utmost need); but in the moment of danger, his Majesty saw himself protected by the united efforts of all his people, by the persons of those who were able to wield a weapon, by the prayers of the aged and of the sick, by the purses of the rich, and by the hearts of all: the people knew for whom, and for what, they were preparing to fight; they knew they were not conscripts driven in chains to be sacrificed on the altar of an ambitious leader, but loyal subjects voluntarily engaging to encounter danger for a beloved sovereign, for the preservation of that limited monarchy which they viewed as the primary source of all the blessings they enjoyed as members of civil society. They were not preparing to fight from the base motive of desire to plunder other men's property, but to defend their own; not to fight ingloriously to subvert the liberties of others, but to prevent the yoke of slavery being fastened round their own necks; not in contempt of national character, in despite of the civil order of the world, in derision of religion, or in mockery of heaven; but to preserve their happy land from atheism, despotism, and anarchy, from that moral contamination of principle and practice which outrages the very nature of mankind. Actuated by such sentiments the aged, who had become indifferent to professional emolument and to professional ambition, appeared with renewed vigour ready for active service; and the youth stood forward in crowds ready to shed their blood for the good of their country. Thus exertions unknown in the history of this country, and unprecedented in the most illustrious nations of antiquity, were made, and Britain exhibited to the world the glorious spectacle of a nation rising simultaneously to assert its freedom and independence. While the din of hostile preparation resounded throughout the country, the regiment which forms the subject of this memoir had the honour of forming part of an advanced-corps to the forces selected to cover the coast opposite Boulogne where Bonaparte was expected to land; for this purpose it was encamped at Shorncliffe, and was brigaded with the fifty-second, fifty-ninth, and seventieth regiments and five companies of the rifle corps, under the command of that distinguished officer, Major-General (afterwards Sir John) Moore. This corps was conspicuous for a high state of discipline; and the officers and men felt a degree of honest pride at being selected to commence the attack of the invaders whenever they appeared. The noble attitude which the nation assumed, the strength[29] and energy it evinced while breathing defiance to the gigantic military power by which it was menaced, caused the spirit even of Napoleon to quail, and his legions did not venture to cross the British channel.