Ries. France, on the contrary, could not trade with South America before the peace; and after undertaking to replace Ferdinand on his throne, with what grace could she sanction the revolt of his trans-Atlantic dominions? The French ministry had, however, done all that was in their power for the interests of French commerce. They had obtained from Spain a right to trade with Spanish America, and they offered their mediation to effect an arrangement between the contending parties. It was with this object, that agents had been sent to Colombia. The conduct of France, therefore, had been at once frank and honourable. The visit of prince Metternich to Paris had indeed been made the subject of ungrounded suspicion and chimerical alarm, but its motives were obvious, and its importance overrated. It had no connection with the freedom of the press, or the publication of the debates of the Chambers. The government never dreaded less the freedom or even the licentiousness of the press than

now.

"The ministers," he added, "were convinced that the evils arising from that source, carry along with them their own remedy, which it would be superfluous to look for in any other quarter."

The present year saw the appa rent conclusion of a long negotiation between France and St. Domingo, for the formal acknowledgment by the former of the independence of the latter. As

soon as Louis 18th was restored to his throne, he began to turn his eyes to the former colonies of France: and, in the autumn of 1814, his minister of marine despatched an agent to Hayti with

propositions, which, being rejected by the black government with indignation, were with equal adroitness disowned by the government of his most Christian Majesty. In 1816, agents were again despatched to St. Domingo with similar propositions, which met with a similar rejection. In this deputation, was a M. Esmangart, who acquired the confidence of the black republican government by the declaration of liberal principles. After a long interval, this gentleman was employed to renew the negotiation, without compromising the honour of the French government, whose proposals had already been twice rejected. He accordingly caused it to be notified to the president Boyer, by a M. Aubert, that Louis 18th had decided to confirm the independence of Hayti, claiming only an indemnity, and to be acknowledged Lord Paramount. The president of Hayti, in reply, rejected the idea of holding his power from the king of France, or placing his dominions under French protection: but he offered a reasonable indemnity, on condition that every question of sovereignty should be set at rest by a formal acknowledg ment of Haytian independence. On this the French minister of marine invited the president, by a confidential agent, to specify the terms which he was prepared to offer, as France had repeatedly made overtures which had been refused; and the consequence was, that, in May, 1823, the president despatched general Boye to Brussels, as his envoy. The general found that he had to treat with a negotiator on the part of the French government, who had no power to conclude a treaty. The conferences were accordingly ins

terrupted; the blame of the rupture was thrown on the Haytian envoy and M. Esmangart, towards the end of the year, wrote to the president, informing him of the circumstance, assuring him that Louis 18th was disposed to be moderate in his terms, and inviting him to send other agents. This was followed, in the beginning of 1824, by the arrival in St. Domingo, of an agent from France, who urged Boyer to send a mission thither. In compliance with this invitation, the president despatched, on the 1st of May, 1824, two agents of the names of Larose and Rouanez, with full powers to conclude a commercial treaty, on the basis of a recognition of Haytian independence. Those agents reached Havre on the 14th of June, but made no progress in their negotiation till the middle of July. The questions discussed were, the extent of the recognition, the amount of the indemnity, and the conditions of the commercial treaty. With respect to the last, the envoys agreed to place the commerce of France on the footing of that of the most favoured nations: with respect to the indemnity, there was some difference which might have been easily adjusted; but as the treaty was about to be concluded, a new difficulty was started with respect to the question of sovereignty. The Haytian deputies, suspecting an intention to dupe them, or to prolong interminably the negotiation, demanded a final explanation, and a meeting was appointed between them and the minister of marine on the 31st of July. The minister opened the conference by declaring, that his majesty would sanction the independence of Hayti, reserving only the "external sovereignty." The deputies expressed

their astonishment at this reservation, and declared its utter inadmissibility. The negotiation was broken off on the 3rd of August by a note from M. Esmangart, containing the following passage:

"The government, after the conference you have had with the minister of the marine, has decided, that, for want of sufficient powers vested in you to accept the conditions established in the royal ordinance, with which you have been made acquainted, the negotiation cannot proceed."

In a few days afterwards, the Haytian mission left France. Still, however, it would appear, that private communications were carried on between Boyer and the French ministry; the result of which was, that the following royal ordinance, bearing date the 17th of April in the present year, and signed by the king, M. de Villèle, the keeper of the seals, and the secretary of state for the department of marine and colonies, was secretly made with all due formality:

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Considering articles 14 and 73 of the charter, desiring to provide for what is called for by the interests of the French merchants, the misfortunes of the ancient colonies of St. Domingo, and the precarious situation of the present inhabitants of that island; We have ordained and ordain as follows:

Art. 1. The ports of the French part of St. Domingo are open to the commerce of all nations.

The duties levied in the ports, either upon vessels or merchandise, whether entering or going out, shall be equal and uniform for all flags except for the French flag, in favour of which these duties shall be reduced one-half.

2. The present inhabitants of the French part of St. Domingo shall pay into the caisse generale des dépôts et des consignations of France, in five equal instalments, from year to year, the first of which will become due on the 31st of December, 1825, the sum of 150,000,000 of francs, destined to indemnify the ancient colonists who shall claim an indemnity.

3. We grant, on these conditions, by the present ordinance to the actual inhabitants of the French part of the island of St. Domingo, the full and entire independence of their government."

This ordinance was transmitted to rear-admiral Jurieu, who commanded the French naval force in the West Indies, and was then at Martinique with a squadron consisting of the Eylau, of 80 guns, the Jean Bart, 74, the Venus, 24; the Nymph, Themis, Magicienne, Medea, Circe, and Salamandre, each of 18 guns, and five brigs.

Baron Mackau, commander of the Circe, who was intrusted with the negotiation, sailed from Martinique on the 23rd of June, with the Circe frigate, and the Ruse and Bearnaise brigs, and arrived off Port-au-Prince on the 3rd of July. As soon as he appeared in sight, two officers came on board, and a suitable residence at Port-au-Prince was assigned to him and his suite. Conferences were immediately opened between him and three commissioners, appointed by the president of the government of Hayti. These being prolonged three days, and having led to no result, the president himself communicated directly with baron Mackau. At last, on the 8th of July, after some preliminary discussions, the president wrote to the baron a letter in which he stated VOL. LXVII.

that, trusting in the good faith of the king of France, he accepted, in the name of the people of Hayti, the royal ordinance of the 17th of April, and that he would immediately take the necessary steps to have it confirmed in the senate with due solemnity.

Accordingly, on the 11th of July, the senate was convoked, to proceed to the confirmation (enterinement) of the ordinance according to the forms prescribed by the constitutional laws of the country. Baron Mackau, accompanied by rear-admirals Jurieu and Grivel, and the officers of the squadron bore, with solemn pomp, the ordinance of Charles 10th to the senate, where it was received with due ceremony, and was confirmed in their presence.

Besides the hundred and fifty millions of francs mentioned in the ordinance, Hayti was to pay upwards of thirty millions of francs for public buildings which the government contracted to purchase. In order to fulfil the pecuniary conditions of the treaty, three Haytian proceeded came immediately to France, for the purpose of negotiating a loan.*

On this occasion Boyer addressed the following proclamation to the people and to the army.

"John Peter Boyer, president of Hayti::

Haytians-A long oppression had pressed upon Hayti. Our courage and our heroic efforts snatched it, 22 years ago, from the degradation which oppressed it, to place it in the scale of independent nations. But there was wanting to our glory another triumph. The French flag, in coming to salute this land of liberty, consecrates the legitimacy of your emancipation. It was reserved for that monarch, as great as

he is religious, who governs France, to signalize his accession to the throne by an act of justice, which dignifies at once

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feel in ourselves, or to impress on our posterity, that we owe our present situation, our existence as a nation, free and independent, to the aid given us by commerce, from England, America, and Germany." That the sentiments, expressed in these words, was not confined to a single breast, subsequent events clearly showed. A A few weeks afterwards, the president with his staff, and a considerable force, suddenly set off for Cape Haytien, in consequence of intelligence, secretly conveyed, that an alarming insurrection was about to break out in that place. The decisive measures taken by Boyer, checked the spirit of revolt, for the mean time, and restored the place to tranquillity. He soon returned to Port-au-Prince, bringing back with him general Profete, and another leader of the meditated revolt, in chains, together with two of their aides-de-camp, and several other officers. General Touissant, brother in law of the late king Christophe, who was likewise implicated in the conspiracy, blew out his own brains.

At nearly the same time with the date of the king of France's ordinance, a decree was passed by the Haytian government, increasing the import duty on English manufactured goods from 7 to 12 per cent, and so depriving the English merchants of that preference which had previously been granted to them over all other nations. The motive assigned for this decree, when it was first promulgated, was the indignation of