L © N 
fothe prince-regent the grounds upon which it hod be¬ 
came my duty to take my leave, and to commit the bufi- 
refs of the legation to a charge d’affaires: and I con¬ 
cluded by expreiling my regret, that my humble efforts in 
the execution of the inftruftions of my government, to 
fet to rights thg embarraffed and disjointed relations of 
the two countries, had wholly failed ; and that I favc no 
reafon to expeft that the great work of their reconcilia¬ 
tion was likely to he ficcomplillied through any other 
agency. The prince’s reply was of courfe general; but I 
ought to fay, that (exclulively of pbrafes of courtefy) it 
contained explicit declarations of the molt amicable views 
and feelings towards the United States.” 
From this time the Americans acted as if the French 
edicts were revoked, and five English/ orders, in council 
/till enforced 5 whence the fhips of the former power were 
admitted into its ports, while thole of the latter were ex¬ 
cluded. The fhips under French colours, frequenting 
the ports of the United States, were almoft all privateers, 
eager to make prize of ail vell’els to which, they could lay 
the molt dubious claim; whence complaints foon arofe of 
their capturing American (hips bound to Spain or Portu¬ 
gal, choofing to regard them as enemies’ countries. The 
Americans had likewile much caufe of difpleafure with 
the Danes, whole privateers took many of their ihips laden 
with colonial produce for the northern ports of Europe. 
Whilll: a fulpeniion of amity, or rather an alienation, 
was thus fubiilting between England and the United 
States, an incident occurred which appeared likely to have 
involved the two nations in immediate holtility. The 
American frigate Prefident, having fallen in with the 
JBritilh (loop of war Little Belt, on the American coaft, 
an aCtion was brought on which terminated in a fevere 
lofs of men to the latter veil'd. The circumftances in 
which both parties agree are the following : The fhips 
coming in fight of each other on the forenoon of May 16th, 
about fourteen or fifteen leagues from Cape Henry, cap¬ 
tain Bingham, of the Little Belt, gave chafe, and foon dis¬ 
covered the other (hip to be a man-of-war, which, upon 
defcrying him, bore down towards him. Captain Bing¬ 
ham made all fail fouthwards, and was followed in chafe 
by commodore Rodgers in the Prefident, who evidently 
gained upon the other. At half pail fix, captain Bing¬ 
ham, who had difcerned the (bars in the Prefident’s broad 
pendant, brought to, hoiued his colours, had his guns 
doubk-fhotted, and every preparation made againft a fur- 
prif'e. Commodore Rodgers, who affirms that he had not 
been able to make out what nation the chafe was of, took 
a polition to windward of her, and about a quarter paft 
eight got within hail. Now come the variances in the 
narratives of the two commanders. Captain Bingham 
thus dates the matter: “ I hailed, and afked what fbip.it 
was. He repeated my qneflion. I again hailed, and 
afked what fhip it was. He again repeated, my words, 
and fired a broadfide, which I immediately returned.” 
Commodore Rodgers, on the other hand, fays, “I hailed. 
What fhip is that ? To this inquiry no anl'wer wasgiven ; 
but I was hailed by her commander, What- fhip is that? 
After a paufe of fifteen or twenty feconds, I reiterated my 
firft inquiry ; and, before I had time to take the trumpet 
frpm my mouth, was anfwered by a fbot that went into 
our mainmaft.” He goes on to date, that, while he was 
in the ac> of giving an order to fire a fliot in return, a 
ffiot was fired by the fecond divifion of his fhip, which 
-was inftantly anfwered by three others in quick iucceffion 
from his antagonitf, and foon after by his whole broad¬ 
fide. The aCtion, however brought on, thenceforth be¬ 
came general, and laded about three quarters of an hour, 
when, a fufpenfion enfuing, the hailing was repeated, the 
fiiips recognized each other, and parted for the night. In 
the morning the Prefident lent a boat on-board the Little 
Belt, with a mefi'age lamenting the unfortunate occur¬ 
rence, and offering every necelfary affiftance, which cap¬ 
tain Bingham declined. Ifis fpirit in maintaining a con- 
ijiCt with a force fo fuperior (the difparity being 18 guns 
Vol., XIII. No. 505. 
D O N. 261 
to 44) was worthy of his ftation ; but was attended with 
the lofs of 32 men killed and wounded, and great damage 
to the veffel. The American lofs was very trifling. Iii 
the official inquiries relative to this encounter, the impor¬ 
tant faft of the firff first is (as ufual in fuch cafes) oppo- 
fitely fworn to, fhip againft fhip. If, however, ti e 
cafe be judged according to probabilities, the circum- 
ftance of the fuperior force of the American fhip, toge¬ 
ther with an irritation which may be fuppoied to ha\e 
dwelt on the mind of the commander relative to the dif- 
honour fuftained by the flag of his country in the cafe of 
the Chefapeak, will leave a prefnmption that a quarrel 
was fought on his part. 
The Englifh government mamfefted its defire of termi¬ 
nating the mifunderftanding fubfifting with the United 
States, by fending out in the f'pringMr. Folter, as envoy- 
extraordinary and plenipotentiary. On his arrival he en¬ 
tered into the bufinefs of his million 3 and it appears, from 
letters between him and Mr. Monroe in November, that 
the affair of the Chefapeak frigate was amicably adjulted 
by the difavawal and redrefs offered by our court, and ac¬ 
cepted by the prefident. Mr. Monroe, at the fame time, 
in his correfpondence refpefting the Prefident and Little 
Belt, affures Mr. Folter that commodore Rodgers had no 
orders from his government to fearch for, and obtain by 
force, Americans impreffed 011-board British armed vef- 
fels, but merely to p rot eft the coalt and commerce of the 
United States; and he places his juftificaticn on the fact 
that the Little Belt fired firft.—With refpeft to the occu- * 
pation of Weft Florida, againft which a folemn protelfc JLg 
had been made in the name of the prince-regent, Mr. 
Monroe declares that no fatisfaftion bad been made by- 
Spain for fpoliation on the commerce of the United States 
in 1798-9, nor for denying them the right of depofit at 
New Orleans; that Weft Florida is a part of Louifian3, 
to which they had a fair right by purchafe; that no ad¬ 
vantage was taken of the fituation of Spain, but the feL 
zure was made in coniequence of an intention of the in¬ 
habitants, neither governed nor protected by Spain, to 
make thernfelves independent. He adds, that this mea- 
fure will be no obftruftion to a future difcuffion of title; 
when the government of Spain (hall be eftablifhed. 
The molt important part of the correfpondence between 
the two negotiators related to the orders in council; and 
it was evident that nothing but their repeal could fatisfy 
the American government, and reltore an amicable inter- 
courfe between the two countries. Mr. Folter, not hav¬ 
ing authority to afford the expeftation of any compliance 
in this refpeft, (as, indeed, our miniliry were ttrenuous 
fupporters of the juftice and policy of thofe orders.) vihen 
congrefs affembied, after a Ihorter recef's than ufual, the 
prefident delivered to them an addrefs, on the 4th of No¬ 
vember, of which the refufal of Great Britain to repeal its’ 
orders in council was the leading topic, and was repre- 
feated as directly tending to hoftilities. 
The Weft-India illands, of which the foie pofleffors are- 
now the Engliffi and Spaniard^, with the exception of the 
negro ftate of Rayti, or St. Domingo, afforded lome par¬ 
ticulars. which mutt not be palled over.—The tnoft re¬ 
markable. event was the trial and execution of the Hon., 
A. W. Hodge, a member of his msjefty’s council in the 
iflar.d of Tortola, for the murder of one of his own ne¬ 
groes named Profper. 
The prifoner on his trial pleaded Not 'guilty. The 
firft witnefs was a free woman of colour, named Pareen, 
Georges. She ftated that fne was in the habit of attend¬ 
ing at Mr. Hodge’s ettate to wadi linen; that one day 
Profper came to her to borrow fix (hillings, being the funs 
that his matter required of him, becaute a mango had 
fallen from a tree which he (Profper) was let to watch. 
He told the witnefs that he malt either find the 6s. or be 
flogged ; that the witnefs had only 3s. which (lie gave 
him", but that it did not appeafe Mr. Hodge; that ProfpeV- 
was flogged for upwards of an hour, receiving more than 
100 lathes, and threatened by his matter, thud, if he did 
3 X not. 
