WAR AND TRADE 6i 



During the man}'' years it lasted several invasions 

 of the country were attempted, with little success ; 

 so that, except by the depredations of the press- 

 gang, and the appalling prices of food, the people 

 knew little about the war, and pursued their or- 

 dinary avocations as usual. All through Europe 

 the state of affairs was very different. Scarce 

 any country then escaped being ravaged from 

 end to end, by armies that lived on the people, 

 making war support war. Germany, Austria, 

 Italy, Spain, and Portugal were then for years 

 the scenes of almost incessant warfare, to support 

 which France was almost drained of men. 



It may be said that the revolutionary and 

 Napoleonic wars lasted over twenty years. But 

 these wars did not overtake peoples who were 

 accustomed to profound peace, and to the ways 

 and arts of peace. On the contrary, the whole of 

 Europe, Great Britain excepted, had been for 

 more than a century engaged chiefly in war, one 

 war following another in such quick succession 

 that no one country. Great Britain excepted, had 

 ever any real chance of establishing great manu- 

 facturing industries. Great Britain was the 

 exception, because during all that time she 

 escaped any interference with her manufacturing 

 industries, and may indeed be said almost to 

 have escaped the tread of hostile feet. She took 

 her chance. 



Some years later, not so many years ago as 

 time is measured in the world's history, there 

 was still not a very big outer trade world. North 

 America was little more than the home of a few 



