Let us take another instance of the same quality, shown also in the winter of 1778.  Congress had from the beginning a longing to conquer Canada, which was a wholly natural and entirely laudable desire, for conquest is always more interesting than defense.  Washington, on the other hand, after the first complete failure, which was so nearly a success in the then undefended and unsuspicious country, gave up pretty thoroughly all ideas of attacking Canada again, and opposed the various plans of Congress in that direction.  When he had a life-and-death struggle to get together and subsist enough men to protect their own firesides, he had ample reason to know that invasions of Canada were hopeless.  Indeed, not much active opposition from the commander-in-chief was needed to dispose of the Canadian schemes, for facts settled them as fast as they arose.  When the cabal got up its Canadian expedition, it consisted of Lafayette, and penetrated no farther than Albany.  So Washington merely kept his eye watchfully on Canada, and argued against expeditions thither, until this winter of 1778, when something quite new in that direction came up.

Lafayette’s imagination had been fired by the notion of conquering Canada.  His idea was to get succors from France for this especial purpose, and with them and American aid to achieve the conquest.  Congress was impressed and pleased by the scheme, and sent a report upon it to Franklin, to communicate to the French court, but Washington, when he heard of the plan, took a very different view.  He sent at once a long dispatch to Congress, urging every possible objection to the proposed campaign, on the ground of its utter impracticability, and with this official letter, which was necessarily confined to the military side of the question, went another addressed to President Laurens personally, which contained the deeper reasons of his opposition.  He said that there was an objection not touched upon in his public letter, which was absolutely insurmountable.  This was the introduction of French troops into Canada to take possession of the capital, in the midst of a people of their own race and religion, and but recently severed from them.

He pointed out the enormous advantages which would accrue to France from the possession of Canada, such as independent posts, control of the Indians, and the Newfoundland trade.  “France, ... possessed of New Orleans on our right, Canada on our left, and seconded by the numerous tribes of Indians in our rear, ... would, it is much to be apprehended, have it in her power to give law to these States.”  He went on to show that France might easily find an excuse for such conduct, in seeking a surety for her advances of money, and that she had but little to fear from the contingency of our being driven to reunite with England.  He continued:  “Men are very apt to run into extremes.  Hatred to England may carry some into an excess of confidence in France, especially when motives of gratitude are thrown into