658 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1805. 



the court of Vienna, full at once of 

 injurious allegations, of menaces, 

 and of craft, tended naturally to 

 excite the indignation of the empe- 

 ror ; but thinking that through 

 those insults and threats he had a 

 glance of some ideas which permitted 

 him to hope, that an arrangement 

 would be still possible, the emperor 

 made his natural pride to yield to 

 considerations all powerful over his 

 heart. The interest of his people, 

 that of his allies, and of Germany, 

 which was going to become the the- 

 atre of war; the desire, too, of doing 

 a thing agreeable to a prince, who, 

 repelling with an honourable con- 

 stancy the insinuations, the instan- 

 ces, the oftcr, so often repeated, of 

 England, and those she had seduced, 

 had shewn himself always ready to 

 contribute by his good offices, either 

 to the re-establishment or the main- 

 tenance of peace ; all these motives 

 led the emperor to make his just re- 

 flections. He determined to demand 

 of the court of Vienna explanations, 

 ■which should make known the basis 

 upon which negociations could be 

 carried on. He ordered the minister 

 of foreign relations to prepare a note 

 to this effect. The courier who was 

 to be the bearer of it was on the 

 point of setting out, when the em- 

 peror was inlormcd of the invasion 

 of Bavaria. The elector had been 

 summoned to join his army to that 

 of Austria, and, as if his anticipated 

 refusal to make common cause with 

 Austria, from which he never receiv- 

 ed but evil, against France, from 

 which he never received but good, 

 could have been to the court of Vi- 

 enna a just motive for war, the Aus. 

 trian army, without any previous 

 declaration, in contempt of the du- 

 ties which his situation of emperor 

 of Germany imposes on the emperor 



of Austria, in contempt of the Ger- 

 manic constitution, of the Germanic 

 empire itself ; in contempt, in fine, 

 of all the most sacred rights, passed 

 the Inn, and overrun Bavaria in 

 profound peace. — After such an act 

 of the court of Vienna, the emperor 

 could have no longer any thing to 

 demand of it. It became evident, 

 that even this congress proposed, 

 with a tone so imperious, and with 

 views so visibly hostile to France, 

 was but a new snare for its good 

 faith : that Austria irrevocably de- 

 termined on war, would not return 

 to its pacific ideas, and that she was 

 not even free to return to them. 

 The course of exchange at all places 

 proved evidently, that a part of the 

 sums granted to the English minister 

 to answer his purposes on the con- 

 tinent, had reached its destination ; 

 and the power which had so barter- 

 ed its alliance, could no longer spare 

 the blood of its people, the price of 

 which it had received. All farther 

 explanation w ith the court of Vien- 

 na having thus become impossible, 

 the appeal to arms is the only re- 

 source compatible with honour. Let 

 England applaud herself for having 

 at length found allies ; let her re- 

 joice that blood is about to flow over 

 the continent ; lot her flatter herself 

 that her blood will be spnrcd ; let her 

 hop<^ to find safely in the discord of 

 other states ; her joy will be of short 

 duration; her hope will be vain, and 

 the day is not far distant when the 

 rights of nations will at length be a- 

 venged. The emperor, obi iged to repel 

 an unjust aggression, which he had in 

 vain exerted himself to prevent, has 

 been obliged to suspend the execu- 

 tion of his first designs. He has 

 withdrawn from the borders of the 

 ocean those veteran bands, s» often 

 victorious, and he marches at their 



head. 



