BOOK VI. physical necessity for him to go on in this barter This speech was highly applauded by the majority of people, but condemned by some as a dangerous incentive to precipitate hostility. invitation was made by the French and English ministers to the Emperor of Russia for that purpose. But an immediate and unreserved compli ance with this request could not be obtained. Difficulties and delays, such as might reasonably be expected, took place. In a conference held by the two ministers with the Russian chancellor Woronzof, on the 3d of November, General Hedouville entered into various arguments, to induce the Russian government to grant this guarantee; and on the 24th of the same month, Russia, by a formal declaration, signified her readiness to accede to the arrangements of the treaty of Amiens, including the obnoxious article establishing a Maltese langue, on condition that the rights of the King of the Sicilies, as sovereign of the island, should be recognised; but admitting that these rights should not cause a departure from its neutrality, as guaranteed by the present act. Two months subsequent to the date of this declaration, Lord Hawkesbury instructed the English minister at Petersburgh, Sir John Borlase Warren, who had succeeded Lord St. Helens, to decline the imperial proposition, unless some additional stipulations were introduced, such as would amply satisfy the Maltese; for which purpose it would be necessary to consult the inhabitants themselves, who were equal to the defence of the island; adding, that the revenues belonging to the Spanish and Portuguese langues, which had been sequestered, must be restored previous to the surrender. On the 31st of August the British resident at Berlin informed Lord Hawkesbury, that M. Bignon, the French minister, had received instruc tions from his government, conjointly with him, to invite the King of Prussia to accede to the guarantee of Malta. But this monarch was of opinion that he had nothing to do in this business; and after many weeks had passed, Count Hangwitz frankly told the English minister," that Prussia took a very slight interest in the fate of this island, and that the king his master was countenanced in withholding his guarantee by the example of Spain. The consular government, extremely displeased at the delays which had occurred relative to the restoration of Malta, adopted every possible measure to add facility to this favorite object. We have, in the preceding Book, (Chap. IX.) mentioned the conditions on which this surrender was agreed to by Great Britain. In the beginning of July Mr. Paget, resident at Vienna, having solicited M. de Champagny, the French ambassador, to concur in an invitation to the emperor for the imperial guarantee, it was most readily acceded to; although the ambassador acknowledged that he had received no specific orders respecting the guarantee in question; professing to act entirely from his own knowledge of the intentions of his government. In consequence of this step, the emperor's guarantee was without difficulty On the 27th of January, Lord Whitworth, the obtained, and formally signed on the 20th of Au-British ambassador at Paris, transmitted a disgust ensuing. On the 3d of August Lord St. Helens wrote from St. Petersburgh, that the French minister there was still without instructions authorising him to join the English ambassador in demanding the guarantee of the court of Russia; but they soon arrived, and in the following month a joint About the time of General Andreossi's arrival in England, Sir Robert Wilson's "History of the Expedition to Egypt" was published, containing an elaborate exposure of the crimes of the first consul; and quotations from this work were given in the diurnal prints. patch to Lord Hawkesbury, containing the report of a conversation with M. Talleyrand, in the course of which the French minister pronounced, after his long silence on this head, a most bitter philippic against the English newspapers, declaring " that the first consul was extremely hurt to find that his endeavours to conciliate had hitherto produced no other effect than to increase the abuse with which the papers in England continually loaded him; the more so, as it came from a country of whose good opinion he was so very ambitious." Lord Whitworth endeavouring to palliate the offence, by alleging the little controul which the English government possessed over the productions of the English press, M. Talleyrand, in reply, enumerated the names and supposed connections of the papers published in London with great precision, and urged," that his majesty's ministers might so far control those at least which depended upon them, as to prevent their inserting that abuse which must be considered as having their sanction." Lord Whitworth engaged to report the substance of M. Talleyrand's complaints to his own court, assuring him, however, "that nothing could be added to the explanations on this head already given." M. Talleyrand, then, by the express order of the first consul, in the most serious manner required to know what were his majesty's intentions with regard to the evacuation of Malta. He said that another grand-master would now be very soon elected; that all the powers of Europe, invited so to do, with the exception of Russia, whose difficulties it was easy to remove, and without whom the guarantee would be equally complete, were ready to come forward, and that consequently the time would very soon arrive, when Great Britain could have no pretext for keeping longer possession. Lord Whitworth replied, "that he would report his conversation to the English secretary, Lord Hawkesbury." Three days after this conference, a very singular paper appeared in the French official paper called the Moniteur, purporting to be a report made to the French government by a Colonel Sebastiani, who had been sent a few months before, when differences ran high between England and France, on a mission commercial, political, and military. Sebastiani embarked at Toulon on the 16th of September, 1802, for the East. What the precise motives of the first consul were for pubfishing this crude and ill-digested composition, equally puerile and pompous, cannot be ascertained. It is possible that he might have expected it to counteract, in some degree, the injurious impressions recently made by Sir Robert Wilson's book. It is possible that he might have hoped to intimidate the English ministers, and deter them from the thought of renewing the war, by the magnitude of his provisional projects and speculations. It is possible that it was the mere effect of spleen and passion, and intended to show the court of London the contemptuous opinion he entertained of the counsels by which it was governed. This curious report contained many particulars go calculated to give just offence to the English vernment; if indeed such a medley of inconsistency, vanity, and absurdity, merited any serious notice. The author of it stated, that he arrived at Alexandria on the 16th of October, and finding the English still in possession, he demanded of General Stuart, agreeably to his instructions, the speedy evacuation of that city. General Stuart, whom he described with oracular sagacity, on this transient acquaintance, as a man of mediocre talents, " told him that the place would be shortly evacuated, but that he had as yet received no orders from his court to quit Alexandria." He then made a visit to the Pacha of Alexandria, and the Capoutan Bey," who expressed great partiality for the French, and did not conceal that they saw with grief the stay of the English in the country." On the 20th he set out for Cairo, receiving from the various places and persons visited by him in his route, protestations of attachment to the first consul. On the 26th he arrived at the metropolis, having been met at Boulah by an honorary escort of 300 cavalry and 200 infantry, sent by the Pacha of Cairo, who, in his subsequent conferences with M. Sebastiani, professed himself penetrated with gratitude for the first cousul, engaging to his commercial agents the most friendly reception. In return for which, M. Sebastiani declared " the lively interest which the first consul took in the prosperity of Egypt," offering, by his express command, the mediation of the French government, in order to establish a peace with the beys. But this the pacha declined, saying," that he had the most positive orders from Constantinople to make a war of extermina tion upon the beys." A In an assembly of the principal scheiks of Cairo, the conversation turned upon the interest which the first consul took in Egypt, on his power, his glory, and on his esteem for the learned scheiks, Their answers expressed an enthusiastic attachment to his person. The inhabitants of Cairo saluted the agent Sebastiani and his suite when passing along the streets. trivial incident, however, served to prove the futility of these flattering representations. On the 29th, in returning to Fort Dupuy, Mustapha Oukel, one of the chiefs of the city, passing accidentally on horseback, reproached the guides who attended Sebastiani with marching before a Christian, and above all a FRENCHMAN! and menaced them with the bastinado after his departure. Having demanded redress of the pacha for this insult, he found that Mustapha was strongly fa vored and protected by him: and Sebastiani was compelled formally to declare, that if reparation was not made, he would leave the city, and transmit his complaint to Paris and Constantinople. Upon which, Mustapha, at the instance of the pacha, thought proper to ask his pardon. Also, BOOK VI. CHAP. I. 1803 BOOK VI. to reinstate himself in the favor of the French agent, the pacha showed him a letter he had just CHAP. I. received from General Stuart, who was no doubt apprehensive of the ill effect of Sebastiani's in1803. trigues."This letter inclosed an order of the first consul, dated August, 1799, and which recalled to the recollection of the Egyptians that Constantinople was once tributary to Arabia, and that the time was now come to restore Cairo to its supremacy, and to destroy the eastern empire of the Ottomans. General Stuart begged the pacha to consider the spirit of that order, and to judge from it of our attachment and of our peace with the Turks. I was indignant to find that a soldier of one of the most polite nations of Europe should degrade himself so far as to instigate assassination by means of such an insinuation." From this preposterous charge of assassination, the agent Sebastiani made a sudden transition to the monks of Mount Sinai, from whom he received a deputation; and to those of the Propaganda at Cairo, who performed a solemn Te Deum for the prosperity of the first consul, at which M. Sebastiani assisted. On the 3d of November he set out for Damietta, and had the good fortune to meet in his route with none but persons extremely attached to France. "In Egypt," said he," chiefs, merchants, people, all liked to talk of the first consul; all offered prayers for his happiness. All the news which concerned him spread from Alexandria or Damietta to the pyramids with astonishing rapidity." On the 14th, Sebastiani left Damietta, and arrived in five days at Acre. He immediately addressed a letter to D'jezzar Pacha, stating, "that peace being concluded between France and the Porte, the relations of commerce should be reestablished on the footing they stood on before the war; and that he was charged by the first consul to confer with him on these subjects. I begged of him," said M. Sebastiani," to answer me in writing, if he was inclined to treat with me. In some hours the messengers returned. D'jezzar had received them coldly. He expressed his desire to see me personally." Very soon after, the dragoman of the pacha came to conduct the French agent to the palace of Djezzar: the apartment in which he gave audience had no other furniture than a carpet. He had on one side of him a pistol with four barrels, a small air-gun, a sabre, and a hatchet. "After inquiring," said M. Sebastiani," as to my health, he asked me, whether I was not persuaded that our end is preordained in heaven, and that nothing could change our destiny? I answered, that I believed, as he did, in predestination. He continued to speak for some time on that subject. He repeated several times, it is said that D'jezzar is barbarous: this is false; he is but just and severe.' Soon after he said, I desire that the commissary you may send shall reside at Seide, as that is the most commercial port in my dominions. I highly esteem the French. In stature Bonaparte is small, but he is nevertheless the greatest of mankind. I know that he is greatly regretted at Cairo, where they wish to see him again. D’jezzar, perhaps, will soon finish his career; not that he is old, as his enemies report'-he then performed some of the manoeuvres of the Mamelukes with surprising adroitness and agility--- but because most likely God will have it so.' Our conversation was interrupted for some moments by a kind of military music, which he performed in a very agreeable style. The palace of D'jezzar is built with much taste and elegance: but at the foot of the staircase is situated a prison; I saw a number of the unfortunate inhabitants. This monster has imprinted the mark of his atrocious character upon every thing within the limits of his power. D'jezzar occupies all Palestine, with the exception of Jaffa, where Aboumarak Pacha has been besieged nearly five months by a force of 9000 men. M. Sebastiani quitted Acre the 21st of November, and set sail for Zante, where he arrived the 4th of December. Having learnt that the isle and the republic were divided into different parties, he assembled the constituted authorities, and other principal persons, at the house of the governor. "After having represented to them," said he," the interest which the first consul took in their welfare, I induced them to lay aside that spirit of party which distracted them, and to wait. without passion and in silence the new constitution. These few words were received with enthusiasm, and all of them exclaimed, France for ever! Bonaparte for ever! I do not stray from the truth in assuring you, that the islands of the Ionian sea will declare themselves French as soon as opportunity shall offer itself." The rest of this famous report consisted merely of a statement of the English, Mameluke, and Turkish forces in Egypt, with those under the command of D'jezzar Pacha in Syria.. He said, "that a great misunderstanding reigns between General Stuart and the Pacha of Cairo; that the Mamelukes are entirely masters of Upper Egypt; and that 6000 French would, at present, be enough to conquer the whole country." This idle and impertinent report would deserve little attention, were it not for the very serious consequences of which it was almost immediately. productive.. In the reply of Lord Hawkesbury, dated February 9th, to the last dispatch of Lord Whitworth, a new and very surprising scene was opened, threatening a renewal of the war in a more hideous and horrid form, and with an inconceivable increase of rage and animosity. The |