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and cruelty? Yet ministers would not allow them to inquire, or were themselves most scandalously ignorant, whether the condition of a treaty, which could alone bind them down to such disgraceful conduct, had been fulfilled or not. He was sorry not to see an honourable and learned member (Mr. Stephen) in his place, or he should have aniinadverted on some expressions that had fallen from him. He might have alluded to the half pious, half profane, expression which he suffered to escape him, that we had thrown down the gauntlet to the Almighty, who, he had no doubt, would take it up. He would also (if he were present) say, that that honourable gentleman's tender mercies were cruel, though he himself was not among the wicked; for, if he had not known his voice, and person, and his manner, so well as he did, he should have supposed, during his speech tonight, that he was hearing one of those per'sons who used formerly to descant on the miseries of the Africans in their own country, in order to show the justice and humanity of the slave trade. [Here Mr. Whitbread, seeing Mr. Stephen enter the house, hailed nis approach, and, recapitulating what he had just said, proceeded.] If that honourable and learned gentleman were not also one of the most moral and philosophical characters of the age, who held all jacobins and jacobinism in the utmost abhorrence, he should almost have mistaken him for one of the members of the constituent assembly of France, setting out on a crusade to Norway, with the rights of man in one hand, and a sword and famine in the other, to compel them to accept of freedom and happiness, on the peril of their lives. Mr. Whitbread here pointedly alluded to the sentiment of the right honourable member for Liverpool, delivered out of the house at a convivial meeting, in which the eloquent speaker had declared his satisfaction, that it was in the wilds of Russia, of a barbarous and despotic country, that Buonaparte had been first defeated. This, according to the right honourable gentleman, proved that patriotism had nothing to do with the freedom, or the forms of govern

ment.

He wished the right honourable member, and the learned and honourable gentleman

behind him, to apply this theory to the brave and unfortunate people of Norway, and not to suffer them to be juggled out of their natural rights and political independence, by fine theories of liberty and happiness, by technical acuteness, and the strict letter of unfulfilled treaties.

The war between Sweden and Norway began with a naval action. The Norwegians had stationed a flotilla near the Hualor islands, protected by a number of batteries raised upon them. On July the 26th the Swedish admiral, baron Pike, made a signal for his fleet and flotilla to weigh and move to the attack of the Norwegians, but a calm prevented them from reaching a proper station, so that the attack was postponed till the following morning. The Norwegian admiral, however, did not wait for the arrival of the enemy, but threw the cannon of his batteries into the sea, and retired to Frederickstadt. Major-general Gahn, on the 31st of July, had entered Norway, and on the 2d of August attempted to force a strong position, from which he was driven back with some loss and on the following day found the enemy, who had taken a circuitous route, in his rear with a superior force. An obsti nate and sanguinary action ensued, in which the Swedes made good their retreat, with the loss of a gun, 20 baggage waggons, and a considerable number of men killed, wounded, and prisoners. Admiral Pike having, on the second of August, received orders from the crown prince to attack Kragero, three bodies of troops were landed upon the island, supported by gun-boats and armed vessels. The Norwegians retreated, and a battery surrendered after a cannonade. Frederickstadt was summoned, was attacked on refusal by the boats and vessels, and at last consented to capitulate. The garrison, of 2000 men, having signified their allegiance to the king of Sweden were permitted to return home.

This unequal contest was of short duration. The Norwegians though numerous were ill equipped, and their country was grievously suffering for want of corn. The crown prince of Sweden took advantage of this circum stance, and liberally supplied with provisions all the prisoners whom he took, and the inhabitants of those parts of the country which

he conquered: and the former, after being well fed, were sent back to spread their kind treatment. The stratagem succeeded; the resistance of the Norwegians became gradually weaker, and after a short contest Christian, as he saw no prospect of the enemy's expulsion, abdicated the throne. It was agreed by the crown prince that hostilities should cease, that the diet of Norway should be assembled, and that they should determine with respect to the union of their country with Sweden. The result of their meeting was such as might be anticipated; they were convinced that resistance to Sweden was useless, and they saw that the allies were determined to put the crown prince in possession of Norway if he could not accomplish it himself. On the other hand, the allies, as well as the crown prince, solemnly promised to the Norwegians the continuance of all their rights and privileges. Thus circumstanced, the diet almost unanimously chose the king of Sweden as the king of Norway, and in the month of October the crown was formally accepted by Charles XIII. The ceremonial part of the transaction was performed by the crown prince, who, accompanied by his son, prince Oscar, proceeded to the diet to receive from the members the oath of fidelity to king Charles, and to transmit to them his majesty's oath, to govern according to the constitution and the laws. On this occasion the crown prince declared that the Swedes and the Norwegians should always remain two nations, equal and independent, though united: the great basis of their union being their geographical position, their similarity of origin and character, and their mutual zeal for liberty and representative government. Speaking of himself, he added: " Amidst the din of arms, and while on the German soil, I marched, together with the allies of Sweden, to combat the most horrible tyranny that ever oppressed Europe, I looked for no other reward to my labours than the present moment, and the peaceful palm which I this day receive from a free people is far dearer to my heart than all the laurels of victory." The proclamation of his Swedish and Norwegian majesty repeated the assurances of the crown prince, and emphatically declared that the formation

of rights ever reposed on the sacred discharge of duties, a memorable confession, an awful lesson to those sovereigns whose violation of their people's rights, and whose systematic contempt of every moral and political obligation have, from one generation to another, extended the miseries of war, and the evils of popular commotion. Even in the most despotic states, where slavery alone apparently prevails, "the poor worm will turn when trod on ;" and it yet remains for futurity to shew whether the selfish impolicy, or indifference to the feelings of their subjects, displayed in the conduct of the continental sovereigns, does not contain within itself the seeds of discord, revolution, and personal punishment to them and their posterity.

It has already been remarked, that before the congress at Vienna, it was determined by the allies that the territories of the stadtholder should be extended by the annexation of those parts of the Netherlands which, previous to the revolution, had belonged to Austria. This increase of territory was undoubtedly effected by the interference of the prince regent of England, who had intended that the prince of Orange should become the husband of the princess Charlotte of Wales, and was anxious to render the dominions of his son-in-law secure from the possibility of French incursion. It may be doubted, however, whether the addition of the Netherlands to Holland did not rather impede than promote this important object. France and Holland are now in immediate contact; the population of the Netherlands is by no means proportionate to the extent of territory; the jealousies of the French and Dutch, so frequently prevented by the intervention of the Austrian provinces, will be renewed; and as no neutral towns will remain to prevent the immediate conflict of the adjacent nations, France, with her mighty and disproportionate means will be able to invade and over-run the Netherlands whenever she is tempted so to do, or will subject the king of Holland to the necessity of maintaining a large and expensive standing army. At the present moment he may possibly rely on the protection of the allies, and the peculiar friendship of Great Britain; but the views of the continental states are at least uncertain: the at

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tachment of England may cease with the temporary causes by which it was occasioned; the relation of Holland to foreign courts may be much affected by the alliance of William to a Princess of Russia, and the ancient dependencies of France now possessed by his family-a family of very moderate talents, will always be the object of envy and revengeful feeling to that vain and ambitious people. It is obvious also, that the ports and garrison towns on the coast of Flanders night at once become the ground of jealousy between Britain and Holland, and enable the latter power to become a formidable or principal auxiliary in any plan for the subversion of our maritime rights, or the limitation of our commerce. That the present sovereign of the Netherlands entertains any wishes or designs of this suspicious description cannot be supposed; but the history of the last 12 years fully informs the intelligent enquirer how little dependance can be placed on the friendship of rival nations, however connected by the ties of obligation on one side, or gratitude on the other Appearances are certainly in favour of the sovereign of Holland, whose sentiments on the duties of the station to which he had been called were highly honourable to his moderation and his good sense. In his address to the people of the united Netherlands, the prince begins by stating that he had considered it as one of the first and most sacred of his duties, to summon together men of consideration, and to charge them with the weighty task of establishing a fundamental code, built upon the manners and habits of the people for whom it was intended, and corresponding to the wants of the time. This had been done, but though the prince approved of the result of their labours, his heart was not yet satisfied. As it respected the concerns of the whole Netherlands it was proper that the whole Dutch people should be recognised in this important work. He therefore assured them, that in it their dearest interests were sufficiently attended to; that religion, as the fountain of all good, was honoured and maintained: but at the same time religious freedom was disturbed by nothing of temporal concerns, but secured in the most ample manner; the education of youth was to be attended to

by the government, free from every regulation which could oppress the genius and subdue the spirit: personal freedom was to be no longer a name; justice was to be administered impartially, guided by fixed prin ciples, and securing to every man his rights and his property: commerce, agriculture and manufactures were to be no longer obstructed: no restraint was to be imposed on the domestic economy of any class;-the finances and the arming of the people,—the main pillars of the body politic, were to be placed in that central point, upon which the greatest and most invaluable privilege of every free people, their independence, may be firmly fixed.

In order to ascertain whether a constitution founded on these principles met the wishes and expectations of the inhabitants of the Netherlands, the prince appointed a special commission, who were to choose out of a numerous list given in, six hundred persons, in due proportion to the population of each of the departments: these were to assemble, and come to a determination on the proposed constitution. But as it was desirable that these members should be possessed of the general confidence, a list of the persons chosen for each department was to be made public, in order to afford an opportunity to all the inhabitants, being house-keepers, to disapprove of any they might deem unqualified. No inhabitant was to be deprived of this right, except domestic servants, valets, bankrupts, and persons in a state of nonage, or under accusation. The persons who were approved were to be regarded as the representatives of the Dutch nation, and to them were to be submitted the details of a constitution founded on the principles already stated. This was accordingly done; and as far as theory goes, the people of the Netherlands certainly possess a much freer constitution now than they did before: but, as we have frequently remarked, the possession of a written constitution, however conformable to the soundest principles of liberty, and however strongly guaranteed and guarded, is by no means incompatible with practical slavery.

In the beginning of December, the secretary of state for the home department pre

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sented to the states-general a long report on the situation of the united Netherlands.After some general remarks he adverted to the subject of commerce, which, he observed, might well be deemed the principal source of prosperity to Holland. Among the countries subjected to the yoke of France, there was certainly none (he said) which more severely felt the pernicious effects of the prohibitive system than the Netherlands." He then enumerated the causes which still operated to retard the progress of commerce to its former eminence: the principal of these were, the want of capitalists; the great want of suitable shipping; the uncertainty with respect to the state of commerce in other countries; the heavy duties on merchandize; the delayed restoration of the greater part of their Indian possessions; and finally, a'sort of fear that Europe was not yet restored to a state of permanent tranquillity.

He next alluded to the establishment of a national bank at Amsterdam, which had been found extremely useful in vivifying mercantile credit. With regard to the West India colonies of Holland, some of them would be restored; and it might reasonably be hoped, that such as might not be restored would not be entirely lost to the mother country, as it might be hoped that a direct commerce would be permitted with them.

On the subject of manufactures he observed, that" it had been an idea entertained by some people, that commerce and manufactures in Holland were hostile to each other; and that the protection of the latter was injurious to the welfare of the former: but this idea had been proved to be erroneous; for, at the very time when Holland was the great staple of the commodities both of the north and the south, and when its commerce produced great capitals, then also its manufactures had reached their highest pitch of prosprosperity.

He next adverted to the fisheries. In the year 1814, 110 herring busses had cleared out for the herring fishery, a number almost equal to that of the most flourishing times of the republic.

In that part of his speech which related to agriculture, there is a remarkable passage, which well deserves the attention of those

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who think it no evil for a nation to be dependent on foreigners for their supply of After stating the curious fact, that agriculture had rapidly improved, notwithstanding the oppression of the French government, and the frequent and violent changes to which Holland had been exposed, a fact which may be predicated at least in an equal degree with regard to France, he adds, "What our ancestors could never have looked for in this respect, the Netherlander may now boast, that he is able to supply all his necessary wants from his own soil, and is liberated from that disgraceful dependance on other nations under which he formerly laboured."

1814. After a variety of observations on the provincial government, the state of religion, of the poor, and of the administration of justice, he next proceeded to the system of national defence. The army, he observed, might almost be regarded as a veteran army. The navy, though having had less practical experience, would soon lay a foundation for regaining its ancient renown. He concluded his speech by some general remarks on the subject of the relations in which Holland stood with foreign powers, which he said were highly satisfactory.

It has been already stated, that in the course of 1814 the congress of Vienna, though it was supposed that its labours would terminate in a short period,—the leading members of it having, uncalled for, expressed themselves in the plainest and strongest language as actuated solely by a sincere and ardent desire to establish the independence and tranquillity of Europe, without the most indirect or distant view to their own aggrandizement or interests,-yet, in fact, was not known, officially, to have come to a determination on any important point at the close of the year. At present, we shall just hint, that Britain did not act very wisely in agreeing to continue their respective subsidies till the congress had broken up, since it may be supposed that, so long as they were so liberally paid, they would not hasten to bring the affairs of the congress to a conclusion.

It ought not, however, to be inferred that Britain, the great paymaster of Europe, was not, according to some, rewarded, not only I

for her exertions and sacrifices in the cause of Europe, but also for the subsidies which she still continued to grant; for one of the known acts of the congress, and the only one (with a single exception) which transpired in the course of the year 1814, was the raising of Hanover to the rank of a kingdom. Some may, indeed, doubt whether this is likely to prove a blessing to Great Britain, and may argue that, as our ministers were always sufficiently ready to give into the predilections of the king of Great Britain for his German dominions, while they constituted only an electorate, they will be called upon for more hearty and extended co-operation now that Hanover has become a kingdom; and it might have been expected, and hoped, that the king of such a nation as Great Britain would have not thought that any dignity or rank could be added to his titles, by being able to assume the name of king of Hanover. Such, however, were the facts. On the 12th of October Count Munster, the Hanoverian minister at the congress of Vienna, delivered a note to the ministers of Austria, and of the other powers assembled there, in which he explained the reasons why the prince regent had deemed it proper to assume the title of king of Hanover, in the name and on behalf of his father. By the 6th article of the treaty of peace, at Paris, it was agreed that the states of Germany should remain independent, and join in a federal union. In consequence of this arrangement, the title of electoral prince of the holy Roman empire ceased to be expedient under existing circumstances. Several of the principal powers, in this point of view, had invited the prince to renounce the title of elector, and assume that of king. He had accordingly done so: and count Munster, in the name of his master, expressed himself in the strongest terms of confidence that the imperial court of Austria would receive his declaration with sentiments of friendship, and would recognize the new title, which circumstances had induced his royal highness to adopt for his house in Germany. Soon after the publication of this note, and Hano ver was raised to the rank of a kingdom, an assemblage of all the states, composed of de. puties from the different classes, took place,

when his royal highness the duke of Cam bridge addressed the assembly.

After complimenting the Hanoverians on their firm and loyal attachment to their sovereign, and upon the share which they had under the greatest of commanders, Wellington, in destroying the tyranny of Buonaparte, and restoring independence and tranquillity to Europe, he informed them that the prince regent, one of the race of the Guelphs, who had always been distinguished for justice and mildness, had given to the German sovereigns the first example of calling an assembly, in which the voice of the people might declare itself with freedom, to point out the best means of promoting the welfare of the country. The first step towards this important object was made by the union of the states, of all the different parts of the country, to which were now given the rights of granting money and other points of legislation. One of the principal objects of their deliberation would regard the means of repaying those who, in confidence of good faith, lent their property to supply their public wants. The prince regent, for his part, considered the good faith which the sovereigns of Hanover had never violated, so sacred, that he would contribute from the revenues of his own domains, rather than these claims should remain unfulfilled. The next object was to place Hanover in a state of security from any other attack. Britain, to which Hanover, along with the rest of Europe, had been so much indebted, had generously replaced the necessary warlike stores carried off by the enemy. He concluded by informing them that it would be their duty to consider of the arrangements in the adminis tration of justice, and to deliberate on useful institutions for the good of the country.What the regent intended would be com municated to them by his counsellors, while he would lend an attentive ear on other subjects. The list of full powers which had been presented and approved, and the necessary regulation for the order of the states of the kingdom, would be communicated to them: according to these, they were to begin by choosing a president "But, first, let us, with united devotion, implore the blessings of the Most High on the sacred work of the

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