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e third; in 1753; proved otherwise。
March 12th; 1753; wind of him being had; and the slot…hounds uncoupled and put on his trail; poor Cameron was unearthed 〃at the Laird of Glenbucket's;〃 and there laid hold of; locked in Edinburgh Castle;thence to the Tower; and to Trial for High Treason。 Which went against him; in spite of his fine pleadings; and manful conciliatory appearances and manners。 Executed 7th June; 1753。 His poor Wife had twice squeezed her way into the Royal Levee at Kensington; with Petition for mercy;fainted; the first time; owing to the press and the agitation; but did; the second time; fall on her knees before Royal George; and supplicate;who had to turn a deaf ear; royal gentleman; I hope; not without pain。
The truth is; poor Cameron…though; I believe; he had some vague Jacobite errands withalnever would have harmed anybody in the rebel way; and might with all safety have been let live。 But his Grace of Newcastle; and the English generally; had got the strangest notion into their head。 Those appointments of Earl Marischal to Paris; of Tyrconnel to Berlin; Friedrich's nefarious spoiling of that salutary Romish…King Project; and now simultaneous with that; his nefarious oonduct in our Privateer Business: all this; does it not prove himas the Hanburys; Demon Newswriters and well…informed persons have taught usto be one of the worst men living; and a King bent upon our ruin? What is certain; though now well…nigh inconceivable; it was then; in the upper Classes and Political Circles; universally believed; That this Dr。 Cameron was properly an 〃Emissary of the King of Prussia's;〃 that Cameron's errand here was to rally the Jacobite embers into new flame;and that; at the first clear sputter; Friedrich had 15;000 men; of his best Prussian…Spartan troops; ready to ferry over; and help Jacobitism to do the matter this time! 'Walpole; George the Second; i。 333; 353; and Letters to Horace Mann (Summer; 1753); for the belief held。 Adelung; vii。 338…341; for the poor Cameron tragedy itself。'
About as likely as that the Cham of Tartary had interfered in the 〃Bangorian Controversy〃 (raging; I believe; some time since;in Cremorne Gardens fist of all; which was Bishop Hoadly's Place;to the terror of mitres and wigs); or that; the Emperor of China was concerned in Meux's Porter…Brewery; with an eye to sale of NUX VOMICA。 Among all the Kings that then were; or that ever were; King Friedrich distinguished himself by the grand human virtue (one of the most important for Kings and for men) of keeping well at home; of always minding his own affairs。 These were; in fact; the one thing he minded; and he did that well。 He was vigilant; observant all round; for weather…symptoms; thoroughly well informed of what his neighbors had on hand; ready to interfere; generally in some judicious soft way; at any moment; if his own Countries or their interests came to be concerned; certain; till then; to continue a speculative observer merely。 He had knowledge; to an extent of accuracy which often surprised his neighbors: but there is no instance in which he meddled where he had no business;and few; I believe; in which he did not meddle; and to the purpose; when he had。
Later in his Reign; in the time of the American War (1777); there is; on the English part; in regard to Friedrich; an equally distracted notion of the same kind brought to light。 Again; a conviction; namely; or moral…certainty; that Friedrich is about assisting the American Insurgents against us;and a very strange and indubitable step is ordered to be taken in consequence。 ' OEuvres de Frederic; xxvi。 394 (Friedrich to Prince Henri; 29th June; 1777。)' As shall be noticed; if we have time。 No enlightened Public; gazing for forty or fifty years into an important Neighbor Gentleman; with intent for practical knowledge of him; could well; though assisted by the cleverest Hanburys; and Demon and Angel Newswriters; have achieved less!
Question THIRD is But Question Third; so extremely important was it in the sequel; will deserve a Chapter to itself。
Chapter XIV。
THERE IS LIKE TO BE ANOTHER WAR AHEAD。
Question Third; French…English Canada Question; is no other than; under a new form; our old friend the inexorable JENKINS'S…EAR QUESTION; soul of all these Controversies; andexcept Silesia and Friedrich's Questionthe one meaning they have! Huddled together it had been; at the Peace of Aix…la…Chapelle; and left for closed under 〃New Spanish Assiento Treaty;〃 or I know not what:you thought to close it by Diplomatic putty and varnish in that manner: and here; by law of Nature; it comes welling up on you anew。 For IT springs from the Centre; as we often say; and is the fountain and determining element of very large Sections of Human History; still hidden in the unseen Time。
〃Ocean Highway to be free; for the English and others who have business on it?〃 The English have a real and weighty errand there。 〃English to trade and navigate; as the Law of Nature orders; on those Seas; and to ponderate or preponderate there; according to the real amount of weight they and their errand have? OR; English to have their ears torn off; and imperious French…Spanish Bourbons; grounding on extinct Pope's…meridians; GLOIRE and other imaginary bases; to take command?〃 The incalculable Yankee Nations; shall they be in effect YANGKEE (〃English〃 with a difference); or FRANGCEE (〃French〃 with a difference)? A Question not to be closed by Diplomatic putty; try as you will!
By Treaty of Utrecht (1713); 〃all Nova Scotia 'ACADIE as then called'; with Newfoundland and the adjacent Islands;〃 was ceded to the English; and has ever since been possessed by them accordingly。 Unluckily that Treaty omitted to settle a Line of Boundary to landward; or westward; for their 〃NOVA SCOTIA;〃 or generally; a Boundary from NORTH TO SOUTH between the British Colonies and the French in those parts。
The Treaty of Aix…la…Chapelle; eager to conclude itself; stipulated; with great distinctness; that Cape Breton; all its guns and furnishings entire; should be restored at once (France extremely anxious on that point); but for the rest had; being in such haste; flung itself altogether into the principle of STATUS… QUO…ANTE; as the short way for getting through。 The boundary in America was vaguely defined; as 〃now to be what it had been before the War。〃 It had; for many years before the War; been a subject of constant altercation。 ACADIE; for instance; the NOVA SCOTIA of the English since Utrecht time; the French maintained to mean only 〃the Peninsula〃; or Nook included between the Ocean Waters and the Bay of Fundy。 And; more emphatic still; on the 〃Isthmus〃 (or narrow space; at northwest; between said Bay and the Ocean or the Gulf of St。 Lawrence) they had built 〃Forts:〃 〃Stockades;〃 or I know not what; 〃on the Missaquish〃 (HODIE Missiquash); a winding difficult river; northmost of the Bay of Fundy's rivers; which the French affirm to be the real limit in that quarter。 The sparse French Colonists of the interior; subjects of England; are not to be conciliated by perfect toleration of religion and the like; but have an invincible proclivity to join their Countrymen outside; and wish well to those Stockades on the Missiquash。 It must be owned; too; the French Official People are far from scrupulous or squeamish; show energy of management; and are very skilful with the Indians; who are an important item。 Canada is all French; has its Quebecs; Montreals; a St。 Lawrence River occupied at all the good military points; and serving at once as bulwark and highway。
Southward and westward; France; in its exuberant humor; claims for itself The whole Basin of the St。 Lawrence; and the whole Basin of the Mississippi as well: 〃Have not we Stockades; Castles; at the military points; Fortified Places in Louisiana itself?〃 Yes;and how many Ploughed Fields bearing Crop have you? It is to the good Plougher; not ultimately to the good Cannonier; that those portions of Creation will belong? The exuberant intention of the French is; after getting back Cape Breton; 〃To restrict those aspiring English Colonies;〃 mere Ploughers and Traders; hardly numbering above one million; 〃to the Space eastward of the Alleghany Mountains;〃 over which they are beginning to climb; 〃and southward of that Missiquash; or; at farthest; of the Penobscot and Kennebunk〃 (rivers HODIE in the State of Maine)。 'La Gallisonniere; Governor of Canada's DESPATCH; 〃Quebec; 15th January; 1749〃 (cited in Bancroft; History of the United States; Boston; 1839; et seq。)。 〃The English Inhabitants are computed at 1;051;000; French (in Canada 45;000; in Louisiana 7;000); in all 52;000:〃 History of British Dominions in North America (London; 1773); p。 13。 Bancroft (i。 154) counts the English Colonists in 〃1754 about 1;200;000。〃' That will be a very pretty Parallelogram for them and their ploughs and trade…packs: we; who are 50;000 odd; expert with the rifle far beyond them; will occupy the rest of the world。 Such is the French exuberant notion: and; October; 1745; before signature at Aix…la…Chapelle; much more before Delivery of Cape Breton;