bitant demands, they grew jealous of his honour, and were unanimous to affift him in continuing the war at any hazard, rather than fubmit. This fully, reftored his authority; and the fupplies he hath received from the Spanish West-Indies, which in all are computed, fince the war, to amount to four hundred millions of livres, and all in fpecie, had enabled him to pay his troops. Befides, the money is spent in his own country; and he hath fince waged war in the most thrifty manner by acting on the defenfive; compounding with us every campaign for a town, which cofts us fifty times more than it is worth, either as to the value or the confequences. Then he is at no charge for a fleet, further than providing privateers, wherewith his fubjects carry on a piratical war at their own expence, and he shares in the profit; which hath been very confiderable to France, and of infinite difadvantage to us, not only by the perpetual loffes we have fuffered, to an immenfe value, but by the general difcouragement of trade, on which we fo much depend. All this confidered, with the circumftances of that government, where the prince is mafter of the lives and fortunes of fo mighty a kingdom, fhews that monarch not to be fo funk in his affairs as we have imagined, and have long flattered ourselves with the hopes of. Thofe who are against any peace without Spain, feem likewife to have been mistaken in judging our victories, and other fucceffes, to have been of greater confequence than they really were. When When our armies take a town in Flanders, the Dutch are immediately put into possession, and we at home make bonfires. I have fometimes pitied the deluded people, to fee them fquandering away their fewel to fo little purpose. For example: what is it to us that Bouchain is taken, about which the warlike politicians of the coffee-house make such a clutter? What, though the garrifon furrendered prifoners of war, and in fight of the enemy? We are not now in a condition to be fed with points of honour. What advantage have we, but that of spending three or four millions more to get another town for the States, which may open them a new country for contributions, and increase the perquifites of the general? In that war of ten years under the late king, when our commanders and foldiers were raw and unexperienced, in comparison of what they are at prefent, we loft battles and towns, as well as we gained them of late, fince thofe gentlemen have better learned their trade; yet we bore up then, as the French do now: nor was there any thing decifive in their fucceffes; they grew weary as well as we, and at laft confented to a peace, under which we might have been happy enough, if it had not been followed by that wife treaty of partition, which revived the flame that hath lafted ever since. I fee nothing elfe in the modern way of making war, but that the fide, which can hold out longest, will end it with most advantage. In such a close country as Flanders, where it is carried on by fieges, the army that acts offenfively is at a much greater expence of men and money; and there is hardly a town taken, in the common forms, where the befiegers have not the worse of the bargain. I never yet knew a foldier, who would not affirm, that any town might be taken, if you were content to be at the charge. If you will count upon facrificing fo much blood and treasure, the reft is all a regular, established method, which cannot fail. When the king of France, in the times of his grandeur, fat down before a town, his generals and engineers would often fix the day when it fhould furrender: the enemy, fenfible of all this, hath, for fome years paft, avoided a battle, where he hath fo ill fucceeded, and taken a furer way to confume us, by letting our courage evaporate against stones and rubbish, and facrificing a fingle town to a campaign, which he can so much better afford to lose, than we to take. Lastly, those who are so violent against any peace, without Spain being restored to the house of Auftria, have not, I believe, caft their eye upon a cloud gathering in the north, which we have helped to raife, and may quickly break in a storm upon our heads. The northern war hath been on foot almost ever fince our breach with France. The fuccefs of it is various; but one effect to be apprehended was always the fame, that fooner or later it would involve us in its confequences; and that whenever this happened, let our fuccefs be never fo great against VOL. IX. L France, France, from that moment France would have the advantage. By our guarantee of the treaty of Travendall, we were obliged to hinder the king of Denmark from engaging in a war with Sweden. It was, at that - time, understood by all parties, and fo declared even by the British ministers, that this engagement specially regarded Denmark's not affifting king Auguftus. But however, if this had not been so, yet our obligation to Sweden ftood in force, by virtue of former treaties with that crown, which were all revived and confirmed by a fubfsequent one concluded at the Hague, by Sir Jofeph Williamfon and Monfieur Lilienroot, about the latter end of the king's reign. However, the war in the north proceeded; and our not affifting Sweden was at least as well excufed by the war which we were entangled in, as his not contributing his contingent to the empire, whereof he is a member, was excufed by the preffures he lay under, having a confederacy to deal with. In this war, the king of Sweden was victorious; and what dangers were we not then expofed to? What fears were we not in? He marched into Saxony; and, if he had really been in the French intereft, might at once put us under the greatest difficulties. But the torrent turned another away, and he contented himself with impofing on his enemy the treaty of Alt Raftadt; by which king Auguftus makes an abfolute ceffion of the crown of Poland, renounces any title to it, acknowledges Stanislaus; and then both he and the king of Sweden join in defiring the guarantee of England and Holland. The QUEEN did not indeed give this guarantee in form; but, as a steps towards it, the title of king was given to Stanislaus by a letter from her majefty; and the ftrongeft affurances were given to the Swedish minifter, in her majesty's name, and in a committee of council, that the guarantee fhould fpeedily be granted; and that, in the mean while, it was the fame thing as if the forms were paffed. In 1708, king Auguftus made the campaign in Flanders: what meafures he might at that time take, or of what nature the arguments might be that he made ufe of, is not known: but immediately after he breaks through all he had done, marches into Poland, and re-affumes the crown. After this we apprehend, that the peace of the empire might be endangered; and therefore entered into an act of guarantee for the neutrality of it. The king of Sweden refufed, upon feveral accounts, to fubmit to the terms of this treaty; particularly because we went out of the empire to cover Poland and Jutland, but did not go out of it to cover the territories of Sweden. Let us therefore confider what is our cafe at prefent. If the king of Sweden return and get the better, he will think himself under no obligation of having any regard to the interefts of the allies; but will naturally purfue, according to his own expreffion, his enemy wherever he finds him. In L 2 this |