undertaken, and proposes to administer, the duties of his office as mediator.

With respect to the first of the two points which I have stated as absolutely indispensable, general Budberg appears as yet to have gone no farther than to give a verbal assurance that there is not any article, among the secret articles of the treaty of Tilsit, stipulating for the shutting of the Russian ports against Great Britain.

But it will immediately have occurred to your excellency, that a distinction might probably be taken in M. de Budberg's mind between a stipulation for the immediate and unconditional execution of a purpose, and the agreement to resort to it eventually, under circumstances which might not yet have occurred; and that, supposing the former only to be the sense of M. de Budberg's assurance, that assurance might be literally true, without in fact conveying any thing essentially satisfactory.

The inference to be drawn from this circumstance, is, that the Russian minister should be called upon by your excellency in an official note, not for a simple disavowal only of any single article, but for the communication of the secret articles themselves; or at least of any agreement, actual or eventual, in which the interests of this courtry or its allies are in any degree concerned.

In the same formal manner, a communication should be required of the basis of peace proposed by France; upon which the Russian minister does not appear to have offered any explanation.

The other two points are not so

strictly connected with the question of mediation. But it is neverthe less perfectly reasonable that his majesty should require some ostensible proof of the good-will of his august ally, to counteract the ge neral impression which must have been created by late events, of a difference and disunion between them; before his majesty can with a good grace accept those offices at the emperor of Russia's hands, of which impartiality should be the essential character. No proof could be selected, at once so easy for his imperial majesty to give, so grateful to his majesty to receive, so natural in the eyes of the world, and so little liable to exception on the part of France, as the renewal of the treaty of commerce.

With respect to the remaining point, which your excellency is in. structed to urge, a communica tion on the part of the Russian go vernment of its general views and policy for the future,-you will observe, that his imperial majesty him. self annexed to his conditional ac ceptance of the mediation of the emperor of Austria, a similar de. mand of the communication of the general views of the court of Vienna respecting the future state of Europe.

In the treaty of Barenstein, concluded between his imperial majesty and the king of Prussia, and offered by them to the acceptance of other powers as the basis of a co-operation for the purpose of producing a general pacific arrange. ment, a distinct and detailed exposition was entered into with respect not only to the powers intended to be comprehended as parties to the treaty, but to all the other powers

of Europe, in whose fate any one of the principal powers could be supposed to be interested.

These examples of what his imperial majesty has done, and what he has required. would sufficiently authorise his majesty's solicitude to obtain a similar explanation on the present occasion.

But there are other grounds for it in the very state and circumstances of Europe, as arising out of the treaty of Tilsit, and the stipulations annexed to it; some of which stipulations are already carrying into execution in a way to excite his majesty's apprehensions, if not for his own interests, for those of his allies.

Is it impossible that his majesty should not think it essential to be informed whether the public articles of the treaty of Tilsit, which recognises the French king of Naples only as king of Naples, is, in ef. fect, contradicted by a secret article, which adds to this title that of the Two Sicilies?

The movements in the Mediterranean, and the surrender of Corfu, naturally give rise to a variety of apprehensions, which it would be for the interest of both countries to quiet, or at least to reduce within the bounds of truth.

Has not his majesty the right to require some explanation of the intentions of Russia with respect to Turkey; a power with whom his majesty finds himself at war, and left alone in the war, for no other than Russian interests, and from a quarrel espoused by his majesty for the sake of his ally?

These topics your excellency will urge in your conferences with M. de Budberg, with all the earnestness which their importance requires,

but at the same time carefully avoiding a strain of reproach; and even when you are obliged to confess the suspicion of engagements having been entered into, such as his majesty cannot but disapprove, con. ducting your enquiry in such a manner as shall lead M. de Budberg to believe that his majesty is anxious rather to find the means of preventing or remedying the evil, than to discover the grounds of complaint against Russia.

Upon the whole, your excellency will collect from these instructions, that his majesty is as much desirous as ever to cultivate the friendship and alliance of the emperor of Russia; that he conceives the only chance of safety for what remains of Europe to depend upon the renewal of a good understanding between them; that his majesty has never, even under appearances the most unfavourable, altogether despaired of such a recurrence, on the part of the emperor, to the counsels which are best calculated for his own glory, and for the security of his own dominions, as it is now hoped has taken place; and that his majesty, upon such a change, is eager to forget all that has passed of a nature contradictory to those counsels, or inconsistent with them.

Extract of a Dispatch from the Right

Hon. Lord Granville Leveson Gower to Mr. Secretary Canning; dated St. Petersburgh, 8th Nov. 1807.-Received Dec. 2d.

I had the honour of apprising you by the last messenger, of the diffi culty I had experienced in obtain. ing a conference with count Romanzow. I yesterday wrote a letter to him, of which the inclosed is а сору,

a copy, and I this morning received the inclosed note. The contents of this paper are so extremely important, that I will not detain sir Robert Wilson, by making any observations up on the unfounded assertions and misrepresentations with which it abounds.

This violent measure has been produced by a peremptory demand (brought by the last messenger from Paris) of the immediate execution of all the secret articles of Tilsit: and the French mission have boasted, that, after some difficulties, they have gained a complete triumph, and have carried not only this act of hostility against England, but also every other point essential to the success of Buonaparte's views.

I intend asking for passports tomorrow, and shall set out in the course of a few days.

P. S. 1 inclose a copy of the printed declaration, which has been sent by the Russian government to all the foreign ministers residing at this court.

First Inclosure.

The ambassador of his Britannic majesty has repeatedly signified for more than a week his desire to converse with his excellency the count Romanzow: his solicitations have been hitherto fruitless, but the ambassador deems it his duty to renew once more his application, previous to announcing to his court the apparent determination of his excel lency to avoid the customary communication.

26th Oct. (7th Nov.) 1807.

Second Inclosure. The emperor, who, in the course of the war which he has just terminated, had to complain of the

conduct of England towards him, suppressed his just resentment in the consoling hope, that the peace he had so lately concluded would lead to a general peace.

He had constituted himself mediator, he had subsequently offered his mediation in acquainting his Britannic majesty that his desire was to obtain for him an honourable peace-England rejected his offices.

It seemed as if her views were not to suffer the flames of war to be extinguished, but to kindle them anew in the North by an event sudden and novel.

The fleets and armies of his Britannic majesty came to perpetrate against Denmark an act of which history furnishes no example. The emperor, who, to the knowledge of England, was a guarantee of the tranquillity of the Baltic, which is a close sea; the emperor, who had been forewarned of nothing, did not conceal his resentment; and, in a second note delivered to lord Gower, informed England, that he did not intend to remain a quiet spectator of what had befallen a king, his relation, and his friend..

The emperor confesses he did not foresee, that, after this declaration, England would make him the proposal of undertaking to convince Denmark, that it was her interest to submit to what had recently befallen her, and to render Russia guarantee, that Great Britain should possess in perfect security that which she had so lately wrested from Denmark.

The prince royal of Denmark had not ratified the convention of Copenhagen. As to the second proposals which were made to him, he has again represented to his imperial majesty how greatly he was ૨૩

irrita ted

irritated by this new procedure of the British ministry towards him.

The emperor, penetrated with the confidence which the prince Yoyal reposed in his friendship, ha ving inclosed his own wrongs against England, having maturely examined his engagements with the powers of the North, engagements entered into by the empress Catharine and his majesty the late emperor, both of glorious memory, has resolved to full them.

His majesty has therefore ordered the undersigned to declare to his excellency, lord G. L. Gower, his Britannic majesty's ambassador, that his imperial majesty breaks off all communication with England. His imperial majesty recalls the whole of his mission in that country, and will not allow that of his Britannic majesty to remain at his court. There shall henceforward be no relations between the two countries.

The emperor declares that he annuls for ever every act heretofore concluded between Great-Britain and Russia, and especially the convention of 5th (17th) June 1801. He proclaims anew the principles of the armed neutrality, that monument of the wisdom of the em. press Catharine, and pre-engages never to depart from that system.

Britannic majesty, instead of per. mitting his ministers, as has lately been the case, to scatter anew the seeds of war, listening only to the dictates of his own feelings, would lend his assistance to the conclusion of a peace with his majesty the em peror of the French, which would extend the incalculable blessings of peace over the whole world.

When the emperor shall be sa tisfied upon all the preceding points, and especially as to the peace between France and England, without which no part of Europe can promise itself real tranquillity, his imperial majesty will then rea. dily renew with Great Britain the relations of friendship, which, con. sidering the dissatisfaction which the emperor so justly feels, he has perhaps already preserved too long,

The undersigned, having thus fulfilled the orders of the emperor his master, requests his excellency the ambassador to lay the contents of this note, without delay, before the king his sovereign.

(Signed)

The Count NICOLAS ROMANZOW. St. Petersburg (17th Oct.) 9th Nov, 1807.

Report to his Imperial Highness the Grand Duke of Berg, Lieutenant of the Emperor, Commander of his Forces in Spain. "Monseigneur !

A

begged

begged me to wait a little, and said she would go read it with the king and queen. Half an hour afterwards, I saw the queen of Etruria enter with the king and queen of Spain.

"His majesty said, that he thank ed your imperial highness for the share you had taken in his afiliction, which was the greater as his own son was the author of it. The king said, that the revolution had been effected by forgery and cor. ruption, and that the principal actors were his son and M. Cabellero, minister of justice; that he had been compelled to abdicate the throne, in order to save the lives of himself and his queen; that he knows that but for this, they would have been murdered in the course of the night; that the conduct of the prince of Asturias was more shocking, seeing that himself (the king) having perceived his desire to reign, and being himself near 60 years of age, had agreed to surrender the crown to him, on his marriage taking place with a French princess, which the king ardently desired.

"The king added to this, that the prince of the Asturias was desirous that he and the queen should repair to Badajoz, on the frontiers of Portugal; that he had found means to inform him that the climate of that country did not suit him; that he begged him to permit his choosing another place; that he sought to obtain permission of the emperor to purchase an estate in France, where he might end his days. The queen told me she had begged of her son to postpone their journey to Badajoz; that she had not procured this, and that the

journey was to take place on the ensuing Monday.

"At the moment I was departing from their majesties, the king said to me,' I have written to the em. peror, in whose hand I repose my fate.'

"I wished to send my letter by a courier, but I know no surer mode of sending it than by your's. The king left me then in order to repair to his cabinet. He soon returned with the following letters (Nos. 1 and 2) in his hand, which he gave me, and added these words

My situation is most deplorable; they have scized the Prince de la Paz, and will put him to death; he has committed no other crime than that he has at all times been attached to me. He added, there were no efforts which he would not have attempted to save the life of his unhappy friend, but that he had found the whole world deaf to his entreaties, and bent on vengeance; that the death of the Prince de la Paz would draw after it his own, and that he should not survive him. "Aranjuez, March 23, 1808.

"B. DE MOUTHION."