The National Register. — London, England, 1814-07-10 00:00:00

TIIE NATIONAL REGISTER. be felt by all, seen by all, and partaken by all. We agree with a writer in The Chronicle," " that it might be as wel to devote the sums, about to be expended, in remunerating those who have fought the battles of their country by sea and land." But where all have behaved well where will you begin, or where will you end ? The task is too impractica ble and invidious to deserve a serious reply—all that we can do is to commemorate the .occasion of their triumphant re turn,—and how is this to be done but by public fetes and festive greetings ? But we feel more surprised at the ground taken by these gentlemen, " yclept the Whigs," than with the faltering ambling eloquence of the fastidious " Times," that, like the man in the fable, blows hot and cold at the same moment. The accession of the House of Brunswick has always been considered by the genuine Whigs as the epoch of.the signal triumph of the purest principles of our Constitution ; it is now a century since they began to reign, and new and singular successes have secured still more firmly their equitable dominion and the people's right. If these are not sufficient to satisfy the scrupulous virtue of these gentlemen, we shall despair of pleasing them, though we fed on the mouldering crust and perfumed garlic of a Thogenea. • The details of the attack on Fort Oswego, under Sir George Prevost, wilt be found in the Gazette of Tuesday last, and reflect additional honour to the vigour of our arms and the bravery of our soldier. A fuw months, how ever, will most likely terminate the unequal contest, unless something more is desired than redress for the injuries we bavr. wantonly received from America. We have heard it whispered that hopes hare seen e.rpressed of again anneaing the new world to the Crown of Great Britain ; a measure of much glory at least, but to us of extremely doubtful policy, and one more difficult of attainment than perhaps ur poli ticians may imagine, Tt is a good sign of improvement when reformation begin s at borne ; and the man who sets his house in order, lest he should die, has F •Ane right to advise his neighbour of the danger which he thinks involves them both. how many disgraceful exhibitions the punishment to be inflicted upon Lord Coahraue may save, is best known to the great body of his prosecutors, who s e fortunes bave certainly been acquired Ly means the most honourable. It would otherwise be curi (Ins to see men, whose bags were made u p of or p hans, tears, and midows' sighs, inculpating, the frauds of other s, and standing forward to protect the public against a specie s of deception, which their whole lives would have been devoted to mature and perfect, for purposes unfavourable .to all proper industry, and destructive of true morality. Lord Cochrane indeed deserves less compassion than he would have received, had he not evidently suffered himself to he fooled by the cupidity and guilty avarice of his uncle ; but we must confess, with our knowledge of the practices of many Stock Exchange adventurers, and of the rank of the individuals who occasionally play booty, the bankruptcy it gives rise to, and the system altogether, we shall only sae, that the man found there frequently merits the most signal disgrace. • 4.14 zd Sr akr' .TITLY It will be seen by our Parliamentary report, that Govern ment have been obliged to apply to the House for new pow. ers to strengthen the Executive in Ireland :—To attribute the state of the country to the Catholic Board alone, we think is conferring too much honour on the popularity of that despicable faction. There must be an error more radical somewhere, and which perhaps would be best investigated by the appointment of some persons duly qualified to probe the evil, and to administer to it. 'We, however, fear that Ireland will never be thoroughly tranquil until the great pro. prietors of estates give up their time and attention to the affairs of their native country, and spend smile part of the immense revenue derived from Ireland, in the 'amelioration and improvement of the condition of the lower orders of the people. For this purpose, instruction cannot be too sedu. lously promoted amongst them, as the best and only anti dote to the uses which designing men arc constantly makin; of their present lamentable state of ignorance. For some time to come little can occur in foreign politic;„ and the little we receive must come through a channel too impure to make up our judgments upon; yet we cannot help feeling much anxiety for some authentic news from Spain, that may enable us to form an opinion upon the merits of its present proceedings. As friends to rational li berty and the principles of our own government, we cannot be indifferent to the violence and despotism betrayed by Ferdinand : his whole conduct is destructive of all social and moral improvement, and will most likely have the effect of exciting that popular commotion, which, at the commence ment of the French Revolution, swept every thing before it, and which no longer excites a figure of speech, but supplies a data to all the miseries of the last twenty years. The time perhaps that has elapsed is too short to determine the character of what may be the ultimate fate of the Conti. nent as to manners and government. But that a singular change has taken place is allowed on all hands, and that the change so spoken of, is by no means favourable to the revival of despotic power. The ideas of men are certainly very loose and undefined as to particular forms of government ; yet even in France liberty is certainly looked up to, rather indeed as an avenger than a healer, but equally fatal in its operations, if once called forth again, where there is nothing left to restrain or modify its extravagancies, and where every thing is contemplated at the point of the sword. Nor let us remit any part of our attention to France. In this country we are too apt to be deceived by appearance 3. We must not mistake the present quietness of France for that repose which recruits the exhausted energies of reason, and sobers the empire of the Nssions. It is the repose of dissatisfaction which precedes a s torm rather than allays it, and which at no very distant day will involve the world in new convulsions, if the principles laid down by this country are departed from, or if we remit the rein which success and sound policy have enabled us to put upon this fiekie people. With the Spaniards it is altogether different—high mindei aad conscious, oppression but increases the pensive nature Lof their character. The struggle of opposite interests is too