STATE PAPERS. 



413 



seamen. This is made manifest 

 by the conduct of the same con- 

 gress which declared the war, 

 they having admitted" the pro- 

 priety of obviating those com- 

 plaints by an act passed subse- 

 quent to the commencen'.ent of 

 hostilities. 



No state in the Union can have 

 a greater interest, or feel a stronger 

 desire to protect commerce, and 

 maintain the legitimate rights of 

 seamen, than this commonwealth. 

 Owners of one third of all the na- 

 vigation, and probably furnishing 

 nearly one-half of all the native 

 seamen of the United States, we 

 are betterenabled to appreciate the 

 extent of their sufferings, and it 

 must also be presumed, to sym- 

 pathise with them more sincerely, 

 than the citizens of states, desti- 

 tute of commerce, and whose sons 

 are not engaged in its prosecution ; 

 unless it be admitted that the suf- 

 ferers, their parents, relatives, and 

 friends, are less interested in their 

 welfare and protection, than those 

 who are united to them only by 

 the feeble ties of political connec- 

 tion. 



With all the means of informa- 

 tion, furnished by every motive of 

 duty, and every inducement of in- 

 terest, we are constrained to say, 

 that this evil of impressment has 

 been grossly exaggerated ; that we 

 have reason to believe, an honest 

 and fair proposal, as honestly and 

 fairly executed, to exclude the sub- 

 jects of Great Britain from our ser- 

 vice, would have much more ef- 

 fectually relieved our own seamen, 

 and more essentially advanced their 

 interest, than a resort to war ; that 

 the true interests of the United 

 States coincide with the policy 

 adopted by all other countries, and 



that we should be more indepen- 

 dent, our seamen would be bet- 

 ter protected, and our country 

 eventually more prosperous, by re- 

 nouncing the pretension of screen- 

 ing and employing British sea- 

 men. 



The doctrine of natural allegi- 

 ance is too well founded, has been 

 too long established, and is too 

 consonant with the permanent in- 

 terest, the peace and independence 

 of all nations, to be disturbed, for 

 the purpose of substituting in its 

 place certain visionary notions, 

 to which the French revolution 

 gave birth, and which, though long 

 since exploded there, seem still to 

 have an unhappy influence in our 

 country. 



Having then found the avowed 

 causes of war, and especially the 

 motives for a perseverance in it, 

 so wholly inadequate to justify the 

 adoption of that policy, we have 

 been obliged to lesort to other and 

 more concealed motives. We can- 

 not, however, without the most 

 conclusive evidence, believe, al- 

 though the measures and language 

 of some high public functionaries 

 indicate the fact, that ambition, 

 and not justice, a lust for conquest, 

 and not a defence of endangering 

 rights, are among the real causes 

 of perseverance in our present hos- 

 tilities. 



Must we then add another ex- 

 ample to the catalogue of repub- 

 lics, which have been ruined by 

 a spirit of foreign conquests? Have 

 we no regard to the solemn pro- 

 fessions we have so often repeated; 

 none to the example, none to the 

 precepts of Washington ? Is it pos- 

 sible, either to acquire, or to main- 

 tain, extensive foreign conquests 

 without powerful standing armies i 



