Page:The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, Volume 3.djvu/364

356 or advantage that might possibly accrue to Britain?

This kind of treatment from our principal allies has taught the same dialect to all the rest; so that there is hardly a petty prince, whom we half maintain by subsidies and pensions, who is not ready upon every occasion to threaten us, that he will recall his troops (although they must rob or starve at home) if we refuse to comply with him in any demand, however unreasonable.

Upon the third head, I shall produce some instances to show, how tamely we have suffered each of our allies, to infringe every article in those treaties and stipulations, by which they were bound; and to lay the load upon us.

But before I enter upon this, which is a large subject, I shall take leave to offer a few remarks on certain articles in three of our treaties, which may let us perceive how much those ministers valued or understood the true interest, safety, or honour of their country.

We have made two alliances with Portugal, an offensive and a defensive: the first, is to remain in force only during the present war; the second to be perpetual. In the offensive alliance, the emperor, England, and Holland, are parties with Portugal; in the defensive only we and the States.

Upon the first article of the offensive alliance, it is to be observed, that although the grand alliance, as I have already said, allows England and Holland to possess for their own whatever each of them shall conquer in the Spanish West-Indies; yet, there we are quite cut out, by consenting that the archduke shall