"s 
i SP OPS 
i STATE 
provided the hour is convenient to 
his excellency.” 
~ The undersigned forbears making 
any observations on the length of 
the interval which elapsed between 
the sending the note of the 11th, 
and the period when it was an- 
swered ; as well as on the manner 
in which their excellencies avoided 
entering into discussion in writing 
on the contents of that note, accord- 
ing to the usage of all times, and of 
all countries, whenever aflairs of 
such importance are in question. 
He confines himself to remark that, 
when after'so long adelay, and the 
undersigned accepted an invitation 
from their excellencies to renew the 
discussions, in the hope of receiving 
at length the decision of the French 
government, on the conteits of the 
Official note of the 11th, the con- 
ference appeared to tend on the part 
of their excellencies the French ple- 
nipotentiarics solely to engage the 
undersigned to present the detailed 
project of a treaty. 
The undersigned, jointly with the 
earl of Yarmouth, had already, in 
the note of the 11th inst. formally 
declared, that, until France had 
adopted the basis, such as the Bri- 
tish government understood it to 
have been originally proposed by 
her, le could not enter into a de- 
tailed negotjation. If, indeed, the 
undersigned could have forgot him- 
self so far, as to accede to the pro- 
position made at the last conference 
_ by their excellencies the French ple- 
nipotentiaries, it would not only 
have been necessary, for that pur- 
pose, that he should have abandoncd 
the only conditions which his in- 
Structions authorized him to admit 
as the basis of the negotiation, but 
moreover that he should expose him. 
self to a manifest contradiction, in 
PLA PERS. 771 
presenting at first an entire project 
of a treaty, the details of which were 
to result from the negotiation itself ; 
a negotiation which the undersigned 
had declared that he could not enter 
upon, till after a previous acknow- 
ledzment of the basis in question. 
In this state of things the under- 
signed, after having attended, con- 
formably to the desire of their ex- 
cellencies the French plenipoten- 
tiaries, at the conferences which 
they proposed to him; after having 
maturely reflected on all the com- 
munications which he has received 
from their excellencies, and thus 
fully convinced himself, that the 
present views of the French govern- 
ment are far different from’ those 
which his Britannic majesty had a 
right to expect from them; in a 
word, that the continuance of the 
present negotiation can henceforth 
have no other effect than that of 
keeping up, in both nations, a hope 
which cannot be realized, the under- 
signed thinks it his duty formally to 
declare to their excellencies the 
French plenipotentiaries, the reso- 
lution which -he has taken, in con. 
formity to the instructions of his 
sovereign, to put an end to his mis- 
sion. The admission, in writing, of 
the basis so often brought forward 
by the undersigned, can alone occa- 
sion a change in this determination. 
(Signed) Lauderdale. 
No. XLIV. 
Extract from a Dispatch from the 
Earl of Lauderdale to Mr. Secre- 
tary Fox, dated Paris, August 
30th, 1806.~— Received Sept. 3. 
Sir, Paris, Aug. 30th, 1806. 
When I reflect on the contents of 
the dispatch 1 had the honour of 
making up for you yesterday, I can- 
not help anticipating the Surprise 
3D2 with 
