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Life of Thomas Eddy

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intercourse; tearing from the peaceful citizens their besthopes, their youth, by an anticipated conscription extend-ing to the year 1810, to fight the battles of ambition toaggrandize his family; the violence done to the greatbody of the catholics on the continent, by the degradationof the Pope of Rome; and, above all, the treachery bywhich the Spanish Government is attempted to bewrested from its ancient sovereigns, with whom, as itnow appears, the mass of the people were well satisfied,are features of a nature so atrocious, as when takentogether, and working, all at once, on the minds ofso many millions of people, can scarcely fail to pro-duce results which must bring this lamentable con-test, so productive of the effusion of human blood, tosome important crisis. We have indeed lived in anextraordinary age, which certainly has no parallelin the history of the whole world. The affairs ofSpain now become extremely interesting, but timealone can develop the result of this extraordinarystruggle. The Spaniards have now passed theRubicon, and can scarcely recede. The eyes of allEurope are turned towards them, and I verily believethere is only one wish prevails, if they durst (likethis country) avow it, and that wish is, that theymay be successful. Adieu, my dear sir; believe me always,Yours, sincerely, P. COLQUHOUN.To Mr. THOMAS EDDY, New York. Lymington, Hampshire, 12th Sept., 1808. MY DEAR SIR, I have been waiting from month to month, in con-sequence of the constant revolving of things in Europe,in the expectation that the gloom which had over-cast the political hemisphere would have been dis-pelled, and that 1 should be able to resume my toolong protracted correspondence, by the contemplationof subjects more congenial to your feelings and myown, than those which the present times have gene-