the world. At laft, however, they are going to tafte this happiness, which spreads itself over all our fubjects; and our views, by taking poffeffion again of these provinces, have been and will always be, to fecure in them the tranquillity of the citizens; to establish therein a wife government, under which each individual may obtain the juftice he has a right to claim, and to give to this conftitutional form of government a more lafting bafis; wherefore we think the first and the most agreeable of our obligations, and as it were a duty impofed upon us by the Almighty himfelf, is that of anticipating by our imperial good-will all the wifhes of the citizens of thefe diftricts, and of leading them all equally to the path of felicity, as much as it lies in our power. Faithful to these principles, we have not only guaranteed to each of them the fafety of their perfons and property, but we morcover intend to indemnify them for the damages they have fuftained through the difturbances and diforders which took place in these provinces, through the marching of troops, and efpecially in the last war, of which this part has been the chief feat. Wishing moreover to give them the first token of our maternal follicitude, we have given orders to our general governor of the faid provinces, Mr. Krechetnikoff, to cause an accurate inventory to be made of thofe damages; nevertheless, we farther prohibit the collecting from any clafs of citizens, of any kind of taxes or contributions whatever, for the benefit of our treasury, from this day forward to the firft of January 1795, except, fuch voluntary gifts as the citizens fhould offer of their own accord, and which, therefore, cannot be a burden to any body whatever; referving our farther difpofitions on this head. permit alfo the collection on the old footing, till we shall order it otherwife, of all the toils and duties inwards, according to the already-established cuftom-houfe officers, or that are able to be fo on the new frontiers of the empire of Ruf fia, as being indifpenfably neceffary in the prefent juncture, for the eftablishment and maintenance of the government, and the chancery of our imperial Fifcus. The The first action of our authority being a teftimony of benevolence in favour of fubjects that are newly come under our dominion, and of follicitude for the welfare of the country they inhabit, we are apt to think that they will gratefully receive this mark of favour, and will know how to value, as they ought to do, the defire we announce here of gaining their hearts by our favours, and to attach them to their ancient mother country, by the hopes of the advantages we offer them, instead of fubduing them by dint of arms. We hope that, anfwering our generous views, they will fend ap to Heaven their thanksgivings for their being returned into the bofom of their ancient mother-country, that adopts them for the second time; that the object of their zeal and of their endeavours will be, to consolidate them in the faithfulnefs they owe us, and in a conftant fubmiffion to our laws; that they will unite themselves with heart and foul to our faithful fubjects the Ruffians; that, in fhort, they will form, as they did formerly, a refpectable nation, always tractable, always faithful to their monarchs, always valiant and invinci ble, whereby they will render themfelves truly worthy of the folicitude we fhew to them, as a tender mother, who only wishes for the happiness of her children. Given in the town of St. Peter, our imperial refidence, the 23d, 24th of April 1793, of the birth of Jefus Chrift; of our dominion over all the Ruffias the 31st, and over the Tauride the 10th. (Signed) CATHARINE, No. XV. REMONSTRANCE made to the COUNT DE SIEVERS, the RusSIAN AMBASSADOR, on the Part of the KING and the STATES of POLAND by the CHANCELLOR of the CROWNS and of the GRAND DUCHY of LITHUANIA. THE king, and the confederated States of the republic, having had notice of a fecond violence committed to-day upon the deputies of the nation, of whom many have been arrested at their houses-feeling with forrow the injuries which a free and independent nation has fuffered from a foreign power, and not being able to continue legally our deliberations without the prefence of thofe members of the diet, we have ordered unanimoufly the chancellor to prefent, in our name, a note to the ruffian ambassador, to represent to him the general fenfation which fuch a proceeding has occafioned, and to demand the immediate enlargement of the perfons arrested. Having alfo learned, that the ambaffador had ordered the provifions destined for the ufe of the king to be intercepted, and the eftates of M. Tysfkievietch, marfhal of the grand duchy of Lithuania, to be fequeftrated, which gives us reafon to apprehend that in future fuch violences may be increased, we refolved unanimously, that the chancellor shall make to the ambaffador fuitable reprefentations on the fubject, infifting that fuch orders fhould be countermanded, ast well with regard to the king's domains, as the fequeftration of the estates of the marshal Tysfkievietch; and with respect to other eftates of which the violation has not yet come to our knowledge, the ambaffador will henceforth be pleafed to abftain from giving fuch orders. A copy of this note fhall be communicated to all the foreign minifters refiding near the king's perfon, and the ftates affembled. Done at Grodno, July 11, 1793 THE underfigned have the honour, by the exprefs command of the king and the confederate diet, to difplay to the ambaffador-extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the empress of Ruffia, the reafons which plainly militate against the ceffion of the provinces of the republic of Poland, taken poffeffion of in the courfe of the prefent year by the Pruffian troops, and demanded by the court of Berlin. It is notorious, that the treaties of 1773 and 1790, on the part of the court of Berlin, fecured not only the poffeffion of those provinces, but also guaranteed their defence. No infringement of thofe treaties on the part of Poland has been adduced, nor can be adduced; whereas, on the contrary, the republic, fince 1773, has not ceased, by vari ous reiterated notes, to complain of open tranfgreffions respecting the non-performance of several articles of the treaty of 1773, which affure to the fubjects of the republic of Poland the free commerce in all the pruffian territories, and likewife the free paffage of their productions through the fame territories into other states. The event of the 31st of May 1791, cannot be adduced by the court of Berlin as a motive for feizing the provinces of the republic, fince there are authentic documents, by which the king of Pruffia expreffed, in the most marked terms, his approbation of that event, and even intimated that he found it much to his advantage. With regard to the charge of jacobinism, we have already fufficiently evinced, by the many circumftantial answers given, that this pernicious doctrine has never yet infected the bofom of the polish nation, and that government has taken the moft vigorous and moft energetic measures that it fhould not spread in Poland by any foreign emiffary that might have been used for that purpose. VOL. III. K K The The confederate flates of the republic being thus con vinced that they have given no reafon to the king of Pruffia which can warrant the taking poffeffion of the polish provinces by his troops, have exprefsly charged the underligned to have recourse, by a note, in the most urgent manner, to the generosity and equity of the emprefs of Ruffia, to induce her to interpofe in the most powerful manner with the king of Pruffia, in order to avert the misfortunes with which Poland is threatened, and already unfortunately overwhelmed. The confederate diet apply with this requeft, and with the more hope to the emprefs of Raffia, fince they have quite recently given the moft convincing proofs to that great princefs, of the confidence they repose, and the respect they feel for her. Of this charge the underfigned acquit themfelves, in virtue of the exprefs orders of the king and the confederate Atates, in diet assembled. (Signed) PRINCE SULKOFFSKY, Grodno,July 27, 1793. CASIMIR PLATER, Vice-chancellor of Lithuania ANSWER of the RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR. THE underfigned, however flattering he finds the new proofs of confidence which the ftates of the republic repofe in her imperial majesty, his mistress, can as little agree to the leaft delay refpecting the overture of the negociations with the pruffian ambaffador. The ftates ought immediately to furnish the delegation with the defired inftructions and powers. The readiness which will be fhewn for that purpofe, will ferve as the measure of the interference which her imperial majefty will make, in order to complete thofe affairs |