Philadelphia, Nov. 6. O F F R A N C £ THE collection of duties and taxes in France, which continues upon the old eltablilhment of •■defpotifin, becomes difficult and precarious : The people complain of the anniverfkry feitivals, and veSued philosophic declamations, while they feel wot the benefits expected from their emancipa tion : In many places the arm of the collectors £ias been Itrengthened by the alfiitance of the .military The relief anticipated from the property of •the clergy is found inadequate to the public ex igencies, it was I'uppofed that property would counterbalance—as the ajjignats, or notes funded 011 it, have already depreciated 6 or 7 percent. 011 the 28th Augoft, Ivl. de Gouy, after a speech of two hours, came forward with a proposal to pay off in one day, a debt of 100,000,000 llerling —the creditors to be paid in ajjigiiati—the whole kingdom to be mortgaged for the security ; this proposal me: with fomeoppofition, it wasthought tiiat such an enormous sum of paper money would be extremely fubjedl to depreciation ; the aflem bly resolved however to resume the discussion that day fortnight. Some paragraphias fay that the National Af fernbly begin to discover that it is dangerous to pull down an old house without being provided with materials to erect a new one ; we rather think that any existing difficulties in the way of the French revolution do notarise from the want of materials ; as every civilized community fur nifhes those neceflary to conititute a goodconfti tution ; the proper arrangement is the grand de iideratum ; till this is made on the ltricft prin ciples of justice, or a sacred regard to the equal rights of all—a permanent settlement of a cun ftitutioit is avain expectation. Whether the absorption of all the powers of government in one unwieldy aflembly, uncon trolled, and without refponAbility, who govern 'by temporary refolvps, and deal out a constitu tion by peace-meal, docs not naturally generate infurmounrable obilacles to the completion of the revolution of francs, time will discover. There was a time when the clergy and nobili •ty of France appeared to be zealous in the. cause of the revolution—fearful jealouiies are enter tained respecting them at prefenc ; that policy which would have conciliated their attachment to the cause of freedom was certainly the mod eli gible—whether this consisted in stripping them of their revenues, and levelling their honours with the dust, mull be left to the telt of expe rience. The revolution of France is without compari son the greatest event in the annals of time ; the extraordinary steps which have been taken by the national aflembly are said to be fandlioned by the peculiar circuinftances in which the kingdom was placed ; deep-rooted prejudices were to be eradicated—the throne of despotism was to be undermined and its very foundations destroyed ; 3nd before the people could be brought to realize their emancipation—the veil of tyranny molt be " rent from the top to the bottom"—in doing this, though the rights of property may for a time be violated, yet an equal conltitution will bring order out of this neceflary confulion, and 'eventually secure under the aul'pices of liberty the happiness of the people ; this at least ap pears ta be the fentimenc of the national alTeni bly intheir address to the people of France. OF GREAT BRITAIN, Great Britain has put herfelf to. an enormous expence in equipping >a formidable fleet—and for what .'—This is an enquiry not easily answer ed. Can the fulleft acknowledgment on the ■part of Spain of an equal right to trade with the natives of Nootka Sound., and areftitution oftwo merchant ihips conipenfate for these expendi tures ? Surely no. The debt of Great Britain was thought to be fufficiently great : Mr. Pitt has always appeared solicitous for its redu<stion ; his popularity is said be suspended on this fa vorite point ; but war always adds to the debt and taxes of a country ; in (hort, the recent con duct of the Britilh minister is truly enigmatical, and cannot at present.be folvedby any other fup podtion than this, that the world has been deceiv ed in refpedt to the embarrafl'ments of that coun iry—and that they have such. a surplusage of -wealth, that fportiug with a few millions will no; 3>e feit by the people. From the length oftimeconfumed in equipping *she Britifti navy—and the extreme difficulty found ran manning i(—the difference between herfitua vtion wfaeu /evered from America, and what it ;J"ormerly was when united to her, is inoft itrik £ngly apparent. Should this circumftarlce abate 'theßritirtl spirit of conquest and domination, it -may conduce much to the tranquility of the hu man race—one, among many thousands of the bieifings derived to mankind from the American revolution. " It. is Angular indeed, that England, high as .'it, is in.,cultivation, and which in former times -ttiwd t-e produce snore cora than was licceflitry for the home consumption, should have been of late years under the neceflicy of depending on the produceof foreign countries for apart of its fup piy." Theelder Mirabea-j, lpeakingof the Ameri can Congress, lays " I cannot but admire, that those vehom we once ejleetned a rude and barbarous people hav; already fit an example to the old world in the intricate feience of government. I »/ay fijely pro nounce the npref-ntatiues in the American legiflat'ire to be the firjl body of philosophers who have ever had it in their power to atfcmble peaceably together in a le gi/lative capacity, and deliberate upon the rights of nations and of men. Theioorltl indeed,has been long enough under the controul of bullies and ruffians. it is time that men oj fent/ment, learning and benevolence began to have the fill ay ; these are the lights that must guide our fpedes to that true dignity, -which their /la tion in the chain oj created intelligence demands. The prodigious demand for American produce the last year iias been produdlive of the greatest agricultural exertions the pad season :—and our labors have been crowned with abundant success. The consequence has been a reduction in» the prices—but not Jo great wetruft as to operate un favorably : It would be a great misfortune in deed, (ho'uld this circumllance slacken our indus try, or discourage our enterprize.—lt is doubtlef* the policy of the United States not only to make our ltores so abundant as out of the excess to be able to supply the whole world beside ; but also if potfible to inakeit for the interest of all other nations to trade with us, by-affording absolutely the cheapest market. How various are the fenttments-of mankind up on the fame fubjetft ! While some have supposed tliatthe United States might derive a revenue by a tax on emigration to this country—others pro pose that a bounty should be paid on the importa tion of foreign artizans. Whatever may be the refultof such a proposition, certain it is, that no country ever afforded such inducements tocuii grauts,for it may be prettyfafely aflerted,that eve ry industrious sober mechanic or hufbandmaii, who oiice fixed his foot on these hofpitablefhores,never had cause to regret the change of hemispheres. Whilellie United States more than realize the anticipations of the friendstothe present: coufti tution—-not one of the numerous forebodings of it? enemies, has ever come to pass ; these things ought to be had in remembrance, for tho compan ions are odious, they sometimes answer very va luable pnrpofes. The present is undoubtedly one of the mod interelling periods in the hiltory of man : The world is in labor—and liberty we trust: will ere long open its eyes on every nation under heaven. —The human mind, as if inspired with new fa culties, now penetrates through the thick veil of error and prejudice, and dares to think for itfelf. The rights ofourfpecies arejuftly appreciated, and properly aflerted : Opinions derive 110 longer afantftity, from the ruil of age, and the cobwebs of antiquity : America set the glorious example— and the flame has spread from nation to nation, till the inolt degraded people now declare the} will be free. I he abuie of Terms is an evil that has produ ced much mifchief among mankind :—Murder, by being called war, is advocated by many who would revolt from doing a personal injury Intrigue and fiiieff: in politics are denominated addrefr Overreaching in trade is the art of making a bar gain Flattery is but complaisance and uni verfal deception, is a complete knowledge of the •world. A correfpon dent observes, that as there are no land-jobbers in the United States, it is foraewhat surprising that the treaty with the Creek nation should have been To indecently attacked, as it ap pears to have been in fomeof the late papers :— Had the cafe been otherwise—and individuals or companies conceived themselves injured by the treaty's contravening their right to millions of acres fairly purchased, and falerunly ceded by the whole Creek nation, we might have expe&ed to hear that The President and Senate of the Uni ted States, with all the executive officers of go vernment were jainm'd into the Coinmiifioner's closet to fabricate this odious treaty ; but, as be fore observed, no land-jobbers existing in the United States, the outrageous insult on govern ment is truly unaccountable. Another correspondent observes, that on a sup position that a deep fchenie of land jobbing has for a long time existed—that in the moment of inebriation some of the Creek nation have been induced to put their mark to acts of ceflion, which when in polfellion of their reason they have de clared to be null and void, inaimuch as they had no authority for what they did, their nation not being privy, or consenting to such deed of ces sion—in such cafe, to form a treaty that fliall put it out of the power of the land-jobbers to carry fire and sword into such territory so ceded, is a mod abominable, high-hand infringement of personal right, and a violation of the Constitu tion—it is an ex po'ft fadlo law—in Ihort, it is " a Knoxonian plan"—smuggled into "theCoui mlfllonei-'s closet"—smuggled into the Senate of 631 ilic United States—Anuggled under the fignatune oi Tiie President—and smuggled into the appro bation of the people of the United States ! ! ! Extract of a htt:r jront a Gentleman at Alexandria, to his friend at Baltimore, dated the 29th ult. " J u st the moment of closing this letter, liave been informed, by ;i gentleman from tin Southward, that, yeiterday, jCapt. Moivhray, it a veflel from England, arrived at Port Royal, Rappahannock river, after a very ftiort paflage, (report fays, 22 days) by which veilel there are the inolt authenticated accounts of a WAR hav ing absolutely taken place between England and Spain, and that tire Captain had a<£tully read the declaration ot war previous to his leaving Eng land.—How far this may be true, I cannot fay > but, from several circumllances, lam apt to give credit to it." Extract of a letter from Virginia, Ocl. 17 ,to the Editor. " Crops of tobacco and wheat, as v/ell as corn, are very abundant; all of which are incomparably low to what they were last year : Tobacco, best James-River, may be had for 17s. and 18s.—wheat pr. bushel. weighing 60 wt. at 4/6. and 5f. —and all other commodities low in proportion." It has been said that the methodist church in the United States consists of 57621 persons ; a correspondent who remembers the times of Mr. Wh itfi eld, fays, that a much larger church could have been collected forty years ago, frpm the followers of that celebrated itenerant who was the father of the methodifts. On the 25th of October last, Mr. William M'Cloud, fnuff manufacturer and miller of Mr. Isaac Jones's fnufF-mill, on Brandywine-Creek, going up the race Jt>ank unfortunately fell into the Creek and was drowned. He had not been miffing above 20 minutes before he was found> and every means which medical Ikill could devise, used for his recovery, but without success. He has left a wife and child to bewail his lols. The Law Lecture willcommencein this city about the ijth Dec.—[The ds/ign of the plan is it jurnijh a rational andufejul entertainment to gentle men of all projejjions—and in particular to ajjifl in Jarming the legifiator, the mapiflrate, and the lawyer. At the close ef the whole caurfe, some le[hires and ex ercises in rhetoric and cempofition are to be given by Dr. Smith. A fpccimcn of American worthy the attention of the curious, is to he Teen at Mr. R. LeflL*s in Market-ftrect. It is a model of a flour mill, upon a new conftru&ion, contrived by Mr. Oliver Evans t of Delaware fiate. This machine, without theaflift.. ance of manual labour, fir ft conveys the grain defpofited to be ground, to tbe upper floor, wbere it is cleaned ; thence it descends to the hoppfcr, and after being ground in the usual way, the flour is conveyed to the upper floor, v» here by a simple and ingenious contrivance, it is spread, cooled, and gradually made to pafsto the bolting hopper. The whole contrivance does the greatest ho nor to the inventor, and is likely to be of some precuniary advan tage to him, as he has obtained from Congress an exciufive right to the profits of the invention for 14 years. A number of malls have already been conftru&ed on this plan, which are found to an swer perfectly in pra&ice. To make inanimate nature thus yield to the powers of man's inventive faculties, and produce what ma nual labour would otherwise be obliged to effect, must be of the greatest advantage to a young country where hands are wanted. Numbers of those formerly employed in manufa&uring flour, will now guide the plough, cultivate our vacant lands, and lubour to encrcafcthe real wealth of the country. (Cch. Adv.) There will be an Ec li pse of the Sun—vifiblc. Beginning, at — — - Greatcft obscuration - — Ecliptic conjun£tion - - End - - s Duration — - — s Digits eclipsed, about on the Sun's northern limb. At places northward from Philadelphia this Eclipse will be larger; and to those southward, ("mallei ; but will not be central to any part of the Earth. THE UNITED STATES. "\T7HILE Discord rends the caftern hemisphere, * * Peace i with her train of virtues triumphs here; Beneath her frailes fair fctenct rears her head, And all the arts their various treasures spread ; The Ikies benignant (hed their genial pow'r, And plenty, in a rich profufion, (how'r ; Our commerce catches every wind that blows : To earth's remotest shores our produce goes : Our sacred laws, freedom and justice frame, And rival nations cclebrate our fame ! Hail happy States ! may fate propitious give, That long thy sons iB harmony may live : On Union built, till time dissolve the sphere Thou free, and great, and glorious (halt appear ! PRICE CURRENT. PUBLIC SECURITIES. FUNDED DEBT. 6 pr. Cents 3 pr. Cents Deleted 6 pr. Cents UNFUNDED DEBT Final Settlement and other Certificates 12.si ii.si. Indents — 7fi - Ift. Siate debts — of. 8/2. LATEST ARRIVALS AT THIS PORT. Brig Betsey, Pottei, New-York, € days Mary Ann, Lemon, Liverpool, 59 James, M'Calmont, Oporto Schooner Favorite, Grath, Grenada, 25 Iqduftry, Peeples, St. Euftatia, 20 Sloop Laurel, Shore, Portsmouth, it Hope, Acken, Chidcflon, 10. THIS DAY >3 fa M/- if' 7/2- 5/9 6/ H. M. 0 16 1 19 P. M. 1 2ojr 2 22 2 6
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers