218 
uberance and variety of nature, 
every thing subject to her power is 
irresistibly and irrevocably con- 
fined. 
The erection of the duchy of 
Benevento into a fief of the French 
empire, in favour of Talleyrand, with 
the title of prince and duke of Bene- 
vento ; aud the grant of the duchy of © 
Ponte Gorva to.marehal Bernadotte, 
by a similar tenure, followed some 
months after the preceding esta- 
blishments *., Cardinal Fesch, uncle 
of Bonaparte, was appointed at the 
same time to be co-adjutor and. suc- 
cessor of the archbishop of Ratisbons 
arcb-chancellor of the Germanic 
empire. A new order of knighthood 
was also instituted for the kingdom 
of lialy, calied the order of the Irou 
Crown, and estabtished on the foot- 
ing of 200 knights companions, 
besides commanders and other bigher 
dignitaries. Many Frenchmen as 
well as [talians were decorated with 
the insignia of this order. 
The last communication made by 
the French emperor to his senate in 
the present year was of his cele- 
brated Berlin decree, of which we 
have already given some account in 
a preceding part of the present chap- 
ter. This communication} was ac- 
companied by a most ingevicus and 
artful report of Talleyrand in justi- 
fication of that measure, in which it 
is represented, in a manner calcu- 
lated to impose on a superficial 
reader, as a necessary act of retalia- 
tion, called for by the violence and 
injustice cf England, and calculaied 
for the general good of civilized 
Hations. ‘The same message stated 
the determination of the emperor not 
to evacuate Berlin, Warsaw, or any 
* June 5th. 
¢ Dated May 30th. The convocation met on Saturday the 26th of July. 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1906.’ . 
of his other conquests, till a general 
peace should be concluded on the 
basis of the restitution of the Frenchy 
Dutch, and Spanish colonies, to the 
mother countries ; and it concluded 
with demanding, that the conscripts 
tor t807 should be placed at his 
disposal in the ensuing January, 
in place of the September following, 
The answer of the senate contained 
as usual, a grateful acknowledgment - 
of the emperor’s condescension, an 
expression of profound admiration 
of his wisdom, and an unqualified 
acquiescence in his demands, 
A report on the French finances, 
presenied to the emperor in the 
month of April, by Gaudin, minister | 
of finance, estimates the expence of 
the government for the current year 
at $04 millions, The same report 
informs us, that the system of direct 
contributions continued to be so 
unpopular in France, that the 
government had been induced con- 
siderably to diminish their amount,an 
operation, which it had been enabled 
to accomplish by the increasing pro- 
ductiveness of the customs, and 
other branches of indirect taxation, 
For a similar reason it had now de- 
termined to abolish the turnpike 
duties throughout France, having ~ 
found ‘them odious, vexatious, and 
unproductive ; and in future to 
raise the sums necessary for making 
and repairing the highways and 
bridges, by a moderate duty on salt, 
collected at the place: of its fabri- ; 
cation. 
A convocation of Jews from the 
principal cities of France, which 
was this summer assembled at Paris 
by order of Bonaparte f, excited 
much curiosity andattention through- 
+ Dated November 21st. 
aut 
" ee 
