'70 BKITANNY AND THE CHASE. 



santly by the fine French steam frigate the Gonier, one fine 

 morning astonishing the inhabitants of Portsmouth with her 

 salute, having only left Cherbourg the evening before. The 

 tendency of everytliing is to bridge over the Channel, and 

 if that bridge is made we are in danger. Every schoolboy 

 knows that one Englishman can thrash two Frenchmen ; 

 but if the French ever succeed in paying us a visit, every 

 Englishman must be prepared to thrash ^ive, and these are 

 long odds. The French army is immense and formidable, — 

 400,000 men ; a large family party for John Bull to re- 

 c*eive and " do for." What could we do with our 30,000 

 or 40,000 men, allowing each to be the bravest of the 

 brave ? Numbers will tell and must tell, and they would 

 tell a fearful tale against England. The only plan is to 

 decline the visit, — "•' much engaged with home affairs, can- 

 not see them to-day." 



Who put Louis Napoleon in his seat, but the army ? and 

 think you that a Buonaparte and a splendid army will do 

 nothing but march up the hill and down again like the king 

 of France in the olden time ? Oh ! the abjectness of the 

 political men of France. Three weeks before Napoleon 

 made the coup d^etat five-sixths of the people were against 

 him, but now, because he has made it and succeeded, halt, 

 right about wheel, and seven millions and a half out of 

 ten millions vote in his favour. The journals hail him as 

 the state necessity, the heaven-sent man, — flatter him 

 by alluding constantly to his uncle, and suggesting his re- 

 semblance to him, invoke religion to sanctify his acts, and 

 all this because he has had the boldness to violate his 

 solemn oath and the laws of his country, and has succeeded. 



