ESCAPE OF THE REPUBLICAN EXILES. 141 



been taken by the English privateers, or if they have 

 not perished, as I fear tliey have, they must have 

 taken refuge in your colony. In that case, it is my 

 duty to claim them, in the name of the Directory, as 

 prisoners of state. Should you be able to discover 

 them, I request, and even require, you to put them 

 under arrest. But I entreat you to use no violence 

 towards them, and to grant them all the kindness 

 due to their misfortunes." 



The governor of Surinam had already obeyed the 

 better part of the recommendation, and was not 

 disposed to follow the Frenchman's flourish, by 

 sending them back to him to die. He coolly an- 

 swered that " he knew nothing of any state prisoners, 

 but that eight shipwrecked merchants and a sailor, 

 with passports signed by the governor of Cayenne, 

 had arrived some days before ; that when he should 

 be acquainted with the arrrival of the fugitives alluded 

 to, he should be prepared to deal with them as was 

 proper ; and that he had the honour to enclose the 

 passports for the inspection of the governor of 

 Cayenne ! " The captain of this vessel brought also 

 the intelligence that republican freedom was going on 

 from triumph to triumph in France ; and in unanswer- 

 able proof, stated that a consignment of obnoxious 

 politicians, to the amount of 193, found guilty of 

 difference of opinion, had reached Cayenne in the 

 frigate La Decade, three days after their escape. 



But Jeannet was determined to have his prey, and 



