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So ee 
‘464 Correfpondence between Great Britain and France. [June 1, 
or of Europe. He would not rifk uniting 
Europe againft him by any violent aét of ag- 
greflion; neither was he fo powerful in 
France as to perfuade the nation to go to war 
unlefs on good grounds. He faid, that he 
had not chaftifed the Algerines from his un- 
willingnefs to excite the jealoufy of other 
Fowers, but he hoped that England, Rufia, 
and France would one day feel that it was 
their intereft to deftroy fuch a neft of thieves, 
and force them to live rather by cultivating 
their land than by plunder, 
In the little 1 faid to him, for he gave me 
in the courfe of two hours but very few op- 
portunities of faying a word, I confined my- 
felf firi€tly to the tenour of your Lordthip’s 
inftructions. Jurged themin the fame man- 
ner asl had done to M.de Talleyrand, and 
dwelt as ftrongly as I could*on the fenfation 
which the publication of Sebaftiani’s Report 
had created in England, where the views of 
France towards Egypt muft always command 
the utmoft vigilance and jealoufy. He main- 
tained, that what ought to convince us of 
his defire of peace, was, on the one hand, 
the little he had to gain by renewing the 
war, and, on the other, the facility with 
which he might have taken pofleffion of 
Egypt with the very ihips and troops which 
were now going from the Mediterranean to 
St. Domingo, and that with the approbation 
ef all Europe, and more particularly of the 
Turks, who had repeatedly invited him to 
join with them, for the purpofe of forcing 
us to evacuate their-territory. 
I do not pretend to follow the arguments 
of the Firft Conful in detail; this would be 
impoflible, from the vaft variety of matter 
which he took occafion to introduce. \His 
purpofe was evidently to. convince me, that 
on Malta muft depend peace or war, and at 
the fame time to imprefs upon my mind a 
ftrong idea of the means he poffefled of an- 
noying us at home and abroad. 
With regard to the miftruft and jealoufy 
which he faid conftantly prevailed fince the 
conclufion of the ‘Treaty of Amiens, I ob- 
ferved, that after a war of fuch long dura- 
tion, fo full of rancour, and carried on ina 
manner of which hiftory has no example, it 
was but natural that a confiderable degree of 
agitation fhould prevail ; but this, like the 
{well after a form, would gradtally fubfide, 
if not kept up by the policy of either party ; 
that i would not pretend to pronounce which 
had been the aggreflor in the paper war of 
which he complained, and which was ftill 
kept up, though with this difference, that 
in England it was independent of Govern- 
ment, andin France its very a and deed. 
To this I added, that it muft be admitted 
that we had fuch motives of miftruft againft 
France as could not be alleged againft us 3 and 
Iwas going to inftance the acceffion of terri- 
tory and influence gained by France fince the 
- Treaty, -when he interrupted me by faying; 
EF ivppofe you mean Piedmont and Switzer- 
land $$ ce font des bazatelles * and it muft 
Haye! been forefeen whilft the negotiation 
was pending 5 ** vous'n’avex pas le droit d’en 
parler BeettoPéare: *” I thenalieged as a caufe 
of miftruft and jealoufy, the impoffibility of 
obtaining joftice, or any kind of redrefs, for 
any of his Majefty’s fubjeéts. He afked me 
in what refpect: and 1 told him, that fince 
the figniag of the Treaty not one Britith 
claimant had been fatisfed, although every 
Frenchman of that defcription had been fo 
within one month after that period; and 
that fince I had been here, and I could fay as 
much of my predeceffors, fie one fatisfactory 
anf{wer had been obtained to the innumerable 
reprefentations which we had been under the 
necefflity of making in favour of Britith fub- 
jets and) property ‘detained in the feveral 
ports of France and elfewhere, without even 
a fhadow of juftice: fuch an order of tHings, 
I faid, was not’ made to infpire confidence ; 
but, on the contrary, muft create miftrutt. 
This, he faid, muft be attributed to ¢he na- 
tural difficulties attending fuch fuits, when 
both parties thought themfelves right 5 but 
he denied that fuch delays could proceed from 
any difinclination to do what was juft and 
right, With regard to the penfions which 
were granted to French or Swifs individuals, 
I obferved, that they were given as a reward 
for paft fervices during the war, and moft 
certainly not for prefent ones, and ftill lefs 
for fuch as had been infinuated, of a'nature 
repugnant to the feelings of every individual 
in England, and to the univerfally acknow- 
ledged loyalty and honour of the Britifh_Go- 
vernment. ‘That as for any participation of 
indemnities, or other acceflions, which his 
Majefty might have obtained, I could take 
upon myfelf to affure him, that his Majeity’s 
ambition led him-rather to preferve than to. 
acquire. And that, with regard to the 
moft propitious moment for © renewing 
hottilities, his Majefty, whofe fincere de- 
fire it was to continue the bleflings of peace 
to his fubjeéts, would always confider fuch 
a meafure as the greateft calamity 3 but thar, 
if his’ Majefty was fo defirous of peace, it 
muft not be imputed to the difficulty of ob- 
taining allies; and the lefs fo, as thofe 
means which it might be neceflary to afford 
fuch allies, for perhaps inadéquate fervices, 
would all be concentrated in England, and 
give a proportionate increafe of energy to our 
own exertions. 
At this part of the converfation he’ rofe 
from his chair, and told me, that he fhould 
give orders to General Andreofii to enter on 
the difcuflion of this bufinefs with your Lord- 
fhip 5 3 but he wifhed that I fhould at the fame 
time be made acquainted with his motives, 
and be convinced of his fincerity, rather from 
himfelf than from his Minifters. He then, 
after a converfation of two hours, during the 
greateft part of which he talked inceflantly, 
converfed for a few moments: on indifferent 
fubjeéts, in apparent good humour, and arn 
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