922 
marks of superiority on the part of 
the enemy, was the memorable 
treaty of Amiens at length conclu- 
ded, without a single remonstrance 
on, or effort to impede, the im- 
mense aggrandizement of France 
consummated within the short pe- 
riod of five months, and which pla- 
ced that power on a footing widely 
diflerent from that in which she was 
at the signing the preliminary arti- 
cles. And thus, by an infatuation 
without example, did the British 
governmentcontract relations of am- 
ity with a power whose every step 
had marked, even pending the nego- 
ciation, its contempt of all principles 
of national faith; by the terms of 
which we sacrificed our conquests, 
our allies, our rank among the na- 
tions of Europe; and, by our un- 
bounded submission to his en- 
croachments, even of the right 
hereafter to complain, of any fresh 
infraction of its spirit, or new at- 
tempt of his on the liberties of 
Europe ! 
The succeeding pages of our last 
years volume have dwelt on the en- 
croachments of France in Switzer- 
land, Germany, the Pais de Vaud, 
Portugal, &c ; on the contemptuous 
tone which she ‘assumed when 
speaking of this country: on her 
implacable hostility manifested by 
_ her attacks upon our commerce, 
both with her own states and those 
parts of Europe over whom she had 
gained unbounded influence: but 
in so treating them we have not 
brought them into that one point of 
view, namely of settled and marked 
* The whole of the official correspondence laid before parliament respecting the ne 
gocialions with France, will be found in the state papers. 
extent, our duty tothe public would not allow of our garbling such a body of eyi- 
dence, so material to the inv estigation of the views of our enemy, and the conduct of 
those, in whose hands the government of this country was entrusted. 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 
‘ment. 
1803. 
aggression to this country, but bares 
ly as historical facts, under their 
several heads of our usual arrange- 
It will be now our duty 
from the official papers laid before 
parliament, * to recapitulate some, 
to reconsider the effects of others, 
and to add many new facts, which 
rendered war inevitable. Happy 
would it have been for the reputa- 
tion, the honour, the dignity, and 
perhaps the ultimate safety.of Bri- 
tain, had she availed herself of the 
first insult she had received; to 
have awakened the antient spirit of 
her sons, and have hurled contempt 
and defiance in the teeth of her in- 
solent foe, rather than have delay- 
ed the period of resentment to that, 
when a series of affronts had cheap- 
ened her worth in the eyes of Eu- 
rope, and when she was obliged to 
have recourse to simulated causes 
for the renewal of hostilities. hav- 
ing unwisely, weakly, and unadyi- 
sedly passed over the hour for legi- 
timate vengeance ! 
It certainly could not be presu- 
med that the temper or the princi- 
ple, (which had led to such manifest 
breaches of the spirit of the preli- 
minary articles of peace,) of the 
first consul of France, during the 
space which intervened previouty 
to the definitive treaty, was likely 
to become more moderate, or mark- 
ed with less of pretension, ‘at find- 
ing that “ the British ministry had 
contented themselves solely with 
watching the progress of these 
transactions, not chusing to inter- 
fere in arrangements, which they 
Notwithstanding their great 
