rchist cause,
and by surrendering San Domingo to France, doomed to failure his costly
efforts in Hayti. Further, as will appear in Chapter XI, by setting free
large numbers of the French troops at the Pyrenees, she greatly enhanced
the difficulties of the expedition of General Doyle to the coast of la
Vendee. Worst of all, it soon appeared that Godoy was bent on reviving
the policy of the Family Compact, making common cause even with the
murderers of Louis XVI in order to thwart England's expansion oversea.
Bute therefore warned our Government to prepare to strike a blow at
once, before the Spanish fleet should be ready to help the French either
in Corsica or Hayti. These precautions proved, for the present at least,
to be unnecessary. The degradation of the Court and populace of Madrid
may be measured by the joy with which the news of that inglorious peace
was received. The Queen, fearful that the failures in the war would lead
to the fall of her paramour, procured the speedy ratification of the
Treaty of Basle and decorated him with the title Prince of the Peace.

On hearing of the defection of Spain, Pitt at once took steps to guard
Hayti against a treacherous attack by detaching the greater part of the
British force then preparing to help the French Royalists of la Vendee.
The general opinion both in London and Madrid was that war must ensue.
Godoy kept a close watch upon Bute, who took a mansion in Madrid on a
long lease in order to lull that Court into security. It was of the
highest importance to avert or delay a rupture with Spain; for the
condition of the British West Indies was most critical. The French,
having recovered Guadeloupe and St. Lucia, despatched thence emissaries
to fire the slaves in the British islands with the hope of gaining
liberty and equality. The peril became acute in Jamaica. There about 500
negroes had escaped to the mountains, especially in Trelawny and
Charlestown Counties, and by night carried out murderous raids against
the planters and their dependents. So fiendish were the atrocities of
these Maroons, that the authorities in that island applied to the
Spaniards in Cuba for one hundred bloodhounds and twenty huntsmen in
order to track the Maroons to their fastnesses. This device proved
successful; the murderers were by degrees hunted down, and were
transported to British North America, L25,000 being voted by the Jamaica
Assembly for settling them there.

Nevertheless the use of bloo