powers were not inactive. GreatBritain and Pruffia, in particular, declared themselves determined to fupport the balance of Europe, and to force the emprefs to peace upon the bafis of a ftatus quo. Of the interference of Britain in this difpute, there will be occafion to treat more amply in another place. To the firft applications of the English minifter, the emprefs anfwered in nearly the fame terms in which the had formerly replied to the memorial of Pruffia-" That the British court would not be permitted to dictate the terms of the peace." In the courfe of the negociation, however, her demands became more moderate; and as the northern powers, and particularly Denmark, began to exert themselves for the prevention of hoftilities, the confined her views at length to the poffeffion of Oczakow, with the district extending from the Bog to the Niester, and even then providing for the free navigation of the latter river. The negociation was protracted to the 11th of Auguft, when, at length, peace was concluded between the Czarina and the Porte nearly upon these terms;-terms, which, confidering the ill fuccefs of the war, cannot be accounted very difadvantageous to the Porte, who has loft a fortress more ufeful for the purpose of annoying Ruffia, than for defending their own territories; but certainly of confiderable importance to Ruffia, which, by this ceffion, has fecured the peaceable enjoyment of the Cri mea. Peace was probably at this period the more defirable to Ruffia, from an event which, while it enlarged the scale of human happinefs and liberty, certainly was calculated to counteract, in no fmall degree, the unwarrantable ufurpations of that ambitious power. Every reader, whofe attention has at all been directed to political events, muft recollect with indignation the infamous difmemberment of Poland in the year 1773. From that period the repub lic had been reduced to a most humiliating state of fervitude, and dependence upon Ruffia. It cannot be a matter of surprise, that the first opportunity of emancipating itself from fo ignominious a yoke should be eagerly embraced, and that, while the conteft with the Porte occupied the attention of Ruffia, the advances of Pruffia fhould be favourably re ceived by a majority of the nation, and even the fhadow of independence embraced, while the views of that intriguing court appeared to be tempered with any fhare of honour or difintereftednefs. The enlightened part of the Polish patriots flattered themfelves, however, with no advantages from Pruffia which were not to be paid for by facrificing the beft interefts of the republic; they determined, therefore, to make a wifer use of the interval of relief from foreign oppreffion, which they now enjoyed; and they found themselves feconded warmly in their views by the majority of the nation, when it appeared that the ceffion of Thorne and Dantzic to Pruffia was the immediate object with that infatiable court. That ftate which depends for protection and fupport upon a foreign power will ever find its profperity precarious, and its government contemptible. It is within itself that every nation mult find its own fupport, and that fupport is only in one way to be obtained. It was not industry, it was not valour, that Poland wanted; it was unity, it was a conflitution, it was an efficient and active government. Happily for Poland, fhe was at this crifis poffeffed of fome men of the most moft eminent abilities, and appa- The galleries of the hall in which the diet was held, were crowded at an early hour, as if in expectation of fome important event. The feffion was opened by the king in perfon, inftead of the marfhal; and inftead of reforting to the order of the day, which was a report on the finances, his majefty addreffed the affembly on the general ftate of the nation.-He obferved, " that whatever affurances foreign powers might amuse them with, he had undoubted proofs, that the alarming rumours which had been spread concerning a fresh difmemberment of the territories of the republic, refted upon too fure a foundation; and that the contending powers were about to terminate their differences at the expence of Poland. That one way remained, and but one, to fecure the poffeffions of the republic, and to preferve the state from ruin; and this was, to give it fuch a conftitution as might impart unity to its government, and attach the people to its fupport. That with this view a conftitution had been prepared, principally founded on the English and American conftitutions, but avoiding the errors of each, and adapted as much as poffible to the circumftances of the country; and that this conftitution, he trufted, they would adopt." After the reading of the conftitution a tumultuous debate enfued. The nuncios of Volhynia and Podolia protefted against the proceed. ing. M. Suchorzowsky, who had been the author of the decree in favour of the citizens, threw himself at the foot of the throne, and befought his majefty, that he would not perfift in his intention of mak❤ ing the crown hereditary. Others referred to the inftructions of their conftituents, and entreated that the deliberation fhould be deferred to a future day; but this propofal did not meet the fentiments of the majority. The king then rifing from his feat refpectfully called the bishop of Cracovia, and took a folemn oath to maintain the conftitution. "He that loves his country," exclaimed his majefty," let him follow follow me to the church, and repeat this oath a the foot of the altar." The king was attended to the church by all the nuncios, except between thirty and forty; Te Deum was fung; all the deputies prefent took the oath; and the new conftitution was announced to the people by the firing of 200 pieces of cannon, It was reported, that on the preceding day a foreign minifter had diftributed the fum of 50,000 ducats, for the purpose of obftructing the revolution. The attempt was, however, abortive; the moft perfect tranquillity prevailed; and nothing was heard throughout Warfaw but exclamations of joy. Thus without bloodshed, and even without tumult, was effected a revolution honourable to those who projected it, and promifing to be effentially conducive to the happiness of the people. By the new Polifh constitution a full and free toleration is permitted to all fects and religions; the peasants, who were formerly in a ftate of the most abject vaf falage, or rather flavery, are received under the protection of na tional law and government, and all contracts between the lords and vaffals are declared equally binding.The fovereignty is declared to retide altogether in the will of the people; and three distinct powers are established in the government-the le giflative, the executive, and the judicial. With refpect to the first of thefe powers, the diet or legislature is to be elected every two years from the order of nobles, and is divided into two houfes-the houfe of nuncios, and the fenate: the former how ever poffeffes the pre-eminence, and every law which paffes in it is immediately to be fent to the fenate; where if it is accepted, it becomes a law in full force: if fufpended, it must be refumed at the next diet; 17918 and if a fecond time it paffes the house of nuncios, the fenate muft fubmit to it. The crown of Poland is he reditary as to individuals, and elec tive as to families; and the house of Saxony is the family now chofen for the vacancy. To the king and his council is entrusted the execution of laws. The king's per fon is inviolable. He may pardon all criminals but ftäte prisoners. He commands the forces, appoints commanders, patentees, officers, bifhops, fenators, minifters: No minifter or fenator, however, can fit in the house of nuncios. The judiciary power is divided into, tft, Primary courts in each district or palatinate: 2d, Courts of appeal in each of the three pro vinces. There are fome other local inferior courts, and a comitial tribunal for the trial of crimes against the ftate. All citizens may purchase landed eftates; and whoever purchases a vilė lage or township, paying two hundred florins land-tax, is entfobled. Thirty citizens are also ennobled at every diet. The army, the law, and the church, are all thrown open to the citizens. Perfect and entire lia berty is proclaimed to all new settlers, whether foreigners or emigrants returned. Such is the general outline of the Polish conftitution. By fome of the ardent friends of liberty it has been confidered as too favourable to ariftocracy, particularly in confining the rights of active citizens to the equeftrian or noble order. Thofe, however, who conceive of it in this view are but little acquainted with the ftate of Poland. In that coun try there are three claffes of people the nobility (most of them without titles), who conftitute the great mass of the independent inhabitants; the · peasante I peasants, who are certainly too uninformed at prefent, and too dependent, to exercife the functions of ac. tive citizens; and the burgeffes, or inhabitants of the free towns, who might indeed have been put upon a footing with the nobles, but who enjoy their peculiar municipal privileges, and whofe number is too fmall to form a folid objection to the new arrangement. The provifions for conducting the legislative and exe cutive departments appear well devifed, and promife both ftability and energy to the government. The circumstance which appears to have excited the ftrongest oppofition in Poland, is the appointment of an hereditary instead of an elective chief magiftrate; but certainly, if we contemplate the hiftory of Poland from the reign of Auguftus II. with a politician's eye, we fhall be difpofed to conclude, that nothing but a blind attachment to ancient prejudices could difpofe any friend of his country to prefer the elective form. The oppofition indeed which at firft was made to the conftitution, chiefly on account of the hereditary fucceffion, foon began to recede. Count Braniki, grand general of the kingdom, who at firft had declared against the conftitution, acceded to it, and figned it at the diet on the 5th; and the celebrated friend of liberty, Malachowsky, great chancellor to the crown, who on that event had refigned the feals, re-accepted them at the requifition of the diet, and accepted the office of minifter of justice, and for the interior department. On the 17th, M. Goltz, charge des affaires from the court of Berlin, announced his Pruflian majefty's approbation of the new arrangement, though there has been fome reafon to fufpect that this profeffion was not accompanied with much fincerity. The good underftanding which was established between the courts of Vienna and Berlin by the conference of Reichenbach, enabled the former in the beginning of 1791 to bring to a termination the unhappydivifions and diftractions which pervaded the territory of Liege. There is a veil of myftery ftill fpread over this tranfaction, which utterly disables the politician from clearly distinguishing its caufes and motives. All that is known with certainty is, that during the latter part of the year 1789 the inhabitants of Liege complained vehemently of the oppreffion which they experienced under the government of their bifhop, of an invafion of their rights, and ventured to iafift upon a regular charter of privi leges; to which they afferted they were entitled, not only by the imprefcriptible claims of justice and truth, but by their ancient conftitution. It is indeed fcarcely poffible to conceive a worse fpecies of government than an elective fovereignty, where the appointment is confined to an ecclefiaftical body, and the people have no fhare nor influence in the election. A temporary monarch of this nature will act like the governor of a Roman province, and will naturally be difpofed to increase the wealth of his family by the plunder of the public. On the other hand, the territory of Liege was too fmall, and its power too contemptible, to allow the people to flatter themfelves with any profpect of fuccefs in an oppofition to the Germanic body, a part of whofe conftitution was the exifting government of this city. They could therefore be only deluded into infurrection by the hope of foreign fupport. What that fupport was to be we are left in ignorance; and it is only certain, that one of the principal perfons who promoted the oppofition to go vernment vernment had been for fome time refident at the Pruffian court. Be this as it may, as the bifhop and chapter did not think proper to comply with the demands of the citizens, the latter had recourfe to arms; and the bifhop becoming apprehensive for his perfonal fafety, had recourse to a voluntary exile, and appealed to the imperial chamber of Wetzlaer. Whatever might be the defigns of the king of Pruffia with regard to Liege, we only know that he voluntarily undertook the office of mediator upon this occafion; and the offer came from a quarter too powerful not to be accepted. His troops were cantoned in the neighbourhood of the city; but its inhabitants confidered them as rather fent to protect than to coerce them. They affumed to themfelves the functions of fovereign authority; a noted French prelate fubmitted to act the part of a pageant on this occafion, as regent in their ecclefiaftical affairs; while the actual power was vefted in the hands of certain popular magiftrates. In this flate matters continued till the latter end of the year 1790, when the reconciliation between the two ruling powers of Germany, and the apprehenfions of the extenfion of the new doctrines in favour of the rights of man, induced the defpots of the continent at once to overturn this unsubstantial fa bric of liberty. On the 20th of December, the imperial chamber of Wetzlaer iffued requifitorial letters, addreffed to the government of the Auftrian Netherlands, defiring that his imperial majefty's troops would affift thofe of the ferene electoral princes, which were engaged in enforcing the fentences which the imperial chamber had fucceffively pronounced againft the infurgents of Liege. Early in January the Auftrian troops began to enter the territory of Liege; and the city was almoft evacuated by emigrations. The Auftrian ge. neral, baron Keuhll, however, pre pared the way for his reception by a conciliatory proclamation, in which he engaged that the ftrictest difcipline fhould be obferved, and no citizen molefted except upon direct provocation; and the only condition that he required was, that they fhould not appear in arms, and that they fhould carefully divest themselves of their cockades, fcarfs, &c. and abftain from all the fignals of infurrection. On the 12th of January the Auftrian troops entered Liege, and took poffeffion of all the public places, the palace, the hotel de ville, &c. the old magiftracy, who had been expelled, were reinftated in their offices; the chapter refumed its functions; and, in the beginning of February, the prince bishop was reinstated in his ́. full authority. |