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 6 
 
AN' 
 
 ADDRESS 
 
 TO THE 
 
 People of Great Britain. 
 
 BY R. WATSON, 
 
 LORD BISHOP OF LANDAFF. 
 
 SEVENTH EDITION. 
 
 Ilontion : 
 
 PRINTED FOR R. FAULDER, NEW BOND STREET, 
 
 BY 
 
 COOPER AND GRAHAM, WILD COURT, LINCOLN's-INK 
 
 FIELDS. 
 
 [Price One Shilling.'] 
 
} 
 
AN 
 
 ADDRESS 
 
 TO THE 
 
 People of Great Britain, 
 
 6cc. 6cc. 
 
 My fellow- countrymen. 
 
 
 1 HE fentimcnts which I (hall, in this ad- 
 drefs, take the hherty of ftatincr to you on 
 fome intereftiiig points, will, I hope, meet 
 with your candid attention; if not from their 
 worth, from the confideration that they are 
 the fentimcnts of an independent miui. I am 
 neither the friend or enemy of any party in 
 the flate: and am fo far an im.pradicablc 
 man, that on all public quertions of import- 
 ance I will follow the didlatcs of my own indi- 
 vidual judgement. No favour which I could 
 receive from this or from any adminiftration 
 would induce me to fupport meafures which 
 I diHikcd ; nor vriil any negka I may expe- 
 
[ ^ ] 
 
 rlcnce Impel me to oppofe meafures which I 
 approve. 
 
 A new fyflcm of finnnce -has tliis year 
 been introduced; and I fairly own it has my 
 approbation as far as it goes. It has given 
 great difcontent to many ; but it has given 
 none to me. I lament, as every man muft 
 ^o, the necefilty of impofnig fo heavy a bur- 
 then on the community ; and, with a family 
 of eight children, I fliall feci its preflurc as 
 much as moft men : but I am fo far from 
 cenfurins; the minifter for having; done fo 
 much, that I (incerely wifh he had done a 
 great deal more. In the prefent fituation of 
 Great Britain, and of Europe, palliatives are 
 of no ufe, half-meafures cannot fave us. 
 Inftead of callint^ for a tenth of a man's in- 
 come, I widi the minifler had called for a 
 tenth or for fuch other portion of every man's 
 whole property as would have enabled him 
 not merely to make a temporary provifion for 
 the war, but to have paid off, in a few years, 
 the whole or the greateft part of the national 
 debt. 
 
tn 
 
 [ 3 ] 
 
 _ A milHon a year lias been wlfdy fct apart 
 ^or the rcch,ai<H> of the <lcl,t; and l,;ul we 
 continued ar peace, its operation would have 
 been beneficially felt in a few years: hui, in 
 our prefent circumflances, and with an ex- 
 peftatit,,, of tlic rccurrcnry of war a.t fhort 
 periods, it is not one, two or tliree millions 
 •1 year, that can prcfcrvc iis from bank- 
 '■uptcy. Wc had bettor ftniggle to ellia the 
 extinaion of the debt in (Ive years than in 
 fifty, though our exertion, during the Sorter 
 period, ihould be proportioiiably greater. 
 
 A nation is but a colk-aion of individuals 
 united into one bo.Iy for mutual benefit; and 
 a national debt is a debt belonging to every 
 individual, in proportion to the property he 
 pofleffes; and every individual may be juftly 
 called upon for his quota towards the liqui- 
 dation of it. No man, relatively fpeakinp- 
 will be either richer or poorer by this pay- 
 ment being generally made, for riches and 
 poverty are relative terms : and when all the 
 members of a community are proportionably 
 reduced, the relation between the individuals, 
 as to the quantum of each man's property, 
 
 1! 2 
 
SSKHB 
 
 [ 4 ] 
 
 rcmaliiln'j: unaltered, the iiullvlduals them- 
 felves will feel no elevation or clepreiHon in 
 the f'calc of focicty. When all the founda- 
 tions of a great building fink upiformly, the 
 lymmctry of the parts is not injured; the 
 prefllirc on each member remains as it was ; 
 no rupture is made: the building will not be 
 fo lofty, but it may fland on a better bottom. 
 It does not require an oracle to inform us 
 (though an oracle has faid it) that riches have 
 been the ruin of every country; they banifh 
 the limplicity of manners, they corrupt the 
 morals, of a people, and they invite invaders. 
 If we pay the national debt, we may not live 
 quite lb luxurioufly as wc have done; but 
 this change will be no detriment either to 
 our virtue as men, or to our fafety as mem- 
 bers of fociety. 
 
 '■'i 
 
 I confider the property of men united in 
 fociety fo far to belong to the flate, that any 
 portion of it may be juftly called for by the 
 legiflature, for the promotion of the common 
 good; and it is then mod equitably called 
 for, when all individuals, poffeffing property 
 of any kind, contribute in proportion to their 
 
5 them- 
 2iT\oi\ in 
 foil n da- 
 lly, the 
 ed; the 
 it was ; 
 I not be 
 bottom, 
 form us 
 les have 
 y banifh 
 •upt the 
 [ivaders. 
 not live 
 no; but 
 ither to 
 9 mem- 
 
 itcd in 
 lat any 
 by the 
 lommoii 
 called 
 roperty 
 to their 
 
 [ 5 ] 
 
 pofleflions. This is a principle foobviouflyjufl:, 
 that it is attended to as much as pofril)lt' in every 
 fcheme of finance; and it would be tlic univcr- 
 fal rule of taxation, in every country, could the 
 property of individuals be exa^lly afcerrained. 
 Much obje£lion is made to tlie obliging men 
 to difcover the amount of their prt^perty ; but 
 I have never heard a fufficient reafon in fup- 
 port of the objection. I can fee a reafon why 
 merchants, tradefmen, contractors, money- 
 
 \ jobbers, who deal in lari^e fpcculations on 
 credit, and without an adequate capital, 
 
 n fhould be unwilling to difclofc their property ; 
 but I do not fo clearly fee what mifchief 
 
 ft would arife to the community if they were 
 obliged to do it. 
 
 The value of every man's landed property 
 is eafily known ; the value of his monied 
 property in the funds is known; and his 
 monied property in mortgages and bonds 
 might as cafily be known, if an adt of parlia- 
 ment was pafled, rendering no mortgage or 
 bond legal which was not regiflered. Th« 
 greateft difficulty would be in afcertaining 
 the value of flock in trade: but a jury of 
 
 B 3 
 
[ 6 ] . 
 
 nciglihours co-operating with the probity of 
 merchants niul manufadliircrs, and that regard 
 for character which generally dinin^:uiflK'S 
 men in bulincfs, woulil fettle tliat point. 
 
 I have lately converfed with a variety of 
 men, in different Aations, and in diilorent 
 parts 0^ the kingdom, and have ilarccly met 
 with one among the landed gentry, and with 
 none among the manufacturers, rradcfmen, 
 farmers, and artificers of the country, who 
 has not declared that he had much rather 
 pay his portion of the principal of the na- 
 tional debt, than be harrailcd with the taxes 
 dcftined for tlie payment of the intereft of 
 it. This is true patriotiiin, and good fenfc ; 
 and were wc in our prefent circumflances to 
 difcharge the whole, or the greatcd part of 
 the national dfbt, all Europe would admire 
 our>*magnanimity ; and France herfelf would 
 tremble at the idea of fubjugating fo high- 
 fpirited a people. 
 
 I 
 
 .* 
 
 The minifter, I am perfuaded, is too en- 
 lightened not to have confidcred this fubjecl ; 
 and objedlions may have occurred to him, 
 
I 
 
 Mty of 
 t renrard 
 
 It. 
 
 rlcf V of 
 lilTcircnt 
 v\y met 
 id with 
 Icfnien, 
 \r, who 
 rather 
 the iia- 
 ic t;ixcs 
 ivcft of 
 [ fenfc ; 
 rices to 
 part of 
 admire 
 would 
 high- 
 
 oo en- 
 jbjecl ; 
 him, 
 
 % 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 t 7 ] 
 
 which have n ,t occurred to me. I have 
 veutured to ftatc it for general confideratiou ; 
 that it may not be quite new, if we fhould 
 at length be compelled to have recourfe to 
 fuch an expedient. There would be fome 
 difficulty in alcertainlng every man*s pro- 
 perty ; but where there is a willino- mind to 
 remove difficulties, tbey arc feldom infur- 
 mountable. The modifications which the 
 bill for incrcafing the aflLfibd taxes has un- 
 dergonc, ai^e numerous, and in general judi- 
 cious ; and are a proof that the moil per- 
 plexing difficulties yiel 1 to impartial and de- 
 liberative wifdom. 
 
 One modification has not been noticed; 
 at Icafl, J have not fcQu it ftatcd in lb clear 
 a manner as it might be flatcd; and I will 
 mention it, as not undcferving attention, if 
 the bufinefs fhouid ever be refumed in ano- 
 ther form.— Permanent income arifes either 
 from (he rent of land, or from the intereft of 
 money, or from an annuity. The annuitants 
 are very numerous in the kingdom. PoUef- 
 fors of entr/ilcd eikt s, widows with join- 
 tures, the bifhops and clerov, th.e judo-es and 
 
 B 4 
 
 ■i» 
 
f 
 
 [ 8 J 
 
 poflcfibrs of patent places during life, the 
 olilre.'\> of the -.iiv^y niul navy, and mAiiy 
 others under difi'crent denominations, fupport 
 thcmfelves upon property terminating with 
 their hvcs. I'he lives of pofTeflbrs of annui- 
 ties n)?.y, taking the old and the young to- 
 gether, be worth twelve years purchafc. An 
 annuitant then, who has an income of lool. 
 and MO other property, is worth 1 200I. ; fo 
 that ill paying a tenth of his income, he pays 
 am hundred and twentieth part o^ his W'hole 
 property. A perfon poffefled of an income 
 of lool. arifing from a property of 2000I. let 
 out at an intereft of 5I. per cent, in paying a 
 tenth of his income, pays a two hundredth 
 part of his property. A perfon poflelling an 
 income of rool. arifing from land, in paying 
 a tenth of his income, pays (eftimating land 
 at thirty years purchafe) a three hundredth 
 part of his property. Men under thcfe dif- 
 ferent dcfcriptions pay equally, though their 
 properties are unequal in the proportion of 
 lix, ten, and fifteen. 
 
 I 
 
 k 
 
 Much objection alfo has on all hands been 
 made to die touching of the funds by taxation : 
 
An 
 
 [ 9 ] 
 
 but I own that I do not fee any fufficient 
 reafon why property in the funds may not be 
 as jullly as any other property fubjea: to the 
 dlfpofalof thclcglflature. I make this ob- 
 fervation with pcrfca impartiality ; foracon- 
 fiderable part of the httle property I poflefs 
 is in the funds. Parliament has pledged the 
 nation to the payment of the interefl of the 
 money which has been borrowed, till the 
 principal is paid off; but when the debt is 
 become fo great, that the rental of the king- 
 dom will fcarcely pay the intereft of It, T do 
 not fee any breach of contra^:, any want of 
 equity, in the leglflature of the country fay- 
 ing to the public creditor— the pofleffors of 
 land are giving up a tenth or a twentieth part 
 of ail they are worth for the public fervice ; 
 the poffeflbrs of houfes, of ftock in trade, 
 of mortgages and bonds, are doing the fame 
 thing — what reafon can be given why you 
 Ihou Id be exempted? You plead the faith of 
 Parliament.— Be it fo ! Parliament preferves 
 its faith with you ; for if Parliament fliould 
 with one hand pay you your principal, it 
 might lay hold of it with the other, and make 
 you as lirJole as other men poflefiing ixioney, 
 
1 
 
 ■HBHI" 
 
 [ 10 ] 
 
 to pny your proportion ; and does it not come 
 to the fame tiling, whether your whole prin- 
 cipal is paid, and a portion of it is taken back 
 as^ain, or whether your principal is dimi- 
 niHicd by that portion, and you receive the 
 ftipulatcd intereft, till the remainder is dif- 
 char2:ed ? 
 
 Frederick II. in fpeaking of France about 
 twenty years ago, obferved, that there were 
 three things which hindered France from 
 rc-afiluTiing that alcendancy in the affairs of 
 Europe which (he had poflened from the time 
 of Henry IV.' — the enormity of her debt — 
 exhaufted refources — and taxes multiplied in 
 an exceffive manner. The two laft are the 
 offspring of the firft ; but the monarch's ob- 
 lervatlon is applicable to every other nation 
 under the fame clrcumflances, and to our- 
 felvcs as well as to others. If we pay our 
 debt by judicious inftallments, we fliall n-ei- 
 ther run the ritk of the government being bro- 
 ken up, as it w^as in France, by the difcontents 
 of the people, and an inability to go on ; nor 
 Ihall we cripple our commerce by the high 
 price of labour and provifions; nor (hall 
 
 i 
 
ot come 
 )le pri li- 
 en back 
 s dimi- 
 ive the 
 ■ is dif- 
 
 c about 
 'e were 
 e from 
 [lairs of 
 be time 
 debt — 
 plied in 
 are the 
 h*s ob- 
 n at ion 
 :o our- 
 ay our 
 ill n-ei- 
 ig bro- 
 )ntents 
 
 1 ; nor 
 
 2 high 
 r fhall 
 
 [ II ] 
 
 we be depopulated by emigrations to America' 
 or France ; but wc fliall preferve thi- impor- 
 tance we poflcfs in Europe, and renovate the 
 flrength and vigour of the body politic. • 
 
 But I will not detain you longer on this 
 point, there is another, of great itnportancc, 
 to which 1 wilh to turn vour attention. 
 
 Whatever doubts I formerly entertaijied, 
 or (notwithilanding all I have read or heard 
 on the fubjeifl) may ftill entertain, either on 
 the juilice or the neccility of commcncino- 
 this war in which wc are engaged, I enter- 
 tain none on the prcfent ncccffity and juftice 
 of continuing it. Under vshatever circum- 
 ftances the war was begun, it is now become 
 JLiH: ; fince the enemy has lufuied to treat, on 
 equitable terms, for tlie rclloration of peace. 
 Undi-r whatever circumfiances of expediency 
 or inexpediency the war was commenced, its 
 connnuaiice is now become ncccfiary ; for 
 what ii.ccOuy can be greater than that which 
 ariies from the enemy having threatened us 
 with deilrudion as a nation ? 
 
[ 12 ] 
 
 Here I may, probably, be told that, allow- 
 ing the war to be jiifl, it is fliil not neceflary, 
 but perfedly inexpedient. I may have it 
 rung in my ean^ that the French are an over- 
 match for us, that it is better to lubmit at 
 once to the moil ignominious terms of peace 
 than to fee another Brainus weighing out the 
 bulhon of tlie Bank, and infulting the mifcry 
 of the nation with a " woe to the van- 
 quiflicd." J. admit the conclufion of the al- 
 ternative to be jurt, but I do not admit the 
 truth of the principle from which it is derived 
 — I do not admit that the French are an over- 
 match for us. 
 
 I amfarenoun;h from afFe£lin"; knowledg-e In 
 military matters ; but every man knows that 
 men and money are the fmews of war, and that 
 vidlory in the field is achieved by the valour 
 of troops and the Ikill of commanders. Now 
 in which of thefe four particulars is France 
 our fuperior ? You will anfwer at once, flie 
 is iupcrior in the number of men. The po- 
 pulatiun, I know, of the two countries has 
 been generally cftimated in the proportion of 
 
 
 •? 
 
 A- 
 
'■r; 
 
 I ^3 ] 
 
 three to one : but though this fhould he ad- 
 mitted to have been the tiue proportion of 
 the popuhuion, and of the men capable of 
 bearing arms, In the beginning of the war, 
 I think it is not the true proportion at pre- 
 sent. Both countries have loft great num- 
 bers ; but France, inftead of lofmg three 
 times, has, I apprehend, loft above ten times 
 as many men as we have done ; fo that the 
 proportion of men capable of bearing arms 
 remaining in France, compared with what 
 Great Britain can furnifh, does not, I am 
 perfuaded, exceed that of two to one. And, 
 were there even a bridge over the channel, 
 France durft not make an incurfion with half 
 her numbers. She knows how ready her 
 neighbours would be to revenge the injuries 
 they have fuftained, — how ready her own 
 citizens would be to regain the b]ef]inf>T. they 
 have loft, could they once fee all her furccs 
 occupied in a diftant country. France, I re- 
 peat it, were there even a bridge from Calais 
 to Dover, could not fend into the field as 
 many men as wc could oppofe againft her. 
 
 But, it may be urged, all the men in France 
 
 t 
 
[ u ] 
 
 are fold'icrs— No ; fome are kft to till the 
 ground, fonie to fuftniii the languors of her 
 commerce, fomc to pcrifh in prifon, deploring 
 the milery of their country. So many, I ac- 
 knowledge, arc hccome loldicrs in France, 
 that we mull:, in a <jreat degree, imitate her 
 example. Every mar- who can be fpared from 
 the agriculture, the manufacluics, and the 
 commerce of *hc country, muft become a 
 foldier, if we mean to face the enemy in a 
 proper manner, if empire or fcrvltude are to 
 be fairly fought for. 
 
 As to money, I need not enter into any 
 comparative difcuflion on that head. France 
 has no mians within herfelf of providing for 
 her armies — She intends to fend them into 
 this country either that fhe may pay them, 
 as (he has done in Italy, by plunder, or, in 
 the true fpirit of defpair, cancel her debts, 
 by facrificing the perfons of her foldiers. 
 
 i' ■; 
 
 With refpecfl to the valour of the Frtnch 
 troops, I have nothing to obje(fl: I know it 
 is a fivourite opinion with n.any, that the 
 French are now what their anceftors were in 
 
in 
 
 [ '5 ] 
 
 the time of C;uf:u- ; *' that in the frfr onfct' 
 " they are mere than men, hut in the ftccml 
 " leis rlian women." But it appears to mc, 
 I mufi: confels, that in this war the Freix^h 
 
 have luftained with courage tuaiiy cnfcts : 
 
 prailb is due to the galantry even oi" aii 
 enemy. ]]ut if I ^■. ere alked, whether an 
 equal numher of Enghllimen would heat 
 thcfe conquerors of -taly, I would anfwer, 
 as an Englirii ambaflador anfwered a King 
 ofPriifha, when, at a review of his forces, 
 lie alked the ambaflador, " whether he 
 '' thought that an equal number of Englifli- 
 *« men could beat his Pruffians."— " 1 can- 
 *' not tell, (replied the ambafllidor) whether 
 " an equal number would beat tljem ; but I 
 
 *' am certain half the number would try." 
 
 I have the firmeft confidence that fifty thou- 
 find Englifhmen, fighting for their wives and 
 children, for their liberty and property, as 
 individuals, for the independence and confti- 
 tution of their country, would, without he- 
 iitation, attack an hundred thoufand French- 
 ncn. 
 
 As to the relative fkill of the commanders. 
 It would ill become me to give any opinion 
 
r 
 
 [ '6 ] 
 
 upon that point. If I were to admit that the 
 French «2:on(-'rals are not inferior to our own 
 in martial ability, yet in the local knowledge 
 of the country, and in the corredtnefs and 
 fidelity of the information they will receive, 
 ours will certainly have the advantage. 
 
 But if the "rench arc not our fuperiors, 
 cither in men or money, in the valour of their 
 foldiers, or the (kill of their commanders, 
 what have we to apprehend, fhould we he 
 forced to fight them on our own ground ? 
 A thoufand evils, no doubt, attend a country 
 becoming the feat of war, to which we are 
 ftrangers, and to which, through the good 
 providence of God, and the energy of our 
 navy, we fhall long, I trull:, continue fl:ran- 
 gers. But fliouid the matter happen other- 
 wife, fhould the enemy, by any untoward 
 accident, land their forces, I fee no reafon 
 why we fhould defpair of our country, if we 
 are only faithful to ou elves, if, forgetting, 
 all party animolity, we fland coUedUd as one 
 man again fl: them. 
 
 Many honeft men, I am fenlible, have 
 
 
 I 
 
 
It that the 
 our own 
 lowJedge 
 nefs and 
 I receive, 
 
 uperiors, 
 r Ox^ their 
 nanders, 
 d we be 
 ground ? 
 country 
 I we are 
 he good 
 r of our 
 le flran- 
 n other- 
 ntoward 
 5 reafon 
 y, if we 
 getting, 
 -1 as one 
 
 4 
 
 have 
 
 [ '7 ] 
 
 been alarmed into a behef, that were the 
 French to invade this country, they would 
 be joined by great numbers of difcontented 
 men. This is not my opinion. That they 
 would be joined by a few of the worfl: men 
 in the country, by thieves and robbers, and 
 outcafts of fociety, is probable enough ; but 
 that any individual, pollciiing either property 
 or charader, that any reipedlablc body of 
 men, would fo far indulge their difcontents, 
 as to ruin their country and themfelves, in 
 gratifying their refcntment, is what nothing 
 but experience can convince me of. 
 
 I have heard of a Diflenter In Yorkdiire, 
 (a man of great wealth and eftimation), who, 
 on the lail rejedlion of the peilrion for the 
 repeal of the teft-adl, declared that he would 
 go all lengths to carry his point---but I con- 
 fider this declaration as made during the irri- 
 tation of the moment, and as oppofite to ihe 
 genf.ral principles of that body of men. The 
 Dillenters have on trying occafioiis fliewn 
 their attachment to the houfc of Brunlwick 
 and the principles of the revolution ; and I 
 iliould think myfelf guilty of calumny, it I 
 
 c 
 
[ ,8 ] 
 
 (liouUl fay th;U they had in any degree ahaii- 
 doncd either their attachment or tlieir ^)rin- 
 ciplcs, or were dir})ored to join the invaders 
 of tiieir country. 
 
 There is another fet of men whom it 
 fecms the faflilon of the day to reprcfent as 
 enemies of the ftale, to fligma'"ize as re- 
 publicans, levellers, jacobins. But vul- 
 gar traduction of charadler, party coloured 
 rcprefentation of principle, make no im- 
 prcfllon on my mind ; nor ought they to 
 make any impreffion on yours. The mofl 
 refpe(ftable of thofe who are anxious for the 
 reform of parhamcnt have not, in my judge- 
 ment, anv views hoftile to the conftitution. 
 They may, perhaps, be miftaken in believ- 
 ing an eftl'6lual retorm prad;icable, without 
 a revolution; hut few of them, I am per- 
 fuaded, would be difpofed to attain their ob- 
 jedt with fucli a confequence acconn panying 
 it ; and fewer ilill w^ould wifli to make the 
 experiment under the aufpices of a French 
 invader. 
 
 There may be fome real republicans in the 
 
[ '9 ] 
 kingdom; their luimbcr, 1 nm convinced, is 
 extremely Imall; and tlicy arc, probably, 
 republicans more in theory than praaicc; 
 they are, probably, of the fame Icntimentr. 
 with the late Dr. Price, who, being alked a 
 few months before his death, whether ho 
 really wiflicd to ke a republic cllablillied in 
 England, aufwered in the negative. '' He 
 *' preferred,'' (he faid,) '' a republican 
 *' to a monarchical form of government, 
 *' when the conftitution was to be formed 
 *' anew, as in America; but, m old tlla- 
 *' blilhed governments, fuch as England, he 
 ** thought the introdudion of a republic 
 *' would coft more than it was worth, would 
 «' be attended with more mifcluet than ad- 
 
 t( 
 
 vantag 
 
 e. 
 
 »» 
 
 I have -a firm perfuafion tliat the French 
 will find themfelves dilappointed, if they 
 . expea: to be fupporttd in tfieir expedition 
 by the difcontented in this country. They 
 have already made a trial; the event of it 
 iliould lower their confidence; the Welch, 
 of all denominations, rufhcd upon their Gal- 
 lic enemies, with the impetuofity of ancient 
 
 C 2 
 
 I 
 
 k 
 
[ *° ] 
 
 Biiions; they diTcomfitcd them m a mo- 
 ment ; they covered them with fhnmc, and 
 led them into captivity. 7'hc common peo- 
 ple in this fortunate Iflind, enjoy more li- 
 berty, more conlcquencc, more comfort of 
 cvLiy kind, than the common people of any 
 otlier country ; and they aie not infcnfihlc of 
 their felicity ; they will never ere<fl the tree of 
 liberty. They know it l)y its fruit; i!ie bit- 
 ter fruit of flavery, of contempt, opprcfTlon 
 and poverty to themfelves, and probably to 
 their polKrity. 
 
 If Ireland is the ohje^l of ii?vafion, France 
 may flatter hcrielf, perhaps, with the expec- 
 tation of bcino: more favourably received 
 there than in (ireat Biliain : but I truft fhe 
 will be equally uliappointed in both countries. 
 I mean not to enter into the politics of Ire- 
 land; but, confidcring her as a fiftcr king- 
 dom, I cannot wholly omit adverting to her 
 fit nation. 
 
 1 look npon England and Ireland as two 
 bodies which are grown together, with 
 di/ierent m.embers and organs of fenfe, but 
 
 i 
 
[ 21 ] . • 
 
 iiourlfhcJ by the circulation of the flime 
 blood: vvhilfl: they continue iitiitcd they will 
 live and profper; but if ihcy futfer thcm- 
 felvcs to be fcparntcd by the force or cunning 
 of an enemy; if they quarrel and tear thcm- 
 felvcs afundcr, both will inftantly periih. 
 Would to God, that there were ecjuiry and 
 moderation enough among the nations of the 
 earth, to fufFer Irnall Hates to enjoy their 
 independence; but the hiftory of the world 
 is little elfe than the hiftory of great flates 
 facrificing fmall ones to their avarice or am- 
 bition ; and the prefent defigns of France, 
 throughout Europe, confirm the obfervation. 
 If Ireland fo far liftens to her rtfentment 
 (however it has originated) againft this king- 
 dom; if (he fo f;\r indulges her chagrin 
 againft: her own legiflature, as to feck for 
 redrefs by throwing herfelf into the arms of 
 France, fhe will be undone, her freedom 
 will be loft, ihc vvlll be funk in the icale of 
 nations; inftead of flourilhing under the pro- 
 tedion of a fifler that loves lier, the will be 
 fettered as a flave to the feet of the greatefl 
 dei'pot that ever afflicted human kind — cu the 
 feet of French democracy. 
 
 c 3 
 
[ " ] 
 
 Let the n\il-coiitents In every nation ot 
 Europe J(X)k at Ifollnnd, atid at Bclgiuni. 
 Hollaiul was an hive of hecs ; her ions flew 
 on the whigs of the wind to every corner of 
 the glohe, and returned laden with the fweets 
 of every climate. Belg" mi was a garden of 
 herbs, the oxen were ftrong to labour, tlie 
 fields were thickly covered with the abund- 
 ance of the harveft. — Unhappy Dutchmen ! 
 You will flill toil, but not for your own 
 comfort; you will ftill collect honey, but 
 rjot for yourfelves; France will feize the 
 hive as often as vour induftry fhall have filled 
 it. Ill-judging Belgians ! you will no longer 
 cat in fecurity the fruits of your own grounds ; 
 France will find occafion, or will make oc- 
 cafion, to participate largely in your riches; 
 it will be more truly faid of yourfelves than 
 of your oxen, " you plough the fields, but 
 not for your own profit l" 
 
 France threatens us with the payment of 
 what flic calls a debt of indemnification ; and 
 the longer we refifl her efiorts to fubdue us, 
 the larger flie fays this debt will become ; 
 and flie tells us, that all Europe knows that 
 
[ ^3 ] 
 
 this debt muft be paid one time or other— 
 And does (he think that this flourilh will 
 frighten us? It ought to move our contempt, 
 it ought to fire us with indignation, and, 
 above all, it ought to inftruct every man 
 amongft us what we are to expcft, if through 
 fupinenefs, cowardice, or divillon, we fuilcr 
 her mad attempt to prove fucccfsful. She 
 may not murder or carry into flavery the in- 
 habitants of the land ; but under the pre- 
 tence of indemnification, (he will demand 
 millions upon tens of millions ; flie will beg- 
 gar every man of property ; and reduce the 
 lower orders to the condition of her own pea- 
 fants and artificers— black bread, onions, and 
 water. 
 
 1 
 
 France wiflies to feparate the people from 
 the throne ; Ihe inveighs, in harih kngr.<^[^e, 
 againft tiie King, and the cabinet of Saint 
 James' ; and fpeaks tairly to the people of the 
 land But the people of the land ate too wile 
 to oive heed to her profeffions of kindneis. 
 If there be a people in Euroj^e on wivo.ii lucli 
 praaices arc iolt, it is oinielvc. Ml our 
 people are far better educate i, have far ufter 
 
 c 4 
 
[ H ] 
 
 notions of government, far more (hrewdiiefs 
 in dctCkfling the defigns of thofe who vtould 
 miilcad them, than tlje people of any other 
 country hav j, not excepting Swillerland it- 
 Itlf. Tliere is no caufe to fear that French 
 hypocrily fhould be fuperior to Britifh faga- 
 ciry. lAt France approach us with the cou- 
 rage of a Hon, or with the cunning of a fox, 
 we aic equally prepared to meet her ; wc can 
 rclift her arms, and we can expofe her ar- 
 tifice. 
 
 ■s 
 
 France reproaches us with being the ty- 
 rants of the ocean ; and we all remember the 
 armed neutrality, which was entered into by 
 the njariiimc flates of Europe during the 
 American war. It originated, as was faid, 
 from our afl'uming a dominion on the feas, 
 which the law of nations did not allow. I 
 cannot enter ii^to the difcuflion of this qucf- 
 tion here ; and it is lefs neceflary to do it any 
 where, as it has been ably difcufled many 
 years ago. I (incerely hope the accufatiori 
 againft us isnotjuft; for no tyranny either 
 can be, or ought to be lafting ? I am an utter 
 enemy to all dominion founded iii mere 
 
i 
 
 [ 25 1 
 
 power, unaccompaniod with a juft regard to 
 the righti. of individuals or nations. Conti- 
 nental ilates, however, ought to make fomc 
 allowance for our zeal in claiming, and our 
 energy in maintaining, a fuperiority at fea ; 
 our infular fituation gives us a right which 
 they cannot plead ; they have fortreffes for 
 their defence againfl: their enemies ; but fleets 
 are the fortreffes of Great Britain. 
 
 We wifh to preferve our fuperiority at fea 
 for our own advantage, but other nations are 
 not uninterefted in our doing it. If by the 
 voluntary afliftance of Spain and Holland, by 
 the conflrained concurrence of what was Ve- 
 nice, by the improvident acquiefcence of 
 Ruflia, Sweden, Denmark, and the other 
 naval powers of Europe or America, the tri- 
 dent of the ocean (for fome one nation muil 
 poffefs it) Ihould be transferred from Gi. ^ 
 Britain to France, they will all have caufe to 
 lament its having exchanged its mafter. 
 They may at prefent think otherwife, and 
 be pleafed with the profpeil of our humilia- 
 tion (I fpeak not this as if I thought that 
 humiliation would happen, for no man has 
 
[ 26 ] 
 
 an h idler confidence In onr navy than I 
 have) but I f'peak it witli a prophetic warn- 
 ing to thole nations, that they may fee the 
 error of their pohfics hcfoie it becomL-s iin- 
 poffible to retrieve it. if France becomes as 
 great by fea as fhe is become by Luid, Eu- 
 rope will have no hope, but that her chains 
 may be light. 
 
 The channels of commerce, were they 
 open alike to the enterprize of all nations, 
 are fo numerous and copious in the four quar- 
 ters of the globe, that the induftry of all the 
 manufadurers in Europe might be fully em- 
 ployed in fupplyuig them. America is dou- 
 bling her numbers, and will for many years 
 want fupplies from the manufactories of Great 
 Britain. Africa will hi time civilize her mil- 
 lions, and afFord for centuries a market for 
 the commodities of all Europe. What folly 
 is it then in civilized, what wickednefs in 
 chriftian flates, to be engaged every ten or 
 twenty years in deftroying millions of men, 
 for the protedion or the acquifition of arbi- 
 trary monopolies? ■' ' ■ 
 
 v.'iL « ' 
 
[ 27 ] 
 
 There flill remains another fubje<n: winch 
 I am moft anxious to recommend to your ie- 
 rious confidcration — the attempts of bad men 
 to rob you of your religion. 
 
 It is now fomewhat more than feventy 
 years, fmce certain m? • . who efteemed theni- 
 fclves philofophers, and who, unqueflion- 
 ablv, were men of talents, began in diffe- 
 rent parts of the continent, but efpecially 
 in France and Germany, to attack the chrif- 
 tian religion. The defign has been carried 
 on by them and others, under various deno- 
 minations, from that time to the prcfcnt 
 hour. In order to accomplilh their end, 
 they have publiftied an inhiity of books, 
 fome of them diftingullhed by wit and ridi- 
 cule, unbecoming the vaft importance of the 
 fubje<ft, and all ftutttd with fL\lfe quotations 
 and ignorant or defigncd milreprelentations 
 of fcripture, or filled with objedions againft 
 human corruptions of faith, and for which 
 Chriftianity cannot be accountable. 
 
 A fimilar attempt, I have reafon to believe, 
 has for fome years been carrying on amongft 
 
[ 28 J 
 
 ourfelves, aiicl by the fame means. Irreligious 
 pamphlets have been circulated with great 
 induftry, fold at afmall price, or given away 
 to the loweH: of the people, in every great 
 town in the kingdom. The profane ftyle of 
 thefe pamphlets is fulted to the tade of the 
 wicked, and the confident aflertions which 
 they contain are well calculated to impofc 
 on the iinderftanding of the unlearned ; and 
 it is among the wicked and the ignorant that 
 the enemies of religion and government are 
 endeavouring to propagate their tenets. 
 
 It is here fuppofed that the enemies of re- 
 ligion are alfo the enemies of government ; but 
 this muft be underftood with fome reftridlion. 
 There are, it may be faid, many deifts in 
 this country, who are fenfible of the advan- 
 tages of a regular government, and who would 
 be as unwilling as the moft orthodox be- 
 lievers in the kingdom, that our own (hould 
 be overturned— this may be true — but it is 
 true alfo, that they who wifh to overthrow 
 the government are not only, generally fpeak- 
 ing, unbelievers themfelves, but that they 
 found their hopes of fuccefs in the infidelity 
 
[ 29 ] 
 
 of the common people. They are fenfiblc 
 that no government can long fubfift, if the 
 bulk of tlie people have no reverence for a 
 fupremc being, no fear of perjury ; no ap- 
 prehenlion of futurity, no check from con- 
 fcience ; and forefeeirg the rapine, devafta- 
 tion, and bloodlhed, which ufually attend 
 the iail: convulfions of a ftate flruesflins' for 
 its political exiflcnce, they wifli to prepare 
 proper adors for this dreadful cataftrophe, 
 by brutalizing mankind ; for it is by religion 
 more than any other principle of human na- 
 ture, that men are diftinguifhed from brutes. 
 
 The mafr. of the people has, in all ages anJ 
 countries, been the mean of efFecluatino- 
 great revolutions, both good and bad. The 
 phyfical flrength of the bulk of a nation is 
 irrefiftible, but it is incapable of felf-direaion. 
 It is the inftrument which wife, brave, and 
 virtuous men ufe for the extinction of ty- 
 ranny, under whatever form of government 
 it may exift ; and it is the inftrumcnt alfo, 
 which men of bad morals, defperate fortunes, 
 and licentious principles, ufe for the fubver- 
 liou of every government, however ju ft in 
 
C 30 ] 
 
 its origin, liouxvcr equitable in its admiiil-. 
 ftration, however coiulucive to the ends for 
 which fociety has been eftabllflied among 
 mankind. It is againil the machinations of 
 theie men, fecret or open, folitary or ailb- 
 ciated, that I wifh to warn you ; they will 
 firfl: attempt to perluade you that there is no- 
 thing after death, no heaven for the good, 
 no hell for the wicked, that there is no God, 
 or none who regards your a£lions ; and when 
 you (hall be convinced of this, they will 
 think you properly prepared to perpetrate 
 every crime which may be neceflliry for the 
 furtherance of their own dcfigns, for the gra- 
 tification of their ambition, their avarice, or 
 their revenge. 
 
 / 
 
 No civil, no ecclefiaftical conftitution can 
 be fo formed by humafi wifdom as to admit 
 of no improvement upon an increafe of wif- 
 dom ; as to require no alteration when an al- 
 teration in the knowledge, manners, opi- 
 nions, and circumftances of a people has 
 taken place. But men ought to have the 
 modefty to know for what they are fitted, and 
 the difcrctlon to confine their exertions to 
 
 fi 
 
r 3> ] 
 
 lubjc-as of wliich they have a competent 
 
 knowledge. 
 
 i 
 
 / 
 
 Tliere is perhaps little difference in the 
 /Ircngth of memory, in the acutenefs of dif- 
 ccrnrncnt, in the iolidity oi-judgemcnr, in any 
 of the intclkaual powers on which know- 
 ledge depends, between a flatefman and a 
 manufliaurcr, between th..^ moil learned di- 
 vine and a mechanic: the chief difference 
 coniifts in their talents being applied to dif- 
 fcrent fubjeas. All promote both the public 
 good, and their own, when they ad within 
 their proper ipheres, and all do harm to 
 themfelves, and others, when they go out of 
 them. You would view with contempt a 
 llatefman, who fhould undertake to regulate 
 a great manufadory without having been 
 brought up to bufinels; or a divine, who 
 fliould become a mechanic without having 
 learned his trade; but is not a mechanic, or 
 manufaaurer, ftiU more mifchlcyous and ri- 
 diculous, who affeas to become a flatefman, 
 or to folve the difficulties which occur in 
 divinity? Now this is prcciiely what the 
 men 1 am cautioning you againft: wi(h you to 
 do—they harancrue you on the diforders of 
 
r 3* ] 
 
 our conflltiition, and propofe remedies; they 
 propound to you fubtilties in metaphyfics and 
 divinity, anddefireyou tu cxplani tlien-* ; and 
 bccaufeyou are not prepared to do this, or to 
 anlvver all their objcdlions to our govern- 
 ment, they call up n you Id itjcift religion, 
 natural and revealed, as in^poflureG, and to 
 break up the cnnfVitution of ihe country, as 
 an enormous mala ut incurable corruption. 
 
 :'( 
 
 No one, I tru(T, will fufpe^l the writer of 
 
 contending that great ahull s in church or 
 
 flate ought to be perpetuated, or of wifhing 
 
 that any one liognKi oi oui holy religion 
 
 fhould not be dlfcuTid uit() decent freedv m 
 
 (for the more religion is tried, the n^ore iK 
 
 will be refined ;) but he does contend that 
 
 the faith of unlearned chriflians ought 
 
 not to be fhakcn by lies and blafphemies; he 
 
 does contend that it is better to tolerate 
 
 abufcs, till they can be reformed by the coun- 
 
 fels of the wifcfl: a:id the befl men in the 
 
 kinodum, than to fubrnit the removal of 
 
 them to the frothy frequenters of ale-houfes, 
 
 to the difcontentcd declaimers againfl our 
 
 eflablifliment, to the mlferable dregs of the 
 
 nation who feek for difciuelion in public 
 
 \ 
 

 \ 
 
 i 33 1 
 
 confuilon. An ancient fabrick may by mere 
 force be defaced and thrown down; but it 
 requires the knov> ledge and caution of aii 
 architca to bcaMtify and icpair it. You are 
 feniiblc that rhc mofl .ncrenious piece of me- 
 chanilm niay be (polled by the play of a 
 child, or broken to pieces by the blow of an 
 idcot or a madman ; and can you think that 
 the m .chine of government, the moft inge- 
 niou:, and complicated of all others, may not 
 at once be defpoiled of all its elegance, and 
 deprived of all its fuadions, by the rude and 
 bunghiig attempts of the unlkilful to amend 
 its motion ? 
 
 I have not time to lay before vou the rife 
 and progrefs of that infidelity with rcfped to 
 revealed religion — ^t' t.'.at fcepticifm with re- 
 fped to natural ivJI/ion— of that infanity 
 with refpea tog rnmei.r, which have, by 
 their combined iriHuence overwhelmed with 
 calamity one ot the iiii^ntiefl: ftates in Eu- 
 rope, and which iDcnace with deftruAioii 
 every other. [ 'nave not time to (hew you 
 by detailed quotations from the writings of 
 the French and German philofophers— that 
 
[ 34 ] 
 
 i 
 
 the fiipfrfliilon of the church of Rome mndc 
 them iufitlels — rhat a iriifapprchcnfinii of the 
 extent of hmnaii knowledge made tliem fcep- 
 tics — and that the tyranny of the continental 
 governments made them enemies of all go- 
 vcrnnicnt, except of that fdly fyftem of de- 
 mocratic liberty and equality, which never 
 has had, nor ever can have a permanent efta- 
 blilhment amonafl: mankind. 
 
 Though I cannot, in this fhort and general 
 addrel"^, enter fully or deeply into thelc mat- 
 ters, I may be allowed to fiiy to thcfc philo- 
 fophcrs — how has it happened that men of 
 your penetration, in fliunning one vice, have 
 fallen, like fools, into its oppofitc? Does 
 it follow that Jefus Chriii wrought no mira- 
 cles, becaufe the church of Rome has pre- 
 tended to work many ? Does it follow that 
 the apollles were not honcfl: men, becaufe 
 there have been priefts, bifhops and Popes 
 who were hypocrites ? Is the chriftian reli- 
 gion to be ridiculed as more abfurd than pa- 
 ganifm, to be vilified as lefs credible than 
 mahometanifm, to be reprefented as impious 
 and abominable, becaufe men, in oppofition 
 to tvery precept of Ch rift, and to every prac- 
 
■ [ 35 ] 
 
 ticc of the npoAk'.,, have worfliippcil nn^rc;, 
 prayed to dead miMi, believed in tranlnbdm- 
 tiation, granted itidiilgL'ticIcs, erected iiujui- 
 fitions, and loafled honed men alive for not 
 complying with their lliperftitioii? 
 
 With refpctfl to natural religion, I would 
 fay to them— -you complain that you cannot 
 comprehend the creation of the univcrfc, nor 
 the providence of God ; and is this your want 
 of ability to become as wife as your maker a 
 reafoii for doubting whether there ever was a 
 creation, and whether there is a providence? 
 What (hould you think of a neft of reptiles, 
 which, being immured in a dark corner of 
 one of the loweft apartments of a magnifi- 
 cent houfe, (hould affcd to aigue againft the 
 houfe having ever been built, or its being 
 then taken care of. You are thofe reptiles 
 with refped to your knowledge of the time 
 when God created, and the manner in which 
 -he flill takes care of the world. — You cannot, 
 you tell us, reconcile the omnifcience of God 
 with the freedom of man — is this a real'on for 
 your doubting of the freedom which you feel 
 you polFcfs, or of the power of God to under- 
 
 
■■P*" 
 
 L 36 ] 
 
 Ibnd the nature of wh;it he has mado: — You 
 cannot compreheiid how it is poillhlt* for an im- 
 material being to be adted upon by material 
 organs of fenlc— will you therefore deny the 
 exiftence of your foul as a rub,^ni\ce diftintft 
 from your body? do you not perceive that it 
 JiTiuft equally fu'pafs yo\n- undcrilmding how 
 matter, atfling upon matter, can produce 
 any thing but moti"on ; can give rife to per- 
 ception, thought, will, memory, to all thofe 
 intel]e6tual powers, by which arts and fcicn- 
 ces are invented and indefinitely improved ? 
 
 With refpecft to goverment, I would fay to 
 them — admitfing that there is a natural equa- 
 lity amongfl mankind, docs it follow that 
 there may not be, or \iu\i tiiere ought not to 
 be, an iniHtuted inequality? Admitting that 
 men, before rhev enter into focietv, are free 
 from the dominion of each other, docs it fol- 
 low that they may not voluntarily relinquifh 
 the liberty of a ftate of nature, in order that 
 they may enjoy the comfort and obtain the 
 fecurity of a flate of fociety ? Can there be 
 no juft government, becaufe there is and has 
 been rnuch oppreffion in the world, no poll- 
 
 • i 
 

 [ 37 ] 
 tical freedom in Great Britain, becaufe there 
 was, during the monarchy, little in France; 
 where tl>ere is, probably, flill lefs than there 
 was ? Does it follow that there ought to be no 
 diftinaion in foclety, with refpedl to rank or 
 riches, becaufe there are none in a Ikte of 
 nature ; though nature herfelf has made a 
 great difference amongft the individuals of 
 our fpecies as to health, ftrength, judgment, 
 genius, as to all thofe powers which, either 
 in a ftate of nature or fociety, neceflarily be- 
 come the caufes and occafions of the fupe- 
 riority of one man over anoLhcr ? Does it 
 follow that rich men ought to be plundered, 
 and men of rank degraded, becaufe a few may 
 be found in every 0:ate who have abufed their 
 pre-eminence, or mifapplied their wealth ? 
 In a word, does it follow that there ought to 
 be no religion, no government, no fubordina- 
 tion amongft mea, becaufe religion may de- 
 generate into fuperftition, government into 
 tyranny, and fubordination into fiavery r— 
 As rcalonably might it be arguea, that there 
 ought to be no wine, beraule fome men may 
 become drunkard:? ; no meat, becaufe fome 
 men may become gluttons ; no air, no tire. 
 
C 38 ] 
 
 no water, bccaufe thefc natural fourccs of 
 general f'crk:ily niay accidentally become in- 
 flriimcnts of partial calamity ? ' 
 
 He who pcrufes with attention the works 
 ■of thofc toreigners, who for the laft fevent}'' 
 or eiditv vears have written ag-ainfl: revealed 
 or natural religion, and compares them with 
 the u'rirings of oi^r Englifh deifts towards the 
 end of the laft and the beginning or middle 
 of tl)e prefent century, will perceive that the 
 former have borrowed all their arguments and 
 objedtions from the latter ; he will perceive 
 alfo that they are far inferior to them in learn- 
 ing and acutenefs, but that they Turpaf them 
 in ridicule, in audacity, in blaiphemy, in mif- 
 reprefentation, mi all the mifcra' le arts by 
 which men are wont to defend a bad caufe ; 
 they furpafs them too in their milbhievous 
 endeavours to difl'eminate t' eir principles 
 anion lift thofe who, from their education, 
 are Icaft qualified to refute their fophiflry. 
 
 ■j'uflly may we call their reafoning fophiftry, 
 fiiice It vvMs not able to convince even them- 
 
 '^ i 
 
[ 39 ] 
 
 fclves. One of the moft eminent of tbem, 
 f Voltaire) who had been a theifl:, a matcria- 
 liO-, a (I'lLcIiever of a fixture ftate all his 
 days, afked with evident anxiety a few y-rrs 
 before his death, Is there a God fuch as nrjcu 
 fpeak of? Is tii'Te a fcil fuch as people ima- 
 gine r Is there any thitig to hope fjr after 
 death ? He feems to have bet a coafiUcnt in 
 nothing, but in his hatred of tiiat gofpel 
 which would have enlightened the obfcurity 
 in which he was involved, and at once dilfi pa- 
 ted all his doubts. As to his notions of go- 
 vernment, he appears to hive been as un- 
 fettled in them as in his religious fentiments ; 
 for though he had been one of the moft zea- 
 lous apoftles of liberty and equality, though 
 he had attacked monarchical governments in 
 all his writings with great bitteruefs, yet b« 
 at laft cpnfelled to one of the greateft princes 
 tiicn in Europe, '* that he did not love the go- 
 V r:^ment of the loweft orders— that he did 
 acl wifh the re-eftablidunent of Athenian 
 democracy.** ^ 
 
 Such are the inconl'ftencies of men who, 
 by their profane difputation againft religion. 
 
'TTZ 
 
 ^^m 
 
 •*.'•:< .V. 
 
 [ 40 1 
 
 have diriiurbcd the confciences of iudividuals; 
 who, by their fenfelefs raiUng again ft go- 
 vernment, havQ endangered the tranquillity 
 of every nation in Europe ! And it is againft 
 fuch men I warn you. 
 
 v^' 
 
 Are any of you opprefled with poverty, 
 difeafe^^and wretchednefs ? Let noneof thefe 
 men beguile you of your belief that ** God 
 " is, and that - *: the rewarder of them 
 " that diligently Icv . him," — " the protec- 
 *' tor of them that truft in him.** — Are any 
 ofvjrdu afHi(fled in mind, defpairing of mercy 
 through the multitude of your fins ? Let 
 none of thefe men ftagger your perfuafion 
 that the gofpel is true ; for therein you will 
 read that " Jefus Chrift came into the world 
 •* to fave finners"— repent, and the gofpel 
 will give you confblation. Are any of you 
 ^itofperous in your circumftances, and cafy in 
 your confciences ? Let none of thefe men, 
 by declaiming againft defc£ls in our conftitu- 
 tion, or abufes in government, betray you 
 into an opinion that were the prefent order 
 of things overturned, a better might, by their 
 CoiTrifels, be eflablifhed ; for, by their coun- 
 
 
rid 
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 m 
 
 
 
 ;n, 
 
 
 
 u- 
 ou 
 
 
 
 ler 
 eir 
 
 • 
 
 
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 11- 
 
 
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 [ 41 ] 
 
 fcls, y^u would either be plundered of your 
 property, or compelled to become their ac- 
 complices in impiety and iniquity. Sec what 
 has happened in France to all orders, to the 
 common people as well as to the nobility. 
 " The little finger of their republic has be- 
 *' come thicker, more oppreffive to the whole 
 *' nation, than the loins of their monarchy; 
 '* they were chaflifed with whips, they are 
 " chaftifed with fcorpipns." 
 
 I am not altogether infenfible of the dan- 
 ger I may have incurred, (fhould matters 
 come to extremity) by thus publicly addref- 
 fing my countrymen. I might have con- 
 cealed my fentiments, and waited in retire- 
 ment, till the ftruggle had been over, and 
 the iflue known ; but I difdain lafcty accom- 
 panied with diihonour. When Hannibal is 
 at the gates, who but a poltroon would liften 
 to the timid counfels of neutrality, or attempt 
 to fcreen himfelf from the calamity coming 
 on his country, by fkulking as a vagabond 
 amid the mountains of Wales or of Weft- 
 raoreland ? I am ready, and I am perfuaded 
 that 1 entertain a juft confidence in faying, 
 
 E 
 
x 
 
 [ 42 ] 
 
 that hiiiulicds of thoufaiids of loyal qnd 
 honeft men are as ready as I am, to hazard 
 every thing in defence of the country, 
 
 I pray God to influence the hearts of both 
 fides to good will, moderation, and peace: to 
 grant to our enemy grace to return to a due 
 fenfe of piety and a belief in uncorrupted 
 Chriftianity ; and to imprefs our own minds 
 with a ferlous fenfe of the necelfity of fo re- 
 penting of our fins, and fo reforming our 
 lives, as may enable us to hope for his pro- 
 tection agaiiift all enemies, foreign and do- 
 meftic. 
 
 London^ 
 Jan. 20, 1798 
 
 R. LANDAFF. 
 
 I. 
 
 
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