The Sun.
London, England, 1803-08-19 00:00:00

THE REVILIV.

A fourth edition of Mr. M'Arthur's interesting
work, entitled' Finunrial Faat of the'
Eighteenth and present Century,. hag just been pub.
fished. On a former occasion we reviewed the
third edition, and gave Occasionallrlxtraels frOM
his Comparative Estimates of the Revenue, Debts,
Martufaitnres, and cominerce of Great Britain, at
different periods during the Eighteenth Century.
In the .present edition the Author has introduced
many additional and recent ft is relativ.: to the pre.
sent posture of affairs, and Our political relations
with the Continent, on which he
.has reasoned with
peculiar force. The work has a degree of interest
einneeted with it at.the present juncture, and con.
tains:a mass of information brought int > the Small
compass of an oaavo volume, with which the Public
must be gratified, as we assure them we have been,
on a perusal of the book. ' In the Introdklion pre.
fixed to this edition, th.; Author, in animated terms,
animadverts on the objets Bonaparte had in con.
templation by a continuance of the late Peace. The
Author-has also briefly and temperately .examiried
the late Treaty of Amiens, under the three dis.
tind heads requisite fur a good Peace, namely—
!. Stability. x. Indemnification,. 3. Alliance:.
lie makes the following observation respe4ing the
War We are unavoidably involved, in, and after.
wards' examines the various successes of our arms
over France in ancient and modern times.

" The Republic of krance having thrOwn down
the gauntlet in the person of the First Consul, who
after offering repeated insults and indignities since
signing the Definitive Treaty, 'boasts that Great
Britain single-handed cannot cope with France, and
avows the destrudion of' our ManufaCtures and
Commerce by shutting the Ports of Burge against
us, We have no alternative ; our lot is cast, and
we are now involved in another War with an ant-
bitious and revolutionary Republic. The cOntest
must.be arduous, and the sacrifices to which we are.
doomed to submit must unavoidably be great. .If
the struggle be not terminated in one year, and
Peace scatted On a firm basis, we may reasonably
calculate on this renewed warfare being protrud—
ed to as long a period as the last.
" A War for the preservation of our rights and
liberties, and when Great Britain is threatened to
he made tributary to France, must impress every
mind with the necessity of persevering to the last,
in counteraaing the ambitious views of the Enemy.
The present period is not less eventful and critical
than at the beginning .of the century, when the first
impression of this work was'published. Despair
arid despondency then pervaded most people's'mind,
to behold the, maritime strength of Europe menacing
the destruetion of England's naval power. But the
Spirit and patriotism of the country, were then
roused (as it is to be hoped they will now, he), and:
'our energies were
.most gloriously and successfally
exerted."

The :Author has by unswerable arguments and
incontrovertible fails' refute,l'the assertions of Same
Writers, who pretend that War and the increased
circulation of B,ank of England Notes have occasion.
eel scarcity, and ilearne,,s of provision's, C. In
buiport of his arguments,'he has given front official
documents comparative statements of the prices of
Wheat at different periods in Peace and War during
the two. last centuries. By taking the annual average
prices for three, four, or five years of Peace, and
comparing them with the annual ,average Frees of
three, four, or five 'years in War, he has incontro.
vertibly proved that Wheat has been invariably
cheaper in War than in Peace.—llis refleitions on
,this subjed are manly and striking.
" It appears evidently tO.be the efilet principally
.of natural causes, and the unfavourableness of the
season. It ought rdthrr. to be viewed, not as
permanent evil, but as a transient event. he his.
tory of all nations, particidarly in the Ea tern
world, points out to us that calamities of this nature
have occasionally happened,'and must be otpciled4
and that provisions will, at particular seasons, rise
in price, front natural and unforeseen causes, not.
withstanding all the efforts of Ministers and Par.
liaments to prevent or remedy the evil. These
'ought to be considered as the visitations of the
Divinity, and as consequences, which the wisdom
of moo cannot foresee or provide against. The
Qoveromenr, thetklote, ought by no means tel be
blamed for not of Being impossibilities and counter.
idling natural events."
ltd ;very country and in all Ages, &mills and
famines have occasionally happened. We find upon
record that for the last hod;
.years, England has
sustained her share of these calamities; and it may
ur such an eventful period as the present, be inter.
esting to the contemplative Reader to have laid be-
fore him, 'a few of the principal tit..:,rths and famines
with :which this Country has at different tinr.s in the
last 790 yeas been afiliaed, together With, the causes
‘vhien tccasioned them.

1,069,, the beginning of King William the tan.:
rinerpr's reign, there was:a great dearth of provi-
sion* thrtiugh-all Englard, especially in Nortistun.
Berland and the Northern Counties. The people
were glad to eat horses, cats, dogs, and human
flesh ; and all the land between Durham and York
lay waste, without inhabitants to cultivate, the.
ground for the space of nine years. ,
This was occasioned by. the Normans hakring laid
waste so much of England soon after the Conquest.
Hence a just inference may be drawn, namely, that.
a recurrence of siMilar calamitous CVCIIS might be
dreaded,. shoug ever Bonaparte succeed in the
threatened Invasion and Subjugation of Great Britain.
• ,Sooner than ,a flou'ishing
,Kingdom should be
otposed to the pillage o. a7rapactous Conqueror,
and thereby made a dreary wave, n.c
; v
..v;.ng a train
of canines similar to those we have just noticed',
and to which eventually it might be subjet—would
it not be a..th0u.,,,11 times ,preferable. for ,every
•
Tatra bit,ll)Nt g with. a 501',1c of Patna-
tiom for his Uonntry, 19,mulAte the glorious
biopic of I,f,!ollidilti arid I,ii,Chosen Band, at the Bat.
tie of Tim.nnopyhe;, antioli,ke this brave General,
resolve either. to Congiter an invading Foe, or to
to the last llat;,irthe attempt of defending his

.Itry.