Then, Sir, in the second
place, there came what I may call the other warning from without--the
American warning. Republican America gave us her notices in times past,
through her press, and her demagogues, and her statesmen, but of late
days she has given us much more intelligible notices--such as the
notice to abrogate the Reciprocity Treaty, and to arm the lakes,
contrary to the provisions of the Convention of 1818. She has given us
another notice in imposing a vexatious passport system; another in her
avowed purpose to construct a ship canal round the falls of Niagara, so
as 'to pass war vessels from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie;' and yet
another, the most striking one of all, has been given to us, if we will
only understand it, by the enormous expansion of the American army and
navy. I will take leave to read to the House a few figures which show
the amazing, the unprecedented, growth (which has not, perhaps, a
parallel in the annals of the past) of the military power of our
neighbours, within the past three or four years. I have the details
here by me, but shall only read the results, to show the House the
emphatic terms of this most serious warning. In January, 1861, the
regular army of the United States, including of course the whole of the
States, did not exceed 15,000 men.
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