Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1856-07-03
EVENING STAR.
LORD! WHO'D HAVE THOUGHT 1T,

The national feeling of Englishmen ap-
pears to be fixed determination to take a
lessen from nothing but disaster. When the
most natural results occur we turn up our
eyes, and in the most ludicrously innocent
way exclaim, Lord, who would have thoug ght
it! Just look back at our past wars, and the
Lord-who would have. thoug ght it system peers
torth IN all Its glory. When our English Dra-
goons In the last French war got their stom-
aehs inconveniently poked with straight
swords, and discovered that swords shaped
like reaping-hooks could not interfere with
french stomschs in return-Lord who would
have thought it When the little Macedo-
man, Guerrero and Java frigates, in the
American war, had holes bored in their weak
planks by 24-pound shot and discovered that
lS-pound shot could not in the like way affect
the stout scsntling Of the huge Constitution.
President and United States opposed to them,
and consequently found themselves at the
bottom Of the sea or in an American port
Lord, who would have thought it?
when, In peace, We were sailing about in
beautiful looking yachts to our self -elorifca.
ton, laying out endless sums, in what we
thought, building fast craft, drinking toasts
at our club dinners, and making speeches TO
the effect that britannia was the only ruler
OF the waves, Yankee sneaks over and low
ers our national pride in the presence of Bri-
tannia's OWN vice.gerent, Victoria Regina,
and teaches us in good thrashng the valse
Of the long bow and fat sail-Lord, who
would have thought it? Paixhan guns and
Mimic rifles from France, and Colt reviewers
from America, carry further ard more de-
structive than English 32-pounders, Brown
bess, and kicking horse pistols-Lord, who
would have thought 1t? Engishmen cannot
live without food, and English horses eat their
own tails, and the names and tales of their
neighbors, in the absence of hay; English
doctors cannot cure diseases without medicine,
nor pioneers dig without spades; men lose
noses, fingers and toes if not protected by
covering when the mercury is below zero;
and bomb ketches and gunboats cannot batter
down town when their mortars or guns burst,
and there are none to replace them-Lord
who would have thought it? Now if the
Americans force US Into a war-which God
forbid, but there are limits to fUrbearance-
the Lord-who would -have-thOught-it system
threatens us again. The Americans have
five frigates nearly completed, SO their news
papers state; on the scantling, tonnage, and
lines of their Niagara steam frigate. She il
367 feet in length, Sc feet beam, % feet
draught of water, and is upwards of 5000
tons, with engines that can work up to 1000
horse power. The Niagara is fitted with Grif-
fifth propeller, and has realized eleven knots
without lifting the screw, which would give
Lts
This frigate carries an enormously heavy ar
mament Our last built frigate. the Impe-
rieuse, the Euryalus and Shannon, are per-
tecily dwaThsh in comparison, and no more
fitted TO contend with the Niagara than the
Macedonian and Guerriere with the Constitu.
tiOn and United States.
The Americans have wisely waited for all
our improvements, and IL more Of these giant
trigates are now to be added to the Niagara
and her FIVE sisters, so that the Americans
will have the unexampled naval force of I8 of
these flying leviathans, equal in tonnage and
superior In weight of metal to our screw line
Of battle ships. This is said advisedly, and
attention is called to q statement, which late
ly ran through the English newspapers, of the
appearance of an American sloop- Of war at
Genoa, corvette, armed entirely with 81
FOUNDERS, or ten-inch guns, which was the ad-
miTatiOn of all who saw her From this it is
evident, that in the event of war, the Ameri-
cans interd TO strike the first successful blow
on their cid tactics They will oppose frig-
ate to a frigate, slOop TO a sloop, nominalIy
equal ships, but in reality an infinite disparity
of force. 1t will ring through the world that
an American frigate or sloop has blown ND,
Or sent down, or carried into port an English
frigate or sloop; and straightway our seamen,
prOverbially the most yenal set Of men in the
world, will do as they did last war-join the
American flag and fight on the side of victory
and plunder, Our admiralty deserve every
credit for the speedy way in which they have
placed on the sea a feet more than equal 10
contend with the combined forces of all Eu-
rope Let them keep our glorious navy up
to the requirement Of the times. America
must be dealt with in completely different
fashion from Russia. Forewarned is to be
fOrearmed; We ought TO build frigates equal
to cope with the Niagara; the expense must
be a secondary consideration; a recurrence to
the LOrd-who- would ld-have-thought-it system
would deserve impeachment, while fl state
of preparation is in the end a war-preventive
economy -ErGmtHer.