Dear Countrymen,

THE unjust and deftructive war in which we have been involved by the British miniftry cannot but attract our whole attention. It is the first object of our folicitude, that by our courage and prudence in the conduct of it, we may procure an honourable peace, firmly establish our freedom, and maintain the independence of the ftate, and the glory of our ancestors. Our navy, under di ine providence, is the natural and only means to fet bounds to the immeafurable infolence of the British miniftry, and to defend our country against their treacherous conduct and cruel treatment. To this object the endeavours of the beft patriots have been uniformly directed fince the time when our heavy chains were broken Ly the aflifiance of our French Liethren, fince the day when the Stadtholder left the Batavian thores, the day when we began to breathe a freer air, and were at liberty to exert ourielves for the improvement of the fources of our profperity, our trade, our fifcries, our navigation, our colonies, and our manufactures. By the navy, fellow

citizens, did our ancestors become great. The Batavian flag was known, feared, and honoured in each of the four quarters of the world. Under our late government it was infulted, and became the ridicule of nations. It is therefore our first duty to restore our marine. The zeal of the committee of marine has done much, where nothing fcarcely had before been done. Its exertions were inceffant. Lut in the prefent fate of our navy, all hands feem to have loft the habits, and all hearts the inclination neceflary for the fervice. The Batavian youth are no longer accuftomed to the labours requifite on board the armed fleets of their country. Is our nation then lefs brave, lefs indignant against its enemies; or do we lefs love our native land than in the time of a Ruyter or a Tromp?

No, fellow citizens, no; far from us be fuch a thought! We rely with confidence on your patriotism, and cannot doubt but you will act with vigour in the prefent critical fituation of our country; for why fhould we conceal that fuch is our fituation, when to make it known muft procure the remedy? Our hips, which are very numerous, ' and more than fufficient to fecure us a fuperiority in our feas, and to cut off from the enemy all fupplies of provifions and ftores from the north, and thus compel them to peace-our fhips are in want of men. The recruitings proceed with langour, and the meatures hitherto taken have had little effect. Nor thould this excite our wonder: they were of a partial nature, and not in confequence of the expreflion of the will of the affeinbly, reprefentative of the whole Batavian republic. This will is now made

known:

when the fcourge of war extended as elfewhere, cur neutral territory.

to other empires, the states general of the united provinces were careful to obferve a ftrict neutrality; they did not fuffer Dutch veffels to tranfport any other commodities to America, thofe excepted which were declared free by the exprefs terms of treaties. The moft efficacious precautions were carefully taken to prevent war-like ftores from being conveyed to the American colonies, as well as to prevent any fraudulent commerce from being carried on withthem; precautions which did not a little fhackle and injure our own commerce to the West Indies. It availed the republic, however, but little, to obferve the conditions of treaties with exactness, as to what was by them prohibited; the English minifters confulting merely their temporary convenience, went fo far as to difpute what thefe very treaties allowed; they would not fuffer the republic to enjoy thofe very advantages of treaty which England herself had enjoyed in a fimilar cafe; but violating the rights of nations, they condemned the cargoes as prizes to the crown, and employed the materials in the royal arfenals; other veffels were forfeited by the arbitrary fentences of partial courts of justice. The privateers and armed hips of England, feeing that their piracies were legalized, multiplied theiz depredations, and the merchant veifels of Holland daily became the victims of their brutalities. Finally, the atrocities of the British minifters were carried to fuch a point, that they no longer refpected the flag of the ftates, but carried a convoy of Dutch veffels into the ports of England, declaring fhips richly laden to be lawful prizes, and violating, as well in Europe

The only mode which could be adopted to put a stop to these unprecedented injuries, without, however, breaking with the kingdom of Great Britain, was employed by their high mightinelles.This mode confifted in joining with all poffible speed the alliance of the three northern powers, concerted by the emprefs of Ruffia, and deftined to protect, by the force of arms, the rights of the neutral nations, each of them more or less violated by England.

Their high mightineffes, we say, would have acceded to this treaty, had not an obftacle been thrown in the way by the perfidious ma chinations of the English cabinet. This was the fignal which led England to break every tie, to dif tribute letters of marque for making reprifals on the inhabitants of the republic and their poffeffions, and to declare open war againft the United States. A miniftry to which all means were alike, could not want pretexts for that purpose. It was not at the fame time difficult for their high mightineffes to demonftrate the frivolity of all these pretended grievances; but what purpofe could this anfwer with a rapacious, obftinate, and unjuft miniftry, which was defirous to revenge on a peaceable ally the lofs of the British colonies, and to appeafe, for a time at leaft, by the booty obtained by an unforeseen attack, the murmurs of the English nation?

It was foon after learned, that the fquadrons and armed veffels of England captured, by virtue of orders already furnished, the Dutch veffels they fell in with beyond feas, without the fmalleft fufpicion on our fide, and against the faith of

treaties.

treaties. We learned the cruel manner in which the island of St. Euftatia was devastated, by feizing on the poffeffions of the merchants, which, when collected, formed treasures; while richly laden veffels returning from the ocean, were furprifed unawares in the channel by fmall veffels, which readily made them their prey. By fuch vile means, unworthy of a generous nation, did the British minifters difhonour the flag of their king; for can it be confidered in any other point of view, than that of acting, under the royal flag, the part of pirates? The Batavian republic was at length, after so many loffes, forced to provide for her defence, to maintain her rights and independence by the dint of arms, and to protect her commerce and her poffeffions. Ah! if he could then have combated under the banners of liberty, how would the English miniftry have repented of its rathness and perfidy! But the English cabinet knew all its influence in this country. It was aware that it could fucceed in thackling within the republic the preparations of war: it was certain of finding in Holland partizans who would contrive to put into his poffeffion our fhips of war, and who would find the means to prevent the difplay of all our ftrength. The event foon proved that the English minifters were not miftaken. They mocked our fecble efforts, which, even before they they were carried into effect, were paralized in their outfet by the adherents they had in this country. Thefe adherents fupplied them with intelligence of all that was concerting here. Supported by the Stadtholderian influence, they even contrived to render

war.

nugatory the orders given by their high mightineffes for the junction of the Batavian fquadron with the French fleet. It was eafy for the English miniftry, after fuch treafons, to obtain fucceffes in that And this is what they call glory! But when a particular occafion prefented itfelf-when a fleet belonging to the ftates accidentally met with an opportunity to difplay its courage and its valour, the Batavian mariners, although novices in fighting, proved that they had not degenerated from the bravery of their ancestors. They drove the English fleet, covered with confufion and fhame, into its own port, without having loft one of the merchant veffels they had under convoy.

A war carried on in fuch a way neceffarily terminated in a treaty of peace burthenfome to the States. Inftead of being indemnified for the incalculable loffes they had fuftained in their commerce, they confidered themfelves as fortunate to be enabled by the speedy afsiftance of the French forces, which checked the English in the two Indies, to fave a part of their poffeflions; while they found themfelves obliged to yield to the enemy the important factory of Negapatnam on the coaft of Coromandel; and to allow to British veffels the free navigation of the coafts of the Molucca iflands, notwithstanding it might have been forefeen that the navigation of the English in thofe feas would tend to nothing less than the complete deftruction of our trade in the East Indies.

We fhall not enter into details concerning what paffed in the fequel, when the Batavian nation, feeing how much its interests were conftantly

conftantly every where facrificed is thus that the Batavian nation

to thofe of its ancient rival, even by the perfons appointed to defend its rights, meditated a fundamental regeneration in the form of the government. We shall not retrace how England, knowing that the limitation of the fcandalous ufurpation of power and influence, on the part of the Stadtholder, would alfo diminith its influence in this republic. How, we fay, the British miniftry, far from interceding for the Batavian nation, or coming to its fuccour, when legions of foreign troops feized on thefe Countries, committing the moft atrocious diforders, pillages, and violences, confidered, on the contrary, this devaftation and this oppreffion with a malignant fatisfaction; and concurred, when the mifchief was completed, in guaranteeing, in a folemn manner, the fyftem off a tyranny which refulted from it.

When the French nation, wearied with the infupportable tyranny of kings, fhook off its yoke, and formed itself into an independent republic, the British minifters thought that they could not have a better opportunity to difmember a part of that fine empire. They accordingly united in the treaty concluded at Pilnitz, on the 27th of Auguft, 1791, by the princes of Germany. The French republic, well knowing that that of the United Provinces of the Netherlands would be constrained by England to take a part in this plot againft its liberty, declared war against the British minifters, as well as against their fubje&t William V. ftadtholder of the Seven United Provinces, and his partizans.-It

was once more drawn against its will into this bloody war by its dependence on those fame ministers its treafures were lavished, and its arfenals nearly emptied, to aid the extravagant plans of Pitt and his cabal. Auxiliary English troops were fent to this republic, and when a defeat, fuftained near the Meufe by a part of the French army, had procured a momentary advantage, the army of the States was forced to pafs the limits of our frontiers, and thofe of France, and to wage an offenfive war on the French territory. Soon, however, the victorious French repulfed their enemies on all fides, and from day to day the armies of England and the States retrograded towards our frontiers. The republic found itfelf on the brink of its ruin, fince appearances pointed out that the theatre of war would be removed to the very heart of its provinces, and all the country inundated. Never were the States in fo critical a pofition fince the war with Spain; but this danger brought about their deliverance; Providences defeated the perfidious plans of its enemies, who were defirous rather that the republic thould be deftroyed than that it thould be free. When the froft permitted the croffing of the rivers, the valorous French troops drove before them the Englith bands with fo much speed, that the latter had not time to effect their infernal defign; they fled, but their road was traced by fire and pillage. It was nothing but their speedy and precipitate retreat that preferved the republic from a total devaftation. We foon witneffed the ex traordinary