ef B46en] 
STATE OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, 
In September, 1801. 
[O&oter 1, 
4 
UR PAE HS Atal FRANCE. 
PSHE Negotiation for Peace between 
this country and France has been 
Jong fuppofed to be on the point of clofing, 
though from the continued meetings of Mi- 
nifters upon this fubjeé&t, and the commu- 
nications which are yet maintained with 
M. Otto at home, and Mr. Merry at Paris, 
the final rupture cannot yet have taken 
place. The expeStation of an invafion.is 
till predominant: whether or not the Eng- 
lifh Miniftry are ferious in believing it to 
be the intention of the French to engage in 
fodefperate an attack weknow not,but thus 
much is certain at leaft, that if this be not 
the faét the extreme alarm, and precau. 
tion manifefted on the occafion, is fuii- 
cient to induce the French to fuppofe that 
fomething may be effected, and té roufe 
them to the exercife of their powers. 
A treaty has been concluded between 
the French Republic and the Pope, and 
fince then the arrival of a nuncio at Paris 
has either taken place, or is daily expedt- 
ed. In this finguiar treaty one of the ar- 
ticles exprefsly ftipulates that all the dig- 
nitaries of the French Church, who fhall 
be acknowledged by the Pope, fhall have 
previoufly taken an oath of allegiance to 
the fubfifting government, and have re- 
ceived their appointments immediately 
from the Chief Conful himfelf. In con- 
fequence of his decifion a brief has been 
received from his Holinefs, addrefled to 
the French Bifhops and Archhifhops re- 
fident in England, by which they are re- 
quired, within ten days from the prefent 
perio, to refign their dignities, or fuffer 
certain canonical penalties. The Gal- 
lican Church has long difavowed the au- 
thority of the Pope as to pains and pe- 
nalties, and afferted its own independence; 
but it will {carcely, we think, be able to 
refit this authority and the call of Bona- 
parte todomeflic duties. A meeting upon 
this fubje& was held on the roth of Sep- 
tember, at the Archbifhop of Narbonne’s 
houfe in London, and very numeroufly-at- 
tended ; its refult has not yet appeared. 
It is not to be fuppofed that the prefent 
dignitaries of the church will be all of 
them re-appointed, and perhaps there are 
very few who will be thus fortunate. The 
Chief Conful, however, has engaged to 
provide handfomely for all who may not 
be re elected, 
Bonaparte has at length concluded 4 
peace with Portugal, the articles of which 
flate, in the preamble, that the Plenipo- 
tentiaries of the three Belligerent Powers 
(meaning obvioufly France, Spain, and 
Portugal) having met together, have 
agreed to conclude two treaties, which, 
in their effential parts, will be but one, 
as the guarantee will be interchangeable, 
and will ceafe with refpe€t to both trea- 
ties when either fhall be infringed. It then 
proceeds to inform us of the nate of the 
Plenipotentiary appointed by his Catholic 
Maje{ty,and of thePlenipotentiary appoint- 
ed by the Prince Regent of Portugal te 
“* carty this important obje& into full ef- 
fe&t;”” butno notice whatever istaken of the 
thirdPlenipotentiary alluded to in the com- 
mencement of the paper, and who ought. 
to have been appointed by Bonaparte en 
behalf of the French Republic; nor does 
the ficnature of any French Plenipoten- 
tiary appear in conjuction with the names 
of the other two Muinifters at its clofe. 
We have, it is true, received by the 
Hamburg mail a paper, which pretends 
to be a copy of the treaty of peace be- 
tween Portugal and Spain. Where then 
is this /econd treaty referred to, and which 
is ftated to have been concluded at the 
fame time? What are its terms, and who 
are its fubfcribers ? If we can form any 
. judgment upon the prefent myfterious do- 
cument, it is that the paper now pubiifh- 
ed was drawn up between the two parties 
now affixing their fignatures, who, in the 
firft inftance, added the name of Jofeph 
Bonaparte, on behalf of the French Re- 
public ; but that Jofeph Bonaparte not ap- 
proving of either the one or the other, or- 
dered his own name to be erafed from the 
preamble, and refufed to unite in the fub- 
{cription. 
Conful to the treaty as at firft propefed, 
and aétually figned by the other two 
Powers; the paper we now have, there- 
fore, is probably the treaty as it, at that 
monient, exifted, and which has now, for 
the firft time, got abroad. But we have. 
every reafon to believe, that both the fir& 
and fecond treaties have been fince rati- 
fied by France, and that a mutual under- 
ftanding has taken place between all the 
contracting Pewers. It is obvious, mofe- 
over, from the commencement of the Ne- 
goc.ations’ 
4 
Our readers cannot have for- 
gotten the demur on the part of the French 
