470 
APPENDIX, N° II. 
merchants, ship-owners, and mariners, cannot 
be too early directed ; namely, the freedom ol 
the Black Sea, as established in favour of this 
country in 1799. Those waters have been 
strangely overlooked by statesmen in our days, 
as a sort of blank upon the map. In fact, the 
Genoese and the Venetian Republics seem to 
have been the only Powers of Modern Europe 
thoroughly aware of the importance of access 
to the very heart of the Continent, afforded by 
that inlet ; although the policy of the Romans, 
on that head, is discoverable, in the war against 
Mithradates. The principal treaty extant be- 
tween the Crown of England and the Ottoman 
Sultans does indeed shew some vestiges of our 
having had footing there in the days of Queen 
Elizabeth, or James I. ; but when we ceased to 
frequent the Black Sea, is not ascertained. All 
the information upon record seems to be made 
use of in the first of the three documents 
annexed; which is the Memorial whereby 
Mr. Smith, his Majesty’s Minister-plenipoten- 
tiary at the Porte, solicited a fresh recognition, 
tantamount to a new creation, of the right ot 
access, in favour of the British flag, already 
alluded to. This was speedily obtained, as 
appears by the second document, which declares 
the assent of the late Sultan Selim thereto. 
By one of those eccentric movements which 
