Italian langue has been abolished by 
the annexation of Piedmont and 
Parma to France. There is strong 
reason to believe that it has been in 
contemplation to sequestrate the 
property of the Bavarian langue, 
and the intention has been avowed 
of keeping the Russian langues 
within the dominions of the em- 
“peror. , 
Under these cireumstances, the 
order of St. John cannot now be 
considered as that body to which, 
according to the stipulation of the 
treaty, the island was to be re- 
stored ; and the funds indispensibly 
necessary for its support, and for 
‘the maintenance of the independence 
of the island, have been nearly, if 
not wholly, ‘qequisiered, Even if 
this had arisen from circumstances 
which it was not in the power of 
any of the contra¢ting parties to the 
| treaty to control, his majesty would 
pevertheless have had a right to 
defer the evacuation of the island 
by his forces, until such time as 
an equivalent arrangement had 
been concluded for the preserya- 
tion of the independence of the 
order and of the island. But if 
these changes have taken place in 
‘consequence of any acts of the other 
‘partics to the treaty ; if the French 
government shall appear to have 
woceeded upon a system of render- 
the order whose independence 
Phey had stipulated, incapable of 
Maintaining that independence, his 
Majesty’s right to continue in the 
oecupation of the island, under such 
f rcumstanees, will hardly be con- 
tested. lt is indisputable, that the 
evenues of the two Spanish langues 
have been withdrawn trom the order 
Ay his catholic majesty ; a part of 
the Italian langue has, in faét, been 
lished by. France, theough the 
STATE PAPERS. 
739 
unjust annexation of Piedmont and 
Parma, and Placentia, to the French 
territory. The eleétor of Bavaria 
has been instigated by the French 
government to sequestrate the pro- 
perty of the order within his territo- 
ries ; and it is certain that they have 
not only sanétioned, but encouraged 
the idea of the propriety of separat- 
ing the Russian langues from the re- 
mainder of the order. 
As the conduct of the governmonts 
of France and Spain have, therefore, 
in some instances directly, and in 
others indire¢ily, contributed to the 
changes which haye taken place in 
the order, and thus destroyed its 
means of supporting its indepen- 
dence, it is to those governments, 
and not to his majesty, that the non- 
execution of the 10th article of the 
treaty of Amiens must be ascribed. 
Such would be the just conclue 
sion, if- the 10th article of that 
treaty were considered as an ar- 
rangement by itself. It must be ob- 
served, however, that this article 
forms a part only of a treaty of 
peace, the whole of which is con- 
nected together, and the stipulations 
of which must, upon a principle 
common to all treaties, be construed 
as having a reference to each other. 
His majesty was induced, by the 
treaty of peace, to consent to aban- 
don, and to restore to the order of 
St. John, the island of Malta, on 
condition of its independence_ and 
neutrality. But a further condi- 
tion, which must necessarily be sup- 
posed to have had considerable in- 
fluence with his. majesty, in inducing 
him to make so important a con- 
cession, was the acquiescence of the 
French government in an arragge- 
ment for the security of the Levant, 
by the eighth and ninth articles in 
- the treaty, stipulating the. integrity 
of 
3BQ 
