Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1809-04-21

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the mesi s BpnspAr,e, VIII CT u, qur.ti.
cnably would moi be fairly Discus ed in
that honae. IT would. at leas, be allowed,
tina, he knew the best means of accom-.
pliSh pg the objects he had in view.
Having, then, received from him
taunt as to an uupr otected part of our
dominions, let US take the hint, and by
An act of our own render repetition
OF the taurt unnecessary. 1t had been
said, tina, beat fool in mortar with
pestle. he would never quit his folly;
we had been beat in a mortar for ma
ny years, but what had we got but dis
grace. If we were to assist the Span
iatds il was the duty of ministers to
zee that there was a rational hope of
attaining our end. In his opinion
there was not any such rational expec-
taticn. The absurdity Of acting on
the divine right of Kings had been the
misfortune of this reign. In Support
ofie we had made an unavailing waste
ofblood and treasure, but we had never
yet embarked in any legitimate object.
We were now smarting under the Ell
fects OF the war with America, and the
burdens with which we were load d by
the correct ministers of those DAYS.
1t suited the right hon. gentleman
(Mr. Canningl to night TO say, that
the internal government of country
should not be interfered with. How
did this doctrine accord with the idea
of the contest in which for the last fif.
teen wears, we had been engaged with
the French, simply because they
CHI SC 10 alter their internal form of go.
vernment? Instead of monument
to tn memory Of the minister who
involved US in such a war, he deser-
we'd 10 have lost his head on the scat.
fold.
In addition to the other losses our
armies in Spain had sustained, he
though, that the life of the gallant Of
fcer WHO commanded the expedition
to have been TOO dearly sold for Fer
dinand the With. II he was right in.
formed, there were Bulletins in town,
In which, Notwithstanding the acrimo-
nv of the French ruler, he does ample
justice 10 the bravery of our armv and
its gallant commander. He could not
believe that men who, like our pre-
sent ministers, could see no merit in
an enemy, were 6t to rule over gem
erous people. He begged, however,
to disclaim the idea of being the adj
vocate of Bonaparte. AS to the gen
err state Of the war in Spain, unless
ministers proceeded on the fact Of the
known enthusiasm of the country--if
they presumed to take that Informal
ton on light grounds, they had been
guilty of 9 crime of the deepest mag
nitude, being course calculated above
all others to produce the greatest Ca
lami les In addition To accurate in
formation on this subject, they should
have been able to see that there would
be 800, 900 men in arms--jhat all the
passes were secured---lnl that they
would be able to fight with every all
vantage, not suhjec, to want of food,
and that they would only have to fall,
IL they did fall, in The field of glory.
ii these things could not be ensured,
then their duty was not to have land
ed a single man, but to have supplied
the Spaniar Is with arms and other ne
cessaries, which might have produced
a prolonga.ion of the war. These
were the only two rational plans Of
proceeding, instead of which ministers
had conteuted themselves with send
ing cnl, such body of men as was
sufficient to prevent disgrace to our
arms, which the valor OF our army
could itself effect, but not enough to
save the nation from an aching heart.
They presumed, too, to trust the Bril-
tisb character and honor on the rotten
plank OF the Spanish government, no. !
excepting evenl he Inquisition.-- They !
had no right 10 do so there was no
necessity for doing it.
With respect 10 the sen1ing money !
to the Spaniards, it would have well
become ministers, before they called !
for supply from the exhausted peck !
cts of the people, to have restored |
the million Of which Spain had been
some years ago uniusily pallased by |
the government of this countr and |