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JEn.Ub. 1% I III • " I 'For p^of look up, And read thy lot in yon c^eftial fign, \/hcrc thou art weigh'd, ano fhcwn how light, how wcak^ /Milton, Par. Loft, B. 4. > * * «•«— ^w -'- "K. <*,» L O N p O N: Printed for T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, at Tuliy*s Head, near Surry Street, in the Strand. M DCC LXV. r it: u II.' IP t't.'M ' 4- J] 4r" ll iiii mi,^ PtiCtiat the confidence of the pub-, lit may have ibme firm ground whereon to (land ; and that the plans of that adminiflration, which appears bed to deferve fupport, may be neither impeded by the clamours of an angry oppofition, nor embarra(red by the deftiltory fupport of capri- cious friends. •' ' ' ^ < , ^ , The two parties' are to be confidcred with rc- fpedl to their principles of Governmen$^ to their fyf" tern of foreign policy^ and to their domeftic admim- Jiraticn* The characters of the leaders of them, ^fo far as they influence then* plans, muft be marked' *, the tenor of their condu^ muft be recollefted. Thefe are the grounds of that cowparifon which we fhould draw ; on thefe thie judgment of the public will be formed : thefe are the purpofes of this pamphlet. ^ U * , I am not ignorant that I (hall tread on the Very ground which Horace has defcribed, - - . . -: Per igfies Suppofttos cineri dohfl. .:r'. L. 2. Od. I, I Where fo much muft be faid^ of perfons, and of tranfaftions fo very recent, it will not be pofTible to avoid the imputation of flattery and fatyr. ' If there are any commendations in thefe papers, they (hall however be fuch as the public may con- firm. ( 3 ^ firm, and the perfons on whom they are bedowed may not blufh to receive ; for I Ihall remember the advice of an elegant writer * ; Je voudrois (fays he) qu^on defendit aux faifeurs de pane^yriques de jamais employer le mot de herosy de grand^ de merite •, qu^on louat par les cbofesy et point par les Epitetes, If my fubjeft leads me to the lefs pleafmg office of cenfure, I fhall endeavour to do it in temperate and decent terms. The licentiOufnefs of abufe wVich the example of the North Briton encou- raged and provoked, is happily grown again of- fen five to moderate men *, happily, becaufe it add- ed poifon to the wounds which each party gave and received, and contributed more to weaken pri- vate cftcem and publiv^ refped, than can be wiih- cd by any who know how neceffary both thefe arc to the peace and ftrength of every ftate. It IS propofed to begin this comparifon from the time at which the two parties afllimed their prefent form. This will comprehend the tranfaflions of the fummer of 1763, and the following winter: for their behaviour, during this p;Sfiod, each party is anfwerable as a party % and though the period is but ihort, there have occurred in the courfe of it fuffi- cient opportunities for both of them to difcover their fentiments upon the three great objefts of our en- quiry i and we may, from a view of their conduSf^ form a well-grou ded judgment of their principles^ refpe^ling the conjiitution of our country ^ its foreign inter eftsy and internal Government, It is neceflary, however, to ftate the fituation in which they were at the beginning of this pe- riod, as well as the means by which they had beei^ brought into that fituation. * l«ttres da Buffi Rabuiia. B 2 I ( .V' At the accelTion of the prcfent K , there hac} appeared in the nation fo Brm a reliance on the prin- ciples and virtues of the Sovereign, that he found neither danger nor difficulty from the fccefllon of the Chiefs of that party, which had formerly ap- peared fyperior to the whole power of the Crown j Chiefs, who to the experience of half a century in the routine of bufinefs, had added that power iri eledions, which, though they owed it to the in- fluence of the Crown, they boafted they could di- refl to their oNvn purpofes. > yj i I %. But this whole political cobweb was burft at once by the vigour qf the Prince : and he had no fooner given theenfigns of bufinefs to a new Minijler^ than the two Houfes feconded his wiihes, and gave tQ the Earl of Bute an extenfive and Ziialous fupport. But it is certain that a very different fcene prefentcd^ itfelf at the time this pamphlet begins its review. The frequent tranfitions of the minifterial power had the neceffary confequence of weakening the strength of the Government, and that reputation for firmnefs which is one of its fureft fupports. /' ' It was at the clofe of the Seflion of 1763, that the care of the public bufinefs in the Houfe of Com- mons devolved upon Mr, Grenville ; and from that time he feems tp have flood in the Houfe of Com- mons at the head of one of the two parties which it is propofed to compare. But notwithftanding the character of this Mi- njfter fo^conHitutional knowledge and unblemifhed integrity ; and notwithftanding the reputation he had acquired to himfelf, and the facilities which he had given to govjBrnment, while he bad been cntruftcd with the coiidudl of the K 's bufinefs. I % , A ( 5 ) he could not immediately cxpefl an extenfiFc fupport. His adminiftration was liable to two objcftions, which being concradiftory could not both be true ; but had however much weight in the minds of thofc who formed them. ' ' t f r • . I ' I • ' 1 1 I The retiring Minifter (faid the partizans of the late Secretary) (hall not find it cafier to exercife his power under the fandlion of another namey than he did to retain it in his own ; nor will the vigour of t^ oppofition be fo much abated by this pretence of change, as excited by the infult which it offers to their underdandings. V >t We were attached, faid another knot of men, by the bands of friendfhip and gratitude to the perfon of the Earl, into whofe councils we could enter, and of whofe favour we were afTured ; a new Mi- nifter rifes on the ruin of our proteftor, who will not purfue his meafures, who cannot promote his friends; can it be prudent to range ourfelves on the fide of one, to whom we are not bound by the ties of gratitude, fcarcely by thofc of hope ? i Even the more fober and difinterefted part of the nation made fome paufe ; the minds of honcft men do not form, lightly andfuddenly, with different men and upon diffisrent plans, connexions of a delicate find important nature: nor could they be aflured (and this uncertainty retained many) that this fyf- tem would be more lafting than thofe which they had feen fuccefllvely formed and dififplved. On the other hand, this new frame had now in ihe courfe of four months begun to knit, and to gain (Irength ; wh^en ^ new pl^n almofl; didocat^ ,t .-w^-t I II ( 6 ) it; and if k hal been purAied in the extent which was demanded by the oppofition, there would not 1 think have remained even to the Crown the power of akerihg tlie adminiftration ; at leaft during the hrcs of the confederated chiefs. - r When this plan was found dangerous and im- pradicable, and the government refettled upon its fbhrier bottom ; it Avas forefccn that this event mud give to the Miniiler a much greater and more aviov^ influence : it was believed chat he now re- ibtivtd from many quarters (Ironger and more tflipHcit afTufances of conBdcnce and fupport. He was remarkable for that refolucion, which is a qualification fo neccflary to fuccefs. His hav- ing undertaken the fupport of Government at the ttipc he tlid, (hewed that he knew enough of the nature of parcy to defpife the cU'mours of it if he di<3 not dcftrvc them ; and his par- liamentary charadler left no room to fuiped he would give any caule of juft reproach : many there- fore were inclined to adliere to a Minifter of whofe conftancy they wece aflured, in whofe principles and meafures they couLi fafely confide, and who held out a plan of conflicutiunal policy as the only bond of that union which he wi(hed to form. A great degree of odium was thrown upon the oppofition by the high terms which they had de^ manded ; what thefe were I do not pretend to know V but the public believed that two of them were, ift. The furrender of all the forts of Govern- ment v and 2d« An abfolute profcriptionof all their opponents.} and they thought that tcfiUS more hu- miliating to the Crown could not have been afked, hvL^' tbt'^eiret^ary appeared at the head of hired ftilors and a deluded populace, not in CheapHde, ^ a( St. James's gateii^ Reverend vern- their : hu- L{ked, btrcd ifide, ( 7 ) Rererence for a. young aod amiable Priace, who (o well merited the love and refpedt of his p.eoplc« and who had fubmitted without effedl to make a very unufual advance, awakened the fobcr and chinking part of the nation in his defence ; and i( was the fentiment of almod all the kingdom whicb a noble Duke exprefled, when he faid. He wifi>i4 fo guard the Cr$wn though but in the office of a pftty( conllahUy rather than Ju it expofed to fii infolm am atta(k» ^ • • .' > ■. : I » The grofs perfonal abufo and falfe accufation^ which the North Briton had fo illiberally fcattered^ gave offence to all men of moderation. The avowed and continued defign of awakening the mutual jealoufier^ of two haughty people ; of Tow- ing difcord between the Southern and Northera parts of Great Britain ; and of rendering vain the labours of the wifcft Englifh Counfellora who had planned and perfedcd the Unioftj by cu'ting every- bond of a.(fe6tion and amity between the united na- tioas, infpired every good Englixhrnan with horror. t t ; i V. 4> An open and premeditated infulc upon the K- cxercifing in the higheft Court of Parliament the highed functions of his office, and the impious at^ tempt of alienating from Parliament the affedions and the refpedts of their conilituents, excited a ge- neral indignation. ^ , , .; u ,> > .1 : > The oppcfition had the odium of having en- couraged to thefe outrages the blind Tool of their refentment and ambition ; and the additional dif-r grace of having (hewn, by thiir treaty in Auguft, either that they knew themfelves the falfehood oil the abufe which they had encouraged \ or that ihtf would not hefuate "to unite themfirlves, to the ob^ II it! Mil I m 11 • ! I I I r ( 8 ) }cft of it, if he would open for them the door to power.. ■■ .'i>'- '•'■**; *^v..r -, •■' ^^v. v'/ :•■• = • . j ^ In proportion to this odium and indignation againft the cppofttion, the good wifhes of men were conciliated towards a Minider, who had zeal enough to (land forward in the public fervice, in fupport of the juft rights of the Crown and the Con(litu|:ion» againft thefe defperare attacks ; and they founded warm hopes of his fuccefs upon that refolution which had not failed hi m, though he muft Jiave forefeen that to the other circumftances of po- litical difficulty would be added all that embar^ raffment which could be given by thofe ariftocratics, who having deferted and infulted the Crown, attri- buted it to him, that they had not been able to do it with (uccels, -^ *,^;^ ... ... * ., ;; l>. Mr. Grenville did ootfail to profit by thefe fa- vourable fentiments: he confirmed and encreafcd them, by compleating his fyftem upon principles diretSily contrary to thofe which had guided the now difcarded fadion. , .>••-,.. 1, .-^ Ever fince our country has been divided into parties, it has been too common to reft on one of them alone, the weight cf Government. That which had now for more than forty years been near the throne, had taken much pains to rcprcfent this as the only efFedual method of giving to Govern- ment fccUrity and eafe : they had purfued with great fteadinefs the famous advice of ruling hy di- vifioHt I do not mean to infinuate that the refpec- table perfons whom I have in my thoughts were ever inftrufted in the pernicious arts of that Flo- rentine SeiCretary by whom it was recommended : the pradUce of it, which he advifes, requires ^ com-^ prchcnfivc view of the fiiuation of the ftate, of the . . M 9 ) the interefts, manners, prejudkes and paHlons of the people ; it calls fometimes for much refine- ment, always for a confident phm. They excufed themfelves therefore from fo laborious a talk : they faw that it would ferve their purpofc as well, if ihey could make their Sovereign believe that his fubjeds were divided. ij mu:^ / <'jn '>j n'jyi They therefore reprefcnted Great Britain as be^ ing feparated Into two parties •, the one afting with violence upon deftruflive principles, profcfTed ene- mies to the Proteftant Succeflion, and the Houfe of Hknover, without abilities or moderation, and only to be governed with a rod of iron. The.other^ and this was their own, devoted to the Crown and refpecfled by the people, honeft, capable, and though extremely difinterefled,. willing however to accept all the lucrative polls of Government for the glory of the Crown, and the good of the public. This was certainly a great improvement upon the Flo- rentine maxim V retained all its advantages witljouj: Its labours, its danger?, or its cruelties ; "and inftead of exciting fellow citizens to mutual jealoufy and mutual {laughter, it effecflu.illy excluded the whole party which they called Tories, and yet left the gentlemen excluded in full poflclTion of their ta- lents, and at liberty to employ them in the public fervice •, ufeful as country magiftrates, contribut- ing to the internal peace and (Irength of i ( 12 ) per fo capricious and uncommuntcative,thathe was ill fitted for ?i chef de parity even if he would fub- niit to the fatigue which accompanies that cha- raster, and for which he was difqualified, both by weak health and difpofition. * .| > 'V • . . . ^ * Many were even of opinion that the abilities of thi^t gentleman were declining with his conftitu- tlon i perhaps it may be true, that as the eloquence he had chofen was of the moll: vehement kind, the brilliancy of it may have pafled with the warmth of youth : certain it is, that there were many fea- tures of his charader, refembling that of Pompey, as drawn by Lucan, hb i. , , .... . .. ,. .. Nec coiere pares^ alter - UO ?SS.., ^i\jt \> • fameeque pethor I Mtilia dare in vulgus^ touts popularibus auris Impelli ■ multumque priori . Credere fortuna^ fiat magni nominis umbra, ^s^^ \ ■J^^.h:,, i t--1 "t^ I", 1 -t i>i ir^'~\ tt: \ The fecond Commoner in rank, tliough he was difpleafed with the Miniftry, could not be clafiTed in the party oppofing 5 he had been difpofed to unite with adminiftration, and to adopt their mea- fures : that he was not now in their councils, pro- ceeded from a difpute which, however interefting he had thought it to his own reputation and in- fluence, had no relation to public meafures; they could never therefore be afTured that he would not in Tome unhapp^y hour defcrt that parry to which he was united, neither by principle nor efleem. ^ ' -There was indeed another fet of men, who by their numbers formed the ftrength of the oppofition, and^ who, from their vehemence, would have been foTtnidable, if they had had among them any Chief- ■*'■■• ■ . ^c ■I ( 13 ) of weight and abilities : Thefe were the followers of his Grace's fortunes. ...^ , rjH #^ 1 .-- » « There had long been praiSlifed iii this countrj*, two modes of fecuring the fuccefs of the Minifter's meafurcs ; one by gaining to his party, thofe whofe abilities he feared ; another, the collecting fuch a number oi determined friends, as to be able to de- fpife the utmoft eloquence of the oppofers. His Grace had purfued this latter plan ; all he had re- quired of thofe who compofed his party, was, that their ears (like thofe of the mariners of UJylTcsJ fhould be fo clofely ftopped, as to receive no im- preffion from the Toothing (trains of any fyren op» pofition. , .^.^, -r >• ' " i' .r^>. t w.,. f It is not a little furprizing that a Minifler of lively parts, with a good fhare of fchool learning, capable of judging of compojitiony and of writing himfelf with propriety and elegance, fliould not have chofen friends for qualifications refembling his own ; but certain it is, that ftrong profeflions, family connexions, frequent attendance, and above all Borough merits had generally determined him in his recommendation of Senators in former Parlia- ments. «*',» v* « "/♦^ Uii t.lt7\i:i:t 1 i- i% ,\'l*tin '.t» The extent of the eloquence of the greater part of thefe did not exceed the pronouncing with a loud voice, Ay^ or No ; few could ^ uttqr a conti- nued fentence ; and if any could acquit themfelves, of three or four united, it was neceflary that thefe fentences fhould involve no confequence or conclu- fion ; to that (Iretch of ability their underftandings had not been able to arrive. The reader fees that I fpeak ftill of his friends in former Parliaments ; even in this, his Grace found that abilities did not always accompany a feat, and that there were other 7 quali' M I '5 I 11 in ( u ) qualifications to be attended to belides an eftate of 300 1. a year. There were not, and this was an ir^ reparable difadvantage to his party, many names wpon the lift of it,, who were equal to a fpcech in debate ; it was forefecn that the borrowing Gene- rals for a day of aftion, muft gire room of reafon- able jealoufy to his friends, and bring them into contempt. If either the Chief of Hayes or of Ad- dcrbury was cntrufted with the condaft of his for- ces, he muft facriBce to their wills all his own views and purpofes 5 and he could not even then be afftjrcd that the contempt which he knew they bore htm, would not break out in the midft of their aU Jiance-, nor was it then known that he would be able to employ in his fervice, as afterwards' he was^ (how much to his popularity and their advantage, is not here in queftion) the Generals of Minden and Rochefort, ' To all thefe difad vantages is to be added the want of that common principle, which is the only fecure bond of union. The feveral parts* of the op-^ pofition differed as much from each other as from adminiftration ; from fuch a chaos therefore of dif- cordant atoms, and undrreftcd too by any govern- ing mind, it required no great depth of philofophy vto forefee, that no regular or well ordered fyftem .c6uld arife. * ^ * , • But to pafe fl'om thfe review of the forces, to that of the operations of the Offqfitionr they thought they had points of fuch Parliamtntafy and popular weight, as would more than outbalance thelc difad- " vantages. They had determined to try their forces upon the point of Privilege^ which they aflcrtcd had been violated in the cafe of Mr. Wilkes, and they hoped to raife even this into a popular caufe. They were afiured that many of it's friends would detach ftate of IS an ir* 1 names >cech in I Genc- reafon- ;m into of Ad- his foN us own then be ley bore their ai- ould be he was^ vantage, ien and ded the he only the op^ IS from rofdif. govern- lofophy fyftem to that :honght )opaiat' : difad- " forces ted had id they caufe. i would detach ( 15 ) detach themfelves from Government upon the quef- tion ol Cyder. ^, They did not doubt they could form a parlia- mentary party upon the fubjeft of the Warrants if* fued by the Secretaries of Stat^. . • 'i\ i'j The Government of the Colomes^ and the Regular tions to be given to them, was in itfclf a fubje(3:ro cxtenfive and complicated, that they did not doubt it would be eafy to form objedions to any plan which the Mii>ifter fhould prppofe-, anJ they placed great dependence for this upon a gentleman, who, always acute and eloquent at difcovei ing and deve« loping the faults of any fubjedt, had given, as be faid, n^ore^ than ordinary attention to this. ;^, ,i \ '• : ' Or if all thele (hould fail them, there remained the Taxes \ which, always odious and unpopular, would become doubly (b at the end of a war, in which they themfelves had exhaufted and mortgage ed the moft known refources of the Scate. Upon fome or all of thefe points they doubted rot they (hould be able to raife a popular cry, of which they had fo lately experienced the fuccefs, that they thought it u-refiHible ; and the fame means and motives were dill in their hands. Thefe are fo exadly defcribed by Montefquieu, who was in England, and drew from the life, that I will tranfcribe his words. ■MV '♦! ■i,H\ Ceux qui s^oppoferoient k plus vivement a la pwf* Jance executrice ne pouvant avcuer les motif j interejfes de Itur oppofition^ ils augment eroient les Urrmrs du petiple •, qui ne fcauroit jamais aujufte s^il feroit en davgcr ou nou » feroit in^uiet fur fa fnuation \ et croiroit li 11 I : ( «6 ) troirsit etre en dar^ger dans ks moments mefms ks plus fures, ' ;f The firft ground of debate which the Oppofttion took, was in fupport of the opinion given in th^ Court of Common-Pleas, that Mr. Wilkes was en- titled to Privilege {oT his feditioiis libel. In this they were unfortunate. It was not neceflary to trace privilege upr to its fource to prove the falfe- hood of this dodtrine; that fuch a number of men fliould have exemption in criminal cafes, mud, in itfelf, be a greater evil than any it could prevent ; and muft be a grievance more heavy in proportion as the State was more free. For if freedom be the power of doing every thing which the law does not forbid, a privilege againft the reftraint of law in- flids a badge of flayery and all its confequences upon all thofe to whom it is not extended, and de- ftroys at once our fo much boafted cdnftitution. Thefe confequences were fo fenfibly felt, that the party were foon forced to relinquifh all hopes of making this a popular caufe ; and to truft to that fa- vour within the Houfe, which is generally given to thofe who pretend to defend its privileges. Great pains were taken by the Chiefs (though not till after they had felt that the adopting Mr. Wilkes would raife general indignation) to difclaim all connexion with that unfortunate man ; and to try their (Irength, if poITible, upon fome collateral queflion. This feems to" have been their motive for oppofing, for fome time, the proceeding in the common forms, which the mod converfant in bu- finefs proved to be effential. But it would have been too indecent and invidious to have made it a queftion, whether they (houid firft attend to a Breach cf Privilege complained of by the Crown ^ov to H ( 17 ) to one complained of by Mr. Wilkes ; when in the latter, that gentleman alone was concerned, in the former, the honour and the fafety of every part of the legiflature were intercfted. After this every method of procraftination was ufed, which chtir imagination could fugged, and the very unfortunate wound of Mr. Wiikes could promote. They found, indeed, every day, greater rcafon to avoid the contcft : The whole ftrength of the lawyers, who, from the nature of the fubjeft, mud lead in the debate, was known to be agamfl an opinion which fubverted every purpofe, maxim, and pre- cedent of law. » The judgment of the Earl of Hardwicke againfl: this extenfion of privilege, had been declared, and had the greater weight, becaufe he was warmly in- clined to that party which was difpofed to fupporc it. His principles and maxims were thofe of his fon, who, adluated by motives of opinion and ho- nour, was expeded to exert on this important quef- tion, in defence of common law, and common free- dom, more than even his ufuai ability. - An able and upright Judge^ educated in the broadeft principles of liberty, and who, duting his whole lifCj had (tood the avowed and honoured de- fender of the people's rights againft any encroach- ment of the prerogative, had, with his dying breath, lamented that encreafe of licentioulnefs which he for^faw would flow fiom fo pernicious a doflrine. " \ ' • When he found himf^ilf near his death, he call- ed to him his refped:able friend, to whom he had long b^en united by a fimilarity of years and dudies ; whofe learning he refpeded, and whofe h'-art he (Cftcemed: I quit, (faid the venerable magidrate) D with- } :n!l -; ■ ( i8 ) Without regret, a fcene of fo much approaching li- cence and confufion -, but 1 feel for the friends whom 1 leave involved in it ; the nrixims now adopted lead to the mod fatal anarchy, and I la- ment your fortune, which now calls you and all ho- nell men to contend for the great objects which I hoped had been firmly eftabliflied, the freedom and the conftitution of Great Britain. * ^ • Thefe fentiments (for I do not pretend to repeat his words) from fuch a character united independent thinking men in oppofition to that illegal claim of Trivilege^ which had forced from him this exprcf* fion cf his patriot fears. At length, when every fourcc of delay was ex- haufted ; and when Mr. Wilkes, after having abuf- cd the humanity, had infulted, by his letter, the underftanding of the Houfe, it was found nccefTa- ry to bring on the queftion. Of the arguments ufed within doors, I do not pretend to be inform- ed 5 and it might not be proper to repeat them ; but I remember what was faid without doors to be the fentiments of thefe on whom the public was moft difpofed to rely. . • , ; ' _ . ' ' '^ ' .*> ~ / It was faid that they who confidered the quef- tion moft fully, proved that privilege could not ex- tend to crimes either, i. by the Common law, or, 2. by the law of Parliament, or, 3. by the nature and fpirit of our conftitution. *• The Common law knows no fuch thing as privi- lege of Parliament-, and the manner in which it bars even a common civil fuit, is not by any ope- ration of law, but by the external authority of the Hou'e, which feizes the perfons of thofc concerned in fuch profecuticn. The ( 19 ) The law and ufage of Parliament difclainfi it ; the words of Mr. Prynne, and other learned and zealous friends to liberty, might here be quoted, did not declarations of the whole Parliament fuperfede the ncceflity of any private authorities. As warm and as able afTertors of the privileges of Parliament as this country ever faw, heated too by a groG in- fringement of them, and determined to venture every thing to fecure them from future violation, the Lords and Commons in the Parliament of 1641, expcefsly difclaim it. ^ . ■ ■ ■ -» . The pradlice from that time to this has fliewn, and the cafe of Mr. Ward is a proof wichin our memory, that members of Parliament have no privilege in criminal cafes. ,-, ,-, , . Againffc this was fet the authority of Lord Coke and Holt *, but Lord Coke's opinion was grounded on a cafe which he had never read, and which being examined, proved nothing to his purpofe; and L. C. J. Holt never faid it. It not being juft to believe, upon the faith of an anonymous, unauthorized Bookfeller, (who printed the patch work, called 12 Modern) that a judge of the wifdom, learning, and moderation of Hole fhould, in a cafe in which no opinion on th's fubje6t was called for, give O'.e obiter on a point of fo deep and important a nature. An opinion fo contradidory to the whole dream and fpirit of the law, that even the ignorant Bookfeller added a Q^ to it expreflive of his doubts, and which the filence of the two known reporters concur in obliging us to rejedt. . , . It is not lefs contrary to the fpirit of all law and .of the conltitution. The very nature of a privi- lege is founded in the facrifice of a private bccclit D 2 i^ 4' Hi m f! of I r ( 20 ) tp a public good; but if privilege extends to crimes, ihc public good is facrificcd to a private benefit. It contradidls the very nature of Government, which muft be fubverted by a permiffion granted to about 15,000 perfons to commit crimes; and of Law, the protedlion of which Ihould extend to the lead, while the greateft (hould not be exempted fron^ its power. The fubjedl has been io exhaufted, and indeed the opinion then contended for by the Oppofttiotit is now fo univerfally exploded and difclaimed, that even this Ihprt mention of it may b? thought qnnc- ceirary. But in the warmth of the dlfpute which then prev;iiled, it will eafily be believed, that the party which had reafon, law and practice on their fide^ did not omit to evince their principles with force and eloquence. There was no flrength to oppofe them, but in the oratory of the late Secretary ; the fubjedt was not fufceptible of it ; it required argu-? rnents from law and fa6l ; he had not been able to col'ed them : the Auxiliary in whom they had pla- ced To much confidence did not charge at all, and facrificed to his convi6lion all the hbours of him- fclf and two clerks during the courfe of the fum- mer ; and the eloquence of which he had fo ofceri proved the force upon his friends during the preced- ing part of the winter. They were lift without an anfwer; this privi- lege was difclaimed ; and the liberty of the people, and the balance of power in the ftate, delivered from the pernicious effedls of fuch an Ariftocra- Xkk tyranny. For with theife fentiments of the irjends of the conftitution without doors, the refo- lutionsof the Houfc of Copnnioqs agreed, on the 2i.tl 24th of November 1763, it was refolvcd, ^hit privilege of Parliament does not extend to the cafe cf writing and puhli/hing feditwus libels^ nor ought to he allowed to ohftrutl the ordinary eourfe of the laws^ in the Jp'fdy and rffetlual frofeiution of fo heinous and dangerous an offence. The next ground of oppofuion which was taken, was the tax on cyder. A clamour againtl this bill had been raifed and propagated with much art and induftry, and with much fuccefs in oppo- fition to the late Minider. It was hoped that the fame artifices might dircd it againft the prefent, though he had not been a party to the impofition, and though there was fcarceiy one of the numerous majority, who had voted it, againfl whom this clamour could not have been directed with equal juftice. It was paflcd in that Seflion, before the opening of which the bufinefs of Government had been removed into other hands. What his own opinion may be of this tax, I do not pretend to be informed, but many people remember that when he gave his aiTent to the impofing it, he gave ic with this reafon annexed, becaufe the money was neceflary, and no other method of raifing it pro- pofed. But whatever his private opinions had been, he was now in a fituation which would not . have permitted him to have been governed by r, them. Money had been raifed for the public fcr- 1 -vice, and this tax appropriated upon the faith of 'SAliament, as a fecurity for the creditors of the pirolk. For thefe creditors he muft have confi- idered himfelf as truftee, and he could not confent to the abolition of this tax without defrauding in- dividuals, and loofening the public faith. But v/hatever was in his power he offered to them at pnc^, with thaf open candour which always ac- , . .- companies i m l! fill companies found judgment and upright intentions ; and thcfe offers were fuch as effediially redreflcd any grievances whfch had been now found to attend the execution of the law. ^ . » V X i pi;' M lit ' But though thefe offers were the utmoft which could be made, and fully cffedlual to the relieving the grievances complained of, it did not fuit thd purpofes of many of thofe, who appeared fo eager for the repeal, to accept them. For this party was compofed of perfons differing very widely in their opinions and purpofes. A part, and that by much the mod refpedable, was fent by confti- tuents, who thought themfclves aggrieved 5 it was . natural for thefe to grafp at every alleviation within their reach. The ferment in their counties had been wrought fo high, that they were forced to partake of its heat, and if they forgot that their charader of reprefentatives fhould ever be fubor- ijinate to that of general legidators, their motives, "if not hudable, were, however, to be excufed -, their zeal was honeff, and their behaviour tem- *'Tpcrate. At the head of this party ftood Sir Ri- chard Bamfylde, and Mr. Velters Cornwall. A ^ few ftragglers from the Cocoa-tree, formed ano- ther divifion 5 fome of thefe gentlemen, who . thought that in the coalition of their party, their merit and abilities had not been fufficiently attended to, were determined by the common arts of 4 bufy and turbulent oppofition, to wreft from the Mi- nifter fome confideration for their merit. The ! laft clafs was compofed of true Oppofitim'tnen^ who, befides their fixed principles of oppofing -whatever proceeded from the Treafury, had on "this fubjedt thef^ additional motives. It Would have greatly added to the diftrefs, which they did •^not doubt he would feel in raifmg the fupplies, if they u ch Ing they could have thrown on him the additional weight of providing intereft and fecurity for mofc than two nnillions. To this hope, they were wil- ling to facriBce their own avowed principles, and were not afhamed to declare thcmfclves againft a meafure, becaufe it impofed a partial excife, while they declared, that the fafety of the ftate required a general one. Perhaps too they hoped (for thefe politicians are not fo profound, but that their depths may be eafily fathomed) that fome of the gentlemen with whom they now united might re- pay the compliment, and give them their afTiftance in return. At lead, to have carried any queftioti againft the Minifter, no matter of what kind, or by what means, would have given gratification to their fpleen, and an appearance of flrength to their party. The debate therefore came on, many of the fame topicks, which had been taken the former fefTion were repeated, and re- anfwered ; a chief of the oppofition, the fecond in rank, though perhaps the fii ft in eloquence, would not defert his own opinion, though he had changed his fide. He anfwered their arguments with his ufual fpiric and abilities, treated with ridicule and contempt the vague declamation of the cyder ora- tors, and ftiewed, that no man was made fubje the purpofc of the attack was the fubverfmn ofhis^ fyftem, there was fcarcely any body who was lef* interefted in the event of it. He had no perfonal intereft to defend in the legality of the Warrant. If it was voted illegal, lefs b'ame mud in all reafon accrue to the perfon who had lafl: ifTutd it, and who was lefs pradifed in the forms of bufinefs, than to thofe vieux routiers^ who having had fo many occafions of information, had ufed it to their own purpofes, and given it fandiun by their own example. It was in his power, if he would have de- fended to the operarions of what is called policy, even to have derived from this motion a condem- nation of his oppofer, and an accedion to his own power. If he had acq«icfced in the motion, he would have acquired the reputation of moderation, and prevented the poffibility of a defeat •, the candour of the public would have covered his friends ; and the Houfe would have not refufcd to pais a very fevere and high cenfure upon thofe who had ifllied like Warrants, not of a doubtful, but of a known illegal nature. ' Every body has feen thofe of Mr. Pitt *. In them not only the names of the perfons to be ap- prehended 5. I * Here is one of them. ** Thefe are in his Majelly's name, t(V authorize and require You, taking a conftable to youraffirtance, to make ftrid and diligent Tearch for Peter Child and his wife Jane, - — -Sidebotham and his wife, and Dickenfon, a woman loJging in their houfe in Eflex-ftreet in the Strand, and them hav E 2 ing % ( tl ) prchcnded are omitted, but they do not even fpe- • eify the crime, the caufe of apprebenjion. This omifllon, as having been, and capable of being abufcd to the moft arbitrary purpofes, had been declared by the Petition of Rights to be contrary ' to law *. The nation therefore would have fe- conded the heavieft cenfure which could have been impoftd upon thofe, who while they covered their . oppofition to Government, by pretences of zeal for the liberties of the people, had (hewn them- felves thus capable of ufing their own power in a manner diredlly contrary to the moft facred and acknowledged claims of their freedom. - But however provoked, and as many may think, V authorized by the example of his opponents, he did not fuffer motives of perfonal danger or ad- vantage to enter into a queftion which concerned the conftitution of Great Britain. , > * (, ' To the artifices of his enemies he oppofed plain and convincing reafons, their menaces he treated ing found, to bring in fafe cuHody before me, tb be examined concerning the premifes, and further dealt with according to, law. In the due, &c. Given at Whitehall, December 17th, 1760, in the firft year of his Majelly's reign." \ - • Petition of Right. «* And whereas alfo by thefiatute called the great Charter of the liberties of England, it is declared and en^dled, That no Freeman miy bs t^iken or imprifoued, Arc. but or by the law of the land; nevcirtrdefs, againft the tenure of the llatute, and other the good laws and ftatutes of "your realm to that end provided, divers of your fubjedts have of late been imprifoncd, ivithout ory cav/e Jhenved, They (the ^ Lords fpirltual and temporal, and Commons in Parliament af- - fembled) do therefo'e huinbly pray your moft excelJent Ma- jerty. That no Freeman, in any fuch manner as is bcfore-mea- fioned, be imprifoned ordetained. All which they moft hum- bly pray of yoor moft cxceilenl Majefty, as their Rightt and wjth IS ( 29 ) Vfhh contempt, and his friends were encouraged by his rcfolution to abide the conteft -, if the event of it fhould be unprofperous, he could not fall with more reputation than in defence of one of the great Land-marks of the State, the preferving feparate and inviolable the great powers of which the conftitution is compofed. } * . The permanent liberty of every State depends upon the divifion of the three great Powers, the Executive, the Legiflative, and Judicial ; their concurrence in any one hand forms that unlimited defpotifm which prevails in the Eaft. The Legiflative joined to the Executive, pro- duces the abfulute monarchies of France and Spain, It is equally fatal to liberty if the Judicial is United to the Legiflative : this union forms the ar- bitrary ariftocratic Italian republics. Laws ought to be formed without any refpeft of particular per- fons •, but if the Power which forms the laws ap- plies them too, the Judge becomes an oppreflbr, for he makes laws with refpedl to perfons. Thefc powers are with great wifdom, and with a fkilful hand, diftributed in our conftitution in fuch a manner, as to produce the greateft pofllble degree of freedom ; thofe of judicature and legiflation are therefore divided, without which even the ap- pearance of liberty would ceafe. The whole Le- giflature is not^ much lefs is the Houfe of Com- mons entruflied with the Judicial Power. The motion tended evidently to make that Houfe exert a power it neither has nor can poftefs, as long as we poflefs our liberties. , , , ...^ , , The former Votes, moved or fupported by Pym or Hamden, were not \o the prelent point j the III I. I ifl i. . iii' M- ( 30 ) the names of thefe patriots will ever be dear, and their examples patterns to pofterity, becaufe their knowledge of the conditution was equal to their love of it; but the imitablc part of their conduft is their care, that the powers of the conftitution ihould be kept diftindl 5 every variation in that balance of powers which our anceftors have fo wifely e(labli[hed, is a deviation from that plan of liberty which they purfued through fo many perils. Had it been conftitutional, it was iinwife to haden to a decldon, which on either fide was full of danger. There mull be in every complex Go- vernment certain points which it is for the intereft of liberty to leave undecided : theprefent point it is peculiarly proper to leave under this conftitutional uncertainty. Were it decided in general, that the ftep in queftion is illegal^ the Government would be deprived of a power, neceflary not only to check feditions, to deted confpiracies, to pre- vent or to reprefs rebellions, but in a thouiand inftances too of more common, but not lefs real dan- ger ; neccfTary to fecurc fpies, to ftop the exportation of our manufadlurcs, and to prevent thecommunica-. tion of our ftrength, provifions and armaments to foreigners. A determination on the other fide would be as fatal to individuals, as the former would be to the public ; it would expofe the fecret papers of every family to the wanton infpedion of every arbitrary Minifter ; it would break one great barrier of liberty, and let in that flood of evils, which are (b eafily imagined, and were fo warmly defcribed s it is to prevent thefe evils, ic is to preferve our liberties from every poflibility of hazard, that this decifion is oppofed. At pre- fcnt, whoever exerts this power, exerts it at his peril ; if he employs it on an occafion which did not call for it, he is amenable to juftice, and while ( s« ) while he knows that the jealous eye of Parliament overlooks his adlions, the moft daring Minifter will be careful not to put it forth but on fuch emergencies as will juftify him ; and our ancellors were fo fenfible of this, that thefe warrants have been iflued in every reign mod favourable to free- dom, and by the Miniders who have laboured mod: to eflablilh it among us. . , . .. ■« if' > \f >■, f - The reafon is, that there lies an eafy and con- ftitutional remedy at hand. If the Warrants arc illegal, let the ptrfons ilTuing them be condemned by the laws of their country ; or if the perfons dc- fcrve a parliamentary ccnfure for having wantonly cxercifed the power entrufted to ihem, even thca the Warrants, thofe neceflary inftruments of Go- vernment, fhould remain inviolable ; nor can you decide on them without fhaking perhaps the ftate to its foundation. But dill lefs does this matter call for your Vote if the occafion demanded them ; if the vindication of the honour of the Crown and the privileges of Parliament, the prefcrvation of the peace of the kingdom, and the puniihmenc of an impious attempt to alienate from Parliament the aflPedions of the people, forced them from the hands of Government. A ftronger and a deeper reafon ad hominem is dill behind : the legality of the Warrant is yet fub judice. Do not give room to fuppofe you think it legal, by oppofing to it a Vote of the Houfe of Commons, which will be un- neceflary if it is only an affirmance of the law, and which no Judge, confidently with his oath, can take notice of, if it is contrary to it. * >' ,; . . Delay at lead your cenfure, leave the accufed to what they have a right to, the unbiafied fentiments of a jury : do not proditute a Vote of Parliament, fi .to .1 |; ,H t Ill ■ ( 32 ) to influence the judgment of a Court of Jullitr^ and to fcrve the purpofes of faflion ; if by that the Warrant fliould be determined illegal, your interpofuion will be needlefs; if it is legal, and you think the cafe fuch, as to make it fafe and prudent to interpofe ; if you think the liberty of the fubjedl will receive from it more defence than hazard, walk in the conCtitutional path, proceed as Legiflators by a bill, that is your peculiar province, and you will thereby fccure the refpedt and fupport of your conftituents* . In fuch wifhes as thefe were the fentiments of the thinking part without doors, addrelTed to th'.* patriots within, and they are fojuftly grounded, that one won- ders what could be oppofed to their force. But it was not on argument that the oppofition depended j they had found it more eafy to collefl Votes than Keafons; they thought it would ferve the purpofes of their fadtion, that the verdids of the inferior Courts fliouid be fuch as they v^ifhed them \ and if they could, by any means, draw them to that pur- pofe, they would not have fcrupled to proftitute to it the dignity of Parliament, to break one great barrier of liberty, and to confound the powers of the conflitution ; they perfifted therefore in their attack. But though the arguments againft this motion had no weight in Albemarle-ftreet, they had much on the more judicious part of the Houfe. For if alter this reprefentation of the fentiments of mtn without doors, we view what paflcd within, we find in the Votes, that on the 17th of February 1764, a debate arifing in the Houfe upon the queftion, That a general lVcirra}7ty &r. is not war^ ranted by Law^ it was refolved, That the faid de- bate be adjourned to that day four months -, and thus the temper and fteadinefs of the Minifiera, and the fadious impetuofity of the oppofers, met with the za ( 33 ) ^ith the fortune which each of tnem delt-rved ; and thcfe laft were defea cd, after having Ilicwn, during the moment they flatterec^ themfeives wit'\ fuccefs, that they knew as Uitle how to bear a vic«* tory as to obtain one. ■.,."*> • • -• • # f - # T . ■ • I I . _ . - - k The friends of Adminiftraticn determined to purfue their advantage, and to tdke from the Op- pofition that appearance of zeal for liberty, on which they had grounded their hopes of popular reputation. . An old membef, who, with a large body of country gentlemen, had been againft the refolution moved for, becaufe the mode was unconftitutional ; propofed to anfwer the fame purpofe by the regu- lar method of a bill, formed in the very words of the Refolution: and the Adminiftration, though they declared they faw more danger than necefllty even in this ftep, were willing to acquiefce in it, if it might calm the fears and heats of the real and pretended friends of freedom. But the very fadion which had clamoured fo loudly for an irregular refolution^ rtjeded the con- ftitutional remedy ; and have fince, with equal con- fidence, objefted it to the Miniftry, that they did not force through the Houfe a bill which they dif- approved, againft the refiftance of thofe who, three days before, had claimed it as the only fecurity cf Englifti liberty. This was the laft effort of the Oppofition, unable to reftrain any longer their fol- lowers, upon a plan fo evidently fadious, they were no longer able to impede the motions of Govern- ment •, and we are now at length at liberty to ob- ferve the condu<5l of the Minifter, with refpedt to the important effeds of foreign politics, of coloni- zation, and of finance. F Thofc \ t v.\ I .''Si / ( 34 ) Thofe of foreign policy will take up the left fpace, bcciufe, though they are a fubjedt of the comparifon here intended, they did not ever become one of debate during the p:Tiod which we are con- fidering. It is not neceflary to repeat what has been To often repeated, that Mr. Pitt, who had adopted the German war, had purfucd it with that eagernefs which generally attends a new convert. He had b.'cn accufed of having embraced this meafure con- trary to his opinion, and only to pay court to the Kleclor of Hanover ; he thought that he could not more effcdtually prove his fincerity than by car- rying it to an excefs, which even the moft German Minifters had never yet propofed ; and he had thought he could cover the contradiction of his con- dud, by giving a new motive as the ground of it ; he declared therefore that it was upon mature deli- beration that he had chofen to fight France in Ger- many, where fhe was the ftrongeft, rather than in America, where fhe was necefTarily the weaker. The opinions of the prefent Minifters were known to be directly contrary to thefe, it had been de clarcd, that one of the principal benefits to be de- rived from the peace was, that we were now able to difentangle ourfelves from that labyrinth of German fubfidies, in which the ftrength and in- terefls of Great Britain had been loft. Mr. Pitt applied to the peace the fame maxims by which he had conduced the war; he wifhed again. to embark us upon the boundlefs ocean of continental treaties, guarantees and fubfidies, tho* in a period of time which has been called the age of treaties and guarantees^ from the great number con- cluded in it, fcarcely 0( e of that number had ever ferved, on occafion, the purpofe for which it had been defigned. He declared publicly, that he fiw no method of giving permanence to the peace, but that of Icfs the )me :on- )ecn pted nefs had con- the ;ou!d car- -man had ( 35 ) of forming a fill J mafs of continental power ^ capable of being oppofcd to the parties of the Family Com- pa5f* It was not difficult to forefcc to whom he would have given the command of this confcdeMte force ; the fubfidy which would have accompanied it ; and that it would have been as little employed for th^ Britifh intereft as all thofe which we had fo gcneroufly paid. One can fcarcely quote Monte fquieu too frequent- ly ; it cannot at lead be improper to fee the opi- nion, which fo impartial anJ judicious an obferver had formed of this fyftem of condudt, which was purfucd while he rcfided in lingland. " Ccttc •* nation (fays he in one of his chapters upon the ** Government and Manners of the EngliOi, Liv. 19. chap. 27.) toujours echauffc, pourroit plus aifement etre conduite par fes pifTions que par la raifon, qui ne produit jamais de grands efFcts fur Tefprit des honnmes ; et il feroit facile a ceux qui le gouverneroient de lui faire faire descntre- prifes eontre fes veritables intertts." ; . • » cc c< Ci cc cc cc By way of comment upon this paflage, we may obferve, that Englifhmen are fo eafily heated by the combat, as to lofe at once all confideration of the proportional part they ought to take in a war; and foon change the chara6ler of auxiliaries for that of principals, at leaft in point of expence ; and that the powers with whom we are in alliance are fo af- fured of this, that they always depend upon being able to ufe our forces as their own, and apply them without fcruple to the purpofes of their refentment or ambition, hahent enim fuhje^os tanquam fuos^ viles ut alienos, ., . . , . . ., . The late Secretary had much impetuofity in his temper j this entered into his politics i he feems to F 2 have I M ii have thought, that to be bufy was of the cflcnce of that fcipncc-, and one fhould not have been furpriz- cd, had he continued to dired our councils, if we had contributed by our guineas to the eledticn of a Piaft for King of Poland, or been forming an al- liance offenfive and defenfive with Count Bra- rjitiki. But I am more inclined to approve the temperate condudt of the preient Minifters ; and I congratulate my countrymen, that we have feen one eledtion of a King of the Romans, to which the King of England contributed nothing but his votej becaufe we have already received from thence a greater return than had been made*for the very fub- ' ftantial afliftance given on a former occafion, I mean the thanks of the Court of Vienna ; and becaufe, when that Court fhall put the Eledorate again under the ban of ;he Empire, our refentment will not be increafed to indignation, by recolleding that we have given the power they are ufing to our diferace. , . . ' The withdrawing wholly from the affairs of th€ continent, the tniftmg to our wooden walls, &c. are defigns inconfiflent with our true interefts, and impoflible in the execution ; but it is equally in- confident wiih our iiuerefts to conned them, and to facrifice them to alliances, not only with the greater powers on the continent, from whom they may receive fupport, but with fovereigns fo dimi- nutive as to make it ridiculous to exped any. Much indeed has been faid by the laig Secretary lipon the expedience of foreign alliances, and the forming a balance of power, iind much reproach thrown vn thofe whom he accufes of negleding this great objed ; but if we examine his con- duct, we fhall find this one of thofe fpecious de- clarations, which, however eafily they flow from his ( 37 ) his warm imagination, are totally unfupportcd by fad. It would be going too far out of the way to enter into the parti- ulars, but whoever will view the ftate of our alliances at the time he left the feals, and after he had exhaufted our treafury to purchafe them, will fee that France, Spain, and Vienna, were in ndluai hoftiiicies *, Holland foothed and ir- ritated by turns^ was hsld but by a thread •, that our friendfh^p wich Denmark has fince that time been improved -, that we piid 670,000!. roPruffia for the alTifiaiiCe of (ome 4000 dragoons during fart of one campaign ; an i that we hid actually no one ally in h urope but Couni la Lippe ; for 1 do not call Heffe, whole towns we garrifoned, whofe army we paid, evtn whofe damages we reimburfe, by the name t>f an ally ; and he will be inclined to approve the moie wile and frugal condu6l of the prefent Government, which fcems to think that nofriend- fhips can be bought which are contrary to the inte- refts, and that few need be bought which are con- fiftent with the interefts of the partis s who form them. Thefe too are the fcntiments of Montefquieu, Liv J 3. chap. 17. " Les grand princes non contens d'acheter les troupes des plus petits, cherchent de tous cotes a payer des alliances, c'eft a dire prefque toujours a perdre leur argent.'* In faft, England is deeply indebted to the Miiiifters who have feizcd this happy opportunity of withdrawing her from amidft the collifionof the German interefts, to which her own impetuofuy had fo long made her the dupe-, of leaving them to find, by their own weight, that equal poife, to which their immediate interefts will always dire<5t them ; and of placing our country once more in that ftate, to which her fituation, the nature of her power, her reputation, her fafety, fo ftrongly in* viltc hcrj that of obfcrving with temper the feveral variations »; «?■ ( 38 ) variations of the political fcales, the regulating foraetimcs the balance, and the giving to the lighter fide the proper increafe of weight, not with the eagernefs and violence of principals and parties, but with the dignity of arbitrators. The next objed of the cure of adminiftration, and of our confideration, is one of the mod im- portanr which ever engaged the attention of any ftate i I mean the regulations given to the colonies. The eftablilhlng, fecuring and extending our pofleffions in America was the great caufc, and Ihould have been made the great obje6b of the war, as it was made that of the peace. By the treaty of Paris this important point was fecured, and an extent given to our dominions in that part of the world, which we could fcarcely even have hoped for: That thefe acquifitions might be improved to the purpofes of trade, riches and power, it was lieceflary that wife regulations fhould dire<5t them. It was neceffary, that whofoevcr formed thefc fhould revert, and therefore it is neceffary, thai; whofoever would underlland them, fhould attend to the great general principles of colonization ; from whence all particular regulations mufl: be drawn. Thefe I (hall endeavour to (late as con- cifely as it is poffible. , ^^ . . , , -v ^'■'^ ' t<^ rt Colonies have, at different times, and by different nations, been planted for reafons and with inten- tions very different. Where the genius of the people was military, and their purpofe conquefi:, colonies, fent to dlfcharge part or a peopk' grow- ing too numerous, became garrifons endowed with particular grants for their maintenance, intended, to fccure the frontiers, or the dependence of a con- quered ( 39 ) quered country : but they continued parts of the military eftablifhment, fubjedt to the commands, defended by the protedlion, often fupportcd ac the charge of the mother country. »:iF«KW Where the genius was commercial, colonies are the channel of extending their commerce, the ftaples of their merchandize, the exchanges wherein the muther country barters her manufaflures againft the raw materials, which the colonifts are not in a fituation to improve. The colonies of this latter kind have ever required and received a larger (hare of the protediicn and afTiflance of the mother country. -if\i- In both cafes they retained the privileges, en- joyed the prote6tion, and repaid the duty of fub- jefls : it would indeed be difficult to conceive, that a large fhare of care, protection and expence af- forded to fubjedls, from particular reafons, the reafons of diftance and weaknefs, fhould diminifli the force of their obligation, gratitude and alle- giance to the Government which proteds them. Upon thefe principles the colonies of Great Britain are to be governed ; it was wife and juft, and necef- fary to revert to thefe principles at a time when they were, become fo extenfive as to require new regu- lations. The foundation of all proceedings with refpefl to them, is the fame with that of the pro- ceedings with refpedt to every other part of the Britifh dominions ; it is this, to give them all the cncouragemerit v.'hich is confiftent with the com- mon intereft, the trade, and the dominion of the nation. To judge of this common intcref., it is neceflary to confider the particular fituation of each country. 2 The J if ( 40 ) The ftate of the colonies is, that of a few inhi^ bitants fcattered over an extenfive tra<^ of fertile country : they are neceflarily therefore and na- turally difpofed rather to cultivate lands which return protufe crops, for little labour, than to apply themfelves to manufacSlures : great encou- ragement is therefore to be given to this difpoli- tion ; and they are to be proteded and aflifted in raifing thofe firft materials, which are the grounds of manufadtures. "" ■ . ■ , .i The ftate of Great Britain is the reverie of this : •our ftrength is our fliipping, our riches the labour of our people, carried by art to the greateft point of perfedlion ; it is therefore more eligible for us to receive raw materials, and export manufadures. And this is fo eflential to our commerce and power> upon which the fafety of the whole (even of the colonies) depends, that Great Britain would have a right to fecure this by the.mofl: effeftual meansi even if the particular intereft of fome co- Jonics were to be checked by them : a right efta- blifhed upon the fame principles upon which filial duty is eftablifhed, as a juft return for produdtioh and fupport ; and upon which the good of any part of a dace is made to fubmit to the advantage of the whole. > ; ; ^r , . . . The fentiments of Montefquieu upon this fubjedt are very full to the point, and they are the more decifive, becaufe he had not, in forming them, any partial biafs ; he judged as a citizen of the world, upon the great principles of duty refjlting from relation ; and of expedience refulting from com- mon intereft. Le defavantage des colonies qui perdent la liberte du commerce, eft vifiblement compenfe par la protedlon de la metropole, qui lea ( 41 ) . les defend par fes armes, ou les maintient par fe^ loix* I have quoted his words, and it is a new reafon for approving the bill in queftion, to remark^ thac it is formed and condudled upon the very principles which are chofen and applied to Great Britain, by that able and impartial ftatefman f. . v . , But in tne prefent fituation, this interchange is for our nriutual benefit \ the extent of territory in the colonies, its variety, fertility and virgin ftate, give us the profped of fucceeding ages of induf* trious and fuccefsful cultivation in them, before the land will be in the higheft flate of culture \ and before its inhabitants will be fo much increafed in number, as to interfere with each other, or to oblige them to turn their thoughts, or even wifhel to manufaftures. Thefe artificial produ6lions never become the obje'^ to which the inhabitants direft their labour, till the earth begins to refufe to her crouded Tons that profufion of eafier fruits, which l! f Si cette nation envoyoit aa loin des colonies, elle le feroie plus pour etendre fon commerce que fa domination* Liv. 19* chap. 27. L* objet de ces colonies eft de faire le commerce ^ de meil- leures conditions qu'on ne le fait avec les peuples voiiins^ aveC lefquels tous les avantages font reciproques. Liv. 21. chap. 17* La libert6 du commerce n'eft pas une faculte accordee aux negocians de faire ce qu'ils vettlent ; ce feroit bien plutot fa fervitude* Ce qui gene le commer^ant, ne gene pas pour cela le commerce* . I Les vaifleadx de fes cblonies (Angleterl-e) qui commercent en Europe doivent mouiller en Angfeicrre. Elle gene le n6- ' gocianc, mais c'eft en faviur du commtnt* Liv* 20. chap. 1 2. ' ( 42 ) with a liberal hand fhe pours forth to rifing co- lonies. fV In fpeaking of manufafliires, 1 fpeak not of thofe fimple ones which ferve to afford merely a warm covering, and the con.mon neceffaries of fo- cial life ; thefe follow immediately the produdlion of the materials for them,: I fpeak only of thofe more refined ones, which become the fubjeils of commerce ; thefe are the effeds of the laft ftage of policy, they mark the highefl point of concen- trated induftry in fociety, and are far removed from new colonies, where land is cheap, fertile and boundlefs. . ., Upon the fame principle of purfuing the interefl of the colonies fubordinate to, and united with the intereft of the whole, ftands that other propofition which is fo liable to be perverted ; the maintaining the dominion of Great Britain, and fecuring to her the dependence of her colonies. However ftrong thefe colonies now appear ; and how vigorous foever the fhoors may feem which they are making ; their prefent imperfect ihte, their extent, their fituation, expofes them to attacks from many quarters ; they can be fafe only under the wing of Great Britain : it it neceffary they fhould be fubjedt to her, that fhe may be able to defend them : Their dependence therefore is necclTary to their fafety. . The means of retaining that dependence, the molt effedtual, and the lead oppreffive, are there- fore to be fought ; and they will be found to be the very meafures, which appeared neceffary before, from confiderations of common interefi, and of relative fituation, viz. the providing that 9 the ,C .43., ). ♦ t ■', ^ -••*•«•* f the colonics ftiould fend to Great Britain their raw materials, and export manufadlurcs from her only. This was the means which had been chofen as the mod efficient, at the time when this affair came firft into contemplation : the famous ad pafied in the 12th cf Charles II. enadled therefore. That all goods (hipped from the Plantations (there was an exception to this in the cafe of fait) fhould be brought to a Plantation, or to Great Britain : and the 15th of the fame King enaded. That the co- lonies fliould receive all manufailures either from, or through Great Britain. , i; . , But thefe a6l:s had frequently been broken, both by (hipping goods from the Plantations to foreign part?, and by importing thither goods from the other countries of Europe. ;^ / 1 ■ V:> . ': 7'-t&iY? n, It was become neceflfary therefore to enforce the obfervance of thefe firft laws, both upon the reafons, which were the firft grounds of pafUng them, and which have been already given ; and upon others peculiar to this conjundlure. The great extent of territory, and the fecurity given by the peace to that part of the Britifh dominions, will naturally encourage a large encreafe of emigrants to them, and give ftill more room for their rap.d population. This will encreafe the demands for manufadures, and cdnfequently encreafes the importance of fix- ing in Great Britain the market from whence they are to be fupplied. ,. ,j ,. ; .<- ,.. * This is equally neceffary from a view of our fituation, compared with that of other powers. One of the moft fertile fources of naval power, is I- •1-1 p'; I*' \U i !i M, B i ( 44 ) the carrying trade ; it was this from which the Dutch derived their wealth, their freedom, their cxiftence in the earlier ages of their (late ; and they have ever been fo fenfible of its importance, that by an exad and conftant attention to the means of reducing the number of men, and the nature of their viftualing, they are able to perform it at a much cheaper rate than ourfelves. To prevem: the evil confcquences from this dangerous rival- fhip, the greac ad of navigation was formed; which, though it has often been attributed to par- ticular and perfonal motives, proceeded from, and was direded by maxims of the deepeft and wifeft po- licy : by this ad it was thought expedient for the gt neral good, that that increafe of expcnce fliould be laid upon the whole trade of Great Britain, which arofe from the encreafed price of carrying in Englifh, above that of carrying in Dutch bot* foms, in confideration of the more material ge- neral intereft, which required that the maritime power of the Dutch (hould be retrained, and our own augmented. ^* ^* '-' " ' On the fame principles the regulations were made, which oblige our colonies to come to no Other market but bur own: from the fame circwm- ftances it is ftill neceflfary to enforce them. The Dutch are flill able to carry cheaper than our- fdves ; and to underfell therefore even our own manufadures in our own provinces ; for the co- lonies are fuch, and put under reftridions on no other principles than thofe oh which all the other parts of our dominions, even Great Britain itfelf, is rtllrained from enjoying a lucrative advantage at ^he cxp'^nce of our maritime power. -4 * •"" ^' **' Another reafon is to be drawn from the happy fituation pf the cplonifts. They are^, by the fucceffes 'Il ( 45 ) of the war, and by the peace, freed from all thofe terrors of a foreign enemy which fo lately agitated them *, their efforts during the war, the fenfe of their fecurity, confidence in their own power, the midaken opinion that independence is freedom, all thefe and other motives may concur in exciting a reftlefs fpirit, which will become more dangerous in proportion as the people who feel it become more powerful : it is expedient therefore, it is even neceflary to lay the reftraint now, while it can be bade binding ; and while the loofe texture of that empire may yet be moulded into that form whicl|i is bcft calculated for the common good. The fituation of Greaj: Britain furniihed another,' and moft cogent motive. Intoxicated with fuccefs and glory, (he had exerted an unnatural power beyond her real ftrength. The force now lecoiled, and men at length began to fee that nothing could give her peace at home and weight abroad, but a fteady and exadt attention to the improvement of her revenue. .v» So large a trafl of continent, where the fertility of every foil and of every climate is to be found, naturally and juftly drew the attention of Govern- ment; there muft be found the firft materials of numberlefs manufadlures, and there mutt arife a large demand for manufactures themfclves. It is reafonable and juft that the great principle of thei general good (hould now be reverted to -, and that fuch a proportion of impofition Iliould be laid on them, as the diftrefies of this country, the duty and ability of that, and the common good of both Ihall diredl. This would be reafonable and juft, were the impofts there raifed to be appropriated (as. in the cafe of former impofts they had. been) to the fervice of the Government in Great JBritain; „1 It'' »:3' ( 46 ) as JLift and reafonable, as that the Eaftern and Weltern extremities fhould contribute to the ex- pence of a fortified garrifon at Portf- mouth, while that expence is thought neceffary for the common fafcty. If to this we add the confideration of the expence of the blood and treafure of Great Bxitain, by which the extent and the fecurity of the colonies have been purchafcd ; and obferve that the duties impofed by that ad are appropriated to the de- fence and protedtion of thofe who pay them ; it will appear that the Right and the Necejfity of tax- ing, has been tempered in this inftance with that tendernefs towards the colonifts, which may moft eifcftually reconcile them to the taxation. *'* For thefe three great purpofes^ to fecure the do- winion^ regulate the commerce^ and improve the re» 'uenue of the Britifh empire^ was the bill framed, and being direfted to the common intereft, as the end, purfues it by uniting thofe three objeds, as the means ; and becomes at once a Bill of Police^ Commerce^ and Revenue. , , ., ii ♦ '-i-\ '•? To the firfl: of thefe objedls are direded the reftridions upon the navigation to and of the co- lonies; which appear to be laid upon the fame principles on which the reftridions are laid on the trade of England, to prevent the maritime power of the Dutch from rifing on the ruins of that of Great Britain. But even from thefe reftridlions excepted fait, which is efiential to their are fifheries ; and by the laft ads, rice, which is fo im- portant an objed of their culture. • ?, To the fecond, the promotion of Commerce^ the \yhole purpofe of this Bill, and of thofe on the like C 47 ) like fubjet^s, which were paflcd lad fcfTion, im- mediattly tend. With this view the commodi- ties of foreign colonics, mentioned in them, are charged with a duty fo much greater than that impofed on the fame articles raifed in our colonies, as to give the greateft afliliance to their cultivation of them. With this view the regulations, reftrain- ing the trade of the colonies with Europe, are formed; and with this view the duties on particular articles of importance to trade are reduced, or abo- lifhed, and the culture of others encouraged, by permiffions of carriage, and by bounties. With regard to thofe foreign goods which are charged with duties, though expedient for their own confumption, the duty paid by the colonies is not near fo high, as that which the legiflature has impofed on the confumption of the fame articles at home. . ^ , . ;. The third objed of the Bills, \% the Revenue \ this will be encreafed by the duties to be colledted in the colonies, as well as by thofe left here. ' ■lis' i'-i-iftl I have thought it fufEcient, barely to mention thefe particulars, becaufe the whole fubjeft has been explained with fo much precifion and know- ledge in the work entitled, The Regulations late made concerning the Colonies^ and Taxes impofed upon them confidered^ that there is nothing left but to refer to it, thofe who wifh to receive the moft full and candid information on this fubjed. I have only to add two remarks. V*"\ t._ h. ;' The fird: is. That in thele Bills the moft equal hand is held between our American and Weft- Indian colonics, that any monopoly in either is prevented. m'-^t- I f k I >f ' ( 48 ) 3 U 'i;S i ^'^1 «? Mt prevented, and the cultivation, commerce arid in- icrcfts of both encouraged. w •■ - The other, That altnough I have for the fake of method, referred the feveral claufcs of thefc Bills, to the diftinfl heads of Police^ Commerce^ and Revenue I yet they are drawn with fo juft and equal an attention to thefe great obje(5ls, that the regulations contained in them, refped all three j the ReftriSiions contribute to encrc-afe our commerce alid Revenue^ as well as to hirJ our Colonies to the mother-country ; the Commercial Claufes confirm the Power y and add to the Revenue, as well as to the Trade of* Great Britain •, and the laws which cncreafe the Revenue, cement too the Union of our colonies, and give advantages to the general Com- merce, By thefe wife, juft and necefTary Bills, the feverat members of the Britifh dominions, however divided by diftance or by climate, are bound together by the chains of commerce •, united in rights, in duty, and in interefts; and contribute, each in its pro- portion, by their riches, their labour, their arts, and their valour, to the commerce, the wealth, the liberty, and the happinefs of the whole. By the care taken to conciliate and attemper the various claims of the different colonifts, we may indulge ourfelves in the plcafing profpedt of the mofl: cor- dial union between the mother- country and all her provinces, founded upon gratitude and duty, and cemented by mutual intcreft. V And on this deep and broad founJatidri, through a trad of ages, and through all the pro- greffive fteps of encreafing greatnefs, the whole ftrudlure of the Britifli empire, vaft as it is, mayj (land with fecurity. f 49 ) This fyftem our country owes to the Admini- flration ;— to the Oppoficion (for it is jull to give to them, and to compare their merits; (he owe?, that although they had often threatened, chcy did not actually oppofe it. On the next and laft fubjed of confidcration, the finances, I cannot pretend that (he is fo deeply indebted to them : what they do deferve from her, on that account, it is not proper to exprefs, till the condud of the two parties, with refpedt to it, has been examined, ; . In, 10- )le lay The image of a fkeleton, crowned with laurels, •which was the idea of a poetical orator, conveys a very juft, as well as a very lively reprefentation of the ftate of Great Britain at the end of the late glorious and exhaufting war. The gentlemen of the faculty, to whofe care fhe had been committed, had not left her till there was no hopes \ and had declared at their departure, fhe could not laft two months. But by reft and care fhe had now be- gun to revive -, and thefe phyficians began to think her again worthy their attendance ; but they were honeft enough to own, that they meant to purfue the method of their former pradbice •, with the true obftinacy of a Sangrado having reduced her by bleeding to a deep atrophy, they propofed to cure her by flill new bleedings •, and having taxed us to the utmoft ftretch of our abilities to purfue the war, to tax us ftill more heavily to maintain the peace. •? t ? Whether thefe politicians were in earned •, or whether they clamoured for new taxes, merely be- caufe they thought the impofition of them would heat their friends, the mob^ ftijl more againft the H Govern mcr4t, iif 'I ( 50 ) Government, 1 do not pretend to know ; certaJa that they not only fupportcd every propofition It IS for an encreafe of expcnce, which they thought muft neceflarily call for new impofts ; but that they accufed the Minifter ,of finance of want of judg- ment and of courage, becaufe he declared his in- tention of giving to the people fome refpite from taxations. <' Happily for this country that gentleman*s prin- ciplps and dcfigns were of a very different nature. \Vliat thefe were, we may judge with certainty, becaufe he himfelf declared them in a very public converfation. He faw with regret, that even the conclufion of the peace could not immediately de- liver us from the burthens of the war 5 that a large and longarrear muft fooner or later be difcharged, which the unufual extent and expencc of the war had incurred : but the prefent hour was a very un- favourable one for raifing money to difcharge it, both on acco.unt of the fituation of the people, and the price of money. Some former taxes had been laid fo unhappily, that the laft of all, that on Cyder, though grounded on one of the moft juft and moft acknowledged principles of policy, had met with much violent opposition. In fadt, the induftry and the commerce of Great Britain were already (6 heavy laden, that the defign of impofinga frerti bunhen, proceeded rather from obftinacy than wifdom in the defigners, and required more fub- mifTion in the fubjcdt than had been lately (hewn. It was a point of prudence to give time for that encreafe of commerce, which was to be expected . from the peace ; becaufe that would encreafe the ability of the people to fuftain the prefent, and to . fu[)port, if thty (liould become neceffary, new burthens. It ■7 tn It ( 51 ) It was equally wife from the prefect price of money. The demands for this had in the lad years of the war been fo exceffive, that they had raifed the value of it to a very enormous height ; ^and after the conclufion of the peace it had been kept there by thofe who were not yet conrcnted with the fudden fortunes they had acquired by the public diftrefs. ^ All thcfe were very defirous to deal with Go- vernment; and a lottery would have given to them a large douceur, and to the Minifter that power of beftowing fubfcription and commifllons, which is feldom thought unpleafant. :. ♦ , The general credit of Europe had been fo much fhaken by fome manoeuvres of our magnanimous ally, that had not the bank of England, with equal judgment and benevolence, given an immediate and large fupport, it was to be feared that the whole fyftcm of commercial faith, in which the fortunes and the fates of fo many millions are involved, would have fallen at once. Thefe honourable and fuccefsful efibrts had however thrown much pro- perty out of our domcftic circulation ; the return of this would probably raife the public funds, and therefore it was prudent to wait fur it. The agitation of the flocks had been fo violent, that though the war which had occafioned it was ended, they had not yet returned to their ufual level. ^ -. . u -' . • * A lottery in that jun^lure would have 'funk the funds, becaufe it would have encouraged that fpi- rit of gaming, which, however advantageous to indi- viduals, would have been a real mifchief to the Hate. It v/as wife not to eo to maiket for money, whilfl ^ H 2 it 1 ( 52 ) It was fo evidently in the power of the feller to itn- pofe his own terms upon the Pjablick ; a power which every hour of refpite would diminilh ; it was pru- dent to try whether the property, which had been kept back in hopes of new loans, would not now be forced either into the (locks, "which would be raifcd by them ; or into trade, where it would enrich the State. It might be hoped too, that the violence of faction might, by degrees, fubfide ; that all artics, fenfible of the dangerous fuuation ot the State, would, forgetting to what ralh meafures it owed its diftrefles, unite their endeavours to alleviate them ; that the gentlemen in Oppofition woCild fufpend their conteit for the (kin of the bear, till it was grown richer, and more worthy their purfuit ; and that at leaft they would not oppofe thofe mea- fures which tended to remedy the evils they had themfelv£s occafioned.- • : It might be hoped, that the fame fpirit of mo- deration, which had united all parties at the clofe nf the former war, and which had enabled Mr. Pelham to take the (teps he did take for the advan- tage of the State, would, now the danger was fo much greater, and the load more heavy, have re- vived; and have given to Adminiftration all the a (Tj (lance which good fubjefbs owe to every plan direded to the public good. That of the minifter of Finance was a prudent and efFeftual one : He knew the refources of this country ; he faw that her credit and her riches would every day encreafe," the price of money diminifh, and that her income was capable of great improvement'. In this fitu- ation he determined to raife no more at that lime than was abfolutely neceflfary for the fupport of Government, and the difcharge of fuch part of her debt as could not be deferred ; and to truft for the reft to thofe ameliorations in her finances, for which, ( 53 ) which, a time of peace would aflford opportuni- ties, ^ ''•■ ■ ^ . .. -^ '- ^ • .'' *' .- ' ■ He difcharged, therefore, a very heavy load of public debt •, poftponed the payment of another confiderable part-, provided refources for the im- provement of the revenue-, and maintained themoft Itridi: oeconomy in the adminiftration of the whole. To the head of Bifcharge of Debt are to be re- ferred, not only the Navy and Army debts, the Heffian dedommagements, &c. which amount to about 2,500,0001. but that great reduction upon the German demands for Extras^ which wasas juft as it was unprecedented. The declarations of Mr. Grenville againft conti^ nental connexions, had never been fo vehement as thofe of Mr. Pitt. It could not be expedled, therefore, that he fhould (hew the fincerity of them in exadly the fame manner. The laft of thefe gen- tlemen had begun in about three weeks after thefe ftrong declarations, to export, without reafon, and without bounds, the men and money of Great Bri- tain, to Germany. The firft ftep which Mr. Grenville took on this fubje *; *» i _ ; * . ^ . ■ ■ • • • ' But he did not content himfcif with poflponing the payment of the public debts, without providing refources for the difcharge of them, by improve- ments of the revenue. » * '' To this purpofethe Pod-Office bill was directed, ' which reftrained that privilege of franking, which had been abufed fo grofly, and fo much to the di- minution fi C 5O minutidn of the revenue; a negotiation was entered into for the prevention of fmuggh'ng from the Ifle of Man ; but chiefly were direded the American bills, which lay the foundation of a liable and an encreafmg refource, and which are fo much to the reputation of the prefent, and will be the fupport of Government in fucceeding ages. But whatever might be the produce of thefe and the other plans of improvement, there was one refcfurce which could not fail him^ and on which he might fafely depend, becaufe it was much in his own power : This is the maintenance of ftridl ceco- nomy in the adnsiniftration of the revenue. The chiefs of the Oppofition had, while they poffeflfcd the Government, fcattered honours and penfions with fo open a hand as to load the public revenue, and decreafe the value pf the favours, and the gra- titude of the receivers. Whether it was that they did not think it poflible to carry on the bufmefs of Government by any other method, I do not know ; but it is certain they accufed Mr. Grenville of the fame prpfufion ; and thpfe writers of the party, who are paid by pinners and prqmifcs for filling the public papers with abufive falfhoods, had, from time to time, afllired us, that the Earl of * , and a certain Right Honourable Gentleman, and Lady r- , &c. &c. &c. had received penfions of 2, 3, and 4,000/. a year. .-.^^ .-; ;^ ,;. .., The Mioifter would not fufFeir the public ear to be fo grofly abufed ; he declared therefore in the moft public manner, that from the time he had been entrufted with the care of the revenue, only two penfions had been granted •, one fpringing from the compaflion of his royal Mafter, and confirmed by the feelings of every humane mind, to the af- fiided family of Lady M-T-r-h j the other bellowed .2 on and ■ ( 57 ) On an old and efteemed fervant of the ftate, and one who had ferved with great ability and honour for a great number of years, in one of the mofl: ac- tive and confidential departments of government* But though Mr* Grenville's plans were drawn from the firft great principles of policy, and appli- ed with judgment to the particular fuuation of this country, he could not expcdl they w. jld be ap- proved by the Oppqfition, or by thofe to whom thty could communicate falfe information, or falfe opi- nions. Be fides that they wefe fo contradictory to. their own condudl, as to convey a ftrong, though indirect fatyr upon that buftje and violence which had charafterized their Adminiftration; Mon- ttfquieu has Ihewn us, that their diflike may be grounded on the narrowneftof their underftandings on the fubjedt of Finance. I am not afraid to tire the reader (if I (houid have any) with quotations from that judicious and elegant author. Liv. 13* chap. 15. " On n*appelle plusparmi nous un grand *' Miniftre celui qui eft le fage difpenfateur des re- ** Venus publics; mais celui qui eft homme d'in-* duftrie ct qui trouve ce qu*on appelle des ex- pediens.**. . (C «c f- "■'.- He had immediately before defcribed the Admi- nlftration of fuch judges **' pour nous il eft *' impofiible que nous ayons jamais de regie dans " nos Finances parceque nous fcavons toujours, " que nous ferons quelque chofe, et jamais ce que ** nous ferons.'* ._ v - -, But tliefe gentlemen, though they were too an- gry to approve, were too weak to attack him. This condu(5l received the approbation of all intel- ligent and impartial judges, and acquired the greater I ho- I I 11 ( 58 ) honour to himfelf, and gave much reputation and strength to Government. Upon the whole, for thefe papers have grown- to fo unexpedted a bulk, that it is neceflary to fub- mit the whole fubjcft of them to the reader's view at once, the time is come, at which every honcft . man (hould take his party. The advantages gained by the war, and fecured by the peace, require judgment and application for their improvcmci>c. A firm, and yet a gentle hand, is neceflary ta hold in equal . b.tlance the prerogative of the Crown, and the liberty of the people ; to check the encroachments of Ariftocracy, and. the turbu- lence of leJition, without repreffing that fpirit of freedom, which is one of the fecureft guards of our confticution. A well confidered plan of foreign policy is neceflary, which equally avoids a bufy in- terference, and a timid unconcern, which may confult the dignity, by prefc^rving the power of Great Britain, and which docs- not exert this power, ur difpenfe her treafures, but in fupport of her real and immediate intereft. A wife and extenCve fpirit of Legiflation is ne- ceflary, to derive from our Colonies the benefits which they are capable of yielding, without ftretch- ing, with toojiiuch force, the bands of dependance^ which tie them to the mother-country. It is a crifis in which honefty and frugality will fcarcely reltore a flate almofl ruined by diflipation. At this crifis there appear two parries who op- pofe each other upon t^e int^refting points of do- rocftie ( 59 ) medic Ad mini ft ration, of foreign policy, and con- ftitutional principles. From a review of the con- dudt of each, with refpe6t to them, it appears, that this is not, as the gentleiren in Oppolition have aflferted, mt^rely a fquabble about places. They hnve, in.iccd, a right to affcrt this with refpefl to themfelves, becaufe thpy have a right to give to the public their own motives of adion ; and it is pro- bable that they fhould not think any meafures worth a refignation or a conteft, who have by turns op- pofed, adopted, and enlarged the moft contradic- tory fyftems of politics : but they have no right to affert this of the prefent Adminiftration, which (lands upon a feparate and confticjtional bottom, and which rejedls the plans of their opponents, be- caufe they think them too expenfive for the ftrength, and contrary to the true interefts and to the conlli- tution of this kingdom. ne- ncfits etch- ance» crifis eHore It appears, that this is a contcft not of Men oh- . ly, but of Meafures ; not only who fliall guide us, but whither we fhall be led ; the former quedipn would be but of a local and trifling imporrance; . in the latter, the commerce, the weal h, the li- berties of our lateft pollerity are involved. • It is put to the aption of the nation, whether they will fupport an Adminilirat'on, which abo- lifhes the unjuft and odious difl:inc;Vion of party names, and invites all honcll men of every n^me to the fervjce of their country •, or g ve their voices to that fa(5lion, which having, whik in power, ex- cluded a large an'] reputable b l\'j of men from any fhare of Government ; ufed the only moment in which they thought they were reinilated, to extend this profcripdon to almuft every man now in the fcrvice of the ftatc. I 2 Whether 1 i • ( 60 ) Whether they will contribute to the rc-eftablifli- rnent of thofe who did and would confine the graces and offices of the Crown to the narrow circle of a junto, or give fupport to the broader fyftem which is formed by a number of able and independent noblemen, and in which every man may find his plrce, whofe talents may profit his country, and who wifhes to employ them in her fervice. • ; To the late Miniftry they owe that profufion of the honours and penfions of the Crown, which di- miniihes their value, and encreafcs the number and rapacity of their claimants-, the prefent have prac- ' tifcd that referve which becomes the dignity of the (late, which is moft favourable to our independence and riches, and which, encreafing the value of the favours, calls for an cncreafe of merit in the candi- date, and raifes them once more to become marks of honour, '^"^ It is in this crifis that Englifhmen are to chufe whether they will prefer diflipation to ceconomy ; whether they will give their fupport to the patriot^ ', who would load with an encreafe of military force frcjh taxes, and a general excife, a nation already .^ weak from the wounds of an cxhaufting war ; or to that Mnifter, who, with a more lenient hand, would lead us by the refources of a ft rid ceconomy, and a gradual improvement of our revenues, to Safe- ty, Wealth, and Power, ' By the late Secretary and his party, we fhall again be as deeply entangled in the perplexed inierefts of the Germanick body, as if we had not dear bought experience, that whoever ventures into that laby- rinth is foon bewildered ; they continue to dream of ( 6i ) o^ guarantee 5 y fuhjidies^ extras^ quotas, and ikdom- mairemenis^ as if wc had noc found too lately that they never anfwercd any purpofe, except to thofc who received them. From the prt fent Govern- ment, we may hope for the continuance of a plan of policy, which is neither Auftrian, PrufTian, nor even Hanoverian, but pnglifh. They are now to declare, v/hether they wifli to be again governed by that party, who, having in- fulted our liberties while they held their power, have (hewn, that they would, without fcruple, fa- crifice the ftrongefV bulwarks of our (late to regain it ; or will give Tupport to Government in the hands of thofe who have chofe to rilk their own reputa- tion and power, rather than confent, though but by their filence, to the infringement of the facred bar- riers of our Conftitution, Every thing has been now laid in the balance, which leems capable of adding weight to either fcale, and I venture to affirm nothing which is noC funded in truth. The fadls aflTerted are drawn from public papers, and public converfation, the only authentic and the only proper grounds on which the judgment of the public can be formed. They are indeed of fuch public notoriety, and the confequcnces deducible from them are fo obvi'<'^, ous •, the fubjedts of comparifon are fo important, and the difgrace which the confideration of them throws on the OppofitioTiy is fo glaring, that one cannot help being furprized at firft fight, that that party is able ftiil to keep up even the moft feeble echo of popular applgufe, and to divide with Mr. Wilkes and Mr. Williams the favour of the mob. It 1 1 . ( 62 ) It may be worth the while to attend to the caufcs of this; and it will be no improper conclufion of thefe papers to enquire how it comes to pals, that confiderations of fo much importance have not yet had their full weight on the minds of the people. And the firft reafon which occurs, will compre- hend rhe motives of a vtry confidcrable, or at lead a very loud corps of oppofers, I mean Intereft. ^ Whenever the Miniftry is againft a man, that man '.will fet himfelf againft the Miniftry. I mean to account upon this principle for the clamours of all thofc fub-contradtors, proveditors, fous cotnmis ; in (hort, the whole fuite of the war, who found their employment and their advantage in the public ex- pence. Add to thefe the whole cry of that party of the alley, who, during the variations which a war al- /ways occafions in the public funds, were ever turn- ing the folly of others to their own profit. It was to be expeded that thefe fhould take the part they have taken ; that they (hould endeavour to difappoint every fcheme of finance, the oeco- nomy of which was a reproach on their friends, and difappointed their own interefted views: but that they ftiould have ftood forth the champions of private intereft againft public good ; have avowed that their Oppofition to ways and means arofe from their thinking them too advantageous for the State ; have fubmitted to the odious talk of endeavouring to perfuade all men to profit by the diftrefles of the nation 5 that they (hould be capable of attempt- ing to depreciate our. advantages, to magnify our debt, to prevent any influx of money from fo- reigners, and even to leflen the reputation of our national credit ; this condudt the Adminiftration could ( 63 ) could hardly have expcfVcd from them, though, if they confide red ihemfelvcs only, ic is what they might have wilhed. But befides thefe, a peace neccfTarily takes from a great number of very honeft and brave men, their immediate employment •, and there are few in any ftation who do not rather murmur at a private misfortune than rejoice at a public advantage. When the fum of t'ghteen millions, which was annually difperftd by the war, is reduced to about three, which is the peace cftabliQimcnt, all thofc who received part of the forn;cr, nrtjraliy wifhing the continuance of ir, will condriui an Admini- ftration, which is contriving, bv every m* hod pof- fibie, to reduce the public rxp^nce. The fudden and confiderable advantages of (lock- jobbing had infufcd a fpirit of gaming into thofeclafles of men, from whom it naturally ought to be farthcft removed, and to whofe intereft it is mod oppofite; fome even of the middle ranks of our people had fo long tafted the fweets of great prefent advan- tages, and had fo l '^rh encreafed their expcnces in expectation of the tjntinuance of them, that they could not look without diflike on thofe who re- moved from them the poflibility of thefe pleafing, though dangerous experiments, and reduced them to depend again for their fuccefs on induftry and fru- gality. ^ This fpirit of diflipation and hazard had, necef- farily, from the length of, as well as from the frc* quent encouragements which it received from the war, fpread more widely than might at firft be perceived ; all thofe who had imbibed it were na- turally well-wifhers to //S'^ Oppo/uiortyVf ho had given it ijlli M' li\ s It rife and protedion. They were indeed exaflly in the fituation and temper dcfcribed by Lucan, Jib. I. , Non erat is populus quern pax tranquilla juvaret Quern fua libercas irpmotis pa^ceret armis ; Mine ufura vorax, avidumque in tempore f^enuSt Et concujfa fides i et muUis utile helium, . ,, ,^, , . ^ But the fupport which all thefe give to the Oppo^' fition will gradually dccreafe-, men will by degrees return to their former, or to new employments ; the fenfe of prefent inconvenience will be lefs (Irong^ Jy felt; the fpirit of gaming will diminifh; and. finding their happinefs in the refumption of their former habits, they will no longer blame thofe by whom they have been led to refume them. ^ . . ^ I have not indeed fuch good hopes of thofe who may juftly be called (launch Oppofition men ; I mean thofe gentlemen who having monopolized and fore-* (tailed all the graces of the Crown, and excluded and profcribed,as.long as it was in their power, ev6ry man who was not of their own junto, bear with fo little temper the reverfe of their fortune; whofe zeal for our conftitution is exadly equal to their knowledge of it; who have learnt their principles of policy in Draw- ing-Rooms, and of liberty in the Antichary-jbers of Minifters ; who are patriots, becaufe they were dif- mifled from being placemen; who put on, for the hour of reprefentation, the opinions of that charac- ter,- with as little difguife and propriety as a player does his Roman habit ; and who having been the tools of Adminiftration, are now become the mob of fadlion. Of their convidlion, I own I defpair : it requires fomething more fubftant'ial than rea- fons to influence their condudl. I do not even wilh to fee their convcrfion 5 the only method by which A ( 65 ) \rhich they can contribute to the reputation and ttrcngth of Government, is by coniinuing to op- pofe it. But though thefe are defperate, there is a very large and refpcdlable body of men, who, though much pains has been taken, and many accidental circumitances have concurred to miflcad them, are, however, open to convidion ; and to them princi- pally thefe papers are addrelfed, I mean the middle ranks of men among us; thofe who are honeft and difinterefted, though fometimes miQead. J I- ( .» - -. i ' '-.-.■■--.• f I , . ■ Many circumftances have contributed to deceive thefe men into the opinion which they have cnter^ tained of the late Secretary. The fpecious de- clarations of zeal for his country, with which he always accompanied his diffipation of her treafures in German-quarrels, arpufed them ; and they were not immediately convinced of his duplicity, even when they faw him break off the negotiation, which he had fo weakly managed, upon an intereft mere- ly German. Honeft men could fcarcely believe \z poflible, that while he was declaiming for liberty, he could be the fa pporter of the moft opprcffive taxes. The valour of as meritorious "an army as ever fought for their country, had procured us the moft ho- nourable fuccefles. He had always afcribed thefe to his own wifdom, and men were good-natured enough to afcribe to him the merit of the defign.s without enquiring whether the moft important con- quefts were not made upon plans of which he ^vas utterly ignorant. Time muft be allowed for men to difcard their old, and to adopt new opinions; to withcjraw their cfteem, even though they are convinced it is iigfuly grounded, from their former favouFite, K and I! Ui \ i : : ( 66 ) and to give it to thofe who piirfue a fyftem of con- dudl, the very revcrfe of that which they had been accuttonied to approve. ' There is another, and much hcavie^load, to be removed, than mere opinion, though this is not a 1 ght one, . . * - It has ever been obferved, and of all countries, that the people in them naturally attribute all their misfortunes to Government for the time being ; and certainly pngland is not an exception to this cbfervation. The very great funded debt, contraift- ed by'the war, has laid fevere taxes upon the peo- ple to dillharge the intcrefl:*, and the large unfunded debt, for which no provifion had been made, haa not only precluded the poflibility of giving them any immediate rehef, but made it neceflary to im- poie on them new burthens; whillt the prefTure of ihcfe is new, thofe who bear them will feel, and M'ill exprd's uneafinefs •, and the prefent Admlnift ra- tion muft fubmit to bear the odium of providing impofts for the dilcharge of debts which they had no fhare in contracting. ...■1 * .,, , But this, which is an extcnfive caiife of Oppoft- tion, will gradually decreafe : however f\fhionable it may be to decy popular efteem, I never vvilh to fee any man Minifter in this country who can de- fpife it. The acquifition of it is a juft and fure bafis of power, icconciles the fubjedt to his bur- thens, makes him rejoice at the fu.ccefs of Govern« ment, and maintair.s the good temper and harmony of the whulc fyftem ; it is lo valuable that noihing is to be prt fcrred It, except ter'eres with the attainment of. ti what fometimes in- I mean the defcrv- ing it. B It this can be only for a fhort time; the people of England have as much good humour, ■ ., au4 n of con- had been ad, to be is not a countries, e all their e being j m to this contraifc- the peo- unfunded nade, has ing them ry to im- relTure of feel, and Iminiftra- Droviding they had; Oppofi- fhionable r vvilh to can de- and fure his bur- Govern" larmony nothing imes in- : defcrv- mej the lumoury ar\,4 ( €j ) and perhaps more folid fenfethan any othernation } they never have been long blind to their own inie- re.it ; and without pretending to any great degree of political fecond fight, I will venture to affeit they will not long be To now, I am encouraged to this by obferving, that the charadter of the prefent Adminiftration gains reputation, exadtly in propor- tion to the time they have been in power, and to the occafions which have drawn forth their ta- Jents. It IS known, that a very large and a very refpedtable body of men, whofe education enables them to judge of the tendency of public meafures, and whofe intereft moft ftrongly leads them to adopt thofe which may be moft beneficial to the State, are attached by the moft honourable ties to the prefent Government, 1 mean the country gen- tlemen. The moft opulent, and the moft confidcr- able body of merchants in the world, have fteadily concurred in fupport of thofe, whom they fee en- deavouring to alleviate the burthens by which com- merce is opprefled. The minds of the independent men of all ranks are daily conciliated to a Minifter, whofe defigns arc fo evidently directed to the public weal, and who, difdaining to ftand en the bottom of fadion, or of | court intrigue, puts himfelf on the conftitutional ground of public fcrvice ; and therefore, hosvcver difficult it might be at firft to pluck out the pre- poflefllons which had taken root in the minds of ma^ ny ; now that time for confideration is given, and that men are at liberty to confidcr and weigh the political defcrts of the two parties, it is certain that he viho is found the lighter in the balance, muft foon give place; in fadt, he has done fo, and the political retreat to which the late Secretary has ^9nfined himfelf, reminds me of the behaviour of. It If Ik ( 6S ) of another perfon (who havihg been difmiflccl from 9 high ftadon, had thrown himfelf into Oppofi* tion) before an approaching combat, to which be found hioifclf unequal ', and which I quote too the rather, becaufe the laft line fcems applicable to the prefenc fubjedt, and to defcribe the removal • of thofe fliades of calumny, with which the parti- sans of Mr. Pitt have endeavoured, though in vain, to blacken the character of his opponent. Look'd up, and knew ;i * :i His mounted fcale aloft; nor more: but fled Murmuring, and with him fled the fhades of night. In fa£l, fuch a fyflem as that which is now purfued, muft be approved wherever it is known; it mud fecure efteem and bertow reputation. The little Arts of calumny anJ fadion have tried to defame and to oppofe, but in vain ; thofe who fubmit to practifii therf), fee their numbers daily diminifli* recur by turns to p^rty-clamour, and low intrigue, \vith equal difappointment; and behold with all the pangs of envy and of difappointed ambition^ what every honelt man muft lee with pleafure, the encreafing reputation of thofe whofe Admini- llration is diredled by maxims of fl:ridl frugality and public jufl^ice, of Englifh policy and of Con- ftitutionai Principles. FINIS* Af, V,- n of /.- ic cle ne to je, all re, li- ty a- ',5*