A preliminary treaty of peace was signed on Tuesday by
the . plenipotentiaries of Great Britain, France, and Holland. The embargo upon Dutch vessels in the ports of England and France is to be taken off; and the Dutch garrison of Antwerp, now pri- soners in France are to be sent home. The armistice between Holland and Belgium is to continue until they can agree to a definitive treaty of peace ; and in the mean time, the navigation of the Scheldt is to be free.
This arrangement upgelfrto be satisfactory as far as it goes. At any rate, we may congratulate ourselves upon being out of the scrape for the present; our blockading squadron may now return home, and vessels of a more peaceful character once more visit the Dutch coast. The King of Holland has proved himself to be so irrational a person, that it is hazardous to put forth an opinion as to what may bare been his immediate inducement to come to terms with England and France, after his positive declaration that he would treat only with the Five Powers. But we can believe, that, in the first place, he despairs of receiving the least, assistance from Russia, who has made an excellent tool of him, but has now her hands fully employed in Turkey ; secondly, that he feared the menace of another expedition by a French army, to reduce him to obedience, was about to be put in execution ; and thirdly, that his own subjecSe would no longer submit to the capture.of their shipping, and the material diminution of their trade, Continental as well as foreign, on the Rhine as well as on the Thames, for the sake of a forcible reunion with the Belgians, triOrf elially dislike.
It is ex'pect.ed that the ratifications will be exchanged early next week:
