The political writings of Joel Barlow : --Containing-- Advice to the privileged orders. Letter to the national convention. Letter to the people of Piedmont. The conspiracy of kings

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4'

T H E

POLITICAL WRITINGS

OF

J O EL B A R L O W.

CONTAINING

ADVICE TO THE PRIVILEGED ORDERS.
LETTER TO THE NATIONAL CONVENTION
LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT,
THE CONSPIRACY OF. KINGS.

A New Edition Corrected.

N E W-Y O R K.

Printed by MOTT W 'LvON, at their Printing-0f~

fee, No. 71, Barclay- Streety and Sold at their

Book 'Start, No. 70, Vcfey-Street.

—i 7 9-6.^

ADVICE

TO THE

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

INTRODUCTION.

T

JL HE French Revolution is at laft not only
accomplifhed, but its accomplifhment univerfally
acknowledged, beyond contradiction abroad, or the
power of retraction at home.* It has finifhed its
work, by organizing a government, on principles
approved by reafon ; an object long contemplated
by different writers, but never before exhibited, in
this quarter of the globe. The experiment now

* The reader will bear in mind that this was
written in the latter end of the year 1791, juft as
the French had eflablifhed their firfl conflitution,
and were determined to try the experiment of a lim
ited monarchy. It is in this fenfe that the author
confidered the revolution as finifhed ; though he
clid not believe, as will appear in this introduction,
that a government fo conftrufted, and fo little con
genial to the fpirit of the times, would be of long
duration.

He did not.believe in the neceflity of a war to in
troduce and eftablifh the republic. For though the
treaty of Pilnitz had then been publifhed, and
though it bore the marks of that, folly which is
A 2

IV INTRODUCTION.

in operation will folve a queftion of the firft mag*
nitude in human affairs : Whether Theory and
Praftice, which always agree together in things of
ilighter moment, are'really to remain eternal ene
mies in the higheft concerns of men ?

The change of government in France is, pro
perly f peak ing, a renovation of fociety ; an objecl:
peculiarly fitted to hurry the mind into a field of
thought, which can fcarcely be limited by the con
cerns of a nation, or the improvements of an age.
As there is a tendency in human nature to imita
tion ; and as all the apparent caufes exift in mod
of the governments of the world, to induce the peo
ple to wifh for a fimilar change ; it becomes inter^
efting to the caufe of humanity, to take a delibe
rate view of the real nature and extent of this
change, and find what are the advantages and dif-
advamages tobeexpe&ed from it.

There is not that necromancy in politics, which
prevents our foreseeing, with tolerable certainty,
what is to be the refult of operations fo universal,
in which all the people concur. Many truths are
as perceptible when firft prefented to the mind,
as an age or a world of experience Could make
them ; others require ojly an indirect and collateral
experience ; fome demand an experience direft
and pofitive.

common to the enemies of reform in all ages, ftill
it does not appear from any fubfequent events, that
the parties to that treaty had any intention of pufh-
ing their oppofition to open hoftilities. This opin
ion is more fully developed in the preface to The
Conspiracy of Kings, and in the note on Mr. Burke,
at the end of the volume.

INTRODUCTION,

It is happy for human nature, that in morals
we have much to do with this firft clafs of truths,
lefs with the fecond, and very little with the third;
while in phyfics we are perpetually driven to the
flow procefs of patient and pofitive experience.

The Revolution in France certainly comes re
commended to us under one afpect which renders
it at firft view extremely inviting : it is the work
of argument and rational conviction, not of the
fword. The ultima ratio regum had nothing to do
with it. It was an operation defigned for the be
nefit of the people ; it originated in the people, and
was conducted by the people. It had therefore a
legitimate origin ; and this circumftance entitles it
to our ferious contemplation, on two accounts:
becaufe there is fomething venerable in the idea,
and becaufe other nations, in fimilar circumftances,
will certainly be difpofed to imitate it.

I (hall therefore examine the nature and confe-
quences of a fimilar revolution in government, as
it will affect the following principal objects, which
make up the affairs of nations in the prefent (late
of Europe :

I. The Feudal Syftem,

II. The Church,

III. The Military,

IV. The Administration of Juflice,

V. Revenue and public expenditure.

It mud be of vail importance to nil the claffesof
fociety, as it now ftands claffed in Europe,, to cal
culate before-hand what they are to gain or to loofe
by the appgteching change ; that, like prudent
liock-jobbcT&ihcy may buy in or fell out, accord
ing as this great event iliall affect them.

Philofophers and contemplative men, who may
think themfclvesclifii^terefted fpectaters of fo great

Vi INTRODUCTION.

a political drama, will do well to confider how far
the cataftrophe is to be beneficial or detrimental to
the human race ; in Order to determine whether
in conference they ought to promote or difcourage,
accelerate or retard it, by the publication of their
opinions. It is true, the work was fet on foot by
this fort of men ; but they have not all been of the
fame opinion relative to the bed organization of
the governing power, or how far the reform of
abufes ought to extend. Montefquieu, Voltaire,
and many other refpeftable authorities, have ac
credited the principle, that republicanifm is not
convenient for a great (late. Others take no no
tice of the diftin&ion between great and fmall
itates, in deciding, that this is the only govern
ment proper to enfure, the happinefs, and fupport
the dignity of man. Of the former opinion was
a great majority of the conftituant national affem-
bly of France. Probably not many years will
pafs, before a third opinion will be univerfally
adopted, never to be laid afide : That the republi
can principle is not only proper and fafe for the
government of any people ; but that its propriety
and fafety are in proportion to the magnitude ef
the fociety and extent of the territory.

Among fincere enquirers after truth, all gener
al queflions on this fubjecl: reduce themfelves to
this: Whether men are to perform their duties
by an eafy choice or an expenfive cheat ; or, whe
ther our reafon be given us to be improved or Hi-
fled, to render us greater or lefs than brutes, to
increafe our happinefs or aggravate our mifery.

Among thofe whofe anxieties arife only from
intereft, the inquiry is, how their privileges or
their profeffions are to be affe6ted by the new order
ef things. Thefe form a clafs of men refpeCtablc

INTRODUCTION. Vll

both for their numbers and fenfibilhy ; it is our
duty to attend to their cafe. I fmcerely hope to
adminifter fome confolation to them in the courfe
of this eflay. And though I have a better opinion
of their philanthrophy, thara political opponents
generally entertain of each other, yet I do not al
together rely upon their prefumed fympathy with
their fellow-citizens, and their fuppofed willing-
nefs to facrifice to the public good ; but I hope to
convince them, that the effoblifhment of general
liberty will be lefs injurious to thofe \vho now
live by abufes, than is commonly imagined ; that
protected induftry will produce effects far more af-
tonifhing than have ever been calculated ; that the
increafe of enjoyments will be fuch, as to amelio
rate the condition of every human creature.

To perfuade this clafs of mankind^ that it is
neither their duty nor their intereft to endeavour to
perpetuate fhe ancient forms of government, wculd
be an high and holy office ; it would be the great-
eft act of charity to them, as it might teach them
to avoid a danger that rs otherwife unavoidable ; it
would preclude the occafion of the people's indul
ging what is fometimes called a ferocious difpofi-
tion, which is apt to grow upon the revenge of
injuries, and render them lefs harmonious in their
new ftation of citizens; it would prevent the civil
wars, which might attend the infurre&ions of the
people, where there mould be a great want of una
nimity,- — for we are not to expect in every country,
that mildnefs and dignity which have uniformly
characterized the French, even in their moil tu
multuous movements*; it would remove every

* Whatever reafon may be given for the fa£t, I:
believe all thofc who have been witnefles of what

Vlil INTRODUCTION.

obftacle and every danger that may feem to attend
that rational fyftem of public felicity to which the
nations of Europe are moving with rapid ftrides,
and which in profpect is fo confoling to the en
lightened friends of humanity.

To induce the men who now govern the world
to adopt thefe ideas, is the duty of thofe who now

are called mobs in France (during the revolution)
will join with me in opinion, that they are by no
means to be compared with Englifh mobs, in point
of indifcriminate ferocity and private plunder. A
popular commotioij in Paris was uniformly directed
to a certain well-explained object ; from which it
never was known to deviate. Whether this object
were to hang a man, to-arreft the king, to intimidate
the court, or to break the furniture of a hotel, all
other perfons and all other property,, that fell in the
way of the mob, were perfectly fafe*

The truth is, thofe collections were compofed of
honed and induilrious people, who had nothing in
view but the public good. They belitved that the
caufe of their country required an execution of juf-
tice more prompt than could be expe&ed from any
eflablifhed tribunal. Befides, they were in the
crifis of a revolution, when they were fenfible, that
the crimes of their enemies would remain unpunifh-
ed5 for want of a known rule by which they could
be judged. Though a violation of right , is not
always a violation of law ; yet, in their opinion,
occaiions might exift, when it would be dangerous
to let it pafs with impunity.

It is indeed to be hoped, that whenever mobs in
ether countries (hall be animated by the fame caufe,
they will conduct themfelves with the fame dignity j
and that this fingular phenomenon will be found not
altogether attributable to national character*

INTRODUCTION. IX

poiTefs them. I confefs the tafk, at firft view, ap
pears more than Herculean ; it will be thought an
obje6l from which the eloquence of the clofet mud
fhrink in defpair, and which prudence would leave
to the more powerful arguments of events. But I
believe at the fame time that fome fuccefs may be
expeded ; that though the harveft be great, the
labourers may not be few ; that prejudce and in-
tereft cannot always be relied on to garrifon the
mind againft the affaults of truth. This belief,
ill-grounded as it may appear, is fufficient to ani
mate me in the caufe ; and to the venerable hoft of
republican writers, who have preceeded me in the
difcuflions occafiened by the French revolution,
this belief is my only apology for offering to join
the fraternity, and for thus pra&ically declaring
my opinion, that they have not exhaufted the fub-

Two very powerful weapons, the force of rea-
fon and the force of numbers, are in the hands of
the political reformers. While the ufe of the firft
brings into action the fecond, and enfures its co
operation, it remains a facred duty, impofed on
them by the God of reafon to wield with dexterity
this mild and beneficent weapon, before recurring
to the ufe of the other j which, though legitimate,
may be lefs harmlefs ; though infallible in opera
tion, may be lefs glorious in victory.

The tyrannies of the world, whatever be the ap
pellation of the government under which they are
exercifed, are all ariftocratical tyrannies. An or
dinance to plunder and murder, whether it fulmi
nate from the Vatican, or (teal filently forth from
the Harem ; whether it come clothed in the certain'
fclence of a Bed of Juftice, or in the legal folemni-
ties of a bench of lawyers ; whether it be purcha-

INTRODUCTION.

fed by the careffes of a woman, or the treafures of
a nation ; — never confines its effe&s to the benefit
of a Tingle individual ; it goes to enrich the whole
combination of confpirators, whofe bnfinefs it is to
dupe and to govern the nation. It carries its own
bribery with itfclf through all its progrefs and con
nexions, — in its origination, in its enadion, in its
vindication, in its execution ; it is a fertilizing
ftream, that waters and vivifies its happy plants in
the numerous channels of its communication. Mi-
nifters and fecretaries, commanders of armies,
contra&ors, collectors and tide-waiters, intendants,
judges and lawyers, — whoever is permitted to
drink of the falutary ftream, — are all interefted in
removing the obftrudtionsand in praiflng the foun
tain from which it flows.

The ftate of human nature requires that this
fhouid be the cafe. Among beings fo nearly equal
in power and capacity as men of the fame commu
nity are, it is impofiible that a folitary tyrant fhould
exift. Laws that are defigned to operate unequal
ly on fociety, muft offer an exclusive intereft to a
confiderable portion of its members, to enfure
their execution upon the reft. Hence has arifen
the neceflity of that Orange complication in the
governing power, which has made of politics an
inexplicable fcience ; hence the reafon for arming
one clafs of our fellow creatures with the weapons
of bodily deftruftion, and another with the myfte-
rious artillery of the vengeance of heaven; hence
thecaufe of what in England is called the indepen
dence of the judges, and what on the continent has
created a judiciary nobility, a fet of men who pur-
chafe the privilege of being the profeflional ene
mies of the people, of felling their decifions to the
rich', and of diftributing individual oppreflion ;_

INTRODUCTION. Xi

nence the fource of thofe Draconian codes of cri
minal jurifpruclence which enfhrine the idol pro
perty in a bloody fancluary* and teach the modern
European, that his life is of lefs value than the
fhoes on his feet ; hence the pofitive difcourage-
ments laid upon agriculture, manufacture, com
merce, and every method of improving the condi
tion of men ; for it is to be obferved, that in every
country the lhackles impcfed upon induflry are in
proportion to the degree of general defpotifm that
reigns ki the government. This arifes not only
from the greater debility and want of enterprise
in the people, but from the fuperior neceffity that
fuch governments are under, to prevent their fub-
jedls from acquiring that eafe and information, by
which they could difcern the evil and apply the
remedy.

To the fame fruitful fource of calamities we
are to trace that perverfity of reafon, which, in
governments where men are permitted to difcufs
political fubjecls, has given rife to thofe perpetual
fhifts of fophift.ry,by which they vindicate the pre
rogative of kings. In one age it is the right of
conqueft, in another the divine right, then it comes
to be a compact between king and people , and laft of
all, it is faid to be founded on general convenience,
the good of the whole community. In England thefe
feveral arguments have all had their day ; though
it is aftonifhing that the two former could ever
have been thetfubje6ts of rational debate: the firil
is the logic of the miifquet, and the fecond of the
chalice ; the one was buried at Rennimede on the
Signature of Magna Charta, the other took its
flight to the continent wiih James the Second.
The compact of king and people has lain dor-

XU -INTRODUCTION.

mant the greater part of the prcfent century ; till
it was roufed from {lumber by the French revo
lution, and came into the ferviceof Mr. Burke.

Hafty men difcover their errors when it is too
late. It had certainly been much more confiftent
with the temperament of that writer's mind, and
quite as ferviceable to his caufe, to have recalled
the fugitive claim of the divine right of kings. It
would have given a myftic force to his declama
tion, afforded him many-new epithets, and furnifh-
ed fubje&s perfedly accordant with the copious
charges ufJ&criJege, atheifm, murders-) affajjlnations^
rapes and plunders with which his three volumes
abound.* He then could not have difappointed
his friends by his total want of argument, as he
now does in his two firft effays ; for on fuch a Tub-
ject no argument could be expefted ; and in his
third, where it is patiently attempted, he would
have avoided the neceffity of fh owing that he has
none, by giving a different title to his book ; far
the " Appeal,3' inftead of being " from the New
to the Old Whigs," would have been from the new
whigs to the old tones ; and he might as well have
appealed toCasfar ; he could have found at this day
no court to take cognizance of his caufe.

But the great advantage of this mode of handling
the fubjeft would have been, that it could have
provoked no anfwers ; the gauntlet might have
been thrown, without a champion to have taken it
up; and the laft folitary admirer of chivalry have
retired in negative triumph from the field.

* Thefe three works are, his 'Reflections on the
Revolution in France, his Letter to a Member of the
National AJfembly^ and his Appeal jrom the New to
tlie Old Whigs.

INTRODUCTION-. Xlli

Mr. Burke, however, in his defence of royalty,
does not rely on this argument .of the compact.
Whether it be, that he is confcious of its futility,
or that in his rage he forgets that he has ufed it,
he is perpetually recurring to the laft ground that
has yet been heard of, on which we are called up
on to conlider kings even as a tolerable ntiifance,
and to fupport the exifting forms of government :
this ground is the general good of the community. It
is faid to be dangerous to pull down fyftems tha't
are already formed, or even to attempt to improve
them ; and it is likewife faid, that, were they
peaceably deftroyed, and we had fociety to build
up anew, it would be beft tQ create hereditary
kings, hereditary orders, andexclufive privileges.

Thefe are fober opinions, uniting a clafs of rea-
foners too numerous and too refpe6lable to be
treated with contempt, I believe, however, that
their number is every day diminiiliiHg, and I be
lieve the example which France will foonbe obli
ged to exhibit to the world on this fubje6r, will
induce every man to reje£l them, who is not per-
fonally and exclufively interested in their fupport.

The inconfiftency of the the conftituent afiem-
bly, in retaining an hereditary king, armed with
an enormous civil lift, to wage war with a popu
lar government, has induced foine perfons to prc-
di6t the downfall of their conftitution. But this
meafure had a different origin from what is com
monly afligned to it, and will probably have a dif
ferent iiTue. It was the refult rather of local and
temporary circumftances, than of amy general be
lief in the utility of kings, under any modifica
tions or limitations that could be attached to (lie
office.

B

Xiv INTRODUCTION.

It is to be obfcrvcd, frft, that the French had
a king upon their hands. This king had always
been confidered as a well-dtfpofed man ; fo that,
by a fatality fomewhat fingular, though not unex
ampled in regal biftory, he gained the love of the
people, alrnoit in proportion to the mifchief which
he did them. Secondly, their king had very power
ful family connexions, in the fovc reigns of Spain,
Auftria,1 Naples and Sardinia ; befides his relations
•within the kingdom, whom it was neceiTary to at
tach, if poflible, to the interefls of the community,
Thirdly y the revolution was confidered by all Eu
rope as a high and dangerous experiment. It was
necefTarv to hide as much as poffible the appearance
of its magnitude from the eye of the dillant ob-
fefver. l"he reformers confidered it as their duty
to produce an internal regeneration of fcciety,
rather than an external change in the appearance
of the court ; t@ fet in order the counting- houfe
and the kitchen, before arranging the drawing-
room. This would leave the? fovereigns of Eu
rope totally without a. pretext for interfering;
•while it would be corifoling to that clafs of phi-
lofophers, who fall believed in the compatibility
of royalty and liberty.- iFettrMy, this decree,
That France Jhould have a king, and that he- could
do no wrong) was paired at an early period of their
operations ; when the above reafons were appa
rently more urgent than they were afterwards, cr
probably will ever be again.

From thefe Con fide rat ions we may conclude,
that royalty is preferved in France for reaions
which are fugitive \ that a majory of the confti-
tuent auernbly did not believe in it, as an 'abftract
principle; that a majority of the people will learn

INTRODUCTION. XV

ro be difguefled with fo unnatural and ponderous
a deformity in their new edifice, and will foon
hew it off.

After this improvement mall have been made,
a few years experience in the face of Europe, and
on fo great a theatre as that of France, will pro
bably leave but one opinion in the minds of honeft
men, relative to the republican principle, or the
great firnplicity of nature applied to the organiza
tion of fociety.

The example of America would have had great
weight in producing this conviclion ; but it is too
little known to the European reafoner, to be a
fubjecl of accurate inveftigation. Befides the dif
ference of circumftances between that country and
the flates of Europe has given occafion for imagi
ning many cuftinclions which exift not in fact, and
has prevented the application of principles which
are permanently founded in nature, and follow not
the trilling variations in the ilate of fociety.

But I have not prefcribed to rnyfelf* the tafk of
entering into arguments on the utility of kin^?,
or of inveftigating the meaning of Mr. Burke, in
order to compliment him with an additional refu
tation. My fubje£t furnifhes a more extenfive fcepe.
It depends not on me, or Mr. Burke, or any
other writer, or defcription of writers, to deter
mine the quefiion, whether a change of govern
ment mall take place, and extend through Europe.
It depends on a much moreimportant clafs of men,
the clafs that cannot write ; and in a great mea-
fure, on thofe who cannnot read. It is to be de
cided by men who reafon better without books,
than we do with all the books in the world. Ta-
B 2

INTRODUCTION.

Icing it for granted, therefore, that a general re
volution is at hand, wfiofe progrefs is irrefiftablc,
any object is to contemplate its probable effects,
and to comfort thofe who are afflicted at the prof-
peel.

^ — A miilake has been committed in heading
the firft part of this work, page 3 ; it fliould
read thus :— Advice to tht Privileged Orders in the
jfeveral States of Europe, rejulting from the ntctjjiiy
and propriety of a general revolution in the princi
ples of government. Editor.

CHAP. I.

FEUDAL SYSTEM.

JL HE moft prominent feature in^the moral face
of Europe, was imprinted upon it by conqueft.
It is the refult of the fubordination neceflary among
military favages, on their becoming cultivators of
the foil which they had defolated, and making an
advantageous, ufe of fuch of the inhabitants as
they did not choofe to malTacre, and could not fell
to foreigners for flaves.

The relation thus eftablifhed between the offi
cers and the foldiers,bet ween the viclors and the van-
quifhed, and between them all and the lands which
they were to cultivate, modified by the experience
of unlettered ages, has obtained the name oft the
Feudal Syftem, and may be confidered as the foun
dation of all the political inftitutions in this quar
ter of the world. The claims refulting to parti
cular clafles of men, under this modification of
ibciety, are called Feudal Rights j and to the in
dividual poitefibrs they arc either nominal or reaK
conveying an empty title or a fubftantial profit.

My intention is not to enter on the details of

this fyftem, as a lawyer, or to trace its progrefs

with the accuracy of an hiftorian, and ihow ifs

peculiar fitnefs to the rude ages of fociety which

B 3

l8 ADVICE TO THE

gave it birth. But, viewing it as an ancient edi
fice, whofe foundation, worn away by the current
of 'eventSj can no longer fupport its weight, I
would fketch a'fevv drawings to fhow the ftile of
its architecture, and Compare it with the model of
the nevir bui'cino to be creeled in its place.

The pbihfophy of the Feudal Syftem, is all that
remains of it worthy of our contemplation. This
J will attempt to trace in fome of its leading points,
leaving the practical part to fall, with its ancient
founders and its modern admirers, into the peace^-
ful gulph of oblivion j to which I wifh it a fpee-
dy and an unobftructed paflage.

The original object of this inftitution was un
doubtedly, what it was alleged to be, the prefer-
vation of turbulent focieties, in which men are
held together but by feeble ties ; and it effected
its purpofe by uniting the perfonal intereft of the
head of each family, with the perpetual fafety cf
the ilate. Thus far the purpofe was laudable,
and the means extremely well calculated for the
end. But it was the fortune of this fyftem to
attach itfelf to thofe paflions of human nature
which vary not with the change of circumftances*
While national motives ceafed by degrees to re
quire its continuance, family motives forbade to
lay it afide. The fame progreffrve improvements
in fociety, which rendered military tenures and
military titles firft unneceffary and then injurious
to the general intereft, at the fame time fharpen-
ed the avarice, and piqued the honour of thofs
who pofleflld them, to preferve the exchifive pri
vileges which rendered them thus diltinguifhed;
And thefe privileges, united with the operations
of the church, have founded and fupported the

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 19

defpotifms of Europe in all their divifions, com
binations, and refinements.

Feudal Rights are either territorial or perfonal.
I fhall divide them into thefe two clafies, for the
fake of beftowing a few obfer various upon each.

The pernicious effects of the fyftem on territo
rial tenures are inconceivable, various and great.
In a legal view, it has led to thofe intricacies and
vexations, which we find attached to every cir-
cumftance of real property, which have perplex
ed the fcience of civil jurifprudence, which have
perpetuated the ignorance of the people relative
to the adminiftration of juftice, rendered neceffary
the intervention of lawyers, and multiplied the
means of opprellion. But, in a political view, its
confequences are ftill more ferious, and demand
a particular confederation.

The firft quality of the feudal tenure is to con
fine the defcendible property to the eldefl male
JJJue. To fay that this is contrary to nature, is
but a feeble cxpreflion. So abominable is its ope
ration, that it has feduced and perverted nature ;
her voice is ftifled, intereft itfelf is laid afleep, and
nothing but the eloquence of an incomprehenfible
pride is heard on the occafion. You will hear
father and mother, younger brothers and fillers,
rejoice in this provifion of the law ; the former
configning their daughters to the gloomy prifon of
a convent, and their younger fons to the church or
the army, to enfure their celibacy ; that no rem
nant cf the family may remain but the heir of the
eflate entire ; the latter congratulating each other,
that the elder brother will tranfmit unimpaired
the title and the property, while they themfelves are
content to periili in the obfcurity of their feveral
deftinations, Itis probable that, in another 2ge?

20 ADVICE TO THE

a tale of this kind will fcarcely gain credit, and
that the tear of fenfibility may be fpared by a
difbelief of the fa£t. It is, however, no creature
of the imagination ; it happened every day in
France previous to the revolution ; I have feen
it with my own eyes, and heard it with my own
ears ; it is now to be feen and heard in moft other
Catholic countries.

But other points of view fliow this difpofition
of the law to be ftill more reprehenfible in the eye
of political philofophy. It fv/ells the inequality
of wealth, which, even in the beft regulated focie-
ty, is but too confiderable ; it habituates the peo
ple to- believe in an unnatural inequality in the
rights of meny and by thefe means prepares them
for fervility and oppreflion ; it prevents the im
provement of lands, and impedes the progrefs of
induftry and cultivation, which are beft promoted
on fmall efiates, where proprietors cultivate for
themfelves ; it difcourages population, by indu
cing to a life of celibacy.: — But I (hall fpeak of
celibacy when I fpeak of the church.

Whether men are born to govern, or to obey,,
or to enj.oy equal liberty, depends not on the ori
ginal capacity of the mind, but on the ivftinft of
analogy, or the habit of thinking. When children
of the fame family are taught to believe in the un
conquerable diftindtions of birth among them
felves, they are completely fitted for a feudal go
vernment ; becaufe their minds are familiarifed
with all the gradations and degradations that fuch
a government requires. The birth-right of domi
neering is not more readily claimed on the one
hand, than it is acknowledged on the other ; and
the Jamaica planter is not more habitually con-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 2T

vinced that an European isfuperior loan African,
than he is that a Lord is better than himfclf.

This fubjecl: deferves fo be placed in a light,
in which no writer, as far as I know, has yet
confidered it. When a perfon was repeating to
Fontenelle the common adage habit is the fccond
nature, the philofopher replied, and do me the. fa
vour to tell me which is the firft. When we affert
that nature has eftablifhed inequalities among men,
and has thus given to forne the right of governing
others, or when we maintain the contrary of this
pofition, we mould be careful to define what fort
of nature we mean, whether the firft or fecond
nature ; or whether we mean that there is but one;
A mere favage, Colocolo* for inftance, would
decide the queftion of equality by a trial of bodi
ly ftrength, dcfignating the man that could lift
the heavieft beam to be the legiilator ; and imlefs
all men could lift the fame beam, they could not
be equal in their rights. Ariftotle would give
the preference to him that excelled in mental ca
pacity. Ulyfles would make the decifion upon a
compound ratio of bnth. But there appears to
me another ftep in this ladder, and, that the batit
of thinking is the only fafe and univrerfal criterion
to which, in practice, the queftion can be refer
red. Indeed, when interefl is laid afide, it is the
only one to which, in civilized ages, it ever is
referred. We never fubmit fo a King, becaufe
he is ftronger than we in bodily force, nor becaufe
he is fuperior in understanding or in information ;
but becaufe we believe- him born to govern, or
at lead, becaufe a majority of the fociety believes
it.

* See the Araucana of Ercilla.

22 ADVICE TO THE

This habit of thinking has fo much of nature in
If, it is fo undlftingmfhable from .the indelible
marks of the man, tha- it is a perfectly fafe foun
dation for any fyikm tlut we may choofe to build
noon ic ; indeed it is the cniy foundation, for it is
tlie only point of contact by which men cornmu-
nica,te as moral aflbcbtcs. As a practical pofitiorr
therefore, and as relating to almoil: all places and
almoft all times, in which the experiment has
yet been made, Ariltotle was as right in teaching,
That forne are birn to eommtindj and 6tbcrs to be
commanded, as the National AiTembly was in de
claring, That men are born and always continue free
and equal in refpett to their rights. The latter is
as apparently falfe in the diet of Ratiibcn, as the
former is in the hall of the Jacobins.

Abil'raclly confidered, there can be no doubt
of the unchangeable truth of the afTembly's de
claration ; and'ttey have taken the right method
to make it a praBlcal truth, by publifliing it to
the world for difcuflion. A general belief that it
is a truth r makes it at once practical, confirms it
in me nation, and extends it to others.

A due attention to the aflonifhing effects that
are wrought in the world by the habit of thinking?
will ferve many valuable purpofes. I cannot
therefore difmifs :he fubjeft fo foon as I intended;
but will mention one or two inftances of thefe
effects, and leave the reflection of the reader to
make the application to a thoufand others.

Firft, Ir is evident that all the arbitrary fyftems
in the world are founded and fupported on thisy^-
cond nature of man, in counteraction of the^r/?.
Syftems which diftprt and crufn and fubjugate
every thing that we can fuppofe original and cha-
racleridic in man, as an uncliitorted being. It

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. £3

fuftains the mcft abfurd and abominable theories
of religion, and honours them with as many mar
tyrs as it does thofe that are the mod peaceful and
beneficent.

But fecondly, we find for our confolaiion, that it
will likewife fupport fyfletns of equal liberty and
national happinefs. In the United States of Ame
rica, the fcience of liberty is univerfaliy under-
flood, felt, and practifed, as much by the fimple
as the wife, the weak as the flropg. Their deep-
rooted and inveterate habit of thinking is, that
all men are equal in their rights, that /'/ is impojjlble
to make them otherwtfe ; and this being their tm-
diflurbcd belief, they have no conception how any
man in his fenfes can entertain any other. This
point once fettled, every thing is fettled. Many
operations, which in Europe have been confidereJ
as incredible tales or dangerous experiments, arc
but the infallible confequences of this great prin
ciple. The firft of thefe operations is the bitfinefs
of eleftiony which, with that people, is carried on
with as much gravity as their daily labour. There
is no jealouiy on the occafion, nothing lucrative in
office ; any man in fociety may attain to any place
in the government, and may exercife its functions.
They believe that there is nothing more difficult
in the manag /.nent of the affairs of a nation, than
the affairs of a family ; that it only requires more-
hands. They believe that it is the juggle of keep
ing up irr.pofitions to blind the .eye? of the vul
gar, that conftitutes the intricacy of (late. Banilh
the myfticifm of inequality, and you baniGi ahnoit
all the evils attendant on human nature.

The people, being habituated to the election
of all kinds of officers, the magnitude of the office
mdkes no difficulty ia the cafe. The pr

ADVICE TO THE

the United States, who has more power while ia
office than Tome of the kings of Europe, is chofen
tvith as little commotion as a churchwarden.
There is a public fervice to be performed, and the
people fay who mall do 'it. The fervarit feels
honoured with the confidence repofed in him, and
generally exprefles his gratitude by a faithful
performance.

Another of thefe operations is making every
citizen a foldier, and every foldier a citizen ; not
only -permitting every man to arm, but obliging
him to arm. This fact, told in Europe, previous
to the French revolution, would have gained lit
tle credit ; or at lead it would have been regarded
as a mark of an uncivilized people, extremely
dangerous to a well ordered fociety. Men who
build fy (terns on an inverfion of nature, are
-obliged to invert every thing that is to make part
of that fyitem. It is becaufe the people are civili
zed y that tbey are with fnfety armed. It is an ef
fect of their confcious dignity, as citizens enjoy
ing equal rights, that they wilh not to invade the
rights of others. The danger (where there is
any) from armed citizens, is only to the govern
ment, not to \\\c fociety ; and as long as they have
nothing to revenge in the government (which they
cannot have while it is in their own hands) there
are many advantages in their being accuftomed
to the ufe of arms, and no pofiible difad vantage.

Power y habitually in the hands of a whole
community? lofes all the ordinary aiTociated ideas
of power. The exercife of power is a relative
term ; it fuppofes an oppoiition, — founething to
•operate upon. We perceive no exertion of power
in the motion of the planetary fyftem, but a very
/trong one in the movement of a whirlwind,-!' is

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 25

becaule we fee obllru&ions to the latter, but none
to the former. Where the government is net in
the hands of the people, there you find oppofition,
you perceive two contending interefts, and get an
idea of the exercife of power ; and whether this
power be in the hands of the government or of
the people, or whether it change -from ikle to
ikie, it is always to be dreaded. But the word
people, in America, has a different meaning from
what it has in Europe. It there mean* the whole
community, and comprehends every human crea
ture ; here it means fomething elfe, more diffi
cult to define.

Another confequence of the habitual idea of
-equality, is ihefecilify of changing tie Jlrufture cf
their government, whenever, and as often as the fo-
ciety fhall think there is any thing in it to amend.
As Mr. Burke has written no " reflections on the
" revolution" in America, the people there have
never yet been told that they have no right <l to
i( frame a government for themfelves ;:) they
have therefore done much in this bufinefs, with
out ever affixing. to it the idea of " facrilege'' or
<f ufurpation/' or any other term of rant, to be
found in that gentleman's vocabulary.

Within a few years the fifteen dates have not
only framed each its own flate confiitution, and
two fuccellive federal conftitut ions ; but imce the
fettlement of the prefent general government ia
the year 1789, three of the ilates, Pennfylvani.?,
South- Carolina, a»d Georgia, have totally new
modelled their own. And ail this is done without
the lead confulion ; the operation being fcarcely
known beyond the limits of the (late where it is
performed. Thus they are in the habit of <c cbsof-

c

26 ADVICE TO THE

ic ing their own governors /' of " cajhierirrg them
"for mifconduft^ of " framing a government for
"*themf elves," and all thole abominable things,
the mere naming of which, in Mr. Burke's opi
nion, has polluted the pulpit in the Old Jewry.*

But it is faid, Thefe things will do very well
for America, where the people are lefs numerous,
lefs indigent, and better inftrucfced ; but they will
not apply to Europe. This objection deferves a
reply, not becaufe it is folid, but becaufe it is
fafhionable. It may be anfvvered, that fome parts
of Spain, much of Poland, and . almoft the whole
ofRuffia, are lefs peopled than the fettled coun
try in the United States ; that poverty and igno
rance are effefts of flavery rather than its caujcs ;
but the belt anfwer to be given, is the example of
France. To die event of that revolution I will
truft the argument. Let the people have time to
become thoroughly and foberly grounded in the
tlo&rine of equality, and there is no danger of op-
preflion either from government or from anarchy.
Very little inftru&ion is necefTary to teach a man
his rights ; and there is no perfon of common in
tellects, in the mod: ignorant corner of Europe,
but receives lefTons enough, if they were of the
proper kind. For writing and reading are not in-
difpenfable to the object , it is thinking right which
makes them a 61 ri«ht. Every child is taught to
repeat about fifty Latin prayers, which fet up the
Pope, the Bilhop, and the King, as the trinity of
his adoration ; he is taught that the fviucrs that

* See Dr. Price's Sermon preached in the Old
Jewry before the Revolutionary Society, and Mr.
Burke's abufivc ftriclures on the above expre {lions
ufed bv the Doclor.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 27

l>ey are ordained of God, and therefore the foldier
quartered in the pariih has a right to cut his
throat. Half this inilru&ion, upon oppofite prin
ciples, would L^O a great way : in that cafe nature
wo', id be a (lifted, while here ihe is counteracted.
Engrave it on the heart of a man, that all men are
equal in rights, and that {[^.government is their own,
and then perfuade him to fell his crucifix and buy
a mufquet, — and you have made him a good
citizen.

Another confeqticnce of a fettled belief in the
equality of rights is, that under this belief there is
no danger from anarchy. This word has likewife
'acquired a different meaning in America from
what we read of it in books. In Europe it means
confuiion, attended with mobs and carnage, where
the innocent perifli with the guilty. But it is
very different where a country is ufed to a repre-
fentative government, though it mould have an
interval of no government at all. Where the peo
ple at large feel and know that they can do every
thing by thernfelves perfonally, they really do noth
ing by themfelves perfonally. In the heat of
the American revolution, when the people in feme
ftates were for a long time without the leaft fha-
dow of law or government, they always ailed by
committees and reprefentation. This they mult
call anarchy, for they know no other.

Thefe are materials for the formation of go
vernments, which need not be dreaded, though
disjointed and lahlafunder to make fome repairs.
They are deep-rooted habits of thinking, which
almoft change the moral nature of man ; they
are principles as much unknown to the ancient
republics as to the modern monarchies of Eu
rope. C 2

28 ADVICE TO TK?

We muftnot therefore rely upon fyilems drawn
from the experimental reafonings of Ariftotle,
when \ve find them contradicted by \vhat v. e feel
to be the eternal truth of nature, 2nd fee them
brought to the ted of our own experience. Arif
totle v/as certainly a great politician ; and Clau
dius Ptolemy \vas a great geographer ; but the
latter has fa id not a word of America, the largeft
quarter of the globe ; nor the former, of repre-
fentative republics, the refource of afflf&ed hu
manity.

Since I have brought thefe two great luminaries
of fcience fo near together, I will keep them in
company a moment longer, to fliow the ftrange
partiality that we may retain for one fuperftuion
after having laid afide another, though they are
built on fimilar foundations. Ptolemy wrote a
fyftem of Aflronomy ; in which he taught among
rather things, that the earth was the centre of the
univerfe, and that the heavenly bodies moved
round it. This fyftem is now taught (to the ex-
clufion by sn anathema of nil others) in Turkey,
Arabia, Perfin, Pale Mine, Egypt, and where ever
the doclrinco of Mahomet are taught; \vhile at
the fame time, and with the fame reverence, the
politics of Ariftotle are taught at the univerfity of
Oxford. The ground which fupports the one is,
that the fun ftopt its courfe at the command of
Jofhua, which it could not have done, had it not
been in motion ; and the other, that the powers
that be, ore ordained cf God. Mention to a Muf-
felman xthe Copernican fyftem, and you might ss
\vell fpeak to Mr. Burke ?bout the rights of man ;
they both call you an atheift. — But I will proceed
•with the feudal fyftem.

The next quality of a feudal tenure is what is

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

commonly called on the Continent the right of
Jubftitution, in the Englifh law, known by the
name of entail. Of all the methods that^ have
yet been difcovered to prevent men from enjoying
the advantages that nature has laid before them,
this is the moft extraordinary, and in many ref-
pecls the moft effectual. There have been fuper-
ilitions entertained by many nations relative to
property in lands ; rendering them more difficult
of alienation than any other poffeffions, and con-
fequently lefs productive. Such were the/wj re
trains of the Romans, the family-right of re
demption, and the abfolute reftoration once in
fifty years among the Jews, iimilar regulations
among the ancient Egyptians, and laws to the
fame purpofe under the government of the Incas
in Peru.

Thefe were all calculated to perpetuate family
diftinc~lions, and to temper the minds of men to
an ariflocratical fubordination. But none of them
were attended with the barbarous exclufion of
younger brothers ; nor had they the prefumption
to put it into the power of a dying man, wh<.\
could not regulate the difpolition of his lanclals
for one hour after his death, to fay to all mankind
thenceforward to the end of time, " Touch
not my inheritance ! -I will that this tracVof coun
try, on which I have taken my pleaiure, (hall
remain. to the wild beads and to the fowls of hea
ven ; that one man only of each generation ihall
exift upon it ; that all the reft, even of my own
pofterity, fhall be driven out hence, as foon as
born ; and that the inheritor himfelf fhall not in-
creafe his enjoyments by alienating a part to ame
liorate the reft."

30 ADVICE TO THE

There might have been individual madmen, in
all ages, capable of exprejjing a defire of this kind ;
but for whole nations, for many centuries toge
ther, to agree to reverence and execute fuch hoftile
teftaments as thefe, comported not with the \vif-
dom of the ancients; it is a fuicide of fociety,
referved for the days of chivalry, — to fupport the
governments of modern Europe.

Sir Edward Coke mould have fpared his pane
gyric en the parliament of Edward the firft, as
the fathers of the laws of entailments. He
quotes with fmgular pleafure the words of Sir
William Herle, who informs us, that " King
" Edward I. was the wifeft King that ever was,
" and they we re fa ge men, who made this ftatute."
Whatever wifdom'there is in the ftatute, is of an
elder growth. It is a plant of genuine feudal
extraftion, brought into England by the Normans
or Saxons, or feme other conquerors ; and though
fettled as common law, it began to be difregarded
snd defpifed by the judicial tribunals, as a fenfe
of good policy prevailed. But the progrefs of li-
jberality was arrefted by that parliament, and the
law of entailments parted into the ftatute of Weft-
mi nfter the fecond.

Tliis was confidered as law in America, previ
ous to the revolution. But that epoch of light
and liberty lias freed one quarter of the world
from this miferable appendage of Gothicifm ;
and France has now begun to break the fhackles
from another quarter, where they were more
ftrongly rtvetted. The fimple deftruSion of thefe
two laws, of ent ailment and primogeniture , if yoii
add. to it the freedom of the prefs, will enfure the
continuance of liberty in any country where it
h once eftablifhecl.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 3!

Other territorial right?, peculiar to the feudal
tenure, are lefs general in their operation, though
almoft infinite in their number and variety. Not
a current of water, nor a mill-feat, nor a fifh-
pond, nor a foreft, nor the dividing line of a
village or a farm, but gives name to and fupports
lome feigneurial impofition ; befides the number-
lefs claims predicated upon all the poilible actions
and ceremonies that pafs, or are fuppofed to pafs,
between the great Lord and the little Lord, and
between the little Lord and the lefs Lord, and
between him and the Lord knows whom. The
National AHernbly, in one decree, fuppreiled
about one hundred and fifty of thefe taxes by
name, befides a general fweeping claufe in the
acl, which perhaps deftroyed as many more, the
names of which no man could report.

One general character will apply to all thefe im-
pofitions : they are a difcouragement to agricul
ture, an-embarrafiment to commerce,. — they hu
miliate one part of the community, fweil the
pride of the other, and are a real pecuniary difad-
vantage to both.

But it is time to pay our refpefts to rhofe feu
dal claims that we call perfonaL The firrt of thefe
is allegiance, — in its genuine Gothic fenfe, called
perpetual allegiance. It is difficult to exprefs a
fuitable contempt for this idea, without defcend-
ing to language below the dignity of philofophy.
On the firit inveftiture of a fief, the fuperior Lord
(fuppofing he had any right to it hi-mfelfj has
doubtlefs the power of granting it on whatever
terms the vaflal will agree- to. It is an even bar^
gain between- the parties ; and an unchangeable
allegiance during the lives of thefe parlies may be
a. condition of it. But for a man to be borx<\Q~.

32 ADVICE TO THE

fuch an allegiance to another man, is to have an
evil ftar indeed ; it is to be born to unchangeable
llavery.

A nobleman of Venice, at ihis moment, can
not ftep his foot over the limits of the republic
without leave from the Senate, on pain of for
feiting his eftate. Similar laws prevail in all
feudal countries, where revolutions have not yet
prevailed. They flee before the fearching eye of
liberty, and will foon flee from Europe.

Hitherto we have treated of claims, whether
perfonal or territorial, that are confined to the
elded fons of families ; but there is one genuine
feudal claim, which " fpreads undivided" to all
the children, runs in all collateral directions, and
extends to every drop of noble blood, wherever
found, however mixt or adulterated, — jt is the
claim of idlencfs. In general it is fuppofcd, that
all indigent noble children are to be provided for
by the government. But alas ! the fwarm is too
great to be ealiiy hived. Though the army, the
navy, and the church, with all their pofTIble mul
tiplication of places, are occupied only by them,
yet their number becomes fo conhderable, that
many remain out of employment and deflitute of
the means of fu [sport.

In contemplating the peculiar deftiny of this
defcription of men, we cannot but feel a mixture
of emotions, in which companion gets the better
of contempt. In addition to the misfortunes in
cident to other clafles of fociety, their noble birth
has entailed upon them a fmgular curfe ; it has
interdicted them every kind of bufmefs or occu
pation, even for procuring the neceifaries of life,
Other men may be found who have been deprived
of their juft inheritance by the barbarous laws of .

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. ?^

defoent, who may have been »egle£ted in youth
and not educated to bun fiefs, or who by averfioii
to SndUilry are rendered incapable of any ufefuf
employment ; but none but the offspring of a no
ble family can experience the fuperaddtd fatality
of being told, that to put hi-5 baud to4.be plough,
or bis foot i-nto a counting houfe, would difgrace
an iliuftfious line of ancclrors, and wither a tree
cf genealogy, which takes its root in a groom of
fome fortunate robber, who perhaps was an arch
er cf Charlemagne.

Every capital in Europe, if you except Lon
don, throngs with this miferable clafs of nobleile,
who are really and literally tormented between
their pride and their poverty. Indeed, fuch i>
the prepoflercus tyranny of cuflom, that thofc
\vho are rich, and take the lead in focicty, have
the cruelty to make idlenejs a criterion of noblrffs*
A proof of inoccupation is a ticket of admiilion
into their houfes, and an indifpcnfible badge of
welcome to their parties.

But in France their b/»nds are at laft untied ;
the charm is broken, and the feudal fyftem, with
all its infamous idolatries, has fallen to the
ground. Honour is reftored to the heart of man,
in (lead of being fufpended from his button-hole ;
end ufeful induitry give? a title to refpedl. The
men who were formerly Dukes and Marquiilcs,
are now exalted to farmers, manufacturers and
merchants ; the riling generation among all claf-
fes of people are forming their maxims on a jult
eftimate of things ; and fodety is extracting the
poifoned dagger which conqueit had planted in
her vitals,

C H A P. II.

T EEC II U R C H.

it would have benn imnoiTible for the
feudal fyltem, with all its powers of inverfion,
to have held human nature fo long debafed, with
out the aid of an agent more powerful than an
arm of ilefh, and without availing the mind with
cilier weapons than lh0fe \\huh are furnifhed
from iis temporal concerns. Mankind are by
nature religious ; the governors of nations, or
thofe pcrfons, why contrive to live upon the la
bours of their felknv-creatures muft neceffarily
be few, in comparifon to thofe \sho hear the bur
thens of the whole ; their object therefore is to
dupe the community at large, to conceal the
ftrength of the many, and magnify that of the few.
An open arrangement of forces, whether phyfi-
cal or moral, muft be artfully avoided ; for men,
however ignorant, are as naturally difpoied to
calculation, as they arc to religion ; they perceive
as readily that an hundred foldiers can deitroy the
captain they have made, as that thunder and light
ning can deftroy a man. Recourfe mud there
fore be had to myfteries and invilibilities ; an en
gine mud be forged out of the religion of human
nature, and e reded on its credulity, to play upon
and cxtinguim the light of reafon, which was
placed in the mind as a caution to the one, and a
kind companion to the other.

ADVICE, bV. 25

This engine, in all ages of the world, has been
the Church*. It has varied in its appellation, at
different peru<ls and in different countries, accor
ding to the circum fiances of nations ; but has ne
ver changed its character; and it is difficult to fay,
tinder which of its names it has done the molt
mifchief, and exterminated the greateft number
of the human race. Were it not for the danger
of being mifled by the want of information, we
fliould readily determine, that under the affimp-
tion of chfiftianity it has committed greater ra
vages than under any other of its dreadful deno
minations.

But we muft not be hafty in deciding this quef-
tion ; as, durh*^ the lad fifteen centuries, in
which we are able to trace with compaffionate

* From thai allc.c'.atioii of ideas, which ufually
connects the church with religion. I may -run the
rifque of being mil u-iidei flood by ibmc readers, un-
lefs I advcrtiie them, that 1 confider no connection
as exifting between thele two fubjecls ; and that
where ! ipeak of church indefinitely, I mean the
government of a (late, ailuming the name of God,
to govern by divine authority ; or in other words,
darkening the. coxjc.itnffs of men* in order to opprej's
them.

In the United States of America, there is ftrictly
fpeaking, no fuch thing as a Church : i>nd yet in
no country aic the pepple more religious. All forts
of religious opinions arc entertained there, and yet
no /r'r fy among them all ;. all modes of worfhip are
/rt there is no/./////.; ; men frequent
ly change tlje reed and then" won'liip, and yet
there is no apojlacy ; they have minifbcrs of religi
on, but r,o pri-"fis. In Hiort, religion is there a p>;r-

n

36 ADVICE TO THE

indignation the frenzy of our anceftors, and con-
tern plate the wandering demon of carnage, con-
dueled by the crsf-s of the Weft, the lights of
hiftory fail us with regard to the red of the
world, — we cannot travel with the crefcext of the
Eafr, in its unmeafurable devaluations from the
Iluxine to the Ganges ; nor teil by what other
incantations mankind have been inflamed with
the In (I of ilauthter, from thence to the north of
Siberia or to the ibutli of Africa.

Could we form an e dim ate of the lives lofT in
the wars and perfecutions of the Chri-ftian Church
alone, we mould find it nearly equal to the num
ber of fouls now exiiting in Europe. But it is per
haps a mercy to mankind, that we are not able
TO calculate, with any accuracy, even this portion
,-of human calamities When Conftarrine order
ed that the hierarchy fhould a flu me the name of
Chnfr, we are not to coniidcr him ?s forming a
new weapon of deftni&ion ; he only changed a
name, which had grown into difrepute, and
would ferve the purpofe no longer, for one that
was gaining an extenfive reputation ; it being
built on a faith that was likely to meet the afTcnt
of a confiderable portion of mankind. The cold-
hearted* cruelty of that monarch's character, and

* The report of Zolhnus, refpc&ing the* motives
which induced Condantinc to embrace Chriftianity,
has .not been gerienilJy credited, though the circuni-
flance is probable in itfelf, and the author is coufi-
clcred in other reipcfts an hiftoiiaii of undoubted
vciacity ; having written the hiirory of all the Em
perors," down to his own time, which was the be
ginning of the fifth century. His account i?, that
C'onllantine could not be admitted into the ota cfiab-
lijh'd church of Ceres at Eleulis, en account of the

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 37

his embracing the new doftrines with a temper
hardened in the (laughter of his relations, were
omens unfavourable to the future complexion
of the hierarchy'; though he had thus coupled it
with a name that had hitherto been remarkable
for its meeknefs and humlity. This tranfa&ion
has therefore given colour to a fcene of enormities,
which may be regarded as nothing more than the
genuine offspring of the alliance of church and
Jlate.

This fatal deviation from the principles of the
firft founder of the faith, who declared that his

enormity of his crimes, in the murder of many of
his own family. But on his demanding admiflion,
the hierophanf cried out with horror, " Be gone,
thou parricide, whom the Gods will not pardon."
The Chriitian doctors feized this occafion to admi-
nifter to the wants of the Emperor, on condition
that he would admini Her to theirs ; the bargain was
advantageous on both fides ; he declared himfelf a
Chriftian, and took the church under his protec
tion, and they pronounced his pardon.

The fawning Icrvility of the new church and the
blunt feverity of the old, on that occafion, mark the
•jpreciie character of the ecclefiaftical policy of all
ages ; and both examples have been followed in
numerous inftances. The manoeuvres of the Pope
on the converfion of Clovis, on fan£lioning the u-
furpation of Pepin, and on the coronation of Char
lemagne, are among the imitations of the former ;
the ridiculous chaflifment of Henry the fecond of
England, and the numerous anathemas fulminated
againft whole kingdoms, are proofs of the latter.
We may likcwifc remark^ that the conduct of
Conflantine has been copied in all'its effential points
by Henry the eighth.

D

38 ADVICE TO THE

kingdom was not of this world, has deluged Europe
in blood for a long fucceflion of ages, and carried
occafional ravages into all the other quarters of
the globe. The pretence of extirpating the idol
atries of ancient cftabHfhments, and the innumer
able herefies of the new, has been the never-fail
ing argument of princes as well as pontiffs, from
the wars of Conftantine, down to the pitiful, ftill-
born rebellion of Calonne and the Count d'Ar-
tois*.

•From the time of the converfion of Olovisj
through all the Merovingian race, France and
Germany groaned under the fury of ecclefiaftical
monfter5, hunting down the Druids, overturning
the temples of the Roman Polytheifts, and drench
ing the plains with the blood of Arianst. The

* See Expofition dts motifs dos Princes, freres du
Roi, — A declaration of the motives of the King's bro-
, thersy for r&ifmg an army to chaft-ift the French nation,
published at Coblentz in Januaiy 1792. The fir ft
article mentioned in reciting the objects of tins ex
pedition is, " pour rttablir U refpeEt du a la rfligien
Cathoiiqiie, et a Jes minijtres."

Wliat Chriftian emperor ever had a better right
to eftablifh religion than the count d'Artois? His
name, to be lure, is a burlelque upon every poflible
virtue, and a fatire upon human nature. But why
fhould this hinder liim from bc.ir.g an excellent ad
vocate for la Religion CathoLique ?

i Exterminating heretics was a principal object
of national ambition. Childebert I. who died in
558; h>as *he following epitaph on his tomb in the
Abbey of St. Germain?. dcs: lire's, at Paris.
Ltjang des Arriens dont rou^ircnt Us plaines,
J)e mont agues dc corps lair pays tout convert,
ILt Ifiirs chejs mis a mort^funt -ties prntves ccrtaines
J)e ce quc Us Francois Jirtntjous Ckildebcrt.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 39.

wars of Charlemagne againft the Saxons, the
Hans, th^ Lombards and the Moors, which de-
{blared Europe for forty years, had for their prin
cipal object the extending and purifying of the
Chriitian faith. The cru fades, which drained
Europe of its young men at eight fucceflive pe
riods, mud have facrificed, including Ailatics
and Africans, at lead four millions of lives. The
wars of the Guelfs, and Gibelins, or Pope and
Anti-pope, ravaged Italy, and involved half Eu
rope in factions for two centuries together. The
expulfion of the Moors from Spain depopulated
that kingdom, by a war of feven hundred )ears,
and eftablifheci the inquifition to interdict the re-
furrection of fociety ; while millions of the na
tives of South America have been deilroyed by
attempting to convert them.

In this enumeration, we have taken no notice
of that train of calamities, which attended the re-
converfion of the ealtern empire, and attaching it
to the faifh of Mahomet ; nor of the various ha-
roc, which followed the difmemberment of the
catholic church, by that fortunate fchifm, which,
Dy fome, is denominated the Lutheran herefy, and
by others, the Proteftant reformation.

But thefe, it will be faid, are only general
traits of uncivilized character, which we all con
template with equal horror, and which, among
enlightened nations, there can be no danger of fee
ing renewed. It is true, that, in feveral coun
tries, the glooms of intolerance feem to be pierced
by the rays of philofophy ; and we may foon ex-
peel to fee Europe univerfally difclainiing the right
of one man to interfere in the religion of another.
We may remark, however, /r/?, that this is far
D 2

40 ADVICE TO THE

from being the cafe at this moment ; and fecondly,
that it is a blefling which never can originate from
any ftate-cftablifhment of religion. For proofs
of the former, we need not penetrate into Spain
or Italy, nor recal the hiftory of the late fanatical
management of the war in Brabant, — but look to
the two moil enlightened countries in Europe ; fee
the riots at Birmtnham, and the conduct of the
refradory priefts in France.

With regard to the fecond remark, — we may
as well own the truth at firft as at laft, and have
ienfe this year as the next : The exijhnce of any
kind of liberty is incompatible with the exiftence cf
any kind of church. By liberty ', I mean the enjoy
ment of equal rights, and by church I mean any
mode of worfhip declared to be nations K or declar
ed to have any preference in the eye of the law.

To render this truth a little more familiar to
the mind of any reader who fhall find himfeif
ftariled with it, we will take a view of the church
in a different light from what we have yet conft-
dered it. We have hitherto noticed only its mod
ftriking charadleriftics, in which it appears like a
giant, (talking over fociety, and wielding the
fword of flaughter ; but it likevvife performs the
office of filent difeafe, and of unperceived decay ;
•where we may contemplate it as a canker, corrod
ing the vitals of the moral wrorld, and debafing all
that is noble in man.

If I mention fome traits which are rather pe
culiar to the Roman Catholic conftitution, it is
becaufe that is the predominant church in thofe
parts of Europe, where revolutions are fooneft
expe&ed ; and not becaufe it is any worfe, or any
better,*, than any other that ever has or ever can
exift. I hinted before, and it may not be amifs

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 41.

m repeat, that the hierarchy is every where the
fame, fo far as the crrcum (lances of fociety will
permit ; for it borrows and Lends, and interchanged
its features, in fome meafure, with the age and
nation, with which it has to deal, without ever
lofing fight of its object. It is every where the
fame engine of ftate ; and whether it be guided by
a Lama or a Mufti, by a Pontifex or a Pope, by
a Bramin, a Biihop or a Druid, it is entitled to an;
equal fbare of refpedt.

The firft great object of the pried is to eftablifli
a belief in the minds of the people,, that he him-
Jelf is poffiffed of fupernatural powers ; and the
church at all times has made its way in the world r
i-n proportion as the prieft has fucceeded in this
particular. This is the foundation of every
thing, — the life and foul of all that is fubverfive
and unaccountable in human affairs ; it is intro
ducing a new element into fociety ; it is the rud
der under the water, (leering the fhip almoft di-
reclly contrary to the wind that gives it motion.

A belief in tire fupernatural powers of the
prieft, has been infpired by means, which, in
different nations, have been known by different
names, — fuch as aerologies auguries,., oracles, or
incantations. This article once ellabliOied, its
continuation is not a difficult tafk. For, as the
church acquires wealth, it furniilies it felt with:
the neceffory apparatus, and the trade is- carried
on to advantage. The impofition too becomes,
more eafy from the authority of precedent, by
which the mquifitive faculties of the mind are-
benumbed ; men believe, by prefcription, and:
orthodoxy is heriditary.

la. this manner every nation of antiquity re>
D 3,

42 ADVICE TO THE

ceived the poifon in its infancy, and was rendered
incapable of acquiring a vigorous manhood, of
fpeaking a national will, or of a£Ung with that
dignity and generofity, which are natural to man
in fociety. The moment that Romulus confulted
the oracles for the building of his city, that mo
ment he interdicted its future citizens the enjoy
ment of liberty among themfelves, as well as all
ideas of juftice towards their neighbours. Men
never aft their own opinions, in company with
thofe who can give them the opinions of Gods ;
and as long as governors have an eftablifhed mode
of confulting the aufpices, there is no neceffity to
cftablifh any mode of confulting the people.
Nihil public e fin e aufpiciis nee domi nee militia gere-
batiir*y was the Roman Magna Charta ; and it
flood in place of a declaration of the rights of
man. There is fomething extremely impofing in
a maxim of this kind. Nothing is more pious,,
peaceful, and moderate in appearance ; and noth
ing more favage and abominable in its operation.
But it is a genuine church-maxim, and, as fuch,
deferves a further confideration.

One obvious tendency of this maxim is, like
the feudal rights, to inculcate radical ideas of ine
qualities among men ; and it does this in a much
greater degree. The feudal diftance between man
and man, is perceptible and definite ; but the mo
ment you give one member of fociety a familiar
intercourfe with God, you launch him into the
region of infinities and invifibilities ; you unfit
him, and his brethren, to live together, on any
terms but thofe of ftupid reverence and of infolent
abufe.

* Cicero dc divi?iaticne+ Lib. I.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 4/>

Another tendency is to make men cruel and
favage in a preternatural degree. When a perfon
believes that he is doing the immediate work of
God, he divefts himfelf of the feelings of a man.
Arid gn ambitions general, who wifhes to extir
pate or to plunder a neighbouring nation, has on
ly to order the prieft to do his duty, and fet the
people at work by an oracle ; they then know no
other bounds to their frenzy than the will of their
leader, pronounced by the prieft ; whofe voice to
them is the voice of God. In this cafe the leaft
attention to mercy or juftice would be abhorred as
a difobedience to the divine command. This cir-
cumftance alone, is fufncient to account for two-
thirds of the cruelty of all wars, — perhaps in a
great meafure for their exiftence, — and has given
rife to an opinion, that nations are cruel in pro
portion as they are religious. But the obfervaticn
ought to (land thus, That nations are cruel in pro
portion as they are guided by priefl s ', than which
there is no axiom more undeniably without ex
ception.

Another tendency of governing men by oracles,
is to make them factious and turbulent in the ufe
of liberty, when they feel thernfelves in pofieflion
of it. In all ancient democracies, the great body
of the people enjoyed no liberty at all ; and thofe
who were called freemen, exercifed it only by
fbrts, for the purpofe of revenging injuries, — not
in a regular conftitnted mode of preventing them r
the body politic ufed liberty as a medicine, and not
as daily bread. Hence it has happened, that the
hiftories of ancient democracies, and of modern
infurreflions, are quoted upon us> to the infult
of common fenfe, to prove that a whole people
is not capable of governing itfelf. The whole of

44 ADVICE TO THE

the reafoning on this fubjeft, from the profound
difquiii.tions of Ar.iilotks down to the puny whin-
ings of Dr. Tatham,* are founded on a direct in-
verfion of hiftorrcal fad. It is the want of liber
ty, not the enjoyment- of it, which has occafioned
all the ta&ion-s in fociety from the beginning of
time, and will do fo to the end ; it is'btfcaufe the
people are mt habitually free from civil and eccle-
fiaflical tyrants,, that trrey are difpofed to exercife
tyranny themfdvts. Habitual freedom produces'
effects directly the reverie in every particular,
For a proof of this, look into America, or, if that
be too much trouble, look into human naturc^
\vith the eyes of common fenfc.

When the Chrillian religion \vas perverted, and
p relied into the fervice of government, under the
name of the chrijllan churchy it became necelTary
that its prk'nS mould fet up for fupernatural pow
ers, and invert themfelves in the fame cloak of in
fallibility, of which they had Itripped their pre-
decellbrs, the dnrds and he augurs. This they
cifec'ted by miracles ; for which they gained fa
great a reputation, that they were canonized after
death,, and have furnifh-ed modern Europe with 2
much greater catalogue of faints,, than could be.
found in any breviary of the ancients. The poly-
theifm of the catholic churchy is more fplendid for.
the number of its- divinities, than that of the

* It "may be neceltiry to inform, the reader, that
Dr. Tathara of Oxford has written a book in de
fence of royalty and Mr. Burke. As this" is the laft
as well as. the weakeft thing againft liberty that L
have met with, it is mentioned in the text for the.
lake of widening the gralp of my affertion, as well
as for heightening the contrail among all poflible
authors*.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

45

Elenfinian ; and they are not inferior in point of
attributes. The Denis of France is at lead equal
to the Jupiter of Greece or the Apis of Egypt.
As to fupernatural powers, the cafe is precifely
the fame in both ; and the portions of infallibility
are dealt out from the pope to the fubordinate
prieds, according to their rank, in fuch a manner
as to complete the harmony of the fydem.

Cicero has written with as much judgment and
erudition on the "corruptions'' of the old Roman
Church, as Dr. Priediy has on thofe of the new.
But the difficulty is not that the church is corrupt
ed by men ; it is, that men are corrupted by the
church ; for the very exigence of a church, as
I have before defined it, is founded on a lie ;
it fets out with the blafphemy of giving to one
clafs of men the attributes of God ; and the
praclifing of thefe forceries by that clafs, ai;d
the believing of them by another, corrupt and
vitiate the whole.

One of the mod admirable contrivances ©f the
Chriftian church, is the bufmefs of cwfejfions.
It requires great reflection to give us an idea of
the effects wrought on fociety by this part of the
machinary. It is a folemn recognition of the
iupernatural powers of the pried, repeated every
day in the year, by every 'human creature above
the age of twelve years. Nothing is more natu
ral than for men to judge of every thing around
them, and even of themfelves, by ccmparifon ;
and in this cafe, what opinion are the laity to
form of their own dignity ? When a poor, ig
norant, vitious mortal is fet up for the God> what
mud be the man ? I cannot conceive of any
perfon going ferioufly to a confeflional and belie
ving in the equality of rights, or pofle fling one

46 ADVICE TO THE

moral fentimenr, that is worthy of a rational
being*.

Another contrivance of the fame fort, and lit
tle interior in efficacy, is the law of celibacy^
impofed on the pneiUiood, both male and female,
in almoit all church-eitablilhrnents, that have
hitherto exiiled. The pr'rdl is in the iirlt place
armed with the weapons of; fcnoral deftru&ion, by
wh!ch he is made the professional enemy of his
fellow men ; and then, for fear he mould neg
lect to ufe thofe weapons, — for fear he fheuld cen
tral the feelings and fnendfhips of rational be
ings, by mingling with fociety and becoming
one of its members, — for fear his impofuions
mould be difcovered by the imimacy of family
connexion?, — he is interdicted the raoft cordial
endearments of life ; he is fevered from the fym-
pathies of his fellow-creatures, and yet compelled
to be with them ; his affections are held in the
mortmain of perpetual inactivity ; and, like the

* The following tariff cf the prices of absolution-
will fhow what ideas thefe holy fathers have incuU
cated relative to the proportional degree of moral
turpitude in different crimes. It was reprinted at
Rome no longer ago than the lad century.

For a layman who {hall ilrike a priefl^. s. d.

without effufion of blood ----050
For one layman who fhall kill another -033
For murdering a father, mother, wife, or

fitter -- 050

For eating meat in Lent ----- O55
For him who lies with his mother or fifter 038
For marrying on thofe days when the

church forbids matrimony - - 2 o o

For the abiolution of all crimes - - - 2 16 Q

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 4^

dead men of Mezentiu% lie is laflied to fociety
for tyranny and contamination.

The whole of this management, in fele6ling,
preparing, and organizing the members of the
ccclefiadical body, is purfued with the fame uni
form, cold-blooded hcdility, againft the focial
harmonies of life. The fubjedts are taken from
the younger fons or noble families, who, from
their birth, are confidered as a mrifance to the
houfe, and an outcad from parental attachment.
They are then cut off from all opportunities of
forming fraternal afFedions, and educated in a
•cloider; till they enter upon their public func
tions, as difconne&ed from the feelings of the
community, as it is defigned they fliall ever re
main from its intcreds.

I will not mention the corruption of morals,
which mud refult from the combined cunfes of
the ardent paflions of confr rained celibacy, and the
fecret interviews of the pried with the women of
his charge, for the purpoie of confefiions : I will
draw no arguments from the diilenfions iown in
families ; the jealoufies and confequcnt aberrations
of both hnfbund and wife, occasioned by an. in-
Trigning dranger being in the ferrets of both ; the
dilcouragemcnts laid upon matrimony by a gene
ral dread of thefe confeqncnces, in the minds of
men of refle&ion, — efFcch which arc remarkable
in all catholic countries ;, bur I >< ill conclude this
nrticle by obfcrxing the ciiivct infliience that eccle-
iiaflical celibacy alone, has liacl on the population
of Europe.

This policy of the church rnr.il have produced,
at lead, as great an c!!\:cU in tiiir,inf.> (••i.-iety, as
the whole or her wars and perfecutionF. J n ca
tholic Europe, there mud be near a million of ee-

48 ADVICE TO THE

clefiaftics.* This proportion of mankind con
tinuing deducted from the agents of population,
for fifteen centuries, mud have precluded the ex
igence of more than one hundred millions of the
human fpecies.

Should the reader -be difpofed, on this remark,
to liilen to the reply, whiclj is fomelimes made,
that Europe is fufficiently populous; I beg he
would fufpend his deciiion, till he fliall fee what
may be faid, in the courfe oftliiswork, on pro-
tedted induftry ; and until he (hall well coniider
the effects of liberty on the means of fubfiftence.
That reply is certainly one of the axioms <?f ty
ranny, and is of kin to the famous wifh of Cali
gula, that the whole Roman people had but one
neck.

The French have gone as far in the definition
of the hierarchy as could have been expected,
cohiidering the habits of the people, and the pre-
fent circumftances of Europe. The church in
that country was like royalty, — the prejudices in
its favour were too (trong to be vanquished all at
once. The moil that could be done, was to tear
the bandage from the eyes of mankind, break the

* Boulanger, (vol. 7. page 294) computes the ec-
clefiafiics in Spain alone, at half a million. I am
inclined to think this account exaggerated. If it

oo

were exaft, and the other catholic countries of Eu
rope poilefTed them in as great numbers, in propor
tion to their population, there muft be at lead three
millions and. a half. It is true, that in Fiance, the
Auftrian Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, Ireland,
and • fome parts of Germany, the proportion is not
fo great ; but in Italy, Portugal, and in parts of
•Germany, it is full equal to what it is in Spain.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 49

charm of inequality, dcmolim ranks and infalli-
billities, and teach the people that mitres and
crowns did not confer fupernatural powers. As
Jong as public teachers are chofen by the people,
are falaried and removeable by the people, are
born and married among the people, have fami
lies to be educated and protected from oppreflion
and from vice, — as long as they have ail the com
mon fympathies offociety, to bind them to the
public interelt, there is very little danger of their
becoming tyrants by force ; and the liberty of the
prefs will prevent their being fo by craft.

In the United States of America there is no
church ; and this is one of the principal circum-
flances which diftinguifh that government front
all others, that ever exifted ; it enfures the unem-
barraHed exercife cf religion, the continuation of
public inftru&ion, in the fcience of liberty and
happinefs, and promifes a long duration to a rep-
reientative government.

e H A p. in.

THE MILITARY SYSTEM.

II importoit au maintien de 1'autorite du roi, d'entre-
tenir la guerre.
HJSTOIRE DE CHARLEMAGNE,

HP

JL HE church, in all modern Europe, may be
confidered as a kind of {landing army ; as the
members of that community have been, in every
nation, the furefl fupporters of arbitrary power,
both for internal oppreflion and for external vio
lence. But this not being fh-fficient of itfelf, an
additional inftrument, to be known by the name
of the military fyjlem^ became neceffary ; and it
feems to have been expedient to call up another
element of human nature, out of which this new
inftrument might be created and maintained.
The church was in pofleffion of the itrongcfl
ground that could be taken in the human mind,
the principle of religion ; a principle dealing with
things invifible ; and confequently the moft capa
ble of being itfelf perverted, and then of pervert
ing the whole mind, and fubjecling it to any un-
reafonable purfuit.

Next to that of religion, and fimilar to it in
moll of its characleriitic-, is the principle of bo~
Tt$ur. Honour, like religion, is an original, in
delible fentiment of the mind, an indifperi fable
ingredient in our nature. But its objecl is inca
pable of precife definition ; and confequently,
though given us in aid of the more definable feel
ings of morality, it is capable of total perverlion,
of lofing fight of its own original nature, and

ADVICE, Cfr, 51

ftill retaining its name ; of purfuing the deftruc-
tion of moral fentiments, inflead of being their
ornament ; of debafing, inftead of fupporting,
.the dignity of man.

This carnelion principle was, therefore, a proper
clement of imposition, and was deftined to make
an immenfe figure in the world, as the foundation
and fupport of the military fyftem of all unequal
governments. We muft look pretty far into
human nature, before we fhall difcover the caufe,
why killing men in battle fhould be deemed, in
iff elf, an honourable employment. A hangman
is univerfally defpifed ; he exercifes an office,
which not only the feelings, but the policy of all

nations, have agreed to regard as infamous. What

. o

is it that fhould roake the difference of thefe two

occupations, in favour of the former r Surely it
is not becaufe the victims in the former cafe are
innocent, and the latter guilty- To aflert this,
would be a greater libel upon human focietiy,
than I can bring my felt to utter ; it would make
the tyranny of opinion the inoft deleft Me, as well
as the moft fovereign of all pofnble tyrannies.
But what can it be ? It is not, what is fometimes
alleged, that courage, is the foundation of the bu
ll uefs ; that fighting is honourable becaufe it is
dangerous ; the-re is often as much courage dif~
played in highway-robbery, as in the warmeft
conflict of armies ; and yet it does no honour to
the party; a Robin Hood is as difhonourable a
character as a Jack Ketch. It is not becaufe
there is any idea of juftice or bonefly in the cafe ;
for. to fay the belt that can be faid of war, it is
impoflible that more than one fide can be juft or
honeft ; and yet both fides of every conteft ars
E 2

52 ADVICE TO THE

equally the road to fame ; where a diftinguiihed
ikiller of men, is fure to gain immortal honour.
It is not pat riot ifm, even in that fenfe o( the word
which deviates the moft from general philanthro
py ; for a total flranger to both parlies in a Vv'ar,
may enter into it on either fide, as a volunteer,
* perform more than a vulgar fhare of the flaugh-
ter, and be for ever applauded, even by his ene
mies. Finally, it is not from any pecuniary advan
tages that are ordinarily attached to the profeffion
of arms ; for foldiers are generally poor, though
part of their bufmefs be to plunder.

Indeed, I can fee but one reafon in nature,
why the principal of honour fhould be felecled
from all human incentives, and relied on for the
fupport of the military fyftem ; it is becaufe it
was convenient for the governing power ; that power
being in the hands of a finall part of the commu
nity, whofe bufmefs was to fupport it by imppil-
tion. No principle of a permanent nature,
whofe object is unequivocal, and whofe flighted
deviations are perceptible, would have anfwered
the purpofe. Jufcice, for inftance, is a principle
of common ufe, of which every man can dif-
cern the application. Should the Prince fay
it was juft, to commence an unprovoked war
with his weak neighbours, and plunder their
country, the falfhood would be too glaring ; all
men would judge for themfelves, and give him
the lie ; and no man would follow his ilandard,
unlefs bribed by his avarice. But honour is of
another nature ; it is what we all can feel, but no
one can define ; it is therefore whatever the Prince
may choofe to name it : and fo powerful is its
operation, that all the ufeful fentiments of life
lofe their effect: morality is not only banifhed

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 53

from political cabinets, but generally and profef-
fionally from the bofoms of men, who purfue ho
nour, in the profeffion of arms.

It is common for a King, who wifhes to make
a thing fafhionable, to pradife it himfelf ; and in
this he is fure of general imitation and fuccefs.
As this device is extremely natural, and as the
exiftence of wars is abfolutely neceffary to the
exiftence of Kings ; to give a fafhion to the trade
mud have been a confiderable motive to the an
cient Kings, for expcfmg themfelves fo much as
they ufually did in battle. They laid, Let human
Jlaughter be honourable, and honourable it was.

Hence it is, that warriors have been termed
heroes ; and the eulogy of heroes has been the
conftant bufinefs of hiftorians and poets, from the
days of Nimrod down to the prefent century.
Homer, for his aftonifhing variety, animation,
and fublimityr has not a warmer admirer than
myfelf ; he has been for three thoufand years,
like a reigning fovereign, applauded as a matter
of courfe, whether from love or fear ; for no man
with fafety to his own character can refufe to join
the chorus of his praife. I never can exprefs
(and his other admirers have not (lone it for me)
the pleafure I receive from his poems ; but in a
view of philantrophy, I confider his exiftsnce as
having been a ferious misfortune to the human
race. He has given to military lif\>, a charm,
which few men can reiift, a fplendour which en
velopes the fcenes of carnage in a cloud of glory,,
which dazzles the eyes of every beholder, deals
from us our natural fenfibilitie -, in exchange for
the artificial, debafes meii to brute?, under the pre
text of exalting them to Gods, ancl obliterates,
with the fame irrefutable ftroke, the moral duties

54 ABVICE TO THE

of life and the true policy of nations. Alexander*
is not the only human monfter that has been form
ed after the model of Achilles ; nor Perfia and
Egypt the only countries depopulated for no other
reafon than the defire of rivalling predecefibrs in
military fame.

Another device of Princes, to render honoura
ble the profeflion of arms, was to make it envia
ble, by depriving the lowed orders of fociety of
the power of becoming foldiers. Excluding the
helots of all nations from any part in the glory of
butchering their fellow-creatures, has had the fame
effecl: as in Sparta, — it has ennobled the trade ;
and this is the true feudal eflimation, in which
this trade has defcended to us, from our Gothic
anceftors.

At the fame time that the feudal fydem was
furnifhing Europe with a numerous body of
noblelFe, it became neceffary, for various purpofes
of defpotifm, that they mould be prevented from
mingling with the common mafs of fociety, that
they fhould be held together by what they call
refprit de corps^ or the corporation fpirit, and be
furnifhed with occupations, which fhould leave
them nothing in common with their fellow rnen.

* It is not unworthy of remark, that Aridotle*
was the tutor of Alexander, and the mod fplendid
editor and commentator of Homer. As we mud
judge an author by his works, it is but fair to take
into vi'ew the whole of his works. Confider, there
fore, as a political ichool-madcr to the world, the
forming of his pupil, and the illudrating of his poet,
are the greated fruits of the indudry of that philo-
fopher, and have had much more influence on the
affairs of nations, than his treat ife that bears the
name of fioliiics,.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 55

Thefe occupations were offered by the church and
the army ; and as the former was permanent, it
was thought expedient to give permanency to the
latter. Thus the military fyltem has created the
nobleiie, and the noblefle the military fyftem.
They are mutually neceiTary to each other's exift-
ence, — concurrent and reciprocal caufes and ef-
• fefts, generating and generated, perpetuating each
other by interchangeable wants, and both indif-
penfable to the governing power.

Thofe perfons, therefore, who undertake to de
fend the nobleffe as a neceffary order in the great
community of men, ought to be apprifed f the
extent of their undertaking. They muft, in the
fir ft place, defend ft an ding armies, and that too
upon principles, not of national prudence, as re
lative to the circumftances of neighbours, but of
internal neceflity, as relative only to the organi
zation of fociety. They muft, at the fame time,
extend their arguments to the increafe of thole ar
mies ; for they infallibly muft increafe to a degree
beyond our ordinary calculation, or they will not
anfwer the purpofe ; both becaufe the number of
the nobleffe, or " the men of the fword" (as they
are properly ftyled by their friend Burke,) is con-
ftantly augmenting, and becaufe the influence of
the church is on the decline. As the light of
philofophy illuminates the world, it mines in up
on the fecrets of government ; and it is neccffary
to make the blind as broad as the window, or the
pafFengers will fee what is doing in the cabinet.
The means of impofition muft be increafed in
the army, in proportion as they are left in the
church.

Secondly, they muft vindicate war, not merely
as an occurrence of fatality, and juftifiable on the

56 ADVICE TO THF

dcfeniive ; but as a thing of choice, as being the
moil: nutritions aliment of that kind of govern-

o

merit, which reqr>es privileged orders, and an
army : for it is no great figure of fpeech, to fay
that the nobility of Europe, are always fed upon
human gore. They originated in war, they live
by war, and without war it would be impoflible
to keep them from ftarving. Or, to drop the
figure entirely, if mankind were left to the peace
able purfuit of induflry, the titled orders would
lofe their diflindion^, mingle with fociety, and
; become reafonable creatures.

T'.'rclly, they mud defend the honor of the
occupation which is allotted to the noblefTe. For
thr- age is becoming extremely fceptical on this
fubjecfc ; there are heretics in the world (Mr.
Burke calls them athiefls) who affect to difbelieve
that men v, ere made exprefsly for the purpofe of
cutting each other's throats ; and who fay that it
is not the highefi honour that a man can arrive at,
to fell himfeif to another maj for life, at a cer
tain daily price, and to hold himfeif in readinefs,
night and day, to kill individuals or nations, at
home or abroad, without ever inquiring the caufe,
Thefe men fay, that it is no compliment to the
judgment or humanity of a man, to lead fuch
a life ; and they do not fee why a nobleman fhould
not pbilefs thefe qualities as well as other peo
ple.

Fourthly, they mult prove that all occupations*
which tend to life, and not to death, are difho-
nourable and infamous, Agriculture, commerce,
every method of augmenting the means of fub-
iiitence, and raifing men from the favage flare,
muft be held ignoble ; or elfe men of honour will
forget themfelves fo far, as to engage in them.;.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 57

and then, farewell to di(lin6lions. The National
AfTembly may then create orders as fail as it has
ever uncreated them ; it is impoflible for nobility
to exifl in France, or in any other country, un-
lefs the above articles are firmly defended l>y
arguments, and fixed in the minds of mankind.

It feems difficult for a man of reflection to
write one page on the fubject o£ government,
without meeting with fome old eitab lifted max
ims, which are not only lalfe, but which are
precifely the reverfe of truth. Of this fort is
the opinion, — that inevitable wars in modern
times, have given occafion to the prefent military
fyftem, and that (landing armies are the belt
means of preventing wars. This is what the
people of Europe are commanded to believe.
With all due deference, however, to their com
manders, I would propofe a contrary belief, which
I will venture to lay down as the true (late of
the fact : That the prefent military fyftem has been
the caufe of the wars of modern times, and thaiftand-
ing armies are the beft, if not the only means of
PROMOTING mars. This pofition has, at lea ft,
one advantage over thofe that are commonly efta-
blifhed by governments, that it is believed by him,
who propofes itto theaflent of-others. Men, who
cannot command the power of the (late, ought to
enforce their doctrines by the power of reafon.

To apply this maxim to the cafe now before
us ; let us afk, What Is war ? and on what pro-
penfity in human nature does it red ? For it is to
MAN that we are to trace thefe queftions, and not
to Princes ; we mud drive them iipt$ principle,
not flop ihort at precedent ; and endeavour to ufe
our fenfe, inftead of parading our learning. A-
mong individual men, or favagcs acting in a deful-

58 ADVICE TO THE

tory manner, antecedent to the formation of great
focieties, there may be many caufes of quarrels
and aHalTmaiions ; fuch as love, jealonfy, rapine,
or the revenge of private injuries. But thefe do
not amount to the idea of war. War fnppofes a
vafl ailbciation of men engaged in one caufe, ac-
uiated by one fpiiit, and carrying on a bloody coa
ted with another afTociation in a (imilar predica
ment. Few of the motives which acluatc private
men can apply at once to fuch a multitude, the
greateft part of which muft be pcrfonal Grangers
to each other. Indeed, where the motives are
clearly explained, and well underftood by the com
munity at large, fo as to be really felt by the peo
ple, there is but one of the ordinary caufes above
mentioned, which can acluate fuch a body ; it is
rapine, or the hope of enriching themfelves by
plunder.. There can be then but two circum-
flances under which a nation will commence an
offenfive war: either the people at large muft be
thoroughly convinced that they (hall be perfonally
rewarded, not only \vn!» conquefl, but with a vafl
fhare of wealth from the conquered nation, or
elfe they muft be duped into the war by thofe
who hold the reins of government. All motives
for national offences are reduced to thefe two, and
there can be no more. The fubjeft, like mofl
others, becomes extremely firople, the moment it
is conlidered.

And- how many of the wars of mankind origi
nate in the fir ft of thefe motives r Among civili
zed nations, none. A people considerably
numerous, approaching towards ideas of fober
policy, and beginning to tafte the fruits of induf-
trv, require but little experience to convince
themfelves of the following truths.— that no be-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. ^g

nefit can be derived to the great body of individu
als from conqueft, though it were certain — that
this event is always doubtful, and the decifion to
be dreaded, — that nine tenths' of the lories in all
wars are a clear lofs to both parties, .being funk
in expences, — that the remaining tenth neceffarily
comes in the hands of the principle managers,
2nd produces a real misfortune even to the victo
rious party, by giving them matters at home, in-
itead of riches from abroad.

The pitiful idea of reading ourfelves on a com-
parifonof fufFering, and balancing our own lodes
by thofe of the enemy, is a-ftratagem of govern
ment, a calculation of cabinet arithmetic. Indi
viduals reafon not in this manner. A diftreflt-d
mother in England, reduced from a full to a
fcanty diet, and bewailing the lofs of her fon,
receives no confolation from being told of a wo
man in France, whofe fon fell in the fame battle,
and that the taxes are equally increafed in both
countries by the fame war. But Kings, and
minifters, and Generals, and hillorians proclaim,
as a glorious conteft, every war which appears to
have been as fatal to the enemy as to their own
party, though one half of each nation are flaugh-
tered in the field, and the other half reduced to
ibvery. This is one of the bare-faced impositions
with which mankind are perpetually infuhed, and
which call upon us, in the name of humanity, to
piirfue this enquiry into the caufes of war.

The hiiiory of ancient Rome, from beginning
to end, under all its Kinss, Coniuls, and Em
perors, "furnilhes not a finale' i»;(tan>:c, af'er the
conqueft of the Subines, of what may properly be
called a popular offer) five war : I mean a war that
would huvc been undertaken by the people, had

60 ADVICE TO THE

they enjoyed a free government, fo organized as
to have enabled them to deliberate before they
adted, and to fuffer nothing to be carried into exe
cution but the national will.

The fame may be faid of modern Europe, after
a correfponding period in the progrefs of nations ;
which period mould be placed at the very com
mencement of civilization. Perhaps after the
fettlcment of the Saracens in Spain, the Lombards
in Italy, the Franks in Gaul, and the Saxons in
England, we mould have heard no more of off en-
live operations, had they depended on the unin
fluenced willies of the people. For we are not
to regard as cffenfive the druggies of a nation for
the recovery of liberty.

What an inconceivable mafs of llaughter are
we then to place to the other account ; to dark,
unequal government ! to the magical powers, pof-
fefTed by a few men, of blinding the eyes of the
community, and leading the people to deftruclion,
by thofe who are called their fathers and their
friends ! Thefe operations could not be carried on,
for a long time together, in ages tolerably en
lightened, without a permanent refource. As
long as the military conditions of feudal tenures
remained in full vigour, they were fure to furnilh
the means of deftrucYion to follow the will of the
fovereign ; but as the afperities of this fyftem fof-
tened away by degrees, it feems that governments
were threatened with the neceflity of applying to
the people at large for voluntary enlifttnents, and
contributions in money ; on which application the
purpofe gaud be declared. This would be too di-
reft an appeal to the confciences of men on a quef-
tiun of often five war, and was, if poflible, to be
avoided. For even the power of the church, pro-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 6l

vidcd there was no queftion of .herefy, could not
be always relied on, to ftimulate the people to a
quarrel with their neighbours of the fame faith ;
and {till lefs was it fure of inducing them to part
with their money. The expedient, therefore, of
landing armies became neceffary ; and perhaps
rather on account of the money than the men. — •
Thus money is required to levy armies, and ar
mies to levy money ; and foreign wars are intro
duced as the pretended occafion for both.

One general character will apply to much the
greater part of the wars of modern times, — they
are political, and not vindictive. This alone is
Sufficient to account for their real origin. They
are wars of agreement,* rather than of diflention ;
and the conqueft is taxes, and not territory. To
carry on this bufmefs, it is neceirary not only to
keep up the military fpirit of the noblefle by titles
and penfions, and to keep in pay a vaft number of
troops, who know no other God but their king ;
who Jofe all ideas of themfelves, in contemplating
their officers ; and who forget the duties of a man,
to pradlife thofe of a foldier, — this is but half the

* Whenever the real fecret hi-ftory of the En-
glifh and Spanifh armaments of 1790 {"hall be pub-
h fried to the world, though it may not furnifh new
arguments to men of reflection for di drafting politi
cal cabinets, it may at lead increafe the number of
fuch men. But this cannot be done with iafety
during the lives of iome of the principal aftoi s in that
aftonilhing piece of audacity. I am convinced, that
the perion, who at this moment ihould <io it, would
not lurvive the publication fo long aspopeGaaganclli
did the fuppreflion of the Jefuits.
F

62 ADVICE TO THE

operation : an effential part of the military fyftem
is to difarm the people, to hold all the functions
of war, as well the arm that executes, as the will
that declares it, equally above their reach. This
part of the fyftem has a double effect, it palfies the
hand and brutalizes the mind : an habitual difufe
of phyfical forces totally deftroys the moral ; and
men lofe at once the power of protecting them-
felves, and of difcerning the caufe of their oppref-
fion.

It is almcft ufelefs to mention the conclufions
•which every rational mind mud draw from thefe
confiderations. But though they are too obvious
to be miftaken, they are ftill too important to be
pa^Ted over in filence ; for we feem to be arrived
at that epoch in human affairs, when " all ufeful
id; -.«, and truths the moil neceflary to the h?ppi-
,icfs of mankind, are no longer exclufively deftined
to adorn the pages of a book*." Nations, wear
ied out with impoftwre begin to provide for the
fafety of man, inftead of purfuing his deft ruction.
I will mention asoneconclufion, which bids fair
to be a practical one, that the way to prevent wars
is net merely to change the military fyftem ;
for that, like the church, is a neceiTary part of
governments as they now ftand, and of fociety
as now organized : but the principle of government
muft be completely changed ; and the confequence
of this will be fuch a total renovation of fociety,
as to baniih (landing armies, overturn the military
fyftem, and exclude the poflibility of war.

Only admit the original, unalterable truth, that
all men are equal in their rights, and the foundation
of every thing is laid ; to build the fuperftructure

* L' Ambl& Nation ae.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 63.

requires no effort but that of natural deduction.
The firft necerlary deduction will be, that the
people will form an equal reprefentative govern
ment ; in which it will be impoilible for orders or
privileges to exift for a moment ; and confequently
the firft materials for (landing armies will be
converted into peaceable members of the Hate.
Another deduction follows, That the people will
be univerfally armed : they will aflume thofe
weapons for fecurity, which the art of war has
invented for definition. You wilt then have
removed the neceffity of a (landing army by the
organization of the legiflature, and the pofflbllity
of it by the arrangement of the militia; for it
is as impoflible for an armed foldierv to exift 'in1
an armed nation, as fo>r a nobility to exift under
an equal government.

It is curious to remark how ill we reafon on -
human nature, from being accuftomed to view it
under the difguife which the unequal governments
of the world have impofed upon it. During the
American war, and eipecially towards its clofe,
General Wafnington might be faid to pofTefs the
hearts of all the Americans. His recommenda
tion was law, and he was able to command the
whole power of that people for any purpofe of
defence. The philofophers of Europe confidered
this as a dangerous crifis to the caufe of freedom.
They knew from the example of Caefar, and Sylla,
and Marius, and Alcibiadts,3 and Pericles, and
Cromwell, that Wafhington would never lay
clown his arms, till he had given his country a
mafter. But after he did lay them down, then
came the miracle, — his virtue was cried up to be
more than human ; and it is by this miracle c:c
F 2

ADVICE TO THE

virtue in him, that the Americans are fdppcfed to
enjoy their liberty at this day.

I believe the virtue of that great man to be
equal to any that has ever yet been known ; but
to an American eye no extraordinary portion of it
could appear in that tranfaclion. It would have
been impcflible for the General or the army TO
have continued in the field after the enemy left j^;
for the foldiers were all citizens ; and if it had
been otherwife, their numrers were not the
hundredth part of the citizens at large, who were
allfofrtiers. To fay that he was wife in difcern-
ing the impoflibility of fuccefs in an attempt to
imitate the great heroes above mentioned, is to
give him only the fame merit for fagacity which
is common to every other perfon who knows that
country, or who has well confidered the effeds of
equal liberty.

Though infinite praife is due to the conftituent
'aflembly of France for the temperate reiblution
and manly firmnefs which mark their operations
in general ; yet it mud be confefled that fome of
their reforms bear the marks of too timorous a
Jiand. Preferving an heriditary King with a tre-
inenduous accumulation of powers, and providing
an unnecefTary number of priefls to be paid from
the national purfe, and furnifned with the means
of rebuilding the half-deftroyed ruins of the hier
archy, are circumftances to be pardoned for reafons
which I have already hinted. But the enormous
military force, which they have decreed fhail
remain as a permanent eftablifhment, appears to
me not only unneceffary, and even dangerous to
liberty, but' totally and directly fubverfive of the
*nd they had in view. Their objects were the
of the frontiers and the tranquility of the

PRIVILEGED ORDERS, 65

ftate ; the feverfe of this will be the effeft, — not
perhaps that this army will be turned againft the
people, or involve the (late in offenfive wars.
On the contrary, fuppofe that it fan ply and faith
fully defends the frontiers and protects the people ;
this defence and this protection are the evils of
which I complain. They tend to weaken the
iralJcn, by dcadning the fpirit of the people, and
teaching them to look up to others for protection,
inftead of depending on their own invincible arm,
A people that legiflate for themfelves ought to be
in the habit of prote&ing themfelves; or they
will lefe the fpirit of both. A knowledge of their
GvfnJJrength preferves a temperance in their own
wifdom, and the performance of their duties gives
a value to their rights.

This is likewife the way to increafe the folid
domeftic force of a nation, to a degree far beyond
any ideas we form of a (landing army ; and at
the fame time to annihilate its capacity as well as
inclination for foreign aggreiuVe hollilities. The
true guarantee of perpetual tranquility at home and
abroad, in fuch a cafe, would arife from this
truth, which would pafs into an incontrovertible
maxim, that offensive operations would be impofjible^
and defcrjlvc ones infallible.

This is undoubtedly the true and only fecret of
exterminating wars from the face of the earth ;
and it mud afford no fmall degree of confolation
to every friend of humanity, to find this imfpeak-
able Bluffing refill tins from that equal mode of
government, .which alone fcciires every other en
joyment for which mankind unite their interefts
in fociety. Politicians, and even fonietimes
huruift me::, are accuftomed to fpeak.of war as an;

66 ADVICE TO THE

uncontroulable event, falling on the human race
like a concuflion of the elements, — a fcourge
which admits no remedy ; but for which we-muft
wait with trembling preparation, as for an epi
demical difeafe, whofe force we may hope to
lighten, but can never avoid. They fay that
mankind are wicked and rapacious, 'and " it rnufl
be that offences will come." This reafon applies
to individuals ; but not to nations deliberately
fpeaking a national voice. I hope I mail not be
underftood to mean, that the nature of man is
totally changed by living in a free 'republic. I
allow that it is ilill interefled men and pcffionctie
men, that direft the affairs of the world. But in
national aflemblies, paffion is loft in deliberation,
and intereft balances tittered ; till the good of the
whole community combines the general will.
Here then is a great moral entity, afting (till from
interefred motives ; but whofe intereft it never
can be, in any r oilible combination of circumftan-
ces, to commence an offenfive wrar.

There is another conflderation, from which we
may argue the total extinction of wars, as a ne-
cefiary confequer/ce of eftablifhing governments on
the reprefentative wifdom of the people. We are
all fenfible that fuperftition is a blemifh of human
nature, by no means confined to fubjecls c.>nne6led
with religion. Political fuperftition is almoft as
ftrong as religious ; and it is quite as univerfally
ufed as an instrument of tyranny. To enumerate
the variety of ways in which this inftrument ope
rates on the mind, would be more difficult, than
to form a general idea of the refult of its opera
tions. In monarchies, it induces men to fpill
their blood for a particular family, or for a par-
hnilar branch of- that family, .who happens to

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 67

have been born fir ft, or laft, or to have been
taught to repeat a certain creed, in preference to
other creeds. But the effect which I am going
chiefly to notice is that which refpecls the territo
rial boundaries of a government. For a man in
Portugal or Spain to prefer belonging to one of
thofe nations rather than the other, is as much a
fu perdition, as to prefer the honfc of Braganza to
thdtfof Bourbon, or Mary the fecond of England
to her brother. All thefe fubje&s of preference
(land upon the fame footing as the turban and the
hat, the crofs and the crefcenr, or the lily and the
rofe.

The boundaries of nations have been fixed for
the accommodation of the government, without the
leaf! regard to the convenience of the people.
Kings and minifters, viho make a profitable trade
of governing, sre interefted in extending the limits
of their dominion as far as pcfliblc. ^ They have a
property in the people, and in the territory that
they cover. The country and its inhabitants are to
them a farm (locked with fheep. When they call
up thefe fheep to be (beared, they teach them to
know their names, to follow their m after, and
avoid a ftranger. By this- unaccountable impoiiticn
it is, that men are led from one extravagant felly
to another, — to adore their King, to boa ft i-f their-
nation, and to wifh for conqweft, — circumftances
equally ridiculous in themfelves,. and equally in
compatible with that rational eftimation of things,
whicn arifes from the fcience of liberty.

In America it is not fo. Among the feveral
dates, the governments are all equal in their force,
and the people are all equal in their rights.
Were it poflible for one State to conquer another
Si ate, withcut any expence.of money, or of time,

68

ADVICE TO THE

or of blood, — neither of the States, nor a fingJe
individual in cither of them, would be richer or
poorer for the event. The people would all be
upon their own lands, and engaged in their own
occupations, as before ; and whether the terri
tory on which they live were called New York
or Mafiachufelts is a matter of total 'indifference,.
about which they have no fu'perfHtion. For^fce
people belong not to the government, but the go
vernment belongs to the people.

Since the independance of th'ofe States, many
territorial difputes have been fettled, which had
i Ken from the interference of their ancient char
ters. The interference of charters is a kind of
policy which; I fuppofe,. every mother country
ohferves towards her colonies, in order to give
them a fubjecl: of contention ; that fhe may have
the opportunity of keeping all parties quiet by the
parental blefliflg of a (landing army. But on the
banifhmeni of foreign control, and all ideas of
European policy, the enjoyment of equal liberty
has taught the Americans the fecret of fettling
thefe difputes, with as much calmneis as they have
formed their conftitutions. It is found, that
queftions about the boundaries between free States-
are not matters of intereft, but merely of form
and convenience. And though thefe quefticns
may involve a traft of country equal to an Euro
pean kingdom, it alters not the cafe ; they are
fettled as merchants fettle the ccurfe of exchange
between two commercial dues. Several iriftan-
ce> have occured, fince the revolution., of deci
ding in a few days, by amicable arbitration,
territorial difputes, which determine the jurifdic-
ihon of .larger and, richer tradls of country, than \

PRIVILEGED ORDERS, 69

have formed the objecls of all the wars of the two
lail centuries between France am! Germany.

It is needlefs to fpend any time in applying this
idea to the circumrtances of all countries, where
the government fhould be freely and habitually in
thehandsofthepeople.lt would applytoall Europe;
and will apply to it, asfoon as a revolution fhall take
placd in the principle of government. For fuch
a revolution cawnot flop fhort of fixing the power
of the State on the bafis allotted by nature, the
unalienable rights of man ; which are the fame
in all countries. It will eradicate the fuperflitions
about territorial jurifdidtiorr ; and this confidera-
tion rmift promife an additional fecurity againit
the poilibility of war.

C H A P. IV.

THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUST 1

IT

would be a curious fpeculation, and perhaps
as ufeful as curious, to confider how far the moral
nature of man is affected by the organization of
fociety ; and to what degree his predominant
qualities depend on the nature of the government
under which he lives. The adage, That men ore
every zt'/^tt' the fame, though not wholly falfe, would
doubtlefs be found to be true only in a limited fenfe.

70 ADVICE TO THE

I love to indulge the belief, that it is true fo far
as to enfure permanency to inftitutions that are
good ; but not fo far as to difcourage us from
attempting to reform thofe that are bad. To
consider it is true in an nnlymited fenfe, would
be to ferve the purpofes of defpotifm ; for which
this, like a thoufand other maxims, has been
invented and employed. It would teach 4p to
fit down with a gloomy fatisfacStion on the '{late
of human affairs, to pronounce the race of man
emphatically*' fated to be curd,'' a community
of fc If- tor mentors and mutual affafTins, bound
down by the irrefiilible deftiny of their nature to
be , robbed of their rcafon by priefts, and plun
dered of their property by Kings. It would teach
us to join with S;;ame Jenyns, and furniili new
weapons to the oppreilbrs, by our manner of
pitying the misfortunes of the oppreiled.

In confirmation of this adage, and as xn ape-
logy for the exilling defpotifms, it is faid, That
all men are by nature tyrants, and will exercife
their tyrannies whenever they find opportunity.
Allowing this aflfertion to be true, it is furely
cited by the wrong party. It is an apology for
erjua}, not for unequal governments ; and the
weaprn belongs 10 thofe who contend for the
republican principle. If government be founded
on the vices c.f n -ankind, its buGnefs is to reftrain
thofe vices in all, rather than to fofter them in a
few. The difpofition to tyrannize is eflcctually
retrained under the exercife of the equality of
rights ; while it is not only rewarded in the few,
but i/ivigorated in the many, under all other forms
of the focial connexion. But it is almoft impofH-
ble to decide, among moral propenfities, which of
of them btlcng to nature, and which are the off-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 71

fpringof habit ; how many of our vices are charg-
able on the permanent qualities of man, and how
many refult from the mutable energies of ftate.
It it be in the power of a bad government to
render men worfe than nature has made them,
why fhould we fay it is not in the power of a good
one to render them better ? and if the latter be
cap^le of producing this effect in any perceiva
ble degree, where mail we limit the progrefs of
human wifdom, and the force of its inftitmion?,
in ameliorating, not only the focial condition,
but the controlling principles of man ?

Among the component parts of government,
that, wkofe operation is the moft direct on the
moral habit ot life, is the Adminiftration of Ju-
flice. In this every perfon has a peculiar ifolated
intereft, which is almoft detached from the
common fympathies of fociety. It it this
which operates with a fingular concentrated
energy, collecting the whole force of the (late
from the community at large, and bringing
it to act upon a fingle individual, affecting his
life, reputation, or property ; fo that the govern
ing power may fay with peculiar propriety to the
minifter of juftice, divide et impera ; for, in cafe
of opprellion, the victim's cries will be too feeble
to excite oppofnion ; his caufe having nothing in
common with that of the citizens at large. If,
therefore, we would obtain ?.n idea of the condi
tion of men on any given portion of the earth, we
muft pay a particular attention to their judiciary
fyftem, not in its form and theory, but in irw
fpirit and practice. It may be fa id in general of
this part of the civil polity of a nation, thaf. as it
i- a (tream flowing from the common fountain of
the government, and rntift be tinged wiih what-

72 ADVICE TO THE

ever impurities are found in the fource from
whence it defcends, the only hope of cleanfmg the
ftream is by purifying the fountain.

If I were able to give an energetic fketch of the

office and dignity of a rational fyttem of jurif-

prtidence, defcribe the full extent of its effl-6ls on

the happinefs of men, and then exhibit the per-

verfions and corruptions attendant on this Ijfcfi-

nefs in moft of the governments of Europe, it

would furuifhone of the moil powerful arguments

in favour of a general revolution, and afford no

frnall confolation to thofe perfons who look for-

word with certainty to fuch an event. But my

plan embraces too many fubjecls, to be particular

on any ; all that I can promife myfelf is to feize

the rough features of fy Items, and mark the

moral attitudes of man as placed in the neceifary

pofrure to fupport them.

It is generally under flood, that the object of
government, in this part of its adminiftrauon, is
merely to reft rain the vices of men. But there is
another object prior to this : an office more facred,
and equally indifpenfable, is to prevent their vices,
— to correft them in their origin, or eradicate
them totally from t1 e adolefcerit mind. The lat
ter is performed by inft ruction, the former by
coercion ; the one is the tender duty of a father,
the other, the unrelenting drudgery of a mailer ;
but both are the bufinef- of government, and ought
to be made concurrent branches of the fyftem of
junTpnidence.

The abfurd and abominable doctrine, that pri
vate vices are public hneftSy it is hoped will be
blotted from the memory of man, expunged from
the catalogue of human follies, with the fy items
of government whicb gave it birth. The ground

PRiVILEGED OJR0ERS. 53

of this infulting doctrine is, that advantage may
be taken of the extravagant foibles of individuals
to increafe the revenues of the State ; as if the
chief end of fociety were, to (teal money for the
government's purfe I to be fquandered by the go
vernors, to render the.n more infolent in their
oppreflions ! it is humiliating, to anfwer fuch
arguments as thefe ; where we muft lay open the
in oft degrading retreats of proftituted logic, to
difcover the pofitions on which they are founded.
But Orders and Privileges will lead to any thing :
once teach a imn, that fome are born to command
find oilers to be commanded ; arid after that, there
is no camel too big for him to fwallow.

This idea of the objects to be kept in view by
the fyftem of Jtiftice, involving in it the bufmefs
of prevention as well as of reftrict-ion, leads us to
fome obfervations on the particular fubject of cri
minal jurifprudence. Ev^ry fociety, confidered
in itfelf as a moral and phyfical entity, has the un
doubted faculty of felf-prefervation. It is an
independent being ; and, towards other beings in
like circumftances of independence, it has a riglu:
to ufe this faculty of defending itfelf, without
previous notice to the party ; or without the ob-
fervance of any duty, but that of abftaining from
offenilve operations. But when it acls towards
the members of its own family, towards thofe
dependent and defencelefs beings that make part
of itfelf, the right of coercion is preceded by the
duty of infiruclion. It may be fa f fly pronounced,
it) fit a State has no right to pu&ljb a many to whom it
vas given no previous inflruction ; and confequently,,
any perfon has a ri^ht to do any action, unlefs he
has been informed that it has an evil tendency.
G

74 ADVICE TO THE

It is true, that, as relative to particular cafes,
the having given this information is a thing that
the fociety muft fcmetimes prefume^ and is not
always obliged to prcve. But thefe cafes are rare,
and ought never to form a general rule. This
prefumption has, however, pafied into a general
rule, and is adopted as univerfal practice. With
•what jufiice or propriety it is fo adopted, a Very
little refleclion will enable us to decide.

The great out-lines of morality are extremely
fimple and eafy to be underftood ; they may be
faid to be written on the heart of a man antece
dent to his ailbciating with his fellow-creatures.
-As a felf-dependent being he is felf-inftructed ;
and as long as he fhouid remain a fimple child of
nature , he would receive from nature all the lef-
ibns neceffary to his condition. He would be a
complete moral agent ; and fhouid he violate the
rights of another independent man like himlelf,
he would fin againft fufficient light, to merit any
punifhment that the offended party might inflicT:
upon him. J$\M fociety cpens upon us a new field
of contemplation ; it furniihes man with another
clafs of rights, and impofes upon him an addi
tional fyftem of duties ; it enlarges the fphere of
his moral agency, and makes him a kind of arti
ficial being, propelling and propelled by new
dependencies, in which nature can no longer
ferve him as a guide. Being removed from her
rudimental fchcol, and entered in the college of
fociety, he is called to encounter problems which
the elementary tables of his heart will not always
enable him Co folve. Society then ought to be
confident with herfelf in her own inftitutions ; if
fhe /ketches the lines of his duty with a variable
pencil, too flight for his natural perception, fhe

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 75-

/hould lend him her optical glares to difcern them,
if ilie takes the ferule in one hand, ine is bound to
life the fefcue with the other.

We muft obferve farther, — that though fociety
itf elf be a ftate of nature, as relative to the nation
at large, — though it be a ftate to which mankind
naturally recur to fatisty their wants and increafe
the' -Ann of their happinefs, — though all its laws
and regulations may be perfectly reafonable, and
calculated to promote the good ok the whole, — yet,
•with regard to an ir.divi'.l,,.::i member, his having
'csnfented to thefe laws, or even chofe to live in the
iociety, 1.3 but zj?£fi6trl and a rigid difcipline,
founded on a fidiion, is furcly hard upon its ob-
j-'cl:. In ginoral it imy be fa id, that a man,
comes in(o fociety by birth ; he neither confents
nor di items refpe6ting his relative condition : lie
fir (I opens his eyes on that (late of human aifairn
in which the interefls of his moral aflbciates are
infThitdy complicated ; with thefe his duties are
fo blended and intermingled, that nature can give
him br.t Mule affiilance in finding them out. His
morality itfelf muft be arbitrary.; it mult be varied
at every moment, to comprehend fome local and
pofitive regulation ; his fcicnce is todie^in where
that of preceding ages kas ended; his alpha is
their omega ; and he is called upon to acl by in-
kinct what t'ncv liave but learnt to do from the
experience of id! mankind. Natural reafon in?.y
teach ir.e p.^-t to iirike my neighbour without a
caufe ; but it \viil never forbid my fending a fack
of wool from England, or printing th:° French con-
(Htntion in Spain. Thcfe are pofnive prohibi
tions, which nature has not written in her book ;.
(he has therefore never taught them to her children..
G 2

-/6 ADVICE TO THE

The fa lire may be faid of all regulations that arife
from the focial compact.

It is a truth, I believe, not to be called in quefU
fon, that every man is born with an imprefcrip-
tible claim to a portion of the elements; which
portion is termed his birtk— right. Society may
v'ary this right, as to hs form, but never can
deilroy it in fubllar.ce. She has no control over
the man, till he is born ; and the right being born
•with him, and being necelTary to his cxiitence,
:lhe can no more annihilate the one than the oilier,
though (he has the power of new-rnodeHing both.
But on coming into the world, he finds that the
ground which nature had prornifed him is taken
up, and in the occupancy of others ; fociety has
changed the form of his birth-right j the general
Hock of elements, from which the lives of men
are to be fupported, has undergone a new modifi
cation ; and his portion among the reft. He is
told that he cannot claim it in its prefent form, as
Jn independent inheritance ; that he muft draw on
the flock of fociety, inftead of the flock ' of
nature ; that he is banifhed from the moth
er and muft cleave to the nurfe. In this unex
pected occurrence he is unprepared to act but
knowledge is a part of the ftock of fociety ; and an
indifpenfable part to be allotted in the portion of
the claimant is tnftrufiion relative to the new
crrangemcnt of natural right. To withhold this
inflruction therefore would be, not merely the
omiflion of a duty, but the commiffion of a crime ;
and fociety in this cafe would fin againil the man,
before the man could fin agarnft fociety.

I fhould hope to meet the afTent of all unpreju
diced readers, in carrying this idea ft ill farther.
In cafes where a perfon is born of poor parents,

PRIVILEGED: ORDERS. 77-

0r finds himfelf brought into the community of
men without the means of fubfidence, fociety
is bound in duty to furnifh him the means. She
ought not only toinftrucl: him in the artificial laws
by which property is fecured, but in the artificial
induftry by which it is obtained. She is bound, in
fujllce as well as policy, to give him fome art or
trade. For the reafon of his incapacity is, that
' fhe has ufurped his birth-right; and this is reftor-
ing it to him in another form, more convenient
for both parties. The failure of fociety in this
branch of her duty is the occafion of much the
greater part of the evils that call for criminal
jurifprudence. The individual feels that he is
robbed of his natural right ; he cannot bring his
procefs to reclaim it from the great community,
by which he is overpowered; he therefore feels
authorized in reprifal ; in taking another's goods
to replace his own. And it muft be confefTed, that
in numberlefs infrances the conduct of fociety
ji.ftifies him in this proceeding ; (he has feized upon
hisf property, and commenced the waragainft him.
Some, who perceive thefe truths, fay that it
is unfafe for fociety fo publiflnhem ; but I fay it is
unfafe not to publiuVthem. For the party from
which the mifchief is expelled to arife has the
knowledge of them already, and has a£ted upon
them in all ages. It is the wife who are ignorant
of thefe things, and not the foolifh. They arc
truths of nature; and in them the teachers of
mankind are the only party that remains to be
taught. It is a fubjedb on which the logic of
indigence is much clearer than that of opulence.
The latter reafons from contrivance, the former
from feeling; and God has not endowed us with
G 3

78 . ADVICE TO THE

falfe feelings, in things that fo weightily concern
our happinefs.

None can deny that the obligation is much
ftronger on me, to fupport my life, than to fupport
the claim that my neighbour has to his property.
Nature commands the firft, fociety the fecond : —
in one I obey the laws of God, which are univerfal
and eternal ; in the other, the laws of man, which
are local and temporary.

It has been the folly of all old governments, to
bc^in every thing at the wrong end, and t© erect
their inflitutions on an inverfion of principle. This
is more fadly the cafe in their fyftems of jurifpru-
dence, than is commonly imagined- Compelling
juftice is always miftaken for rendering juftice.
But this important branch of adminiftration con-
ijfts not merely in compelling men to be juft to
each other, and individuals to fociety, — this is not
the whole, nor is it the principal part, nor even
the beginning, of the operation. The fource of
power is faid to be the fource of juftice ; but it
does not anfwer this defcription, as long as it
contents itfelf with compulfton. Jiiftice mult -be
gin by flowing from its fource ; and the firft as
well as the moft important object is, to open its
channels from fociety to all the individual mem
bers. This part of the adminiftration being well,
devifed and diligently executed, the other parts
•would leiTen away, by degrees to matters of infe
rior confideration.

It is an undoubted truth, that our duty is in-,
feparably connected with our happinefs. And
•why fhoiild we defpair of convincing every mem
ber of fociety of a truth fo important for him to
know? Should any perfoii object, by faying,,
tfiat nothing like this, hac ever yet been done ; I

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 79

3i>fwer, that nothing like this has ever yet been
tried. Society has hitherto been cnrft with go
vernments, whofe exigence depended on the
extinction of truth. Every moral light has been
fmothered under the bufhel of perpetual impofi-
tion ; from whence it emits but faint and glim
mering rays, always inefficient to form any
luminous fyftem on any of the civil concerns of
men. But thefe covers are crumbling to the dun1,
with the governments which they fupport ; and
the probability becomes more apparent, the more
it is confidered, that fociety is capable of curing
all the evils to which it has given birth.

It feems that men, to diminifli the phyfical-
evils that furround them, connect themfelves in
fociety; and from this connection their moral
evils aiife. But the immediate occafion of the
moral evils is nothing more than the remainder of
the phyfical, that (till exiit even under the regu-^
lations that fociety makes to banifh then*. The
dire6b object therefore of the government ought
to be, to deftroy as far as poffible the remaining
quantity of phyfical- evils : and the moral would
fo far follow their deft ru 61 ion. But the rniflake
that is always made on this fubjecl is, that go
vernments, inftead of laying the axe at the root of
the tree, aim their ftrokes at the branches ; they
attack the moral evils direftly by vindictive juftice,
inftead of removing the phyfical by distributive
juftice.

There are two difUn£t kinds of phyfical evils;
one arifes from want, or the apprehenfion- of
want ; the other from bodily difeafe. The for
mer feems capable of being removed by fociety ;
the latter is inevitable. But the latter gives no
Gccafion to moral diforders j it being the.comiiToa

80 AD VICE TO THE

lot of all, we all bear our part in filence, with
out complaining of each other, or revenging our-
felves on the community. As it is out of the
power of our neighbour's goods to relieve us, we
do not covet them for this purpofe. The former
is the only kind from which moral evils arife ;
and to this the energies of government ought to
be chiefly directed ; efpecialty that part which is
called the adminifiration of ju(lic»°.

No nation is yet fo numerous, nor any country
f<; populous, as it is capable of becoming. Eu
rope, token together, would fupport at leaft fke
times its prefent number, even- on its prefent
fyftem of cultivation j and how many times this
Hicreafet) population may be multiplied by new
difcoveries in the infinite fcience ©f fubfiftence,
no nnn will pretend to calculate. This of itfelf
is Cufficrent to prove, that fociety at prefent has
the means of rendering all its members happy in
every i\,*V?£t, except the removal of bodily drf-
eafe. The common flock of the community
appears abundantly fufficient for this purpofe,
Jly common flock, I would not be under Rood to
mean the g;oods exclufively appropriated to indi
viduals. Exclufive property is not only confident
wiih good order among men, but it is conceived
by fome to be necerTary to the exigence of fociety.
But the common ftock of which I fpeak coniirhs
firft, in 'knowledge^ or the improvement which
men have made in the means of acquiring a fup
port ; and fecondly, in the contributions which it
is neceflary fhould be collected from individuals,
and applied to the maintenance of tranquillity in
the State. The property exclusively belonging
to individuals can only be the furplufage remain
ing in their hands, after deducting what is necef-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 8l

fary to the real wants of fociety. Society is the
firft proprietor ; as fhe is (he original caule of the
appropriation of wealth, and its indifpenfable
guardian in the hands of the individual.

Society then is bound, in the firft place, to
diflribure knowledge to every perfon according
to his wants, to enable him to be ufefui and hap
py ; fo far as to difpofe him to take an active
inrereft in the welfare of the State. Secondly,
where the faculties of the individual are naturally
defective, fo that he remains unable to provide
-for himfelf, fhe is bound ftill to fupport and ren
der him happy. It is her duty in all cafes to
induce every human creature, by rational motives,
to place his happinefs in the tranquillity of the
public, and in the fecurhy of individual peace
and property. But thirdly > in cafes where thefe
precautions fhall fail of their effect, (he is dri
ven indeed to the lad extremity, — iiie is to ufe
the rod of correction. Thc'.fc inibnces wouM
doubtlefs be rare ; and if we could fuppofe a loner
continuance of wife adminiftration, fucli as a well-
organized government would enfure to every na
tion in the world, we may almoft perfuade our-
felves to believe that the neceflity for punifliment
would be reduced to nothing.

Proceeding however on the fuppofition of the
cxiftence of crimes, it muft ftill remain an object
of legislative wifdorn, to difcrimiaate between
their different clafles, and apply to each its proper
remedy, in the quantity and mode of punifhment.
It is no part of my fubjcct to enter into this in
quiry, any farther than (imply to ohferve, that it
is the chara6teriftic of arbitrary governments to
be jealous of their power. And, as jealoufy is,
©f all human pailiuris, the molt vindictive and

2 ADVICE TO THE

the leaft rational, thefe governments feJc the
revenge of injuries in the rnoft ahfurd and tre-
menduous pisnHhments that their fury can invent.
As far as any rule can be difcovered in their gra
dation of ptinifhments, it appears to be this, That
the feveriry of the penalty is in proportion to the
injuftice of the law. The rcafon of this is firnple,
—the laws which counteract nature the moft, are
the moft likely to be violated.

The publication, within the lad half century,
of a great number of excellent treatifes on the
fubjecl: of penal laws, without producing the leaft
effect in any part of Europe, is a proof that no
reform is to be cxpeded in the general fyftem of
criminal jurifprudence, but from a radical change
in the principle of government*.

A method of communicating inftru<5tion to
every member of fociety is not difficult to difcover,
and would not be expenfive in practice. The
£27 l^HlCnt £Cnc;~~lly ?ftablifhes miniftcrsof juf-
tice in every part of the dominion. The fir ft
object of thefe minifters ought to be, to fee that
every perfon is well inftrucled in his duties and in
his rights -; that he is rendered perfectly acquainted
with every law, in its true fpirit and tendency, in
order that he may know the reafon of his obedi
ence, and the manner of obtaining redrefs, in cafe

* The compufiionate little- treatifc of Beccaria,
f't'i dclitti t dcllc. ptnCi is getting to be a manual in all
languages. It has already ferved as an introdii&f.on
to many lirniiuous efTays on the policy and right ot
puniiliracnt. in which the fpirit of inquiry is pur-
lucd much farther than that benevolent philofopher.
furrounded as he is by the united fabres of feudal
and ecclefiatlical tyranny, has dared to purfue it.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 83

lie fliould deem it nnjtrft : that he is taught to feel
the cares and inrereds of an active citizen, to
coniider himftlf as a real member cf the date,
know that the government is his own, that the
fociety is his friend, and that the officers of the
ftate are the fervants of the people A perflm
poiTeffing thefe ideas will never violate the laws,
unlefs it be f rom neceflity ; and fnch necellity is to
be prevented by means which are equally obvious.
For the purpofcs of compuluve jndice it is not
enough that the Jaws be rendered familiar to the
people ; but the tribunals ought to be near at hand,
eafy of accefs, and equally open to the poor as to
the rich ; the means of coming at juftice mould
be cheap, expedition?, and certain ; the mode of
procefs ihould be fimple and perfectly intelligible
to the meaned capacity, unclouded with myderies
and unperplexed with forms. In fhort, juftice
ihould familiarife itfelf as the well-known friend
of every man ; and the confequence fcems na
tural, that every man would be a friend to juf
tice.

After confidcring what is the duty of fociety,
and what would be the practice of a well- organized
government, relative to the fubje<5l of this chapter,
it is almoii uielef< to inquire, what is the practice
of all the old governments of Europe. We may
be fure beforehand, that it is direcTly the contra
ry, — that, like all other parts of the fyftem, it is
the inverfion of every thing that is right and rca-
fonable. The pyramid is every where placed on
the little end, and all forts of extraneous rubbifh
are condaruly brought to prop it up.

Unequal governments Ere neceflarily founded in
Ignorance, and they mud be fuppurtecl by igno
rance ; to deviate from their principle would be

84 ADVICE TO THE

voluntary filicide. The firft great object of their
policy is to perpetuate that undifturbed ignorance
of the people, which is the companion of po
verty, the parent of crimes, and the pillar of the
State.

In England, the people at large are as perfectly
ignorant of the atls of parliament after they are
made, as they pofTibly can be before. They are
printed by one man only, who is called the King's
printer, — in the old German character, which
few men can read, — and fold at a pr'rce that few
can afford to pay. But left fome fcraps or com
ments upon them fhould come to the people through
the medium of public newfpapers, every fuch
paper is (lamped with a heavy duty ; and an a£l of
parliament is mode to prevent men from letting
their papers to read* ; fo that not one perfon in a
hundred fees a newfpaper once in a year. If a
man at the bottom ot York (hire difcovcrs by in-
(h'ncl that a law is made, which is interefting
for him to know, he has only to make a journey
to London, find out the King's printer, pay a
halfpenny a page for the law, and learn the Ger-

* As this work may chance to fall into the hands
of fome people who never fee the a&s of parliament
(the lame precautions not being taken to prevent its
circulation), it. is out of companion to that clafs of
readers, that 1 give this information. It is a duty
of humanity to fave our fellow-creatures from falling
into fnares, even thole that are fpread for them
by the government. Therefore : Notice is hereby
given to all perfons, to whom thefe prefects fhall
come, that, the penalty for letting a newipapcr,
within the Kingdom of Great-Britain, is fifty
pounds.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 85

mnn alphabet. He is then prepare:! to fpell out
his duty.

As to the general fyflem of the laws of the land,
on which all property depends, no man in the
kingdom knows there, and no man pretends to
know them. They are a fathomlefs abyfs, that
exceeds all human faculties to found. They are
ftudied, not to be under flood, but to be difputed ;
Jiot to sfive informa ion, but to breed con fu-
iion. The man, whofe property is depending on
a fuit at law, dares not look into tre gulph that fe-
] ;:rutes him from the wifheJ-for decilion ; he has
no confidence in himfelf, nor in rc-afon, nor in
jultice; he mounts on the back of a lawyer, like
one of Mr. Burke's heroes of chivalry between the
wings of n griflin, and trulls the pilotage of a man,
Vvho is fuperior to htmfcif only in the confidence
•which rffuhs from hnving; rotr.inr? at flake.

To pen-irate into \\ •;. Jledthe courts of

ce on the conur.cm, r fa the general

iy;U:!n of their atdminiitration in thofe points
lyhich are common to inoit cotiHtiies in Europe,
vv:)s J.j be to lay open an ii&oactevabic fcene of in
iquity ; it would be,

44 ¥0 pour in light on Pluto s drear abodes,

• " Abhorr'd by tncn, and dreadful i en to ggds"

What arc we to do with our fenfjbility, with
our honeft iriltlndt of propriety, how refrvin from
ckclamations of h.orror, while we contemplate a
let of men, aiF?irr.ing the iacred garb of juilice, for
the unifonri and well-known purp^fe of felling
their decilions to the highelt bidder ! For a judge
to receive a bribe, we fhouici think an indelible
ifoin upon his charailer as a man ; but what (hall
we fjy of the date of human nature, where it is
• no clifgriict to him as a judge ? where it is not

the r

of

fmrp

.

p.u ' j the

, the

^ovei; in !;:u department

at fix. ie the bargains

ft. Thus the
•:-f- fpecu-

r . rp< n to all the \ the raan,

"\vhif. njpc w^s/t-ie bLk fitted to iY5:;k;?

t { deciding caufes,- auikl afford
high^/l price, and was consequently
fure to be JIM/

Juflice then was a comniodiiy v.-hi^h neccirurily
gave a p re fit to three it-is ot ir.cn, before it COM Id
fee purcnqfecfby the Aiitor ; even fuppoiing ir rr.iyht
have flowed to hi-n in a direcl channel. But
this was a tl-in^ iirpofTiblc ; there \vere other
defcriptlans c,i nun, more nnmcr'ui?, it not mra'c
grceJy, than th.;fe of wlioin we h-vc fptien,
•through whofe hand? it rruift piifs and re,pafs , be
fore it coulH arrive at the client, who had • a-i J
his money to the jnd^e. Thefe men, who infefted
the tjibiin:-ls in all ftages of the bufinc fs, were
divided in France, into about fix clalles. For
wan; rf the rrecife names in Ewgliih todefigna^
all their official diftin<ftions, VIQ fliall rank the

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

of L

^{JreiFed

had a necenary part ia brin^in^ forv/ar-J ervJ
putting backward every caufe that came into

Lawyers In France fbrivcl two important pur-
piles, which It i« fuppoled they do not ferveju
Iviahnd : they added confidently to ihe revenues
of ihe cro-.vn by the pursHafc pf their places ; and
tncy covered the iniquity cf the udges undec

the i.
or ordinary r

th.u ihould h-
nevk be 1: vmi

r, had an nd.'Tjira-
••iibiiity of fixing a

».v trcur'h me.

re-Jtry leeret;:;
:'. 'rnili.' r-au
Uk'ewife .-/

/7^-/.^,.

§8 ADVICE TO THE

charge of fraud or raifmanagjement on any one of
the great fraternity, or of difcoyefing, among the
formidable piles of papers and parcbmentsrth&t
enveloped the myfteries of the t:ial, in v.
the iniquity was introduce:;,

To rail this whole fyftem of operations n fulernri
iarce, is to £ive no utterance to our feelings ; to
f>y it is a fplcndiJ mockery of jtiflice by which
individuals arc ribbed of their property, is -a! mod
to fpcak irs praiie.— The refle&ing mind cannot
reft upon it a moment, without glancing over
fociely, and bewailing the terrible inroads made
upon morals public and private, the devaftaliort of
principle, the outrage upon nature, the degrada-
lion of the lap particle of .dignity by which we re
cognize our own refemblance in man.

Its obvious tendency is, by its enormous ex-
pence, to bar ihe door of jufiice againft the poor,
v/ho in fuch countries arc fi.ue to form the* great
body of mankind, — to render them enemies to
Ibciety, by teaching that fociety is an enemy to
them, — to ftimtilate them to crimes both from
their own nece (lilies, and from the example of
their rr, afters, — and to fpread over the people at

HI J)0r ;;|

pelsth

J'iiCC.

^ . »

be !h idled ' " 'I !« * \

man c^n ti»i-.. i;k-i, is ,'b >ir. .•

be to luir.cnt ll'KU the nublc ici^nce or

r R i v i L i: c E D o HD E u s .

was in danger of be-in;* for^i'ten ; or that

Kad I'/i't the

"This word, Ivivii..'- a

fame purple in , as her.dxhy ejoes in

hon.our : or the old jufifpfuct£ticfj., in in (lice : it

rendered men l::perui-ious ; and coj.Lq;it:itly_, iin-

I1- is fo f^ilii :>;;. l.-le iii Europe, [-y amon^^

Eneliihrnen, to (peak in praiU- t)f tfce'En^lifll
it; i •'p'-udenc 37 anfl t(j confider it as a nu-K 1 "f
perfjcii'jn, that it c?iay f.-c^.i ^ecellary f<>r a ncrion
to be^in with 2:1 apol •/', f ide..s rn

lh.it fubji'cl, ir h^ means to ;.!c\ i.»:e fi\)in tl

rt () ^cncraPy eihblilh.d. But irnl-aJ of
coin^ ^his, I will be^in by np,
wHo at this ciav j-

Your fai. mai>, i.',

uii Jer;larKl npthingj of the r:v*»ti,r. to al

be lefs favourable to v-
as honcll men.

Exclusive of the rules 1 »hc perils (;f

a cai.fj a;e tu !; hich, if they

c-'VuLi he afcerl the mere

f>,r;:i r.-f hiin^in^ a qireltion before a court i-; of

re, anarr, leiV urvlei ;1 --o 1, and more

.
(hud ii; but tfe

as in France, into fev.
.;nbi-elv n
i;^i»;t ia every i!;cr> t/i il-ic; pro^

II 2

k? : t.Tjh

9° ADVICE TO THE

dark rnulriplicity of form has not only removed
the knowledge of law from the generality of men,
but has created fuch an cxpence in obtaining
juftice, that very few ever make the attempt.
1 he courts are effectually flint againft the great
body of the people, and juflice as much out of
their reach, ss if no laws exiiled*.

Thofe \vho have attempted to purchafejuflice
through the neceffary forms have never been
known to pronounce eulogies on the courts. But
their number has always been fo fmall, that, had
they uttered the anathemas that the fyflem de-
fcrvcs, their feeble voi^e could fcarccly have been
heard. No man, wFicfe eyes are not blinded by
fees or by prejudice, can look upon the enormous
raafs of writings which accumulate in a caufe,
\vithbutrcfie6ling with 'indignation on theexpence ;
one hundredth part of which would have been

c The provijiM made in the Englijh law, en aiding
a perfon to bring bis fuit in forma pauperis, is
rather an infult than & real advantage. Certainly,
not one per Jon in a hundred, who is deprived of juftice
in the ordinary courfe, would ever feck it in this ; as,
In order to be entitled to it, he miift go into court and
fwear that he has not property enough to prof e cute
his claim. A ycung tradesman, and in general every
perfon who wifbes to carry en bujtnefs, or has fpirit
enough to feek for jufiice, has a higher, interejl in
eftablifhing a credit aming his connexions in bijinefs,
than in profecuting ;?, ordinary fuit at law. He
kn&ws, that t$ expofs his oven proverty, efpecially in
a commercial country, would be irretrievable ruin ;
// would be a pofitive injury ; ivhi I e fitting down
with the Ujs of his right, without bringing his f nit*
is only a negative injury.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. Cjl

more than fufFicient for every purpofe of obtaining
j'jftice between the parties. A writer who fhould
give the names and defcriptionsof the various parts
of a prccefs, with the expences annexed ro each
part, would fcarcely gain credit^ except with
profefiional men. Several hundred pounds are
expended only in writing Bills, Subpoenas, Pleas,
Demurrers, Anfwers, Pet i lions, Orders, Mo
tions, Amendments, Notices, Reports, &c. in
,a finale caufe, where no wirnefs is called.

Let us trace a few of the windings, and fee
"where fome of the paths lead which are laid down
as neceffsrry to obtaining a deciflon in Chancery ;
we ihall there find how hundreds, and fometimes-
thoufands of pounds are expended in a caufe, before
any defence is fetwp, and where no defence is ever
intended to be fet up. The fuitor begins his
incomprehenfible operation, by Mating his claim,
in what is called a Bill, which he leaves at a cer
tain office belonging to the court, 2nd obtains an
order, called a fubpcena, for fummoning the
defendant. This being done, the court requires
the defendant to fend an Attorney to write his
name at another office of the court. This writing
the name, is called an appearance ; it anfwers no
poflible purpofe, but that of increafing expences
and fees of office, for which it is a powerful engine.
For if the defendant does not complv, an ex pence-
of thoufands of pounds may be made, to compel
him. A capias,* procefsjfor outlewff^ a commif-
ilon of rebellion, and an order and commiilion of
fequeftraticn, are purfuecl in their proper routine,
till he confents to wiife his name.

If the plaintiff has property to go through this
procefs, he may be faiu to be able jufl to keep
his ground ; . and his caufe. is in every refpedt

ADVICE TO THE

lefendam

c ; he is then
r v- hieM, the cmrt
i.r, or r.nfvver

rj;s tUtie^expires, he i> inn -
of ('-IT \VCL[-:-.. But though
. ' iilicr the

en*
ihfor

•? bi:'. VVh
tied to-a I

Ke i- . '

jxiaiQtjffi nor ' ft ;t, di e i

employ a foliqttar to ivr.ke a 1); !_t " f:>r co nf'.;i .;
und tV''-' f'i- H aU TV! tl-.c counfcl,

giv-'j I.i 51 a -u! :--~ fVc?, for niovin-j- t})e

court i or tjiijs -t be rci:

The i lie C'.njrt rnJ maL

. aUer.ci the court, rn<l
p-iy for t t -

mu'l caufe ;• to be fl >

At the ern! ff this term of
fendant i.-

t ve niuil pay
his ;1 a etition

copy ; and tiicn

t three

prefcnt-

t:sin it.
ties, a y
com-.

,c it i« 10 the par

to the (/necr? oi use

CrtJS farce to every body

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. OJ

••'s which was ufed to compel his appear-
, mnft have been repeated, to wit, cn]-;'as,
•• --.'Ifiwry^ commiffion of rebellion 9 z\v\ fequcfirathn.
j..'ut we have arilvcd at tl e lime when the defend
ant is in duty hound tr> gnlvver to the bill ; and
here, if fie does not anf'* er, then capias , outlawry.

Thefe terms muit be txphinef! to fhe
and this is the beft orp:Tt!-nhy to f!o \\. ror the
caufe dill remaining precifely where it was at fir/I,
we mayfuppofeit fiifHcientiy at reil, not to move
during the explanation. A c-Uas is r.n order7
to take the man, and hold him in gaol tilljie obeys
,fh^ order of the court ; whether it be to write his
name, or any tiling clfe. The word ouiL.twy
explains, of itfelf, this horrid engine ol the court.
A com million of rebellion is an order ;fu
the officer writh the capias ;. cd nnd pj

find tlie man, and after an outlawry !
place. It is directed to other pcrfor'S
them to take up the n^an who was, guilty r-l
in refufing to write his name. Bin -^s tlu- Ciller wiih
the capias, before omlnwiy, could not find the man,
the ilTinr'g the cotninidion of rebellion ??</w, has na
other meaning but fees. A I cqi! eft ration \^ taking
the whole properly of (1 I into the '

of (he a ii
/• " n df-t e i.l to ; ior no

nv.'iiey is gone the pro:?:
us fuppofe that the defend oni-

\\ iih all orck rs thus iu a

pn-.i furTicient rnfwcr. ] it of

-:il iiu)'ions, pe'iiions, dccrtes, or-
ig the bill, ior ulernr.g to
ws the jiiftiffivjiency of ^nfwet?) rep rt< I
thole aniv.cis,, und iarthcr airjfwer^ and eK(

ADVICE' TO I

. tc, art I o

iucn it;;ir as trie process he:c defcnbed ; and i call
on them all, to point out the purpofe that any
of it ever lei-yed, or cvir c:n fcrve to tht-ir cli-

it :— ,1 be reme'rribefett', 'hat all the ptbce

•e to en-:! in three pretended ob-
^pcd an appearance.; to cbtuin the
time for the defendant to prepa'rc
his anfwer ; and to cornptl hi.n rq '.-i\'e his Un
iting a ri;
i i inlnh to t

Next cone's the iuc*
me to an-

fwer the bilL de of the court, which

& the law iri . f,rff

kv*y n.id two weeks • wKich in ull i

? it be in Inv-7, r;i,ke nine \\ ,
ifiliut be a feafonaile tiifie^ UM^M di^ ide i
into three baftsj why is ii not fo bci;:re it is c!i-
xiJed r Ana if nciiher the party, nor the co-urt?
ntir a . [fe5 has a ri^ht to refufe that term

r'f ti / n i'jht not iha defendant tike ir,

tng three titr.cs f The
':t the procefs gt^es to compel t!

ve in an anfvver to t!-e bill. Ana
"*vh;u i :ance of an anfwer r To

to v, inch *hc ai

The bill ex,; Of the plaintiff;

end points, on i \\hkh K-*

p:?Ys may be made in his 3 theTle-

.nt. Notice is given ^lendant

V^fe'v! PffmS?

; J, hut

iVIf

fe ii

fend

- — .... _._ ,,.,,, ,., ,, rt.

>peir, to

;n-!r ^m his defence be

? to t'v |,l;:i;jiiff? and, if
ge v.ill not dcf< n-\ himfdf, c-
Can any one of the whole hoft of all i

•Jaw f];ovv tlie 1-vaft llridnw of ufe in all this
Pounth ol procefs thus tat, but fees on the one

he other f

Wgh il) the forms, to the end
fail in cfhsmcieryj -. to v.rite a com-

g|en*ary on many yoliit^es of pra^ice^ and vv'ould
be callin|r the patience of the reader to a triul,
from wliich it vv< uld certainly (lirink. but there
are parts a? -much worfe than wh.it we havedcfcri-
bed, a? thisi^ uorfe thaacrommon f^nfe. Sirip
fromthe adn.iniftravion of jnilice the forms

ADVICE TO THZ

are perfcfl'y uMefx r.n:l op p re .live, arid counfc!-
lors will have much kfs to do ; while the wholes
order of atomics atul fslicir >rs will full to the
ground If the mylterie^ fHF nonfenfe were out of
the WHV, a CcHiiifeitor, who was culle i upon to
rioii on the manner of c6hdu&-
iife, woi-lci no more h:?ve it pre-
st forward by :in attorney, th;m a
\voi:lj h;-.zaid his fortune by doing
-n;^h an is-;n-irarit awjnt, \\hich he
i.iir.felf. The qr.antity of
, in a iiropk aiu-I dignified
as to he perhaps

, i V • t

who arc acquainted only vvitn

e is, tnat tne

orcics ;.:n-.l {•.li:irors has
vnniihc:i, the Cocnfellor does tlie whole hullnefs
of Ills client ; and fo fimplc is the operation,
that a man mayuiih cafe comn.ence and carry
through every ftage, t® final judgment and execu
tion, five liun-.lrtcl c^nfes in a year. And the
in all thefe (hall riot alrbru wri
ting efi M^ii to einpl -y a finale clerk one hour in
twenty four. The proceedings and judgments in
five hundred canfes, in this country, would fill a
warehoufe. And vet in that country, everv alle
gation is ncceilary in their declarations and plead
ings, which are neceffijry in VVeitrniniier-hall. As
they arc not paid by the line their declarations

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 97

have but one count, and in that count there is no
tautology. And fo little is the expence of fuits,
where no more is done than isneceflary for juftice,
that judgment, in a caufe where there is no de
fence, may be obtained for lefs than ten {hillings ;
anri every perfon employed be fully paid tor his
fcrvice*.

Men who are habituated to the expenfes incur
red in law-funs in England, will fcarcdy be per-
fuaded of the extent to which a reform would be
carried, on a general deftru&ion of abufes. But
k-tthem reflect, that when law proceedings arc
itripped of every thing, but what the nature of the

~* As this may awaken the curiofify of feme of my
readers, I will give the details. Suppofe a fuit to
recover money due or, Note ' ir Bind: The writ and
declaration are incorporated in one injlrument j that
/•-, the declaration is contained in the writ. The
jher'fj' is ordered to read this to the defendant ;, G** leave
a copy at his dwelling, at leafi twelve days previous to
the fitting of the court. This -writ i.\ ujualiy filled up
in a 'well known firm, in a printed blank ; of which
a man may with eaje fill a hundred a day. Far this
the court taxes §ne jhiiiing and Jlx pence. Tl)e Jberlff,
if he has no travel to the defendant, is paid fix-pence
for reading the writ to him, and delivering it to the
clerk of the court. It is then the duty of the plaintiff,
cr of his lawyer, (who is both ciunjellor and foiicit-
or) to attend the court on the firji day sf the Jit ting ;
and then the parties in all caufes are called by the
frier. For this attendance the court will tax three
/Lillings and fouKcpence halfpenny : and if the defend
ant intends to make no defence he will not anjwer when
tatted ; and the clerk thereupon, en the third day after

93 ADVICE TO TMS

fubjc cl require^,- there is no rry fiery left. The
rational part that remains is foon comprehended,
and ealily retained in memory. This would
doubtk-fs augment the number of fuirs ; for it
would open the courts tovaft multitudes of people,
againft whom they are now effectually ihnt. But
in proportion as it increafed the number of law-
fuirs, it would diminilh the quantity of law-bvfi-
refs ; and the number or lawyers would dwindle to
one tenth of what it is at prefent. In the Slate
above alluded to, the number of men fupported by
tiiis profe/Iion is to the whole population, as one
to 4600. Reduce the lawyers here to that pro
portion, and there would be left about three thou-
fand in the kingdom. It is atTertrd, (I know not
on what ground) that the p re lent number is thirty
thoufand. Allowing it to be true,nn a rmy of twenty-
feven thoufand lawyers, on this reform, would
rind fome other employment. But whether the
red u 61 ion would amount to the number here fup-
p'ofed, or to half of it, is a queftion of little mo-

callinZ) if >io tnofiw is made fry the defendant^ enters
;.«/ grmnt for the plaintiff \ for which he has about two
/hillings ; one /billing more is paid for a ^vrit of exe
cution, which is in form and effeft a fieri facias, a
capias ad fatisfacicndum, and an elegit : that is,
it goes agtttnft the goods end chattels of the debtor', find
if the Jhenff cannot find ih^jc he is to take the Udy,
<?r the land. Added to theje cr.ft$9 there is a duty
vf u. vd. to government . "Theje Jeveral charges are
fffi ample reward for allfervices rendered,

Note of the. Editor.

When our author obferves, that the Jaws of
that country have jl ripped legal procefs of its prin-*
€ ipal follies t lie mull be unilcritood as referring

PiU VILf.GEl.) CRDH^S.

roent. Saving the expcnce of maintaining twemy
or thirty thnufand n^n in a.-i ufelcfs occupation,
and fending th-ai to profitable bufinefs, however
important die object may appear, bears no pro-
jforiiori to the advantage 'Of opening the door of
I^H ice to the people j and habiuiimrig them to an
caiy and well-known a*eihod.<rf .Landing iheir
.right.

to the New-England State:. In New- York,
rennfyiyania, and almoft every other State of the
union, juftice is nearly as cxpcnfive as in Great
Britain. The common law of the mother coun
try has been univerfally adopted, and the ftatutc
books of the B.-ififh Parliament blindly and fer
vidly copied. When this is ihe cafe, and it can-
not be controverted, h;ive we reafon to look for

efs expenfive litigation in thofc States than in
the iiland of Great Britain ? Can it be expefl-
that the cliannds of juftice will be Irfs cor-
s-upt ; ar::f that the focial rights of individuals
will be better protecltd and defended ? In the
courts of commr.n pleas, panicularly thofc of
New-York, the bill of the phintiiFs attorney a^
lone is feldom lefs than eiVht pounds. In'ih^
fupreme court of the fame 'State, it often times
itretchcs beyond thirty pounds. We have pur-
|i*a the exterior of fouety ; but its interior e-
conomy is fraught with injufticc, and to €very
jrlcerning mind muft appear as harbouring the

rrnciplts of moral deftr«aion. Let us not" de-

ude the world, by imprelfing an opinion, that

have anived at the fummk of perfcdion in

government and laws,— when fo many glaring

evils^are profufeiy fcattcrcd arc nnd,_ when the

aws delay— the expcnce of juilice—and the in-

•?CO ADVICE TO THE

There is a drange idea prevalent in England,
(it has had its day in America) that it is good policy
to raife theexpences of legal proceedings above the
reach of the lower dalles of people ; as it lefTens
the numbci* of fuhs. This kind of reafoning ap
pears too abfurd to fupport its own w.-. ivht tor a
moment ; and it would be beneath our iLrions no
tice,- were it not for the refie&rbfi, that men of
fuperficial refearch are perpetually caught by ir.
The human mind is fitted, from its own indolence,
to be dazzled by the glare of a proportion -r an-,!'
to receive and utter for truth, what it never gives
itfelf the trouble to examine. There is no para
dox among all the cnormiir.es of defyonfm, bur
what finds its advocates from this very circum-
ftance. We muft not therefore fcorn to encounter
an argument becaufe it is foolifh. The bufmefs of
fober phMof>>phy is often a talk of drudgery ; it
mud fcmetiines Hftcn to the moil incoherent cla
mours, which would be unworthy of its atcention,
did they not. form a part of the general din, by
which mankind are deafened and milled.

For a man to bring into court a fmt thai: is
manifeftly unjuft, is a crii^e againft the (late ; to
hinder him from bringing one that is j-uft, is a
crime of the ftate againfi him. It is a poor com
pliment to the wifdom of a nation, to fuppofe that
no method can be devifed for preventing the firft
of thefe evils,^ without running kito the laft ; and
the iaft is ten times the greateft of the two. The '
French, who appear to have been deftined to give
leflbns to the worhl by the wi'fdom of their new

f >!c-nce of office, are 5? mwch to be complained
of, in moft of the American State?, as under t
Hruidi execrated fyftenas of Europe,,

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. ICI

inftitutions, as well as by *-h'c lolly ot iherr old,
have fount! the fee ret of i m poll m* a fmall fine on
a vexatious plaintiff; and of erbbiifhing many
other regulations on this fubje<5t, which effectually
ihut the door of the tribunal agafnft the oppreiibr,
while it e.aiily opens to the fecbleft cry of the op-
preifed.

They have likewife eftablifhecl a method of
communicating the knowledge of-thelaws to every
human creature in the kingdom, however ignorant
he may be in other refpefts. They are printed
and parted up on public buildings in every, town
and village, arid read and explained by the curate
from the pulpit in every parifh. It is in con
templation likewife to inftitute a general fyftem
of public inflruction, on a moie ufeful and ex-
tenfive plan than has ever vet been ctevifed. Se
veral enlightened philofophers are bufied in thefe
refearches; and feveral focieties are formed, whofe
object is to difcover and bring forward the bed
concerted plan for this important pnrpnfe. In
their wh^le fyflern of dlilribnting knowledge ?nd
jujiicC) they feem to be aiming at a decree of
perteclion which promifes great fuccef*? With
*H my partiality for the inflirutii ns of the United
States, I ihould'quote them (in com pa ri fan to thofe
of^ France) with lefs confidence on the fubjed of
this chapter, tha" of any other.

In the adminiftration of jnftice the American
Slates in general, are too much attached to the
Englifh forms; which ferve to fncieafe the ex-
pence and to myfticife the bufmefs, to a de^rec
^hat is manifettly inconfiftcnt wiih the di^niiy of
a true republic. ' But in refped to Public inftruc.
tion, ther« are fume circnmftances which

i a

ADV'CK T0 THE

to 'l>e" mentioned to their prnife, I a-n r-in^ fry
fpeuk only of the particular State \vi;h which I am
Left acquainted. How many of the others are
beticr regulated in this refpect, and how many
are worfe, I 3m not accurately informed. This
ftate, (which contains Icfs than 240,000 inhabit
ant) is divided into about one hundred towns.
Thefe are fub-divided into fmall portion?,, called
fvhool-di'ftricls, fimable for the fnpport of fmall
fchools. Each of thefe diftridls has a drawback
on the ftate treafury for a fum, which bears a
proportion to the public taxes paid by the inha
bitants of the diitricl, and which is about half
equal to the Arpport of a fchool-mafter. But this
fiim can be drawn only on condition, that a fchool
is maintained in the diftrict.*

The following remarkable confequences feem
to have refulted from this provifnn : There is
not perhaps in that date, a perfon of fix years
old, and of common intellects, who cannot read ;
and very few, of twelve, who cannot write and
caft accounts ; — befides the vifual books that are
found in every family, it is computed that there
are in the Hate about three hundred public libraries^
which have been formed by voluntary fuhfcriptiorj
among the people of the dHtricls and the parifhes ;
— till about the year 1768, which was more than
one hundred and thirty years alter the fettlement
of the ftate, no capital punifhment, as I am infor
med, had been inflicted within ifs jurifdiclion,
nor any perfon convicted of a capital offence ; fince

* Befides the fmrJT fchocls above mentioned, there
is a cmfiderable numter cf Academies and grammar-
fckeoh in this little Republic j and there is or,* Urn-

fRlVlLEG'LD ORDERS. 16%

that period, very few have been convicted, and
thofe few are generally Europeans by birth ynd
education ; — there is no extreme poverty in the
Hate, and no extraordinary wealth accumulated by
Individuals.

It would be abfurd to fuppofe, that Public In-
function is by any means carried to the perfection
that it ought to be, in this or any other State in
the univerfe. But this experiment proves, that
good morals and equal liberty are reciprocal caufes
and efFjcts ; and that they are both the parents
of national happinefs, and of great profperi-

ty-

All governments thac lay any claim to refpedt-
ability or juftice, have profcribed the idea of ex-
.pofl-fafto laws, 0r laws made alter the performance
of an action, conftituting that action a crime, and
pumfhing a party for a thing that was innocent at
the time of its being done. Such laws would be
fo flagrant a violation of natural right, that in the
French and feveral of the American State Confti-
tutions they are folemnly interdicted in their De
clarations of Rights. This profcription is like-
\vife confidered as a (undamental article of Engiifh
liberty, and almoft the only one that has not been
habitually violated, within the prefcnt century.
But let us refort to reafon and juftice, and afk what
is the difrrrence between a violation of this article
and the obfervance of that tremenduous maxinn
of jurifprudence, com men to all the nations above
mentioned,* ignorantfa legis nemlntm excufat ?

Moil of the laws of fociety are pofitive r?gn]^
tions, not taught by nature. Indeed, fuch only

* Ignorance of the law is no excufe for tht breach

104 ADVICE TO THE

are applicable to the fubjeft now in queftion. For
ignvr&ritiA legis can have reference only to laws ari-
fmg out of fociety, in which our natural feelings
have no concern ; and where a man is ignorant of
fuch a law, he is in the fame fituation as if the
law did not exift. To read it to him from the
tribunal, where he (lands arraigned for the breach
of it, is to him prfccifely the fame thing a^ it would
be to originate it at the time by the fame tribunal,
for the exprefs purpofe of his condemnation. The
law till then, as relative to him, is not in being.
He is therefore in the fame predicament that the
fociety in general would be, under the operation
of an ex-pofi-fafio law*. Hence we ought to con
clude that, as it feems difficult for a government
to difpenfe with the maxim above-mentioned,
a free people ought, in their declaration of rights,
to provide for univerfal public inftru£tion. If
they neglecl to do this, and mean to avoid the
abfurdity of a felf-deftroying policy, by adher-

* What /hocking ideas of morals thofe governments
mujl have inculcated, which firfl invented that exemp
tion in penal ftatuteSy called the benefit of "clergy !
To be able to write and ready was at that time an
evidence of an uncommon degree of knowledge. Out
cf rejpeft to learning (as it is pref timed) it was there
fore enacJedy that any perfon cwiifted of a felony
fnould be pardoned^ on footing that he could write
his name. As this latent was then chiefly confined to
the clerks, «r clergy > this circumftance gave name to
the law. The language of the exemption is Jim ply
thiSy that t h of e perfon s only who know the law are
tit liberty to violate it. *Tlere is indeed much reafsn
fir a dif.inclion \ but it Jbwld have been the ether
way.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 16$

ing to a fyftem of juftice which would preferve a
dignity and infplre a confidence worthy the name
of liberty, they ought to rejecl ihe maxim alto
gether ; and infert in their declaration of righs,
that inilructron alone can conltitute a duty ; and
that laws can enforce no obedience, but where
they are explained.

It is truly hard and fiifltciently to be regretted
that any part of fociety Humid be obliged to yield
obedience to laws, to which they have not literally
and perf >nally confented. Such, however, is the
flare of things ; it is neceftary that a majority ftroukf
govern. Jf.it be an evil to obey '"a law to winch
we h.ive not confented, it is at leaft a necellary
evil ; but to compel a "compliance with orders
which are unknown, is carrying injuftice beyond
the bounds of neceility ^ it is abfurd, and evea
impoilible. Laws in this cafe may be avenged*
hut cannot be obeyed ; they may infpire terror,
but can ttcver command refpcft.

C H A P. V.

REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE.

A

Nation is furely in a wretched condition^
when the principal obje6l of its government is the
increafe of its public revenue. Such a date of
things is in reality a perpetual warfare between
the few individuals who govern, and the great bo
dy of the people who labour. Or, to call things
by their proper names, and ufe the only language

io6 ADVICE TO THE

that the nature of the cafe will juftify, the real oc~
cup.-tion of the governors is either to plunder or trf
jReal, as will belt anfwer their purpofe ; while
the bufmefs of the people is to fecrete their pro
perty by fraud, or to give it peaceably up, in pro
portion as the other party demands ir ; and then,
as a cohfcquence of being driven to this ne«?c- ':
they (Lickc.ii th^ir indiiflry, and become mifcrable
through idienefs ; in order to avoid ihe iiionitica-
tion of 1 louring for thofe they hate.

The art of conftruc~ling governments has ufually
been to organize the Sate in fuch a manner, as
that this operation could be carried on to the bed
advantage for the adminiftraiors ; and the art of
adminiftring thofe governments has been, fo to
vary the means of feizing upon private property,
as to bring the greateft poflible quantity into the
public coffers, without exciting infurrecYion?,
Thofe governments which are called defpotic,
deal more in open plunder ; thofe that call therw-
felves free, and act under the clo«k of what they
teach the people to reverence as a conftituilon, are
driven to the arts of dealing. Thefe have fuc-
ceeded better by theft than the others have by
plunder ; and this is the principal difference by
which they can be diftinguifhed. Under thefe
confiitutional governments the people are more in-
duftrous, and create property iaiter ; becaufe they
are not fenfible in what manner and in what
quantities it is taken from them. The adminif-
tration, in this cafe, operates by a compound
movement ; one is to induce the people to work,
2nd the ether to take from them their earn
ings.

In this view of government, it is no wonder
Kit it ihoulJ b^ cormdered as a curious and com-

r* I V I*. E G F. D O"F D E !? S . 1C"?

plicated machine, too . for vulgar con

templation, capable ot being moved by none but
experienced hands, and fuh;,cl to fall in pieces by
the flighted attempt a* innovation or improvement.
It is no wonder that a church and an army fh -ul4
be deemed necefTary for irs funport ; ami "tint the
double guilt of impiety and rebellion (liquid fdlovr
the man who offers to enter its dark fancluary
vv 'ith the profane li^ht of reaf-n. It is noUunm
Ting that kings and priefts fhould be fuppnfcd to
have derived their authority from Gor1, fince it is
evidently not ^i/en them by men ; that tl-fy fhould
trace to 3 fupernarural fource claims which nature
never has recognized, and which are at war with
every principle of iociety.

I conllantly bear in mind, that there is a ref-
pecbbl?"clafs of men in every country in Europe,
who, whether immediately interefted'in the admi-
niftratipn of the governments or not, are confci-
entiouily attached to the old ed^blifhcd forms. I
kno\v not how much pain it may give them to fee
fCXppfed to public view the various combinations
of iniquity which appear to me to compofe the
fyftern. Rut I ftwM pay a real compliment to
tlieir fenfibiiity^ in fuppofmg that their anfn-iih
can be as great on vieu ing The pidure, as mine
had been in attempting to draw it ; or, that they
can (hudder as much at the profped of a change,
as I have done in contempMing fociety under the

iftonions of its prefent organization/ I fee the
noble nature of man fo cruelly debafed,— I fee
the horfe and the dog in fo many inftances raifed

o a rank far fuperior to beings whom I muft ac
knowledge as my fellow-creatures, and whom
niy heart cannot but embrace with a fraternal af-
which muft increafe with the infults I fee

JOS ADVICE TO THE

them differ, — I fee the pride of power and of rnnk
monntecl to fo ungovernable a height in thofe v\ horn
accident has called to dire-cl the affairs of nations, —
I fee the faculty of rcaibn fo completely dormant
in both thefe clr.fies, and morality, the indifpenfi-
ble bond of union among men, fo effectually ba-
r. 'fi.-ed by the unnatural' coirbl nations, which in
iv.iropc are called Society, — that I have been al-
ino't determined to rtlinquifh thedifagreesble tafk
which I had prcfcribed to rnyfelf in the fir (I part
of t'lis \.vo:k, and, returning to *rty coun<rv, en
deavour in ihe nc\v \\cvid. to ior^ct ihe mifeiits t 1
the-:IJ.

But I refiecl th:it the contemplation of thefe
r-'.ifenes Has already left rn ijiipreffion on m\ niind
too deep to be ealiiy efraced. — i um likev.'ife con
vinced that all the moral evils under vhicb we la-
feonr, may he traced withoiit difficulty, to their
proper fource, — that the ipirit c-i invefligalipn,
which the French rev< lutton ha? av;akened in ma-
j^y parts of Europe, is ftirrnlaiing the people to
ptirfiie the enquiry, and will confequently lead
them to apply the remedy. Under this profpecl,
every perfnn who but thinks he can throw the
leaf! li^ht upon the fubjecl, is called upon for his
alliftance ; and this duw to his fellow-creatures
becomes more imperious, as it is increafed by the
probability of fuccefs.

In confideringthe fubje<ft (.{Revenue and Expen-
dtturc, as in other articles that I have treated, I
fliall confine myfclf chit fly to the great outlines of
the fyftem ; only noticing its efFt& on the moral
habits which muft be confidered as the viral prin
ciples of fociety, and which ought always to be
kept in view as the fir ft obj eel of government,
both in its original conilitution and in every part

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. log

of its adtr.iniilration. I was indeed fenfible that,
this fubjecl would requ're more details ; and that
it might be ufeful to form an eftimate of the quan
tity of contributions neceiiary for any given portion
of mankind united in a national intereft ; as we
might thus be convinced how fmall a revenue
would be fufficient for all the purpofescfa rational
government. But I find my fell happily relieved
from this part of my t *;!•:, by the appearance of
the fecond part of the Rights cf A?an, in which
this branch of the fiibjt6l is treated in that per-
fpicuous manner which might be expected from
its author ; a man whom I confiderjas a luminary
of the age, and one of the greateft benefactors cf
mankind. Neither my woik, nor any other
that {hall be written for ages to come, will furely
find a reader, who will not have read the Rights
of Man.

Men are gregarious in their nature ; they form
together- in fociety, not merely from neceflity, to
avoid the evils of lolitiule, but from inclination and
mutual attachment. They find a pofitive pleafurc
in yielding afliilance to each other, in communi
cating their thoughts and improving their faculties.
pThi$ difpofnion in man is the fource of morals ;
they have their foundation in nature, and receive
their nonrifliment from fociety. The different
portions of this fociety, that call themfelves nations,
have generally eftablifhed the principle cf (Securing
to the individuals who compofe a nation, the
exclufive enjoyment of the fruits of their own
labour; referving however to the governing power
the right to reclaim from time to time fo much of
i'he property and labour of individuals as fhall be
deemed neceflary for the public fervice. This is

liC ADVICE TO THE

the general bafis on which property, public and
private, has hitherto been founded. Nations have
proceeded no taither. Perhaps in a rrrc-re im
proved ftate of fcciety,, the time \\ill come, when
a different fyftem may be introduced ; when jt
fhall be found more congenial to the focial nature
of man to exclude the idea of feperate property,
and with that the numerous evils which feem to
be entailed upon it. But it is not my intention in
this work to enter upon that enquiry.

When the feudal fyftem, with all its ferocitier,
v/as in full operation, the fuperior lord, who re-
prefented the power of the ftate, granted the lands
to his immediate vaflals, on condition of military
fervice. They engaged to ferve in the wars of the
lord paramount a certain number of days in the
year, at their own expence. Thus they ftipulated
as to the quantity of fervice ; but gave up the right
of private judgment, as to the wjtfl of tke war.
This is the origin of the revenue f)ftem of mod
ern Europe ; and it began by debating the minds
of the whole community ; as it hurried them into
actions, of which they were not to enquire into
the juftice or propriety. Then came the fscage-
tenures ; which were lands granted to another clais
of vailals, on condition of plough! Kg the lord's
fields and performing his hufbandry. This was
a more rational kind of fervice ; though, by a
{hocking pervertion of terms, it wa£ called lefe
honorable.

In proportion as war became lefs productive,
and its profits rmre precarious, than thofe of huf
bandry, the tenures upon knight-fervice were
Converted into focage- tenures ; and finally it was
found convenient in mod cafes, especially in Eng
land, to make a commutation of the whole into

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. Ill

money, in certain fixed fums ; and this, by its
fubfequent modifications and extenfions, has ob-
twined the name of a land-tax. The feudal rev
enues of the crown, though they were fuppofed to
be fufficient for the ordinary purpofes of govern
ment, were capable of being increafed on any ex
traordinary occafion ; -and fuch extraordinary oc-
cailons were fure to happen, as often as the gov
ernment chofe to draw more money from the peo
ple. It began this operation under the name of
aids to the king, fulfidia regis ; and, in England
(before it was found necefTary to work the engine
by regular parliaments) various expedients were
ufed to raife from different clailes of the commu
nity thefe extraordinary aids. In many cafes the
authority of the pope was brought in to the alTift-
ance of the kin^, to enable him to levy money for
tMe court. The pope, as head of the church, re
ceived a revenue from the people of England
through the Ezigliih clergy ; and the king, on cer
tain occafion0, agreed with hi in that lie fhoukl
double his demand ; or, condition that the addi
tional fum to be railed, iluuld be divided between
themfelves.*

A perpetual pretext for thefe additional impof]..
tions was always to be found in foreign wars.—-
Edward the firft mud fubduc: the Wvlch ; a Ions;
fucceflion of kings made the glory of the'Britifh
nation to confiit in the reduction of Ireland ;
oihers, in conquering the tomb of Chrift ; and
others, the crown of France. But in common
occtirrencies, where the call for money could not
be predicated on lany national ubjecl ftifficienrly
glaring to excite the emhufiafm or roufe the fears

tix

ixes

, page 6,

112 ADVICE TO THE

of the people, it was the policy of the king to de
tach fome particular dalles of the community
from the common intereft, and to extort money
from them, as from a common enemy. Thus all
Grangers were heavily taxed on coming into the
realm ; thus Jews, with all the wealth they pofTeff-
f d, were declared to be the' abfolute property of,
the king ;* thus, after the religion of the govern
ment was changed, the papifts and non-jurors were
taxeji double to the profeifors of. the national re
ligion ; and thus the king could take a favage ad
vantage of the misfortunes of individuals, and feizev
their property, under the title of wrecks, waifs,
treafure-tryvC) Jh'ays, amercements^ and forfeitures.
Thefe, and a vaft variety of other inventions,
have been praeiifed hy the Engllfli government,
to legalize partial robberies, and take poffelfion
of the people'.1- monev, without the trouble of afk-
ing for it. But all thefe means were infufficient
t ) funply the unlimited expences of a government
founded on orders, privileges, rank, and ignorance,
The moft effectual way to carry on the great bufi-
nefs of revenue was found to be through the inter
vention of a parliament ; and for this purpofe the
farce of reprefeufatioH has been acled over in tins
country, to much better effecl than sny fpecics of
fraud or violence has'been in any other.

*
•'

In one of the laws cf Edivard the Cenfrffor

•'which was repeatedly enforced long after the ccnqueftj
and perhaps is not repealed to tins day ) the ciaufe
respecting the Jeivs is in thefe words : Judxi ct
omnia fua funt regis ; quod in quifpiam datinuerit
eos, vel pecuniam eorurn, perquirat rex, fi vult,
tanquam fuum propriutn.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 1 1£

It would be an infult to the underftandmg of
any reader at this day, todefcribe to him a thing
fo well known, as the manner in which this game
is played between the different branches of the
government. The fecret is out j and the friends
of the fyftem, who ufed to beoccupied.in conceal-
ins; its operation, are now engaged in defending it.
The drift of their defence is to change the mode of
the deception; and perfuade t he people by argument,
to fuffer to pafs before their eyes in open day-light,
fcenes which have hitherto been acled only in the
dark. The curtain has fallen from their hands ;
and they row declare that the play can go on with
out it. This for England, forms a new aera in
cabinet politics. While the fyitem remains the
fame, the fcberne for carry ing it on is totally new-
modelled ; and, like other novelties in the courfe
of humaR improvement, it becomes a proper fub*
jecT: of our investigation.

1 have known a juggler, who, after having for
a long time excited wonder and drawn money
from the multitude, by tricks which were fuppo-
fed to be the effldl of magic, would come for
ward with an engaging frarxknefs, and declare
that there was really nothing fupernatural in the
art ; that it was only the efFecl of a little experi
ence and attention to phyfical caufes, not beyond
the capacity of any one in the company ; that,
though he had deceived them thris far, he was
jnow ready to undeceive them ; and, for another
fee, he would go through the fame courfe again,
with the explanations. This ingenious conftilioa
redoubled their curkmty ^ the fpeflators continu
ed their attention, and renewed 'their contribiu-
liens,

K 2

114 ADVICE TO THE

The government of Great Britain, under king,
lords and boroughs, is now defended both in and
out of parliament, by arguments unknown 10 for
mer politicians. As nearly as any words, except
the right ones, can exprefs the full force of thefe
argument", they are ilated by their authors in the
following lanaya^e : " No people ever has been

o o o I r

or ever can be capable of knowing what is for
their own good, of making their own laws, or of
underftanding them after they are made : as the
people of England, during the time of the com-
iripn wealth, imbibed a different opinion, it has
been thought bed, efpecially fince the laft revolu
tion, to chcriih them in their error, in order to
come more eafily at their money. We therefore
told them that they were free ; that they, as En-
glifhrnen, ought to be free, becaufe their anceftors
were fo ; that Englifh liberty was the envy and
admiration of the world ; that the French were
their natural enemies, becaufe they were • (laves ;
and it was neceffary to make a war once in feven
years, to keep up this idea ; that we were forry
for the incrcafing burthen of their taxes ; but that
was a circumitance not to be regarded by a free
people, as they had the privilege of taxing them-
felves, and their taxes were the price of their
freedom in church and ftate ; that, we intended
to lefTen their burthens as foon as the enemies to
our religion and to our happy conftitution were
deflroyed. But now, gentlemen, we fee you
have difc over ed, and v, e are willing to acknow
ledge, that this w. s all a deception : as to Hberty,
it is but a name ; man gives it up on entering into
fociety, in order to enjoy the benefits of being
governed j it never was nor ever will be, realized
by any nation under heaven j \vhnefs the horrors

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

of pretended liberty in France, the daily aflaflina-
tions and perpetual robberies which you fee in
Mr. Burke 's book from beginning to end ; \vit-
nefs the late infatuation of the Americans ; who,
already recoveriiv their fenfes, and fick of their
boafted independence,* are now wifhing to return
to the protection of their mother-country, where
they could purchafe their laws ready raade by n?,
who underftand the bufmefs ; as to the church,
we are convinced it is no matter on what fort of
religion it is founded, provided it be well connec
ted with the ftate. We (hall fay nothing in fu
ture of the burthen of taxes, as it has been falily
called, the phrafe itfelf has no longer any mean
ing ; it is now clearly known that public taxes
are, in themfelves, a public benefit ; every well-
wifher to his country muft wifh them to increafe ;
and for that purpofe he will do all in his power to
multiply the occafions for creating them ; for it is
acknowledged by all good fubje£ts, that a national
debt is national profperity, and that v>re grow rich
in proportion to the money we pay out. We are
as frank to confefs, as any caveller is to aflert,
that the Houfe ot Commons is not a reprefcnta-
tion of the people ; it has no onnedlion with
them, and it is no longer to our pnrpofe to fup-
pofethat it has ; for the people have nothing to do
with the government, except to be governed ; but
-the Ploufeot Commons is retained in the ftate, for
the far^e reafon that the other branches of the le-

gillature, and that courts and armies are retained,
/

* This is afer'tGUs argument, itfed by feveral wri
ters as well as parliamentary and coffee-bouje orators,
to prove that liberty cannot exijt in any country. See
Dr. Tathain and others.

.II 6 ADVICE TO THE

for the fake of increafing the wealth and happinefs
of the people in the augmentation of the revenue,"
Let any perfon look over the whole chaos of
writings' and fpeeches that have been publifhed
within the laii year againft innovations in the go
vernment, and I believe he will fcarcely. find aa
argument more or lefs than what are here compri
zed. Now this is clearly a different ground from
what lias heretofore been taken in this country for
the fupport of the old fyftem. It wfed to be
thought neceffary to flatter and deceive ; but here
every thing is open and candid. Mr. Burke, in a
frenzy of paflion, has drawn away the veil ; and
ariftociacy, like a decayed proftitute, whom paint*-
ing and patching will no lunger embellifh, throws
off her covering, to get a livelihood by difplaying
her uglinefs.

It is hard to pronounce with certainty on the
' fuccefs of a project (o new ; but it appears to me
extremely improbable that the naked deformities
of defpotifm can long be pleafing to a nation fo
enlightened as the one to which thefe arguments
are addrefled, I cannot but think they are ill
add re fled, and that their authors have milted their
policy in differing the people to open their eyes to
their true function. It is certain that the Cardinal
de Richlieu has given them different advice. He,
like molt other great men, is lefs known by his
writings than his actions ; but he left a pofthu-
mous work, called a Political Teftament, which
has been remarkably neglefled by thofe for whofe
good it was intended ; and by none more than by
the prefent friends of ariftocracy in England.
That profound politician obfervcs, " That fub-
**jedls with knowledge, fenfe or reason, are as
f( monfirous as a beaft with an hundred eyes, and

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 117

" that fuch a bead would never bear its burthen
" peaceably The people mull: be hood-winked,
" or rather blinded, if yeu would have them tame
" and patient drudges. In ihorf, you muft treat
" them every way 1'ke pack-horfcs or mule?, not
" excepting the bells about their necks ; which
" by their perpetual jingling, may be of ufe to
i( drown their cares."

It muft be obferved, however,, that in the bu-
finefs of taxation, which is nearly all the bufmefs
of a public nature that is done by the government
in England ; a policy not very different from that
of Richlieu has been pra6tifed with great fuccefs.
The aggregate quantity of the revenue raifed upon
the people has indeed been fotnewhat known ; but
the portion paid by each individual, and the time,
manner and reafrn of hi? paying it^'are^rircum-
itances enveloped in total darknefs. 16 keep the
fiibje<S ignorant -of thefe things is the great fecret
in the modern fcience < \ finance. The money he
pays to government- being incorporated with every
thing on which he lives, all that he can know of
the matter is, that whether he eats, drinks or
iJeeps, walks or rides, fees the light or breathes
the air, — whatever he docs, drains from him a
tax ; and this tax is to fupport the luxury of thofe
who tell him they are born to govern. But on
which of thefe functions the tax falls the heavieft —
whether the greateft proportion lies upon his bread
or his beer, his (hoes or his hat, his labours or his
pleafures, his virtues or hi- vices, it is impoflible
lor any man to know. As therefore he cannot
difpenfe with the whole of his animal functions,
without ceafing to exiit, and as this expedient is
not often fo eligible as ful mining to the impoii-

ri8 A&VICE TO

tion, there is no danger but the tax will be col
lected.

It is difficult to defcribe, perhaps impoffible to
conceive, the quantity of evils wrought in fociety
fr'«:n this mode of colle&ing revenue by decep
tion ; or laying the duty in fuch a manner, that
the people ihali not be fenfible when or huvy it is
paid. This is extremely unlike that manly prin
ciple of mutual confidence on which men unite in.
fociety. It is the reverfe of that conduct, which,
arifing from the open integrity of our own hearts,
is the guarantee of integrity in others. It is a
policy that muft have originated from two con
tending interefts in the nation, from a jealoufy of
their own power in the legiflanve body, from a
knowledge that fomcthing was wrong in them-
felves or ia the fyftem, and from a confcionfnefs
that one or tire other, or both, were unworihy of
the confidence of the people by whom they were
fnppcried.

I am aware that in the doctrine which I dial!
labour to eftablifh on this fubjefl, I (hall have to
encounter the whole weight of opinion o* modern
times. Men of all purtier, and of all defcriptions,
both the fiiends an! the enemies of equal liberty,
feem to be agreed in one point relative to public
contributions : That the tax fiould be fo far dijgui-
fed) as to render the payment imperceptible at the time
*f paying it. This is almoft the only point in
which the old and new fyfiems agree, in thofe
countries where a change of principle has taken
place ; it is one of thcfe rare pofi lions, on which
theorifts themfelves have formed, but one opinion.
It is therefore not without much reflection, and
a? great a degree of csution as a feriotis advocate,
Jfor truth ought ever to obTerve, that I (hail pro^

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 119

•ceed to examine a pofition, which, refting on the
accumulated experience of mank'nd, has not yet
been ihaken by enquiry.

I will begin by acknowledging the force of two
obfervations, which go to the fupport of the pref-
ent fyilem, as it applies to mod of the exifting
governments and to the prefent ftate of fociety in
Europe: I. As long as public revenues muft re*
main as great as they now are, and as difpropor-
-tioned to the abilities of the people, it is abfolutely
necelTary to difguife the taxes on which they de
pend ; ciherwife they cannot be collected. 2. As
long as thefe revenues are applied to the purpofcs
to which they now are, it is impoilible to collect
them but by fraud or violence ; and violence has
been found by repeated trials, cfpecially in Eng
land, not to anfvver the purpofe fo well as fraud*
While fociety remains divided into two parties,
•which are coniiitutionally oppofed to each other,
it is impollible but that they muft regard each other
as enemies, and then conduct muft be the dictate of
mutual averfion. When the people fee that pay
ing money to their governors, is paying it to their
enemies, they certainly never can give it with a
good will ; and when they know that this money
ferves only to Strengthen the hands of their oppref-
fors in forging new weapons of opprellion againft
themfelves, they muft feel an obligation to with
hold it, rather than to pay it. In this cafe, de
frauding the revenue is confidered not only as
juftice to themfelves, but as a duty to their chil
dren. A tax under thefe circumftances is more
naturally objectionable than the Dane-gelt^ which
\vas formerly paid in England : that a ntribution
was made by the people, to hire a foreign enemy to
leave them in peace ; and it always had a tempo-

120 ADVICE TO THS

rary good £ffe&, But a contribution paid to the
people's enemies at home, who being few in
number, mufl f< on, it unfupported, fall of .them-
fclves, cannot prom He even a temporary benefit ;
the hand of the t nemy that receives it, does not fo
niiich as lay down it's weapon while it grafps the
money. As long therefore as fociety continues in
its prefent disordered condi-ion, any arguments
drawn from moral propriety imii'i; be overpowered
by the ftrong voice of necefiity ; for reafons of
iiature generally tail in a couiliQ. with reafons cf
(late.

But as a new order of things begins to make its '
appearance, and principle is no longer to be bor
rowed from precedent, we will endeavour to dif-
covcr the ground ot the received do&rine relative
to taxation ; and enquire how far that doctrine is,
in itfelf, an object of reform. Out of the feven-
teen millions flerling which are snnually paid in-
to the exchequer in England, but about two mil
lions and a half are levied in ciire<& taxes ; that is,
in taxes laid in fuck a manner a? to be paid direct
ly to the fi Teal officers by theperfons on whom the
burthen falls. Thefe sre chiefly comprehended
in the taxes on lands and houfes. In France, be
fore the revolution, the proportion of direcl taxes
was much greater. According to the ftatement of
M. Necker, it was near eight millions ilerling, "out
©f about twenty-four millions and a half, of which
the public revenue confuted. This is fomething
lefs than a third ; while the proportion in Eng
land is little more than a fevcnth. Thefe propor
tions are fuppofed by fome of the mod: approved
reafoners on the fubjecT:, in each country, particu
larly M. Necker and Sir John Sinclair, to be as
high as it would be prudent to go with direct tax-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 121

atior>. The remaining portion of the immenfe
revenues in thcfe two Countries, about fixteen mil-
•lions and a half ior France, and fourteen and a
half for England, was vaifed in the ftrmer, and is
iiill raifed in the laiter, by indirect taxation ; by
•cuttoms, excife, asd inland duties of various kind ,
called taxes on conjumbtwn. The art of impofing
thefe, fo as to infure their colL-clion, is to incor
porate the fum to he raifed tor government with
ihw price of every tiling for which men pay their
money in the courfe of life. h is the hock with-
in the bait t<f all our pleauires, of all our conveni
ences, and of all our neceHurks. "The book can-
•noi be feparated from the bait, nor the bait from
our exigence. Whh regard to individuals, the
gueiHon is nor, fhall we pay the tax r but, fhall
we exift ? The continuance of life Is a continuance
o*~ the tax ; aikd the langijuge of the fvih m is, p^v
the (iebi co governmciii. or puy the debt to au-
t urc.

It is fiid in ethics, on the Pihj;-& of neceffity*
t i i a ; , i u p p o ! i r i g their is n o c h o ice w t a cf i o n , t h c re
Cu/:i be ao moral agency , and no v li tue. \V e will not
rji«.]Hire into the propriety of the iuppofition as it re-
ip*;dii our relation to the Deity, and our fubjcclion
to the great laws of nature ; but mere can be no
doubt that the reaioniug is juil, when applied to
the laws of iocicty. Perhaps ir is tnit, that,
though I am proinpred by the inviiible deltiny of
nature, to dj an aclion for the good of my tellow-
creaiiijcs, tins action is virtuous ; but when the
neceflity tv^r this action arifes directly from the
pofuivclaws of focjety, in wrhofe favour it is to be
performed — when the argument derives its toice
trom the ax held over my neck, no idea of virtue
<*\\ be annexed to the adion ; it is merely me-
L

122 ADVICE TO THE

chanical. On this ground we may eftablifli a
ppfition, which I believe will not be controvert
ed : that the exerclfe of private judgment is the
foundation of moral virtue ; 2nd confequentty,
that ail operations of government cany deitri:dion
to the latter, in proportion as they deprive us of
the former. An arbitrary order impoftd by a
mailer, wheiher it be upon a nation or a fimjile
ciomeftic fervant, tends to debafe the mind, ahci
crufh that native dipnity which is abfuliftely necef-
fary to the cxidciice of merit, <>r of kit :*pproba-
tion. And the citecl that inch an order prc duces
on the mind is nearly the fame, whether tneafiion
enforced be right or wrong.

The true object of the focial compact is to im
prove our moral faculties, as well as tq fupply our
phyfical wants ; and where it fails in the fir ft of
thcfe, it certainly will fail in the laft. But where
the moral purpofe is attained, there can be no fear
but that the phyfical one will be the ii.icparable
corifequence ; place fociety on this footing, and
there will be no aid or .duty that the general inter-
eft can require from individuals, but what every
individual will underftand. His duties, when
firft propofed, will all be voluntary, and being
clearly undi-ritood to be founded on the good of
the whole community, he will find a greater per-
fonal intereft in the performance than he would in
the violation. There is no pofition more undenia
ble in my apprehenfion, than that this would al
ways be the cafe with a great majority of any peo
ple ; and if we fuppofe a fmall portion of refrac
tory perfons, who, from want of original con-
lent, or from a fubfequent change of opinion,
(hould re f life to perform their duties ; in this cafe,
the opinions of the great majority aflumc the fhape

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. I2j

of government, and procure a compliance by com-
pulfion and reftraint. This is the onlyfure foun
dation on which \vc can ever build the real dignity
of fociety, or the correfponding energy of govern
ment. It is eftabli fhing the moral relations of men
on the moral fenfe of men ; and it is this union
alone that can cherifh our efteem or command our
rcfpech

On this plan, it is of the utmoft importance
that the wants of the ft ate fhould never be dif-
guifed, and that the duty of the individual, in Ap
plying thofe wants, mould never be performed by
deception. If the ftate be properly organized,
fuch difguife and deception \vill be unneceflary ;
and if we wim to preferve it from degeneration,
they will be extremely dangerous ; a?, by attack
ing the moral fenfe of ihc people, they fap the
foundation of the (late.

When a company of merchants, or other pri
vate men, engage in an cnterprife that requires con
tributions in money, we hear of no difficulties in
railing the fiipulated fums among the different
partners in tke company. Every partner makes
it his bufinefs to underftand the nature of the con
cern ; he expe6Ls an advantage from the enter-
prife, and. pays his money with the fame willing-
neis, as lie wtnild pay it in his private bufineis.
Me would feel himfelf infulted, if any difi-uife
were thrown upon the fuhjeft, to cheat him into
his duty. Indeed, wh^n the enterprife has come
to an end, or when there is an apprehenfion of
lois, or a fufpicion of mifmsnagcmcut in ti;e
agents, it is natural to expert a reluctance in
payment, which is only to be overcome by the
arts of deception or the coinpukion c>f law. But
this 1; iiot cLc L;*fc whil^ the cc:::p:my is in a pro!-

TZA ADVICE TO THK

perou.s condi ion, nnd while its members arc uni
ted by mutual confidence in purfuit of a common
intereft. A nation, whofe 'government fhould be
habitually in the hands of the whole community,
would always be a company in this prosperous con
dition ; i*s concerns would be a perpetual and
pronriifiRe; enterpnfc, in which every individu.il
would find) his mterefl and repofe his confidence.
Perfonal protection and public nappinefs would be
fh** objefts aimed at in the nd mini (I rat ion ; and
wou!;l be infallibly attained, becaufe nr» hu
man accidents could prevent it. There could be
no fufpTcion of mifmanagement in the ngents,
they being perpetually unclrr the control of the
vvholf people. Every -reafon, therefore, which
roi:ld induce individuals to \\ith-hold their pecuni
ary contribution?, would he entirely removed ;
^M! the fame motives which influences nun to
i.'jve hi- attention and nay his money in hi? own
perfonal concerns, would engage him to do the
iaine things in the concerns of the public.

If thefs pofitions are not true, then have I mif-
concewed the ckarp(^.er of the human heart, and
the real efTc&s to be wrought on fociety by a ra
tional fyftem of government ; but if they are ac
knowledged to be true, it ought to be an inc'ifpen-
Jible maxim to abolifh and avoid every vefti^e of
ind;re6l taxation. It muft appear evident, that to
raife money from the people by any other method,
than by openly aligning to every one his portion,
and then demanding that portion as a dirtcl con
tribution, is unnecefftjry to the objeft of revenue,
and definitive to the firft principles of fociety.
It has long been complained of in England (fo long
that the complaint has almoft ceafed to make any
knpreflion even on the minds of thofe who repeal

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

it) that /he Excifc is an odious tax The reafon on
which the complaint is founded is what the prin
ciple of government would naturally fugged ; but
it is not the reafon which I iliould afligri. The
tax is (aid to be odious, chiefly becaufe it throws a
vexatious power into the hands of the revenue
officers, to fearch the houfes and infpe6t the afF.urs
of individuals. As long as the government an- 1
the people are two oppofi^e parties in the (rate, at
continual enmity with each o'her, it is natural
that each party fhould vviih to conceal its .opera
tions, the bttter to lucceed in their mutual hollil-
ity.aati defence \ for fecrecy is one of the weapons
of war. But it' the (late con filled of nothing more
t.h.in one great fqeiety compofcd of all the people,
it fhe government was their will, and its object
their happinefs, the reafons for fecrecy would
ccafe, the intefline war would ceafe, the par
ties would ceafe.

The bufinefs of the (late and the bufinefs of in
dividuals might befafely expofed to all the world.
An open generofity of conduct, the reciprocal
fign and guarantee of integrity, would mark the
character of every member of fociety, whether
a6tlng as a public agent, or as a private citizen.

But the great objection which ought to be made
againft the excife, is the fame as will apply to
cufloms, duties, and all other tricks of a iimilur
kind, by which the money is drained from the
people without their knowledge or confent. The
whole fyftem of indirect taxation, fo univerfal ia
Europe, fo much extolled by the athuT: financiers,
as necefiary in compofing their err.)rmous mailcs of
extorted revenue, is wrong from its foundation,
i;nd rnuil be vicious in its practice. It is built on
L 2

126 ADVICE TO THE

the great ariflocratical principle, that men muft
be governed by fraud ; and it can be only neceffary
to that fyftem of management which divides the
nation into two permanent paries, the parry that
receives and the party that pays.

The wretched refource that governments have
found in lotteries,* ton:ines, and annuities upon
fcparate lives, meiits the fevered ccr.fure, and
ought to be held up to the execration of mankind,
the moment we arc ready to re fort to the real prin
ciples oi cur nature, in managing the affairs of
nation0. A tontine partakes at once of the nature
of lotteries and of fimple Hie-annuiues and in
volves 1:1 hfelf the principal vices of both. Like
a lottery it is founded in the fpirit of gambling ;
and like a life-annuity, it detaches a man from the
feelings and interefts of his friends, of fociety and
of all mankind, except thofe of the particular clafs
of the tontine to which he belongs ; and to them
lie is rendered, in a literal fenfe, a mortal enemy.

Borrowing money upon life-annuities, as an

* // u\-7J my IntiHii-jn in this place to have noticed,
fomewhat more at large y the pernicious tendency of
public lotteries. But the late crifis in the government-
of France^ when the people found it necefi&fy to re-
vife their Cwjiiiution, offered an occq/ion for making
fome remarks which 1 thought m'ght be vjeful to them
on the hufwefs then lying before them> for ivhich the
the Convention was about to be qffembkd. I therefore
publifieda fljort Treatlje on lie defcfls of their Confli-
tution in " A Letter to the National Convention,"
in which are particularly treated the fuljecl of lotte
ries, that of public falaries, and f eve ral other mat
ters, which othenvife would have come into tt:is f-JJay
tn Revenue.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS.

operation of government, has been much mere
practifed in France than in England. The rea-
fon of this is well explained by Adam Smith.*
It was owing to the fuperior influence, in that
country, of thofe unnatural difiinctions among
families, which prevent them from adociating
"with each other on the principles of mutual attach
ment ; principles congenial to the human near,
and no lefs neceiiary to individual happinefs, than
to the good order of fociety and the proiperity of the
ttate. The pride of birth and the jealoufy of rank_
operate on fuciety like congelation and Conejtffiion
on a body of water : they freeze up the who]'*
tnais, and break iiinto-a t hou fa nd pieces ; whic.n
refufc to unite among themfelvcs, or to anf-ver
the purpofes which nature has afFigncd to that
element. The genius of ariftocracy, by the dif
iinctions of birth, had eflabliilied in France almofc
as many ranks as there were families. Thcfe
were perpetually repelling and replied, torment
ed by jealoufies, and kept afunder -/ artiriciai
averfions, which filcnced the voice of nature, ami
counteracted every object of fociety. A man in
this frozen, and repulfive (late of things, becomes
a proper object for the government to fcduce into
afelfifh hoftility againfl the generous duties of life,
by the temptation of life-annuiiies. An eleg3nt
French author dcfciibes the annuitant as having
fubdued every fentirnent moil dear to the human
heart: u He ainalle? his whole capital upon his
own head, makes the king his univerfal legatee,
fells his own pofteriiy at the rate of ten per cen».
difmherits his brothers, nephews, friends, and
fometiaies his own children. He never marries ;

*fjftdtb of Nation^ Book V. Chap. I.IL

he vegetates, till the return of the quarter day,
and enquires with eagernefs in the morning whe
ther he is dill alive ; his whole exercife of body
and mind confifts in going once in three months to
the notary at the corner of '.he ftreet to fign his
receipt, and obtain a certificate, that he is nut yet
dead." The officers of government know very
vyell the advantages derived from long humid win
ters and epidemical difeafes ; and they mud deli-! I
in the winnings of the game thus played by the
public treafury in partnerfhip with death.*

I am fcnnble that all thefe maxims, which go
to a change of iyftem in the collection of revenue,
are deftined t«> veil merely in fpeculation, in all

*Fer a more lively and affecting p? flu re than I

Jhould be able h give, of the evils anfing from this

Jvftem ,tht reader is referred to the Ihort fketch, drawn

f'V the above author ', Mr. Mercler ; tie following

is a p fir t of it : —

41 But h:.*' is it pffiblc that a wife government
c.uld throw open the gate to thofe numerous and in
credible dif order*, which arc tie offspring of annuities
on lives ? The bands between parents and children
broken, idlenefs pcnfiwed, celibacy authorised, Jelfijh-
nefs triumphant, cruelty reduced mtojyjhm and prac
tice ; fuc\) are the j mall eft evils zvkicb arije from thcja
annuities. Is It not from theje personal and cxclujive
enjoyments, thefe additional incentives to felf-l^ve, that
parents, friends and citizens are no longer known ?
frieriftfbip, love, tendemefi, paternal ajffefiivn, all
are facrljlccd to annuities !

The young women who have poffed the 'age of being
•marriageable, are, In Paris, innumerable \ they
have figned contracts en annuities, and that prevents
tkeir fignixg cwtrttfls of marriage \ for the frjl re-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 129

- otmtries ftill afflicted with unnatural plans of
government ; for fo they muft reft, till a total
change of principle (bull have taken place. But
let it "not be fa id that, on this account, the hints
here given, areufelefs. If they are founded in
truth and realbn, the French Republic will foon
l^c Dole to adopt them, Ijy the time that us ?o-
•, -.rnment (hall be permanently fettled, its public

• l"ht will doubtlefs be very corfiderably reduced,
Its necefTary revenue will then be fo frRall, com-
•• <rH with w*?at it hitherto has been, the people
vu'l be fo far elevated to the dignity of freemen,
and accuftomcd to the duties of citizens, that they

. v/jll find a fenllble pleafure, ra'her than a fervile
talk, in paying their Contributions to the ftate.
This r^aioriing mav like wife be thought worthy
of confederation in fhe United States of America ;
where perhaps it mny be followed bv the fame-
effrcls. With refpedl to other countries, we muft
v/ait. A reformation of fo deep a nature muft be
preceded by a perfect regeneration of foriety ;
fnch as can only beexpefted from a radical change
of principle in the government.

I am fenlible that men, whofe experience in
the rmnngemeut of public affair? has ta»ight them
to j uci ere v i^h feverity on the various perverftties
of human nature, will find many obvious objec
tions to a theory fo different from that on which
their pra£tiie has been ioumied. If i do riot an-

which they can make muff le an the inevitable
mijery of the children, who might be the offspring *f
juch a knot.

A contraff on annuities always ifihtes on individ
ual, and prevents the fulfilment oj the duties gfi'/.'i-
zen/hip,"

130 ADVICE TO THE

ticipate all their arguments in form, I certainly
mean to do it infubftance ; for I am not unapprifed
of their weight. Where the revenue is to be
raifed only for hone/i purpofes, and where it is to
be kept within a moderate corrpafs, fo that the
taxes are to be no more than what a well-organi
zed community would be willing to lay upon iffelf,
all arguments againft raiting the whole by djre£t
taxation are reducible to thefe two points : the
improvident temper of one clals of men, and the
vnreafanMefe/fiftwefs of others, have always ren
dered it difficult to obtain irom them their contri
butions by direft and open means. The firft of
thefe dalles comprehends many of the poor labour
ing people in the great towns. Thffe people are
in the habit of fpending all they can earn, if not
for the neceifaries of lite, at leaft for fuperftuous
or vicious gratifications. They never provide for
a future want, eveii their own ; much lefs would
thty think of providing for the wants of the ftate.
As it is vain to afk for money where it does not
exift, no tax can 'be collected by applying directly
to that clafs of men. It is therefore thought be ft
to mingle the tax with their meat and drink ; and,
fince they will fpend all their money for thefe, let
a part of it go to the ftate.

To this argument feveral anfwers may be offer
ed : fir fly it is in a great meafure owing to the
inherent defedts of the government, that fuch a
clafs of improvident nien is found in any fociety.
That men of good intellects and found conftitu-
tions mould be inattentive to the means of procur
ing happinefs, is certainly contrary to the analogy
of nature. Indeed we overlook the caufe when
we go back to nature for it ; there is no doubt but
it is always to be found in their relative fa nation

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 131

in the focial (late. It is the want of early inftruc-
tion, or the want of proper obj eels of emulation
to ftimulate the mind to a fenfe of its own dignity,
as relative to the fociety in which it has to act.
When the man is taught to know and feel that he
never can rife above the Condition of a beaft of
burthen, he ads at lead a confident part, perhaps
even a wife part, in blunging his feelings, and
beating down his mind to'iKe level of his deflina-
tion. But it is not necdi>.ry to fuppofe that per-
fons in general, who are found in the ciafs above
defciibed,- have to go through the fame procefs of
reafoning, and then of killing their reafon, in or
der to arrive at this condition. S-sch indeed mull
have been the origin of the bufmefs in the firft
inftance ^ but afterward?, the greater part are
tern in this element of apaihy ; they are furround-
ed all their lives by no other examples but beings
of this fort; and they never have a jhought or a
ivifh beyond their prefent fituaiion. Their only
object is to baniih all thought and Rifle every vviili'-
and whether they perifh under the walls of an ak-
houfe, or in a king's ihip, or en the king's gal
lows, is to them a matter of perfe& indifference.
Such is the deplorable condition of a numerous
clals of beings whom monarchs and rniniflers mud
recognize as their fellow-creatures ; and if they
are called more vitious than their rulers, it is be-
caufe we have perverted the meaning of the word,
But I am not finding fault with rnen^oi any partic
ular defcription whatever. In this drama of hu
man mifery, in which fo many diftorted charac
ters are a£ted, our moral faculties are warped and
fitted to the part affigned us ; and we perform it
without fcruple or enquiry. The judge upon the
bench is fcarcely more to blame, than the ftupid

ADVICE TO

felon he condemn*. The oppreiTors anrl the op-
p relied, of ev cry "denomination, are in general, juM
as wicked and juit as abfnrd as the fyftem of gov-
erriment requires. In mercy to them all, let the
fytlem be changed, Jet fociety be rciiored, and
human nature retrieved.

Thofe who compofc the middle cbiTes of man
kind, the clailes in v\ hich the fen.Llance oi naiuic
moll rciides, are called upcn to perioim this talk.
Ir is true that, as reaf.ri is flow in returning to
the mind from which it has been f<> tardily baniih-
ed, it will require fo;ne time in bring the n;en,
who now fill the two extremes in ihe urcu:icJ
icale of r;jnk, to a proper view of their iic\% Ua-
tion of citizens. Minds thar have long been
cruflied under the iveiv>ht of privilege arid prn.'v,
or of mifery and diipiiir, are ec|i:::ljy diitarn rr( la
all rationalideas of the dignity c-f man. But ev«-n
theie clailcs may be bronyht b.xk by de^ r( ::es to i)e
'jieful members of the Hale ; aud ihe re vvi»nld i< •. n
be no invJividnal, but wonl-d tind hi:rfe!t h;!j;pi;:r
from the change. Place government on the vvif-
dom of the whole .people, and they will always
have wifdom enough tocondu<3 it.

Second, under this natural organization of the
flate, ihould there remain a final i number of im
provident men, unable to perform the duties of
adive citizens, there would be many rcafons for
excuting them from any part of ihe public bur
then. It is probable that very lew iniranres
would be found, where the inability did not arife
from mental or bodily detects ; in which cale,
their claim on fociety for fupport, would take
place of any claim that fociety could have upon
them for the payment of a tax. In addition to
thefe, we may fuppofe a lew others, who, from

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 133

accidental lofTes, or other misfortunes to which
feparate property is liable, might be unable to an-
fwer-the demand of the collector ; thefe the gov
ernment would naturally excufe. If, after thefc,
there (hotihi remain another clafs, who, wantonly
jegardlefs o** their own happinefs and of their fo-
jcial duties, fhoulcl be found without the means of
.payment, (Which is a fuppofition I admit only for
the fake of argument) the tefis to the (late would
.be very triiiing in omitting to collect from them.
It would bear no companion to the infinite mif-
chiefs that proceed from the fyftem of difguife.

As to the ether point of objection,, arifing from
the unreafonable feHi/bnefs of fome forts of people,
which makes it difficult 10 come at their money by
any direct application to their perfon^ it defer vcs
a farther consideration. But to give it a full dif-
cuffion would lead to a new range of fpeculation
jnto human nature, extending to a length which
I fear would be difproportionate to the limits af
fined to this chapter. J cannot be fatisfied with
Jthe common opinions we have entertained in re
gard to the effect that property would naturally
-have upon the human mind. I fay naturally not
in contradiction to the foetal (late, but in contra
diction to the unnatural Rate, in which govern
ment, founded an con quell or accident,, has hither
to placed mankind. A natural Rate x)f fociefy, or
a nation organized as human renfon would dictate,
for .the purpofe of fupplying the greateft quantity
iof our phyfical wants, with the correfponding
jrnprovement of our moral faculties, has never yet
b^en thoroughly tried. It muft be confefTed
therefore that the opinions we h^ve formed of the
human heart (land a chance of being eroneous ; as
jhey have been formed under the difguife of im-
M

134 ADVICE TO THE

preilions which do^not belong to its nature, The
picture of man could not have been fairly drawn
while he fat with a veil upon his face. Thefe
facts being premifcd, if we wifh to come at his
genuine character, the hiftory of his actions mud
be received with particular caution ; as but little
reliance can be had upon their teftimoney. The
labyrinths of error in which he has been forced to
wander, the delufive tapers with which he has
been conducted, and the load of abufes under
which he has had to ftrwggle, muft have dimmed
his under (landing and debafed his moral powers,
to a degree that cannot yet be accurately known.
He rifes into light, aftonifhed at what he is,
afhamed at what he has been, and unable to con
jecture at what he may arrive.

Some general traits, however, may be difcov-
ered in his character, and recognized as the genu
ine (lamp of nature. Among thefe may be rec
koned a certain defire in every individual of obtain
ing the good opinion of his fellow-creatures. —
Some degree of diftinction, at leaf! fo far as to ac
quire an individuality of character among his
equals, and merit their refpedt and confidence, is
doubtlefs natural to man ; and whatever, in a
true fenfe, is natural, is, in the fame fenfe, laud
able. A man, without the artificial aid that foci-
ety gives him, has but two refources on which he
can rely for obtaining this refpedt ; thefe are his
phyftcal and his moral powers. By the cultivation
of one or both of thefe, he renders himfelf ufeful,
and merits the diltinction that he wifhes. Proper
ty, which is called, perhaps with fufficient accura
cy, the creature, of fociety, is fecured to individuals,
only for their private benefit ; or at mod as a
pledge of their attachment to the community, by

PRIVILEGED ORDERS".

which it is guaranteed. It is not expefted, on
the true principles of fociety, that an individual
fliould difpofeof any part of his own property to
the benefit of the public. So much of it as the
public requires in contributions, is demanded as a
right ; it belongs to the ftateby the nature of the
locial contract, in return for the guarantee of the
red. It cannot be intended therefore that this
mould be the way in which a man flionld ufe his
property, to procure to himfelf refped ; neither
is it fo in faft. The reliance he has upon it, for
the purpofe of refpecl, is founded on a differ
ent principle. Except fuch propoiiion as isne-
cefory in fupplying his perfonai wants, the pof~
feflbr makes ufe of his property as a fign, or as 3
fubftitute, for perfonai merit. Indeed fo far as
his property is the fruit of his own exertions, it
is not an unnatural indication of abilities; and
even where it has defcended to him from his an-
-eeftors, it is not a more unreafonable ground of
pretenfion, than hereditary titles of any other de-
icription.

^ On this principle, it is eafy to trace the begin
nings of a deviation from a rational eftimat'e of
things, m our attachment to property. A gov
ernment which had been founded in violence, and
was to be carried on for the exclusive benefit of a
final! proportion of the community, muft have
been under the ncccflity, at all time,-, of fupport-
mg itfelf by impofition. This circumftance goes
at once to the difcouragement and the difufe of the
moral powers tf individuals ; as they muft ceafe to
be cultivated, 'the moment they ceafe to be ref-
pefted. As the nation, at the fame time, grew
more numerous, and the fuccefs of war and other
£reat operations were found to depend lefs on

136 ' ADVICE TO THE

ly firength, this too began to lofe its eftirriatioty
and could no longer be relied on, as a title to ref-
pe£l. A natural fefource therefore, by which to
efcape from, thefe unnatural reftri£tions, \vas
found in a veneration for external and fallacious
figns of merit, appropriated to individuals. This
was the origin of all hereditary titles of honour ;
and it mutt likewife have been the origin, at leaft
in a great meafure$ of our exceffive attachment to
property.

There is another point of View in which this
theory may be placed, that will fho'w it to be (iill
more probable. In the fame proportion as this
veneration for property offered a rcfource ^in
dividuals, on their giving: up the natural right of
cultivating their perfonal talents, it alfo became a
neceffary engine in the hands of the government.
It is eafy to perceive, that, in a fyftem where ev-
every thing depends on hereditary rank, the per-
fon placed at the head ought always to be entitled
to the great eft (hare of refpedl. And where fhould
a king feek for this, but in exterior pomp ? Nei
ther wifdom nor ftrength can I e made hereditary,
but titles and property may. It was abfolutely
requifite that thofe qualities, in which the king
might be rivalled or furparTecl by his fubje&s,
fhould be brought into difrepute ; and that all
mankind fhould fix their admiration on thofe in
which he could excel. Governments of this kind
are fure to be adminiftered in fuch a manner, that
the king fhall always be the richeft man in the na
tion ; and they generally go farther, and make
othet men rich in proportion to their fervility to
him. It is thus that the order of nature is invert
ed, and names are fubftitued for things. The
finiple ufes of property are converted into the fplcn-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS,

did magnificence of wealth. This becomes the
great and alrnoft univerfal object of human ambi
tion ; it excites the gaze and veneration of all
clalTes of men. Individuals are really rot to be
blamed, nor their judgment to be called in quef-
tion, for this manner of eftimating things. Exte
rior pomp is, in fact, more ufeful to them, than
perfonal qualifications. It indeed often takes place
of all the folid enjoyments of life ; and it never
can be ftrange that it fhould do fo, ao lonq as it
procures that refpect, the defire of which is
doubtlefs among the ftrongcft paffions of our na
ture. We never hear of a man committing fili
cide for the want of bread, but it is often done for
the want of a coach.

Such is the paflion, and fuch, I believe, is the
origin of the inordinate pailion for property, in the
prefent ftate of manners. The greater part of
rational men agree that thefe things are wrong ;
they agree that the general tafte and fentiments of
mankind, on thjs fubject, are eroneous ; and
they vvifh they could be changed. The only point
in which I differ from thefe men in opinion is,
that I have no doubt but thefe things will be chan
ged. I think we difcern the radical caufe of the
evil ; I think that caufe will foon be removed ;
and the remedy will inevitably follow ; becaufe it
is nothing more than a fimple operation of nature,
recovering herfelf from reftraint. I am not
preaching a moral lecture on the ufe of riches, or
the duty of charity \ I am endeavouring to point
out the means by which the neceility for fnch lec
tures may be fuperceded. A duty that runs con
trary to habit, is hard to be enforced, either by
perfuafion or by law. Rectify our habits, and
eur duties will rarely be omitted.
M 2

138 ADVICE TO THE

Good men in all civilized nations, have taken
unwearied pains, and given themfelves real grief
of heart, in cenfuring the vices and recommend
ing the duties of mankind, relative to the life and
abufe of property. Their labours have douhtlefs
done fome good ; for we may readily conceive
that the quantity of mifcry in the world is not fo
great as it might have been without them. But
thefe men have not penetrated to the root of the
evil ; or rather, they have overlooked it ; and the
remedies they have propofed have always been
partial, unpromifing, and without fuccefs. They
lay the blame to the natural propenfities of the
human heart, and call upon individuals for refor
mation. Whereas, the fault lies not fo deep, nor
is the cure to be looked from individuals, even with
refpecl to themfelves. Habit is the ape of na
ture ; it aflumes her appearance, and palms its
vices upon her. And as the univerfal habit with
refpeft to the fubject now in queftion has arifen
out of unnatural and degrading fyftems of govern
ment, a reformation can be expected, only from
referring back to nature for a change of thofe fyf
tems ; and there is no doubt but this remedy wil|
be effectual.

Eftablifh government univerfal!) on the individ
ual willies and collected wifdom of the people, and
it will give a fpring to the moral faculties of every
human creature ; becaufe every human creature
muft find an intereft m its welfare. It muft af
ford an ample fubject far cc memplation and exer
tion ; which cannot fail to give a perpetual im
provement to the mind, and elevate the man to a
more exalted view of himfelf, as an active mem
ber of that focial (rate, where virtue has a fcope
for expanfion, and merit is fure to be rewarded.

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 139

Being thus reftored to nature, every thing is eafy
and progreffive ; the individual looks to himfelf
for his title to refpect, the moment he becomes
habituated to believe and know that this is the only
title that will anfwer his purpofe. The idea of
relying on the glare of exterior pomp, whether it
be of wealth or hereditary rank, mud be regarded
as what it really is in fact, the effort of a weak
mind to cover its own weaknefs. Such efforts
being refented by the people, as attempts to im-
pofe upon their underftanding, they mull fall in
to difrepute and be laid afide. They cannot be
ufcful, they cannot be kept in countenance, in a
fociety founded on the bafis of human reafon.

It is difficult to conceive to what an extent this
circumftance would operate on the character of the
human mind, with refpect to its attachment to
property. If the prefent fyftems of government
are unnatural, I am convinced that this part of the
human character is unnatural ; and a change in the
former muft produce a change in the latter. One
of theufesof property, that of procuring rcfpe&
would be entirely cut off. And it muft be confi-
dered that this is the ufe that has generally had the
mod powerful effect upon the mind ; becaufe it is
immoderate and unbounded. It is well known
thdt rivals in the difplay of wealth are among the
moft jealous rivals in the world ; and that there is
ufually no limit to the defires of a man on this fub-
ject, when they once pafs the limit of his real or
expected wants.

One fimple fact, wiih refpedt to the French na
tion, is almoft fufficient of itfelf to fupport the
opinion I here advance. But I thought it nece£-
fary, before adducing that fact, to recur to theo
retical principles , in, order to flicw that both the

ADVICE TO THE

fadl and the opinion are founded in nature, and
therefore may be trufted, fo far. as they go, as the
foundation of a practical fyftem. It is well known
that the national character of that people within
four years has undergone almoil a total change,
with regard to the eftimation of exterior marks of
diftindion, of evfery kind. What is called rank,
arifing from hereditary titles, had formerly as
great an influence in the country, as at court ; it
was held as facred in the moil fequeftered walks of
life, where aclions obey the impulfes of the heart,
as in the moll: brilliant af forcibly, where they are
regulated by a Mailer of Ceremonies. It is im-
poiiible for wealth itfelf in any nation to be more
refpcded than titles were in France among all
clafles and defciiptions of people. Their venera
tion for king was proverbial through the world ;
and this was only a fample of their univerfal ref-
pe£l for every thing that bore the name of heredi
tary tokens of rank. Their adoration of thefe
dirtinftions could fcarcely be confidered as the effe&
of habit ; it had fo fur wound itfeif into the na
tive character and foul of a Frenchman, that it
could not be cliftinguifhed from an element of his
nature. But the change of government, like a
chymical analyfis, has feparated the drofs of habit
from the gold of nature ; it has melted off the
courtier and ihewed us the msn.

This is not all. The brltli&nce of wealth has
likewife in that country loft iis former value j it
being no longer confidered, either by the proprie
tors or by others, as capable of commanding ref-
peel:; I know it will be laid, in anfwer to this,
That it is owing to a temporary circumftance ;
that the great body of the people, who have taken
the government into their own hands, are envious

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. I4t

towards the rich, and are aiming to reduce all men
to a level in regard to property. The plained re
ply to this affertion which has often been repeated
is, that it is not true. No people ever fhewed a
more facred regard to private property than the
French have uniformly done, duririg the whole
revolution. And, as if to put cah>mriy to the
blufh, and baffle all theories of fophiflry againft a
popular recbmotion of rights, this regard to pri
vate property has been in proportion to the irregu^
Jarity of their movements, and the opportunity
for pillage. It is to be wifhed that governments
themfelvcs would learn a Icflon of honour from
thefe examples of anarchy inftead of employing
Venal writers to abufe them.

Jt cannot be denied, that in all other parts of
Europe there are two 'diftinft purpofes to which
property is applied — a refource againft physical
wants, and a refource for perfonal refpe6t It
cannot be denied, that in France it has already
Ceafed, in a great meafure, to anfwer the laft or
thefe purpofes, The caufe of this is perfectly na
tural, and I have ho/Joubt that it mud be perma
nent. The fame effcSt will be produced in other
Countries, by placing the government on the folid
bads of reafon, in/lead of propping it up on the
tottering foot-ftool of impofition.

I am aware that my argument is ftill expofed td
one objection, from thofe readers who are ac
quainted with the prefent ftate of fociety in Ameri
ca. It will be faid, that the people of the United
States manifefl a great attatchmerit to property,
Con fide red as tuealth, and merely for the purpofe
of parade; that, though their government is
American, their manners are European. To this
I reply, in the firil place, that the el a ge is true

ADVICE TO THE

only in a limited fenfe. The influence of riches
in that country, even on the minds of thofe who
pofiefs them, is by no means fo great as it is in
Europe. But this anfwer will not be completely
fatisfa&ory to the objector, neither is it fo to me.
We muft acknowledge the fa6l to exift, at lead in
a confiderable degree, and endeavour to fearch out
the caufe. The people of that country have been
always accuftomed to borrow their maxims, as
well as their manners, from the various nations of
Europe, from which they emigrated ; in the tra
ding towns, many of the prefent inhabitants are
really Europeans, having been in the country but
a fhort time ; and emigration is perpetually fup-
plying all parts of the States with new adventures ;
fafhions, and atafte for expenfive modes of living,
are imported with other merchandife. In the ar
ticle of public falaries, the governments them-
felves h-ive been too much guided by European
ideas ; which fuppofe it neceifary that public offi
cers mould envelope themfelves in pomp and
fplendor, in order to infpire a veneration for the
laws. For though falaries in general were fixed
at the revolution on a fcale fo low as to bear little
proportion to what was common in Europe, and
though in fome inftances they have been fince re
duced, yet they are ftill fo high as to bear little
proportion to what they ought to be. Thefe tilings
have a great effeft on the general maxims of life
in that country. But thefe things can never apply
to Europe : and, on a change of government and
manners in the old world, they will ceafe to apply
to the new.

The Americans cannot be faid as yet to have
formed a national chara&er. The political part
of their revolution, afide from the military, was

PRIVILEGED ORDERS, 14*

flot of that violent and convulfive nature that
fhakes the whole fabric of human opinions, and
enables men to decide which are to be regained as
congenial to their (ituation, and which fhould be
rejecled as the offspring of unnatural connexions.
Happily, the weight of oppreffion there had ne
ver been fo great, nor of fo long a duration, as
to have diftorted in any extravagant degree the mo
ral features of man. He recognized himfelf as
the fame being, under the new fyftem as the old ;
for the change of form had not been fo perceptible
as to require a great change of principle. Under
thefe circumftawces, the people continued mod of
their ancient maxims, though they were a mixture
of foreign and domeftic ; and, as habit is a coin
current in all countries, it is, not furprifmg that
whatever had received the (lamp of authority in
polifhed nations of Europe, fhould be adopted
without fcruple by the offspring of thofe nations
i» America.

The circumftance of their not being inverted
with what is called national character, though hi
therto a fubjeft of regret, will in future be much
in their favour. The public mind being open to
receive impreflions from abroad, they will be able
to profit by the practical leflons which will now be
afforded them from the change of fyftem in this
quaner of the world. It will be found there, as
it is now found in France, that the difplay ef
wealth will ceafe to be challenged as an emblem
or fubftitute for perfonal talents ; and it will be
coveted every where, in a lefs degree than at prc-
fent ; as it will fail to gratify the paffion for ref-
pec}. It may be farther remarked, that this is
not the only circumftance in which the ftate of
fociety in America will be efTentially benefited by
a change of manners in Europe.

144 ADVICE TO THE

But it muft be confefled, after all, that this is
a theory to which it is hard to gain profelytes ;
efpecialiy among that clafs of men, whofe know
ledge of the world has taught them a caution
which fhuns the allurements of audacious fpeculati-
on. And, fmce it rriuft be referred lo experience,
to that I truft the argument. I profefs nothing
more in this work, than to contemplate the effects
that a general revolution will produce on the affairs
of nation?. But in contemplating theft1, it is ef-
fential that we fhould be apprifed of the corref-
ponding change that will neceflarily be wrought
on the character of man ; in order that, being
prepared for the event, he may think of inch ar
rangements as fhall be likely to prevent hisrelapf-
ingj info the errors which have cod him fo much
inifcry.

A chapter which treats on the fyfttm of abufes
fo generally adopted in raiftng a revenue, csri
fcarcely be clofed with fatisfadlicn to the reader*
without fome inflections on the correfpor.ding
abufes which are ioi nd in the apptifation* I (hall
fay nothing of high falaries, civil Jili, peace efla-
Wilhment, and the other enormities on which pri
vileged orders and ftnfclefs places depend. Thefe
will fo foon fall, with the wretched plans of go
vernment they fupport, that it really feems like an
ungenerous triumph, to wifh to haften their fate.
When the bufinefs of government fliall be con
ducted, like other bufinefs, on the principles of
Common fenfe, it will be paid for, like other bu
finefs, in proportion to the fervice performed.
And unlefs this proportion be ftrictly obferved in
the payment, thefe principles will not long be
obferved in the fervice. Btu our obfervations in
thjs place, on the application of revenue, will

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 145

chiefly be confined to the fubject of Public Debts.
This fubject becomes more important at this time,
not merely on account of the prefent magnitude
of thofe debts in mod of the ftates of Europe,
but as relative to the principle on which they are
contracted and fupported. Should this principle
be found to be dangerous tojiberty, and fuitable
only to a vicious form of government, it will fur-
nifh matter of deep reflection to a nation that
\vifhes to eftablinh Its affairs on the bads of reafou
and nature.

Here we mud: take a review of that mode of
anticipation, which is common to moft of the
modern governments of Europe, and known by
the name of \\\t funding fyftcm. This invention (for
fo the art of funding is fometimes called) has
•received from the hands of different writers, a
confHerable degree of cenfure, as well as much
unqualified and injudicious praife. Indeed, when
confidered with reference to its wide fvveep of at
tending circumftances, it prefents itfelf'to the
mind under a variety of afpe&s, and forms alto
gether a (hipendous obje£l of meditation ; having
produced effe&s that have far furpafled the limits
of previous calculation or btiief. In politics and
war, it has changed the face of Europe. With
regard to other concerns, both of nations and
individuals, its effecis have been various, contra-
di&ory, del u five, and incapable of accurate efti-
niation. It has aftonifhingly multiplied the force
and adivity of trade ; but it has increafed in an
equal degree the quantity of ufelefs and deftruc-
tive fpecuiation. It has converted commerce into
a weapon of war ; and it has made of that tre
mendous calamity an alluring in ft rumen t of com
merce. It has brought thefc two occupations, fo
N

146 ADVICE TO THE

extremely oppofite in their nature, to a cordial
coalition and mutual fupport j and thus by the aid
ot both, it facilitates every project of ambition in
the government ; till it fan iliarifes the public
mind to a ferious acqniefcence in a paradox, which
mull have excited the ridicule ot any age accuf-
tomed only to common calculation, That the more
a nation is debilitated and exhaufted, the more
fplendid and powerful it grows. Indeed the fyftem
is replete with lo much apparent good, attended
with its folid weight of e\ils, that we may be
thought to incur the guilt of partiality or inatten
tion, ihould we fail to qualify our cenfure with
fome degree of approbation.

But the queftion, Whether the fyftem of fund
ing ought to be admitted in all its latitude, can be
decided only by ftriking the balance cf good and
evil in the cfYe&s that it mud frr»m its nature ^re
duce. And I think, on confidering the fubjedl: as
relative to a free republic, the balance will be
found much more on the fide of the evil, than it is
when applied to the old plans of government.

The benefits, to be derived from the fyftem,
are of two kinds ; — commercial, as it facilitates the
bufinefsof individuals, and political^ as it aids the
government in the great operations of war. It is
well known, or it is univerfally believed, that the
public debt in Enpland, being funded on the bails
of mortgaging the national revenue for its intereft,
has created a prodigious mafs of capital in the hands
of trade. By furniihing men with a kind of ftock,
which they are fure of turning into money at any
moment they choofe, it enables them to vary their
operations with fuch facility, as to feize many ad
vantages in dome (tic and foreign markets, which
rnuft otherwife pafs without efted. It is in a great

PRIVILEGED ORDERS, 147

nieafure to this circumftance, that many perfons
fperhaps without a due confutation of caufes)
pave attributed the flourifhing ftate of commerce
in this kingdom. Indeed, fince it is found that
commerce has increafed with the augmentation of
taxes, the argument in favour of unlimited fund
ing has hecome fo feducing, that the paradox has
arifen almoft to a folecifm ; it is faid that public
infolvency is public wealth, and the national debt
is melt a nation! benefit.

The advantages of a political nature, which are

anuri^r°^ th,e Princii'le °F funding, confift in
eltabhihing fuch an unqueftionable credit, that the
government can at all times borrow, without the
means or the intention, or even the promifeof
payment. This credit anfwers all the purpofe of
an inexhauftible treafury, on which the govern
mem may draw at any moment, and to any
amount. It is eafy to conceive the immenfe faci
lity thus given to the meafures of adminiftration
It enables them to begin, on the fhorteft notice
and with the greateft fecrecy, the moft cxpenfive
operations, and then to purfue them to any extent -
and this without confulung the wiihcs of the na'
tion. ^ It precludes the nuceflity of accumulating
a national treafure by previous taxation and ceco-
nomy ; a meafure which muft always be attended
with the difadvantage of lofm^ the ufe of the mo
ney, from the time it is hoarded, until it is ex-
pendecl. It hkewife avoids the neceffity of another
operation no lefs to be drea-led by officers of go
vernment m general ; I mean a fudden auamenta-
tion of taxes, by which the people mould be called
upon to fupport the expences of the year, within
' ySfV A meafure which, if not f(^metimcs
iinpoifible, would often be hazardous to the repu-

14* ADVICE TO THE

ration of minifters, and to the fucce&of extraor
dinary enterprifes.

Such is the general fummary of the advantages
derived from the Funding Syftem ; and this opens
to our view the train of evils with which they are
contrafled. Thefe 1 fear will be too numerous to
be particularly noticed, and too great to be readily
conceived. In the hands of an adrniniftration, I
will not fay corrupt, but an ad mi nil! rat ion whofc
intereil is in any meafure different from that of
the nation at large, this fyftem is the moft danger
ous inftrument that can be imagined : as it is an
inftrument of incalculable force, and may be al
ways wielded without oppofition. This from the
nature of the fubjecl muft be the cafe ; becauie the
expences of any projected enterprife being charged
on pofterity, the party mod interefted in making
the oppofition, is not in being at the time, and
cannot be heard in its rcmonit ranee. Thus, in
the bufinefs of war, which is the principal object
in the funding fyftem, it enables governments to
hire men to daughter each other with more than
their own fvvords. They wring out of the hard
earnings of future generations the means of de-
flroying the pr^fent. Here is a double violence
which the generation, thai goes to war by the aid
of funding, commits on the age that is to follow.
It precludes the exigence of one part of focicty,
by deftroying thofe v/ho Ihould have been their
progenitors ; and it charges the portion of pofle-
jity, that efcapes into exigence, with the expen
ces of killing the fellows of their anctftors. And
ihefe expences they rnuft pay under the cruel
difadvaniagcs of being deprived of half their na
tural refouices, by a dirninuu-jn of their natural
numbers,

PRIVILEGED ORDERS, 149

As military operations are now condu.&ed, every
•man killed or deftroyed in war, cofts to the nation
upwards of a thotifand pounds fterling. This cal
culation is taken from a view of the laft war in
which England was engaged. The nation ex
pended in that war, asftated by Sir John Sinclair,*
fomething more than 139 millions. No financier
has calculated with any accuracy the number of
lives that it co'ft on the part of Great Britain, in
"battles, hofpitals, and prifons \ probably it did
not exceed 139 thoufand. So that the people of
this country are now confoling themfelVes for the
lofs of their friends and relations, by paying far
their execution at the rate of a thoufand pounds a
head. Other jobs performed in fuch a wholefule
manner are generally charged at a cheaper rate ;
but this is more expenfive than the bufinefs of a
-like nature, which is done in the formality of de
tail, at the Old Bailey and Newgate.

It requires but a flight obfervation on the cha
racter of the times in different ages, to fhow th?iV
the objecl: of war, and the fpiiit with which it is
conducted, have been altogether differed, xvithin
the prefent century, from what they «vere in more
remote periods of modern hiftory. In the mari
time nations of Europe, the object of war hasx
changed from religion to commerce ; from a point
of honour among kircgs, to a point of profit among
merchants, minifters and generals. Thefe fub-
je£ts have nothing in their nature fufficiently ani-
rnatina to roirfe the enthufiafm of a whole nation
to fuch a degree, as to render it fafe for the pro
jector of a war to apply to the people for their
immediate fupport. Therefore, to find the means

*Hifl. of the Revenue , Part III. page 95,
N i

150 ADVICE TO THE

of carrying it on, they rcfort to a principle conge*
nial to the object of the war ; and it becomes fup-

Sorted, as it is projected, in thefpiritof commercCc
ut, as all offenfive wars, in every pofiible cir-
cumftance, can only be maintained by deceiving
the people, the government in this cafe recurs to
a commercial deception, and induces them to un
dertake the burthen, on condition that the weight
of it be fhifted off to a future period. Such is
the origin of funding ; and it has evidently rifen
out of the neceility that governments were under,
of changing the principle of deception, in order
to conform to the fpiritof the times.

As an engine of ftate, the funding fyftem has'
completely taken place of religious enthufiafm ;
and mankind have been hurried on to their own
definition by the former, within the two laft
ages, with a.s little prudence and as much dclufion,
as they were by the latter, in the twelfth century.
Indeed, I fee no reafon why a genuine crufade
could not have been undertaken, even by the go
vernment of Great Britain within the laft fifty
years, and carried on to any extent, by the aid of
the funding fyfteiru For the principle of the fyf-
tem is fuch as to prevent men from enquiring into
the objedl: of the war ; as every inducement to
fuch enquiry is almoft- completely taken away,
•with refpe£l to every clafs of fociety. One clafs,
by the previous operation of the fame fyftem in
the increafe of taxes, are rendered fo wretched in
their domeftic condition, that they are glad to en
gage as foldiers in any caufr, for the fake of ths
pay, fo pitifully (mall as the pay of a foldier is ;
another clafs, and one that has great influence on
the public opinion, is compofed of generals, con
tractors, mlnifters and fecretaries, with all their

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 15!

dependant?, who are fure to make a profitable job
of any war, however it be conducted, and what
ever be its objecT: ; another clafs confifts of idle
i peculators in the funds, whofe chance of gain
increafes with the j.oftling of public affairs, and
efpecially with the augmentation of the debt ;
while the reft of the community, who cannot be
rendered active by the allurements of private
profit, are rendered paffive by deferring the pay
ment of the lofs.

From the time when the predatory fpirit, which
led the northern Barbarians to ravage tfce fouth of
Europe, had fubfided, and given place to its natu
ral offspring, in the eftablifhment of feudal mo
narchy, the hiftory of this quarter of the world
begins to a flu me a confident lhape ; and it offers
itfc-lf to our contemplation, as relative to the fpirit
of nations, under three fuccefFive afpecls. Thefe
are the fpirit of hierarchy, the fpirit of chivalry,
and the fpirit of commerce. Out of thefe dif
ferent materials the genius of the government has
forged inftruments of oppreflion almoft equally
deffru&ive. It has never failed to cloud the minds
of the nation with fome kind of fuperftition, con
formable to the temper of the times. In one age
it is the fuperftition of religion, in another the
fuperftition of honour, in another the fuperftition
of public credit.

The deplorable ufe that has been made of the
laft of thefe, during the prefent century in Eng
land, and for a much longer period in fome other
governments, has induced many perfons to regret
that the fpirit of commerce has ever become pre
dominant over that of chivalry and that of the
church. They fee a contracted ineannefs in the
oar, which ill compares with the open enthufiaftn

152 ADVICE TO THE

of the other two. But before we find fault with
what feems to be the order of nature in tfeefe
events, we ought to confider the efFecT> that it has
and will produce, in the progrefs of fociety and
morals. Chivalry and hierachy taught us to be
lieve that all men who did not pay homage to the
fame monarch, or ufe the fame mode of worfliip
with ourfelves, were our natural enemrcs, and
ought to be extirpated. The fpiritof commerce
has brought us acquainted with rhofe people ; we
fin?! them to be like other men, and that they are
really iifefiil to us in fupplying our wants. As
their exigence and their profperity are found to
be advantageous to us in a commercial point of
view, we ceafe to regard them as enemies ; and
refufe to go and kill them, unlefs we are hired to
do it. But as commerce may deal in human (laugh
ter as well as in other things, when ever the go
vernment will offer us more money for deft roy ing
our neighbours than we can* get by other bufinefs,
we are ready to make enemies of our beft friends,
and to go to war, as we go to market, on a calcu
lation of profit.

This is the true fpirit of commerce, as relative
to war. But as this fpirit has made us better ac
quainted with all foreign nations, and with our
felves, it has -excited a difpofition for enquiry into
the moral relations of men, with a view to politi
cal happinefs. The refuit of this enquiry is now
beginning tn appear. It has already convinced us
that there can be no pofTible'cafe in which one na
tion can be the natural enemy of another ; and
this leads us to difcover the caufe why they have
beerijfa9*/fVf/J enemies. The whole is found to be
a fatal deception perpetually impofed upon each
Ration by its own government, for the private be-

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 153

ftcfit of its ad mini Orators. The fame fpirit of
enquiry is now leading the people to change the
form of their governments, that fociety may be
reftored to its proper foundation, the general hap-
pinefs of the great community of men.

On examining the fucceffion of principles
\vhich mark the character of the times through
thefe different periods, it appears that, when the
fpirit of commerce had become predominant, the
only engine of itate, which could be relied upon to
excite the people to war, was the eftablifhment of
a national credit by funding the national deb*s.
And we fhoukl not be wide from the truth in af-
ferting, that to the funding fyftem alone the prin
cipal commercial nations of Europe are to attribute
the wars of the prefcnt century, as well as the
enormous debts under which they have learned to
ftruggle.

Such have been the cffe&s of funding, under
the old forms of governments ; and having afcer-
tained the principles on which it has operated in
producing thefe effects, we fhall be better able to
determine whether it be adoniflible in the policy of
a free republic. In this great crifis of human
affairs, it behoves mankind to probe the wounds
of nature to the bottom, and remove every cxcre-
fcence which might prevent a perfect cure.

Men of contemplative minds, as well as thofe
of pradtical knowledge,, have now become fo ge-
-nerally agreed in the neceffity of the funding fyf
tem, that, though they difcern the evils to which
it mud expofe a nation, I fear it is one of the lad
of their eitabliihed maxims that they will be wil
ling to fubje£t to the fcverity of difcullion. The
univerfal opinion is that a {late cannot exift with
out a national credit ; unltfs it put itfelf to the

154 ADVICE TO THE

difadvantage of hoarding up money, and keeping
a treafure in referve. And this latter meafure,
befides the inconvenience ab' ve-mentioned, of
lofjng the ufe of the capital while it lies inactive,
would throw into the hands of the executive go
vernment, the fame dangerous power which is
entrulted to them by the means of credit. In this
refpecl their reafoniug is juft ; and perhaps a full
treafury would be the greateft evil of the two.

But after all, what is the advantage of a nation
al credit ? I mean in the fenfe in which it is gen
erally underftood, the facility of raifing a capital
on long annuities, by a mortgage of revenue.
Shall we not find on r,n inveftigation of this very
fimple queftion, that the ravantage derived from
fuch a credit (even fuppofiK" it never to be abufed)
Can only be applicable to the old fyftems of gov
ernment ? Will it not appear that it is an advan
tage totally unncceffary to a rational and manly
adminiflration, conducted by the \vifhes of a free
and enlightened people ? I am fuppofing, and it
is but fair to fuppofe, that fuch a people will al
ways underftand'their own interefL Or, at lea ft,
if they make a miilake, it will be the miffoke of
the nation, not of the minifters ; they will never
fuffer an enterprife to be undertaken, but what
is agreeable to the majority of the active citizens.
This people will never engage in any ofl\nrive
war. Indeed, as foon as the furrounding nations
adopt the fame change of government, the bufinefs
of war will be forgotten ; but in the interval,
previous to this event, a real republic cannot
/land in need of funds, as a preparative for war,
unlefs it be invaded. It is even fafer without
funds ; becaufe they might be a temptation to the
officers of government to counteract the fpirit of

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 155

the republic. In cafe fuch a people be really at
tacked by an enemy, then it is that the force of
fociety may be feeti and calculated. But the cal
culation dues not mrn on «he cabinet-rules of royal
arithmetic ; the pov\er of the republic for the
purpofe of detence does not depend on a na* onal
credit, in the fenfe above-mentioned, or rhe fa
cility of borrovving money; the government, in
making up its eifimate of refinance, never aiks,
Bow many foidiers have \ve in pay r And how
many recruits can we inlift or irnprefs ? — But of
how many men does the nation confift ? Armies
ftart into being by a (pc maneous impulfe ; every
citizen feeis the caufe to be hi own, and presents
his perfon, or his provifion and his arms, not as
an offering to a tyrannical mailer, of whofe inter*,
tions he would be fufpicious, but as a defence rf
his own family and prc perty. The enemy being
repuifed, whatever inequalities may be found to
have arifen in this emulous contribution, are li
quidated and lettled on a general fcale ot juiiice,

Even fuppofing the war to be ot long continu
ance, and to require fums of money beyond the
voluntary contribution^, and beyond the power of
prudent taxation ior the time ; (which indeed, in
a wealthy and well-regulated republic, would be
an extraordinary thing, and I beiLve never would
occur) in fuch a cafe, the juitice of the caufe, and
the natural magnanimity which habitual freedom
infpjres, would be a fufficient guarantee for loans,
at home or abroad. It is true in nature, and the
truth muit prove itfelt beyond contradiction to the
\vorld, as foon as it ihali have opportunity to judge,
that a great people accuftomed to exercife their
rights, would never violate their duties.

158 ADVICE TO THE

Injuftice may be expeded from governments
founded in ufurpation ; it is their natural charac
ter, the tenure on which they hold their authority.
They never can be jult, unlefs the deviate from
their principle. What is called their penal juf-
tlcey as well as their pecuniary jufilce^ is only the
fruit of their fears ; and ought to be regarded only
as an evidence of their conftitutional \veakncfs.
As every thing they do, mult be d(?ne by the force
of money, it is neceflary that they fhould eftablilh
a character for mercantile punctuality, to fervc as
a fubftittie for the quality of juftice, which quality
the nature of their exiftence denies them. The
reverfe of this is the <.afe witV governments found
ed in reafon and nature, where all the people have
an aclive interefl. Juftice there is the firft article
in the focial compact ; and as neither policy nor
principle can ever admit of a deviation from this,
the event is not to be expected.

This is the kind of national credit that is proper
for a free republic. It is involved in the nature
of their fyftem, and fpurns thofe extraneous aids
which artificial credits have required. I ihculd
confider it as a circumdance dangerous to the
progrefs of fociety, if the new republics, which
are to rife out of the ruins of thefe antiquated
mattes of error, fhould retain the two great prin
ciples of finance, on which much of that error has
been fup ported. To raifc the revenue by &/($*/-
ing the taxes , and to force a publhc credit by dint
of funding, have been equally neceffary to the an
cient fyftem ; and it appears to me that they would
be equally dertruclive to the new.

How the national debts that now exift in feveral
countries, are to be difpofed of, under a change
of government, is indeed a queftion of ferious

PRIVILEGED ORDERS. 157

magnitude. Probably that of France will be
nearly e'xitrrguiihed by the fale of the national do
mains. That of Spain, 2nd thofe of moft other
catholic countries, may be balanced in the fame
way. In fome protefhmt nations, where the
debts and the domains Have loft their relative pro
portion, the cafe will be •widely different. But,
wh.itever may be the fate of the debts, I am as
clear that the) ought not, as I am thai they will
not, impede the progrcfs of liberty.

E N D.

O

,

A

LETTER

TO THE

NATIONAL CONVENTION

OF

FRANCE,

On the defeRs in the Conjlitution of 1791, and the
extent of the amendments which ought to be applied.

LONDON, September 16, 1792.

GENTLEMEN,

T,

H E time is at laft arrived, when the
people of France, by reforting to their own pro
per dignity, feel themfelves at liberty to exercife
their embarrafiljd reafon, in eftabli filing an equal
government. The pefent crifis in your affairs,
marked by the aflfembiing of a National Conven
tion, bears nearly the fame relation to the laft
tour years of your hiftory, as your whole revolu
tion bears to the great accumulated mafs of mod
ern improvement. Compared therefore with all
that is paft, it is perhaps the moft interesting por
tion of the moft important period that Europe has
hitherto feen.

l6o LETTER TO THE

Under this impreflion, and with the deepcft
fenfe of the magnitude of the fuDJe£t which is to
engige your attention, I take a liberty which no
flight motives could warrant in a ftranger, the
liberty of offering a few obfertionson the bufinefs
that lies before you, - Could I fuppofe however,
that anv apology were neceffary for this intrnfion,
I fhould not rely upon the one here mentioned.
But my intentions require no apology ; I demand
to be heard, as a right. Your caufe is that of hu-
ma*^ nature at large : you are the representatives
of mankind ; and though I am not literally one of
your conftiuients, yet I mud be bound by your
decrees. My happinefs will be ferionfly afRcled
by your deliberations ; and in them I have an in-
tereft which nothing can deftroy. I no* only c<>n-
fider all mankind as forming but me great family,
and therefore bound by a natural fvmpathy to re
gard each other's happinefs as making part of their
own ; but I contemplate the French nation at
this moment as fhnding in the place of the whole.
You have itepped forward with a gigantic ftricle to
an enterprize which involves the intereft of every
furrounding "nation ; and what you began as juf-
tice to yourfelves, you are called upon to finifh as a
duty to the human race.

I believe no man cheri flies a greater veneration,
than I have uniformly done, for the National
Aiiembly who framed the -conftitution, which I
now prefume your conftituents expert you to re-
vife. Perhaps the merits of that body of men will
never 1 e properly appreciated. The greateit part
of their exertions were necefiarily fpent on objects
v.hich cannot be defended ; and which from their
nature can make no figure in hiftory. The cnor-
glu of abules they had to overturn, the

NATIONAL CONVENTION. l6l

quantity of prejudice with which their functions
called then to contend, as well in their own minds
as in thofe of all the European world, the open
oppofiiion of interefts, the fecret weapons of cor
ruption, and the unbridled fury of despairing fac
tion — thefe are fubje&s which efcape our common
obfervation, when we contemplate the labors of that
AHembly. But the legacy tkey have left to their
country in their deliberative capacity will remain
a Lifting monument to their pr-ufe ; and though
while tea re hi ng out the defective par's of their
work, without lofing fight of the difficulties UP icr
which it was formed, we may find more occafion
to admire its wifdom, than to murmur at its
faults ; yet this confederation ought not to deter U3
irom the attempt.

The great leading principle, on which their
con dilution was meant to be founded, is the equal
ity of rights. This principle being hid down
with fuch clearnefs, andaffericd with fo much dig
nity in the beginning of the code, it is ftfange
that men ei clear underftandings ihould fail to be
charmed with the beauty of the fyfteni which na
ture muft have taught them to build on that found
ation. It fhows a difpofition to counteracl the
analogy of nature, to fee them at one moment,
impreiling this indelible principle on our minds;,
and with the next breath declaring, That France
fhall remain a monarchy, — that it mall have a
king, hereditary, inviolable, clothed with all the
executive, and much of the iegiflative power,
commander in chief of all the nunonal force' by
land and lea, having the initiative of war, and the
power of concluding peace ; — and above all, to
bear them declare that, " The nation will provide
for the fplcndour of the throne/' granting in their

O 2

l62 LETTER TO THE

legtflative capacity to that throne more than a
million fterling a year, from the national pnrfe,
befides the rents of eftates which are fa id to
amount to half as much more.

We muft be aftonifhed at the paradoxical or
ganization of the minds of men who could fee no
difcordance in thefe ideas. They begin with the
open fimplicity of a rational republic, and imme
diately plunge into all the labyrinths of royalty ;
and a great part of the conftitutional code is a
practical attempt to reconcile thefe two difcordsnt
theories* It is a perpetual conflict between prin*
ciple and precedent, — between the manly truths of
nature, which we all muft feel, and the learned
fubtilties of ftatefmcn, about which we have
been taught to reafon.

In reviewing the hiftory of human opinions, it
is an unpleafant confideration to remark how flow
the mind has always been in feizing the mod in-
terefting truths ; although, when difcovered, they
appear to have been the rnoft obvious. This re
mark is nowhere verified with more circumftan-
ces of regret, than in the progrefs of your ideas
in France relative to the inutility of the kingly
office. It was not enough that you took your
firft ftand upon the high ground of natural right ;
where, enlightened by the fun of reafon, you
might have feen the coulds of prejudice roll far
beneath your feet — it was not enough that you
began by confidering royalty, with its well-
known fcourges, as bein^ the caufe of all your
evils, — that the kings of modern Europe are the
authors of war and mifery, that their mutual in*
tercourfe is a commerce of human {laughter,- — that
public debts and private oppreffions, with all the
degrading vices that tarnifh the face of nature, had

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 163

their origin in that fpecies of government which
.offers a premium for wickednefs, and teaches the >
few to trample on the many ; — it was not enough
that you faw the means of a regeneration of man
kind in the fyltem of equal rights, and that in a
wealthy and powerful nation you poiTefled the ad
vantage of reducing that fydem to immediate
practice,, as an example to the world and a confo-
lation to human nature. All thefe arguments,
with a variety of others which your republican
orators placed in the drongeft point of light, were
insufficient to raife the public mind to a proper
view of the fi inject.

It feems that fome of your own philofophers
had previoufly taught, that royalty was necellary
fo a great nation. Montefquieu, among his
whimfical maxims about laws and government,
had informed the world that a limited monarchy
was the bed poflible fyftem, and that a democracy
could never flour ifti, but in a fmall tract of coun
try. How many of your legiflators believed in
this doctrine, how many acted from ternporifmg
motives, wiftiing to buniili royalty by flow de
grees, and how many were led by principles lefs
pardonable than either, it is impoffible to deter
mine. Certain it is, that republican ideas gained
no ground upon the monarchial in your condim
ent adcmbly, during the lad: fix monxhs of »heir
deliberations. It is like wife certain that the ma-
jority of that aflcmbly took much pains to prevent
the people from difcovering the cheat of royalty,
and to continue their ancient veneration, at lead:
for a whil*, in favour of certain principles in
government which reafon could not approve.

It is remarkable that all the perfidy of your
king, at the time of his flight; fhould have had fo

I&J- LETTER TO THE

little effe& in opening the eyes of fo enlightened
a people as the French. His flight, and the in-
fulting declaration which he left behind him, were
fufficient not only to give the lie to the fiction,
with which common fenfe has always been put to
the blufh, and to which your affembly had at
tempted to give a fanclion, that kings can do no wrong,
but they were fufficient to (how, at Icaft to all who
would open their eyes, that the bufmefs of gov
ernment required no fuch officer. There is no
period during your revolution, if there is any to
be found in the hiftory of France, when bufmefs
went on with more alacrity and good order, than
(luring the fufpenfion of the royal function* in the
interval from the time that the king was brought
back to the capital in June, till the completion of
the conftitution in September. Every thing went
right in the kingdom, except within the walls of
the affembly. A majority of that body was deter
mined to make an experiment of a limited mon
archy. The experiment has been made. Its
duration has indeed been fhort, being lefs than
eleven months \ but, although in fome refpec'ts
it has been almoft as fatal to the caufe of liberty as
any fyflern could have been within the time, yet
in other refpefts it has done more good than all the
reafonings of all the philofophers of the age could
have done in a much longer time : it has taught
them a new doclrine, whLh no experience can
flnki, and which reafon rmift confirm, tl.-at kings
can do no good. So that, if the queftion were now
to be agitated by the people of France, as it may
be by you in their behalf* whether they will have a
king or not, I ihoulJ fuppofe the following would be
theliate of the calculation : A cretain quantity of
evils are to be expected from the regal oSce , and

NATIONAL CONVENTION. lj

thefe evils are of of two claffes, certain and proba
ble. The certain evils are, i. The million and a
half fterling a year drawn from the people to
" fupport the fplendour of the throne ;" 2. A
great variety of enormous falaries paid to minif-
ters at home, to ambafTadors abroad, and to bifh-
ops in the church ; while the only bufinefs of
thefe men and thrir fabrics is to fupport the fic
tion, that kin^s can do no wrong;. It will always
coft more to fupport this fiflion, than it would to
iupport the whole national government without it.
3. The word of all the certain evils is, that a
great part of the million and a4 half will be fpent in
bribery and cor-iiptiou among the members of
the legislature, to increafe the power of the
throne, and the means of oppreffion. Ifthemo-
Rey, after it is extorted from the people, could be
thrown into the fea, infteadof being paid to the
king and his fatellites, the evil would be trifling ;
in that cafe the wickedncfs would ceafe with the
firft aft of injuftice ; while in this it multiplies
the weapons of deftru&ion againft themfelves.
It creates a perpetual fcrambling for power, re
wards knavery in the higher ranks, encourages
falfehood in others, and corrupts the morals of
the whole. This it is that clebafes and vilifies the
general mafs of mankind, and brings upon them
the infuhing remarks of many men, who even
\vifh them well, that the people are unfit for liberty.
Among the probable evils refulting from the
kingly office, the principal one, and indeed the
only one that need to be mentioned, is the chance
of its being held by a weak sr a wicked man. —
When the office is hereditary, it is fcarcely to be
expe&ed but that this fbould always be the cafe.
Cenfidering the birth and education of princes,

l66 LETTER TO THE

the change of fin ling one with practical common
fenfe is hardly to be reckoned among pofiible
events ; nor is the probability lefs flrong againft
their having virtue. The temptations to wick-
ednefs arifmg from their fttuation are too powerful
to be refilled. The perfuafive arts of all their flat
terers, the companions of their youth, the minif-
ters of their pleafures, and every perfon with
whom they ever converfe, are neceflarily employ
ed to induce them to increafe their revenue, by
oppreffing the people, whom they are taught from
their cradle to coniider as beaits of burthen. And
•what muft almoft infure the triumph of wickecl-
nefs is their tempers, is the idea that they aft to
tally and furever without reftraint. This is an
allurement to vice that even men of fenfe could
fcarcely refift. Imprefs it on the mind of any
man that he can de nozorong^ and he will foon con
vince you of your miftake.

Take this general fummary of the evils arifmg
from hereditary monarchy, under any reftri&ions
that can be propofed, and place it on one fide of
the account, — and (rate, on the other fide, the
truth which I believe no man of reflection will
hereafter call in queftion, that kings can do no
goody and the friends of liberty will no longer be
in doubt which way you will decide the queftion
relative to that part of your conftitution.

I cannot feel eafy in difmiiling this part of my
fubjeft, without offering fome remarks on that
general vauge idea which has long been floating
about in the world, that a people under certain
circumftances are unfit for liberty. You knew in
what infulting language this obfervation has been
perpetually applied to the French 'during the
courfe of the revolution. Some have faid that they

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 167

were too ignorant to form a government of their
own, others that they were too poor, others that
they were too numerous, and others that they were
toovtfious. I will not defcend to the examination
of the particular parts of this charge, nor of the
whole as applied to the French, or to any other
particular people ; I will only remark on the gen
eral obftrvation, as applicable to any poffible na
tion exifting in a ftate of nature. By a (late of
nature I mean a ftate of peace ; where the inten
tion is, as a nation, to live by induftry at home,
not by plunder from abroad.

I think Montefquieu has faid, that virtue mi ft
be the foundation of a republican government.
His book is not now by me, or I wrould try ta
difcoyer what he means by virtue. If he means
thofe moral habits by which men are difpofed to
mutual juftice and benevolence, which is the com
mon idea of virtue, it cannot be the foundation of
a republican government, or of any government,
Thefe qualities requiie no reftraints : the mere
general their influence (hould be among any peo
ple, the lefs force would be neccfiary in their go
vernment; and could we fuppofe a nation in which
they mould exift in a perfect degree, that nation
\vould require no government at all. It is the
vices, not the virtues of men which are the objecls
of reftraint, and the foundation of government.
The exprefllon of the general will, operating on
the mind of an individual, ferves with him as a
fubftitute for virtue. This general will may al
ways be expreiFed by a nation in any pofllble cir-
cumftances ; and, if the nation be in a ftate of
nature, this expreffion will always be moral virtue,
according to their ideas of the word ; and it will

l68 LETTER TO THE

always fend to moral virtue, in the moft extenftve
ferrV in which we have yet Uen ahle to define it.

Ir has been faid, that man differs from man, as
much a* man from beaft ; it is faid alfo to be fit,
that the wife and virtuous nVuld make laws for
the ignorant and vinous. It is not to my purpofe
to ?li in queftion the firft of thefe a fieri u ns ; but
the fecond, pkiuf^hle as if is, I muft totally deny ;
at le-ft in the fenfe in which it is generally nnder-
ftood. That fome men in ihe fame focit-ty fhould
be wifer and better than others, is veiy iu»umil ;
and it is as natural, that the people fhcnld thoofe
frrh *o reprtftnt them in the foiiy.iiiirn of I.-nvs.
Bur in thi c;fc the laws originate ticm the ptrple
at krre, ignorant and vitions as thty are ; L-;i:d
the rejM fentatives are only the organs by wHch
thf.ir will is declared. This is not the fenfe in
which the afferion is in-ended. It is meant, that
if kings w/rrechvays v ife arid good, or if a band
of nobles were nlw; y1 v ife and good, it would be
beft that the\ flioiild be ihe hereditary legiilators.
This is the fenfe in whkh I deny the aflertkn,
becaufe it is contrary K.< tl:e :;nal(>gy of nature. It
being; a ft.ibjccT: on >yhii:h we cannot lock for ex
perience, we muft reafon only from analogy^; and
it appears extrem.tly evident tome, that, were a
fucceffion of the wifeft and bed men that ever have,
or ever will be know n, to be perpetuated in r<ny
coi?nrry as inckpendeni Icgiilators for the pec-pie,
the iK'ppincfs ?.nd government of the nati( n wc-i.ld
be cricor'y injure by it. I am confident that *my
people, wfcethcr virtuous or ^'it iocs, wife or igno
rant, n- n •< rf\- or Few, lich or pc(-r, are 'he l\ ft
jedges of thcl: cv n w^nt* relative to tie reltr^ii,t
of laws, is re' \\ •. i Ui always fupj'.ly thofe wants
better than they could be fupplied by others.

NATIONAL CONVENTION. . 169

In expreffing thefe ideas on the peace and hap-
pinefs to be expe&ed from a free republic, I have
t>een often accufed of holding 'too favourable an
opinion of human nature. But it appears to me,
that the queftion, whether men, on any given
portion of the earth, are able to make their own
laws, does not depend in the leaft on their moral
character. It has no relation to their ftate of im
provement or their ftate of morals. The only
previous enquiry is, What is the object to -be
aimed at in the government ? If it be the good of
the whole community, the whole can beft know
the means of purfuingit ; if it b£ to exalt a few
men at the expence of all the reft, the decilion,
perhaps, may take a different turn.

A republic- of beavers or of monkies, I believe,
could not be benefited by receiving their laws
from men, any more than men could be in being
governed by them. If the Algerines or the Hin
doos were to lhake off the yoke of defpotifm, and
adopt ideas of equal liberty, they would that mo
ment be in a condition to frame a better govern
ment for thetnfelves, than could be framed for-
them by the moft learned ftatefmen in the world.
If the great Mr. Locke, with all his wifdnm ami
goo-lnefs, were to attempt the tafk, he would pro
bably fucceed as ill as he did in his conftitution for
the colony of South-Carolina.

Colonies have always been teazed and torment
ed more or lefs (and probably always will be as
long as colonies (hall exift) by the overweening
wifdom of the mother-country, in making their
]aws and conftitutions. This is often done
without any wifh to tyrannize, and fometimes
with the beft intentions to promote the good of
the people. The misfortune more frequently
P

1*70 LETTER TO THE

lies in the legifhtor's not knowing the wants and
•wifhes of the people, than in any wanton define
to counteract ihem. The fure and only charac-
teriftic of a good law i% that it le the per/eft ex-
preffion of the will of the nation ; its excellence is
precife-ly in proportion to the nniverfality and
freedom of confent. And this definition remains
the fame, whatever be the character of the nation,
or the object of the law. Every man, as an indi
vidual, has a will of his own, and a manner of
exprefilng it. In forming thefe individuals into
foctety, it is neceiTary • to form their wills into a
government; and in doing this, we have only to
find the eafieft and cleared mode of exprefling their
wills in a national manner. And no poflible dif-
advantages relative to their ft ate of morals or civil
ization can render this a difficult talk.

I have gone into thefe arguments, not merely
to prove that the French are fit for liberty, who
are certainly at this moment the moft enlightened
nation in Europe , but to (how that the calumny
contained in the contrary alTertion need not be re
peated againft any other nation, who iliould make
the like exertions, and whofe pretenfions, in this
refpecly, might appear more questionable in the
eye of fafhionable remark,

But it will be faid, I am too late with all thefe
obfervalions on the neceffity of profcribing roy?J'y
from your conflitution The caufe is already
judged in the minds of the whole people of
France ; and their wiflies will furely be the rule
of your conduct. I fuppofe that, without being
reminded of your'duty by a ftranger/ one of your
firft refolutions would be, to declare a republic, to
fix a national anathema on every veftige of regal
power, and endeavour to wipe out from the hu-

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 171

man character the ftain which it received, with
its veneration for kings and hereditary claims.
But it requires much reflection to be well aware
to what extent this duty (hould carry you. There
are many vices in your conftitution, which though
not opparently connected with the king, had their
origin in regal ideas. To purify the whole code
from thefe vices, and to purge human nature from
their effects, it will be necefiary to refort to many
principles which appear not 10 have ftrtick the
minds of the firft aiiembly.

You will permit me to hint at fome of the great
outlines of what may be expected from you, un
der the peculiar advantages with which you meet
to form a glorious republic. Although many of my
ideas may be perfectly fuperfluous, being the fame
as will occur to every member of your body, yet
it is poiiTble that fome of them may (rrike the
mind in a new point of Hght5 apd lead to reflec
tions which would not rife from any other. quar
ter. Should this be the cafe in the ftr.alldt degree
it ought to be confidered, both by you and me, as
sn ample reward far our pains, in- writing and in
reading this letter.

On cohfidering the fubjecl of government,
when the mind is once fet loofe from" the (hackles
of royalty, it finds ilielf in a new world, ft rifes
to a more extern five view of every ctrcumfHnce
of the focial ftate. Human nature aUiirnes a new
and more elevated fliape, and difplays many mor
al features, which, from having been always dif-
guifed, were not known to,exiit. In this cafe,
it is a long time before we acquire a habit of tra
cing effects to their proper caufes, and of apply
ing the eafv and lirnple remedy to thofe vices of
cur rutureSvhich fociety requires us to reftraii-i.

LETTER TO TK'JS--

This, I apprehend, is the fource of by for the
greateft difficulties with which you have to con
tend. We are fo much tifed, in government, to
the moft complicated fyflems, as being neceflfary
to fupport thofe impofitions, without which it has
been fuppofed irnpoflible for men to be governed,
that it is an unufual tafk to conceive of the fimpli-
city to which the bufmefs of government may be
reduced, and to which it rnuft be reduced, if we
would have it anfwer the purpofe of promoting
happincfs.

After profcribing royalty, with all its append
ages, I fuppofe it will not be thought neceffary
in France to fupport any other errors and fuper-
ilitions of a nniiUr completion ; but that undif-
guifed reafon in all things will be preferred to the
cloak of impofitron. Should this be the cafe, you
will conceive it no longer neceflary to maintain a
national church. This eftablifhrrient is fo mani-
feflly an impofition upon the judgment of man
kind, that the conlthucnt allembly mud have con
fide red it in that light. It is one of thofe mon-
archial ideas, which pay us the wretched compli
ment of flip pofing that we are not capable of being
governed by our own reafon. To fuppofe that the
people of France are to iearn the mode of wor-
iln'p ping God from the decrees of the council of
Trente, is certainly as abfurd as it would be to
appeal to fuch a council to learn how to breathe,
or to open their eyes. Neither is it true,, as is ar
gued by the advocates of this part of your con-
{Htution, that the preference there given to one
mode of worfhip by the payment of the catholic
priefts, from the national purfe, to the exclufion
of others, was founded o.n the idea of the proper
ty fuppofed to have been poffbffed by ehat church,

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 173

and which by the aftembly was declared to be
thenceforward the property of the nation.

The church, in this fenfe of the word, figniHes
nothing but a mode yf worjhip ; and to prove that
a mode can be the proprietor cf lands, requires
a fubtihy of logic that I (hall not attempt to re
fute. The fact is, the church confiderecl as an
hierarchy, was always neceiTary to the fupport of
royalty ; and your aflembly, with great confifteii-
cy of defign, wifliing to preferve foine'hing of the
uid fabric, prefer ved fomeihing of this neceftury
prop. But as the fabric is now overturned, tfae
prop may be fafely taken away. I am confident
that monarchy and hierarchy will be buried iu
the fame grave ; and that in France they will not
iurviv-e the prefent year.

I know that it is after ted and believed by foine
well-withers to fociety, that religion would be
loft among men, if they were to banifh nil legal
eflabli (laments with regard to the manner of exer-
cifing it. I mould not be fo perfectly convinced
as I am of the abfurdity of this opinion, were it
not eafy to difcpver how it came to be introduced.
It is an idea, as I believe, purely political ; and
it had its origin in the fuppofed ncccftity of gov
erning men by fraud, — of erecting their credulity
into an hierarchy, in order to fultain the defpoiifm
of theftate. I hold religion to be a natural propen-
ilty of the mind, as refpiration is of the lungr.
If this be true, t'» re can be no danger of its bring
loll : and I can fee no more reafcui for making
laws to regulate the impreftion of Deity upon the
foul, than there woultl be, to regulate the aclioa
of light upon the eye, or of air upon the lungs,
I ihould prefuinc therefore, that, on ft ripping
this fubject of all the fal recovering which inic-
P 2

174 LETTER. TO THE

qua! governments have thrown upon it, you v\fl!
make no national provifion for the fupport of any
clafs of men, under the mock pretence of main
taining the wo.rfhip of God. But you will leave
every part of the community to nominate and pay
their own minifters in their own way. The mode
of worfhip which they will thus maintain, will
be the moft conducive to good order, becaufe it
will be that in which the people will believe.

Much has been faid, fmce the beginning of your
revolution, on the difference between the bufmefs
of framing conftitutions, and that of ordinary
legiflation. Indeed I am afraid that either too
much or too little has been inculcated on this fub-
jecl: ; becaufe it appears to me, that the doctrine
now received is not that which the fubjeft would
naturally fuggeft. It teaches us to confider thofe
laws that are called c infill nitons, in a light fo fac-
red, as to favour loo much of the old leaven of
veneration for precedent ; and every degree of
fuch veneration is fo much taken from the chance
of improvement. To fuppofe that our predecefTbrs
were wifer than ourfelves is not an extraordinary
thing, though the opinion may be ill founded ;
but to ftippofe that they can have left us a better
fyftem of political regulations than we can make
for ourfelves, is to aicribe to them a degree of
difcernmcRt to which our own bears no com par i-
fon ; it fuppofes them to have known our condi-
dition by prophecy better than v. -. know it by ex
perience.

There was not only a degree of arrogance in
your firft affembly, . in fuppofmg that they had
framed a conftitmion, which for a number of
years would require no amendment ; but they be
trayed a great degree of weaknefs in imagining

NATIONAL CONVENTION.

that the ridiculous barriers with which they feaced
it round would be fufficient to reft rain the power
ful weight of opinion, and prevent the people
from cxercifing the irrefiftible ri.^ht of innovation,
whenever experience fhould difcover the defecls
of the fyitem. It is partly to thefe barriers, as
well as to the inherent vices of the constitution,
that we are to attribute the late infiirre&ions in
Paris. If we would trace the caufes of popular
commotions, we fhould always find them to have
originated in a previous unjuft reftraint.

I would not however be imderftood to mean that
there fhould be no diftinction between the confti-
tutional code, and other occafional laws. There
is room for a confiderable diiTerence, both as to
the mode of exprefTing them, and as to the form
alities proper to be obferved in repealing or amend
ing them. I will offer fome remarks on a plun
for amendments towards the clofe of my letter.
With regard to the general completion of the
code, it ought to be as (imply exprefTed and eafy
to be underftood .as poflible ; foHt ought to fervef
not only as a guide to the legiflative body, but as*
a political grammar to all the citizens. The great-
tii fervice to be expelled from it is, that it fhould
concentrate the maxims, and form the habits of
thinking, for the whole community* For this
purpofe, it is not fufficient that it be purified from
every veftige of monarchy, and hierarchy, with
all the impofitions and inequalities which have
fprung infenfibly from thefe ideas ; but it fhould
Contem plats the whole circle of human propenfi-
ties, and cut off the temptations and opporturmies
for degenerating into thofe evils which have fb long
afHicSled mankind, and from which we ate now
but beginning to arife.

LETTER TO THE

After laying down the great fundamental prin
ciple that all men are equal In their rightsy it ought
to be the invariable object of the focial compact to
infure the exercife of that equality, by rendering
them as equal in all forts of enjoyments, as can
poffibly be confident with good order, induftry,
and the reward of merit. Every individual ought
to be rendered as independent of every other individ
ual as poflible ; and at the fame time as d:pendent
as poflible on the whole community. On this un
deniable maxim, I think the following pofitions
ought to be founded and guaranteed in the confti-
tutional code :

Firfl, The only bafis of reprefentation in the
government mould be population \ territory and
property, though abfurdly flated by your firft af-
lernbly as making part of the bafis of reprefenta
tion, have no intereft in it. Propeity, in itftlf,
conveys no right to the poiTeiTor, but the right of
enjoying it. To fay that it has the right of claim
ing for ufelf the protection of fociety, is abfurd ;
becaufe it is already protected, or it would not be
property. It is the perfon, not the property, that
exercifes the will, and is capable of enjoying
happinefs ; it is therefore the perfon, for whom
government is inftituted, and by whom its func
tions are performed. The reafon why property
has been coniidered as conveying additional lights
to the poiFelFor in matters of government, is the
fame as has blinded the underftandings of men
relative to the whole order of nature in fociety.
It is one of thofe appendages of monarchy and
oligarchy, which teaches that the object of gov
ernment is to increafe the fplcrulour of the few,
and the misfortunes of the many. And every
flep that fuch governments take has a tendency to

NAtlONAL CONVENTION.

Counteract the equality of rights, by ckftroying
the equality of enjoyments.

Second, If you take population as the only bafrs
of reprefentation in the departments, the next (tep
•will be, to declare every independent man to be
an adive citizen. By an independent man, I mean
every ma~n whom the laws do not place under the
control of another, by reafon of nonage or do-
mefticity. The laws of France, in my opinion^
have always placed the period of majority by fe-
veral years too late ; that is, later than nature has
placed it. This however, was of littkconfequence
in a political view, as long as the government re
mained defpotic ; but now, when the rights of man
are rcftored, and government is* built on that foun
dation, it is of confequence to encreafe as far as
poflible the number of attive citizens. And for
this purpofe I mould fuppofe the period of majo
rity ought to be placed at leaft as early as-.the age
of twenty years. To make this change in France
would be attended with many advantages. It
would increafe the flock of knowledge, and ui
inciiiilry, by infpirtng young men with early ideas
of independence, and the necedity of providing
for themfelves by fome ufeful employment : it
would be a great inducement to early marriages y
and, by that means, increafe population, and en
courage ptirity of morals.

I am likevvife fully convinced that the afTembly
WQS wrong in fuppoflng that a ftate of domefiicity
ought to deprive a man of the rights of" a freeman,
This is a relick of thofe ideas which the ancient
government has infpired. Where a fervarit is
ab(oiutely dependent on the caprice of a mailer
tor his place, and coniequently for his bread, there
is indeed much force in the argument, that he can

178 LETTER TO THE

have no political will of his own ; and will give
his fuffrage as directed by the matter. But when
every man fhall be abiblutely free to follow any pro-
fefHon, every kind of ufefui induftry being equally
encouraged and rewarded ; and especially when
every man (hall be well inftru6led in his duties and
his rights, which will certainly be the confequencc
of the fyftem you have now begun, — fuch argu
ments will fall to the ground with the fyftem
which they fupport. The fervant and his mafter,
though not equal in property or in talents, may be
perfectly fo in freedom and in virtue. Wherever
the fervant is more dependent on the mafter, than
the mafter on the fervant, there is fortieth ing wrong
in the government. The fame remarks I believe
may be repeated, with little variation, in the cafe
of infolverit debtors, another clafs of men dif-
franchifed by the firft afTembly.

Third) The manner in which c/itizenmip may
be acquired or loft, is a fubject which ought to be
con fide red by you ; as your predeceifors have left
in it fume room for improvement. Their regu
lation was indeed a liberal one, compared with
what ot,her governments have done ; but not fo,
when compared with what the fubjiecl: required.
I am confident that when foclety ft all be placed on
the right footing, the citizens of any ons ftate will
coufider thofe of any other ftate as their brothers
and fellow citizens of the world ; and in this cafe,
when thofe who are called foreigners come to fet
tle among them, a mere declaration of their in
tention of refidence will be fufficient to entitle
them to all the rights which the natives poffefs. I
was anxious that the French fhould fet the example
in this ipeeie's of liberality, as they have done in

KATIONAL CONVENTION. 1J$

fa many other good things ; and I ft ill believe that
on reviewing the fubject, you will do it.

But according to your conftitution there are
many ways in which the rights of citizens rnay
be-lofts for one of which I can fee no reafon ; it is
naturalization in a foreign country. This is fo
nianifeftly illiberal and ur.juft, that I am alrnoft
fure it will be altered. It is an old feudal idea of
allegiance; and goes upon the fuppofniofl that
fidelity to one country is incompatible with our
duty to another. When.a citizen of one Hate is
complimented with the freedom of another, it is
generally an acknowledgment of his m<?rit ; but
your confhtuent aflembly coniklered it as an object
cf punifhment. Many of your citizens have been.
naturalized in America ; but" the American go
vernments certainly did not forefee that this act of
theirs would disfranchife thofe gentlemen at home.
\ou have lately conferred the rights of a French
citizen on George Wamington. If he fhould
accept the honour you have thus done him, and
the American conrutution were in this refpect the
lame as your own, he muft immediately be turned
out of office, and for ever disfranchifed at home.

Fourth, You will doubtlefs confider the import
ant fubject of the frequency of popular elections, as
claiming a farther deliberation. It is an article on
which too much reflection cannot be beftowed. It
influences the habits of the people and the fpiiit of
the government in a variety of ways, that efcape
our common obfervation. 1 mentioned before,
that one of the firft objects of fociety is to rerder
every individual perfectly dependent on the whole
community. The more completely this object is
attained, the more perfect will be the equality of
enjoyments and the happinefs of the ftate. But

BETTER TO THE

of all individuals, thofe who are fele&ed to be the
organs of the people, in making and in executing
the laws, fliowld feel this dependence in the flrong-
eil degree. The eafieft and moft natural method
of effecting this p.urpofe is, to oblige them to recur
frequently to the authors of their official exigence,
todepofit their powers, mingle with their fellows,
and wait the decifion of the fame fovereign will
which .created them at firft, to know whether they
are again to be trufted.

There are doubtlefs feme limits to this frequency
of election, beyond which it would be hurtful to
pafs ; as every fubjecT: has a medium between two
vinous extremes. But I know of no office, in
any department of ftate, that need to be held for
mere than one year, without a new election. Moft
men, who give in to this idea with refpe& to the
legislative, are accuftomed to make an exception
with regard to the executive, and particularly with
regard tQ that part which is called the judiciary,
I am aware of all the arguments that are ufually
brought in fupport of thefe exceptions ; but they
appear to me of little weight, in comparifon to
thofe in favour of univerfal annual elections.
Power always was, and always muft-be, a danger
ous thing, I mean, power colje&ed from the
great mafsof fociety, and delegated to a few hands;
for it is only in this fenfe that it can properly be
called power. The phyfical forces of all' the in
dividuals of a great nation cannot be brought to
a£l at once upon a fmgle objecl j and the fame
may be faid of their moral forces. It is neceflary
therefore that, the exercife of thefe fhould always
be performed by delegation ;1he moral in legifla-
don, the phyfical in execution. This is the pro
per definition of national power j and in this fenfe

NATIONAL CONVENTION. l8l

it is necefTanly dangerous ; becaufe ffHfljy fpeak-
ing, it is not exercifed by thofe whofe property it
is, and for whofe good it is intended to operate.
It is in the nature of this kind of truft to invert
in fome meafure the order of things ; it apparently
lets the fervant above the mafler, and difpofes him
to feel a kind of independence which ought never
to be felt by any citizen., particularly one who is
charged- with a public function.

It has ever been the tendency of government to
divide the fociety into two parties, — the governors
and the governed. The mifchiefs ariling from
tills arc aluioli infinite. It not only dif poles each
narty to view the other with an eye ot jealoufy
atui diilrufu which foon rife to acls <pf fecret or
r-rr-n enniitr, hut it effectually corrupts the morals
of both p::v:i.:s, and d^ftroys the vital principles of
ludety ; i' rriakes govcrrmcnt the trade of the
f-'-w, fiihrnii'lioii the drudgery of the many, and
faifehoot! the common artifice of the whole. Xo
prevent ihi?, I would have no man placed in a po-
fition in which he can call himfelf governor, for
a moment longer thr;n while he performs the du-
tj.es ef i;is tnill to tlic laiisfaclic-n of his fellow
''inzcnf, nor ev?n then, but for a fliort peri(^d.t
llf: fliould ff;t4 at all times as ihotigti he were loon
to change place1' wuh any one of liis neighbours,
whom he now fees iV to ins authority.

But to arifvver this purpnfe, the frequent return
nf elcclions is not of iifdf furTicient. I am 1'ully
of the opinion, that with regard to all difcretion-
ary officers, there ought to be an exclufion by ro
tation. Thofe fun&ions that are purely minifteria'I,
fuch as thofe of (herifTs, constables, clerks of
courts, regifters, &c. perhaps may form excepti
ons ; but iegiflators, executive counfellors, judges

Q.

lS2y LETTER TO THE

and msgiftratcs of every dcfcription, mould no?
only feel their dependence on the people by an an-
rwial election, but mould frequently mingle with
them by an exclulion from office. The effect of
this would be, not what is often averted, that noone
would underlland government, but the contrary,
that every o.ie would underftand it. This would
for.m a prodigious ftimulus to the acquifition of
knowledge among all defer iptions of men, in all
parts of the country. Every man of ordinary
ability would be not only capable of. watching
ovtr his own rights, but of exercifing any of the
li.'iiclloiis by which the public iVety is fecured.
For whatever there is in the art of government,
whether legislative or executive, above the capaci
ty of the ordinary clafs of what are called well
informed men, is fuperfluous and deftru&ive, and
ought to be laid afide. The man who is called a
pd'-tlcinn> according to the practical fenfe of the
word in modern Europe, exercifes an office infi
nitely more deftniclive to focLty than that of a
highwayman. The fame may be faid, in general,
of the financier ; whcfe art and my fiery, on the
funding fyflem of the prefent century, confifts in
making calculations to enable governments to hire
mankind to butcher each other, by drawing bills
on pofterity for the payment.

I would therefore fuggeft the propriety of your
reviewing the article of biennial elections, as in-
Jlituted by your firfl: afleinbly, and of your mak
ing them annual j and the fame term, if not the
fame manner of election, ought to extend to all
executive officers, whofe functions are in any
manner difcretionary. I think it would likewife
be efTential, that no office of this defcription
jfoould be held by one man, more than two years

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 1^5

in any term of four years. This would fend into
the departments, and into every part of the em
pire, at frequent periods, feme thoufands of men
with practical knowledge of public bufmefs ; it
would at lead be the means of doubling the number
of fuch well-inftfucted men ; and, by holding out
the inducement to others to quality themfclves to
merit the confidence of their fellow citizens, it
would multiply the number of men of theoretical
knowledge, at lead ten fold. All thcfe men will
be watchiul guard ans of the public fafefy. But
ihde are not all the advantages of frequent, elec
tion?. They habituate the people to the bufiiiefs
of L'cClion, and enable iheai to carry it on with
order ami .ir daily labour ; they

hubiiua'e the car be gratified wilh ihs

public confidence, or to be disappointed in the ex-
peclaiion of Graining it , fo that their fdccefs or
difappoinimtnt chafes to rmke thai deep impref-
fion oi> their minds, Which it o-herwife would do.
It is thus that yoa won! \ cut ' :t an infinite fource
<): that intrigue and corruption, which are fore-
lolJ wuh fo much horror by thofe who have not
well ftucfed the erfe&sof a well organized popular
inrnent. But another method, not Ids effec-
t.ial, to prevent the arts of fcrambling tor power
and places, will be hinted at in the following
article.

Fifth, Among the fatal mifconceptions of things
\vhich monarchy has entailed upon us, and which
are extremely difficult to eradicate from the mind,
muft be reckoned that prevalent opinion, that ?M
governments fh^uld gratify their agents \vi:h enor-
ffiQUS Jaiaries. This idea has ufunlly been more
particularly applied in favour of the executive orTi-
.-rs of governipent and their dependants ; and it

LETTER TO

had iis origin in the antecedent principles, that
government divides the people into two diftincl
claffe?, and that the fame quantity of builncfV,
coming within the verse of one of thefe claifes,
mult be paid for at a iiiglier price than it would
be, within that cf the other ; though it iliould be
performed by the fame man, and required the
lame exertion of talents* Your constitution is
iilent as to the quantity of falary that ihall.be paid
to any particular officer ; it only fays that <l the
nation (hall provide f:>r the iplcndour of the
throne," (which indeed is a declaration of war
ugainft the liberties of the people) b:it the authors
of that coniVitution, in their legiilative capacity,
after providing for nclour with a finn fuf-

licicnt to purchase the majority of ulniost any
ii-ijfi [lunch td cnt on to pro

vide for tho fplcndour of ihe minilters. They
gave i.o one, if my memory d jos not deceive me, <>ne
mm I red and fifty thoufund livre.s slid one hundred
ihoufund 'f the reft, 'i'his on an av<

js about tl. s more than ought to have bee.1*

jjiv'v'ii, unl-jfs tile cfbjcc't \vere 10 carry en the gov
ernment by intriguing for places

I mention this article, not on the fcore of oeco-
nomy. That confidera'ion, however weighty it
may appear, is one of the lea 8: that can itrike the
mind on the fubject of public falari-rs. The evil
of paying too much is pregnant with a thoufancl
mifchiefs. It is almolt fufficieat of itfelf to de
feat all the advantages to be ex peeled from the
inftitutiori of an eq?-al government. The general
rule to be adopted in this cafe, (which perhaps is
all that can be faid "of it in the con(Htution) ap
pears to me this, That fo much> and no tnc-re> Jhall
be given for the prrformance cf any public fundi^n^

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 185

t»\. (hc$ be fufficient to Induce fuck men ts undertake
it whoje abilities are equal to the tafi. If ibis rule
were (tridlly obferved, it is rational to conclude,
that there would be no more contention or in
trigue a mono; candidates to obtain places in the
government, than there is among manufacturers,
TO find a market for their goods. 1 his concluilon
becomes more probably jnft, when we confider
that your intention is to cut off from the fervants
of the public all hopes of obtaining the public mo-
ney by any indirect and fraudulent meafure.--.
When there (hail be no more civil lift, or livrc
rouge, no more miniilerial patronage in church or
fiaie, no more fale of juftice (i>r purchafe ot opprei-
lion, or any kind of perquifiie of office, but the
candidate lliall be aflured, that all ihe money he
ihall receive, will be the limple fum promifed by
the legiilauire, that fum being no more tha
work is honefily worth, he will accept or relin-
qiiila the moft important truft, as he \vould an
ordinary occupation.

This iingle c ire urn ft a nee of falaries, being
wifely guarded on every fide, would, in the courfe
of its operation, aim oft change the moral lace ci
government. It would filence all the clamours
agaipft the republican principle, and arkfwer inanv
of the faihioruble calumnies agaiiul the character
of the human heart.

. There is another queftionable opinion now ex
tant, even in republican countries ; whuh, as it
lus made feme figure in France, and is coniK.
with the fubjecl: of falaries, I will mention in this
place. It is fup poled to b^ neceliary, for ihc
energy of government, that iis officers Ihoi:'
fume a kind of external pomp and iplencLur, in
older to dazzle the eve, and infpirc .he public
Q.2

l86 LETTER TO THE

mind with a veneration for their authority. As
this pomp cannot be fupported without fame ex-
pence, the fuopofecl nccellity for affuining it is
always offered as a reafon for high fabrics ; and,
allowing the fir it portion to be true, the confe-
quence is certainly reasonable and juft. If we are
to be governed only by deception, it is right that
we Ihoulti pay for this deception. But the whole
argument is wrong ; that is, if we allow mon
archy and hierarchy to be wrong ; it is a badge of
that kind of government which is dircclly the re-
verfe of republican principles, or the government
of reafon. I do not deny, that this official pomp
has in a great rneafure the effect which is intended
from it ; it irrpofes on the unthinking part of
mankind, and has a tendency to (ecu re iheir obe
dience. This effect, however, is not fo great as
that of fimplicity, and 'he native dignity of reafon
v/ould be ; but on the moral habits of fociety, its
operation is more pernicious than at firft view we
are ready to imagine. So far as the people are
caught by the impoiiiion, it leads them to wrong
ideas of themfelve?, of their officers, and of the
real authority of laws. This is a fatal deviation
from the true defign of government ; for its prin
cipal object certainly ought to be, to rectify our
opinions, and improve our morals.

For my own part, when I fee a man in private
life affuming an external fplendour, for the fake
of gaining attention, I cannot but feel it an infult
offered to my underftandine ; becaufe it is faying
to me, that I have not difcerrrrent enough to dif-
tinguifh his merit, without this kind of ccce Jig-
num. And when an officer of government exhibits
himfelf in the foppery of a puppet, and is drawn
by fix or eight horfes, where t\vo would be really

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 187

more convenient to himfelf, I am grieved at the
iniult offered to the nation, and at their (hipidity
in not perceiving it. For the language of the
mummery is limply this, That the officer cannot
rely upon his own perfonal dignity as a title to
refpecl, nor the laws be trnfled to their own juf-
tice, to infure their execution. It is a full ac
knowledgment on his part, that the government
is bad, and that he is obliged to dazzle the eyes of
the people, to prevent -hcrir difcc-jvering the cheat.
When a fee of judges on ihe bench take the pains
Toiliroud their heads and fhoulders in a fleece of
horfc-hair, in order to referable the bird of wif-
dom, it raifcs a ftrong fufpicion, that they mean
to palm upon us the emblem for the reality.

It is eiiential to the character of a free republic,
that every thing ihould be reduced to the itandard
of reafon ; that men and laws fhould depend on
their own intrinfic merit, and that no fhadow of
deception mould ever be offered to the people ; as
it cannot fail to corrupt thews, and pave the way
to oppreffion. I make thefe remarks, not that
they will form an article proper to enter into your
conlHtution, but to remove every appeurance of
argument in favour of high falaries. And I think
the conllitution ought to contain a general declara
tion, tkat every puLlic /alary fhwld be reftriftecl to
a /urn not more than fiifficient to reward ike officer far
his labour ; which fum mud, of courfc, be left to
be fixed by the legiflature.

Sixth, There appears to me to be an error of
do&rine in France, with refpeft to the relation
which ought to fwbiift between the rtpreftntative,
and his immediate conftituents. It is faid, that
when a representative is once chofen, and fent to
the aflembly, he is no longer to be confidered as

l88 LETTER TO THE

representing the people of the particular depart
ment which lent him, but of the nation at large ;
and therefore, during the term for which he is
chofcn, he is not accountable to the people who
chofe him,/ but is to be controuled, removed
or fufpendeci, only by the national affembly. This
appears to have been eftablillied, in order to get
rid of a contrary doctrine, which was found to be
inconvenient ; which wa?, that a delegate fliould
be bound at all times to follow the iitftru&itm* of
his conitituents ; as thereby all the advantages to
be expected from difcuiTion and deliberation would
be loft. If the firft of theie be an error, as I be
lieve it is, it may be eafily avoided, without run
ning into the laft. When the delegate receives
inftruclions, which prove to be contrary to the
opinion which fie afterwards forms, he ought to
prefume that his conflituents, not having had the
advantage of hearing the national difcuifion, are
not well informed on the fubject, and his duty is
to vote according to his confcience. It is to be
fuppofed that, for his own fake, he will explain
to them his motives ; but if for this, or any oth^r
circumiiance. they mould be diffctisfied with his
conduct, they have an undoubted right at any time
to recal him, and nominate another in his place.
This will tend to maintain a proper relation be
tween the representative and the people, and a
due dependence of ihe former upon the b.tter.
Befides, when a man has 1 oil the confidence of his
fellow-citizens of the department, he is no longer
their reprefentative ; and when he ceafes to be
theirs, he cannot in any fenfe be the repreienta-
tive of the nation ; fmce it is not pretended that he
can derive any authority^ but through his own
conftituenis. This, however, cannot depiivc- the

NATIONAL CGNVEXT1OX. l8<j

of its right to expel or fufpend a member
for any refractory conduct, which may be deemed
an offence againft the ilate.

Seventh^ Trie article of inviolability, as applied
to the members of the a'lembly, or to any other
officers of the ftate, is worthy of re-ccnfideration.
But before it be again decided in the affirmative,
you ought to take a genera! view of that intereft*
ing fubjedl of Inrpfifwment for debt. It is a fpecies
of civil cruelty which ail modern governments
luve borrowed from the Roman law, which con-
ildered a debtor as a criminal, and committed the
care of his pumihment into the hands ot the cre
ditor, lending the public prifon as an inftrument
of private ven It is a difgrace to the wif-^

dom of a nation, and can never be allowed in a
well regulated ilate. If no citizen iiiould be ar-
re'led or depiived cf hh liberty, tor debt, there
j be no \} :Ku;n^ an exception in fa

vour of the oilers of government ; and thus you
would remove a cHliiiicUon which muit always
appear unjull.

ii'vbik) You will fcarccly think that your duty
is discharged, (b as to {atisry your own minds on
the eiiabjiihment of a conflitution, from which
the friends of huaiaaUy will anticipate a total re
generation of fociety, until you ilnll have s^iven a
farther declaration on the fubjecl of penal law.
All men of reflection are agreed, that puniiliments
in modern times have loll .all proportion to the
crimes to which they are annexed, even on that
fcale of barbarous jufiicc by which they were in
troduced. Few, however, have had the wifdorn
to difcover, or tke bokinefs to declare, the true
caufe of the evil ; and while we remain ignorant
of the caufe, it is no wonder that we fail in find-

lETTER TO tHfc

ing the remedy. In the glooms of meditation on
the miferies of civilized life, I have been almoft
led to adopt this conclufisn, That fociety itfelf is
the caufe of all crimes ; and, as fuch, it has no
right to punifh them at all. But, without indulg
ing the feverity of this unqualified aifcrtidn, we
may venture to fay, that every punilTiment i> a new
crime ; though it may not in aii cafes be fo great
as would follow from omitting to punlfh.

There is a manifeft difference between pujrifij-
ment and correction ; the latter, among rational be
ings, may always be performed by inftruclioii ;
or at moft by fome gentle fpecies of reftraint. Bui
punifhment, on the part of the public, ariles
from no other fource but a jealoufy of power. It
is a confeflion of the inability of fociety, to pro
tect itfelf aguinil an ignorant or refractory mem
ber. When there are factions in a itatc, contend
ing for the fuprcme command, the pains hiflicled
by each party are furnmary \ they often precede
(he crime ; and the factions wreak their vengeance
on each other, as a prevention of expefted inju
ries. Something very fimihr to ^-'ls is what per
petually takes place in every nation, in what is
called a dale of tranquilify and order. For go
vernment has ufually been nothing mere than a
regulated fad ion. The party which governs, and
the party which reluctantly fubmits to be governed,
maintain a continual conflict ; and out of that
conflict proceed the crimes and the punishments,
or, more properly fpeaking, the punifhrnerits and
the crimes. When we fee the power of the na
tion feizing an individual, dragging him to a
tribunal, pronouncing him worthy of death, arc!
then going through the folemn formalities of exe
cution, it is natural to alk, what is the meaning

NATIONAL CONVENTION. lf)i

of all this ? It certainly mean?, that the nation is
in a ftate of civil war ; and even in that barbarous
ffoge of war, when it is thought necetfary to put
all prifoners to death. In deciding the question,
whether a particular criminal (hould be pur to
death, I never would afk what is the nature of his
offence ; it has nothing to do with the queftion ; I
would fimply enquire, what is the condition of
the fociety. If it be in a ftate of internal peace,
I would fay it was wicked and abfurd to think <yf
irifii&ilig fuch punifhment. To plead that there
is a rieceflity for that defperate remedy, proves a
want of energy in the government, or of wifdom
in the nation.

When men are in a (late of war, with the ene
my's bayonets pointed at their breads, or when
they are in the heat of a revolution, encompafTed
by treafen, and tormented by corruption, there is
an apology for human {laughter ; but when you
have eftabliihed a wife and manly government,
founded on the moral fenfe, and invigorated by the
enlightened reafonof the people, let it not be ful-
lied by that timid vengeance, which belongs only
to tyrants and ufurpers. I could wilh that yorr
conititution might declare, not merely what it has
already declared, that the penal code ilia 11 be re
formed, but, that within u certain period after the
return of peace, the punljlment of death ft all be
aboli/hsd. It ought like\vife to enjoin it on the le-
gillative body to foften the rigour of puniihments
in general, till they (hall amount to little rn<"»re
than a tender paternal correction. Whoever will
look into the human heart, and examine the order
of nature in fociet}^ mud be convinced, that this
is the mod likely method of preventing the com-
miflion of crimes. But,

LETTER TO THE

AVw/i, In order to be confident with voirrfelves
in removing thofe abufes which have laid the inun
dation of all offences againft fociety, both in crimes
nnd puniihments, you ought to pay a farther at
tention to the itecemty of public iwftruftion. It is
your duty, as a cenftituent alTembly to eftablifh a
fyflem of government that (hall improve the mo
rals of mankind. In raffing a people from ilaverv
to freedom, you have called them to ac-1 on a new
theatre ; and it is a necellary part of your bufinefs,
to teach them how to perform their parts. By dif-
covering to a man his rights, you impofe upon
him a new fyftem of duties. Every Frenchman,
born to liberty, muft now claim, among the firft
of his rights, the right of being inflructed in the
manner of preferring them. This the fociety has
no authority to refufe ; and to fail of enjoining it
en the legislative body, as a part of its cem'bnt
care, would be to ceunten;6t the principles of the
revolution, and expofe the whole fyiiem to be
overturned.

From what the conflhmion has already declared
en this head, and fron the difpofition of the two
laft afTemblits, I have no doubt but coniklerable
intention will be p:iid to it; but I vifl'i in this
place to rccommei d it to a more particular confi-
deration, as a fubjtdl connected with criminal
law. It is certain thrt no obedience c^n be rati
onally ex peeled from any man to a law which he
does not know. It, is not only unjuft, but abfurd
2nd even impcffjble, to enforce his obedience. It
is therefore but half the bufinefs of legiilators to
make good law's ; an indifpenfable part of their
duty is to fee that every perfon in the (late fhall
perfectly underiland them. The barbarous max
im of jurifprudence, That rgnorame of the law is

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 193

no txcufs to the offender, is ?n in Talent apology for
tyranny, and ought never to difgrace the policy of
a rational government. I think therefore it would
do honour to your conilitution, and ferve as a
fiimulus to your legillature and to your magif-
trares, in the great duty of inftru£Uon, to declare,
That knowledge /V the foundation of obedience, and
that laws Jhall have no authority but where they are
underftood.

Tenth, Since I am treating of moral?, the great
object of all political inftitutions, I cannot avoid
bellowing fome remarks on the fubjecl: of public
lotteries. Ir is a (hocking difgrace ta modern gov
ernments, that they are driven to this pitiful piece
of knavery, to draw money from the people. But
nc> circumflance of this kind is fo extraordinary,
as that this policy iliould be continued in France,
fmce the revolution ; and that a ftate lottery ihouhl
ftill be reckoned among the permanent fources of
revenue. It has its origin in deception ; and de
pends for its fupport, on -raifing and difappointing
the hopes of individuals, on perpetually agitating
the mind with unreafonable delires of gain, on
clouding the underftanding with fuperftiiious ideas
of chance, defliny, and fate, on diverting the at
tention from regular induitry, and promoting a
univerfal fpirir of gambling, which carries all forts
of vices into all clailes of people. Whatever way
\ve look into human affairs, we fhall ever find, that
the bad organization of fociety is the caufe of more
diforders than could poflibly arife from the natural
temper of the heart. Anol what Ihull we fay of a
government, that avowredly fteps forward with
the infolence of an open enemy, and creates a new
vice for the fake of loading it with a tax r What
right has fuch a government to puniih our follies *
R

.1.04 LETTER TO THE

And who cnn look without difguft on the impious
figure it makes, in holding the fcourge in one
hand, and the temptation in the other r You cannot ^
htfitate to declare in your crnititutinn, that all
ILite lotteries fhall be for ever abolifhed.

'Eleventh^ As yours is the r,ri\ nation in the
world, that has folemnly renounced the horrid bu-
f'nefs of conquefr, you ought to proceed one ftcp
farther and declare, that you will have no more
to do with c'jhnu-s. This is but a ntceilary con-
fequence of your former renuncia-icn. Fur colo
nies are an appendage of conqueft ; and to claim
a right to the^ one would be claiming a perpetual,
or reiterated right to the other. Suppofmg yc.-ur
colonies were to declare independence, and fet up
a government of their own, (which your own
principles and the firft laws of nature declare they
have a right to do) in that cafe, the fame pretences
which you now have to hold them under your con
trol, would certainly juftify you in reconquering
and fubje&ing them. But it would be a mere
\vafte of argument, to prove that you have no
right to retain a iovereignty over them ; and if I
could bring rnyfelf to pay fo ill a compliment to
your jufticc, as to fuppofe that you could wiih to
violate a right, for the fake of what is called policy,
it would be eafy to (how, that to maintain foreign
pofTeffions, is in all cafes as impolitic, as it is un-
juft and onpreflive. Policy, in this refpect, can
have no other objecl but the advantages of trade ;
arid it may be laid down as a univerfal pofition,
that whatever folid advantages can flow to the mo
ther-country from the trade of her colonies, would
neceiTarily flow to her, if they were independent
Hates. The experience of mankind has not yet
enabled us even to fuppofe a cafe, in which it

NATIONAL CONVENTION. 195

would be otherwife. Whatever is free and mu
tually advantageous in trade, would be natural, and
would be carried on by each party for its own
intereft : whatever is unnatural and forced, muft
be fecured by means that will probably Id'Fen the
quantity of the whole ; but at all events, the coil
of maintaining it will for ever exceed the profits.
This is not only found to be true, from the expe
rience of every nation which has maintained colo
nies abroad ; bm the nature of the fubjccl re
quires that it fhouki always be the cafe. It is a
theory, for the proof of which no experience could
have been necclTary ; and it is to the pride of kings,
and the miilaken rapacity of governments, to the
falfe glare of extended fovereignty, and the d'efirc
of providing predatory places for the fycophams
of courts, that we are to attribute the train of
^amities which has tormented the maritime na-
t^as of Europe, in maintaining colonies for the
monopoly of trade. And where are we to look
for reafon and reformation, but to France ? The
Engliih and other governments, to fupport a con-
fiftency of charafter, and fill up the mcafure of
their fins* are faithful only to this one poinr, that
the more they are convinced of' the truth, the more
obftinate is their perfeverance in error.

I cannot but think it unneceirary, it not imper
tinent, to enter into farther arguments to prove,
that juftice, policy, and the trtie principles of
commerce, require you to fet the example to the
world, of declaring your colonies abfolutely free
and independent ftates, and of inviting them to

r r \ • '-i-i &

form a government of their own. 1 he example
would foon be followed by other nations ; if not
from reafon and from choice, at lead from ihj
more imperious argument of nccefTuy.

.tQ6 LETTER TO THE

Twelfth, I cannot clofe my letter, without fume
reflections on the policy of maintaining any thing
like what is called a /landing army in time of peace -,
which Teems to have been the intention of your firft
afTembly. Such a force would have many fatal
effects on the fpirit of a republican government,
without anfwering any good purpofe that can be ex-
peeled from it. According to your own principles,
you will have no more to do with foreign wars,
unlefs you are invaded ; and it is probable, ihat
the prefcnt is the laft invafion that will ever be
formed againft France. But, be that as it may,
:i (landing military force is the worft refource that
can be found for the defence of a free republic.
In this cafe, the ftrerigth of the army is the weak-
nefs of the nation. If the army be rcallv (Irong
enough to be relied on for defence, it not only
impofes upon the people a vail unneceflary ey-
pence, but it mud be a dangerous internment, ?a
the hands of dangerous men ; it may furnifh the
means of civil wars, and of the definition of lib
erty. If, on the contrary, it be not fufficient for
external defence, it will only ferve to di (appoint
the people. Being taught to believe that they have
an army, they will ceafe to^trufl in their own
ftrength, and be deceived in their expectations
of fafety.

But the greateft objection againft a {landing ar
my is, the effect it would have on the political
fentiments of the people. Every citizen ought
to feel himfelf to be a necelTary part of the great
community, for every purpofe to which the public
interefl csn call him to act ; he mould feel the
habits of a citizen and the energies of a foldier,
without being exclusively deftiried to the functions
of cither. His phyfical and moral powers ihould

NATIONAL CONVENTION. IO7

be kept in equal vigour ; as the difufq of the for
mer would be very foon followed by the decay of
the latter. If it be wrong to trult the legiiLi.ive
power of the fhte for a number of years, OF for
life, to a fmall number of men ; it is certainly
more prepofterous to do the fame thing with re
gard to military power. Where the wifdom re-
fides, there ought the ftrength to reiiue, in the
great body of the people ; and neither the one nor
other ought ever to be delegated, but for ihort
periods of time, and under fevere reiirictions,
This is the way to preferve a temperate and man
ly ufe of both ; and thus, by irufting only to
thernielves, the people will be fure of a perpetual
deteace againit the open force, and the ieciet in
trigues of all pouible enemies at home and abroad.
Tklrtecniky Arter tracuig the outlines of your
couftitution, according to your prefent id^as, :;;>d
proclaiming it in the moft folemn manner, as t.h-
foundation of law an-;! right, it will iiill be vain to
think of retraining the people from making al
terations and amendments, as often a? exncrk:.v-
in ull indiue them to change their opinions. The
point you have to aim at in this, is to agree upoji
a method in which amendments can be made, with
out any of thoie extraordinary exertions, \\ .••• .' h
would occalion unneceffary infurrecticuis. The
ni;.)re eafy and expeditious this method ihali ap
pear, the lefslikelv It will bcMo provoke tlifoi
'anj the better it will anfwer the purpofe, provi ;-<;
it always refers the fubjeitt to the real wifliel ni
the people. I would propofe, therefore, ;0a tLo
prelumotion that your legillaiivc b :.dy tliaii be cho-
ieii only tor one year al a time.- ihat ever'/ inmnl
national aPicrably Ih.ill have power t'//./;v;% and
the next fucc&uiag one adspt and taltfit -;-v

198 LLTTKR, <*:c.

amendments that they fhall think proper in the
conllitutional code. But it ihoulcl always he done
under this red notion, that the articles to be p. replied
by any one ajjemblyy fhovtld be agreed to, and p^liljbcd
to the people in every department ;, within tie firft Jix
months of the fejjion of that ujjemvly. This would
give time to the people to difcufe the fubjcct ftillyf
and to form their opinions, previous to the time
of electing their members to the next aflembly.
The members of the new aflembly, when they
fhould come together, would thus be competent
to declare the wifhes cf the people on the amend
ments propofed, and would act upon them as they
iliould think proper. The fame power of propf. flng
and then of adopting would be continued from year
to year with perfect fafety to the conflitution, and
with the probability of improvement.

Thus, gentlemen, I have given a hafty (ketch
of fome leading ideas, that lay with weight upon
my mind, on a fubjectof mucrumportance ro the
interefts of a eoniklerable portion cf the human
race. If they 1'hould be thought of no value, they
will of courfe occupy but little of your attention,
and therefore can do no injury. If I have faid
any thing fiom which a ufeiul reflection fhall be
drawn, I fhall feel myfelf happy in having render
ed fome fervice to the moft glorious caufe that ever
engaged the attention of mankind.

JOEL B A RLOW.

A
LETTER

ADDRESSED

TO THE PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT,

On tie advantages of the French Revolution, and tL?
neceffity of adopting its principles in Italy.

A D V E R T I S E M E N T.

1 HIS Letter was written at Charnbery in
S.ivoy, in December 1792, at the requeil of thofc
members of the National Convention, wrfo were
then in that country, for the purnofe of organising
the department of Mont Blanc, it was printed in
French at Grenoble, and in Italian at Nice, and
fcnt from thofe places into Piedmont, and other
parts of Italy, during that winter.

It will occur to the reader of the Engliih copy,
which now appears for the fir ft time in print, th it
the defection of Dumonrier, in April 1793,' the
violent faclions which didraclec! the Convention,
and the fubfequent civil commotions in many parts
of France, occupied the attention of the republi
cans the rerrr-'inckT of that year. Their opera
tions agalnit the league of foreign enemies (which
was now augmented by the addition of England,
Holland, Spain, and Naples) were confined for
that campaign to the defence of the frontiers \
and they were thus prevented from pu filing the

A D V £ R T I S E M E NT.

extenilve advantages which they had gained the!
year he fore.

This circumftance relieved the king of Sar
dinia from the cbfp^ir in which he had been
plunged. It gave him rime to augment his for
ces and repair his fortifications. It gave him ar
guments againfl the French and the principles of
the revolution, and thiis enabled him in fome de
gree to unite his people in favour of the fyitem of
defpotifm to which they had been accuitomed ;
for it mud be con felled, that the manner in which
the French affairs were conducted that year, had .:i
(Irons; tendency to excite a difrelilh to their caufc
in the minds of dijKuit or ignorant obfervers. la
addition to all thefe advantages, he received a
fubfidy from England, to enable Jiim to defend
his own dominions ; by the aid ef which he has
fines obtained a large body of auxiliary troops
from Tirol, Milan, and Tufcany.

Thefe unexpected events produced a remark
able change in the relative fit nation of the French
and Piedmontcfe, from the clofe of the firft cam
paign to the clofe of the fecond. But the third
is now opened with as much advantage to the
French as the mod ardent republican could expeclt.
The troops deftined for the inrafion of Italy this
year, did not amount to more than one tenth of
the military force that they now have in motion
on the continent. Yet thefe have already palled
the Alps in three different directions, and are at
this time mailers of a considerable part of Pied
mont. It is probable that thfs campaign wilP
e'tahlilTi the revolution in that country, but un
happily with more expence of blood than was ex-
peeled fr">;n former appearances. -.Could die
fame force hare been employed there the lad year,

ADVERTISEMENT.

under the circumftances that then exifted, we
may p re fume it would have met but little oppo-
iition ; and the writer might have had the fatif-
faftion of feeing that his letter had produced fome
effeft in promoting the caufc of liberty and hap-
pinefs in that interefting part of the world.

JULY 15, 1794.

(pT The notes In ibis edition zv?re no!

In the former cries.

A
LETTER, &c.

CHAMBERY, December 27, 1792,

CITIZENS OF PIEDMONT,

OU occupy one of the ftrongeft frontier^
of a onirury which nature frems to have deftined
to he the happidl in Europe. But a number of
imperious ciTCiitnftance$j of which you have been
rather ;he victims than the author*?,- have for many
ccntu.io in .ericd. the order of things, and depri
ved y >u of thofc advantages which ought to attend
vour fituatioTi. I am a tlranger in this part ot the
world ^ Italy is known to me only from its hi(loryy
and your prefent condition only from diftant obfer-
varivjn p.nd report. It is not probable that I (hall
ever havs the pleafure of feeing )ou or any "part of
your country. Yon mull, therefore, acquit me of
entertaining! any defire to miflead you, as I can
hatfe noppflible intereft in addreffing you this letter^
but the iutereft the human heart naturally takes in
uttering the truth on a very important fubjecl:.
You are my fellow-creatures ; as fuch I love you,
and cherifh the ties which ought to be mutual be
tween us. You are in a condition which appears
to in-- to call upon you to burft the bands of (lavery ;
in this view, I am ready- to hail you as brothers,
and vviih to aid you in your work.

I prefume in the firft place, and I think I am
not deceived, that you are difcontentcd with your

A LETTER, &C. 203

prefent fituation. I believe you are convinced that
you cannot be happy, as a people, while the pow-
eis of your government remain as they now are,
as relative to the church, the ftate, and the army,
If this be true, you muft wilh for a change ; pro
vided fuch change can be within your power, and
provided you are convinced that it would be for
your advantage. Let us examine thefe two points :
\vhether you are able to effect a revolution in your
government ; and if you are, whether you would
be benefited by it. — For it is not my wiib to hurry
you into meafures, of which you cannot fee the
iifue, and for wh'ch you 3re not prepared.

I. Are T£# able to effett a revolution in your go-

The queftion need never be afked of any people,
\vhen corifidered with reference to theinfelves only,
without regard to their neighbours. A whole peo
ple iseiiemially fovereign. They can at all times
do as they pleafe with their own affairs, unlefs they
are overpowered by furrounding nations. It is the
.people who fupport the government as it IK w is ;
and the fame fovereign people can at any time
.change its form, and fupport it in whatever man
ner if frull pleafe them beft. The qnellion has no
cliBi, ulty in ir, but when viewed with reference to
the intei'.ft which other governments may have in
preventing a revolution in their neighbourhood.

The enquiry, nurfueo in this connection, be
comes more exteniive ; efpecia:ly when applied to
a country of fmall dimenfions, and to a nation
Icfs powerful than fome'of its neighbours. Such
is Piedmont. Had you been called upon feven
years ago to look into your atFair, and take the
government into your own hands, you mud have
confideied it as a dangerous experiment. Even

204 LETTER TO T K. F,

fuppollng the weight of your fufTcrinpps to have
been as great then ss they are now, and fuppcfijrg
you had been poilefled of the fame information
which you have fince drawn from the progrefs of
liberty in Europe, it would fcarcely have been
prudent for you to have engaged in fo daring cm
enterprife. All the tyrants in your neighbourhood
'would have brought forward their armies of flaves
to crufh the rebellion. The French court would
have been, at that time, as much your enemy as
the French nation is now your friend. And the
houfe of Auftria, wi»h all the fribdivifions of its
power in Italy, ported at your gates, would have
united wilh that of Bourbon, to have guaranteed
your king in every pofiible extent of his rpprcffion.
Under thefe difadvantagts your Druggies for li--
berty might have been vain ; they might even have
produced a new injury, inftead of relieving you
from the old. But the ground is now charged ;
the duty von owe to yourfelves is clearly pointed
out by the natural current ef events ; and the woik
you lr.;ve to do, in eiiablifhing a perfeS and untlif-
turbtd liberty, is in my opini* n much eafier than
you imagine. France is at <his time, not only the
rroft powerful nation in Europe, but when engag
ed, as (he now is, in defence of liberty, (he is a
rru'tch tor all the other powers of Europe, v\ hen
united in defence cf tyranny. France i*> now your
natural fritnd, the iiitud of all people and the
enemy of all iy rents. She is indeed the only friend
you have as a nation in this part of the world.
France ha^ brought liberty to your doers ; and fhe
invites you, in the name of all that is dear <o you
as men, in the name of all that can bind yen to the
inrerefts of human nature in general, to accept
the billing at her hands. She has done moie ; ihc

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 205

lias taught you and all other people how public
hapmnefs is to be acquired and preferved. She
has adcireflfed herfelf to the great principles of rea-
fon which are common to all men ; (he has cleared
away the mafs of prejudice, of falfe doctrine, of
fuperftftion in the fcienceof morals ^ a mafs which
the complicated abufes of tyranny, continued for
many centuries, had accumulated on the human
mind. She has laid down and clearly defined the
rights and duties of man and of citizens, explain
ed the great doclrine of equality, the true defigri
of government, the nature of the trnft to be repof-
ed in public officers, as fervants of the people, bv
whom they are created and by whom they are
paid. She has taught you a great practical truth,
which is too confoling to be rejected, and too clear
to be called in nueftion, that you are the f we feigns

1 7 J J Ci

in your own country ; that you have not, that you
cannot have a mailer, unlefs you choofe to give
up your reafon, and renounce the character of
men ; that for any man to call huufefF your fove-
reign is a blafphemy againft God the fovereign of
nature, and againft men the proprietors of the
earth.

Obligations of gratitude are due to the French
nation from you, and from every people in Eu
rope. She has conquered liberty for all men, and
liid the foundation for univerfal public felicity.
Other nations have only to build the fupcrftrudi-
ure, of which the model is given them in the con-
ftltution of this great republic.

But let us not amufe ourfelves with words, nor
reft the argument on theoretical principles, howev
er inconteftible they may be. Let us fpeak of
facts that are palling before our eyes, and call to
mind the events of the great year that is now draw-
S

206 LETTER TO TKi

ing to a clofe. You have feen the principal ty
rants and the moil formidable armies of Europe,
Combined and marching in the full career of 'pro-
mi fed viclory againit the liberties of France. —
Thefe armies after fweepfng over half of Europe
:-;nd famtfhing whole countries in their way to the
French frontiers, have there been cut to pieces by
a handful of freemen, and driven out ol their
cnuntry. Liberty has marched on the heels of
the fugitives ; the arch tyrant of Auflrhi, at the
liead of this fatal confpiracy of kings, has lofl the
fin eft part of his dominions j many of the fubal-
tern print es of the empire have loll the whole of
theirs, and are now beggars abroad among their
brother, brigands, who are in expectation of the
fame inevitable fate. The (tandard of liberty has
readied the borders of tHe Rhine by the mifcar-
riage of the fame combination which has brought
it to the fummit of the Alps.

AH the crowned heads in Europe are now cov
ered with thorns. The man of Turin, who calls
kimielf your king, has been forced to relinquilh
one half of the ufurpations of his anceftors, and
is now menacing you with dtirruftion for fear
you mould reclaim the red. The Dutchy of Sa
voy and the county of Nice, more fortunate than
you, have been the fir ft to caft off his yoke, and
are now ready to ailift you w ith their arms to fol
low their example. The pope and the other Ital
ian defpots, are occupied in retraining the fpirit
ol liberty at home ; fo that no one of the neigh
bouring powers is in a condition to take any con-
iiderable part in your affairs, except the French ;
and the French are wifhing to give you every aid
that you may afk.

PEOPJ.F, GV PIEDMOKT, 207

Under thefe cipcumftances, we need no longer
enquire whether you are able to eifec"l a revolu
tion ; the more natural queftion is, are you able
to refill: it ? It is true, the French have renounced
all ideas of conqueft, and have declared that they
will never make war againlt the liberty of any
people. But you will obferve that this principle
contains in itfelf a declaration of war againft all
tyrants who are hoftile to the liberty of France ;
efpecially againft thofe whofe vicinity renders them
dangerous, to the internal peace of the new repub
lic, by -f often ng hs fugitive traitors, and being'
the centre of new confpirncies againft the rights
of mm. The court of Turin comes und:r this
defcription. It is hoftile to the liberties of France ;
it has been fo from the beginning ; the nature of
its external connections and of its ir/crnal confti-
t'!tion requires that it flv>uld be fo to the end.
The court of Turin muff, therefore, be over
turned ; the ^nveniinent of your country mud be
changed, and its powers reitored to you, to whom
they naturally belong.

This is a fimple view of facls, which may ferve
to indicate the preient crifis of vour affairs, of
which it is proper thaf you fhould be apprifcd ;
that by a due coni'uleration of the can fibs you mny
not be aftonifhcd at the efFc'ers. I make known to
you my opinion, with jli the frankneis that the
fjicrhnity of the fubjecf. demands ; and it Teems
uhmft impoiriblc that you fhould tail to turn the
confequences to your advantage.

II. The more important queiHon to be difculT-
ed is, I Whether fiu will be benefited by a revolution
in \>sur government ?

Many of you will doubtlefs confider this enqui
ry as ftiperfluops, bvCaufe your condition can

£68 LETTER TO THE

fcarcely be rendered worfe, and the means of ren
dering it better are fo obvious that they cannot
efcape the flighted obfervation. But thole of you
who are accuftomed to reflect on the principles of
liberty will pardon the fimplicity of the enquiry,
in favour of the great imfs of the people whom it
is our duty to inftrtift. There has been fo much
falfehood and folly impofed on that clafs of man
kind, in order to debaie and brutalize their minds
to the level of their condition, that their ignorance
has become preter natural ; it is almcft neceilary to
begin their inftruction by informing them that they
are human creatures. But, citizens of Italy, de-
fcenciants of Brutus and Cato, this flate of degra
dation i^ not the condition designed for man. The
God of eq;.rfi liberty has allotted you a different
birthright ; yuii are now invited to reclaim your
inheritance, to take poflellion of your portion
among your brethren, to enjoy it in peace, and
reftpre harmony to the great family of men.

You have been fatally mifinformed with refpecl
to the nature of the French revolution, and the
events that have attended it. Your religous teach
ers and your political matters have an intercfl in
deceiving you. They unite their efforts for this
purpofe ; they blind your eyes, as you blind the
eyes of a mill-horfe, that he may not fee his har-
nefs, nor confider the weight he draws. If the
mill-horfe could know that he has only a feeble
child for a conductor, and that he is made to go
cor.ilamlv round in the fame final! circle, fo that
he cannot hope tc come nearer his journey's end ;
efpeciaily if ho could look into the neighbouring
fields and fee the other horfes enjoying their liber
ty, he would icon revolt againlt his little dcfpot,
he would grow difcou raged with the fame unpro-

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 2cg

mifmg round of fatigue, and reftife to do his
work. It is for this rcafon that you blind his
eyes. My friends, the fame arts are i<fed wi'h
- you. The clergy and the nobles of your coi?n'rv,
with a man at their head whom they call a kini:,
<io nothing but live upon your labours. They
cannot fuprjort their luxury by any other means
trmi by keeping you conftantly at work. They
know that if you were to be informed of their
weakncfs and of your own ftrength, you woim!
refufe to be their drudges. They are fenfible that
the moment you open your eyes, you will fee thai
they are but men, that all men are equal in their
rights, that they have no more right or power to
be kings and lords over yen, than voi; have to he
kings and lords over them ; and that in confc-
quer.ce of this, you would iin mediately ov':rfu;n
that abominable fyflem of public rv b be ry which
they call a government, andeftahluh a new and
eqinl government, which ihould (ecu re to
man the fruits of his own labours, protect the
innocent, pwiifh the guilty, and intlrucl: every
member of fociety in his duties and his rights.

This is precifjly what the people of Franco
hive done ; and the performance of tl.is gre;-t
work, ib neceiiary to the happinef? of mankind,
is called the French revolution. It is the know
ledge of this revolution which yoi*r cc-urt and
clergy wilh to conceal from you, leit yon fhoiild
fojlow the example. They prevent the French
iTnvfp-rpcrs from coming into vour co-.uury ; they
forbid the reading of all book- that treat of ifils
revolution, and all converfatioji on that or any
other poliiicil fubjecl: ; they have (hut up the po
pular theatres at Turin, and l-.-ft open none but:
that of the nobility, fro in which theciiiztns are

S 2

210 LETTER TO THE

excluded ; they have fuppreffed the great univer-
fity of that capital, called the Unii-erfity of tie
Provinces, which ufed to bring itudents from <A\
parts of Italy, and a con deferable emolument to
the town ; they have doubled the number of their
fpies, and increafed the powers of the police.

All this is to keep you ignorant of the French
revolution, that you may not be difpofcd to follow
the example. Ohferve the infolt offered to your
underftanding. If the example were bad, your
good fenfe would teach you to (huR it ^ it would
need only to be known, to be defpifed ; and it
ought to be explained to all people, that they
might learn to avoid fiich a dangerous innovation.
If it be good, it ought to be taught by your teach
ers, and imitated by all the world. But be allured
that the very caution they ufe to prevent your com
ing to the Knowledge of the *a£t, is a proof that
fuch a revolution would be an advantage to you and
a disadvantage to them.

But this is not all ; they have invented a thou-
fand falfehoods to fupply the place of truth. They
have told you lies, in order to excite your enmity
againft your beft friends, and to roufe you to war
againft thofe principles which ought to be as dear
to you as to the French ; becaufe they are the
principles of equal liberty and national happinefr,
applicable to all people. They have told you that
the French nation is a race of robber?, a flailing
and atheifts ; that they have overturned the religion
of their country, waged war againft all property
and againfl the lives of its owners. Thefe are
impudent falfehocds which never could have been
impofed upon you for a moment, had you been
permitted to judge for yourfdves,

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 211

With regard to religion, I only requeft you .to
look into \he firft principles of liberty, as declared
by the national affembly. You will find them
conformable to the fytbm of the catholic faith,
as taught by the apoftles and recognized in your
country, before the church was connected with
the civil government, and before the minifters of
the altar became the tyrants of the ftate. The
French conftitution has declared, that all men (hall
be free to worlhip God in their own way, and to
follow the dictates of their confcierice. If any man
fhall tell you that this is deftroyjng your religion,
he is a liar, and not worthy to be your teacher.
The gofpel of Jefus Chrift preaches to you in the
ftrongeft language the great doclrine of equality ;
that all men are equal in the fi^htof God, and that
you fhall call no ma.i your matter upon earth. —
This is the very language of the French revolu
tion. Bui its authors have gone farther ; and, to
iiJence all cavillers who could perfuade you or
others that they have deftroyed the catholic relig
ion, they have done more to maintain it than any
legislative body ever did before ; they have ordain
ed that the priefLsand bifhops, chofen by the peo
ple, fhall be falaried and paid out of the national
purfe.

It is true, they have fuppreiTed thofe haunts of
idlenefs, hypocrify, and vice, known by the name
of monafteries and convents. This is an advantage
to religion, inftead of being again ft it ; for relig
ion leaches rnen to do good, and to Ir.l.rur for
their living ; but thefe inftitutions teach them to
do nothing, and live upon the labours of others.
Be affured, therefore, that the French have done
nothing to the difadvantage of religion ; but, on
the contrary, they have done much to maintain it

212 LETTER TO THE .

in its na = ive purify and in Impendence. But I in-
treat you in th? firnvrpy of mv heart not to jc-
ceive this fa£t on the ftreflgth of my affertion, or
that of any o>her mm ; bn» to look into their con-
duel and judiTr? for your (elves.

You have been likewife taught to believe that
the French have violated private property. This
is a malicious calumny, which every ilep of tfet-Ir
revolution will contradict, the moment you be
come acquainted with it. In all the decrees of
the national afTembly, in all the irregular nove-
ments and infiirfcdions of the people, whatever
was the objeft^ you will find they have paid a moft
facred regard to individual property. Their con-
duel: in this refpeS has been more laudable within
thelaft three years than that of any other govern
ment in Europe. The fame thincj may be ob-
ferved with regard to the private morals of the peo
ple ; thev are e'lentially better than they formerly
were. There have been lefs inffo.nces of theft
and robbery HI France fince the revr,lution, than nt
any former peiioJi ; and probably lefs, in prt^por-
tion to its poprdation, than in any of the neigh
bouring countries during the fame period.

With regard to the national aifembly, I will
give you fome inftances of their inviolable princi
ple of preferving the property of individuals
arr.idll the fhock of the revolution. The abufes
of the ancient government had created thoufands
of ufclefs offices in every department of (late, in
tile Jaw, the finance, znd. \\~\Q king s Loufeboldy — the
fame as you fee at Turin. i hcfe offices were
fuppofed to have been purchafed and paid for bv
rhoie who held them ; though many of ihern had
been given gratis through favour and. intrigue.
On the regeneration of the government and ot the

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT,

nation by the revolution, it was necefiary that
thefe destructive fmecures fliould be fuppreiTed ;
and the affembly, confidering them as the proper
ty of the holders, purchased up this property and
paid the proprietors the full prices they had given
or were fuppofed to have given for their places. This
aft of juftice was certainly not necellary to the re
volution. I't mult therefore be conftdered as a
mark of that national dignity which forbids the
violation of any kind of private property, howev
er -{lender the tide by which it is claimed.

Another inftance may be obferved in the public
debt. It is well known that the public debt o|*
France, as well as that of Piedmont, was con*
tracted by a wicked and infamous court, the great
er part ot it for the word of purpofes. It was in
part contracted to fup x>rt the vices ot a horde of
men and women at Verfailles, who were a dif-
grace to human nature, and whom the nation was
under no obligation to maintain ; it was in part
contracted to carry on foreign wars and conr
queit^, the exprefs purpofe of which was to rivet
the chains of the people at home. But as the
creditors in general were not to be blamed for
thefe things, they were decbred to be the propri
etors of vhe debt ; and the nation ailumed upon it-
ftrlf the payment, without any diminution. This
muft ever be remembered as an act of fovercigri
magnanimity and of difmterclted protection to the
property of individuals ; an a£t to which they
were not conltrained by any neceflity or previous
obligation. A royal bankruptcy mii>ht have been
declared, without affecting the future credit of the
nation ; and the revolution would have fuffbred
no delay, but would have been facilitated by proceed
ing on this principle. Initead of duing this, the

•-*4 LKTTKR TO THE

people have voluntarily taken an immenfe burden
on themfelves, even under the humiliating cir-
cumftance of giving a fan&ion to all the extrava
gance of the two laft centuries, and paying at this
c! »y, under the rigid economy of a republic, for
thole fplendid palaces, gardensr and water-works,
which infult the poverty of millions, and flare the
nation in the face wi'h the unpunifhed crimes of a
race of execrated kinrjs.

The adl of the afiembly declaring the church
lands to he the property of the nation, the fup-
prc Ifion of tithes and other feudal claims, have
been ofien mentioned as violations of property.
j hbfe who reallv confider them in this light are
weak men, or they have not examined the fub-
ject ; thoie who perfuade you to think fo, without
believing it themfc-lves, arc wicked men, and not
to be truiled. As to the church lands, this a& of
the aflembJy did not change the property of them
^r all. They belonged to the nation before. — -
What the aflembly did, was to change the mods
of paying the clergy, equalize their falaries, and
reduce the number of ecclefiaftics. That labori
ous and more ufeful clafs of the clergy, who be
fore were ftarving up^n a beggarly pittance, have
had their falaries raifed ; that idle and overgrown
clafs, xvho, without doing any duty, were living
in the fiyle of princes and tyrants, have been re
duced to a moderate income. All are now chofen
by the people, and all paid by the nation. With
regard to the feudal claims, they were founded in
ufurpation. The landlords and nobles, to whom
they were attributed, had no right to them or pro
perty in them, any more than the king of Sardin
ia has property in you, or in the people of Jerufa-
lern, of which he like wife fryieshimfe! j king. The To

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 215

feudal claims were mere badges of ferv it tide, which
the eilablifhment of equal liberty and the abolition
of hereditary titles rendered it neceilary to deftroy.
The nation has in all inliances mowed itfelf able
to diftinguifh between the empt> fu per ft it ion of
pomp, which ferves only, to dtbafe markiiid, and
the folid principles of fociety on which the revolu
tion is tounded.

You have heard it like wife averted that the
French revolution has been marked with cruelly
and murder. This is unfortunately true. But it
has likewife been maiked vviih treachery, with
bribery, with perjury, with all the complicated
wiles of expiring defpbtifm. All the cruelty, all
the crimes of every name or denomination, that
have attended this revolution, have proceeded
fiom royalty, the adherents of royalty, and the
refraclory prieds. The court of Verfailles had
been for ag;es a fchool of falfehood and deceit ;
and the execution of the penal laws ferved as a
public exhibition of torture, to familiarize the
people with the molt fanguinary pimiihments. If
the court of Turin and the laws of Piedmont are
any better, it is happier for you ; you will have
the lefs wickednefsto combat in the courfe of your
revolution. But I fear in fome refpecls they are
\vorfe. Thefecircumftances in France had trained
\ip in all p:irfs of the kingdom a numerous clafs of
men ve-h\l in every art of treachery and perfidy.
In th<~ mat ion of things 'he great niafs of the
peop>} ;, who are naturally koneft and pood, fet
themfelves feriouily to work in the bufmefs of the
revolution ; whLh might have been carried on
\virh the greatefl harmony ; as it had nothing in
view but the welfare of the whule. But theie
deceitful men, being enemies of the revolution,

LETTER TO THE

and finding that they could rot opp< fe it by open
force, afTuined the mafk of patriotiim, and brought
themfelves into places (>t trurt in every department
of the legiflative and executive po\vcr. The cil<-v:r.
of this was that thefe good people fourd thtmfelves
deceived and betrayed in every ib.geof their affairs,
irom the beginning of the revolution in i"8c, till
the tenth of Auguir, 1792. Being furrounded by
traitors, and not knowing whom to triifl even with
the execution of their own vengeance, it wns na
tural and fometimes neceifary that they fhould
cifume this terrible talk upon themfchcs. In
fome inuVmces indeed this popular ven-;t-i.n<:e has
been ill directed, and har fallen on innocent heads.
Bur thefe instances are rare.*

The limits, I prefcribe to my letter, v, ill not
allow of my entering into details on a {uhjocl fo
intricate and cxterifive. This, however, troy be
relied on as an undeniable truth, that no'.hing is
more humane, generous and juft, than the general
fpirit of the revolution • and whatever particular
acls niay feem to contiavene thefe principles,
thofe acis are chargeable upon its enemies, and
not upon its friends.

But to arrive at the fubjeft the moft interefling
for your immediate coi.Iideration, let us follow

* This was wit/en previous to tt:e ejiablijkment
cf t!;e Revolutionai y Tribunal . // is indeed to be
egretted that t/M.<! li.jiuuticn ivas deferred Jo fa late.
a p cried \ asiftyaj calculated to prevent a rncrc tti-
mitiiuajfS mode of cxercifing popular i-fngeaiice. But
?t is more to be regretted that fitch a tribunal lec&nie
neceffary at all, and cffecially that it has been Jwc-
times ujed by the leaders as an hiftruwgnt cf forty
y without an htncji regard to the good cf the cauje.

r

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT.

the courfe of the revolution in a geographical
fenfe, and pafs with it from France to Piedmont,
The revolution in this journey has ilopi;ed to \\ in
ter in Savoy, from whence I write this letter ;
and before we mount the Alps, it is natural to
make a paufe, to contemplate the country where
we are. Here is a people who lately made part
of yourfelves, and who are now feparated from
you, rather on account of their vicinity to France,
than for any particular intereft different from your
own. For, in the great caufe ©f liberty, the in-
tereftsof all people are the fame. It is the caufe of
tyranny that has made them enemies ; it is the
impofition and falfehood of thofe who would live
on other men's labours, that have occafioned ail
the wars of every nation in the world. The peo
ple of Savoy were certainly under ao obligation to
be governed by the king of Jerufalem ; though
they had groaned under his yoke for many gener
ations. Their late conduct in declaring their own
fovercignty and independence, abol idling heredi
tary titles, and eftablifhing a government of their
own on the principles of equal liberty, is a fub-
jecl which muft (hike your minds in a very inter
filing point of view. Your tyrants will reprefrnt
it as a crime which ought to excite your indigna
tion ; and they will call on "you to take up arms
and ruin, headlong into a definitive war, to afllft
them in reducing this country a^ain to their obedi
ence. They are IK>W preparing their force/,
augmenting their armies, borrowing money abroad
and extorting it from the hand of inchiftry at home,
for this deteltable purpofe. You are to be taken
from your farms and your mops, and enrolled in
the regiments of death. If you are unwilling to
engage in this new kind of llavery, you are to be

219 LETTER TO TilK

feized upon like fo many felons, dragged frora
your wivej and children, and tortured into difci-
pline under the laih of a military officer. Your
families are to be leit to peri (h in poverty, while
you perhaps are flaugfiterefi in the field.

But before you fuller yourfelyes to be driven to
this defoerate bufinefs, I intreat you to refort to
your own reafon, and exercife the right of judg
ing for yourfelves. Confider the nature of the
enterprise, and the objedt you have in view. —
Who are the people on whom you are going to
let fall this terrible ftroke of vengeance r What is
their crime ? Are they not your brothers and
friends ? Have they not a£ted as you would have
done in the fame fituation ? And ought you not
rather at this moment to follow their example,
than to be the inflruments of their deflruclion and
your own ? Let us attend to this enquiry before it
be too late.

The people of Savoy, as to their local pofition
fland in the fame relation to France as you (land in
to Italy. They and you are polled in the march
es of thefe two great fractions cf the continent. —
As long as this part of Europe is governed by ty
rants, perpetually contending for dominion on
each fide of the Alps, thefe pofitions expofe you
both to the inroads of all parties. You cannot
avoid being infulred by foreign armies in their
pafTage through your country, although you have
no intereft in their quarrels. Your hiftory is full
of examples of this kind, from the days of Han
nibal, down to that infamous war of the Spanifh
fucceffion, which involved your country in blood
and held half Europe in arms for many years to
gether ; a war in which you had no other concern^
than that of being the viSims of foreign difputes.

TEOFLE OF PIEDMONT^

The face of your country bears the infulting marks
of this unfortunate pofnion in which you are pla
ced. It is covered with fortifications. As if na
ture had not thrown rocks and mountains enough
in your way, you have been forced to create them
by the hand of art, to encompafs your towns with
walls, and disfigure your fields with towers and
caftles. Your agriculture has been ill-condu£ted,
your manufactures negle&ed ; all the ufeftil arts
have been forced to yield to a general fyftem of
defence againft the enemies of your neighbours,
when you had ho enemies of your own.

In this filiation, what is to be done ? You
cannot change the pofitiori which nature has given
to your country. Your only refource is to change
the policy of Europe from war to peace* You
are more peculiarly intereil'ed in the perpetusA
peace of Europe than any other people on earth.
Tiiis is a weighty confideration, a truth which
your tyrants cannot deny. It is the knowledge of
this truth which has influenced the people of" Sa
voy in their late change of government. It is in
this point of view that they have contemplated the
French revolution ; with this they have adopted it
themfelves, and wifli to extend it to you, whole
iituation fo nt/arly refembles their own. With
this view you ought to wiih to extend it to all the
dates of Italy, to Spain, and to the circles of the
empire, from whence it would travel through
Europe and through the world.

The principles of this revolution are thofe of
imivertal peace ; anj it is impoifible that it fhould
fail to produce the efts&, becaufe it takes away
every motive for national hoftility, and teaches
the people of all countries to regard each other as
friends and fellow-citizens of the world. ~E(tab-

9,20 LETTER tO THE

liili equal liberty among the people, and inftrticl:
them in the duties that arife from that fituation
as the French are about to do ; you will then find
lhat the bufinefs of tyrants has ceafed, and the
race is forever extinft. Purge the earth of its
tyrants, and it will no more be tormented with
war.

The conduft of the people of Savoy in uniting
themfelves to the French republic deferves a far
ther confideration. This was a meafure inciden
tal to their geographical pofiiion on the French
fide of the Alps ; and the arguments which indu
ced them to it, do not apply to you. It is proba
ble for the purpofes of civil government you will
henceforward be two diiii net people. But this
ilep of theirs cannot be confidered by you as an aft
of hoftility, or a breach of friendship. They are
certainly not lefs your friends fince they have ceaf
ed to be your fellow-fubjc6ts. It is an elTential
fjuality of a French citizen to be the friend of all
people, efpecially of thofe in his neighbourhood,
vvhofe peace and happinefs will alvvays be necefia-
ry to his own.

The eiTence of tyranny is to counteract the
economy of nature, the efTence of liberty is to
promote it. Nature has faid that the French anj
the Savoyards fliould be one people ; but ty
ranny has faid that the Savoyards and the Pied-
montefe fliould be one people. Confult your hif-
tory, and fee what torrents of blood have been
ihed to cement this unnatural union. Come and
view the condition of this unfortunate people ;
poiTeffmg one of the fined countries in the world,
and deprived of the means of improving it ; fub-
jefted for ages to a race of weak and impolitic
princes, who, fixing their refidcnce on the other

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 221

fide of the Alps, have paid no other attention to
this part of their dominions, than to keep the peo
ple in poverty and ignorance, in order to fecure
their obedience. A military force, fent from your
country, has been mainfained here to infult the
inhabitants, by exercifing the police in every
town and village. The fenate of Savoy, which
was formerly a legiflative body, has been long
fince reduced to the fimple functions of a judiciary
tribunal, and its members appointed by the king.
He has prevented the working of the mines of
iron, lead, and coals, with which the country
abounds ; he has preven'ed the eftabliihment of
any one of the different manufactures to which the
inhabitants are peculiarly invited by the abund
ance of raw materials, by their numerous currents
of water, by their vicinity to France, and the
convenient navigation of the I fere and the Rhone ;
he has difcouraged their agriculture by the ihackles
he has laid upon their commerce, even in the in
terior of his own dominions ; for the trade be
tween Piedmont and Savoy has been fubjeded to
the fame pernicious regulations and impolitions
which exift between rival nations among the mod
jealous defpots of Europe ; he has interpofed his
authority between parents and the duties they owe
their children, by difcouraging the education of
youth, fo far as to oblige thofe who are defined for
the learned profeffions to perform their fludies at
Turin.*

T 2

* There are in Savoy fix different colleges of edu
cation^ which have exiftedfor feveral centuries, and
have been exclufively appropriated to thoje ftudies
which have been kniwn in catholic Europe by the name

£22 1ETTER TO THK

It would be tedious to recount to you rf(i -lift
inftances of folly and cruelty exercifed by your
government againft the people of this country. —
One general complaint, which appears to be we]!
founded, is, that all your kings, efpecially the one
from whom they have now revolted, have ihovvu
an humiliating diftinction in their treatment of
you and them. The Savoyards have been treated
as your flaves, as well as the ilaves of your com-
morf. mafter. Their hard earnings have been
drained from them, to increafe the wealth and
population of Piedmont* You mud obferve,
however, that this was not defigned as an au/an-
tage to you, neither has it been fo in fa 61. It
was done to facilitate the collection of the king'*
revenue. You have been made the inftrumenio .,t
drawing money from tliefe people, for no other
reafon than ifwas more tafy to draw it immediate
ly from you, than from them, by the tyrants of
Turin.

of Theology. This -was anecefjary precaution of irt
government \ as, without dijiributing thefe inftitu^
tions in all the principal towns, and rendering //!»/.«
fort of in ft ruft Ion eafj and c leap, it would have fa eh
impoffille to have initiated a fufficient number of men
to keep the people in that Jl ate of ignorance which was
neceff'irv for their continuance in Jlavery.

Within a few years there has been eftallifoed in
the college of Chamlery a prcfeffc~?'Jhip in hnv> and
another in medicine, but imdsr this reft rift ion ^ that
two years refidence here jf^cn.ld le reckoned for one year
at the univerfity of Tunn. And no man could prac^
fife law or medicine within the k:ngs dominions , until
he had taken his degrees at Turin*

PEOPLE OK PIEDMONT.

The Gondri-jn of thefe people was perhaps no
wurfe than yours. You have in your country
more wealth than they, but you have infinitely
more of real indigence. You were both taxed as
high as you could bear* ; and your taxes were im-
pofecl in the mod arbitrary manner. The king
could augment or vary them any day at his plea-
fure. The Savoyard was poor, but he was not
miferable ^ he was not infulted by the difplay of
luxury pafling before his eyes, though he was

* The pspulation of the principality of Piedmont
is reckoned at four millions. The amount of the
public revenue arifing from that principality is only
9.2 mi HIGH livres of Piedmont , equal to j£i, 100,000
ft er ling, forming an average of 5^. 6d. a head- This
£S exclujlve of dimes and other Jtcltfiaflical faxes,
which anjwer to the tithes and poor-rates in Eng
land. The public taxes in England, cxdijive of
the fe, form an average of about 55^. a head. Yet the
people of Piedmont are, if pojjibie, more diftreffed with
faxes than the people of England \ although their foil
h naturally more fertile, and their country more
abundant in materials for manufactures. T heir Jit u-
tttion indeed is' not fo favourable for commerce, but it
is not unfavourable. By this comparifon we may
judge of the cruel y uncreating influence &f a govern-
ineni which can fo completely dcftrzy the native energy
of man.

'The Dutchy' of Savoy > whofe population 7^424,000
ujed to pay annually into the trcafury at Turin about
three million livres of Piedmont y equal to ^150,600
ficrling. This ivas the utmoft that the hand of dejpo-
tifm could collect from a people whom it deprived of
the means of improving the advantages tulxcb nature
had given them.

224 LETTER TO THE

fenfible that he fupported a fet of infamous court
iers beyond the mountains, who riot on the la
bours of mankind.

The efFecl: of tyranny has ufually been to vitiate
the morals of fociety, and deftroy that energy of
rnjnd which is natural to man in a ftate of free
dom. The people of Savoy exhibit a remarkable
exception to this rule. They retain a fingular pu
rity of morals, and a firmnefs of character, which
the weight of a long and complicated tyranny has
not been able to debafe. They have long witnefT-
ed the vices and indured the injuftice of their maf-
ters, without learning to be vicious or unjuft. —
They have felt the inconvenience of that unnatural
combination of things which cut them off from the
country to which they really belonged; and bound
them ro a diftant lord. But almighty liberty has
at laft diiTolved the chain, and reftored them to na
ture and to France.

The moral character of this people, which
renders them fo worthy of our efteem, has like-
wife fitted them for the enjoyment of the liberty
to which they have been fo firddenly born. No
people, rifine; at once from flavery to a ilate of
equality and independence, ever conducted them-
felves with fo much dignity and moderation. — -
They rofe, like true infant Hercules, to the vigour
of manhood in a fmgle day. They fhowed them-
felves matters of the whole fyftem of government,
the moment they became mafters of themfelves.
They have committed no blunders ; they have ra
ker) no retrograde fteps ; they have loft no time
in idle dlfputes, and ufelefs etiquette. Their
National Convention, which --was the firft repre-
fentative body that ever was heard of in the coun
try, and confided of fix huricterd and fifty mem-

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT.

organifed itfelf and finifhed its fefiions in
nine days ; during which time it did more bufmefs
than any body of men under like circumftances
could be expected to perform in fo many months*
But there is one fa£t more remarkable than all the
reft, a fact which hiftory will announce to the ad
miration of the lateft ages : the revolution in Savoy
lias not yet cod a fingle drop of blood. It has
been attended with no acts of violence, no tumult
uous meetings, no ncceffity for the intervention of
military force. The force of reafon has conduct
ed the whole operation ; and the facred energy of
liberty has proved itfelf to be the fource and gua
rantee of the moral attributes of man.

Such is the condition of this refpeftable people ;
and fuch is the point of view in which you are to
eonlider the late meafures they have taken to re
claim and fecure their rights. From this confider-
ation you will naturally turn your attention to
yourfelves, and contemplate the duties you are
called upon to perform. For the time is faft ap
proaching when you can no longer be the idle
fpeclators of the triumphs of liberty. Although
the revolution in Savoy is hitherto free from the
violence of war, it depends on you to fay whether
it fhall coutinue fo to the end of another year. It
is in your power at this moment to declare that the
Alps fhall never more re-echo the found of a can
non, nor their majeftic ftreams be ftained with
human blood. Your deftiny calls you either to
pronounce the fentence of mifery and flaughter
upon thoufands of yourfelves and of your neigh
bours who will follow your example, or to declare
the immediate emancipation, peace and happinefs
of all the ftales of Iialy.

225 LEfTER TO THfi

This is doubtlefs a ferious commiffion, as it
renders you refponiiblc for the fate of fo coniider-
able a portion of your fellow-creatures. But ob-
ferve the limits as well as the extent of your power.
Though yon hold the balance of great benefits and
of great difailcrs; which the prefent ftate of af
fairs is ready to offer to your country ; though you
are able by the afliftance of France to rife as one
man and reclaim your own fovereignty, eftablifh
your own liberty and provide for the future tran-
quility of this part of Europe ; though by a con
trary conduct: you may fight the battles of your
tyrant againfl the friends of your peace j yet re
member, you cannot long impede the progrefs of
liberty. Her caufe is that of reafon and of God ;
ihe will not liden to any capitulation with defpot-
ifm ; the mender muft be driven beyond the Adri
atic, and baniihcd from the face of the earth, Italy
muft be free ; fhs cannot wear her chains much
longer ; it would be glorious for you to be the firfl
in this regeneration of fociety in that ancient gar
den of the world. Such a meafure would be an
example of virtue to your chiidren^ a confolation
to the rliades of your anceftors, who for a long fuc-
ceffion of ages have patted away irt the clouds of
prejudice, without knowing the means of happi-
nefs, or perceiving the dignity of man.

Your king has joined the coalition of defpots
againfl: the people of all nations. Their arms are
directed againfl France ; but their hoftility is really
againft their own fubjecis. What caufe of quarrel
had the king of Hungary, or the eie&or of Bran-
denburgh with the people ef France ? None.
Their jealoufy was againil the people of Hungary,
of Auftria, b'f Brabant, .and of Brandenburgh.
They faw that thefc nations were about to reclaim

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 2.T-'

ibe rights of man and to cad off the yoke of op-
preflion, as the French had dene. They, there-
tore, to retain their unjffft power at home, con
cluded that it was beft to ftrike the revelution at
its root, and conquer Germany in France. They
knew, if they could fubdue the French, and com
pletely vanquim the fpirlt of liberty in that coun
try, that all tlie pecple of Europe would fhrink
beneath their chains, and their mailers might pro
bably ijeep upop their thrones for another half
Century.

Such was the policy of your mailer. You can
not fuppofe that, as king of Jenifalcm or prince
of Piedmont, he had any ground or colour of dif-
pute with the French nation. That nation had
no concern \vith him, nor wiih any part of his
dominions. They were occupied in their own
affairs, at peace with all the world, and declared
that -.hey meant to remain fo. He entered into the
war with them for no other purpofe but to keep
you in fubjeftion. The war was agsinft you, and
is ftill to be carried on againft you the next cam
paign. He intends to make yon his foldiers to fight
his own battles againft yourfelves, although he
orders you to point your cannon againft the French.
This is the true ftate of the cafe. The whole
of this war on the part of your monarch is main
tained by deceiving you. Indeed the whole bufmefs
of monarchy is deception ; kings nu:ft govern by
deception, as long as they govern at all ; for it is
impoflible fjr one man to tyrannize over a whole
people, but by deceiving them. I have no par
ticular diflike to your king, any more than to all
others ; he is probably no worfe than kings in ge
neral. They hold an office that is perfectly ufelefs
in fociety, and exceedingly deftrudhve to the peace

228 LETTER TO THE

and happinefs of mankind. In this view they
ought to be detefted by every man, and rejefied
by every nation.

France has been forced into the field, to encoun
ter this infamous combination of robbers, this war of
all crimes againft the principles of all virtue. She
has undertaken the defence of human nature. She
has afiumed a new kind of t a clique unknown to
the art of war, and irrefiftible to the armies of
kings. She has armed herfelf in the pane. ply cf
rcafon ; her manifefto is ihe rights of man, her
fword the pledge of peace. In this fpecies of
warfare we need not be aftonifhed at her fuccef?.
What people can refill: the hand that comes to
break their chains r The armies of liberty are
every where triumphant, while their ftandards are
fcarcely ftained with blood. Vi&ory completes her
work, before they arrive to celebrate the conqr.eft ;
and the entrance of the French troops into the- con
quered country is regarded by the people rather as
the proceifion of a civic feafr, than as the dreaded
violence of war. Their general, inflead of punifh-
ing the new recovered citizens with confilcation,
imprifonrnent, and death, meets them in their po
pular focieticF, and invites them to form their pri
mary afiemblies. The forts and ganil'bns which
he erects to fecure his ccnqudts, are printing
preffes and reading clubs.

Such is the war in which the illuftrious monarch
of Turin is engaged, 'i hefe are the a^nies he
experts you to encounter in the field. If you vviih
to know in what manner the combat ought to be
conducted, yen may learn it from the people of
Savoy, whole example in this refpeft, as in many
others, is worthy to be followed by every nation.
You may leara k like wile from the people of

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT.

Nice, from thofe of Hainault, Flanders, Brabant,
Milines, Antwerp, Guelderiand, Namur, Liege,
Spires, and Mayence ; all provinces, principalities,
or independent dates, conquered to liberty within
the lait three months. As I have kept no com
plete regifter of thefe conquefis, perhaps the above
Jilt may be incomplete. But it matters not ; if it
were complete for to-day, perhaps it would not be
fo for to-morrow. This advice is intended for
the inftru&ion of the people ; if your king fhoulcl
deem it inconfiftent with his warlike character to
follow the fame advice, he can take a leilbn from
the battle of Gemmappe.

The French army cleftined for your deliverance
will probably not pafs the Alps till the fpri"g.
You have the remainder of the winter to deliber
ate on the part you have to act. You can by that
time decide whether you will receive them as ene
mies or a •> friends. In the latter cafe, you have on
ly to ftudy the principles of a republican govern
ment, fend away yc ur tyrants, and prepare your-
felves to give lefibns of liberty to all the Italian
ilates. The troops of Auftrb, which are now
about to ente-r your territories from Milan and
Tufcany, under pretence of aiding you agairin:
the French, will flee before them, as they have
done in the Low Countries, the moment you
rmnifeft your intention of doing your own bufi-
nefs in a peaceable way.

But, after a due confuleration of the circum-
ftances which I have endeavoured to detail, fhould
you conclude to regard the French people as your
enemies, and to meet their armies in the field, I
ihall tremble for the confequences of your unfor
tunate decifion. Thoufands among you mull
fall the victims of the infamous caufe of your ty-
U

2?O LF/rTIT.K TO THE

r>nf-, which cannot be fupporfed. On that dny,
I beg you would call to mind the honeit advice of
a (tranger, who now fpcaks to you the words oi
truth ; who 'has been a fttady obferver of the rife
and progrefs of liberty in America and in France ;
and, who, from thefe advantages is able to efti-
mate the force of its principles, and predict, the
triumph of its arm?.

I aclvife you above all things to be cautious of
the troops in the pay of Awftria, who arc march
ing to join your army. You cannot be fo blind
ed by your leaders as to fuppofe that this band of
ruffians is brought into your country to render fer-
vice to you. They are deflgntd to keep you. in
fubjecVion, and to take f;orn you the freedom of
your choice in the great queftion, Whether you
will adopt the principles of the French revolu
tion ? They will be polled in your rear, to acl;
a^ainft you, if you fhould refufe to acl againft the
French. Your pofnion may feem a critical one,
placed in the interval between two contending
powers ; but, remember that one is an army of
freemen, the othsr a horde of (laves ; on one fide
is the permanent force of a nation, whofe means
are inexhauftible, on the other the accidental hire
lings of a defpot whofe fceptre is falling from his
hands ; fipTi one you have the offer of equal lib
erty and perpetual peace, from the other a conti
nuance of your flaverv, an augmentation of your
burthens, and certainty of future wars.

Italy is deftined to form one great republic.
The boundaries which nature has given it are pe
culiarly fuited to this purpofe ; and as long as we
follow nature, in politics as well' as morals, we
^re fureto be in the right. Politicians, who have
pot well confidered the effe&s of liberty, arc alarm-

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. £3*

ed at the extenfion of the French republic, fear
ing it will become too powerful for its neighbours.
For this reafon the union of Savoy is mentioned as
a fubje6t of jealoufy to other nations. The ene
mies of your liberty will not fail to make ufe of
this to excite your fears and provoke your refent-
ment. Men who reafon in this manner have
formed their maxims on thofe defpotic fyfterns of
government to which they have been accuftomed.
They are maxims which can no longer apply to
nations, when mafters of their own adions, and
at liberty to govern themfelves by the colle&ed
wifdom of the great body of the people. A nation
in this condition will never difturb the peace of its
neighbours in any manner whatever. Its inter-
eft, on the contrary, will be to promote the peace
and profperity of every country in the world.

When a nation is governed by one man, like
Piedmont, or by a few families, like the ancient
ariftpcracy of Rome, and ieveral modern ones in
Italy, the intereft of thofe who govern, is to ex
tend their dominions ; becaufe it augments their
perfonal revenue. and adds, to the weight of their
influence over the people, whom they confider as
their property. — For this reafon they make war ;
loi this reafon they form treaties of alliance to
guarantee each other in their conquefts, and in
the property which they have in the people. — In
pursuance of- this policy, the prince of Piedmont,
in the courfe of that long Spaniili war which I
have mentioned,, purchafed with the blood and
treafure of your nation, the title of king of Sardi
nia ; and at the clofc of the war, he obtained from
the houfes of Auftria and Bourbon, and from the
king of England, a guarantee of the pofTeflion.

232 LETTER TO THE

It is eafy to conceive that a fyftem of robbery
and murder of this kind, carried on through ail
Europe for centuries together, mult be reduced to
fome certain rules. Thefe rules by a mifapplica-
tion of terms, are called the law of nations * It is
rather the law of defpots, who know no law but
their own fears. It has likewife been necellary to
eftablifh fome general ideas of what is called the
balance of power among the fiates of Europe, re
quiring that each ftate fhould be retrained to cer
tain fixed limits. On this principle, when any
particalar power endeavours to extend it's limits,
it is natural to tax that power with ambitious
views, and to regard it as an object of jealoufy. ,
This reafoning is perfectly juft when applied to
regal and ariiiocratical dominions ; but under the
reign of liberty the argument has loft its ground ;
dominion itfelf is at an end ; and all the technical
terms in the fcience of "politics have changed their
meaning ; and as \ve muit begin the fcience anew,
it is to be regretted that we are not furnifhed with
new words, to exprefs our ideas with more preci-
fion than we can with the old.

If all the nations of Europe were as free as the
French, and every individual member of fociety
v/ere equally independent of every other individual,
the queftion refolding the boundaries of any par-
cicular government would become in a great mea-
fure indifferent, both to the people of that govern
ment and to all their neighbours. No perfon would

* lfre may hope fosn to fee the law of nations eflal-
lijhed on different principles ; that is, on principles
as different from what It has been, as the inter eft of
nations is different from that of thofe perform ivho
have nfually governed them.

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. 2?^

^/^

liave any intereft in extending or contra&ing ihe
territorial limits of a (tate. They would be efta-
blifhed purely on the principle of convenience for
the adminiftration of the inteiior concerns of fhe
people, and by the free confent of all parties. And
whenever it (hould be found more confenient to
change them, they might be extended or contracted
on the fame principle, without injury to any per-
ion, and without exciting the jealoufy of any
nation.

I could cite you many inftances from the United
States of America, in which this theory has beta
carried into praclice ; which would prove to you
that the doctrine I here advance, as one of the
effects of liberty, is not-chimerical. But an inftance
more finking to you, and which will iorm an
epoch in the hiftory of Europe, is the conduct of
ihc national convention of France on the propofi!i-
on of Savoy to be united to that republ c. Here we
fee a fovereign people, uninfluenced by any fears,
hopes, or connections from abroad, deliberating in
the moft folemn manner, whether they will exte id
i heir territorial boundaries, by the ad million of
feven new provinces, inhabited by four hundred
thoufand freemen who had fent their deputies to
foiicit an union.* To raife a queftion on a pro-
pofition of this kind is certainly a new thing in
politics. Louis XIV. would have carried on a
war for half a century, nnd facrificed twice that
number of his own fubjects, to have made fuch

* The feven provinces which formed the Dutchy
ff Savoy, now united to France, under the name of
the department of M-^nt Blanc, wtre Savoy proper,
GenevoiSy C>rr$i4ge, Cbabhisy Fauc}:ignyy 'I arcntuijt,
c^'l Maurienne.

U 2

234 LETTER TO THE

an acquifition to his dominions, But the members
of the convention who deliberated on this queftion
had no perfonal intereft to ferve, no ambition to
gratify. It was merely a queftion of national con
venience, whether the frontiers of the republic
fhould remain fixed on the limits of IJatiphiny and
Lyonnois, or be extended to the Alps which ap
pear to be the natural boundary of France.

Xhe latter opinion prevailed ; but it was rather
oa account of the prefent circumftances of Italy
than of France. I tidy is (till governed by defpots ;
and it is to be ex peeled, that as long as they re
main in power, they will continue the war they
have undertaken againft the French. To prevent
their incurfions, it was necefiary to oppofe them
the barrier of the Alps. - But if Italy were as
free as France, all caufes of hofliliiy between
them would be for ever removed. It would be
feared y poflible in the courfe of human events,
that they would ever more have any ground of con
tention. In that cafe it would be perfectly indif
ferent, as to perfonal intereit, both to the French
and the Savoyards, whether they mould form one
people, or two, or ten. — And whatever refolution
they fhould take, as mod convenient tothemfelves,
would never excite your jealoufy or refentment.

No people has more to gain by this pacific fyf-
tern than thofe of Piedmont. You inhabit a fertile
country, productive of ail the moft neceffary arti
cles of life } feveral of which are in great demand
among your neighbours. All that is wanting to
render you happy is to be matters of the fruits of
your own labours at home, to be fecured againft
war, and to have a free circulation of the objects
of commerce.

PEOPLE OF PIEDMONT. ^ 235

Thefe three things are now within your reach ;
they would follow as a neceffary ccnfequence of
adopting the principles of the French revolution,
and edabl idling the liberties of Italy.

With the mod ardent w idles to render you
fervice, in the prefent folemn crifis of your affairs,
I have written you this letter. If it fhould anfvvcr
no other purpofe, it will at lead ferve as a tedi-
mony to my conference, that I have endeavoured
to do my duty, and to merit the title which I claim,
that of your fincere and difmtereded friend*

JOEL BARLOW.

THE

C O N S P I RACY

O F

KINGS;

A POEM:

Addreffed to the Inhabitants of Europe, from
another quarter of the world.

(< But they, in (both, trmft reafon. Curfes light
" On the proud talent ! 'twill at la ft undo us.
" When men are gorged with each abfurdity
" Their fubtil wits can frame, or we adopt,
" For every novelty they'll fly to fenfe,
" And we mud fall before the idol, Fafhion.''

PREFACE.

T

I HE following little poem was published in
London, in February 1792. It happened that two
of the principal confpirators, the emperor Leopold,
and the king of Sweden, died in a few weeks after.
The oppofite effects, produced by the death of thefe
two perfons, are very remarkable. From a view
of the general character of the king of Sweden,
and of the particular tranfa&ions of the laft year
of his life, there can be no doubt but he was de-

238 PREFACE.

termined to go any lengths with the powers which
were then confederating againft the liberty of
France ; and it is a confolation to human nature,
that the violent death of our fceptred mad-man has
faved the people of Sweden from thofe horrid
fcenes of ilaughter which now involve mofl: of the
neighbouring nations.

The chara&er,ef Leopolvi, in fome of its lead
ing traits, was dire£ily the reverfe of that of Guf-
lavus.- The latter was prodigal of wealth, and
executively eager for what is called military fame,
without the capacity or the means of acquiring it ;
the former was affedlcdly pacific, moderate in mod
of his vices, ajd remaikable for nothing but bis
avarice. lie had ienie enough to fee that nothing
was to be gained by a war with France ; his ava
rice, had he lived, would have been a fufficient
guarantee againft that event : and his death may be
confldered as the immediate caufe of the war.

The treaty of Pilnitz was doubtlefs fabricated
*in the court of P*iris. The emperor agreed to it,
fu>r theipurpofe of duping, the king of Prulfia into
nieafures which might fccure the obedience of the
people of Brabant, whom lie had pacified the year
- before by a cruel deception. His defign was 1 ike-
wife to deceive the emigrant princes, who were
then deceiving him ; and to exhibit fuch a menac
ing appearance, as, according to his calculation,
Would induce the French people to fet down qui
etly under a limited monarchy ; well knowing
that, if they did this, their government would foon
degenerate into a defpotifm, which would conti
nue to give countenance to the general principle
that had fo long enfbved the nations ot Europe.-

That he never intended, or had relinquished
the intention, of executing the condiiions of the

PREFACE. 239

; : i v of Pilniiz by seeing to war with France, is
.evident from the following conficierations : the
French constitution was ra'ified, and the revolution
fup poled to be finifhed, in September 1791. A
war, "to overturn that conflitution, certainly ou^ht
not to have been deferred beyond the infuirscr
fpring ; and as it would require an army of two
or three hundred the ufnd men, the winter mutt
have been occupied -in making the preparation?.
Leopold died fuddenly, about the fir ft of March,
At that time no preparations had been made for
cffenfive hoflilhies. The number of troops fent s
from Auftria into the Low Countries, during the
autumn and winter, was not more than was ftipu-
lated to be maintained there, and were fcsrcely
lullicient to enforce the defpotifm to which he bad
deflinecl that unhappy people. Before the death of
.Leopold, the French emigrants at CobU irz began
to defpair. The hopes they had built on the treaty
of Pilnitz had nearly vaniihed ; thp princes had an
army of for.ty thoufand gentleutfen to maintain ;
Louis was carrying on too great a'fyftem of cor
ruption at borne, to be able to fupply them with
money from the civil lift ; they had exhaufled their
credit in all ihe merchantile towns in Europe ;
and Leopold, considering them ii, the character of
- beggar?, began to treat them as troublefome guefts-;
for none of the objects of their demands could be
flattering; to his favourite pailion. At laft, to theic
great fafisfacYion, the emperor died ; and his fyf-
tem with regard to France was either never under-
ftood by his own rninifters, or it was laid afide, in
compliance with the predominant paflions of his
fon ; which, happened to be for war, expence,
and unqualified defpotifm.

540 PREFACE.

This young man began his career by a folemn
declaration to all the powers of Europe, that he
fhould follow precifely the fyftem of his father,
with refped to the affairs of France. This de
claration might be underftood to mean the open
and avowed fyftem, prefcribed by the tresty of
Pilaitz, or the fecrct and unexplained fyftem,
•which was to avoid the war. It was univerfally
under flood, as it was dcoubtlefs meant, in favour
of the avowed fyftem ; whole objccl, announced
in the treaty, was " to fupftrt ike rights if
crowns."

From this moment, a fpirit of hoftility was
provoked by the court of Vienna, and encouraged
by the French ambailador there, who, like their
other ambafTadors of tkat day, was betraying the
ration, to ferve the king ; till, on the 2oth of
April, war was declared by the National Afleni-
bly. In this war the defpots of Europe will try
their (Irength, and will probably foi-n- be ex-
haufied.

JPtris, July 12, 1793. ^

T H E

C O N S P I R A C Y

O F

K I N G S,

.1 jTERNAL Truth, thy trump undaunted lend,
P, ,>ple, and priefts, and courts, and king?, attend ;'
While, borne on weftern gales from that iarlhrre
Where Jnftice reigns, and tyrants tread £o more,
ThT untainted voice that no iiiirjiafion awes,
That fe^is no frown, and leeks no blind applaufe,
Shall tell the blifs that Freedom fheds abroad,
The rights ot Nature, and the gitt <;f God.

Thiiik not, ye knaves, whom meanneiS ilyles

the great,

Drones of thn church and harpie* of the (la'te, —
Ye, whofe curfl fires, for blood and plunder ianVd,
Sultans, or kings, or czars, or emp'rors nam'd,
Taught the deluded world their cLims to own,
And raife the crelted reptiles to a throne, —
Y- , who pretend to your duik holt was given
The lamp of lite, the myllic keys of heaven ;
WHofc impivus ans with magic fpclls began,
When fliades of ign'rance veil'd the race of man }
\Vho chans/r, from age to a^e, the fly deceit,
As fcience beams, ana virtue learns tht cheat ;
T\ rants of double power?, the fouls that blind,
To rob^ to kourge, and brutalize mankiiid,— -

242 THE CONSPIRACY

Think not I come to croak with omen'd yell
The dire damnations of yonr future hell,
To bend a bigot or reform a knave,
By op'ning all the fcenes beyond the grave.
I know your crufted fouls : while one defies,
In fceptic fcorn, the vengeance of the fides,
The ether boafts, — I ken thee, power divine,
But fear thee not ; th' avenging bolt is mine.

No ! 'tis the .prefent world that promps the fong5
The world we fee, the world that feels the wrong,
The world of men, whofe arguments ye know,
Of men, long curb'd to fervitude and woe,
Men, rcus'd from floth, by indignation ftung,
Their flrong hands loos'd, and found their fearlefs

tongue ;

Whofe voice of thunder, whofe defcending fteel,
Shall fpeak to fouls, and teach dull nerves to feel.

Think not (ah no! the weak delufion fhun,
Burke leads you wrong, the world is not his

own),

Indulge not once the thought, the vap'ry dream,
The fool's repaft, the mad-man's thread-bare

theme,

That nations, rifing in the light of truth,
Strong with new life and pure regenerate youth,
Will (hrink from toils fofplendidly begun,
Their blifs abandon and their glory fhun,
Betray the truft by Heav'n's own hand ccnfign'd,
, The great concentred ftakc, the interefl of mankind.
Ye fpeak of kings combin'd, fome league that

draws

Europe's whole force, to fave your finking caufe ;
Of fancy 'd hods by myriads that advance
To crufh the untry 'd power of new-born France,
Mifguided men ! thefe idle tales defpife ;
Let one bright ray of reafon ftrike ycur eyes ;

OF KINGS. 243

Show me your kings, the' fceptred horde parade, —
See their pomp vani(h ! fee your vifions fade !
Indignant MAN refumes the fhaft he gave,
Difarms the tyrant and unbinds the flave,
Difplays the unclad fkeletons of kings,*
Spe&res of power, and ferpents without (lings.
And ihall mankind, — (hall France, whofe giant

might

Rent the dark veil, anddragg'd them forth to light,
Heed now their threats in dying anguifh toft ?
And (lie who fell'd the monfter^ fear the ghoft ?
Bid young Alcides, in his grafp who takes,
And gripes with naked hand the twifling fnakes,
Their force exhaufted, bid him proftrate fall,
And dread their ihadows trembling on the wall.

But grant to kings and courts their ancient play,
Recal their fplendour and revive their fway ;
Can all your cant and all you cries perfuade
One power to join you in your wild crufade ?
In vain ye fearch to earth's remoteftend ;
No court can aid you, and no king defend.

Not the mad knave who Sweden's fceptre (role,
Nor ihe, whofe thunder (hakes the northern pole ;
Nor Frederic's widow'd fword, that fcornsto tell
On whofe weak brow his crown reluctant fell.
Not the tri-fceptred prince, of Auftriari mould,
The ape of wifdom and the (lave of gold,
Therefa's fan, who, with a feeble grace,
Juft mimics all the vices of his race ;
For him no charm can foreign ilrife afford,
Too mean to fpend his wealch, too wife to truft his
fword.

* Off a <vides re gum v a cuts exhaufta medidtis.

JUVENAL, Sat. 8,

244 TH£ CONSPIRACY

Glunce o'er the Pyrenees, — but you'll flifcfoin
Tu break the dream that foothes the monk of

Spain.

He counts his bead?, and fpends his holy zeal
To raife once more tlv JuQuifitorial wheel,
Prepares the f i^got and the flame renews,
To roail the French, as once the Moors and Jews :,
While abler hands the bufy talk divide,
His queen to dandle and his tlate to guide.

Yet a Ik great Pitt to join your defpVate work, — •
See how his annual aid confounds the Turk !
Like a vrar-elephant his bulk he (hows,
And treads cjbv/n friends, when frighten'd by his
foes.

Where then, forfaken villains, will ye turn ?
Of France the outcaft and of earth the fcorn ;
What new- made charm can difTipate your tears ?
Can Burke's mad foam, or Calonne's houfe of

peers f * •

Can Artois' fvvord, that erft near Calpe's wall,
Where Criltan fought and Elliott was to fall,
Burn'd with the fire of fame, but harmlefs burn'd,
For fheath'd the fwpjd reaiain'd, and in its fheaih
returned !f

* M. de Cahnne, at an rmmcnfe labour, and by
the aid of bis friends in England , has framed a con-
ftitutivn for France^ after the Enghjh model ; the
chief ornament of which is that " Corinthian capital
tf polifned focletyy'1 a houje of peers. It is f aid that,
after debates and altercations ivkich Lifted fix months,
he has perfuacled the emigrant princes to agree to it.
It only remains now for him and them to try on this
new livery upon the French nation.

t Among the disadvantages attending the lives of
princes, mujl be reckoned thefmgular difficulties with

OF KINGS. 24.5

Oh Burke, degenerate Have ! with grief and

fhame

The Mufe indignant muft repeat thy name.
Strange man, declare, — fmce, at creation's birth,
From crumbling chaos fprang this heav'n and
earth* V 2

whifb they have to ftruggle in acquiring a military
reputation. A duke of Cumberland ', In order to be
come an Alexander ', had to ride all the way to Cullo-
den^ and back again to London. Louis the four
teenth was obliged to fubmit to the fatigue of being
carried on board of a fplendid barge, and rowed acrofs
the Rhine, about the fame time that the. French army
crijjed it ; and all this for the Jimple privilege of be
ing placed above the Macedonian in the temple of
Fame, and of caujing this achievement to be celebrat
ed, as more glorious than the paffing of the Qranicus :
\ tys may be feen on that modcji monument In the Place
Vendome in Paris.

The count d' Artois has purchafecl, at a Jiill dearer
rate, the fame of being Jlyied " le digne rejetun dti
grand Henri,'' and of being deftirted to command all
ihe armies of Europe in re-eft abli flung the manure!. >y
of France. This champion of Chriftendom fct out at
the age of twenty -five, and travelled by land with ^
princely equipage, from Paris to Gibraltar ; where he
arrived juft In time to fee, at a convenient diftance,
Elliott's famous bonfire of the floating batteries. He
then returned, covered with glory, by the way of
Madrid ', and arrived at l/r erf allies^, amid ft ihe ca-
rcjjes rf the caurt and ihe applaufes of all Europe.
3 he accomplifliment of this arduous enlcrprife has
idcjcrv-edly placed him, in point of military fame, at
the head of all thfp relent branches of the
bo Life of Bourbon.

246 THE CONSPIRACY

Since wrecks and outcaft relics ft ill remain,
Whirl'd ceafelefs round confufion's dreary reign,
Declare, from all thefe fragments, whence you

ftote

That genius wild, that monftrous mafs of foul ;
Where fpreads the \videft wafte of all extremes,
Full darknefs frowns, and heav'n's own fplendour

beams ;

Truth, error, falfehood, rhetoric's raging tide,
And pomp and meannefs, prejudice and pride,
Strain to an endlefs clang thy voice of fire,
Thy thoughts bewilder and thy audience tire/

Like Phoebus' fon, we fee thee wing thy way,.
Snatch the loofe reins, and mount the car of dayr
To earth now plunging plough thy wafting courie^
The great fublime of weaknefs and of force.
But while the world's keen eye, with generous-
glance,

Thy faults could pardon and thy worth enhance,
\Vhen foes were hufh'd, when juftice dar'd com
mend,

And e'en fond freedom claim'd thee as a friend,
Why, in a gulph of bafenefs, fink forlorn,
And change pure prai'fe for infamy and (corn ?

And clklft thou hope, by thy infuriate quill
To roufe mankind the blood of realms to fpill ?
Then to red ore, on death devoted plains,
Their fcourge to tyrants, and to man his chains i
To fvvell their fouls with thy own bigot rage, '
And blot the glories of fo bright an age ?
Firft ftretch "thy arm, an I, with lefs impious

might,

Wipe out the ftars, and" quench the folar light :
" For beavn and 'earth ," the voice of God ordains,
" Shall fafs and gerijb, but my word remains /'

0F K/XG'S, 247

TV eternal WORD, \vhich gave, in fpite of thee,
REASON to man, that bids ihe man be free.
Thou could'ft not hope : 'twas heav'n's return
ing grace,

In kind companion to our injur'd race,
Which ftripp'd that foul, ere it fhould flee from

hence.

Of the laft garb of decency or fenfe.
Left thee its own foul horrors to difplav,
In all the blacknefs of its native day,
To fink at lafr, from earte's glad furface hurlM,
The fordid fov'reign of the letter 'd world.

In fomc fad hour, ere death's dim terrors fpread,
Ere feas of dark oblivion whelm thy head,
Reflect, loft man, — If thofe, thy kindred knaves,
O'er the broad Rhine whofe flag rebellious waves,
Once draw the fword ; its burning point fhal!

bring

To thy quick nerves a never-ending fling ;
The blood they fhed thy weight of woe fhaH

fvvell,
And their grim ghofts for ever with the dwell.*

Learn hence, ye tyrants, ere ye learn too late,
Of all your craft th' inevitable fate.
The hour is come, the worlds incfofing eyes
Difcern with rapture where its wifclom lies ;
From weftern heav'ns th' inverted orient fprings,
The morn of man, the dreadful night of kings.
Dim, like the day-ftruck ov\l, ye grope in light,
No arm for combat, no refource in flight ;
If on your guards your lingering hopes repofe,
Your guards are men, and men you've made your
foes ;

^ See Note at tie end,

&J. THE CONSPIRACY

If to your rocky ramparts ye repair,
* De Launay's fate can .tell your fortune there.
'JNo turn, no fliift, no courtly arts avail,
Each tnaflc is broken, all illufions fail ;
Driv'n to your laft retreat of fhame and fear,
One counfeL waits you, ene relief is near:
By worth internal, rife to felf-wrought fame,
Your equal rank, your human kindred claim ;
'Tis reafon's choice, 'tis wifdom's final plan,
To drop the monarch and afTume the man.

Hail MAN, 'exalted title ! firft-and beft,
On God's own imagery his hand impreft,
To which at laft the reas'ning race is driven,
Ane feeks anew what firft it gain'd from heaven.
O MAN, niy brother, how the cordial flame
Of all endearments kindles at the Hime !
Li every clime, thy vifage greets my eyes,
In every tongue thy kindred accents rife ;
The thought expanding fwells my heart with glee,
It finds a friend, and loves itfelf in thee.

Say then, fraternal family divine,
Whom mutual wants and mutual aids combine,
Say from what fource the dire delufion rofe,
That fouls like ours were ever made for f.oes ;
Why earth's maternal bofom, where we tread,
To rear our man (roils and receive our bread,

* De Launny was the laft goiiernsr of the Bajlile*
tfis well-known cxii^ferving as a warning to other s,
faved the Jives of many commanders of fortreffes in
different parts of France , during the firji ftages oj
the rt'Vr'lu'flon. It may probably have the fame jalu-
tary efft.fi in other countries, whenever the agents of
defpotijm in thofe countries find the people are deter
mined to be free*

OF KINGS. 249

Should blufh fo often for the race (he bore,
S--> long be drench'd with floods of filial gore ;
Why to (mall realms for ever reft confin'd
Our great affe&bns, meant for all mankind.
Though climes divide us ; mall the dream or fea^
That forms a barrier 'twixt my friend and me,
Infpire the wifh his peaceful (tate to mar,
And me-et his falchion in the ranks of \var ?

Not feas, nor climes, nor wild ambit ion's fire
In nations' minds could e'er the wifli infpire ;
Where equal rights each fober voice fhould guide?
No blood would (lain them, and no war divide.
'Tis dark deception, *tis the glare of ftate,
Man funk in titles, loft in frnall and great ;
5Tis rank, diftinclion, all the hell that fprings
From thofe prolific monfters, courts and kings.
Thefe are the vampires nurs'd on nature's fpoils ;
For thefe with pangs the ftarving peafant toils,
For thefe the earth's broad furface teems with

grain,

Theirs the dread labours of the devious main ;
And when the wafted world but dares refu/e
The gifts oppreiTive and extorted dues,
They bid wild flaughter fpread the gory plains,
The life-blood gufhins from a thoufand veins,
Ere6l their thrones amid the funguine flood,
And dip their purple in the nation's bloocl.

The gazing crowd, of glittering (late afraH,.
Adore the power their coward meannefs made $
In war's iliort intervals, while regat ihows
\Still blind their reafoaand infult their woes.
What ftrange events for proud proceilions call !
See kingdoms crowding to a birth-night ball !
See the long pomp in gorgeous glare difplay'd,
The tinfel'd guards,, the fquadron'd horfe parade $

250 THE CONSPIRACY

See heralds gay, with emblems on their veft,
In tiiTu'd robes, tall, beauteous pages dreft ;
Amid fuperior ranks of fplendid flaves,
Lords, dukes and princes, titulary knaves,
Confus'dly fhine their erodes, gems and ftars,
Sceptres and globes and crowns and fpoils of wars.
On gilded orbs fee thundering chariots roll'd,
Steeds, fnorting fire, and champing bitts of gold,
Prance to the trumpet's voice j while each affumes
A loftier gait, and lifts his neck of plumes.
High on a moving throne, and near the van,
The tyrant rides, the chofen fcourge of man ;
Clarions and-flutes and drums his way prepare,
And fronting millions rend the troubled air ;
Millions, whofe ceafelefs toils the pomp fuftain,
\Vhofe hour of ftupid joy repays an age of pain.
Of thefe no more. From orders, flaves and

kings, x

To thee, O MAN,, my heart rebounding fprings,
Behold th5 afcencling blifs that waits thy call,
Heav'n's own bequeft, the heritage of all.
Awake to wifdom, feize the proffer'd prize ;
From fhade to light, from grief to glory rife.
Freedom at laft, with reafon in her train,
Extends o'er earth her everlafting reign ;
See Gallia's f©ns, fo late the tyrant's fport,
Machines in war and fycophants at court,
Start into men, expand their well-taught mind,
Lords of themfelves and leaders of mankind.
On equal rights their bafe of empire lies,
On walls of wifdom fee the ftru&ure rife ;
Wide o'er the gazing world it towers fublime,
A model I'd form for each fur rounding clime.
To ufeful toils they bend their nobleft aim,
Make patriot views and moral views the fame,

OF KINGS,

Renounce the wifh of war, bid conqueft ceafe,
Invite all men to happinefs and peace,
Xo faith and juftice rear the youthful race,
With ftrength exalt them arid with fcience grace,
Till truth's bleft banners, o'er the regions hurl'd,
Shake tyrants from their thrones, and cheer the
waking world.

In northern climes, where feudal fhades of late
Chill 'd every heart and palfied every ftate,
Behold, illumin'd by th' inftru6iive age,
That great phenomenon, a fceptred fage.
There Staniflaus unfurls his prudent plan,
Tears the ftrong bandage from the eyes of man,
Points the progreflive march, and (hapes the way,
That leads a realm from darknefs into day.

And deign, for once, to turn a trancient eye
To that wide world that fkirts the weftern fky ;
Hail the mild morning, where the dawn began,
The full fruition of the hopes of man.
Where fage experience feals the facred caufe ;
And that rare union, liberty and laws,
Speaks to the reas'ning race : to freedom rife
Like them be equal, and like them be wife.

NOTE ON MR. BURKE.
[_R>ferr':ng to pxge -247.]

* SOME cf tfie ai.tbor's friends in E-n^nd.,
Although .hey j-.?in \virh hrr in ccn.uring the
\v Tilings « f Mr. Br.;ke i.n the French n.v lution,
are or opifii n t'va die picture here drawn of that
•writer '.s too highly col 'ur d ; rr a' lead, 'hat 'I'.e
cenfnre is fo fevere as to lofe the cfted hat it might
rjfherwife produce, I; i im-pt ifible to fa.y what
efFcS, or uhcther any, has or will be produced
by thi^. poem ; but, out of refpeft to the opinion
ab.)ve iLted, it may b^ pr< per to m: ke fome ob-
fervaiions on the fffoSi that has already followed
from the \\ritins; ot Mr. B1 rke. I fpeak not of
vhat has taken place in England ; where it is
fuppoful ih<j*, contrary to his in?en;ions and th(^fe
of the govern fntjpt tlvat fet him at work, his mali
cious attack upon liberty has opened a difciiflion
\\ hich cannot be cl( fed until the u hole fyitem of
defpQtifm, \vhi\h he meant to fin port, mall be
overturned in that country. The prtfcnt war
ui h Fr..nce is d ubtltfs the lad piece of deluilon
that a fet «>t hereditary tyrants will ever be able to
jmpcfe upon the people of EngLmd,

But this Gjbjed opens a held of contempla'ion
far more ferio-i- and extcnfive on the con inent c-f
Europe; where, if Mr. Bihke can view without
horror the immuv'ltv of t* e mifclicfs he has done,
he \\ ill mow himfclf worthy of much higher at
tributes of wi.krdncfs than have yet been afciibed
t to him. It is a painful tail: to traverfe fuch a wide
fcene of flaughter and defoliation as now invc-lves
tiie nations of Europe, ?nd then to h v it all to the
charge of a fingle individual : efpecially when we
conlider that indivitltial as having, ior a lon^ tim«

NOTE ON MR.- BURKE; 253

before, enjoyed the confidence of all good men,
and having at laft betrayed it from the worft and
vileft motives ; as he had eftablifhed his* previous
reputation by fpeaking the language of liberty,
and profeflmg himfelf to be the friend of national
felicity. But it is not from a tranfitory difguft
at • his deteftible principles, it is from delibeiate
obfervation and mature conviction, that I ftate it
as an hiftorical fa6l:, That the prefent war, with
all its train of calamities, muft be attributed al-
nioft exclufively to the pen of Mr. Burke.

There is a peculiar combination of circum-
(tances which threw this power into his hands,
and which ought to be duly confidered, before we
come to a decifion on the fiibjecl:. The people of
England had enjoyed for feveral ages a much
greater portion of liberty than any other people in
Europe. This had raifed them to a great degree
of eminence in many refpects. At the fame time
that it rendered them powerful as a nation, it
.made them fober, induftrious, and per fevering,
as individuals ; it taught them to think and fpeak
with a certain air of dignity, independence, and
precifion, which was unknown in other coun
tries. This circumftance could not fail to gain
the admiration of foreigners, and to excite a per
petual emulation among themMves. England has
therefore produced more than her proportion of
the illuftrious men of modern times, efpccially in
politics and legislation, as tliefe affairs came with
in the reach of a larger clafs of men ia that coun
try than in any other.

In a nation where there is an enormous civil

lilt at the difpofal ef the crown, and a conlliru-

tional fpirit of liberty kept alive in the people, w-i

•niu ft necefTurily ex peel to find two parties in ths

X

254 N'OTE ON MR. BURKE.

government. In fuch a cafe, as the king is fure
to carry all the meafures that he dares to propofe,
the party in favour of the people are called the op-
pofitlon ; and it being always a minority, it gives
occafion for great exertion of talents, and is fup-
pofed to be the nurfe of every public virtue. Such
has been the compofition of the Englifh govern
ment ever fince the laft: revolution. The oppo-
fition has been the fchool of great men ; its prin
cipal difciples have been the apoftles of liberty;
and their exertions have made the Britim name
refpe&able in every part of the world. Mr.
Burke had been for many years at the head of this
fchool ; and from the brilliant talents he difcover-
ed in that confpicuous ftation, he rendered himfelf
univerfally refpe&ed. His eloquence was of that
flowery and figurative kind, which attracted great
admiration in foreign countries ; where it was
viewed, for the mod part, through the medium of
a tranflation ; fo that he was confidered, at lead in
every country out of England, as the ableft advo
cate of liberty that then exifted in Europe. Even
kings and tyrants, who hated the caufe, cculd not
withhold their veneration from the man.

Under thefe impreflions, their attention was
called to the great event of the French revolution.
It was a fubjeft which they did riot under ftand, a
bufmefs in which they had no intention to inter*
fere ; as it was evidently no concern of theirs.
But viewed as a fpeculative point, it is as natural
for kings as for other perfons to wait till they
learn what great men have faid, before they form
their opinion. Mr. Burke did not fuffer them to
remain long in fufpenfe \ but, to enlighten their
underftandings and teach them how to judge, he
came forward with his " Refifiions on the

NOTE ON MR. BURKE. 255

tion in France ;" where, in his quality of the po
litical fchool-mafter of his sge, in his quality of
the profefTed enemy of tyrants, the friend of the
people, and the mod enlightened leader of the
moft enlightened nation in Europe, he tells ihem
that this revolution is an abominable ufurpation of
a gang of beggarly tyrants ; that its principle is
atheifm and anarchy ; that its instruments are
murders, rapes, and plunders \ that its object is
to hunt down religion, overturn fociety, and de
luge the world in blood. Then, in the whining
cant of (late-piety, and in the cowardly infolence
of perfonal fafety, he calls upon the principal

foverei^ns of Europe to unite in a general conted-

G i **•'** • r •

eratinn, to march into r ranee, to interfere m

the affairs of an independent power, to make war
with the principles which he himfeH had long la
boured to fupport, to ( verturn the nobleft monu
ment of human wifdom, and blait the faireft
hopes of public happinefs that the world had ever
ften.

Copies of his book were fent in great profudon
by the courts of London and Paris to the other
courts of Europe ; it was read by all men of let
ters, and by all men of ftate, with an avidity in-
fpired by the celebrity of the author and the mag
nitude of the fubjecl: ; and it produced an effect
which,, in other circumftancec, would have ap
peared almofl miraculous ; efpecially when we
conflder the intrinsic character of the work. M.
de Caionne, about the fame time, publifhed a book
of much more internal merit ; a bo^-k in which
falfehood is clothed in a more decent covering ; and
in which there is more energy and argument, to
excite the champions of defpoiifm to begin the
work of defolation. But Caionne wrote and ap-

256 NOTE ON MR. BURKE.

peared in his true charadler. It was known that
he had been a robber in France, and was now an
exile in England ; and, while he herded with the
Englifh robbers at St. James's, he wrote to revenge
himfelf upon the country whofe juftice he had
efcaped. His writings, therefore, had but little
weight ; perhaps as little as Mr. Burke's would
have had, if his real object had been known.

But this illuftrious hypocrite pofTefled every ad
vantage for deception. He palmed himfelf upon
the world as a volunteer in the general caufe of
philanthropy. Giving himfelf up to the frenzy
of an unbridled imagination, he conceives himfelf
writing tragedy, without being confined to the
obvious laws of fiftion ; and taking advantage of
the recency of the events, and of the ignorance of
thofe who were to read his rhapfodies, he peoples
France with aflaffins, for the fake of raifin^ a
hue-and-cry againft its peaceable inhabitants ; he
paints ideal murders, that they may be avenged by
the reality of a wide extended ..(laughter ; he tranf-
forms the mildeft and mod generous people in
Europe into a nation of monfters and ath'eifts,
t€ heaping mountains upon mountains, and wag
ing war with heaven, " that he may intereft the
confciences of one part of his readers, and cloak
the hypocrify of another, to induce them both to
renounce the chara&er of men, while they avenge
the caufe of God.

Such was the fir ft picture of the French revo
lution prefented at once to the eyes of all the men
who held the reins of government in the feveral
ftates of Europe ; and fuch was the authority of
the author by whom it was prefented, that we are
not to be aftonimed at the effect. The emigrant
princes, and the agents of the court of the Thuil-

NOTE ON MR. BURKE. 257

leries, who were then befieging the anti-chambers
of miniders in every country, found a new fource
of impudence i.i this extraordinary work. They
found their own invented fictions confirmed in
their fulled latitude, and a rich variety of fuper-
added falfehood, of which the mod fhamelefs fyco-
phant of Louis or of Conde would blufh to have
been the author. Wish this book in their hands,
it was eafy to gain the ear of men already predif-
pofed -toliden to any project which might rivet
the chains of their fellow creatures.

Thefe arguments, detailed by proper agentsi
induced fome of the principal fovereigns of Eu
rope to agree to the treaty of Pilnitz; then the
death of Leopold, as I have dated in the preface,
unhappily removed the crreat obdacle to the exe
cution of that treaty, and the war of Mr. Burke
was let loofe, with all the horrors he intended to
excite. And what is the language proper to be
ufed indefcribing the character of a man, who, in
his fituation, at his time of life, and for a penfion
of only fifteen hundred pounds a year, could fit
down deliberately in his clofet and call upon the
powers of earth and hell to inflicl fuch a weight of
mifery on the human race ? When we fee Alex
ander depopulating kingdoms and reducing great
cities to afhes, we tranfport ourfelves to the age in
which he lived, when human daughter was hu
man glory ; and we make fome allowance for the
ravings of ambition. If we contemplate the
frightful cruelties of Cortez and Pizarro, we view
their characters as a competition of avarice, and
fanaticifm ; we fee them infatiable of wealth, and
mad with the idea of extending the knowledge of
their religion. But here is a man who calls him-
(elf a philofopher^ not remarkable for his avarice^

258 NOTE ON MR. BURKE.

the delight and ornament of a numerous fociety of
valuable friends, refpe£ted by all enlightened men
as a friend ef peace and preacher of humanity,
living in an age when military madnefs has loft its
charms, and men -begin to unite in fearching the
means of avoiding the horrors. of war ; this man,
wearied with the happinefs tha* fur rounds him,
and difgufted at the ^lory that awaits Htoy renoun
ces alt his friends, belies the doclrines ofHtisfor-
mer life, bev/ails that the military favageiiefs of
the fourteenth century is paft away, and, to gratify
his barbarous wifhes to call it back, conjures up a
war, in whicfi at lean: two millions of his fellow
creatures rnuft be facrificed to his unaccountable
paflion. Such is the condition of human nature,
that the greateft crimes have ufually gone unpu-
nillied. It appears to me, that hiltory does not
furniih a greater one than this of .Mr. Burke ; and
yet all the confolation that ^J#e can dr^w from the
dete&ion, is to leave the man to his own refiecli-
onsj and '^xpofe his condu£l to the execration of
psfierity.

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