from that period up to the prefent moment the commissioners charged with the care of the French prifoners of war in this country have repeatedly urged M, Otto, in the strongest terms, to provide them with clothing, and have forewarned him of the confequences of not attending to their representations. These confequences, with deep regret it is ftated, are now too manifeft in the mifery, the fickness, and the mortality, which prevail in all the depôts of French prifoners in this country; whilft those of the Dutch, under the fame management, and with the fame allowance in every refpect as the French, but clothed by their own Government, continue to enjoy their ufual health.

Confidering on the one hand that the comfort, the health, and even the existence of more than 20,000 French fubjects are at ftake, and on the other the peculiar claims (independent of the general feelings of humanity) their relative fituation to their country gives them to its protection, his Majefty's government can scarcely conceive that, upon a queftion which compaffion on our part has fo often almost obtruded upon the attention of the French government, and with the knowledge that Government poffeffed of his Majesty's determination, they fhould at this feafon calmly refer to an arrêté which they knew twelve months ago must be unavailing to every purpose of relief, and in this hour of urgent diftrefs, affign as the ground of their perfevering in that arrété, a reafon which, had the fubject ever appeared to them of fufficient intereft to merit a moment's attention on their part, M. Talleyrand would have known to be without any foundation; namely, "That in former wars the clothing of prisoners of war was furnished at the expense of the Government by which they were detained." Without looking further back than the last war, M. Talleyrand will find that to the humanity and protecting care of the government then exifting in France, and not to this country, were the French prifoners indebted, not only for clothing, but also for a small daily allowance (one penny) in money, for the purpose of procuring tobacco or other trifling comforts, which habit has rendered to many as neceffary as food; and this obfervation is made here, not with any view to a comparison (which may more properly be drawn by thofe who now discharge the correfponding duties of humanity and protection, and thofe who feel the effects of them), but to impress upon the prefent Government the neceffity of reviving this latter practice, as many prifoners fold their clothing when they had any, and at prefent barter their ration (from which nothing can be fpared) for tobacco. The want of this article is indeed the more feverely felt by the French prifoners, as in the course even of this war it was fupplied to them by the French agent in this country as well as clothing, until they were deprived of

the

the one and the other by the arrété of the First Conful above mentioned.

The French government must therefore understand, that owing folely to that arrêté, and notwithstanding frequent and timely reprefentations from this country, the wretchednefs of the French prisoners is now become extreme; that fickness and mortality have already made an alarming progrefs among them, and must continue rapidly to increase with the increafing feverity of the season, and that his Majefty, firmly determined not to depart from the refolutions fignified to the French government on the 20th of December 1799, once more takes the only remaining, but hitherto ineffectual method, of folemnly calling on the French government to commiferate the fufferings of its own prifoners, and most speedily to provide for their relief. If this last appeal fhould be attended with no better fuccefs than those which have hitherto reached that Government, both on the part of his Majefty, and he has reafon to believe on the part of the unhappy prifoners themselves; if the humanity of this country muft continue to be shocked by the prefence and increase of fo much mifery, where protection is fo much due, and relief might so easily be granted, his Majefty will have the confolation to think that he has done every thing in his power as well to prevent, by timely precaution, as at prefent to check, by pointing out the immediate but only remedy, a calamity he most fincerely deplores, and which, deeply anxious as he feels on the melancholy occafion, he can only confider, as he does all the other calamities of war, with a reference to what is due to the dignity and honour of his crown, and to the interests of his people, and as far as these confiderations will admit, with a moft anxious wifh to fee them all terminated by the restoration of the bleffings of peace. Until that most defirable object can be attained, he feels it his next duty to urge every thing that can tend to alleviate exifting and unavoidable calamities; and under that impreffion his Majefty cannot omit this opportunity of renewing his moft folemn proteft, as declared in the Duke of Portland's letter of the 15th December 1799, against the whole of the arrêté above mentioned, by which the French government, in violation of the agreement then exifting between the two countries, refufed to provide any longer for the fubfiftence of its prifoners in this country, and thereby put an end to a measure which had been found by experience to be in the highest degree conducive to the health and comfort of the prifoners on each fide, eminently calculated to obviate all mifreprefentation, complaints, and recriminations, and thereby to prevent any increafe of animofity between two nations whofe minds are fufficiently inflamed against each other. It remains to be added, that his Majefty's government will only wait the answer to this representation, to render public on

this, as it has done on a former occafion, during the prefent war, the whole of its proceedings upon a fubject in which his Majesty feels it important that the true ftate of this cafe, as affecting the character and the humanity of the refpective governments, fhould be properly understood by his own fubjects, his enemies, and the reft of the world. I am, &c. (Signed)

Sir,

No. 40.

HENRY DUNDAS.

Tranfport Office, 6th December 1800. WE have the honour to enclose to you the copy of an official communication which we have this day received from the Lords Commiffioners of the Admiralty; and as the fubject to which it relates is of the most preffing importance to the caufe of juftice and humanity, we lose not a moment's time in obeying their Lordships' inftructions, by communicating this paper to you, for the purpose of the most early tranfmiffion to your Government.

We are, Sir,

Gentlemen,

Admiralty Office, 24th December 1800. THE Lords Commiffioners of his Majefty's Treasury having tranfmitted to my Lords Commiffioners of the Admiralty, a letter addreffed to their Secretary from the Mayor of Bristol, enclofing one from Meffrs. Batchelor and Andrews, two refpectable merchants of that city, defcribing the wretched fituation of the French prifoners who are now confined at Stapleton, I tranfmit to you herewith copies of the letters above mentioned; and I have their Lordships' commands to fignify their direction to you to fend one of the members of your Board to meet one of the Commiffioners of the Tranfport Board, who has also been directed to repair to Stapleton, and, in conjunction with him, to make a very minute inquiry into the circumstances therein stated, and to take fuch meafures as may be neceffary lininediately for alleviating the diftreffes of the prifoners whofe fituations may require it; reporting to me, for their Lordships' information, a full and particular account of their proceedings; and fuggefting whether any, and what meafures fhould be taken for the further relief of the faid prifoners. I am, &c. Commiffioners for fick and wounded.

EVAN NEPEAN,

N. B. A letter to the fame effect was written to the Tranf

port

port Board, to fend one of the Commiffioners of that Board to Stapleton.

Sir,

No. 42.

Briftol, 22d December 1800. THE enclofed letter was addreffed to me as chief magistrate of this city, with a request to fend it to the Treafury; and, from its contents, I have thought it my duty to comply titerewith.

Since the receipt of the letter, I have feen feveral of the mili tary officers who attend the guard there, and they all agree in the account of the prifoners now being in a miserable fituation, and dying repeatedly.

Mr. Batchelor, the firft fubfcriber, has been near five years deputy governor of St. Peter's hofpital; in which fituation he overfees and takes care of all the poor of this city, and, from the nature of his office, is not likely to be too fufceptible of the distress of others; Mr. Andrews, I believe, is a poor guardian, and a refpectable cabinet-maker in this city.

The prifon is out of my jurifdiction. There are living in the neighbourhood of it many very worthy and able magiftrates of the county of Gloucefter, very fit men to inquire into these alleged grievances, whenever Government think it needful. The character of our country seems to be implicated in the charge, and I doubt not will, on this, as on all occafions, be humanely fupported. I am, &c. (Signed)

WILLIAM GIBBONS, Mayor.

George Rofe, Efquire, &c. &c. &c.

No. 43.

Sir,

Bristol, 20th December 1800. LONG fince convinced of the goodness of your heart, and the interest which you take in alleviating the diftreffes of your fellow-creatures, we do not hesitate in calling your attention to the fituation of those wretched men whom the chance of war has put into our power, and who are at prefent confined in the prifon at Stapleton. In doing this, we have a firm confidence, from the benevolence and generofity of the British difpofition, that their fufferings will obtain that relief which the urgency of them inftantly demands, and which, if unattended to, would difgrace our national character.

On Tuesday morning laft we vifited the French prison, and, as it is not our intention to aggravate, we shall state only those facts which we then witneffed, and which can be confirmed by the teftimony of every military gentleman who has guarded the prifoners. On our entrance, we were much truck with the pale and emaciated appearance of almoft every one we met. They were,

in general, nearly naked, many of them without fhoes, or stockings, walking in the court-yard, which was fome inches deep in. mud, unpaved, and covered with loofe ftones like the public roads in their worst ftate. We then directed our attention to their provifions, which, we are concerned to ftate, were wretched indeed. The bread fufty and disagreeable, leaving a hot pungent taste in the mouth. The meat, which was beef, of the very worst quality, fuch as appeared to us not to be wholefome. The quantity allowed to each perfon was one pound of this infamous bread, and half a pound of this carrion beef, weighed with its bone before dreffing, for their fubfiftence for twenty-four hours. No vegetables are allowed, except to the fick in the hofpital, who have an additional covering of a cloak or coat. We fear there is good reafon for believing that the price given to the butcher and baker is quite fufficient for procuring provifions of a far better kind. On returning to the outer court, we were fhocked to fee two poor creatures on the ground near the door leading to the hospital court, the one lying at length covered with a blanket apparently dying, the other with a horse-cloth or rug, close to his expiring fellow-prifoner, as if to catch a little warmth from his companion in mifery. They appeared both to be dying from famine. The majority of thefe poor wretches feem to have loft the appearance of human beings, to fuch skeletons are they reduced. The numbers that die are great, generally fix or eight in a day. From the best information we could collect, upwards of two hundred and fifty have died within the laft fix weeks; and it is much to be feared, that, without fome interference on the part of Government, or on that of benevolent and opulent individuals, in behalf of these deferted, naked, and ftarving fufferers, the country will be saved the expense of transporting them to their native fhore. We fhall be happy to answer any interrogatories you may wish to put in explanation, or to render any affistance in our power to alleviate the fufferings of thefe unfortunate men. We have the honour of remaining, &c.

(Signed)

To the Mayor of Bristol.

THOMAS BATCHELOR.
THOMAS ANDREWS.

No. 44.

Sir,

Admiralty Office, 31st December 1800. DOCTOR Johnfton, one of the Commiffioners for taking care of the fick and wounded Seamen, and Mr. Serle, one of the Commiffioners for the Transport Service, now on a vifitation of the prifons, have reprefented to us, that the want of clothing has brought on the prifoners the reigning complaints at this feafon of the year, and which may be expected to increase,

unlefs