodical publications, into the territories of

If

the