considerable compensation and counterpoise. M. de Talleyrand did not seem disposed to dispute any of my positions, and I left him, I confess, fully impressed with the idea, that the next day (Friday) I should find him prepared to treat on this ground, and that the only difficult point to be arranged would be, the number of years for which Malta should be ceded to his majesty. Your lordship will conceive my surprise, when, on seeing him the next day, he told me, that, although he had not been able to obtain from the first consul all he wished, still the proposition he had to make would, he trusted, be such as fully to answer the purpose: he then said, that the first consul would on no terms hear either of a perpetual or a temporary possession of Malta; that his object was the execution of the treaty of Amiens; and that rather than submit to such an arrangement as that I had last proposed, he would even consent to our keeping the object in dispute for ever; on the ground that, in the one there was an appearance of generosity and magnanimity, but in the other, nothing but weakness and the effect of coercion; that, therefore, his resolution was taken, and what he had to propose was the possession we required of the island of Lampedosa, or of any other of the small isles, of which there were three or four between Malta and the coast of Africa; that such a possession would be sufficient for the object we had in view, which was a station in the Mediterranean, as a place of refuge and security for any squadron we might find it convenient to keep in that sea. I suffered him to expatiate a considerable time, and with out interruption, on the great ad. vantage we were to derive from such an acquisition, as well as on the confidence which the first consul reposed in our pacific intention in lending a hand to such an establishment. He concluded by desiring I would transmit this proposal to your lordship. I told him that I was extremely sorry indeed, to find that we had made such little pro gress in the negotiation; that my orders were positive; that I could hear of nothing short of what I had proposed, neither could I possibly undertake to make such a proposal to his majesty, since every word of my instructions (from which I cer tainly should not depart) applied positively to Malta, unless an equivalent security could be offered; and surely he would not pretend to tell me that Lampedosa could be considered as such; that the possession of Malta was necessary for our security, and was rendered so not from any desire of aggrandizement on the part of his majesty, but by the conduct of the French government; and that so strongly were we impressed with the necessity, that, rather than abandon it, we were prepared to go to war. That it was on this ground I must declare to him, that I could neither take upon myself to forward such a proposal as he had made to me, or, indeed, any thing short of what I had last proposed as a fair equivalent. That, in so doing, I acted in conformity to his majesty's views, who would most assuredly disapprove of my conduct, were I, by unnecessarily protracting the negociation, to add one day, or one hour, if it could be avoided, to the suspense and anxiety under which his own subjects and all Europe must labour at such a crisis: crisis; that I had hoped the French government, actuated by the same generous motives, would have acted in the same manner; that it might, by pursuing a contrary line of conduct, gain still a few days; but I must declare, that, in a very short time, I should have to communicate to him those very terms from which his were so wide, but to draw nearer to which was, perhaps, the object of his negotiating, in the form of an ultimatum, which would at least have one good effect, that of bringing the matter to an issue, and the certainty even of war was preferable to the present state of indecision. de Talleyrand's assuring me that ha would report the substance of it to the first consul in the evening, and that, probably, he should have occasion to see me on the following day. I have the honour to be, &c. (Signed) Whitworth. The Right Hon. Lord Hawkesbury, &c. &c. &c. No. 62. Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to The conversation I had on Saturday morning with M. Talleyrand To all I could say, M. Talley- has produced nothing from which I rand objected the dignity and honour can draw a more favourable conof the first consul, which could not clusion, as to the result of the neadmit of his consenting to any thing gotiation, than when I last adwhich might carry with it the ap- dressed your lordship. He told me, pearance of yielding to a threat. I that although he had seen the first told him that it never could be ad- consul the night before, he had nomitted that the first consul had a thing to add to what he had comright to act in such a manner as to municated to me on Friday; that excite jealousy and create alarm in the first consul was determined not every state of Europe, and when to give his consent to our retaining asked for explanation or security, Malta, either in perpetuity or for say that it was contrary to his ho- a term, although, of the two, he nour or his dignity to afford either. would prefer the former, as the less Such arguments might, perhaps, do, repugnant to his feelings; that he when applied fo some of those gowas therefore ordered to repeat the vernments with which France had proposal he had lately made me, been accustomed to treat, or more of acceding to our demand of Lamproperly to dictate to, but never pedosa, or any of the neighbouring could be used to Great Britain; islands; and that, as our object was that his majesty had a right to speak to obtain a settlement in the Medifreely his opinion, and possessed terrancan, he imagined that which we also the means, whenever he chose had ourselves pointed out would anto employ them, of opposing a bar- swer every purpose we might have rier to the ambition of any indivi- in view. But, at all events, the dual, or of any state, which should first consul neither could nor would be disposed to threaten the security relinquish his claim to the full exeof his dominions, or the tranquillity cution of the treaty of Amiens. To of Europe. this I could only repeat what I had already said to him on the inade Our conversation concluded by M. 3 A i nosal, and of ich I found to your lordthe course which was taking, and that ould have so little actul consequences se, as to suffer them ed by a mistaken no And I added, that the acquiescence have met with from ca of its being inNew in the dignity of the vernment to give satis་ ety, when both might De demanded, could nitted by Great Bri e Talevrand heard every could say with the utmost standing he had story to say, and to break up the He constantly brought esme inadmissible proSag that I would at cate it to your lordI told him, I could not nce every thing which Naim and me must, of Re the subject of my reSeordship. I declared, a: the same time, that I think myself by any Need to suspend the ex* instructions I might g to bring the negotiissue, in the expectation which such a propoduce. All I could do, I would certainly do, would municate the ultimatum, if sy should think proper to e with it, confidentially to at de l'evrand, before I presented to `cia y to him, as minister for affairs. He assured me that he should consider such a conduct as a further proof of my desire to conciliate, and that he could not yet forbear hoping that the differences might be adjusted. I repeated that if his hope was founded on the expectation of his majesty being induced to recede from his demand, it would be deceiving himself to cherish it. The remainder of the conversation turned on the calamities which would follow the failure of our endeavour to avoid a rupture. He insinuated that Holland, Naples, and other countries connected with Great Britain, would be the first victims of the war. I asked him whether he thought that such a conduct would add to the glory of the first consul, or whether the falling on the innocent and defenceless would not rather tarnish it, and ultimately unite against him, not only the honest men in his own country, but every government in Europe.That it certainly would excite more detestation than terror in England, at the same time that it would serve to impress upon us still more strongly the necessity of omitting no means of circumscribing a power so perniciously exerted. I could not help adding, that although no act of hostility had actually taken place, yet the inveteracy with which our commerce, our industry, and our credit had been attacked in every part to which French influ. ence could be extended, did, in fact, almost amount to the same, since it went to prove, in addition to the general system of the first consul, that his object was to pursue, under the mask of peace, the same line of conduct in which the preceding governments had acted. I now trust entirely to the effect of of the ultimatum, which will at least convince him that we are in earnest, and that he has nothing to expect from protraction. I shall not, however, as I said before, make use of this officially, until I have tried its effect in a more conciliatory man ner. I have the honour to be, &c. (Signed) Whitworth. The Right Hon. Lord Hawkesbury, &c. &c. &c. P. S. Your lordship's dispatches of the 23d, with their inclosures, were delivered to me, by Shaw, this evening at nine o'clock. I shall see M. de Talleyrand to-morrow morning; and I trust your lordship will not disapprove my following the line of conduct I had proposed, and which I have mentioned to your lordship, of informing him of the nature of my instructions, a few hours before I carry them officially into execution. No. 63. W. Extract of a Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury, dated Paris, April 27, 1803. piration of that term it was to be given up to the inhabitants, and not to the order; provided, also, that his Sicilian majesty shall be induced to cede to his majesty the island of Lampedosa; that Holland should be evacuated by the French troops within a month after the conclusion of a convention by which all these provision shall be secured; and that his majesty would consent to acknowledge the new Italian states, provided stipulations were made in favour of his Sardinian majesty and of Switzerland. I had no sooner made known these conditions than M. de Talleyrand told me it would be perfectly unneces-. sary to delay the official communication; for, as the possession of Malta. was still insisted upon, although for a term, the first consul would not consent to them. I accordingly did repeat them to him in the manner he desired; when he told me that he comprehended perfectly what we required, but that, in similar cases, it was usual to state the demand in writing, and he desired I would give him a note upon the subject. I told I avail myself of the opportunity him that I would repeat to him once of a messenger passing through from more, or as often as he pleased, the Constantinople and Vienna, to in- express terms which I had stated to form your lordship of the state of him, and that as my communicathe negotiation at this moment. I tion to him was verbal, I should, communicated to M. de Talleyrand of course, be content with an anthe purport of my instructions of the swer in the same form. He con23d, yesterday at four o'clock. He sented, at length, to receive it, and immediately asked me if the possesto communicate to me the first consion of Malta was still insisted upon. sul's answer as soon as possible. I I told him most certainly it was; desired that he would recollect, that and I repeated to him the particu- Tuesday next must be the day of my lars of the terms on which it was departure. yet possible to conclude the business. That these were, the possession of Malta for ten years, during which period the authority, civil and military, was to remain solely in his majesty, and that at the ex No. 64. Extract of a Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury, dated April 29, 1803. My last letter to your lord 3A 2 was of yesterday evening. This morning a person came to me, whom I suspect of being employed by the first consul, for the purpose of ascertaining my sentiments, and told me that I should, in the course of the day, receive a letter from M. de Talleyrand, drawn up under the inspection of the first consul, which, although not exactly what I might wish, was, however, so moderate as to afford me a well-grounded hope, and might certainly be sufficient to induce me to delay, for a short time, my departure. I told him that it would be a matter of great satisfaction to me to perceive a probability of bringing the negotiation to a favourable issue; and that I should be extremely sorry to spoil the business by any useless precipitation. But it must be recollected, that I acted in conformity to instructions; that those instructions were positive; that by them I was enjoined to leave Paris on Tuesday next, unless, in the intermediate time, certain conditions were agreed to. Having received no letter in the course of the day, about four o'clock I went to M. de Talleyrand; I told him that my anxiety to learn whether he had any thing favourable to tell me, brought me to him, and in case he had not, to recal to his recollection that Tuesday was the day on which I must leave Paris, and to request that he would have the necessary passports prepared for me and my family. He appeared evidently embarrassed, and after some hesitation observed, that he could not suppose I should really go away; but that, at all events, the first consul never would recal his ambassador. To this I replied, his majesty recalled me in order to put an end to the negotiation, on the principle that even actual war was preferable to the state of suspense in which England, and indeed all Europe, had been kept for so long a space of time. From the tenor of his conversation, I should rather be led to think that he does not consider the case as desperate. Upon my leaving him he repeatedly said, J'ai encore de l'Espoir, Saturday Evening. P. S. This day has passed without any occurrence whatever. The letter in question has not yet arrived. No. 65. xtract of a Dispatch from Lord Whitworth to Lord Hawkesbury, dated May 2, 1803. Another day has passed over without producing any change. I deter'mined to go myself to M. de Talleyrand, and to deliver, instead of sending, the inclosed letter. I told him that it was with great reluctance that I came to make this last application to him. That I had long since informed him of the extent of the term which had been assigned for my stay at Paris, and that as I had received, to this moment, no answer whatever to the proposal I had repeatedly made, I could no longer delay requiring him to furnish me with the necessary passports for the return of myself, my family, and the remainder of my mission, to England. Upon this I gave him the letter, a copy of which I inclose, and, on reading it, he appeared somewhat startled. He lamented that so much time had been lost; but said that enough remained, if I was authorised to negotiate upon other terms. could of course but repeat to him, had no other terms to proand that, therefore, unles that pose, the |