The Sun.
London, England, 1801-09-02 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR -Of THE_SLT,37,

SIR,

..:WHEN I troubled .you some little time since with
a few animadversions on a Letter in the Morning,.
chroniele'on.tWsubjea of invasion, which a short
visit to town had given me an. opportunity of read-
I had nointention of addressing, you again..
But your insertion of them has encouraged me ; and,
. •
though Ihave now no opportunity of satisfying my
curiosity-(for what else could be satisfied) by read-
ing that• Paper, yet as have-had moreleisure to re-
flea .On the stibjeCt, perhaps some further *erva-
tiOnS" from an unbialseed bye-stander may 'not be
'altogether unacceptable. to you.
The Paper however to which have.refericd, has
I conclude preserved its consistency by an' industrious
• • • .•
perseverance in calumniating His Majesty's present
'Ministers, 'especially for, the steps which they have
thought proper to take to prepare the Country
against 'the'possibilitv-of an Invasion. From that
consistency I cannot spspeCt it's Editor of any clis-
position 'to depart.- _But I am more deceived than I
am willing tc, think. myself; ~.because.,l will not,
libel the tmderstandings of my countrymen, if he
has succeeded in leacliig 'the c+inion of one think,
in4,lnciyici.nal, to whnm the petulance of a •rancorons
Jacobin will not 'pass for argument, and who has
sufficient command over himself to suspend his dis-
gust, whilst his sober judgment calmly, weighs this
most critical and important of all considerations.
" Where all is at stake no rique-whatever should
• be 't-nn."---Tflis seems to me a solid and admirable
. proposition ; we know to a certainty, which not even
the. Morning Chronicle-has, ventured to contradict,
that very large,bodies of the best .dis'ciplined Troops,
completely equipped and • ably commanded, are
aktually assembled on the different coasts of France,-
.
frbm. whence a descent might, with the greatest ease,
or rather the least danger to themselves be attempted.
We know that a lafger nuniberof vehicles for those
Troops has been colletted, in their different ports
than at any period since the 'commencement of the
War. That rehearsals of such 'an attempt have
actually commenced; which I am by no means di's-,
posed to treat so lightly as those who.might perhaps
be as little,ipdined to meet French.Srms, they
have been to oppose French Principles. We know"
that, hopeless, of recovering Egypt, and-disabled by
the annihilation of her Navy from attempting any
• dist'ant operations,'France-can have no object Whit.
e-er in continuing the but the desperate de__
termination to aim a .blow a; the very`heart of
•Great Britain. Bat it seems Abat.nolmit,sion is in_
tended,.heeause that intention rias not bve-rrpubliely
announced by •the French Government..
have not forgotten What. passed in. the i 9 7 :
and a. man ofless shrewdness and very inferior tale iris
to BoN4r:AteiE? could not under,circumstances
-..nearly 'similar, to draw an useful lesson froth the
childish and frantic conduct of the French Rulers
• • .
of that day .—How did their repeated denunciatios,
their p4hlie avowals, their extravagan.t.threats, their

pile?lda "est Carthago, Operate on the Public Mind
of this Country ? To rouse a -martial spirit, un-
known even , in, our best days ; to unite
:all ranks
of people, to make a S9idier of every Citizen—l had.
almost said. 'to turn every plOugh-share into a fire-
lock,-ancl thus to enable-a vigilant Administration
to adopt measures which almost precluded the possi-
bility of success in the attempt. Had BoNATARTE
held Stich language, I should have been_ the first to
have doubted the reality of his intention. 'But ipsa
;filcatitz ters:ent,7when he springs, it will be like.
.the Tyger. ',Though let me be understood, Sir, as
-declaring my conviaion; that :Great Britain can
+nye nothing seriously to apprehend, till she should
be disposed to follow the c.baift)A;:na..trecherous
advice thus wiekedly, given in,a PubliC Print, .and
till Government, by its' .v'ant of vigilance and pre-
Taration, should deserve impeachment, and earn,the '
applause of the Editor of the. Morning Chronicle.'
saving no means of forming an opinibn hint' from
an-occasional perusal of A. Newspaper,
. . .
.I could."in-
deed almost be re4'to—think that the .Measures al_
ready-taken, had been less vigorous than the
cumstances of the two Countries called for, .Had, I
less confidence in .1-lis..lV)lajesty's Ministers, Who
- have better means of judging than I can.have, In
should think so decidedly. Should' .the War. t,
continue, which
.1 am the—last man to wish,
when could* so favourable an opportunity'Prel
sent itself, of •adapting some well-matured Plan,
sort^ thoroughly' digested System, of internal De..-
fence,,,by 'which all the Military Energies of the
Country mit)ht be called out iii an instant, to Which
the gloricins spirit 'of Volunteering in its service has
afforded,S,: Much ?- :Possibly this may be in
contemplation at this moment ; am sure it
t
ought. to be. It.
would recd eternal .credit on the
. Government by whom it was adopted,''and which
'must ever be closely connecied with the'pellnanent
SeciirrtY 'that the Country may derive' froin -their
efforts and v.'„ 'dom. It would be the most decisive