Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1863-03-26

were assailel, and understanding perfectly
their significance. boldly challenged their
opponents, If they were in earnest, to
make definite molten in the House of
Commons, that Portugal should be aban-
doned to its fate. This move com pletely
unmasked their game. and for time ST.
fenced the clamor. for it was perfectly an
derstood on all hands. that deep in the
popular heart, undisturbcd by the storms
which swept over its surface, there was a
thorough conviction Of the necessity
of resisting the progress of Napoleon's
arms, and that the real safety of England
herself required that the resistance should
then be made in Sr ain. Still, this noisy
clamor did immense mischief; it weakened
the governments, it prolonged the strife, it
alarmed the timid, it discouraged the true,
and it so far imposed upoa Napoleon him
self, that, thinking thst in these angry in
vsctives against the government he fonnd
the real exponent of English sentiment, he
concluded. not unnaturalIy, that the people
were tired and disgusted with the war, aud
that the privations which it, occasioned
were like a cancer, slowly but surely eat.
ing out the sources Of national life.
In the midst OF these violent tumults at
home. Wellington was silently preparing
for his great work within the lines of Tor
res Veiras. 1t would not be easy to over
rate the difficulties by which he was sur
rounded. He was fully aware of the out
cry which had been raised against him, he
knew that from Cabinet so weakened by
internal dissensions as to. be on the verge
of overthrow from the vigorous assaults of
the opposition, and from its own unpop-
ulsrity occasioned by the failure of the
Walcheren expedition and disasters in the
Peninsula, hs could expect no thorough
and reliable support. Indeed the govern
men,, almost in despair. threw the whole
responsibility for the military measures on
the Continent on him alone. He accept
ted the responsibility in most magnani-
nous spirit. IL conceive" he writes,
THAT the honor and interests Of the country
require that we hold our position as long
as possible. and. please God. will main
tain it as long as 1 can l will neither
endeavor to shift from my own shoulders
on those of the Ministers, The resconsibili-
ty for the failure, by calling for means
which L know they cannot give, and which
perhaps would not add materially to the
facility of attaining our object; nor will /
give to the Ministers, who are not strong,
and who must feel the delicacy of their
own situation, an excuse for withdrawing
the army from a position which, in my
opinion. the honor and interests of the
country require they should maintain as
long as as-possible." Animated by this hs-
roic sense of duty, the Commander-in-
Chief prepared to contend against the
200, 900 men under Massena, whom Napo
leon had sent to chase him into tho sea-
He had, to oppose this immense force, on.
ly $4,000 English soldiers, and about the
same number of Portuguese tolerably or
gaaized. Secure within the lines of Tor
res Vedras. he quietly waited until the
want Of provisions, anu tie utter hopeless
ness of an assault upon his position forced
upon Massena the necessity of retreating
Then instantly pursuing, in series of bat
tless. of almost daily occurrence he drove
Massena ont of Portugal, and reached once
more the Spanish frontier in May. 1911,
nearly three years after the English had
sent an army to the assistance of the Pen
insula. Here he rested for long time,
making preparations for the siege of Ba-
dajez and eCiudad Rodrigo, operations re-
quiring time. and the success of which was
essential to the safety of the army in its
further progress Still. so little was Well
lington's position, military and political,
understood in England, even at that time,
after the proof he had given of censum-
mate ability, that public clamor was again
reused against tho mode adopted by him
for conducting the war. As there were no
disasters at which to grumble, people talk
sdnsof a.'barren victories. ]" because, like
those of Crecy and Azincourt, they bro't
no territorial acquisition. q forgetting then
what they have never been weary of boast
ingly proclaiming since. that these victo-
ries were the best proofs that their army
was distinguished by the highest military
qualities. which. properly directed and sup
ported. were capable of achieving the most
glorious results. So profound was the
conviction of the immense superiority of
the French, both in numbers and in the
quality Of their troops, that the public
mind was in . state of feverish anxiety,
and many of the stoutest hearts gave way
to despair. About this period Sir Walter
Scott writes to Mr.oEllis: ..These cursed,
double cursed news (from Spain) have
sunk my spirits 50 mnch that L am almost
at disbelieving a Providence; God forgive
me. but / think some evil demon has been
permitted in the shape of this tyrsnnical
monster, whom God has sent on the ma
tions visited in his anger. The spring tide
may for aught' I know. break upon US in
the next session of Parliament. There is
an evilafate upon .ns in all we do at home
or abroad.''s So Sir James Macintosh,
writingito Cent?, at Vienna:,s j believe,
like you. In q resurrection, because be-
lieve in the. Immortality Of civilization.
but when. and by whom. and in, whom.
and in what form, are questions which i
have not the sagacity to answer, and on
which it would be boldness to hazard q
conjecture. A dark and stormy night, =
black series of ages, may be prepared for
our posterity, before the dawn that opens
the more perfect day. WHO can tell how
long that fearful night may be before the
dawn Of q brighter morrow, The race
of man may reach the. promised land. but
there is no assurance that the present gen :
Grafton will not perish in the wilderness"
aAs il to render the situation more gloomy,