aiediate command of a squadron deft'med soT Halifax. The Rrench fleet, confi fling of 17 ships, I certainly failed from Brell water, on t the 26th ult. and dire&ed their course 'to the -westward —Of this moll injptfrtant fail, mmifters re ceived accounts on Thursday lall. The expedition to the coail of France, is, we believe, entirely abandoned. The French havfc 80,000 men in cantonments between Cherbourg and St. Maloes ; and our equip ments, from some unfortunate delays,appear to be perfedlly known in France. Paris pa pers have meijt.oncd them for some time pail. ACongrefs of deputies from the Allied Powers is Hill talked of to afTemble at Frank fort Upon the affair* of France. A day of thanksgiving has been ordered at Vienna for the many iignal victories obtained over the French campaign. LEYDEN, Dec. 30. An address has been presented to the Convention by the Lyonefe, in which that wretched people complain of the horrors which the representatives commit daily in that city, especially the emiilaries of the Jacobins, the fev<;n monsters who compose the ci-devant revolutionary commiilion. , " Scarcely is judgment pronounced, (fay the unhappy Lybnefe,) when those who have been condemned are exposed in a mass to the fire of cannon, loaded with grape-ftiot; they fall one upon another, struck with the thunder ; and often muti lated, they have the misfortune not to be killed by the firft difeharge. The victims wbo yet breathe, after having fuffei ed that p.unifhment, are finiihed by sabres or muf quetry." The representatives have substituted for the two revolutionary tribunals which tjiey,had created, a committee of seven judges. Thi» measure was indispensable. The two tribunals, embarrafled by forms, did not answer the wifties of the people : Prisoners accumulated in the prisons : Par tial executions had loft all effect upon the Lyonefe. The committee of seven, judg es in afummary manned; and its sentence is as just as it is sudden. On the 14th December 60 villains were shot to death. On the ,15th, 208. On the 17th, 60 were acquitted. On the iß:h, 68 were shot, and 8 guillotined. On the 19th, the holy and miraculous gnillotine made 13 the head (horter. On the 20th, 50 were set at libei ty. On the 21 ft, £3 were (hot. Soon the guilty at Lyons will no long er pollute the foil of Liberty ! We find daily gold and silver, coined and not coin ed. The quantity willaftoniih you when you hear it. BOURDEAUX, Dec. 20. The milittry commission proceeds in a revolutionary manner : The heads of con spirators fall on the fcaffold—the fufpefted are (hut up till peace shall be concluded— and the moderate, the indifferent, and ego tists, are punished by the purse. Lately all the actors of the grand thea tre, to the number of sixty-eight, were arretted. It -was a Focus of Arijlocracy— we have destroyed it. On the evening before; the theatre was surrounded, when there were upwards of 2000 persons in it ; and all fufpefted persons who were reunited in great numbers, were impri soned; the fame night 200 capital mer chants were arretted, and seals put on their papers—and the military commifiion will soon do them justice. The guillotine, and gCeat fines, will purify the merchants, and will extermi nate the monopolizers and money-chang ers. Reason, makes here a great progress; all the churches have been (hut; plate ar rives in great plenty at the mint, and on the Decades we (hall celebrate the feaft of Liberty. The forced loan succeeds ra pidly, 250,000 livres were yesterday pour ed into the receiver's chett. Bourdeaux will contribute more than one hundred millions to the Republic. NATIONAL CONVENTION. December, 24. Thomas Paine, and dll Foreigners, expelled from the Convention. Barrere—" The moment is come to make known a vice which has introduced itfelf a mong us. The People have been persuaded that they might choose Foreigners to re present them ; but a single fadt shall prove now dangerous such a measure would be. " An Italian came with some patriotie Works: His ambition Wanted a Decree which granted him the title of a French Citizen ; he urged that title,' becnufe his property had been confifcated on account of his writings in his own country. Well ! we learn, that tills property has just been restored. Let us decree, that all foreign ers fTiall be excluded from the National Convention." Bourdon of Oife—" Since there are no more Briffotihes in the Convention, Thomas Paine, never came once among us: He is busy with carrying on his in trigues secretly." The propolal of Barrcre betng put to the votf, was unanimously adopted in these words: " Every Foreigner is, and Jhall be, it eluded from the National Reprefe,.tatien." Congrejs of the U> tfouje of Rijirefeniali'oes *"■ *' The observations of Mr. Smith oi South- Carolina, on the palling of tilt bill for the naval armament. ( Concludal.) Mr. S. next reviewed the principal ob- ! jc&ions to the bill, he said—x it. That j the force contemplated was incompetent. 2d. That fending an armed force on the ocean would be the means of involving us in a war with some of the maritime pow ers. 3. That we had no friendly ports in Europe, which our frigates could resort to for supplies or reritment. 4_th. That the expence would exceed the object to be protected. 5. That our trade would be deprived of the ieamen required to man the frigates. 6. That it was now so late in the season we could not protect our ves sels the ensuing summer, and that some favorable events might occur before the frigates could be equipped, which would render them unnecessary. 7. That this was the beginning of a naval establish ment, which would hereafter involve this country in iramenfe debts and maritime wars. 1 ft. To the firit obje&ion Mr. Smith replied that he was surprised those gentlemen who deemed the nu<'.X/cr of frigates ina dequate to the object had never proposed to encreafe the quantum of force ; though this objection had been re-echoed by seve ral gentlemen, none of them had thought proper to move an augmentation of th? Itrength ; the only motion of that nature, had proceeded from a quarter which had been always friendly to the measure. From the documents on the table, and from the diligent enquiries of a^large committee, the force contemplated by the bill, did however, appear adequate ; the number, and strength of the Algerine corsairs had been pretty nearly ascertained: it had been ilated from good authority, that their vessels were (light, and that they did not cruize in fleets, but feattered for the purpose of plunder. It also ap peared that a smaller force than ours, had been fuccefsfully employed by Portugal, in blocking up the Streights. 2d. The second objection arose, from the danger of being involved in a war. It had been said, that some of the mari time powers, whose interest it was, that our commerce (hould fuffer frprn thele piratical depredations, would fee with difpleafurc, our armed ve(Tels on the oce an ; and would insult them ; that our of ficers would resent such insults, and thus draw us into a war. If there were any nation so anxious to go to war with us, as this objection supposed, they would be at no loss for pretexts, without this ; if while we were exercising so just, lawful and necessary a right, as that of ufingthe only means in our power, 01 protecting our commerce from ruin, and our fellow citizens, from a most dreadful captivity, any nation (hould wickedly and wantonly interfere, and moled our frigates, it would (hew such a disposition to quarrel with us, and be such an ast of hottility, as would juftify war on our part. Whatever nation it might be, he (hould view such an ag greflion as the effect of predetermined hostility, and (hould not hesitate a moment to consider them as much our enemies, as the Algerines themselves. But this arma ment would furni(h so little pretence for any danger of this kind, that he viewed all such terrors as chimerical; indeed it was somewhat strange, that these appre hensions (hould have been suggested by gentlemen, who considered commercial reftriftions particularly directed at Great Britain, as of a most pacific tendency. If irritating measures, pointedly direc ted at Great Britain, were not likely to excite a hostile fplrit in l)er, much less was it to be expected that measures of un avoidable necessity, against the Algenn piraies, would excite ibat fpir.t. 3 d. It had been clearly sheWn, that there were many Convenient friendly poi ts, to which our veflels of war, wottld ha»e accels. Spain, Portugal and trance, had been mentioned ; it was not probable, we lhould be at war with all thole powers, at the fame time. Being at peace with them all, we had a right W expect a friendly admission into their ports. A state of war would undoubtedly, prelent many difficulties, but even in that event, the proposed measure, did not appear lels indilpenfable. 4th. The expcnce had been strongly urged, as a weighty objection. Mi. Smith ohferved, that the laving in inf-.ir anee, the value of our ships and cargoes, the ran Com ot out captive seamen, was more than an offset against this item. But was not the slavery ot" our fellow-citi zens, the national disgrace resulting from it, to be taken into the account ? These were in his mind, goufederations, beyond all calculation. Who could, after read ing the affecting narratives of Captain | Penrofe and the other unfortunates, lit < down contented with cold calculations, ! and dry syllogisms? These nairatives onght j to e:;cite every possible exertion, not oniy j to procure the release of the captured, but to preveut an encreafe of the number of these unhappy victims. This could only be effedted by the proposed measure ; it was the only practicable mode ot ob taining a peace, which would ensure the release of the captives, and of preventing the capture of others. Were the expence thereof double the sum proposed, he, for one, would not hesitate to vote for it. sth. It had been alledged, that depriving our merchant vefiels of the fearpen requisite to man the frigates, would be a serious inju ry to oir trade. No further answer was neceflary to this objection, than barely to re mark, that the injury was not to be out in competition with the less of teamen, by sla very in Algiers, or by desertion from mer chant ships, so unprotected and so exposed. 6th. The lateness of the season, had fur niihed another objection. Mr. Smith asked, whose fault it was, that this measure had not been adopted sooner > The members whose opinions coincided with his, and himfelt had urged the necessity of it, near three months ago, but the opposition it had encountered, and the intervention arid dis cussion of the commercial rtgnlations, nai protracted it to the present period. Late as it was, it was however highly neceflary, and the best expedient which had been suggested. The very circumftanee of preparation for naval defence, would facilitate our pegocia tion for peace, and would encourage our sea men to remain in our service. States. He wiihed it always to be understood, that he did not rely solely on the . kacy of this armament; he it'll looked forward to a negociation, and was ready to provide the mod ample means for that purpoie, but he -was at the fame time fatisiied, triat the tirft measure mult accompany the latter, as the one would be nugatory, without the other. 7th. The dangers refaitiag from a large navy eftabiilhment, and the immense debts they have created in other countries, had been depicfted a»d the House had been warned against such evils. -How a bill, providing fix frigates, which were to exist only during the war with Algiers, could excite an yiprelien fion of a large and permanent navy, and an enormous debt, Mr. Smith said he ;was at a loss to discover. The clause which autho rized the President, in the event of a peace with the Regency of Algiers, to discontinue the armament, was a complete answer to all reasoning which had been indulged on the fubjeft of navies and debts. Adrafttting there had been no such clause, he' did not feel the weight or applicability of the reason ing. This country was peculiarly fitted for a navy; abounding in all kinds of naval resources, wc had within ourselves those means which other maritime nations were obliged to obtain from abroad. The nature of our situation, and the navigating difpofi tiou of a considerable proportion of our citi zens, evinced ft'ill more the propriety of some naval establishment. Perhaps t+ie country was not yet mature for such an eftabiilhrnent, to any great extent, but he belt?ved the period was not far distant when it would. Sweden, with a population not greater than that of the United States, and with more (lender re sources, maintained a large navy ; he saw r.o reason why the United States with an irrcrea iing population, much individual wraith, and considerable national resources, might not without ruin, do as mueh, or why the ebtiin ment of a Iquadron, infer or to that of any of the petty nations of Italy, Ihould involve us-in an insupportable e.xpenee. Having replied to the principal obieition* ajjaiqft the bill, Mr. Smith said, though hedul Hot any arguments of that day, WQitld change a linglc vote, yet as a fa-mid and lengthy cppjfition had h;-en made, he wished to Qi"w, that he did not rely upcm a majority, and that "he would never ~is found 01. V-, •