8(54 
FRANCE. 
the Cupreine command of the black population, on the 
firft interval of leifure, can fed himfelf alfo to be pro¬ 
claimed “ Emperor of Haytif the ancient Indian name of 
the ill md. 
While the grand projedtof aflfuming the abfolute fove- 
reignty of France, was, as has been feen, (uccefsfully 
conducted at home, Bonaparte was not inattentive to of- 
fenlive operations abroad, nor remits in expediting the 
vaft preparations on the coaft, intended for the invation of 
England. Admiral Linois, who had been ftationed at 
Pondicherry, with the Marengo man of war of 84 guns, 
and three large frigates, was alfo inftrudted to make re- 
prilals on the Engiith’ trading (hips in the Eaft-Indies, 
which he e(Yedied to a contiderable extent, by capturing 
many rich veffeis. He alfo made a fuccefsful defcent on 
Fort Marlborough (Bencoolen), and plundered the fettle- 
ment. He then cruized with his whole force near the 
entrance of the Streights of Malacca, with an intention 
o*f capturing the Englifh homeward-bound China fleet. 
On the 5th of February 1804,. he fell in with that fleet, 
confiding of fifteen of the Jiaft-India company’s fiiips, 
twelve merchant fhips, and a Portuguefe Ealt-Indiaman, 
all under the command, as commodore, of captain Dance, 
in the fervice of the Kaft-India company ; who, on fight 
of the French fquadron, made the lignal for his fleet to 
form a line of battle. It was not, however, till the 1.5th, 
that any engagement took place ; when captain Dance 
made the lignal to tack, and bear down on the French 
line. Admiral Linqis then clofed his line, and opened 
his fire upon the headmoft of the Englifli fhips; but 
thinking himfelf unequal to the conteft, in which he mu ft 
have engaged fo many fhips, he made a fignal to the 
fquadron, who hauled their wind, and (food away to the 
eaftwar’d, though the Englifh China fleet was eftimated at 
a million and a half (Yerling ! 
Another fmall French force, under the command of the 
chevalier Mahe, was ordered to the coaft of Africa, to in¬ 
tercept the Britifh commerce on the Senegal river. The 
chevalier, on the 18th of January, captured the Englifh 
fettlement of Goree, compelling colonel Frazer, and his 
little garrifon, to furrender prifoners of war. This illand 
did not, however, remain long in the hands of the French ; 
it was retaken on the 7th of March following, by a fmall 
Englifh fquadron under the command of captaiq, Dixon, 
who immediately refiored the former government. The 
Englilh alfo, on the 4th of May, captured the rich and 
extenfive Dutch fettlement of Surinam, with two fri¬ 
gates, and an immenfe quantity of naval ftores. 
On the whole, the war in 1804 was condudfed with ex¬ 
treme languor, both by the governments of France and 
England.' The former w as chiefly engaged in manoeuvring 
and exerciling the flotilla intended for the invafion of the 
Britifh coaft ; while the latter employed its ingenuity to 
circumvent the enterprise, by attempting to deftroy the 
hoftile velfels. On the 16th of May, an unfuccefsful at¬ 
tempt was made by fir Sydney Smith, to prevent the 
junction of the flotilla from Flufhing with that at Offend. 
Fifty-nine fail of the Flufhing divifion reached Offend in 
fafety, and the Englifli force, on the.falling of the tide, 
were obliged to haul off into deep water, after being 
nearly a whole day engaged ; befides the lofs of about 
fifty men in killed and wounded. In the month of Alt- 
guff, another attempt was made on that part of the flo¬ 
tilla which lay at anchor in the road of Boulogne, by 
captain Owen of the Immortalite frigate, and the (loops 
of war and cutters under his command ; but with very 
flender fuccefs. And on the 24th of July, and 2d of 
Auguff, captain Oliver, of the Melpomene, was equally 
unfortunate in his attempt upon the veffeis in Havre 
Pier; fome damage, however, was done to the town, by 
the fhells and carcafes thrown into it on that occafion. 
On the 2d of October, a grand attack, with fire-fhips 
and com buff ibles, was made upon the flotilla at Boulogne, 
by admiral lord Keith, with a formidable fleet, anchored 
at about a league and a half from north to weft of the port. 
At quarter pad n ; ne, under a heavy fire from the men c£ 
war, and which was returned by a tremendous one from 
the (here, the firft detachment of fire-fhips was launched. 
As they approached, the veffeis of the .flotilla opened to 
let them through ; and fo effectually were they avoided, 
that they paffed to the rear of the line without falling on 
board any one of them. At half naff ten the firft fhip 
blew up ; it produced an immenfe column of fire ; its 
wreck fpread far and wide ; but not the flighted mifehief 
was done either to the flotilla or the batteries. A fecond, 
a third, and a fourth, fucceeded no better : at length, after 
twelve had been exploded,theattempt was given up about 
four o’clock on the following morning; the Englifli vef- 
fels withdrew, and no mifehief whatever was done to the 
flotilla. Thus terminated this contemptible experiment, 
which was, in derifion, called “ the catamaran projeEl." 
The moft memorable tranfaftion of the year 1804, on 
the part of Great Britain, was the capture of the Spanifh 
homeward-bound treafure-fliips from South America, 
which was effected by captain Moore of the Indefatigable, 
and three other frigates under his command, off Cadiz. 
On the 5th of Odtober, captain Moore, who had been de¬ 
tached from the channel fleet for the purpofe, fell in with 
four large Spanifh frigates, viz. la Medee, la Clara, la 
Kama, and la Mercedes ; which, upon being hailed with¬ 
out any effedf, were fired upon by the Englifli force. A 
parley then enfued, when captain Moore informed the 
Spanifh rear-admiral, that he had orders to detain his 
fquadron, and earneftly wiflied to execute them without 
blood-fiied; but that his determination muff be imme¬ 
diate. The officers difpatched on this meffage, returning 
witli an evafive anfwer, an engagement immediately en¬ 
fued, each of the Englifli frigates taking an antagonift. 
In lefs than ten minutes, one of the Spanifh frigates, the 
Mercedes, unfortunately blew up. In half an hour two 
more of the Spaniards furrendered ; and the fourth, after 
an attempt to efcape, was captured long before fun-fet. 
The lofs, on the part of the Englifh, was faid to be very 
trifling; that of the Spaniards was (independently of 
240. lives loft by the explofion of the Mercedes) nearly 
100 in killed and wounded. The fhips thus captured 
were convoyed to England, and their lading was found 
to be of immenfe value, in coined and uncoined gold and 
filver, and precious merchandize, the produce of Spanifli 
America. Seefor particulars thearticle Great Britain. 
In confequence of this hafty commencement of hofti- 
lities on the part of Great-Britain, the court of Spain, on 
the 14th of November, iffued a declaration of war againft 
England. But it is written with uncommon imbecility ; 
admitting, in tadt, one of the principal complaints of the 
Englifli court againft Spain—that of giving Bonaparte aid 
in money, in lieu of military and naval aid, thus confeffing 
the nature of the fubfidy paid to France. The prince of 
the peace, (captain-general of the Spanifli forces) imme¬ 
diately publilhed an addrefs to the Spanifli armies, calling 
upon the honour, courage, and loyalty, of the Spanifli 
nation, to carry on the war with vigour. 
Soon after this declaration of war between Spain 
and England had taken efFedt, overtures for peace were 
made by the emperor Napoleon to the court of London. 
It was alike the policy of Bonaparte on his advancement 
to the cotifulate, and now again on his alf.tmption of the 
abfolute fovereignty of France, to manifeft, in the eyes 
of the world, an unequivocal defire of becoming the pa¬ 
cificator of Europe. Evidently in this mind, he didlated 
the following letter to the king of Great-Britain, 12th 
Nivofe, January 2, 1805: 
“ Sir and Brother, —Called to the throne of France 
by Providence, and by the fuffrages of the people and the 
army, my firft fentiment is a wifh for peace. France and 
England abufe their profperitv. They may for ages— 
but do their governments well fulfil the moft ftcred of 
their duties ; and will not fo much blood, (lied ufelefsly, 
and without a view to any end, accufe them in their own 
confciences ? 1 confider it as no difgrace to make the firft 
ftep. 
