been attempted by a thing calling itself a government?

309. On the part of such people nothing can surprise; and therefore the language made use of to coax and wheedle the petty officers and seamen, we will let pass; but we cannot help admiring Mr. CROKER'S conclusion," that the

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object of this war is, to secure the lasting re

pose of the world"! That is to say, to put down for ever a successful example of free government, existing under very moderately paid placemen, and having neither pensions, sinecures, retired allowances, established church, tithes, nor order of nobility. Ah! JOHN WILSON CROKER! the Americans had read your fine speeches about Mrs. CLARKE and the Duke of YORK; lovely as that connexion had been, they did not wish to see the like in their homely country; and perceiving that "the lasting repose of the world" was to be secured only by making them sweat for the support of MARY ANN CLARKES, and the like, they were determined to fight rather than suffer the

repose of the world" to be secured; and fight they did in reality, as we shall see in the sequel.

310. Though this was the language of the sly government, their tools, the newspapers, spoke out more broadly. They urged the government on to pursue a war of destruction against the Americans; and for what? Not for the purpose of obtaining redress for any wrong; not for the pur

pose of maintaining the maritime rights and power of the country; but for the purpose of crushing the American navy in its shell; for the purpose of taking it in time and destroying it for ever. This was the motive stated to the people by the newspapers; and this in fact was the motive with which they contrived to fill the minds of the people. In cases like this there is nothing equal to undeniable facts; and therefore I here take a passage from one of these newspapers, a paper called the "Times," and the article which I am about to quote was published in that paper in the early part of July 1814,

"In another part of this paper our readers will see a docu"ment calculated to call forth the most serious reflections. We "allude to the official statement of the American marine "force, which may now, alas! without irony, be termed a

navy. It consists (including three seventy-fours likely soon to be launched) of 33 vessels of war for the ocean, carrying 947 guns, and 32 vessels for the lakes, carrying 265 guns, beside 203 gun-boats, barges, &c. This force, we "have no hesitation in saying, must be annihilated. To dream ❝of making peace, until we have performed that essential duty "to ourselves and our posterity, would be a folly too deplo"rable for common reprehension. It would betray a wilful "and voluntary disregard of the national safety. Let us never "forget that the present war is an unprovoked attack on the very existence of Great Britain. The arch conspirators, of "whom Madison is the ostensible, and Jefferson the real head, "fancied that, whilst our army was employed in Spain, they "could with ease wrest Canada from our dominion. To any "considerable naval successes they did not even lift their hopes; but the fatal surrender of the Gurriere opened new prospects to them. Intoxicated with delight at beholding "the British flag struck to the American, the democratic go

"vernment seriously set about the task, which they had "before considered hopeless, of forming a navy. It is pain"ful to reflect how far they have proceeded in this under"taking. It is infinitely more painful to consider that even "the gallant affair of the Chesapeake has hardly served to "check the full tide of their presumptuous hopes. They are 86 now persuaded that the sea is their element, and not ours."Defeated and disgraced by land, they turn with pride and "confidence toward the ocean. Their very avarice is hushed; "their despicable economy is overcome; and in peace or war "they will henceforth look to one great object--the wresting "the trident from the hand of Britain.-It is idle to talk of "disputing with them about principles. They will give up any "principle to-day, and re-assert it to-morrow; and whether "they do or not is totally insignificant: but the struggle with "them is for actual power-power actually employed towards 66 our destruction. There is but one way to turn the current "of their thoughts and efforts from their present direction, "and that is, to crush their growing navy to atoms. The enter"prize may be twice as difficult now, as it would have been 66 (had our means then permitted it) in the first month of the "war; but it will infallibly be ten times as difficult, nay, it "may become absolutely impossible, if it is delayed till a future war. Now America stands alone; hereafter she may "have allies. Let us strike while the iron is hot."

311. JOHN WILSON CROKER'S Manifesto, which I have inserted above, bears date, the reader will perceive, the 30th of April, 1814. The article just inserted is of two months later date; but the language of the newspapers had been growing more and more urgent for war from the 30th of April up to this time. During those two months, defeat after defeat had been experienced by our navy; so that the exasperation had become quite horrible at the time when the publication just inserted took place. We must now

go back to the date of JOHN WILSON CROKER'S Manifesto; because the wickedness of this war turns upon its motive. This war added seventy millions to the debt of England: and, therefore, it is of the utmost importance that we ascertain its motive and leave no doubt whatever upon the subject. Many of the actors in this drama are still alive. Now is the time to put the facts upon record while they may contradict them, if they have the means. We have seen that, when the war ceased with France, the war with America ceased to have a cause, seeing that the grounds of dispute were put an end to by the existence of war between England and France. But while the Americans had four Commissioners in Europe, eagerly seeking to put an end to the war, we have seen that, at the very moment that the English government made peace with France, they too care to stipulate with all the rest of the powers, that none of them should interfere in the war between England and America. Why this stipulation? Why ask for such a stipulation? The object was, to continue the war against America single-handed, and to crush her for ever; that is to say, to destroy her constitution, if not to recolonize her; to break up her union, at the least, as had been contemplated by the secret agency of Captain HENRY.

312. And now I have to relate something that came to my own knowledge with regard to

the intentious of this government. A day or two before the issuing of the manifesto of JOHN WILSON CROKER, I, about nine o'clock in the morning, was going along the street, and passing the door of the Treasury in WHITEHALL. Out of that door came the late Mr. JOHN REEVES, who was a sinecure placeman to the amount of about five thousand pounds a year, clear money; and who, of course, detested everything resembling the American constitution and government; being, however, except with regard to his politics, a very worthy man, and a very good friend of mine. He had just heard the intentions of the government with regard to America; and, everlastingly disputing with me as to such matters, he could not in the fulness of his joy, restrain himself from communicating to me the triumphant intelligence. He told me, in the way of taunt : "You will now see your friends, the Yankees, done for." "What," said I, " you are not going to make colonies of them, are you?" "Perhaps not," said he," but we shall demolish their towns upon the coast; and harass them and divide "them, and break up their jacobin government."

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313. I knew that REEVES was not a man to say this to me without there being something in it. His anxiety for the success of such a horrible scheme might make him exaggerate; but I knew that he would not have said this unless there had been something of truth in it. There were four