again. France, Russia, and the United States, possess far more formidable strength now than France, Spain, and Holland, the maritime opponents of England during the American war, did THEN ; while, owing to her enormous national debt, or what Lord Brougham has called the "bond for £800,000,000 to keep the peace"15_her internal in 1809, by the heroic Hofer and his brave rural "volunteers," is well known. Austria, however, has since taken such a method of evincing her gratitude to the noble Tyrolese for their endeavours to "maintain the connexion between the two countries," that-though, by the way, the Tyrol has NOT been stripped of its DOMESTIC LEGISLATURE as Ireland HAS been the government of Austria is deservedly detested. In the course of a conversation with one of those gallant peasants on the unworthy conduct of Austria to his country, Mr. Inglis asked this "village Hampden," if he had ever borne a rifle ? "We were walking," says that gentleman, "up a steep mountain path he stopped,-faced round,-leaned upon his rod,and, in almost a whisper, said, 'Sir, I carried a rifle, and used it, too; but in a BAD cause. Hofer was a hero; Speckbacker, whom I followed, was a hero; Haspinger was a hero; but they were all three fools! OUR BALLS WERE ALL SPENT IN DEFENCE OF AUSTRIA: and let me tell you, THIS arm can carry a rifle YET,-but NOT FOR AUSTRIA!' 'But,' said I, ' If not under the government of Austria, UNDER WHAT GOVERNMENT WOULD THE TYROL PLACE ITSELF?' 'Under the government of TYROLEANS,' said he; 'Switzerland is free,—and respected; and your government has recognised ITS REPUBLIC: have WE shown less ardour in defence of OUR privileges than the Swiss? but no matter; OUR turn is at HAND!" 45 The clearest idea that has been yet conveyed of the enormous amount of the National Debt, and the corruption of the system of government that produced it, is given in the following passage from a tract published by the Chard Political Union, and very properly printed as an appendix to Watson's edition of Paine's Political Works." 66 "George the Third came to the throne in 1760. He found the national debt 120 millions, he reigned fifty-nine years, and left it above 820 millions, being 700 millions more than at his accession, increasing on the whole period of his reign about thirtysix thousand pounds every day, or twenty-three pounds every minute!!! At the beginning of his reign, the taxes were SIX political divisions-her bloated and unsound extent of foreign or colonial dominion—and, above all, owing to the great progress made by other nations, since the last war, in manufactures, commerce, and naval power1-England could never again display such efforts on land or sea, as she has done. If, then, any such emergency or necessity for selfprotection should occur in Ireland again, as took place in the time of the Volunteers, let us suppose that we could muster a force of 200,000 men, or millions; at his death he left them at above SIXTY millions !... Taking the national debt at eight hundred and fifty millions, it will weigh very nearly seven thousand tons in sovereigns; it would take a man sixty-four years to count it over, allowing him to count fifty sovereigns in a minute, and work twelve hours a-day; it would load as many waggons as would extend eighty miles in a direct line, allowing each waggon to carry one ton, and to occupy twenty yards. The interest of the sum is thirty millions; and is drawn by taxes from the farming, manufacturing, and labouring people of England. This annual interest would load as many waggons as would extend over three miles in a direct line, with one ton weight of sovereigns in each!!!” 46 The Indian empire of England must, to use Heeren's expression, "break down by its own weight." Colonel Napier calculated the regular force which England required for her colonial possessions so far back as 1808, as no less than between 50 and 60,000 men; and those possessions have been considerably added to, since that time. The Duke of Wellington, as reported in the Morning Herald of March 9th 1830, referred full half of the expenses of the military establishment of England to the colonies, the preservation of which Sir Henry Hardinge admitted to be "in effect a war-service in time of peace!' 47 Colonel Keatinge, in his "Defence of Ireland," written in 1795 or 6, well observed what succeeding events are, and have, for some time, been in the way of, accomplishing. "England," said he, "for many years engrossed the trade and wealth of the universe, without a rival, and founded her splendor on it. But it is not in the nature of things that it can be always so; trade will in time find its level, and all cannot be gainers." (chap. xi. p. 80.) only about twice the number of the Volunteer Army then, although our population is more than doubled Now. Let Athlone be fixed upon as the national head-quarters or those of a Grand Army of the Centre, amounting to 100,000 men. Let these 100,000 men have the care of the principal magazine of artillery, ammunition, provisions, money, &c. intended for the public defence; and act, in fine, as a sort of heart to the country, by extending to its extremities the current of martial vitality. Of the remaining 100,000 men, form four provincial armies or military spokes, each of 25,000 men. Let each of these four spokes be at once in communication with and stretching along from the Grand Army of the 48 Belgium and Holland, whose united population is not equal to that of Ireland, each maintain a military establishment, at present, of above 100,000 men; and, according to Moore's Life of Lord Edward Fitzgerald, there were, in 1798, no less than 279,896 names on the muster-roll of the United Irishmen, exclusive of the large numbers of Irish in the Militia and Yeomanry, whose services were so great in the suppression of the insurrection, that the present Lord Plunket attributed the putting down of the rebellion, not to "the British heart and the British arm,” but to Irish “zeal and loyalty.”—(Speech against the Union, in Phillips's Specimens of Irish Eloquence p. 401.) The Irish Militia alone were 18,000 strong. And yet we hear of an English conquest of Ireland!" If Ireland, however, were but true to herself, she never could be conquered by England or by any other country on earth; and, though she does not occupy the political position which she ought to possess, yet her fall may be attributed, like that of Argantes in Tasso, as much to herself as to any efforts of her enemy. For " plete. 66 Then, spent in empty air thy strength in vain, empty air" read "empty feuds,” and the picture is com. Centre in four lines, running as much as may be deemed requisite N.W. and N.E. and S.W. and S.E. to the corresponding parts of the coast of Ireland. Then,-speaking with referenee to the four divergent armies or provincial military spokes, just mentioned,-let four less or intermediate ones, each of these to consist of 10,000 men, be kept ready for action by the Grand Army of the Centre, which, exclusive of them, would still constitute a reserve of 60,000 troops. In order to allow every advantage, and even much greater advantages than could be reasonably claimed by those who assert the inability of Ireland to stand against a foreign aggression without "the British heart and the British arm"-let us next take for granted, that an invader could land four armies in Ireland, on four different points of the coast, each of these armies being as numerous as each of the four provincial armies or military SPOKES appointed to meet them. It is, in that case, evident, that such an enemy must succeed in disembarking in front of the four great military SPOKES, or between some Two out of the FOUR of them. If he disembarks his four armies in front of the four native provincial armies or military spokes, and they retreat on Athlone for reinforcements, the four minor or intermediate spokes of 10,000 men can then issue from the Grand Army of the Centre and delay his operations, by subdividing themselves, and flanking, on both sides, with 5,000 men, or 10,000 in all, each of the enemy's four successful armies; while the four native armies can meantime enjoy the advantage of returning reinforced to combat against a hostile force, necessarily diminished by its previous losses in an enemy's territory. On the other hand, in case the invader's four armies should land between the four great provincial military spokes, then, exclusive of the smaller spokes of 10,000 men each, in his front, and capable of being still further strengthened from the Athlone Grand Centre of 60,000 in their rere, he must have an Irish army of 25,000, or, if divided, of 12,500 men, on each of his flanks, and threatening his communication with the sea, could it be possible for him, under such circumstances, to advance far into or towards the centre of the country. Or if, with the intention of clearing his way ROUND the island, before an advance INTO it, he should divide each of his armies of 25,000 into two bodies of 12,500, in order to make the four native armies do the same, each of these invading subdivisions of 12,500 men would, indeed, be protected in its rere by one of a similar amount, and would be guarded, on one of its flanks, by the sea; but in both these advantages the subdivided Irish armies would equally participate, while, on the side towards the interior or centre of the island, the smaller or intermediate spokes of 10,000 men each could protect the flank of the Irish and annoy the enemy's in the same direction-to say nothing of the further advance of the Grand Army of the Centre to the assistance of the four |