1809.
June.
Bonaparte was at Paris when L'Agile sailed, and that the naval officer who carried the last copy of my memorial had been promoted and made a member of the legion of honour. I did now certainly entertain hopes that general De Caen would have received an order to set me at liberty, and that no further pretext for prolonging my detention would be admitted; but week after week passed as before without any intimation of this so much desired event.July. There was reason to believe that a direct application to know whether any order had arrived, would obtain no answer; therefore after waiting a month, I wrote to ask "whether His Excellency would permit my wife to come and join me, should she present herself before Port Napoléon." It was not in reality my intention that she should leave England; but I hoped to draw the desired information from the answer; and in six weeks,September. after another vessel had arrived from France, one was given to the following effect: "The captain-general will not oppose the residence of your wife in the colony; but with respect to a safe conduct, it is neccessary that Mrs. Flinders should apply to the ministers of His Britannic Majesty, who should make the request to those of His Majesty the Emperor and King;" which was equivalent to saying, either that no fresh order to set me at liberty had been received, or that it would not be put into execution.
At this time there was much talk of an attack upon the island, said to be projected by the British government; and all the English officers, prisoners of war, were taken from their paroles and closely shut up. In the middle of the month our cruisers quitted the island unexpectedly and a fortnight afterwards it was known that they gone to Bourbon, and made an attack upon the town of St. Paul; both the town and bay were then in their possession, as also La Caroline frigate and two Indiamen her prizes, upon which this government had counted for supplying its deficiency of revenue. During the attack, great disorders had been committed by the black