JET. 30.] PENINSULAR WAR, 405 



courage; for it is obvious that the former is more 

 material in a contest which, if it is to do anything at 

 all, must be of no short duration, and quite unfavour- 

 able to the insurgents at the outset. As to the wild 

 story which every man of every party was believing 

 all yesterday, and I think even to-day, that the in- 

 surgents have defeated the French in a pitched battle 

 and killed 12,000 of them, I leave you to say what 

 sort of evidence would be necessary to convince you 

 of such a thing, when you recollect the campaigns 

 of 1795 and 1796, 1805 and 1806, with the best 

 regulars and leaders in Europe. Meanwhile all is 

 hope and castle -building here, literally ' batir des 

 chateaux en Espagne/ People are busy fortifying 

 the Pyrenees against new invasions of the enemy; 

 contriving terms of peace which he may not be able 

 to accept, and which will lead to a campaign in 

 France; raising a fifth coalition in Germany, and 

 bringing back the Bourbons. The first act of the 

 peace, the defeat in Spain, is of course never doubted. 

 I verily believe at this moment there are scarcely ten 

 men in London who would give Bonaparte 100 

 a-year of half-pay to retire to Ajaccio, and live quietly 

 as an invalid officer the rest of his life. So incurable 

 a malady is hope, notwithstanding the largest quan- 

 tities of bitter disappointment which may have been 

 administered to strengthen us against it. Materoza 

 is a fine boy of eighteen, very promising, and I dare- 

 say well born. The other I have not seen, but hear 

 him well spoken of. Argaelius is with them, whom 



