Order of Council, at the Court at St. WHEREAS his majesty has received, intelligence that fome ships belonging to his majesty's subjects have been, and are detained in the port of Genoa; his majesty, with the advice of his privy council, is thereupon pleased to order, and it is hereby ordered, that no ships or veffels belonging to any of his majesty's fubjects be permitted to enter or clear out for Genoa, or any port within the territory of the republic of Genoa, until further orders: and his majesty is further pleased to order, that a general embargo, or stop, be made of all Genoese ships or vessels whatsoever, now within, or which hereafter shall come into any of the ports, harbours, or roads, within the kingdom of Great Britain, together with all persons and effects on board the said ships and vessels; but that the utmost care be taken for the preservation of all and every part of the cargoes on board any of the faid ships, so that no damage or embezzlement whatever be fuflained. And the right honourable the lords commiffioners of his majef ty's treafury, the lords commiffioners of the admiralty, and the lord warden of the Cinque Ports, are to give the necessary directions herein as to them may respectively appertain. (Signed) W. FAWKENER. Orders of Council at the Court at St. un WHEREAS his majesty has received information, that divers unjust seizures have been made in the ports of Spain of the ships and goods of his majesty's subjects, and that acts of hoftility and provoked aggreffion have been committed by the ships of his Catholic majesty, on ships and vefsels of his majesty and of his fubjects: his majesty, therefore, being determined to take such measures as are neceffary for vindicating the honour of the crown, and for procuring reparation and fatisfaction for his injured subjects, is pleased, by and with the advice of his privy council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, that general reprisals be granted against the ships, goods, and subjects of the king of Spain, fo that as well as his majefty's fleets and ships, as also all other ships and vessels that shall be commiffioned by letters of marque or general reprisals, or otherwise, by his majesty's commiffioners for executing the office of lord high admiral of Great Britain, shall and may lawfully seize all ships, vessels, and goods, belonging to the king of Spain, or his subjects, or others inhabiting within the territories of the king of Spain, and bring the same to judgment in any of the courts of admiralty within his majesty's dominions; and to that end, his majesty's advocate-general, with the advocate of the admiralty, are forthwith to prepare the draught of a commiffion, and present the same to his majesty at this board, authorifing the commiffioners for executing the office of lord high admiral, or any perfon or perfons by them empowered and appointed, to iffue forth and grant letters may be proper to be sent to the courts of admiralty in his majesty's foreign governments and plantations, for their guidance herein; as also another draught of instructions for fuch ships as shall be commiffioned for the purposes afore-mentioned. Order of Council relative to Trade 10 and from the Cape of Good Hope. At the Court at St. James's, the 28th of December, 1796, present the King's Moft Excellent Majefty in Council. of marque and reprisals, to any of lay before his majesty, at this board, his majesty's subjects or othes a draught of fuch instructions as whom the commiffioners shall deem fitly qualified in that behalf, for the apprehending, seizing, and taking the ships, veffels and goods belonging to Spain, and the vasfals and fubjects of the king of Spain, or any inhabiting within his countries, territories or dominions; and that such powers or clauses be inferted in the faid commiffion as have been usual, and are according to former precedents. And his majesty's faid advocate-general, with the advocate of the admiralty, are also forthwith to prepare a draught of a commiffion, and prefent the fame to his majesty at this board, authorizing the faid commiffioners for executing the office of lord high admiral, to will and require the high court of Admiralty of Great Britain, and the lieutenant and judge of the faid court, his furrogate or furrogates, as also the several courts of admiralty within his majesty's dominions, to take cognizance of, and judicially proceed upon, all and all manner of captures, seizures, prizes, and reprisals of all ships and goods that are or shall be taken, and to hear and determine the fame; and, according to the course of admiralty and the laws of nations, to adjudge and condemn all fuch ships, vessels, and goods as shall belong to Spain, or the vassals and fubjects of the king of Spain, or to any others inhabiting within any of his countries, territories, and dominions; and that fuch powers and claufes be inferted in the faid commiffion as have been ufual, and are according to former precedents; and they are likewise to prepare and WHEREAS by an act passed in the present seffion of parliament, intituled, "An act to authorise his majefty, for a limited time, to make regulations respecting the trade and commerce to and from the Cape of Good Hope," it is enacted, that it shall and may be lawful for his majesty, by and with the advice of his privy council, by any order or orders to be iffued from time to time, to give fuch directions, and make such regulations, touching the trade and commerce to and from the fettlement of the Cape of Good Hope, and the territories and dependencies thereof, as to his majesty in council shall appear most expedient and falutary, any of the acts of parliament therein referred to, or any usage, law or custom, to the contrary notwithstanding. And whereas during the time the faid fettlement, with the territories and dependencies thereof, were in the poffeffion and under the government of the ftates general of the United Provinces, or of the honourable the general East India company in the Netherlands, it was usual to admit the ships and veffels belonging to the fubjects of countries in amity with faidUnited Provinces into the ports of the faid fettlement, and of the territories and dependencies thereof, for repair and refreshment, and with that view, to permit the faid ships and veifels to carry on trade with the inhabitants of the faid fettlement, and of the territories and dependencies thereof: his majesty is hereby pleased to order, by and with the advice of his privy council, in pursuance of the powers vefted in his majesty by the above recited act, and it is hereby ordered, that it shall be lawful, until further order, for all ships and vessels belonging to the fubjects of any country or state in amity with his majesty, to enter into the ports of the faid fettlement of the Cape of Good Hope, and of the territories and dependencies thereof, and to carry on trade and traffic with the inhabitants of the faid fettlement, and of the territories and dependencies thereof, and to import and export to and from the ports of the fettlement and of the territories and dependencies thereof, any goods, wares, or merchandife whatsoever, fubject to the following exceptions, and fubject alfo to fuch duties, rules, regulations, and reftrictions, as thall be established by his majefty, or by the governor of the faid fettlement, and of the territories and dependencies thereof, by virtue of authority derived from his majetty; and in the mean time fubject to fuch duties, rules, regulations and restrictions, as fubfifted and were in force before and at the time of the conquest of the faid settlement by the arms of his majesty, with fuch alterations as have been fince made under the authority of the commander in chief of his majesty's forces at the faid fettlement: but it is his majetty's pleasure, that no goods, wares, or merchandise, which thall be imported into the said fettlement, or the territories or dependencies thereof, from any part of his majesty's dominions shall be fubject to any duty. And it is his majesty's pleasure, that no goods, wares, and merchandife, the growth, produce, or manufacture of the countries to the eastward of the Cape of Good llope, be imported into the faid fettlement, or the territories or dependencies thereof, except by the United Company of merchants trading to the East Indies; and that no fuch goods, wares, or merchandise, be permitted to be exported from thence, except for fea flores only, or by the United Company of merchants of England trading to the East Indies, or by their licence. But it is his majesty's pleasure, that nothing in this order contained shall extend to prevent ships or veffels employed in the fouthern whale fithery from carrying on the fame, in fuch and the fame manner as might have been done if this order had not been made. And it is also his majesty's pleafure, that no arms or artillery, gunpowder or ammunition, of any fort, be allowed to be imported into the faid fettlement, or the territories or dependencies thereof, except by the faid United Company of merchants of England trading to the East Indies, or by licence from his majesty. And THE open aggreffions of Spain, the violences committed against the persons and property of his majefty's subjects, and the unprovoked declaration of war on the part of that power, have at length compelled his majesty to take the neceffary meafures for repelling force by force, and for vindicating the dignity of his crown, and the rights and interests of his people. At the moment of adopting these measures, his majesty feels it due to himself to remove every doubt which can be thrown on the indifputable justice of his cause, and it will be easily proved, from the very reasons adduced by the court of Madrid in fupport of its declaration of war, that all the calamities which may ensue are folely to be attributed to the conduct of his enemies. A fimple reference to that declaration, and a bare enumeration of the vague and frivolous charges which it contains, would indeed be sufficient to fatisfy all reasonable and impartial minds, that no part of the conduct of Great Britain towards Spain has afforded the smallest ground of complaint, much less any motive sufficiently powerful for adding to the present calamities of Europe all the evils of a new and complicated war. The only difficulty of a detailed reply arifes not from the strength and importance of the complaints alledged, but from their weakness and futility-from the confused and unintelligible shape in which they are brought forward, and froin the impoffibility of referring them to any established principle or rule of justice, to any usual form or topic of complaint between independent governments, or to any of those motives which can alone create the painful duty of an appeal to arms. The acts of hoftility attributed to his majetty in the manifesto of Spain, confift either of matters perfectly innocent and indifferent in their nature, or of imputed opinions and intentions of which no proof is adduced, nor any effect alledged; or, lastly, of complaints of the misconduct of unauthorised individuals; respecting all which his majesty has never failed to institute inquiry, where inquiry was necessary, and to cause juftice to be done in the regular course of judicial proceedings. The very nature of fuch complaints affords a sufficient answer to the conclufion attempted to be drawn from them by Spain; and his majesty might have been well juftified in declining all further difcuffion on points, on on which it was manifested that no just motive of hoftility could be grounded. Such, however, was not his conduct. Anxious to avert from both kingdoms the calamities of war, he has repeatedly and vainly proposed to adjust, by friendly difcuffion, all points of difference which could fubfift between the governments of two nations whose real intereft were the fame, and who had an equal concern in oppofing the progress of a common enemy. This discussion having always been studioufly avoided by the court of Madrid, it now remains only for his majesty to vindicate in this public manner his own cause, and to prove the futility of those pretences by which that court now feeks to colour its aggreffion. The first point brought forward to fupport an accufation of ill faith is the conduct of the king's admiral at Toulon who is charged with having destroyed those ships and naval stores of the enemy which he could not carry away with him; and with having afterwards undertaken an expedition to Cor-, fica, without the knowledge or participation of the Spanish admiral. To an accufation of fuch a ⚫ nature, alledged as a ground for war between two great nations, it can hardly be expected that a ferious anfwer should be given. It is perhaps the first time that it has been imputed as a crime to one of the commanding officers of two powers acting in alliance, and making a common cause in war, that he did more than his proportion of mischief to the common enemy. And if it be really true that fuch a sentiment was entertained at Madrid, certainly no other juftification can be neceifary for not inviting the officers of that court to join in subsequent expeditions againft the fame enemy: at all events, it cannot be pretended that a coopération between two allies (however cordial and fincere) in any one particular enterprize, could afterwards reftrain either of them from undertaking separately any other, to which his own force appeared in itself to be adequate. The fecond instance of ill-faith attributed to his majesty, is the conclufion of a treaty of amity and commerce with the United States of America; a power with whom both Great Britain and Spain were at peace; with whom the king, as well ashis catholic majesty, was perfectly free to contract any fuch engagements; and with whom the court of Madrid has actually concluded a fimilar treaty, with this difference only, that the stipulations of the British treaty can give no ground of offence or injury to any other power, while the Spanish treaty contains an article (that respecting the navigation of the, Miffiffippi) which if it could have any force or effect at all, would be, on the part of Spain, a direct breach of treaty with Great Britain, and a gross violation of the important and unquestionable rights of his majesty and his people. The fame ill-faith is faid to have been manifested in the unwillingness shewn by the British government to adopt the plans propofed by Spain for haftening the conclufion of the war with France, (but what these plans were, is not stated) and alfo in omitting to comply |