that the Landgrave of Hesse, in Seventeen
Hundred Ninety-four, supplied the English with a third detachment of
four thousand troops--this time, to fight the French.

It is not always the case that the terms of sale of human beings in
war-time are so well known as are these particular deals. The Hessian
officials kept no books. They made no records, and wrote no letters.
Boards of Investigation were powerless. The business was transacted by
personal messengers, who went to London and closed the deal by word of
mouth, and later brought back the coin. Wise men write few letters. What
would you? Is Farley a rogue and a varlet? However, things in
Threadneedle Street can not be done in secret.

England has a wonderful system of bookkeeping and bureaucraft--there are
spies upon spies, and checks and counterchecks, so that filching a large
sum from the Bank of England has been a trick never so far successfully
turned.

England's share in this transaction was not dishonorable--that is to
say, to buy a man is not so bad as to sell one. All she did was to hire
strike-breakers. English statesmen generally regarded the matter as a
bit of necessary war-time expediency. If the rebel Colonies could be put
down by hiring a few extra soldiers, why, hire them, of course.

Not so, said Edmund Burke, who gave the matter an unlooked-for publicity
by denouncing the Hessians as "hired assassins." He prophesied that the
Americans would not consider these hirelings as amenable to the rules of
civilized warfare, but would "welcome them with bloody hands to
hospitable graves"--a phrase so fine that it was, years after, seized
upon by Tom Corwin and applied to the conquest of Mexico.

Charles Fox took a like view of the situation, and between him and Burke
the word "Hessian" reached America with a taint upon it which a century
of use has not been able to disinfect.

The protest in the House of Commons did not directly avail, but there is
a suspicion that a wise protest against a great wrong never dies on the
empty air. Burke's accusation of barter and sale rumbled throughout
Europe, and created a sentiment of sympathy for America, especially in
France. Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine and Silas Deane made capital of
it, and repeated the words "hired assassins" and thereby helped us to
borrow money to fight said assassins. So much for the Law of
Compensation.

As for the Landgrave, there was a cool million in bullion in his
strongbox. He smil