ent of the Spanish monarchy. This state of things was peculiarly
distasteful to Louis XVIII., on account of the evil example it afforded
to his subjects; and, fortified by the sympathy of the "Holy Alliance"
(which may be shortly described as a sort of trades union of sovereigns
to resist all political changes not originating with themselves), he
determined to put it down. In his speech to the chambers on the 28th of
January, he announced that, "the infatuation with which the
representations made at Madrid had been rejected, left little hope of
preserving peace. I have ordered," he said, "the recall of my minister;
one hundred thousand Frenchmen, commanded by a prince of my family [the
Duc d'Angouleme]--by him whom my heart delights to call my son--are
ready to march, invoking the God of St. Louis, for the sake of
preserving the throne of Spain to a descendant of Henry the Fourth, of
saving that fine kingdom from its ruin, and of reconciling it with
Europe." The real cause of interposition, however, is indicated a few
sentences afterwards: "_Let Ferdinand the Seventh be free to give to his
people institutions which they cannot hold but from him_, and which, by
securing their tranquillity, would dissipate the just inquietudes of
France, [and] hostilities shall cease from that moment."

We have neither time, space, nor inclination to relate the events of
this invasion; suffice it to say that, owing to the cowardice of the
Spaniards, it was a complete "walk over" for the French, who, in five
months after they had crossed the Bidassoa, had penetrated to Cadiz,
dispersed the Cortes, and restored the despotism of Ferdinand.

[Illustration:
R. CRUIKSHANK _fecit_. A. G.--_Published May, 1823._

"JOHN BULL FLOURISHING IN A DIGNIFIED ATTITUDE OF STRICT
NEUTRALITY!!!!"

_Face p. 99._]

The contemplated crusade had aroused a certain amount of sympathy in
favour of Spain in England, but it did not go farther than the giving of
a splendid entertainment to the Spanish and Portuguese ambassadors at
the London Tavern on the 7th of March, under the presidentship of Lord
William Bentinck. The truth was that John Bull had not forgotten the
ungrateful and cowardly conduct of the Spaniards when we drove the
French out of their country in Napoleon's time; added to which England
was saddled with a heavy national debt, which made us still less
inclined to intermeddle with the affairs of our neighbours. Robert
Cruikshank produced a