Alexandria Gazette, Commercial And Political

From the New-York Evening Post,

From East-Florida.—We have received copies of two letters from an American gentleman at St. Mary's to a respectable merchant in this city, giving some account of the proceedings of certain American citizens in East Florida, acting or pretending to act under the authority of the American government. One of the letters follows; the other shall be given to-morrow.

Extract of a letter from St. Mary's to a merchant in this city.

"Among the atrocities engendered by the French revolution, there is none that strikes more forcibly the attention of a reflecting man than the general want of moral principle to which it has given rise. During the first period of that tremendous commotion, the great nation reduced it to a system, practised it in all their invasions, proclamations and treaties, and by the time that the present ruler had raised himself to the level of the first step of the throne on which he is now placed, the government already acted on a methodical arranged system of political falsehood, which pervaded every office of the state. Unfortunately for the world, the contagion has spread abroad, and our own country has, I fear, adopted with their French bias, not a few of the French principles, else it is impossible to conceive that the mass of well informed human beings who exist in the country which gave birth to George Washington, could remain silent spectators of the base and unprincipled conduct of their government towards the Spanish province of East-Florida for these six months past.

In the month of March last, a banditti calling themselves patriots of East Florida, but which was really composed of at least four-fifths of Georgia citizens, raised the standard of revolt against the Spanish government, at the instigation of Gen. Matthews, United States Commissioner; he persuaded Commodore Campbell of the United States Navy to draw up his gun-boats in front of the town of Fernandina, with guns pointed and matches lighted, and with an inconsistency which that gentleman must wish buried in oblivion, but it will not be in his power to forget, he declared to the legal authorities, that although his country was at peace with Spain, he felt it his duty to assist the glorious cause of the patriots. Fernandina was overpowered in consequence of this declaration, and the motley group of soi disant patriots got possession of the town and garrison, which consisted of an officer and nine or ten invalids. Well. in a few hours the U. S. Commissioner came forward and declared that he was ready to treat according to the letter of his instructions with the constituted authorities. Treat he did, and received Fernandina in the name of his country, with the same solemnity, and with the same feelings, no doubt, that Jonathan Wild accepted the spoil of his gang at their nightly meetings. The patriots now disburthened of their conquest, marched on, plunder and proscription in one hand and clemency in the other; as they march the U States troops follow, and O shame! receive in the name of their country the polluted trophies of the insurgents. At last they arrive in sight of the Capital, and the place is summoned to surrender, but without effect. Gen. Matthews, General McIntosh, and I know not how many other Generals, are obliged to halt in their career of conquest, they look around them if not with shame, at least with dismay on a country ruined by their machinations, & find that they have been fools and villains to no purpose.

In the mean time, sir, news of this extraordinary aggression on a peaceable and unoffending province of an ally, reaches Mr. Foster, at Washington, and in answer to his remonstrance to the President, the whole conduct of general Matthews and commodore Campbell has been officially disavowed. General Mitchell, at Georgia, was appointed commissioner in lieu of general Matthews; and some democratic papers in care to state the promptness of the disavowal, as a proof of the good faith that actuated the administration: and, notwithstanding the continuance of com. Campbell in his command, all parties were willing to suppose that these gentlemen had acted under a mistaken idea of their orders. We were yet to learn how much official declarations are at variance with the real intentions of a government under French influence and modern French principles. Some short time after the insurgents had made their appearance before Saint Augustine, they had taken possession of a station, about three miles north of the town, situated on the bank of a river, by which the inhabitants supply themselves with wood, and many other necessaries of life. It appears that a party of the United States troops was with them when they were attacked and dislodged by a small detachment from the garrison, aided by a gun boat. Governor Mitchell laid hold of this circumstance, and declared it to be such an aggression on the honor and integrity of the United States, as required the most ample explanations before they could evacuate the province. The Spanish governor, Kindelan, with much urbanity assured him that no aggression against the United States was intended, but that if any of their troops were co-operating with such people as the insurgents, the aggression was on their side, & they had no one to blame but themselves.

What kind of an explanation governor Mitchell required was never mentioned; but we presume the above to have been sufficient. His answer, however, which has been seen by myself & many others, discloses at once the views of the government, through the thin veil of their official declarations; he rudely contradicts governor Kindelan's statement, and tells him it is contrary to the facts, and repeats that the President's feelings are so deeply wounded by the attack on the honor and integrity of the United States, that he cannot expect the evacuation of the province. In consequence of this insolent letter the correspondence was discontinued, and the United States troops kept their station in front of the town.

It would be absurd, sir, to argue in a case so very plain; this flimsy pretext for continuing a detachment of the U. States' troops army inactive, within four miles of St Augustine, is unworthy of a great nation, as we call ourselves, and the ruin that we have brought on the unoffending inhabitants of that province must call down the curses of every honest man within the Union. I again repeat, sir, that we must have made great advances in the modern demoralizing code of French principles, to remain silent spectators of such conduct in our rulers towards a nation, who is now struggling for liberty in another hemisphere, and which alone prevents her from resenting such a barefaced and unprovoked aggression upon her sovereignty. In another letter I will attempt a picture of the ruin & desolation which we have bro't upon these unfortunate people."