288 history or England.

chap- with the battalions which, in time of war, a few hours might- bring to the coast of Kent or Sussex, were forced to acknow-ledge that, dangerous as it might be tq keep up a permanentmilitary establishment, it might be more dangerous still tostake the honour and independence of the country on theresult of a contest between ploughmen officered by Justicesof the Peace, and veteran warriors led by Marshals of France.In Parliament, however, it was necessary to express suchopinions with some reserve; for the militia was an institutioneminently popular. Every reflection thrown on it excited theindignation of both the great parties in the state, and espe-cially of that party which was distinguished by peculiar zeal formonarchy and for the Anglican Church. The array of thecounties was commanded almost exclusively by Tory noble-men and gentlemen. They were proud of their militaryrank, and considered an insult offered to the service to whichthey belonged as offered to themselves. They were also per-fectly aware that whatever was said against a militia was saidin favour of a standing army; and the name of standing armywas hateful to them. One such army had held dominion inEngland; and under that dominion the King had been murder-ed, the nobility degraded, the landed gentry plundered, theChurch persecuted. There was scarce a rural grandee whocould not tell a story of wrongs and insults suffered by him-self, or by his father, at the hands of the parliamentarysoldiers. One old Cavalier had seen half his manor houseblown up. The hereditary elms of another had been hewndown. A third could never go into his parish church with-out being reminded by the defaced scutcheons and headlessstatues of his ancestry, that Oliver’s redcoats had oncestabled their horses there. The consequence was that thosevery Royalists, who were most ready to fight for the Kingthemselves, were the last persons whom he could venture toask for the means of hiring regular troops.