at Britain, whereas Great Britain, in
furtherance of her purposes, could and did prevent American trade with
France, the latter had much more to gain; and particularly, if she
should so word her revocation as to save her face, by not appearing
the first to recede,--to show weakening,--as Great Britain had been
made for the moment to seem by Erskine's arrangement. Should this
ingenious diplomacy prove satisfactory to the President, yet fail so
to convince Great Britain as to draw from her the recall of the Orders
in Council, the United States, by the simple operation of the law
itself, would become a party to the Emperor's Continental system, in
its specific aim of reducing his opponent's strength.

At this very moment Napoleon was putting into effect against the
United States one of those perverse and shameless interpretations of
international relations, or actions, by which he not infrequently
contrived to fill his pockets. The Non-Intercourse Act, passed March
3, 1809, had decreed forfeiture of any French or British ship, or
goods, which should enter American waters after May 20, of the same
year. The measure was duly communicated to the French Government, and
no remonstrance had been made against a municipal regulation, which
gave ample antecedent warning. There the matter rested until March 23,
1810, when the Emperor, on the ground of the Act, imposing these
confiscations and forbidding American vessels to visit France, signed
a retroactive decree that all vessels under the flag of the United
States, which, since May 20, 1809, had entered ports of his empire,
colonies, or of the countries occupied by his arms, should be seized
and sold. Commissioners were sent to Holland to enforce there this
edict, known as the Decree of Rambouillet, which was not actually
published till May 14.[314] It took effect upon vessels which, during
a twelvemonth previous, unwarned, had gone to France, or the other
countries indicated. Immediately before it was signed, the American
minister, Armstrong, had written to Champagny, Duke of Cadore, the
French Minister of Foreign Affairs, "Your Excellency knows that there
are not less than one hundred American ships within his Majesty's
possession, or that of his allies;" and he added that, from several
sources of information, he felt warranted in believing that not a
single French vessel had violated the Non-Intercourse law, and
therefore none could have been seized.[315]

The law of May 1 wa