192 
at the head of which is my Lord 
Hawkesbury, and which professes 
the most absolute royalism, desires 
war; they have the majority in the 
council: Mr. Pitt is thus personal- 
ly interested in our having pacific 
intentions. The cabinet of St. 
James’s has certainly negotiated 
with Spain; and you are not mis- 
taken respecting the subject of 
these negotiations ; it appears that 
Mr. Pitt has had very little share in 
them. The moment to exact the 
recognition of the Republic is not 
yet arrived. Difficulties, it is be- 
lieved, might be now experienced 
by us which we should not have 
felt a fortnight ago; a preliminary 
negotiation might be possible and 
necessary. I quitted M. T. W. suf- 
ficiently satisfied, very well disposed 
towards us, and preparing himself, 
T could not doubt, to give an ac- 
count of this conversation, which 
thas probably facilitated the inter- 
-view with which I am about to oc- 
cupy you. You know with what 
active intelligence a common friend 
had disposed every thing. The 
very reserved conduct which I 
have held here, and of which the 
Minister was well informed, for he 
did not fail to have me rigorously 
watched, has removed prejudices 
against me which I should have 
supposedinevitable. Mr. Pitt there- 
fore desired to see me: the first ap- 
pointment failed; the second, fix- 
ed for this day, took place this af- 
ternoon. 
Mr. Pitt. One of your friends 
said to Mr. Long that you were 
very desirous of seeing me before 
you returned to France. 
H. B. Maret. It was natural that 
a Frenchman should have a strong 
desire to present his homage to a 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1792. 
Minister justly celebrated, and who 
has done so much for the prosperi- 
ty of a power which republican 
France no longer wishes to regard 
as a rival, and which she desires to 
treat as a friend. Mr. Long said to 
my friend that you would willingly 
converse with me on the interest of 
the two nations; and I have con- 
sented to come to offer to you all 
the information which may depend 
upon me. I am ready to answer 
your questions with the freedom 
which ought to exist between two 
men who equally desire the wel- 
fare of their country. You know, 
Sir, you must have been informed 
that I have here no mission, no 
authorized character, 
Mr. Pitt. I know it. Iam my- 
self not authorised to see you; but 
I hope our conversation will not 
be the less friendly for not being 
official— Then Mr. Pitt spoke to 
me of his inquietude on the sub- 
ject of Holland; of the alarms of 
the government and mercantile in- 
terest of England; of the absolute 
resolution of the ministry to sup- 
port the allies of Britain, and to 
execute rigorously the treaties 
which unite her to other powers. 
He gave me assurances of his sin- 
cere desire to avoid a war, destruc- 
tive to the interior repose and pros- 
perity of the two nations; he 
pressed me to tell him if the French 
government partook of that desire: 
I made the same answers, but at 
more considerable length, which I 
had done to M. T. W. 
Mr. Pitt. It is then very unfor- — 
tunate, Sir, that there has existed a 
long time between us a distance so 
injurious in its effects. Silence in- 
flames on both sides suspicion and 
distrust, and confirms, even if it 
does 
— 
8 OL Se 
eS ——— , 
a 
a 
