The people of Europe were disposed to such a degree of patience that
it has required a Bonaparte to exhaust it.
The London newspapers attacked the first consul bitterly enough; the
English nation was too enlightened not to perceive the drift of his
actions. Whenever any translations from the English papers were
brought to him, he used to apostrophize Lord Whitworth, who answered
him with equal coolness and propriety that the King of Great Britain
himself was not protected from the sarcasms of newswriters, and that
the constitution permitted no violation of their liberty on that
score. However, the English government caused M. Peltier to be
prosecuted for some articles in his journal directed against the
first consul. Peltier had the honour to be defended by Mr.
Mackintosh, who made upon this occasion one of the most eloquent
speeches that has been read in modern times; I will mention farther
on, under what circumstances this speech came into my hands.
CHAPTER 11.
Rupture with England.--Commencement of my Exile.
I was at Geneva, living from taste and from circumstances in the
society of the English, when the news of the declaration of war
reached us. The rumour immediately spread that the English
travellers would all be made prisoners: as nothing similar had ever
been heard of in the law of European nations, I gave no credit to
it, and my security was nearly proving injurious to my friends:
they contrived however, to save themselves.
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