France; but their high mightineffes, for fome years past, have put a different meaning upon the word barrier, from what it formerly used to bear when applied to them. When the late king was prince of Orange, and commanded their armies against France, it was never once imagined, that any of the towns taken fhould belong to the Dutch; they were all immediately delivered up to their lawful monarch; and Flanders was only a barrier to Holland, as it was in the hands of Spain, rather than France. So in the grand alliance of 1701, the feveral powers promifing to endeavour to recover Flanders for a barrier, was understood to be the recovering those provinces to the king of Spain; but in this treaty the style is wholly changed: here are about twenty towns and forts of great importance, with their chatellanies and dependencies (which dependencies are likewife to be enlarged as much as poffible) and the whole revenues of them to be under the perpetual military government of the Dutch, by which that republic will be entirely mafter of the richest part of all Flanders; and upon any appearance of war, they may put their garrifons into any other place of the Low-countries; and farther, the king of Spain is to give them a revenue of four hundred thousand crowns a year to enable them to maintain those garrisons. Why should we wonder that the Dutch are inclined to perpetuate the war, when, by an article in this treaty, the king of Spain is not to possess one fingle town in the Low-countries, until a peace be made? made? The duke of Anjou, at the beginning of this war, maintained fix and thirty thousand men out of those Spanish provinces he then poffeffed: to which if we add the many towns fince taken, which were not in the late king of Spain's poffeffion at the time of his death, with all their territories and dependencies; it is vifible what forces the States may be able to keep, even without any charge to their peculiar dominions. The towns and chatellanies of this barrier always maintained their garrifons, when they were in the hands of France; and, as it is reported, returned a confiderable sum of money into the king's coffers; yet the kingdom of Spain is obliged, by this treaty (as we have already obferved), to add over and above a revenue of four hundred thousand crowns a year. We know likewife, that a great part of the revenue of the Spanish Netherlands is already pawned to the States; fo that, after a peace, nothing will be left to the fovereign, nor will the people be much eased of the taxes they at prefent labour under. Thus the States, by virtue of this Barrier-treaty, will, in effect, be abfolute fovereigns of all Flanders, and of the whole revenues of the utmost extent. And here I cannot, without fome contempt, take notice of a fort of reasoning offered by several people; that the many towns we have taken for the Dutch are of no advantage, because the whole revenues of those towns are spent in maintaining them. For firft, the fact is manifeftly falfe, parti cularly cularly as to Lifle and fome others. Secondly, the States, after a peace, are to have four hundred thoufand crowns a year out of the remainder of Flanders, which is then to be left to Spain. And laftly, fuppofe all these acquired dominions will not bring a penny into their treasury, what can be of greater confequence, than to be able to maintain a mighty army out of their new conquefts, which before they always did by taxing their natural fubjects ? How fhall we be able to anfwer it to king Charles II. that, while we pretend to endeavour reftoring him to the entire monarchy of Spain, we Join, at the fame time, with the Dutch to deprive him of his natural right to the Low-countries? But fuppofe by a Dutch barrier muft now be understood only what is to be in poffeffion of the States; yet, even under this acceptation of the word, nothing was originally meant except a barrier against France; whereas feveral towns, demanded by the Dutch in this treaty, can be of no use at all in fuch a barrier. And this is the fentiment even of prince Eugene himself (the present oracle and idol of the party here) who says, that Dendermond, Oftend, and the caftle of Gand, do in no fort belong to the barrier; nor can be of other use, than to make the States-general masters of the Low-countries, and hinder their trade with England. And further: that those who are acquainted with the country know very well, that to fortify Lier and Halle can give no fecurity to the States as a barrier, but only raise a jealoufy in the people, that thofe places are only fortified in order to block up Bruffels, and the other great towns of Brabant. In those towns of Flanders, where the Dutch are to have garrisons, but the ecclefiaftical and civil power to remain to the king of Spain after a peace, the States have power to fend arms, ammunition, and victuals, without paying customs; under which pretence, they will engross the whole trade of those towns, exclufive of all other nations. This prince Eugene likewise forefaw; and, in his obfervations upon this treaty, here annexed, proposed a remedy for it. And if the Dutch fhall please to think, that the whole Spanish Netherlands are not a fufficient barrier for them, I know no remedy from the words of this treaty, but that we muft ftill go on and conquer for them as long as they please. For the QUEEN is obliged, whenever a peace is treated, to procure for them whatever shall be thought necessary befides; and where their neceffity will terminate, is not very easy to foresee. Could any of her majefty's fubjects conceive, that, in those very towns we have taken for the Dutch, and given into their poffeffion as a barrier, either the States fhould demand, or our minifters allow, that the fubjects of Britain should, in refpect to their trade, be used worse, than they were under the late king of Spain? yet this is the fact, as monftrous as it appears: all goods going to or coming from Newport, or Oftend, are to pay the VOL. IX. M fame fame duties, as those that pass by the Scheld under the Dutch forts: and this, in effect, is to fhut out all other nations from trading to Flanders. The English merchants at Bruges complain, that, after they have paid the king of Spain's duty for goods imported at Oftend, the fame goods are made liable to further duties, when they are carried from thence into the towns of the Dutch new conquefts; and defire only the fame privileges of trade they had before the death of the late king of Spain, Charles II. And, in consequence of this treaty, the Dutch have already taken off eight per cent. from all goods they fend to the Spanish Flanders, but left it ftill upon us. But what is very furprizing, in the very fame article, where our good friends and allies are wholly shutting us out from trading in those towns we have conquered for them with fo much blood and treafure, the QUEEN is obliged to procure, that the States fhall be used as favourably in their trade over all the king of Spain's dominions, as her own fubjects, or as the people most favoured. This I humbly conceive to be perfect boys play; cross I win, and pile [p] you lose, or what's yours is mine, and what's mine is my own. Now, if it should hap pen, that in a treaty of peace fome ports or towns fhould be yielded us for the fecurity of our trade, in any part of the Spanish dominions at how great a distance foever, I fuppofe the Dutch would go on [p] The two fides of our coin were once nominally distinguished by cross and pile, as they are now by beads and tails. |
