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COBBETT'S WEEKLY POLITICAL REGISTER.

VOL. XXVII. No. 2.] LONDON, SATURDAY, JAN. 14, 1815. [Price 1s..

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THE IMPLACABLE ENEMY OF TYRANNY.

ON THE

Peace between England and America.

[34 TO MR. JOHN CARTWRIGHT, called the Reformers, "a low and degraded "crew," having amongst them " no honour "able distinctions ;" and he expressed his pleasure, that they were, as he said, fighting on the side of our enemy. They were, in his eyes, so contemptible, that he was glad we had them for enemies, and especially, as, in their chastisement, republicanism would be humbled in the dust, if not wholly destroyed.

Such were the sentiments of the greater part of the nation, at the time when the Kings and Potentates of Germany paid us a visit, and when the "Bits of Striped

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Botley, January 9, 1815. DEAR SIR,-Before I proceed to the proposed subject of this Letter, I think it right just to notice, that I have, in addressing you now, omitted the addition of Esq. at the end of your name. It is become high time for us, and all those who think as we do, to partake, in no degree whatever, in this sort of foolery, especially when we Bunting" were seen reversed under the are writing, or speaking, upon the subject Royal flag on the Serpentine River. There of a peace, which has been made with a had, indeed, occurred, before that time, nation, whose Chief Magistrate never pre- events, which, one would have hoped, tends to any title above that of "fellow-would have checked this contemptuous way "citizen," which he shares in common with of thinking. The defeat and capture of the all the people of the free and happy coun- Guerriere, the Macedonian, the Java, the try, at the head of whose Government he Peacock, and divers other smaller ships of has been placed by the unbought votes of war, by that Republic, whose very name his "fellow-citizens." we affected to despise, might have been expected to create a doubt, at least, of our power to annihilate the Republic in any very short space of time. But the nation had been cheated here, too, by the corrupt press, who persuaded them, that all these losses arose from causes other than those of the skill and valour of the Republicans. At one time, it was superior numbers; at another, heavier metal; at another, our own seamen inveigled into the Republican ships. This delusion was kept up for two years, until the incursion in the Chesapeake seemed to have closed the scene; and, you will bear in mind, that, at that time, it was the almost universal opinion, that our Regent would soon send out his Viceroy to Washington City.

In my former Letter I stated, as clearly as I was able consistent with brevity, the real cause of the war; and also the real causes of its continuance after the European peace. I shall now endeavour to state clearly the real causes of the peace; and then we shall come to those consequences, which, I think, we shall find to be of the utmost importance to the cause of freedom all over the world.

The peace has been produced by various causes. When Napoleon had been put down, this country was drunk with exultation. The war with America was generally looked upon as the mere sport of a month or two. Our newspapers published reports of speeches, or pretended speeches (for it is the same thing in effect), in which the orators scoffed at the idea of our having any trouble in subduing a people, with two or three thousand miles of sca-coast, defend od by raw militia, and by "half a dozen fir “frigates, with bits of striped bunting at "their mast heads." This phrase will be long remembered. One of our Orators called the Americans, as he had before

It was even at this very moment, however, that the tide began to turn. The gallant little army of Republicans, on the Niagara frontier, had before proved, at Chippawa, that they were made of the same stuff that composed their ancestors; and, at Fort Erie, they now gave a second most signal proof of the same kind.While these never-surpassed acts of deve

tion to country were performing on the
borders of Lakes Ontario and Erie, Lake
Champlain exhibited a spectacle, which
struck with wonder all the Continent of
Europe, and which, in fact, astounded every
man of sense here, who had before clamour-
ed for the war. It is true, that this was
only a repetition of the scene, exhibited the
year before on Lake Erie, where, with an
inferior number of men and guns, the Re-
publican Commodore Perry had beaten and
actually captured, the whole of our fleet
nuder Commodore Barclay; but, all eyes
were at that time fixed on the Continent
of Europe. The expected fall of Napoleon,
and the real victories over him, made the
loss on Lake Eric (a loss of immense im-
portance, as is now seen) to be thought
nothing of. Our great object then was,
Napoleon. Him once subdued, the Re-
public, it was thought, would be done for
in a trice. To
To suppose, that she would be
able to stand against us, for any length of
time, appeared, to most men, perfectly ri-
diculous. A far greater part of the nation
thought that it was our army who had put
down Napoleon. Indeed, the Commander
of them was called, "the conqueror of
“France;" and, it was said, that a part of
the Conquerors of France, sent to America,
would, in a few months, "reduce" the
country.

same time; the land army met, as far as it went, with a very gallant resistance, though it behaved, on its part, with equal gallantry; and Mr. Macomb must, in all probability, have yielded, in time, to a force so greatly superior, if the attack by water had not been frustrated. But on the water side, the Republican Commodore Macdo nough, though his force was inferior to ours, and has been so stated in the official dispatch of Sir George Prevost himself, not only defeated our fleet, but captured the whole of the ships, one of which was of 36 guns, while the largest of the Republican ships was of no more than 26 guns! The Governor-General, seeing the fate of the fleet, knowing that the taking of the fort after that would only lead to a speedy retreat from it, and fearing the consequences of an attack on his way back to Canada, raised the siege, and hastened back towards Montreal with all imaginable speed, pursued by the little Republican army, and leaving behind him, as the Republicans state, immense quantities of stores, ammunition, &c. besides great numbers of prisoners and deserters. They may have exaggerated in these their accounts, but the Canada newspapers stated that 150 of our men deserted; and, which is a thing never to be forgotten, our Ministers have never published in the Gazette Sir George Prevost's account of his memorable retreat, though they have published his dispatches relating to all the movements of the army before and after that retreat.

A part of them were, accordingly, sent thither; and now we are going to view their exploits against the Republicans on the borders of Lake Champlain. The Governor-General of Canada, Sir George Prevost, having received the reinforce- This blow did, in fact, decide the quesments from France, invaded the Republic tion of war, or peace. There was much at the head of 14,000 men, with five blustering about it here; it was affected Major-Generals under him, four troops of to treat the thing lightly; the Times, and Dragoons, four companies of Royal Artil- other venal newspapers, represented it as alery, one brigade of Rocketeers, one bri- mere trifling occurrence, which would soon gade of Royal Sappers and Miners. The be overbalanced by sweeping victories on first object was to dislodge the Republicans our part. But upon the back of this came from Fart Moreau, near the town of the brilliant success of the Republicans in Plattsburgh, on the edge of the Lake, repulsing our squadron, and burning one of about 15 miles within the boundary line of our ships before Fort Mobille, in the Gulph the Republic. In this fort were 1,500 of Mexico; and thus, while we had to Republican regulars, and no more, and vaunt of our predatory adventures against 6,000 volunteers and militia from the the city of Washington, the town of States of Vermont and New York, under Alexandria, and the villages of French, the command of a very gallant and accom- town and Stonington, the fame of the Re, plished citizen, named Macomb, a Briga-publican arms, by land as well as sea, dier-General in the Republican service. While Sir George Prevost attacked the fort by land, Commodore Downie, with his fleet, was to attack it by water. The attack, on both sides, commenced at the

sounded in every ear and glowed in every heart, along the whole extent of the sixteen hundred miles which lie between Canada and the Mexican Gulph.

In Europe these events produced a pro

HALE

In the meanwhile, the Ministers, previous to their knowledge of the battles of Chippawa, Fort Erie, Plattsburgh, Lake Champlain, and Fort Mohille, had put forward, at Ghent, very high pretensions. They had proposed, as a SINE QUA NON, they expulsion of the Republicans from a considerable portion of their territory, in behalf of the savages in alliance with us; they had demanded, though not as a sine qua

King, even with the prohibition to the Americans to erect fortifications on the borders which would remain to them; they had demanded a line of communication between Quebec and our territories east of the Penobscot, through the territories of the Republic. The American Negociators declined any discussion of these conditions, until they should receive instructions from their Government; alledging, and very justly, that this was the first time that any such grounds of war, or dispute, had been mentioned by us.

digious sensation. Those who wished to those taxes, the existence of which dependsee a check given to the all-predominanted on the duration of the war. naval power of England, rejoiced at them; and every where they excited and called forth admiration of the Republicans. There had been, during the struggle on the Continent, no leisure to contemplate the transatlantic contest; but it now became an object of universal attention; and Europe, so long accustomed to regard English naval invincibility, when the force on both sides was equal, or nearly equal, as a thing received and universally admitted, was sur-non, the surrender of the Lakes to our prised beyond expression at the undeniable proof of the contrary. The world was now called on to witness the combat be tween England and America single-handed. The former was at the summit of power and glory; she had captured or destroyed almost all the naval force in Europe; those powers who had any naval force left were her allies, and were receiving subsidies from her; she had an army of regulars of 200,000 men, flushed with victory; she had just marched part of this army through the heart of France herself; she had a thousand ships of war afloat, commanded by men who never dreamt of defeat. This was the power that now waged war, singlehanded, against the only Republic, the only Commonwealth, remaining in the world. The friends of freedom, who were not well acquainted with America, had been trembling for her. They did not seem to entertain any hopes of her escape. They thought it scarcely possible, that she should, with her Democratical Government and her handful of an army, without officers and without stores, resist England even for a year single-handed; and they saw no power able if willing, or willing if able, to lend the Republic the smallest degree of assistance.

These demands having been transmitted to the President, he, instead of listening to them, laid them before the Congress, with an expression of his indignation at them; and in this feeling he appeared only to have anticipated his fellow-citizens throughout the country, with the exception of a handful of aristocratical intriguers in the State of Massachusetts. New and vigorous measures were adopted for prosecuting the war. The Congress hastened on Bills for raising and paying soldiers and sailors; for making the militia more efficient; for expediting the building of ships; erecting fortifications; providing floating batteries. In short, it was now clearly seen, that the Government of the Republic was equal to a time of war as well as to a time of peace; that we had to carry on a contest, at 3,000 miles distance, against a brave, free, and great nation; and that the aristocratical faction, on whom sonte men had depended for aid, were sneaking off into pitiful subterfuges, afraid any longer to shew a hankering after our cause.

But when the battles of Lake Champlain were announced; and when it was seen by the President's Message to his fellow-citizens of the Congress, that the Republican Government marched on with a firm step, and had resolved not to yield one single point to our menaces, or our attacks, a very different view of the contest arose. The English nation, which had been exult- In this state of things; with this proing in the idea of giving the Yankeys" aspect before them, the Ministers wisely redrubbing," began to think, that the under-solved to abandon their demands, and to taking was not so very easy to execute; and seeing no prospect of an end to the war and its expences, they began to cry out for the abolition of the greatest of

make peace, leaving things as they stood before the war. The Opposition, who had pledged themselves to the support of the war upon the old ground, that is to say,

that peace has been made, and not one single point has been yielded to us.

We now come to the most important and most interesting part of our subject; namely, THE CONSEQUENCES of this peace, made at such a time and under such circumstances. Considered as to its probable and almost necessary consequences, it is, in my opinion, an event of infinitely greater importance to the world than any that has taken place since the discovery of the Art of Printing. But I will not enter further into the subject, 'till I have laid before you, or, rather, put upon record, for the sake of reference, some of the overflowings of gall, which this event has brought from the throats of the sworn

upon the ground of impressment, began to protest against it upon the ground of conquest; and, if the war had continued, there is no doubt that they would have greatly embarrassed the Ministry upon this subject, especially as the continuation of the war was the only remaining excuse for the continuation of the war taxes, against which petitions were preparing in every part of the kingdom. Here we cannot help observing how wise it was in Mr. Madison to make public our demands. If these had been kept secret, till after the close of the war, how long might not that war have drawled on? The demands would never, perhaps, have been known. How wise is it, then, in the Americans to have framed their Government in such a way as to pre-enemies of freedom. You have observed, vent mischievous State secrets from existing! How wise to have made all their rulers really responsible for their acts! How wise to secure, upon all important points, an appeal to themselves! The President was very coarsely treated here by some persons, who ought to have known better, for having exposed the conferences. It was said to be an act unprecedented in a civilized nation. "Civilized nations," you will perceive, mean natious governed by Kings and other hereditary sovereigns; and, in that sense, the Americans certainly are not a civilized nation. But achy should such papers be kept secret? Or, at least, why should they not be made public, if the Government chooses to make them public? When once a Government has dispatches in its hands, there is no law that deprives it of the liberty to make what use of them it pleases. Nothing could be more fair than Mr. Madison's mode of proceeding. The aristocratical faction, whom we called our friends, were crying out for peace; the whole of the American people were represented, in our newspapers, as disapproving of the war, and as wishing for peace on our terms. What, then, could Mr. Madison do more just and more candid than publish to the people the whole of those terms."There they are," said he, " decide upon "them. Say: will you have peace upon "these terms? 1 am, myself, ready to "perish, rather than make such a peace. Now, let me hear what you have to say." A nation of free men agreed with him, that they would perish rather than yield to such terms; and, indeed, rather than yield to S "one single point," thongh of ever so little importance. The result has been,

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that those public prints in England, which were the most bitter against Napoleon, have been also the most bitter against the American President; a fact which ought to make people reflect a little before they give way to such outrageous abuse of the former, though we must always regard him as a traitor to the cause of liberty, having married a King's daughter, made himself an Emperor, and propped up and created Kings, for the sake of his and his family's aggrandizement. Still, it is clear, that the writers, whom I have now in my eye, thought him more favourable to freedom than those who have succceded him; because no sooner was he down, than they set upon the American President with the same degree of fury, with which they had attacked Napoleon; and they recommended the deposing of him, upon "the same principle," they said, that they had recommended the deposing of Napoleon. You will not fail to have observed this, and to have traced it to its true source; but, I am afraid that it has passed unobserved by but too large a portion of the nation.

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There are several of our public prints, indeed, a very great majority of them, in country as well as in town, which have urged the justice and necessity of extinguishing the American Government; that "ill-organized association;" `that "mis"chievous example of the existence of a "Government, founded on Democratical "Rebellion." This peal was rung from one end of the country to the other. But the print, which led the van in this new crusade against liberty, was that vile newspaper, the Times, to which paper we and the world owe no small portion of those consequences which will result from the

the

We will now re-peruse the articles, to which I have so often alluded. I will insert them, without interruption, one after another, according to their dates, reserving my remarks, if any should be necessary, for the close; and requesting you to pay particular attention to the passages printed in Italics, or in CAPITALS.

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peace of Ghent, followed by such a war.— using their utmost endeavours to urge this This print was, upon this occasion, the nation on to fight against America, until trumpet of all the haters of freedom; all they saw" the world delivered of the misthose who look with Satanic eyes on the "chievous example of the existence of a happiness of the free people of America; "Government, founded on the principles of all those who have been hatched in, and " Democratical Rebellion." It is for the yet are kept alive by, Bribery and Cor-worthy part of the FEDERALISTS to conruption. To judge of the feelings excited sider if these notorious facts square with in the bosoms of this malignant swarm by their reputation, whether as Republicans, peace of Ghent; to enjoy the spectacle as freemen, as faithful to their country, or, of their disappointment and mortification; even as honest men. As to the Strongs, of their alternate rage and despondency; the Otises, the Goodloe Harpers, the of the hell that burns in their bosoms: to Walshes, they have, in this way, nothing enjoy this spectacle, a spectacle which we to lose. Every sound mind is made up ought to enjoy, after having endured the with regard to them, and others like them; insolence of their triumph for so many but, I should think, that the praises of the years; to enjoy this spectacle we must Timesnewspaper must make the great body again look into this same print; hear their of the Federalists look about them. wailing, view the gnashing of their teeth, see now the foam of revenge, and then the drivel of despair, issue from their mouths, teeming with execrations. With the help of the Ministers, we have, for once, beat the sons and daughters of corruption; and if we bear our success with moderation, let us, at any rate, hear and laugh at the cries of our always cruel, and, until now, 29th Dec. 1814.- "Without entering insolent enemy. It is right, too, that the at present into the details of the Treaty, Republicans themselves should know what" (on which we have much to observe these wretches now have to say; these "hereafter), we confess that we look wretches, whom nothing would satisfy short" anxiously to its non-ratification; beof the subversion of the Republican Go-" cause we hope an opportunity will be afvernment; short of destroying that "mis-"forded to our brave seamen to retire "chievous example, the existence of a Go-" from the contest,-not, as they now are, "vernment founded on Democratical Rebel-" beaten and disgraced; not with the loss "lion." As far as I have been able to do it" of that trident which Nelson, whea openly through the press, I have, during the" dying, placed in his country's grasp; not. war, as you will have perceived, made "leaving the marine laurel on the unworknown the denunciations of these wretches" thy brows of a Rodgers; but, with an against the liberties of America; and it" ample and full revenge for the captures may not be less useful to make known their" of the Guerriere, the Macedonian, the wailings, their fears, their despair at the "Java, and the numerous other ships that peace; and the Republicans of America" have been surrendered on the Ocear, ought always to bear in mind, that these "besides the whole flotillas destroyed on same wretches, who arc ready to gnaw "Lake Erie and Lake Champlain. Let their own flesh at seeing their hopes of "us not deceive ourselves. These victodestroying liberty in America blasted;"ries have given birth to a spirit, which, they ought always to bear in mind, that" if not checked, will, in a few years, create these same wretches it was, who praised, an American navy truly formidable. and who still praise, the conduct of the Go-" They have excited in other nations, who vernor Strong, Mr. Otis, Mr. Pickering," foolishly envy our maritime preponder Mr. Goodloe Harper, Mr. Walsh the "ance, an undissembled joy, at beholding reviewer, and their associates. The FEDE-" our course so powerfully arrested. PerRALISTS, too, amongst whom there are haps it would not be asserting too much many worthy men, look steadily at these" to say, that they have detracted as much facts; and consider how it must stand 'from the opinion of our strength by sea, with their reputation, when it is notorious, as the victories of Wellington have en that all those in England, who praise, or "hanced that of our strength by land.” give the preference to them, have been

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30th Dec. 1514,-“The state of the

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