The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-03-19
From The .Ne,c York Sun
LET US PROMPTLY PREPARE FOR THE
WORST.

Our readers know how earnestly we desire peace
how cheerfully and how ardently we would advocate
any measure that would insure it without the loss OF
our very existence independent nation. We
have vivid idea of the almost unspeakabe horrors
of war-of " cities sacked-ields ravaged-hearths
profaned " but although these fearful caamities,
they light compared to the fortunes, the lingering
death, the long agonies of national degradation which
slowly but steadily eat their way TO the hearts OF
that she will choose. The sncerest advocates 81
peace would instantly appeal to arms and the God
of battles" %
We do not yet wholly despair of an amicable ad-
justment of our difficulties with England We will
not cease to hope for such result until every posi-
bllity of II shall have passed away But the time has
gone by when the nation should be allowed to slum-
Der on in false security. The crisis is momentous--
the danger imminent. Not week, nay, not day,
or an hour, should be lost in rousing the public mind
and preparing for the worst Within six months
hostile fleets may be lowering upon our coast In
deed they doing so already. These I" Royal Mail
steamers" from the West Indies are nothing but war
ships in disguise They built for the purpose of
being turned into ships; we should not be sur
prised to learn that their armament already con-
cealed on board they sail along our coast and stop
at our principal ports under pretence of being mail
carriers, Idle subterfuge There mails for
them to carry. They cannot make money enough at
that business to pay for the Goals which they burn
We tell our people honestly and in all sincerity that
they will yet find these West India mail steamers
rives they will discharge broadsides instead of mails
and deliver shot and shells instead of letters.
z We know there are very many who think it not
ly Improbable but impossible, that we sholld have
war with England. They reason plausibly. They
say war would be Iunous to the commercial in
terests of both nations-hat the matters in dispute
are triilDg compared TO the cost even of single
paign--that the world has become more humanized
and Christanized than it was-that the dreadful ca
lamities Of former vars are remembered--that both
M lose more han hoy mir
that they too intelligent too moral and religious to
be guilty OF the folly and wickedness Of plugging into
a which must bring such widespread misery on
the human race These are great and good reasons
against war. They ought to prevail, but they will
not prevail until in the course of future ages that
happy time shall come when the human heart shall be
purified from all the bad and stormy passions which
for thousands of years have deluged the earth with
the blood of husbands ana fathers and the tears of
widows and orphans
We cannot deal with the world as il should be- for
it not 80, and cannot be made at once. We must
take It we find 1t. AS regards America the rea-
above alluded to would induce her to yield eve
~ point of mere expectancy rather than 60 to war
II when it becomes matter OF principle and of ma
onal existence, she must and she will resist all ag-
grcssions to the very last extremity.
The question then is. will England be induced by
hese reasons to abstain from driving US to this
remity Will she yield the principle for which we
contend in the of the Creole and will she yield
he right Of search If SO, it will be an abandon
nent her part OF the exclusive dominion of the
which she has so long been determined to main
ain, and all will 60 well. But we fear that she will
resolve TO maintain this dominion, and will consider
10 maintenance important than all the interests
hat she will endanger by gong to war. Ii So the
Rubcon is crossed. No other considerations W i'll re-
train her. The bloody and relentless war which She
$ at this morsent waging against China shows that
VI can make calcu a,ions upon her morality, reli-
yion or humanity A war against America would
not be half as wicked as that against China.
Nor will the remembrance of the caamities of
former wars go far towards preventing new conflicts.
Europe has vivid recollection of the fields of Arcola
Marengo, Hohenlinden, Austerlitz, Moscow, Water
100 and hundred others-but with all the carnage
and horrors of those appalling scenes before them
and with many public still the stage Of action
who participated in them, it is but year or two
since they were on the very point Of repeating them
single spark would have caused a conhagraon that
would again have wrapped Europe in flames
We do not say these things for the purpose of ere
lting unreasonable alarm, but to impress upon our
and people the tremendous necessity of
ence. In our opinion delay would be madness
England has already prepared for and actually begun
he conflict. Her policy is to annoy the South by
means of the slave population. To this end she es-
ablshes depots and fleets of armed steamers in the
Vest Indies. She invites the slaves to revolt, and
very assistance and protection is offered them We
re already assailed, and must prepare to act on
he defensive. The truth is, our last war was only
alf fought out we entered into truce upon the
main point involved in it, the fright of search and
low shall probably be under the necessity of finish
ng the contest Let Congress at once lay aside all