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his Court that our army, upon the evacuation of France, should retire upon the Netherlands, march through, and embark from a port in this kingdom, I felt some surprise in learning from his Grace, by a private letter received from him on Sunday, that he was utterly unacquainted with the existence of any desire on the part of the French Government of the nature announced.

I have, consequently, since the receipt of the Duke's letter, made it my business, without giving the matter more importance than it deserved, to investigate the grounds and motives under which M. de la Tour du Pin was induced to make this statement to me, and now find that, when he addressed me, he was not, in fact, aware, nor has he since had any reason to suppose, that such wish existed on the part of his Court. His object seems to have been, however awkwardly and ineffectually attempted, to gain information whether certain rumours afloat here of the design of the Allies after the evacuation to form a cordon of troops on the French frontier were or were not founded.

From a recent conversation with M. de Nagell, I learn that, immediately before La Tour du Pin spoke to me upon the above subject, he had directly put the question to him as to his knowledge of the truth or fallacy of these rumours, and receiving no answer, (as, in truth, none could be given) thought perhaps that, by an indirect approach, he could possibly gain from me the information he sought, and, therefore, as a commencement, stated that as the wish of his Government which has already been communicated to you. No answer having been given to this statement of the French Minister, except that I was unaware of the fact he alleged, there the conversation dropped; and I now conceive it to have been commenced with no other view than that of pumping for information.

It seems, however, somewhat extraordinary that any Minister, though in private conversation, should have presumed to allege any matter as the wish of his Court, without some inti

mation thereof; and perhaps you may therefore think it still worthy to be kept in mind, for the purpose of considering how any proposal of this sort should be met, in the event of its being in future brought forward.

I have no intelligence to send you hence by this conveyance, except that our expectation still continues of the event of the Princess's delivery.

Yours, my dear lord, &c.,

CLANCARTY.

Lord Clancarty to Lord Castlereagh.

The Hague, July 24, 1818.

My Lord-The King has again had occasion to act upon the opinion of all his Ministers here, that he possesses the full power under the Constitution to send away obnoxious aliens, and has recently issued orders, directing that two persons, named Le Jeune and Armand d'Olfus, Frenchmen, editors of a Jacobin paper at Ghent, should leave the kingdom. It is said that Armand had gone hence prior to the issue of his Majesty's order, and, as the Prussian Chargé d'Affaires (the Envoy Prince Hatzfeldt being absent) asserts, had proceeded to England, under what name and with what passports does not appear.

The same gentleman also states-though it seems extraordinary, if such is the fact, that it should not have been earlier discovered that the name Armand d'Olfus is merely a nom de guerre, and that the person who, during his residence here, was designated by it, is in effect Bory St. Vincent, who, you will recollect, is one of the individuals named in the second list or article of the King of France's ordonnance of 24 July, 1815. No accounts have yet reached the Hague of the delivery of the Princess of Orange.

Ever, my dear lord, &c.,

CLANCARTY.

VOL. XI.

HH

Mr. Bagot to Lord Castlereagh.

Washington, July 27, 1818. My dear Lord-I do not know how I can sufficiently thank you for your great kindness and consideration in sending me out the leave of absence which I received by the last mail. Perhaps the very circumstance of knowing that I am in possession of it has already made me feel that I need not use it; and certainly, in the actual state of the public business, and after the gratifying expressions contained in your lordship's despatch, nothing but an absolute necessity will induce me to do so.

I hope, and indeed I fully believe, that there is nothing at present in the state of my health which is likely to create such a necessity. It has certainly been somewhat shaken, and I have suffered by the heats of this climate, but less so, I think, during the present summer (though it is much the hottest which we have had) than in those of 1816 and 1817. Before another arrives, I may perhaps hope that most of the principal points now in discussion between the two Governments will have taken some shape. In that case, I certainly should be glad to avail myself of the leave with which I am furnished, and to return to England after the next session (which is the last of the present Congress) is concluded, and before the heats of another year are set in. If, however, at that time, anything should have arisen which may lead me to think that your lordship might still wish that I should be at my post, you may be assured that I shall not quit it: but, if there should not, I will then, with your lordship's permission, gladly avail myself of his Royal Highness's leave, and seek, in the course of the spring, the benefit of a temperate climate and English air.

I have the honour to be, &c.,

CHARLES BAGOT.

Lord Clancarty to Lord Castlereagh.

The Hague, August 4, 1818.

My dear Lord-By the accounts received here from Baden, it is stated that the Grand Duke, though not, perhaps, about immediately to die, is nevertheless in such a state of decay as to render his recovery most improbable. How the death of this Prince would operate upon the pending negociations for cessions to Bavaria, you are a far better judge than I can be. As he has no son, the succession will, under present circumstances, go to an unmarried uncle, the Margrave Louis, fiftyfive years old, who may therefore marry and have children. Should he die without male issue, the duchy falls upon the Hochberg branch; and the event upon which the Austrian pretension to the reversion depends would occur; and to this branch, as I noticed to you from Frankfort, it was universally believed that the Emperor of Russia had sent assurances of his protection: though, whether these extended to more than the general succession, or referred both to this and to the reversions, I am unable to say.

Sincerely trusting that your reunion at Aix may have the effect of eliciting such instructions from all parts to Frankfort as may at length accomplish the final arrangement of the negociation so long pending there, I have thought it might be acceptable to you to have such circumstances stated and recalled to your recollection, as may occur to me on this subject.

I understand from Brussels that Lord Kinnaird has left that place for Vienna. I should doubt his being suffered to remain there, and still more his being allowed to proceed to and pass the winter in Italy, as he projected.

The Minister of Justice acquaints me that all the original papers and proceedings in the possession of this Government, upon the affair of Marinet and Cantillon, have been written. for from Paris; that, previous to their being sent, he has gone through the whole of them, and is of opinion that there is ample evidence to convict, if the disposition to prosecute is

sincere. Upon this M. de la Tour du Pin acquaints me that he has been informed by the Duc de Richelieu that they only waited for the papers hence expected to commence proceedings.

One of the Duke of Wellington's late letters to me having thrown some doubt on the intention of the French Government to proceed, in consequence of their want of sufficient evidence, I have thought it expedient to mention the above circumstances; and, as the Duke is now in England, to spare him the trouble of reading, and myself perhaps that of writing, an additional letter for the purpose, I shall beg of you to acquaint him with them.

The Princess's delivery having now taken place, it is said the christening will be fixed for the 24th, the King's birthday; if so, I shall probably be able to meet and receive you at Bruxelles, but we shall know how this fact stands with greater certainty.

Yours, my dear lord, &c.,

CLANCARTY.

Lord Clancarty to Lord Castlereagh.

The Hague, August 11, 1818.

My dear Lord-The King was at Haarlem from Thursday morning to Saturday evening last; and this has somewhat retarded the progress of the instruction to General Fagel on the Bouillon affair.

My despatches will have acquainted you in what state this business now stands, and that it will probably be referred directly by this to the several Courts, which, I should hope, will agree in having it placed in a fair train of final and equitable arrangement.

It seems his Majesty is not well pleased with the Prince of Orange for not having made any disposition to visit him here, since the birth of the young Prince; nevertheless, when he set out for Haarlem, on Thursday, he had some intention of proceeding himself to Zoosdyke, to see his Royal Highness and the Princess, and his grandchild. He, however, thought

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