the commerce of Europe between France and the United
States. But how vain are the devices of men against the laws of God and
of human society! The Gideon hundreds of loyal Canadians repelled and
scattered, for more than two years, the Midian and Amalekite thousands
of democratic invaders, until Great Britain, having chained the
marauding tiger of Europe to the rock of St. Helena, despatched her
thousands of soldiers to the aid of Canada, and sent her fleets across
the Atlantic--sweeping the American coasts from Maine to Georgia--taking
and burning their capital in retaliation for the American raid upon the
capital of Upper Canada, and soon compelling the heretofore boasting
Madison partizans to seek for peace without even the mention of their
alleged causes of war with England. If the American armies were defeated
and driven back in their repeated invasions of Canada, their commerce
and commercial men suffered not less before the end of the war. Their
annual exports declined, between 1811 and 1814, from L22,000,000
sterling to L1,500,000; their vessels to the number of 3,000 were
captured; two-thirds of their commercial class were reduced to
bankruptcy; an immense war tax was incurred; many thousands of lives had
been sacrificed, and the Union itself imperilled by the threatened
secession of the New England States.

On the other hand, Canada had felt deeply the calamities of war, it
being the seat of the conflict, a large portion of its revenue and
inhabitants having been diverted from their ordinary employments--having
themselves chiefly to depend upon for their defence, while England was
engaged in a twenty years' conflict for law and liberty in Europe. In
the extremity of this contest, the democratic President of the United
States combined with the tyrant despot of Europe to seduce and sever the
Canadians from their British connection; but the Canadians nobly
maintained their fidelity and triumphantly vindicated their honour and
independence, though, in doing so, they suffered the desolation of many
of their homes, shed many bitter tears for sires, and sons, and
brothers, who had poured out their life's blood in defence of their
country on the battle fields of both Upper and Lower Canada. Yet, upon
the whole, the war did much good to Canada, apart from the success of
its arms; it tended to cement the people together as one family;
English, French, Scotch, Irish, and Americans had forgotten former
distinctions and je