Lord Malmesbury on the 29th and 30th Fructidor, and especially to the first of yesterday, they agree to the meeting which Lord Malmesbury appears to defire, and propofe the hour of noon. They requeft Lord Malmesbury to accept the affurances of their high confideration. (Signed) Lifle, 1ft Complementary Day, 5th Year of the French Republic. (17 Sept. 1797.) TREILHARD. By the Minifters Plenipoteniary, the Sec. Gen. of the Legation. DERCHE No. 50. Difpatch from Lord Grenville to Lord Malmesbury, dated Downing Street, Sept. 22, 1797. My Lord, I HAVE had the honour of laying before his Majefty your Lordship's dispatches, in which you have given an account of the extraordinary conduct of the new plenipotentiaries of the French republic, of the answers given by your Lordship to their unjustifiable demand, and of your confequent departure from Lifle. I have the fatisfaction to be able to affure your Lordship that his Majefty has been pleafed to exprefs his entire approbation of your Lordship's judicious and temperate conduct in the unprecedented fituation in which you were placed, and of the manner in which you expreffed yourself, both in your official notes, and in your converfations with the French plenipotentiaries, as well as of that in which you have conducted yourfelf. during the whole courfe of the negotiation, which feems too likely to be now brought to its close. As it appears, however, that fome further answer will probably be expected by the French government to their late extraordinary demand, notwithstanding the full and conclufive reply given in your Lordship's notes, I have received the King's commands to tranfmit to you the enclosed draft of a note, which it is his Majefty's pleasure that your Lordship fhould tranfmit to the plenipotentiaries at Lifle, by a meffenger whom I fhall direct to be in readinefs for that purpose. (Signed) Right Honourable Lord Malmesbury. GRENVILLE. No. No. 51. Note from Lord Malmesbury to the French Plenipotentiaries. THE underfigned minifter plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majesty has rendered to his court a faithful account of the circumstances that have interrupted the exercife of thofe important functions which his Majefty had been pleafed to entrust to him. His Majefty has deigned to honour with his entire approbation the answers which the underfigned has already made to the extraordinary and unexpected demands which the new plenipotentiaries of the French republic addreffed to him immediately upon arrival at Lifle. their But, in order to leave no doubt refpecting the nature and object of this demand, the undersigned has been exprefsly ordered to declare, in the name of his court, 1. That the full powers with which his Majefty had thought proper to furnish him for negotiating and concluding a treaty of peace, are conceived and expreffed in the most ample form, authorizing the undersigned fully, and without referve, to fign any treaty upon which he might agree with the French plenipotentiaries, whatever its nature or conditions might be; conforming himself in all cafes to the inftructions which he might receive from his court. 2. That thefe full powers have been received and recognised as fufficient, as well by the plenipotentiaries with whom he has hitherto treated, as by the Directory themselves, and that there is confequently no room for any new difcuffion upon a fubject which has already been clofed by common agreement, and which moreover is not liable to any doubt or difficulty whatever; every thing which has been done hitherto upon this fubject, being entirely conformable to cuftoms long eftablished and recognised by all the nations of Europe. 3. That the demand of the Directory therefore, in reality, refers not to the full powers of the undersigned, but to the extent of his inftructions, of which the Directory could not, under any circumstances, require any communication, further than as the underfigned himself might judge fuch a communication conducive to the fuccefs of the negotiation; and that very far from being in a fituation to be called upon for any new explanations whatever, the undersigned had every reafon to expect, from the repeated communications which had been made to him by the French plenipotentiaries, that he fhould immediately receive a contre-projet, of a nature to facilitate the further progrefs of the negotiation which had been fufpended for more than two months. 4. That 4. That the court of London had good reason to be still more aftonished at the fubftance of the new demand made to the underfigned; a demand relating to preliminary conditions which had already been rejected at the very commencement of the negotiation, and from which the French plenipotentiaries had in effect departed, by a formal notification of the meafures which the Directory were in confequence taking for the purpose of coming to fome arrangement with their allies. 5. That it is therefore only by confenting to treat upon the bafis of the project, detailed with fo much opennefs, which was prefented by the underfigned a few days after his arrival af Lifle, or by returning a contre projet of a conciliatory nature, agreeably to the affurances which he received fo long ago, that it appears poffible to continue the negotiation, which the plenipotentiaries have fo ftrongly affured him that the Directory did not wish to break off, notwithstanding the measures lately adopted with respect to him a measure which the underfigned forbears to characterize, but which could not fail to produce in this country the impreffion of a difpofition by no means pacific on the part of the Directory. The underfigned is directed to add, that his Majesty would fee with real regret the certainty of the existence of fuch a difpofition, fo little compatible with the ardent defire with which he is animated to restore peace to the two nations; but that if, without having himself contributed to it on his part, he should again find himself under the neceffity of continuing the war, he will conduct himself upon every occafion agreeably to the fame principles, doing every thing which can depend upon him for the re-establishment of peace, but perfifting to defend, with an unfhaken firm❤ nefs, the dignity of his crown and the interefts of his people. The minifter plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majefty requests the minifters plenipotentiary of the French republic to accept the affurance of his high confideration. MALMESBURY. No. 52. Note from the French Plenipotentiaries to Lord Malmesbury. THE minifters plenipotentiary of the French republic, commiffioned to treat of peace with England, have received the note, dated from London, which has been brought to them by an extraordinary meffenger from Lord Malmesbury. They have the honour to answer to him, that their note of the 29th Fructidor, to which they refer, offered the double affurance of the fetVOL. VI. M m tled tled intention of the French government to continue the negoti ations for peace, and of its conftant determination not to agree to any other conditions than fuch as are compatible with the dignity of the French republic. A peace, of which the bafis fhould be contrary to the laws, or to the engagements taken with its allies, would never fatisfy the hopes of the nation. It is a point from which the Executive Directory has never departed, and upon which its fentiments have never varied. Lord Malmesbury having formally declared in his notes of the 15th and 24th of July,, and in the last inftance in that of the 17th September, that he had not the powers neceffary for reftoring the Dutch and Spanish poffeffions, occupied by the troops of his Britannic Majefty, the Executive Directory has given a new proof of its opennefs, and of its defire to accelerate the conclufion of peace, in requiring Lord Malmesbury to return to his court, for the purpose of obtaining the authority, without which he cannot conclude; a measure rendered neceffary by the declaration of the minifter plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majefty, and upon which it is impoffible to give a wrong impreffion to any thinking and impartial mind. The minifters plenipotentiary of the French republic req A Lord Malmesbury to accept the affurances of their high confideration. Note from the French Plenipotentiaries to Lord Malmesbury. THE minifters plenipotentiaries of the French republic, charged to treat for peace with England, have the honour to inform Lord Malmesbury, that having fent a copy of his laft note to their government, the Executive Directory has directed them to declare, in its name, That it has never ceased to wish for peace; that it gave an unequivocal proof of the fentiment which animates it, when it ordered the minifters plenipotentiary of the republic to require a categorical explanation as to the powers given by the English government to its minifter plenipotentiary; That this demand had, and could have, no other object but to bring the negotiation to a speedy and fuccessful iffue: That the order given to the plenipotentiaries of the republic. to remain at Lifle after the departure of Lord Malmesbury, is another proof that the Directory had defired and foreseen his re turn turn with powers that fhould not be illufory, and the limitation of which thould no longer be a pre ext for delaying the conclufion of peace: That fuch are ftill the hopes and intentions of the Executive Directory, which enjoins the minifters plenipotentiary of the republic not to quit Lifle till the continued abfence of the negotiator fhall no longer leave any doubt of the intention of his Britan nic Majefty to break off all negotiation: That confequently the 25th Vendemiaire (16th of October old ftyle, is the period fixed for the recall of the minifters plenipotentiary of the French republic, fuppofing that at that time the minifter plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majefty fhall not have arrived at Lifle. The Executive Directory will feel the greatest regret that a reconciliation, already twice attempted, fhould not be perfected; but its confcience, and the whole of Europe, will bear it teftimony, that it is the English government alone that will have inflicted the fcourge of war upon the two nations. The minifters plenipotentiary of the French republic entreat the minifter plenipotentiary of his Britannic Majefty to accept the affurances of their high confideration. Note from Lord Malmesbury to the French Plenipotentiaries. THE underfigned having laid before the King's ministry the note of the plenipotentiaries of the French republic, is directed to obferve to them, That it is only in confequence of the formal and pofitive injunction of the Directory that he quitted Lifle; that his powers were neither illufory nor limited; and that nothing was omitted on his part to accelerate the negotiation, which has been only retarded by the delays of the Directory, and which at this moment is only fufpended by its act. With regard to the renewal of the conferences, the underfigned can only refer to his last note, where he has explained with franknefs and precifion the only means which remain for continuing the negotiation; obferving, at the fame time, that the King could no longer treat in an enemy's country, without being certain that the customs eftablished amongst all civilized nations, with regard to public minifters, and efpecially to thofe charged to |