Page:England-a Destroyer of Nations.pdf/4



It is a long list of transgressions—stretching over four centuries—which is here enrolled before the eyes of the reader. It informs him of the rise and fall of brilliantly gifted nations, successful in the development of their culture, industry and commerce, and who, achieving prosperity, even wealth, thereby awakened the jealousy, the envy and greed of England, which thereafter destroyed and despoiled them by cunning and violence. I have, in the following, given only those facts, the truth of which the reader can easily ascertain and from which he can draw his own conclusions about England's policies during the past four centuries.

The discovery of America by Columbus, the conquest of Mexico and Peru by Cortes and Pizarro, the exploitation of the gold-lands of Central America had made the Spain of the Great fleets of 16th century the richest land on the globe. Great fleets of treasure-laden galleons brought, year-in, year-out, new riches to Spain's rulers. But they also aroused the greed of English mariners, who, with the silent approbation of their government, went forth to prey upon the Spanish gold- and silver-ships home bound from the Americas.

It must be stated right here, that in those days friendly relations existed between Spain and England, that the two countries were at peace, wherefor the secret approval by the English Government of the piracy places the same in an unfavorable light. By it the English Government made itself an accomplice and abettor on a large scale.

To show the low state of the morals prevailing in England in those days, it will be necessary to peruse at some length the activity of those freebooters, which are heralded by English histories as "the great heroes of the sea." This retrospection is necessary because we wish to show that the pernicious influence emanating from them poisoned the morals of the English nation for centuries to come and has stamped its characteristics on their government to our day.

The first of these "heroes of the sea" was William Hawkins, of Plymouth. He it was who undertook the first slave hunts