384 THE REPUBLIC OF RAGUSA
   At the end of October a French squadron under Brueys appeared at Gravosa, and the Admiral offered the Republic the “ good offices ” of France, which were politely declined on the ground that Ragusa was under Turkish suzerainty. In August 1798 the French military authorities demanded the loan of some ships for the expedition to Egypt, and the request was granted. This caused General Brady, in command of the Austrians at Cattlro, to reprimand the Senate severely for its breach of neutrality, and he had to be appeased by a loan of
12,000	florins for his war chest. A short time afterwards a French agent named Briche came to Ragusa to raise a loan of 1,000,000 francs for France, and by means of threats induced the Senate to pay 400,000 down and issue two bills for 100,000 each. Austrian spies discovered this transaction, and informed their Government that the young men of Ragusa were imbued with French ideas. But the Senate cleverly protested against this forced contribution both in Vienna and in Constantinople, and suggested that the most adequate protection against similar extortions would be the presence of a few British frigates in the Adriatic. Caracciolo, their agent at Naples, opened negotiations with the British Minister for the purpose. At the same time their agent in Paris tried to obtain the remission of the bills, but without success, and the 200,000 francs had to be paid to Dubois, the French Commissary in the Adriatic. Another misfortune befell the Republic, which had a large sum of money invested in the Bank of Vienna. As the Emperor was again going to war the Bank made a call on the shareholders of 30 per cent, of their capital. Ragusa