2] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1S13. 



strictions, and obtaining access to 

 power and emolument, was added 

 a zeal in supporting the fundamen- 

 tal maxims of equality of rights 

 among all citizens, and of the en- 

 tire separation of religious from 

 political concerns, which operated 

 upon many, independently of per- 

 sonal motives. On the other hand, 

 to the natural reluctance of the 

 members of an establishment to 

 resign any of their prerogatives, 

 was subjoined that feeling of sus- 

 picion and aversion towards the Ro- 

 man Catholic religion, which will 

 perhaps never be eradicated from 

 the British public ; and which has 

 on various occasions united in op- 

 position to it those who have dif- 

 fered the most widely from one 

 another. As a part of parliamen- 

 tary history, it will suffice at pre- 

 sent to have noticed the period 

 at which petitioning on these im- 

 portant national topics, especially 

 the latter, became general. The 

 results will form the matter of fu- 

 ture chapters. 



On the 3rd of February, lord 

 Castlereagh presented to the House 

 of Commons the papers relative to 

 the discussions with America on 

 the subject of the French decrees, 

 and the ordersof council, together 

 with a declaration from the Prince 

 Regent relative to the causes and 

 origin of the war with America. 

 This state paper, which was of 

 considerable length, began with a 

 retrospective vie wof the successive 

 steps taken by the ruler of France 

 in his project of ruining the power 

 of Great Britain, as the great ob- 

 stacle to his ambitious designs. 

 It proceeded to review the mea- 

 sures taken by the American go- 

 vernment with respect to both bel- 

 ligerents, and to show how partial 



its conduct had been in favour of 

 France. The causes which pro- 

 duced the revocation of the orders 

 in council were next noticed, with 

 the precipitate declaration of war 

 on the part of tiie United States, 

 and their refusal to consent to a 

 cessation of hostilities. The pre- 

 liminary condition proposed by 

 them for an armistice, was then 

 adverted to, namely, the abandon- 

 ment by Great Britain of her right 

 of search for the purpose of taking 

 British seamen from American 

 merchan t vessels ; and reasons were 

 given why it could not be acquies- 

 ced in. In fine, after an exposi- 

 tion of the circumstances which 

 preceded and have followed the 

 declaration of war by the United 

 States, his Royal Highness expli- 

 citly declares, that he can never 

 acknowledge any blockade to be 

 illegal, which has been duly noti- 

 fied, and is supported by an ade- 

 quate force, merely upon the 

 ground of its extent, or because 

 the ports or coasts blockaded are 

 not at the same time invested by 

 land: that he can never admit, 

 that neutral trade with Great Bri- 

 tain can be constituted a public 

 crime, the commission of which 

 can expose the ships of any power 

 to be denationalized : that he can 

 never admit that Great Britain can 

 be debarred of just and necessary 

 retaliation, through the fear of 

 eventually affecting the interest of 

 a neutral : that he can never ad- 

 mit that in the exercise of the 

 undoubtedand hitherto undisputed 

 right of searching neutral mer- 

 chant vessels in time of war, the 

 impressment of British seamen, 

 when found therein, can be deem- 

 ed any violation of a neutral fiag : 

 nor that taking such seamen from 



