The New Hampshire Gazette

From the London Courier of July 19.

The American government having made such haste to publish Rodgers account of his action with the Little Belt, as if they were anxious to show their desire to shut the door against all negotiation, explanation and adjustment, our government have felt it their duty not to withhold Bingham's account. It will be found that we published a correct sketch of it in the Courier, of the 4th inst. and that the account given by the American is any thing but the true one. Bingham knew her to be an American frigate by her colors. Rodgers, therefore, must have known that the Little Belt was but a sloop, and as our colors were hoisted, that he was a British sloop. But he came down upon us with an evident hostile intention, attempting to lay his ship in a position to rake ours. He did not hail us first, as he asserted, following up that impudent falsehood with a lecture upon the "rules of politeness." We hailed first and second time, receiving each time only a repetition of our question. There was no single gun fired by us or on either side. But the American, the moment after we had hailed the second time, poured a broadside into our sloop, which of course was immediately returned, and an action took place: not of five minutes only, as the Buccaneer stated, but of three quarters of an hour—18 British guns against 44—American! ? And we never struck our colors! This is placed beyond a doubt by the Buccaneer's question and capt. Bingham's answer. The next day the American sent a boat on board to express his regret "for the unfortunate affair," to tell a direct lie that he did not know our force to be so inferior, and to follow it up with another falsehood, that we fired the first gun. "This" says capt. Bingham "was positively not the case," and if we had not the sacred word of a British officer, we still should have said how wholly improbable it was, that a sloop of war should commence hostilities within pistol shot of a large forty-four gun frigate.

There is however one point of capt. Bingham's letter in which we do not agree with him. He says, "by the manner in which he apologised, it appeared to me evident, that had he fallen in with a British frigate he would certainly brought her to action." No, no—the man who could begin hostilities by attacking a vessel of so inferior a force, would have shrunk from contest with a ship of equal force. However we hope he will "fall in with a British frigate, and bring her to action."

The American government having published Rodgers account, and approved of his conduct, thereby precluding all negotiation; capt. Bingham's letter having placed it beyond a doubt that the hostile conduct of the American was wholly unprovoked, and that letter being coupled with Admiral Sawyer's previous instructions, demonstrative of the anxiety of our government not to give the least provocation or cause of offence to the United States, there is but one course left for us to pursue. The blood of our murdered countrymen must be revenged, and WAR MUST ENSUE. The conduct of America leaves us no alternative; and therefore it is idle, if not worse, to treat the subject as if it were "an inconvenient dilemma which ministers," according to the opposition, "have solely to attribute to their own folly, in not confirming Mr. Erskine's sensible arrangement." Of Mr. Erskine's sensible arrangement we have so often expressed our opinion, that it were necessary to repeat it. We behaved towards America with violence? British Forbearance: but that forbearance has produced INSOLENCE And THAT INSOLENCE MUST BE PUNISHED!