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Alas! no nation has had a more fatal experience on this head than France. She can best appreciate that military government which has cost her so many sacrifices, and the pretended advantages of conquests, and glory in arms. Has not each one of her numerous triumphs diminished her intrinsic force? and have not all those brave and brilliant armies, acknowledged to be the best in the world, conducted her from victory to victory, almost to her ruin?

Who does not distinctly perceive that this deplorable system of military despotism was carrying us back with rapid strides to the night of barbarism? Already, as in the times of anarchy at Rome, factious troops acknowledged no law but their will, and raised to the throne of an oppressed people a favourite leader; or, as among the Asiatics, audacious janissaries made or deposed the sovereign according to their caprice.

We were approaching fast, not under the auspices of the Bourbons, but those of Bonaparte, to the feudal state in its essence.— The feudal system originated with military communities, and was nothing more than martial laws applied to civil purposes. Military chiefs, who had raised themselves to supreme power, granted to those who had rendered them important services, entire domains peopled with vassals reduced to servitude by the laws of war. Conquerors, from the same motive, stripped their victims of their lands, and parcelled them out among their soldiers. It was thus that Cæsar often rewarded his legions. But, what were Bonaparte's dotations to his officers and troops, if not rewards of a similar description and tendency? Were not the towns and villages included within these dotations subjected, or

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very nearly so, to the law of vassa. lage? was not, in fact, this degrading feudality realized all over France? were not the citizens, in many respects, the real vassals of that vast horde of soldiery whom they supported-who devoured the produce of their property, and the fruit of their toils? If the power of the new proprietors had been consolidated, would they not have enjoyed all the seignorial privileges which they chose to exact?

We have all history attesting, that military governments are the most oppressive, the least in ac cordance with a state of enlightened civilization, and the best adapted to bring us back to the ages of darkness. Servitude had its origin in the midst of the military ranks, and it was only by gradually freeing themselves from the yoke of military despotism, that nations were enabled to advance towards a more tolerable condition of society. It is therefore incumbent upon us, to unite all our efforts against that spirit which threatens to plunge us again into barbarism. It is time that order should succeed to anarchy, and the reign of law be substituted for that of force.

If Europe has assumed her military and truly alarming attitude, only to repel the unjust and perpetually impending aggressions of France, directed by the most ambitious and unprincipled of conquerors, the cause existing no longer, the effect should likewise cease. We have a right then to hope that these late events will restore to all nations that repose which they all invoke with equal fervour; and that admonished by so many convulsions and disasters, Europe will hasten to reduce those vast armaments, the continuance of which will only give birth to fresh revolutions.

OF

ENGLAND AND ENGLISHMEN.

From the French of J. B. SAY, Author of a Treatise on Political Economy.

THE long interruption of the

communications between France and Great Britain, has rendered very valuable the few moments elapsed since the peace. We have been at liberty to seek, on the other side of the channel, an explanation of several phenomena, the results of which only were known to us; and to measure the lever which more than once has raised Europe.

The prodigious influence exerted by the British nation on the continent is not to be traced to her military force, or indeed to her navy. Nor is it to be attributed to British gold; for, ever since the year 1797, Great Britain has had no other than paper money, which does not rest upon any metallic security; and perhaps of all the nations in the world, England, considering every thing, owns the least quantity of the precious metals. The wealth and the credit of this nation have worked the wonders which we have witnessed, and as those powerful arms are the result of her whole public economy, it is the system of her economy which is her characteristic feature, and which deserves to fix our attention.

Until the year 1814, France who had the ascendancy on the continent, and Great Britain who had the same ascendancy at sea, could not fairly be said to have come to a direct, close contest, and as neither their existence, nor indeed

VOL. I.

their power, was endangered by the numerous engagements which they had with each other on both elements, however much humanity may deplore the effect, those engagements can be considered in no other light than as skirmishes. But their total result has been to deprive England for nearly twenty years, of her easy and regular communications with the continent, and France of almost all her maritime relations. The colonies separated from the mothercountry, have either rendered themselves independent, or become a prey to the British; and all the commerce beyond seas has fallen into their hands. And, if we except a small number of strag gling vessels, most of which even could not escape them, it was in their ships, or at least by their permission, that the merchandise of Asia and America was brought to our quarter of the globe, and that the produce of the European soil and industry found its way to the other parts of the world. Whether this preponderance have been confessed or not, whether this commerce was carried on by smuggling or licenses, in disguise or openly, still such is the fact.

What have been the consequences of this monopoly? The commercial profits of Great Britain have increased in a wonderful degree. More than twenty thousand vessels of all nations, have entered every year the ports

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of Great Britain. The wealthiest merchants of Holland, Bremen, Lubeck, and Hamburgh, terrified at the approach of a conqueror, who advanced not only with cannon but systems, took refuge in England, and carried with them their capitals Commercial enterprises multiplied; a greater number of agents of every description, from the supercargo to the porter, found employment; and as families augment in proportion to the means afforded to procure a livelihood, the population of the maritime cities of Great Britain increased in a very remarkable degree. London is no longer a city: it is a province covered with houses. Glasgow, which in the year 1791, contained a population of only 66,000 inhabitants, has now 110,000: Liverpool, which in 1801, reckoned 77,000 inhabitants, contains now 94,000: Bristol in the same space of time has advanced from 63 to 76,000 souls.

The establishment of docks and warehouses free from custom house duties, in all these ports, facilitated the distribution throughout Europe, of the goods which arrived there from every corner of the world, and the exportation of the produce of the interior was encouraged by the drawbacks. But another cause which had never been thought of, favoured this immense commerce still more.

After Bonaparte had succeeded at last, by gradual encroachments, in usurping all power in France, his restless activity, the gigantic project of universal domination, made every people of Europe, one after another, an enemy to France. Republican France had no enemies but kings. Under Bonaparte, nations became her adversaries. Those who appeared to be the allies of Bonaparte, were his secret

enemies. The abominable system by which immense armies are made to subsist at the expense of the country which they occupy, whether friend or foe, had by degrees heightened this enmity into rage. But Europe exhausted by long and obstinate wars, compelled, when she dared to resist, to oppose a whole population under arms, to an invading population, could not support the expenses of so difficult a defence. Nothing but the most prodigiously active industry, could produce annually, the means of defraying the immense cost of wars, such as those which have been waged for fifteen years past.

All the countries already invaded, and those threatened with invasion, without being partial to England, were yet compelled to look to her for subsidies. British agents spread over every accessible part of the continent, and in the allied armies, in Portugal, in Spain, in Germany, forced to procure either in kind, or in cash, all the succours which Great Britain had engaged to furnish, offered their drafts on London, an operation which rendered bills of exchange payable in England, abundant on the continent; and this lowered the exchange to such a degree, that a pound sterling, which at first was equal to twentyfour francs, could, for a while, be bought on the continent, at from sixteen to seventeen francs.*

* It is an error to suppose that the depreciation of exchange on London, originated in want of confidence in bank notes, the only currency with which a bill of exchange on England can be paid. Twenty-three francs are now given for one pound sterling, which formerly sold for not more than sixteen francs. Still we all know, in 1816, that the bank of England is now no more

The same depreciation obtained with respect to the currency of Hamburgh, Vienna, and Lisbon.

What was the result?

Every speculator of whatever nation, could draw goods from England, and procure at a profit, the money with which he was to pay for them. If he bought in Birmingham goods to the amount of a pound sterling, instead of giv ing twenty-four francs French for the pound sterling, which he was to remit for the goods, he had to pay at most, eighteen francs, so that he could well agree to make no profit on the goods; nay more, he could even agree to lose upon them, since by the exchange alone, he gained twenty-five per cent, or one fourth of the sum to be remitted. We ought not then to be surprised at the activity of the British manufacturers at certain times, and at the increase observable in the population of both their manufacturing, as well as commercial cities, although in these last in a less remarkable degree.

(about 445 pounds of 8 ounces,) was sold in 1813, as high as 136 shillings.

This enormous price having considerably increased the profits of the farmers, by a necessary consequence, the rent of the farms advanced at the renewal of every lease, and both farmers and proprietors made considerable gains.

But whilst the war induced this forced exertion of British industry, the British themselves derived but little advantage from it. The taxes and loans wrested from them all the profits. The taxes weighed at once upon the labours of all classes, and robbed them of the best portion of their earnings; and the loans absorbed in part, the savings of those bold adventurers, of those knowing speculators, who were on the watch to make the most of circumstances.

The facility with which the government could obtain loans, that is to say, spend any sum provided it could pay the interest on the same, led to the most enormous Such are the causes of the pro- prodigality. The expenses of the gress made during the war by the war were greater to England than commerce and manufactures of to any other nation. In the first Great Britain; But this is not all. place, the administration, in what The population of the cities in-relates to the purchase of necessacreasing with the profits of indus- ry supplies, suffered, as well as try, the demand for all articles of every other consumer, by the infood increased likewise. Wheat, creased price of all articles; of the average price of which in which increased price, itself was 1794, was 56 shillings the quarter, the first cause. Great Britain has to pay not only for her own supplies, but for those of her allies; not only the stipend of her own armies, but those of many others. The military and naval forces of Great Britain are scattered all over the globe.

able to redeem its notes in specie, than it was in 1813.

During the war, one hundred guineas in gold payable in London, might have been bought with ninety-three guineas in gold on the continent. There was no want of confidence connected with this transaction. The cause was the abundance of depreciated English currency, that is, of the kind of currency payable in London, and not the want of

confidence in the notes.

Supplies to be sent, magazines to be formed in Asia or America, cost twice as much as the same would cost in Europe. Every soldier sent there, costs as much as

two soldiers near home; and this is a great advantage secured for ever to the United States, in their quarrels with Great Britain.

I speak not here of the abuses in expense; they are carried to a most scandalous height: nor of ancient abuses, which have crept in by degrees; nor of late ones, which have been introduced on purpose; nor of those which are pointed out, and inveighed against, by the opposition party, because none but the friends of the ministry profit by them; nor of those upon which all parties are silent, because they are countenanced by the national vanity. I speak of the whole together, the result of which is, that, although taxes have quadrupled since the year 1793, the expenses of each year have progressively exceeded the amount of the revenue;-that it became necessary to provide for this progressive deficit by loans more considerable from year to year, and which have ultimately carried the principal of the debt of Great Britain, to the enormous sum of seven hundred and seventy-seven millions, four hundred and sixty thousand pounds sterling; the annual interest of which, added to the current expenses, rendered, in the year 1813, the total amount of the public expenses of the central government no less than the incredible sum of one hundred and twelve millions, three hundred and ninety-one thousand pounds sterling.

One is apt to conceive himself mistaken, in contemplating such a frightful result for the expenses of one single year, which, according to all appearances, has been exceeded by the expenses of 1814, and still more by those of 1815. But this statement is founded on official communications, and at

tested by writers devoted to the British administration.

Of this amount of annual expense, about sixty-nine millions sterling, were supplied by the taxes of the year. The rest was procured from loans and anticipations; in other words, about one milliard, seven hundred millions of francs have been raised upon the revenues, or if you please, on the annual profits of the British nation, and one milliard* on its capital or savings, and that too, independent of the taxes which the nation pays for local expenses, for public wor ship, and for the poor, which, as every one knows, amount to considerable sums. So that, it is not perhaps far from truth, to declare, that the British government devours one half of the revenues which spring from the aggregate produce of the soil, of the capital, and of the industry, of the British nation.

In the moral, as in the physical world, facts grow out of each other. A result becomes the cause of another result, which in its turn will become a cause. The enormity of the burdens supported by the British nation, has rendered exorbitantly expensive all the products of its soil, and of its industry. Each of the articles consumed by the productive classes, each of their movements, if I may say so, being taxed, the produce of their industry has become dearer, while they are not benefited by the increase of price. In each profession, the gains are not sensibly greater, in consequence of the increased price of the articles produced, because, this increased price goes to the discharge of the additional taxes to be paid by the producer, and thus adds nothing to

*A milliard of francs is about 600 millions of dollars.

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