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HISTORY .OF; EVROPE. 
Retreat and supply being cut off; 
and the place every hour in danger 
ef attack; Rochambeau at length 
resolved to capitulate, on the 
terms, of being allowed to, carry off 
the garrison. A 
this,etlect was opened with general 
Dessalines, but on ‘the English 
squadron coming into the road, a 
capitulation was signedon the 30th 
of November, on board the Sur- 
veillante, by which captain Bligh 
of the Theseus, on. the part of 
‘commodore Truscot, and general 
© Boyer on the part of general Ro- 
, ehambeau, agreed, that all the 
ships of war and merchant vessels 
belonging to France should he sur- 
rendered to the English, and that 
the garrison should be received by 
the latter, as prisoners of war.— 
The negociation was then continued 
with Dessalines, to prevent confu- 
sion or attack at the time of eva- 
ecuation, Dessalines agreed, not to 
disturb them in the evacuation, but 
“nevertheless; when they had em- 
barked, and were waiting fora wind, 
to enable them to leave the port, 
it required -all the influence which 
the British commodore had over 
the black general, to prevent his 
ordering the batteries to fire upon 
the French ships and sink them.— 
Without making much allowance 
‘for winds and tides he declared, 
that if in twelve hours they did not 
quit the road, he should drive them 
away with his cannon, and that 
when the English met them at sea, 
they were at liberty to treat them 
_asthey pleased. The French force 
vhaving atJength finally departed, 
Dessalines, Christophe, and Cler- 
vaux, published a proclamation to 
the inhabitants, declaring the 
island free’ and independent. They 
t ; 
negociation, to- 
333 
promised protection to those land- 
holders who chose to remain upon 
their estates and renounce their pre- 
Jjudices, but threatened the most 
inexorable cruelty to . whoever 
should talk of again restoring the 
system of slavery. 
Although the French. still. re- 
tained the city.of St, Domingo, in 
the part.of_the island which, for- 
mertly belonged to Spain, yet the 
total evacuation of the northern 
part, forms not only ow: of the 
most important epochs of the his- 
tory of the island, but an event 
‘which is likely to produce conse- 
quences of the most general. inter- 
est to Kurope and to mankind :— 
The experiment of a black indepen- 
dent nation, possessed of European 
tactics, and of arts which have never 
visited the deserts of Africa, but 
which are supposed by civilized 
nations to contribute much to hu- 
man happiness and to the progres-- 
sive greatness of nations—is now 
fairly at issue. . 
Itcamnot, we think, be doubted, 
but the commencement of war be- 
tween Great Britain and France, 
and the immediate effects.it pro-| 
duced on the fate of St. Dominga, 
were most materially beneficial to 
the old British West Indian islands: 
they were thus freed from the per- 
petual danger and alarm that they 
must have constantly experienced, 
if a considerable French army had 
been permanently established in 
Hispaniola; and they were like- 
wise rescued from the dangerous 
competition they would have been 
exposed to in the event, of the 
French colonies being » restored 
to peace and cultivation; cir- 
cumstances which must haye de- 
ptived them of what they may 
now 
