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! armies to tlie frontier, and seized upon the territory ofPonte Corvo . The Pope, who also was at peace, withFrance , in virtue of a solemn treaty, the ink of which wasscarcely dry, seized with alacrity the occasion to join hisforces with those of Naples and of Austria . Excellentexamples these of public faith and of the sanctity of oaths,set before the people by those who so pretend to guide them!
Napoleon , then occupied with the siege of Mantua,abruptly raised it, attacked and utterly defeated Wiirmser,and filled the minds of those faithless despots with dismay.In proportion to their insolence and dishonesty, so wastheir abject fear and humiliation. This time neither thePope, nor the despot of Naples, were allowed to escape withfull impunity. The peace with the former was granted atTolentino by Napoleon , the 14th Sept., 1796. His Holinessbeing mulcted for his share of the expenses of the war hehad wantonly and treacherously waged, five millions ofcrowns, besides horses, arms, and many valuable objects ofthe fine arts. And here I must take occasion to remarkupon the magnanimity of Napoleon , who according to everyprecedent and acknowledged law of nations, was very farfrom availing himself of his right to punish the aggressiveattacks of these implacable enemies to the utmost extent ofcapture of all •public property. Neither did he set fire tothe capitol of Rome, as the English did to that of Washing-ton in 1814. The peace with Naples was signed at Parison the 11th October, 1796, through the medium of the PrinceBelmonte, on conditions far more indulgent than the casedeserved. The only pecuniary compensation demanded was. eight millions of francs. But here the impartiality of his-tory demands that I should expose a case of the mostgross, barbarous, and infamous venality on the part of theFrench negociators, that ever disgraced the history of acivilized nation. Every thing which regarded the liberty