4] 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



. rica : that whilst we deeply regret 

 the failure of the endeavours of 

 his Royal Highness to preserve 

 the relations of peace and amity 

 between this country and the 

 United States, we entirely approve 

 of the resistance which has been 

 opposed by his Royal Highness to 

 the unjustifiable pretensions of the 

 American government, being sa- 

 tisfied that those pretensions could 

 not be admitted without surren- 

 dering some of the most ancient, 

 undoubted, and important rights 

 of the British empire ; that, im- 

 pressed as we are with these senti- 

 ments, and fully convinced of the 

 justice of the war in which his 

 Majesty has been compelled to en- 

 gage, his Royal Highness may re- 

 ly on our most zealous and cordial 

 support in every measure which 

 may be necessary for prosecuting 

 tlie war with vigour, and for bring- 

 ing it to a safe and honourable ter- 

 mination." 



Mr. Ponsonhy, after premising 

 that he conceived the House was 

 bound at present to support the 

 crown in the prosecution of the 

 war, observed, that from the pa- 

 pers laid before the House, three 

 particular stages of negociation 

 were apparent. Thefirststagewas, 

 the overture made by Mr. Russell 

 to the noble lord for an armistice, 

 with the understanding, that dur- 

 ing its continuance there was to 

 beanegociationbetvveen this coun- 

 try and America on the subject of 

 impressment, and that, while it 

 was pending, th"^ right of impress- 

 ment shouldbe waived. This over- 

 ture, he allowed, could not be ad- 

 mitted. The second was, the pro- 

 position that though no formal 

 recognition of a suspension of the 

 disputed right should take place, 



yet a secret understanding of that 

 kind should be preserved between 

 the two countries, till the matter 

 in controversy was decided. This, 

 also, he should have concurred 

 with the noble lord in rejecting. 

 The third stage presented a third 

 overture, which, as he understood 

 it, was made by Mr. Monroe to sir 

 John Warren, namely, that the 

 question of impressment being the 

 principal subject of dispute, an 

 agreement on which might put an 

 end to the war, the American go- 

 vernment was willing to negociate 

 upon iijiagrante bello, whilst this 

 country was continuingtoexercise 

 its accustomed control. Against 

 this proposal he thought there 

 could be no objection ; for though, 

 in the Prince Regent's declaration, 

 as a reason against such a nego- 

 ciation, it was observed that it 

 would be commenced on the basis 

 of receiving a legislative provision 

 irom a foreign state, in the place 

 of a right which Great Britain had 

 long been accustomed to exercise ; 

 yet it did not appear to him that 

 this right was abandoned merely 

 by entering into a negociation on 

 the subject. The right hon. gen- 

 tleman enlarged upon this point, 

 and asked, was the war to be eter- 

 nal ? but if a treaty was ever to be 

 made, it must be by means of ne- 

 gociation upon this very subject. 

 He then touched upon the naval 

 successes of America since the 

 commencement of the war, which 

 he could not but think showed 

 some want of foresight and pre- 

 paration in the ministers. 



Mr. Baring said, that he did not 

 believe that the noble lord's asser- 

 tion was correct, that the Ameri- 

 can declaration of war had any 

 connection with the state of France 



