The Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. Volume 11.: Parlimentary Debates II.Johnson, Samuel
History
The Works of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. Volume 11.: Parlimentary Debates II.
Johnson, Samuel
Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons -- History -- 18th century
But, my lords, whether moderation was not recommended to them by such
powerful oratory as your lordships have heard, or whether its
advocates met with an audience not easily to be convinced, it is plain
that they seem to have acted upon very different principles, and I
wish their policy had not been so strongly justified by its success.
By sending an army into Germany, my lords, when there were no forces
ready to oppose them, they reduced all the petty princes to immediate
submission, and obliged those to welcome them as friends, who would
gladly have united against them as the inveterate enemies of the whole
German body; and who, had they been firmly joined by their neighbours,
under a general sense of their common danger, would have easily raised
an army able to have repelled them.
This, my lords, was the effect of vigour, an effect very different
from that which we had an opportunity of experiencing as the
consequence of moderation; it was to no purpose that we endeavoured to
alarm mankind by remonstrances, and to procure assistance by
entreaties and solicitations; the universal panick was not to be
removed by advice and exhortations, and the queen of Hungary must have
sunk under the weight of a general combination against her, had we not
at last risen up in her defence, and with our swords in our hands, set
an example to the nations of Europe, of courage and generosity.
It then quickly appeared, my lords, how little is to be expected from
cold persuasion, and how necessary it is, that he who would engage
others in a task of difficulty, should show himself willing to partake
the labour which he recommends. No sooner had we declared our
resolution to fulfil our stipulations, and ordered our troops to march
for the relief of the queen of Hungary, than other princes discovered
that they had the same dispositions, though they had hitherto thought
it prudent to conceal them; that they, equally with ourselves, hated
and feared the French; that they were desirous to repress their
insolence and oppose their conquests, and only waited for the motions
of some power who might stand at the head of the confederacy, and lead
them forwards against the common enemy. The liberal promises of
dominion made by the French, by which the sovereigns of Germany had
been tempted to concur in a design which they thought themselves
unable to oppose, were now no longer regarded; they were considered
only as the boasts of imaginary greatness, which would at last vanish
into air; and every one knew, that the ultimate design of Europe was
to oppress equally her enemies and friends; they wisely despised her
offers, and either desisted from the designs to which they had been
incited by her, or declared themselves ready to unite against her.
This, my lords, has been the consequence of assembling the army,
which, by the motion now under our consideration, some of your
lordships seem desirous to disband, an inclination of which I cannot
discover from whence it can arise.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account