1811] 
and these treasures, accumulated for his 
defence, were the sule cause of his ruin.” 
__ A few years ago, the Austrians, with 
their coffers full, were despoiled of their 
states, without being in the least able to 
arrest the blow by their treasures. 
Hence I raise my voice against the 
eneral clamour; it 1s not gold, but good 
troops, which are the sinews of war: gold 
will not enable you to find good troops, 
but they will find gold. Had the Ro- 
mans thought of making war with gold 
instead of the sword, all the treasures of 
the universe would not have sufliced, if 
we consider the magnitude of their en- 
terprizes, and the difficulties they had to 
surmount; but the use they made of the 
sword prevented them from wanting mo- 
hey. The nations who dreaded them, 
brought their riches as an offering even 
to the Roman camp. 
If the king of Sparta was compelled to 
give battle for want of money, it only 
happened that he was reduced to suca 
an extremity from that, in lieu of any 
other cause. We have seen, for examn- 
ple, armies in want of provisions, and 
between the hard alternative of dying of 
hunger and risking a battle, choose the 
Jatter as the most honourable, and that 
which merited most the favours of for- 
tune, 
[t has often occurred that a general, 
finding the enemy about to receive rein- 
forcements, determined to hazard a battle 
rather than wait the arrival of the aid, 
whereby he would be compelled to fight 
under greater disadvantages. We have 
sometimes found a general obliged to fly 
or fight; which happened to Asdrubal, 
when he found himself attacked on the 
Metaurus by Claudius Nero and his col- 
league, That general preferred a battle, 
as, notwithstanding appearances, he might 
conquer, whereas certain ruin must have 
been the consequence of his flight. 
There are therefore a thousand reasons 
which may oblige a general to give battle 
contrary to his inelination, and the want 
of money may be one; but money is no 
more the sinews of war than any of the 
other causes which may reduce him to a 
fatal or dangerous alternative. 
I theretore again repeat that it is not 
gald, but soldiers, which command suc- 
cessinwar. Money is 2 means, but only 
‘secondary one, which good troops ne- 
ver fail to procare, because it is as im- 
possible for good soldiers not to find gold 
as it is fur gold to procure good soldiers. 
History afords numerous pregfs of the 
fact. The exanrple of Pericles advising 
Letier from Mr. Dinmore. 
519 
the Athenians to make war against all 
Pelopaqunesus, and persuading them that 
with diplomatic cunning and money they 
would remain conquerors, does not affect 
my position. The Athenians obtained, 
it is true, some slight successes, but in 
the-end they were vanquished; and the 
wisdom and courage of the Spartans tri- 
umphed over the policy and the gold of 
the Athenians. 
What stronger proofcan be brought in 
favour of my assertion than Livy himself, 
in the passage where he examines whe- 
ther Alexander would have conquered 
the Romans if he had passed into Italy. 
He lays down three things as necessary 
in war—-a numerous and valiant army, 
able generals, and good fortune. He 
afterwards examines whether the Romans 
or Hannibal were better provided with 
those three requisites; and he concludes 
without saying a word of this pretended 
sinew of war—imoney ! 
The Capuans, required by the Sidicins 
to aid them against the Samnites, pro- 
bably calculated their power according to 
their riches, and not the goodness of their 
troops. lence, after they had taken 
part with them, and been twice defeated, 
they were compelled to become tributary 
to the Romans, in order to avoid their 
entire ruin,” J.S. Byervey. 
—sEie—— ; 
Yo the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
N the 7th instant I received from 
my brother the valuable present 
of your 26th volume. On examining its 
contents, [ was surprised and concerned 
at an error which has unaccountably 
slipt into it, and which I flatter myself 
you will permit me to correct. In the 
142d page of the above volume, is a very 
beautiful poem, of which I am asserted 
to be the author. To this honour I have 
no claim. It is the production of my 
valuable friend, John Joshua More,* of 
this city. It is very true, sir, that [ did 
enclose severai copies of “ The Scale of 
Nature and the Three Recorders,” to my 
English friends, and that T did not men< 
* John Joshua More, is a native of Cam- 
bridgeshire, in England: he early distin- 
guished himself for his mathematical and 
astronomical knowledge. With many other 
virtuous men he left his native country soon 
after the commencement of the Quixotic war 
of 1795. He was one of those who supposed 
religious tolerance and parliamentary reform 
essential to the salvation of his country : these 
were yefused, and he withdrew from the 
(now impending) evils he furesaw. ; 
tion 
