Publisher's Synopsis
Excerpt from The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, D. D, Vol. 16: Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin; Arranged by Thomas Sheridan, A. M., With Notes, Notes, Historical and Critical
Dunkirk, since the foreign troops have refused to march, and that the States will not suffer us to go through their towns. But I had a whisper from one who should know best, that Dunkirk might now have been ours, if right methods had been taken. And another great man said to a friend of mine, about a fortnight ago, that the least wrong step on that side the water might have very ill consequences at this juncture. Meantime, the discontented party seems full of hopes, and many of the court side, beside myself, desponding enough. The necessity of laying the proposals before the parliament drew us into all this for now we are in a manner pinned down, and cannot go back an inch with any good grace; so that if the French play us foul, I dread the effects, which are too visible to doubt.' And on the other side, if the peace goes smoothly on, I cannot but think that some severe inquiries will be made; and I believe, upon very manifest grounds. If there be any secret in this matter of Dunkirk, it must be in very few hands and those who most converse with men at the helm, are, I am confident, very much in the dark. Some people go so far as to think that the Dutch will hinder even the English forces, under the Duke of Ormond, from going by the French country to Dunkirk but I cannot be of that Opinion. We suppose a few days will decide this matter; and I believe, your grace will agree, that there was never a more nice conjuncture of affairs; however, the court appears to be very resolute: several changes have been made, and more are daily expected. The Dutch are grown so unpopular, that, I believe, the queen might have addresses to stand by her against them with lives and fortunes.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
